
FATE

(The Mentality of Men)

The Novel

By: J.Buchanan

Infinite Fiction 2020
PART  
ONE

# Chapter 1

Far above the Pacific Ocean

September 2021

Awesome gray and orange iridescent clouds stretched for miles over the vast blue waters toward the sunset. A humongous military plane was heading west while cutting through the scattered cumulus.

The aircraft contained no side windows and consisted of two hundred convicted criminals, including Rolando and Gabriel. It was called the Penitentiary Pacific Transplane. Every country had a Transplane used to transport Class-A felons to the island of Guam, en route to Penitentiary Pacific.

The two Air Force pilots in the cockpit spotted a small island not far ahead as they lowered from the clouds. Their hours of following the pacific sunset were almost over. The Bay International Airport became visible as they progressed. Fifteen minutes later the plane was skidding onto the smoothly paved landing strip of runway number six.

The craft came to a complete stop near a squadron of armed soldiers. The pilots disembarked and went to meet up with the soldiers. Soon after, several cadets boarded the plane and systematically began to unload the prisoners when the seats' electronic shackles turned off.

They lead the captives off the plane and over to the roadside where a long row of dull-hued buses awaited. All the felons from the North American plane were loaded onto the motor buses in pairs, filling up two busloads. Each of the buses contained four armed guards sitting in the backseats with loaded rifles.

Rolando and Gabriel were on the same bus but were not seated together. Rolando was in the front on the driver's side, shackled to a thirty five year old serial child molester from the suburbs of Montreal. Gabriel was seated near the back of the bus, shackled to a twenty eight year old man from Santa Fe who was convicted for the murder of his neighbor's entire household.

The buses cranked up and started the delivery journey down a winding road that traced the island's coastline and eventually led to the Agana Bay. Once there, they parked parallel to where the Shuttle train tracks were. The driver of the bus that Rolando and Gabriel were on, signaled to the guards before stepping off the bus to go chat with the other drivers.

While the driver was gone the prisoners gazed hopelessly out of the side windows. Rolando observed in a daze as the long Shuttle Train awaited their occupancy. It was silver and cylindrical in shape with a pointy front end, similar to that of an eighty foot missile. It was sitting on a thick rail line that stretched a half-mile forward before dropping into a wide tunnel in the ground.

The tunnels that the rail lines led into were the ones that funneled into the island's interior. Track A would lead Rolando, Gabriel, and over five hundred other prisoners from around the world to their new home beneath the ocean floor. The second tunnel passage was used for transporting military guards and other prison personnel up to the surface of the island from the penitentiary.

The twin tunnels looked like two large holes in the ground from above. They were equipped with many high-powered ventilation ducts that sucked in fresh air like lungs. There was strict supervision at each end of both tunnels, with an overflow of guards onboard every Shuttle Train that entered.

Rolando was stunned at what was occurring right before his eyes. Shit had gotten realer than real for him and Gabriel. They were in the process of being taken to a maximum-security underground prison colony. His future seemed bleak and it took no time to realize that his life was never going to be the same. The bus driver startled everyone when he jumped back on the bus and began to make a loud announcement.

"Your attention please. You all will remain shackled to your seats until the other buses arrive with the international prisoners. They are scheduled to be here shortly. Please hold tight and be patient."

Two of the four guards in the back of the bus got up and walked down the aisle. They stopped in the front and posted up by the driver's seat, facing the prisoners with their rifles cocked. All the prisoners were sitting obediently without flinching, even the ones who were uncomfortable and had to urinate.

*

From the window of the bus, I watched the sun set into the ocean and the sky turn from one perfectly blended color to another. After thirty horrible minutes of anticipating the Shuttle Train ride, three buses rolled up and parked in front of the bus that I was on. The prisoners on those buses looked like they were from Europe and Asia. They appeared to be just as depressed as we were.

Minutes later there was a trail of five more buses that pulled up alongside us. Each motorbus in that caravan was filled with a group of criminals from different regions of the world. All five buses parked parallel to where our bus was. Everyone was looking out of the windows at one another with the same blank, sorrow-burdened expression.

Three minutes later, more buses pulled up containing passengers from various other countries. Those buses parked on the other side of the street. Shortly after that, our driver got back on the bus and told the guards to unload and line us up outside in pairs.

Once we were all off the bus, I was lined up near the front of the pack. All the guards and the prisoners from the other buses followed the same unloading procedure; and since the North American buses had arrived before any of the other buses, we were led over to the Shuttle Train first.

This walk was by far the longest walk of my life. My chest pounded like an 808 bass drum and I was quivering with every step. The heavy manacles chained to my ankles made it difficult for me to walk as fast as the guards were commanding us to. By the time everyone was loaded onto the Shuttle train it was completely dark outside. The guy who I was shackled to was seated with me in the front of the train, directly across from the Shuttle operator. We were so close to the operator that I was able to watch his every move as he flipped the switches and punched the buttons on the control board, preparing for our trip underground.

I glanced around the train and spotted Gabe several rows behind me. He was seated with a remorseless looking black man with knife scars on his face and neck. Gabe and I made eye contact and shared a grim look that I'd only seen before at funerals. His eyes were watered and all of my courage seemed to just ooze out of my pores when I saw. I felt ridiculously weak and had to turn my head to avoid getting emotional.

The Shuttle Train doors closed and sealed with a loud noise. The inside lights illuminated and before I knew it, the train was starting to move and we were heading down the tracks toward the huge hole in the ground. My heart thumped hastily and so was my breathing.

An abrupt and steep drop caught me off guard when we got to the edge of the train tracks. Everything except for the inside of the train became blindingly black like we were going down a black hole in outer space. Many people had weak stomachs and started to throw up.

Our journey down this precipitous slope was like a never-ending free fall. Boisterous noises made it seem like we were trapped in the eye of a tornado. We were going at least two hundred miles per hour and the tension was too much for me to handle. I closed my eyes as tight as possible and tried to block out the deafening clatter. While doing that I prayed to God and asked for protection.

My organs dropped to my feet and my ears popped several times as the steepness of the ride increased. Had I not known any better I would have thought that we were on our way to hell. Immediately I blacked out for a few minutes that seemed like hours. When the slope leveled off and the train was slowing down, I finally came to.

My eyes opened and I saw extremely bright yellow and blue lights ahead at the end of the tunnel. This was the beginning of the end.

# Chapter 2

Human beings have been the designers and the constructors of several wondrous objects, such as the Great Pyramid of Giza and the International Space Station. Another architectural masterpiece derived from the brains of mankind was Penitentiary Pacific. It was a place set apart from all other societies on Earth, rivaling the size and the population of a large metropolis.

Sixty percent of its space was used for its millions of convict residents. Twenty percent of it was used to house the military personnel and administrators. Thirteen percent was for the cafeterias and supply storages, and seven percent of the penal territory consisted of Hospital Wards and miscellaneous departments.

The construction of Penitentiary Pacific began in 2009 and ended in 2019. It was planted deep inside of the solid uppermost mantle of Earth, right within the lithosphere, which is both the coolest and the most rigid of Earth's layers. The world's top engineers and architects did the actual designing and construction of the prison habitat, and its multi trillion-dollar funding came from numerous nations across the globe.

During the mid 2000s, Guam was declared an island of catastrophe because of the many unpredictable natural disasters constantly ravishing the peninsula. All non-military residents were forced to permanently evacuate the island because of the danger. Following the island's abandonment, the United Nations decided to convert the calamity-stricken woodland into an International Corrections Base. This was when the production of Penitentiary Pacific began.

The illumination throughout a majority of the penitentiary appeared to be lime green, due to a brilliant luster of bright yellow and bright blue lights shining from the ceilings. This made it easier for the military police and the other personnel to keep visuals on the inmates.

The blueprint of this prison colony was similar to the setup of a major city. There was a vast network of boulevards, avenues, streets and lanes for the military Shuttle buses to travel from sector to sector. Also there were hundreds of roads and corridors used for bikes and walking.

This penal institution was divided up into five sectors, similar to boroughs. The Central Sector of the prison was like a downtown. This was where the main cafeteria and the main laundry rooms were located. Also this was where the Main Control & Surveillance Rooms were stationed.

Surrounding the Central Sector was the North, South, East and the West Sectors, where most of the prison cells were located. An additional Disciplinary Detainment Sector was positioned in the basement underneath the Central Sector. The interior of Penitentiary Pacific was nice and decent, but the inmates' sectors were nowhere near as inviting as the quarters of the military personnel and the administrators, which were located at the far North and far West sectors, like suburbs. They had lofts instead of cells, and carpet instead of cold floors. Most of the administrators and the military personnel dined at their sector's private cafe instead of the main cafeterias. They wanted as little contact with the inmates as possible.

From the island surface, the entrance and exit tunnels of the penitentiary stretched several miles into the ground to reach the prison, which was a couple more miles beneath the ocean floor. The entire establishment and its twin tunnels were built earthquake resistant. The force of an earthquake could still be felt, but the exterior was made to withstand any actual damage.

The foundation of the penitentiary was under the Marianas Trenches. It was the largest penitentiary ever built, with enough space to hold over five million inmates. The daily functions were held together by an abundant and well-organized administration.

The security of the institution operated in conjunction with each country's military. Every prisoner was subject to a random search by a member of the martial staff at any time. Privacy did not exist and no incoming packages were allowed. Also, there was no visitation. The closest thing to visitation was a room called the Communication Room, where approved inmates could occasionally talk to a guest through Skype for eight minutes.

The inmate population consisted of all races, colors and creeds. It was a huge melting pot of human differences. The convict domiciles were purposely mixed to prevent ethnic clicking, but the effect was the opposite because it made them click even more when outside of the cells.

The military police guards only provided protection for the inmates when necessary. But when it came to enforcing policies, the police guards were excessive with their methods. Most fights occurred in discrete locations and there was no way of actually knowing who was involved. Nor was there any effort to find out. Therefore, for real security and comfort, inmates of likeness all clung together like electrons, which eventually encouraged the manifestation of gangs.

Today's Shuttle Train delivery consisted of over five hundred convicts who were unloaded, assembled, and stripped of all garments. They were given solid black uniforms for lights-on, and loud fluorescent uniforms to wear when it was lights-out.

Next they all underwent the embedding process, where a microchip was implanted into the left nostril for detection purposes. This chip identified a prisoner's nine-digit serial number and served as a tracking device. Once this process was completed the group was transferred over to the penitentiary's South Sector.

As they woefully approached their new living quarters, the prisoners noticed that the cell blocks had no bars. But in actuality, each cell entrance had a slight tint of radiation, composed of high-speed gamma ray particles that caused fatal shock.

The glow of the entrance tint, and a bulb in the corner of every cell, symbolized whether or not the radiation was active. When it was blue the particles were inactive. When it was red the particles were harmfully active.

# Chapter 3

South Sector first floor

November 2021

It was daytime but the sun was always absent in this cloistered environment. A countless number of high-powered LED lamps emitted light from above like fusion.

Several levels and countless miles of huge intertwining square tunnels strategically connected all sectors and subsectors of the penitentiary like an underground city. Shuttle-buses traveled up and down the various streets while bikers and pedestrians used designated side lanes and pathways.

This penal society operated similar to a caste system, with the prisoners serving as confined peasants to the military administration. The prison personnel and administration moved around freely while the convicts could not. Abundant Military-Police presence could be found everywhere, especially in the Sectors that housed the prisoners. All in all, it was a place where disrespect, egos and attitudes flowed like a flurry.

Deep within the South Sector, were extensive corridors consisting of rows and rows of cell blocks like street blocks. Over on the first floor, all the way down in one of the corner cells, Rolando was sitting on the top bunk of one of the bunk beds. He and his three cellmates had just gotten back from another long day of mandatory labor.

Lying on the bottom of the other bunk bed was a cellmate named Lenny. He was in his thirties and overweight with a lot of sores on his arms. He was relaxing and picking his nose when he let off a machine gun chain of farts that grossed out everyone.

Richard, one of the other cellmates, was twentyish and slim with a British accent. He was on the bottom bunk under Rolando, and the smell must have hit him first because he became frustrated and frowned with aversion.

"Am I the only one getting tired of this, disgusting bloody slob over here?" he whispered to Rolando. "He's got no home training."

Rolando cracked a smile but didn't answer.

Lenny sat up abruptly and glared over at Richard. "I can hear you, you English prick! Fuck you!" he scathed.

"I'm just saying, buddy, you never shower and you fart all day, every day!" Richard complained. "This cell is too small for that shit."

Lenny got out of his cot and approached Richard. "You little asshole, nobody talks about me like that!" He dove onto Richard and started to strangle him like he was from the Hillside.

Rolando was shocked and the noise woke up the other cellmate from his nap. At first, he and Rolando did not want to get involved, but soon they had to work together to pry Lenny off of Richard because Richard was a breath away from unconsciousness.

Soon after, military Guards rushed into the cell and started to beat on the convicts. They eventually contained Richard by using megawatt Taser guns.

-South Sector third floor

A group of armed Military-Police led a line of twenty inmates down the 3 Bravo Red hallway. Alverez Zsapata was shackled and walking at the front of the line. He was new to the penitentiary like the rest of the group, and had just completed the orientation process.

He was unshaven and already ten pounds lighter than before.

Two of the guards grabbed Alverez by the arm and took him away from the group, directly over to where his new cell assignment was. When the radiation glow disappeared, they pushed him into a cell at the end of the corridor. After the radiation tint reappeared, the two guards turned around and went back to join the group.

Once inside of the cell, Alverez looked lost. Gabriel and the other two cellmates stared at him as he slowly walked to the vacant bunk.

"Welcome," Gabriel said.

# Chapter 4

3 a.m. Cell Block S11492

January 2022

*

I woke up in the middle of the night again because of another one of those crazy nightmares that I'd been having. The cot that I was lying on felt like a park bench, so I was annoyed and uncomfortable while looking up at the darkness and thinking about salvation.

I guess it's true that, like cockroaches, human beings can adapt to and survive in the most extreme and harsh conditions. I'd always thought that I would go crazy or end up dead if I ever went to jail. I never thought that I could handle being part of any prison population, especially not one like Penitentiary Pacific. It was no mothafucking joke.

From the very first day that I arrived I was miserable. I had to get used to a whole new way of life. It was a highly predatory environment, like adapting to an orderly jungle habitat with wild humans instead of wild animals. There were countless rules and regulations but the bottom line was survival of the fittest.

My first month there I was getting a lot of whack ass stares from the other inmates. But I never paid it any mind unless they actually stepped to me. Which was exactly what happened with the first two altercations I had. In one of those fights I was jumped by these three big ass communist mothafuckers for no reason at all. I held my own but they got the best of me because I was outnumbered. I hadn't seen any of those punk bastards since.

A couple weeks before all of that happened, I had a one on one squabble in the cafeteria with this fat ass Mongolian man who tried to take my shit. I ended up whipping his ass and knocking him out because he was too slow. Because of that I had to spend three days in a four by four Disciplinary Detainment cell, despite the fact that I didn't even start the fight.

I never started fights. I always minded my own business and stuck to myself, but that was probably why mothafuckers thought they could test me. The only people who I felt had my back were my cellmates, although a lot of the times we weren't together outside of the cell. And of course, whenever Gabe and I were together we looked out for one another. But we weren't always together because his cell was on a different floor and a different release schedule than my floor.

So basically, it was the strength from God that enabled me to cope with all the bullshit and the animosity that transpired. Even the military guards in the penitentiary were more ruthless to us than they were helpful. I remember one time back when I first got there, I saw this big-ass dude from Uganda who was built like a superhero, get bashed and zapped repeatedly by the guards until he convulsed. That beat down stayed on my mind for a long time. Sometimes it even gave me nightmares that I was the victim.

This sudden life change was almost making me go crazy. It was like living an entirely different and depressing existence. Every day from early morning to late night we had to do various labor assignments. The only real leisure we got was when it was sleep time.

Down in this hellhole, sunrise was substituted by a penitentiary-wide glare that was brighter than the sun at high noon, and lasted almost fourteen hours. Intense lights beamed from the ceilings above and represented daytime; and since our day uniforms were jet black, we all walked around looking like live shadows. The other ten hours we all looked like Tron when the lights were off, because we were draped in fluorescent uniforms that glowed in the dark.

The worst thing of all to me was that this place was completely cut off from the outside world. I hadn't been able to see or converse with any of my friends or relatives since the day I was arrested. The hardest thing for me to get used to was the fact that I would probably never be able to see any of them again. I missed my family, my friends, and especially my girlfriend Shaile. I know she was overwhelmed by all of the stuff that happened to me.

If I could have just disappeared from that prison cell it would have been a dream come true. But escaping was a dream forever deferred. No one had ever gotten away from this penitentiary. It was virtually impossible. The entrance tunnels were so well secured that it would be a death wish to try to escape.

The smart thing for me to do was to stop all that wishful thinking because I needed to get used to my new home. I decided to go ahead and go back to sleep because before long it would be time for everyone to get up and start another long day of hard labor.

I said a brief prayer for my future days to get better and not worse. Then I closed my eyes and began to think about what happened to get me here in the first place, back on the night of the arrest.

# Chapter 5

Bethesda, MD

Many months earlier

The giant gateway entrance to this subdivision looked like the gates of heaven. Beyond the gates was a gorgeous nature-decorated neighborhood that resembled a paradise portrait. Dozens of awesome estates outlined a ten acre community lake. In the northeast section of the hood was a distinct house made of differently shaded red bricks. The outer surface of the home resembled a three-story fortress with several arched windows and a solar paneled rooftop.

Behind the house was a huge backyard with three barbeque grills flaming, producing succulent gourmet smoke from a variety of meats, vegetables and seafood. Also, there were five kegs and four barrels of spiked punch spread across the lawn. Of about forty young adults hanging out and socializing throughout the backyard, almost everyone had a drink in hand unless they were swimming or playing volleyball.

The weather was as perfect as a Caribbean day. Weed smoke drifted on a nice calm breeze, producing a scent like oven-baked edibles. The reflection of the setting sun made the lake look shiny. Small piers extended out to the lake from the backyards of every house on the block. At the nearest pier there were people jumping into the lake and having wild water splashing contests. They were all happy like kids at a playground.

The headcount at the party increased as the minutes went by. A majority of the guests were breathtaking females who were laughing and having a good time. There were ravishing girls of various ethnicities, all exerting extreme sex appeal with skimpy outfits that looked painted on.

Enjoying the view of the backyard from up on the terrace of the house, were three Georgetown University students who were celebrating their completion of graduate school. Twenty-two year old African American, Rolando Reynolds, was over six feet tall and resembled a handsome chocolate statue. Twenty two year old Gabriel Juarez was Hispanic with sun-kissed skin and striking features. And twenty three year old Chris Klughes was biracial with a somewhat pointed nose, mid length curly black hair and hazel eyes.

Chris, nicknamed Cherokee, had an unlit blunt in his ear and was sipping Remy Martin straight from the bottle. Rolando had a Corona bottle in hand and was taking a puff from a plump sativa blunt. Gabriel was pouring alcohol for some of the many sexy females who were up on the balcony partying with them. They were all having a blast while drinking, smoking, chatting and eating.

*

Tomorrow was finally the big day and I had been celebrating in a big way. I had a week of being strong and a week of being weak. An array of activities I didn't even seek. But most of my days were spent in a daze while hanging with Cherokee and my boy Gabe.

Now it was time for the graduation party to begin. By the time I made it to Gabe's crib, actually his parents' house, there were already cars parked along both sides of the street. Luckily I found a space to park the new Corvette that Moms had gotten me for graduation, right in front of the curved driveway. Gabe had saved that spot for me because he loved my new car just as much as I did.

The house was on a street that outlined a huge community lake. His parents were out of town so we had the place to ourselves. When I made it around to the back of the house there were already twenty people hanging out and socializing. Once I found Gabe and Cherokee, I started helping them set up the kegs and the tables around the backyard. The DJ was already set up and bumping some good music. More and more people kept pouring in by the minute. An hour later as the sun started to set, there had to be at least fifty people there.

I was overcome with bliss. Food and drinks were everywhere. We had shrimp, ribs, steaks, burgers, hot dogs, vegetables and all. The drinks were liquor, beer, champagne, wine, soda and water. Even better, most of the people there were super fine females. Some girls who I knew but most girls who were new. All of them were wearing alluring outfits that looked painted on. And since my girlfriend Shaile hadn't made it to town yet, me and the fellas were having a fantastic time flirting and mingling.

As the evening progressed, the population flourished to well over a hundred people. The music and the kegs were still pumping and practically everyone was on cloud nine. The DJ's selections kept our heads nodding and the caterers joined in on the fun after they finished their hours of grilling. Even some of Gabe's neighbors were out on their back patios partaking in the atmosphere.

My mind was at ease on this graduation eve. We had a spot with a group of girls up on the balcony overlooking the backyard and the lake. Cherokee had an unlit blunt in his ear and was sipping Remy Martin straight from the bottle. I had a Corona bottle in hand and was taking a puff from a plump blunt, and Gabe was pouring alcohol for some of the girls who were up there with us. Everyone was having a blast while drinking, smoking, chatting and eating.

I could tell that Cherokee was super high because he was talking about conspiracy theories. He started talking about the corona virus pandemic that happened last year, blaming it on the government.

"I'm telling y'all man," he was saying, "The Illuminati is real. The government and extraterrestrial beings are working to control everybody's lives."

Me and Gabe gave each other a comically cynical look.

"Uh oh, here we go again," Gabe said while passing me the blunt.

"Man anything is possible," I said. "But realistically, if there were aliens here, all us humans would be either dead or enslaved."

"By an obviously superior species," said one of the girls in our group.

"Yeah totally," Gabe chimed in. "If they made it here from some other star system, then they're definitely more intelligent than us."

"No doubt, and they'd be able to fuck us up easily if they wanted to," I continued. "So why would they just be hanging out around Earth trying to dodge us?"

Cherokee raised his eyebrow and looked at all of us in a weird way, then he said, "Or, what if they just wanna keep us alive and experiment on us for some weird type of alien purposes?"

Everybody got quiet and looked at each other seriously for a second, then we busted out laughing. Suddenly I remembered that I wanted to hit the liquor store before it got too late, because the stores in Gabe's part of town closed early.

I blew out a cloud of smoke and passed the blunt to Cherokee. "Bruh, you never know," I said, standing up from my chair. "But yo, I need to make a quick run to the store for some more blunts and shit."

"I'll roll with you," Gabe said. "You ladies want anything from the store?"

Most of the girls smiled and shook their heads. One of them said, "No thanks. You boys hurry back though."

Cherokee pulled out a hundred dollar bill and gave it to Gabe. "Grab some more champagne boss," he said, smiling. "I'll stay here and keep the ladies company."

"I'm sure you will," I joked.

A hot blonde with a nice rack was sitting on Gabe's lap. He patted her on the butt. "We'll be back in a minute," he said, as she got up.

I slapped hands with Cherokee before me and Gabe headed out. We carefully made our way down the balcony steps to the backyard. After weaving through a large crowd of people, we made it around to the front of the house. Then we hopped into my new Corvette C8. Gabe asked to drive and I looked at him like he was crazy.

"Moms just got me this shit yesterday," I told him. "I aint even broke it in yet!"

In no time we were on our way. We headed down the street to exit the subdivision. I pumped the music up and opened the moonroof to catch the breeze. Life was great and I felt blessed.

# Chapter 6

Like a stalking leopard, they had been waiting outside of the subdivision gates for a while for their victim. Their instructions were very specific and millions of dollars were at stake. This made them especially eager to proceed with caution with what they were being paid to do.

Two police officers were rolling only a hundred feet behind the Corvette as it turned onto Middle Passage Blvd. They were ready to enact a plan to sabotage the life and the image of an innocent young man.

Officer Tweed pulled out two pairs of black latex gloves and gave one to his partner, Officer Foster. "You ready to get this thing done," he asked.

"Yes," Foster said. "Smooth and easy, with no complications."

"We'll be fine," Tweed said. "Gonna treat it like a routine traffic stop."

Foster took a deep breath and said, "Alright. Let's go ahead and get'em before he gets too far."

He turned on the sirens and the boulevard lit up with bright flashing lights. The squad car accelerated and began to close in on the Corvette. At first the sports car sped up like it was going to flee, but soon it slowed down and pulled over to the side of the road. Foster turned the sirens off and let the bright lights remain flashing as he pulled up behind the car.

"Ok, I'm going in," Tweed said eagerly, before the car could even stop. "You wait a couple minutes before coming over, while I check out his license."

Foster put the car in park and said, "Will do." He watched Tweed get out and walk over to the Corvette. While Tweed was gone, Foster opened up the glove compartment and pulled out a flask of gin. He took a deep swig and continued to calmly observe his partner in action.

A minute later, Tweed came back to the squad car and got in. He had the licenses of Rolando Reynolds and Gabriel Juarez. He handed Rolando's license to Foster and said, "This looks like our man." Then looking at Gabriel's I.D., he continued. "But there's two of them in the car. We're only after the black one, right?"

Foster took the I.D. and said, "Yeah, but so what. That's not gonna stop us from sticking to the plan."

"Uhh, I don't know. Now it's more complicated with another person involved."

"Look Tweed, don't bitch-out on me now. You already agreed to do it. Plus you need the money, even more than me. This will be the easiest payday ever!"

Following a momentary silence, Tweed said, "Ok, but let's be careful, very careful. We don't need any mistakes."

"Of course," Foster said. "And when this is all over, we oughta charge that rich bastard more money for doing this."

"Good idea," Tweed said, smiling with teeth like stalagmite. "Oh and guess what," he remembered, the car smells like a ton of pot! So now we actually have a legitimate reason to search the car."

"Wow, that's perfect," Foster said, before taking a final swig from his flask. "Alright let's get this over with, quick and easy."

Tweed got out first and walked over to the Corvette. Foster picked his nose like a kid while watching Tweed proceed. He waited a few moments before deciding to get out and go help his partner solidify the set-up of an innocent citizen, two innocent citizens.

While Tweed was shining his flashlight directly into the faces of Rolando and Gabriel, Foster eased his way over to the rear of the sports car and placed two duffle bags on the ground. He was able to stay out of sight from the police camera as he situated the evidence.

Over in the car Rolando and Gabriel were automatically sobered up, even though they reeked of weed and liquor from the party.

"You boys smell mighty drunk," Tweed insinuated. "I'm gonna need yall to pop the trunk and step out of the car, now."

Rolando and Gabriel got out of the car with their hands up, while Foster was rummaging around in the trunk of the sports car.

Rolando respectfully asked, "But officer, what did I do to get pulled over?"

Suddenly Foster shouts from the trunk of the car, "Holy shit! What do we have here?!"

"What is it?" Tweed questioned?

"Looks like there's a big bag of cocaine, and some pills and some money!"

Rolando and Gabriel looked at each other confused, like WTF?

*

I couldn't believe this shit was actually happening! It was all incredibly fucked up! What in God's name did we do to get stopped by the police? There was no reason for them to be fuckin' with us. But once they pulled us over it wasn't good, because we smelled like a pound of weed and hella liquor.

The cops made us get out and they searched the car kind of eagerly. I started to get a bad feeling when the short stubby cop called out to the tall sloppy cop from the trunk of the car. He was shouting about some drugs and money being back there. I was like no way, because there was like no way that could be possible.

He shoved us over to the trunk of the car and shined the flashlight over two duffle bags, exposing a bunch of money and what appeared to be bags of sugar and pills. I almost freaked out when I saw that shit.

Gabe looked at me and said, "Lando, what the fuck? Where'd that shit come from?"

"The hell if I know!" I retorted.

I looked at the cop and said, "Sir, this has gotta be some kind of mistake! I've never seen any of this before in my life, really! I just got this car yesterday as a graduation present!"

Gabe was nervous and so was I. But I knew for a fact that those bags were not mine.

"Look officer, you gotta believe me," I pleaded. "That stuff is not ours!"

"Calm down," said the cop with the glasses. "There's no need for aggression."

"Aggression? No aggression sir. I'm just sayin', that shit's not mine!" I toned my voice down a bit while continuing to explain. "Sir, we don't sell drugs. I mean, I'll admit we've been smokin' and drinkin' a little, but honestly I don't know nothing about this stuff right here!"

The tall cop came to me and started to rub his chin. "Now let's see ... you're presently facing a variety of illegal alcohol and drug charges."

He pointed his finger at my face.

"So if you have any sense at all," he continued, "you'll just shut the hell up and cooperate!"

"But sir, he's telling the truth. That's not ours," Gabe added. "We don't sell drugs. We're college students. We graduate tomorrow! That's why we've been drinking and partying a little. We were just headed home right now."

The short cop seemed anxious and his glasses were fogging up. "Alright enough is enough!" he interrupted. "You talk too much," he said, while trying to grab Gabe's arm.

Gabe jerked his arm away from the officer's grip. His eyes almost bulged out of his face when Gabe did that, so he rushed over and got in Gabe's face.

"I've had enough of your hostile behavior," he snarled, while reaching in his pocket.

Gabe pleaded, "Oh no, wait a minute!"

The short cop whipped out a pepper spray canister and sprayed Gabe in the face. I tried to run over to help but the tall cop pulled out his glock and fired it.

I could have sworn that I felt the heat from a bullet whizzing past my ear, so I immediately dropped to the ground. Before I could yell for mercy the tall cop had his knee on my back and his gun at my head.

Those mothafuckers spent the next two minutes roughing us up and stuffing us into the back of the squad car. Never had I imagined that I would be in such a predicament. Everything had been going so well up to that point. Now it seemed as if my destiny was taking a foul detour down a one way dead end street. And to make matters worse, it all occurred on graduation eve.

Why the fuck did this shit have to happen?!

By now you're probably wondering why in the hell would some shit like this be happening. Well, let's go back to the events that happened several years prior.
PART  
TWO

# Chapter 7

Washington D.C.

2013

The fabulous outside view of the Ritz Carlton was overshadowed by its dazzling silk-and-flower-laced lobby. The conference room next to the lobby was even more glorious, and was teeming with a slew of chatty guests holding Imperial champagne glasses.

Dressed in all white, Alverez Zsapata and his stunningly attractive new bride, Dalearah Carrera-Zsapata, stood laughing amid a small crowd of people.

"This is the best day of my life," Dalearah whispered to her groom.

Alverez gazed into her eyes. "I am the luckiest man in the world to have someone as beautiful as you."

Dalearah smiled and kissed him on the lips. Her look was exotic and her body's natural scent resembled roses in a candy shop. Her features were flawlessly proportioned and her normal facial expression looked as if she was happy even if she wasn't.

Not far away, Alverez's childhood friend and best man, Sergio Juarez was standing with a group of colleagues. He was talking with retired diplomat Kyme Lee, and business associate Merlin Harris.

"This is very good champagne," Sergio said with his heavy accent.

"Good indeed," Kyme replied.

Sergio placed his champagne flute on a small round table. "But I'll stick to my trusted Dom Perignon," he said. "I'm loyal, and loyalty is important. Don't you agree Merlin?"

"Uh, of course," Merlin said, caught off guard, "of course it is..."

A majority of the people present at the bridal shower were talking, smiling and drinking. Alverez and Dalearah were holding hands and gazing at one another.

"I am sooo happy," Dalearah confessed, seeming to glow. "I want to be with you all the time."

He kissed her softly on the lips and told her, "I will provide you with any and everything you need to stay happy."

"I just want to be with you my love," she assured, with a smile. "That's all I need to stay happy."

Alverez noticed Sergio looking over in his direction. He nodded at Sergio and then focused his attention back to Dalearah. "Honey, I have a surprise for you," he said. "But first, I must leave for a brief moment, to take care of some important business."

She frowned and said, "Right now, in the middle of our wedding reception?"

He gently put his hands on the side of her shoulders and whispered, "Yes, but I will be right back, I promise." He kissed her on the forehead and said, "I love you honey ... Now go, have fun with your friends for now. We will reunite before you know it."

Alverez gave her an intimate hug and then they separated. He turned around and began to walk over to where Sergio, Kyme and Merlin were. Once he reached them over by the bar, he said, "Gentlemen, let's go for a ride."

"Shall we?" Sergio added.

"Go for a ride?" Kyme asked. "Right now?"

Alverez said, "No need for you to come, Kyme. This will be a quick spin around the block for myself, Sergio and Merlin."

"Huh?" Merlin said, starting to act weird. "A business meeting?"

"Precisely," Alverez said with authority. "Let's go."

The three of them headed towards the exit. Kyme Lee stayed behind and grabbed another drink.

-Minutes later

Merlin was trembling like Antarctica in the back of a stretch limousine. He was sweating like a pig near a butcher. His mouth was gagged, wrists were bound, and the look on his face was similar to an abused pet on the ASPCA commercials.

He was stuffed between two burly henchmen on one side of the limo. Across on the other side of the limo sat Alverez, Sergio and another henchman.

Alverez looked at Merlin and asked, "My friend, did you think that I would never find out?"

Alverez had a closed notebook on his lap. He opened it up and started to tap the keyboard. He turned the screen towards Merlin and made him watch.

"What is the meaning of this?" he grilled, when a video came on.

The video footage showed Merlin standing in a desolate parking lot, shaking hands with two men in DEA jackets.

Alverez slammed the laptop closed and shouted, "You fucking traitor! You're trying to ruin my empire, my life?!"

Merlin moaned and twisted his head.

"I took care of you, I brought you in and made you rich!" Alverez lectured. "And this is the thanks I get?"

Alverez was disgusted. He regained his composure and said, "You know Merlin? I normally don't come out for these, justice rides. I am a very busy man. I own several businesses and I sit on several community boards..."

The limo pulled into the back-parking lot of an old condemned warehouse, and parked by a corner in the building's shadow.

"...But because I once considered you as a trusted employee," Alverez continued, "I am here to see you off."

Merlin's eyeballs moved side-to-side, trying to forecast what was going to happen next. Alverez turned to nod at the henchmen, then Merlin was yanked out of the car by the thugs and dragged to the inside of the abandoned building. Alverez and Sergio got out and followed.

Once inside they sat him down and contained him in a chair. One of the henchmen grabbed Merlin's arms and held out his bound hands. Another one of the goons held him still while the other pulled out a pair of hedge clippers and began to effortlessly slash off Merlin's fingers like a gardener clipping hedges.

Merlin grunted and cried in pain.

"Shh, shh..." Alverez whispered. "Only a couple more to go. And then the toes!"

Sergio squinted while watching the affliction. Blood was squirting so he moved out of the way. He pulled out a small vial of coke and proceeded to take two bumps while listening to the torture.

Once the henchmen completed the amputations, Merlin fell out of the chair and was on the floor barely conscious.

Alverez smiled with satisfaction. "Stupid bastard," he said while staring down at him. Then he looked at the henchmen and said, "Make him disappear ... And clean up all the evidence."

The henchmen nodded and got to work. They had a steel tub, cans of gasoline, a rope, a fire extinguisher, a mop and some bleach.

"A ride will be back here for you all in thirty minutes," he told the henchmen, "so make it fast."

Alverez walked towards where Sergio was and they left the building. A limo was waiting by the curb when they got outside. The chauffeur immediately hopped out and opened the door for them. He gave Sergio a cigarette and handed Alverez a Scotch on the rocks.

"Send someone back here to pick up the boys in half an hour," Alverez said to the driver, before sliding into the back of the car.

"Yes sir," said the chauffeur, closing the door behind them.

# Chapter 8

Northwest D.C.

8 years later

Cruising down the street in his Porsche truck. Rocking the beats, feeling deluxe. He went to the dorm to pick up Gabe, now Rolando was with them and they couldn't behave. A car pulled up who could it be? A car full of girls from the university. He rolled down the window and they started to say, "We'd love to hang out with you three today."

Because the Cayenne was awesome with a plum interior, when driving on the road other cars were inferior. The dashboard inside resembled a spacecraft, and Chris held the steering wheel with a great grasp.

"Yo man," Chris said to Rolando, after exchanging social media handles with the girls. "Graduation is only a week away!"

The three of them were sharing a massive Blue Dream blunt.

"Hell yeah," Rolando concurred, while passing the fatty to Gabriel in the backseat. "Hard to believe we're finally finished with grad school," he said, blowing out smoke.

"Bro, it's long overdue," Gabriel reminded, "We worked hard to get to this point."

"Yeh no doubt," Rolando said.

"But I'm gonna miss the fun part of it all," Chris added, proceeding ahead on the avenue when the light turned green. "Like all the honies we got access to!"

"Amen on that one," Gabriel said, before puffing.

"Speaking of honies though," Chris said while keeping his eyes on the road. "G, when you gonna go ahead and smash that bangin ass lady over in the Arts Building?"

"Fuck that Gabe," Rolando chimed in, "I mean, she's beautiful and all, but she's engaged to the coach of the basketball team!"

"Yeah I know," Gabriel said after exhaling a smoke ring. "But she's tempting as fuck, man. She even told me how discreet she'd be and everything."

"See! How many opportunities like that come around? To my knowledge, she'll be the baddest honie you've been with thus far," Chris said, accepting the blunt from Gabriel. "I'm not sayin' you don't already get quality, but she's beyond!"

"Man G, no matter how good she looks," Rolando warned, "it just aint worth it messin' around with someone else's lady. Ain't that what you used to tell me back in high school?"

"Yeah, and you never listened," Gabriel joked. "But now I see why, it's easier said than done."

"I'm just saying man, why complicate your life over a little extra pussy?"

Chris hit the blunt and smiled, then said, "Shit Lando, a little extra pussy is what makes the world go round! As a matter of fact, I need that plural pussy."

"Plural pussy?" Rolando questioned, while accepting the bleezy from Chris.

"Yeah. I need multiple different pussies," he declared.

They all started to laugh. Rolando finished the blunt and flicked the roach out of the window.

"Yo you crazy Cherokee," Gabriel joked. "But speaking of girls by the bundles, our graduation barbecue next week at my parents' crib is gonna be epic!"

"Yeah man I can't wait," Rolando said. "I'm excited."

"And since your girlfriends won't be there fellas," Chris teased, "allow me to show y'all how to have a good time with the ladies!"

"Shit, even though I got a girlfriend, you know I can get it crackin with the honies effortlessly," Rolando reminded. "But I'm just chillin."

"Yeah yeah we know, you're being well behaved, nothing wrong with that," Chris joked.

They laughed a little then Rolando said, "Anyways, what's up with some food? I'm hungry as hell right now."

"Me too," Chris said, steering the sports truck around the corner. "I know a great place not far from here."

Five minutes later they exited off the highway and found themselves in Riviera Beach on a busy avenue in the midst of a traffic jam. Cars were piled up but Chris weaved in and out of the gridlock. A little further down the road they finally rolled up to the valet of a very nice restaurant by Chesapeake Bay.

"Thank God we made it," Gabe said, while reaching to the front seat to share some breath mints with Rolando and Chris. "I don't know how much longer I could'a lasted. I'm hungry as a hostage!"

"Me too," Rolando chuckled.

They pulled up to the valet of Pier Surf & Turf. Once they got out of the car, they were immediately smacked in the nose by the thick aroma of sautéed and grilled foods. It was like an old-school Saturday morning cartoon, where wavy smoke-like scents put them in a trance and floated them helplessly towards the restaurant.

Once in front, they stepped through the tall fancy double doors of the lobby, where there was a clean-cut male host guarding the entrance to the dining area. The host pepped up and formed a smile onto his round face as they approached.

"Good afternoon gentlemen! Welcome to The Pier Surf & Turf bar and grill." His facial expression turned serious. "Unfortunately, due to the overlapping crowds, there's going to be at least a twenty minute wait before you're seated."

"Twenty minutes?" Chris questioned.

"My man," Rolando said to the host, "we bout to die out here from hunger bro. There's only three of us, we'll sit anywhere! Can you just check to see if there's anything you can do to get us in a little quicker?"

Rolando made the host feel cool and comfortable. The host nodded and told him he would see what he could do. A few minutes after leaving, the host came back to the lobby from the dining area.

"My friend," he said as he approached the guys, "the best that I can do right now is to seat you in a booth in the back. But the booth would have to be shared with another party." His expression turned upbeat. "I'm pleased to say though, that the other party is a threesome of very beautiful women. I've already asked their permission and they have no problem with sharing their table."

"Sounds good to me," Cherokee said after hearing about the women.

"You know I'm with it," Gabe added.

"Well let's do it," Rolando said like it was a no-brainer.

The host waved his hand and said, "Ok follow me please."

He led them past the lobby into the relaxed and exotic atmosphere of the dining area. The inside was colossal and glimmering with goldish lighting. They followed him past the looping bar section, then past many tables of people who seemed to be having the time of their lives.

Finally they made it to the back of the restaurant near the patio section overlooking the bay.

"Here you are gentlemen," he said, pointing his open hand towards the booth. "Your waitress will be with you shortly."

Already sitting at the booth were three absolutely gorgeous women.

Chris spoke first. "Good afternoon ladies! I'm Cherokee." He extended his arm toward them.

They responded, "Pleased to meet you."

The host departed while everyone exchanged introductions. The ladies scooted to the inside of the booth and the guys found a spot on each side of the table.

Gabriel sat next to the peachy brown woman named Tionne. She was the definition of a pretty face. She had a soft glowing appearance with short curly hair like a baby.

The other lady sitting at the opposite end of the booth by Chris, was named Tahj. Her skin was smooth like a Hershey Kiss, which made her bright green eyes stand out exquisitely.

Rolando was happy to end up on the inside of the booth right next to Dalearah. She had a flawless face, a perfect body and a glow like morning sunlight.

"Have you ladies ordered yet?" Rolando asked, focused on Dalearah.

She moved a strand of her silky wavy hair to the side of her face. "We did," Dalearah replied "but only a couple minutes ago."

"What brought you guys here on this busy day?" Tahj asked Chris.

"Today is a special occasion for us," he said proudly. "I brought my boys here to celebrate our successful completion of grad school! My man here in Dentistry," he nodded at Gabriel. "And my brotha here in Marketing," he gestured at Rolando.

"Dentistry," Tionne marveled, as her accurately arched eyebrows rose. "Well congratulations!"

"Thanks," Gabriel said.

"Yea, congratulations guys," Tahj said, postured like a queen on the throne. "And what about you?" she asked Chris.

"I'm getting my Ph.D in Economics," he answered.

"Impressive," she said.

"That's great," Dalearah said in her stunning accent. She looked at Rolando and asked, "What school are you guys at?"

"Georgetown," he answered.

"Great institution," Tionne said, "my older sister graduated from there a few years ago. She's actually the reason I got into modeling, she entered me into a competition there when I was only in high school!"

"Oh so you ladies model?" Gabriel said. "No wonder you're all so elegant and graceful."

"Aw thank you," Tionne said.

"We're here for the weekend, visiting Dalearah," Tahj told Chris.

"Ah I see," Chris said, going into thought. "You know, I feel like destiny has brought us all together here on this fine day. We each could've been anywhere else right now, but here we are. I think we should turn this good evening into a great night!"

The ladies looked at one another and smiled.

"Well," Tahj said, "as much as we would love to hang out with you guys this eve, we can't because we have a photo shoot coming up in a few hours..."

The waitress suddenly came back and offered to take the guys' orders. Their orders all together seemed to be enough food for a whole sports team. Once the waitress finished, she left and came back in two minutes with three bottles of Chateau Margaux wine.

Gabriel filled the ladies' wine glasses while the conversations at their table continued to flourish. Everyone was happy and enjoying each other's company. When the food finally arrived they were all even happier.

They ate with a buzz while laughing and talking. They had so much fun that others were gawking. Once feasting was over they all couldn't move. But it didn't matter they were in a good mood. Before their group got up to leave, they tipped the waitress enough for a week. And at the valet they shared their goodbyes, with hugs and smiles and feelings implied.

# Chapter 9

Manhattan, NY

Saturday

From a satellite view, looking directly down at the island resembled a long, awkward rectangular puzzle piece of land. Zooming in to a closer view of the borough revealed a maze of tall spiky buildings, serving as borders to a bunch of collective passageways filled with cars, people and taxis.

Amidst dozens of other cars, Sergio rolled down 6th Avenue in an old obscure Chrysler. He broke out of the traffic's congestion by pulling to the side of the road near 49th street. He parked the car by Thirty Rock and turned off the ignition.

He slicked his hair back into a ponytail, then lit a cigarette and started to smoke during his brief downtime. He was waiting to pick up Alverez to take him to the LaGuardia Airport, after which he planned to go to their Brooklyn storage house to handle business.

Minutes later, Alverez strolled out of the revolving glass doors of Rockefeller Plaza along with other miscellaneous patrons. He was looking sharp in a tailored suit and was coming from a board of trustees meeting for a financial investment firm. He could see Sergio parked near the busy intersection as he passed a large fountain that spurted water like a geyser. After weaving through a crowd of all kinds of people walking in different directions, Alverez made it over to the Chrysler.

Sergio unlocked the door and Alverez slid in. Sergio started the car and began to merge back into the robotic flow of traffic.

"Thanks for picking me up," Alverez said, settling into the front seat. "Saves me a lot of time and frustration. Those damn cab drivers are idiots, and those fucking rideshares are annoying."

"No problem man," Sergio said, turning onto West 49th street.

"But mainly I wanted to talk to you about some important business," Alverez said, pulling out a Behike cigar from inside of his jacket pocket.

"Speaking of business," Sergio remembered. "Ray needs sixty more kilos over in Queens."

"He needs more already?" Alverez said, lighting the cigar. The flame temporarily brightened his middle-aged, oatmeal textured skin as he rotated the stogie. "That's wonderful!"

"These people in North America love their drugs," Sergio said. "Such great demand."

"Yes, very true," Alverez said. "But the Feds are on our ass more than ever right now. It's even hotter than when we had the problem with Merlin a few years ago."

Alverez took a couple puffs from his cigar. "As a matter of fact," he continued, "you're going to need assistance for the upcoming Oregon shipments.

"Assistance?" Sergio asked. "I don't need any assistance. I'll be just fine. You know I've been handling the Oregon shipments alone for years."

"Yes, but right now we have too many unknown leaks in our organization. Who knows what the Feds know about us," Alverez anticipated, while dumping his cigar ash. "So, I've decided that I will be sending Kyme Lee up there to help you."

"Kyme Lee?" Sergio questioned. "But he's an ambassador. You think we should include him in the hands-on part of our business?"

"I've contemplated that question for days, and he is our only option right now. He speaks Mandarin fluently and he's very familiar with the opium supply."

There was momentary silence, then Alverez continued.

"So, it is agreed. Kyme Lee will be helping you with the Oregon shipments, while I oversee the coke shipments in Texas."

"Uh, well ok. I don't feel too good about it though, to be honest. But I trust your judgment.

"Don't worry," Alverez encouraged, "everything will work out fine."

Sergio pulled out a new cigarette and dangled it from his mouth while exiting the freeway towards the airport.

"That's very reassuring," he said, driving towards one of the Delta terminal entrances.

"I will go ahead and contact Mr. Lee to let him know what we need him to do," Alverez said. "And our inside man will make sure that those pesky coastguards will not interfere. Also I'm sending five henchmen up there with you, for extra precaution."

"Ok great. Well with Kyme's help, I should have the operations finished in a couple of days," Sergio estimated.

"Sounds good," Alverez said, as he took a final puff and savored the balanced flavors of the cigar's creamy spiciness. "We'll be in touch every step of the way."

"Got it," Sergio said.

"Kyme will be contacting you tonight," Alverez added, while preparing to get out.

"Okay," Sergio said, as he and Alverez shook hands.

Alverez grabbed his luggage and exited the Chrysler. Sergio turned the car around and headed back towards the freeway.

# Chapter 10

An establishment like this was far too large for the occupancy of only two residents, especially when one of them was often out of town. Alverez Zsapata's principle home had ten rooms in the main annex alone. Other rooms suitable for various purposes could be found throughout the many extensions of the lavish residence.

Most mansions have only one guest house, but fifty yards to the rear of this estate were two twin guest homes that were separated by a network of tidily trimmed shrubbery and rows of bright dandelions and azaleas.

This weekend, two of Dalearah's best friends were in town visiting. Dalearah insisted that they stay with her instead of staying at a hotel. Plus she was home alone once again and she wanted the company.

Tionne picked the villa that had exercise equipment and a lovely array of teddy bears. Tahj chose the other because it contained a king size waterbed and sky-blue painted walls. Over in the mansion, Dalearah was in the master bedroom lying on the bed in a silk nightgown, staring at the ceiling. She had been thinking in silence for over ten minutes, then she decided to give Tionne a call because Tahj was not available.

"Good morning!" Dalearah sang, when Tionne answered.

"Hey lady!" Tionne said.

"What are you up to?"

"Just finished working out. How about you, what are you doing up so early?"

"Nothing," Dalearah said, as she stretched out her long sleek legs. "Just lying here thinking. Still a little tired from the photo shoot yesterday. Plus I didn't sleep that well last night."

"Really?" Tionne said, wiping her unblemished face with a towel. "You feeling okay?"

"I'm fine. But..." Dalearah sat up in the bed. "But I've been thinking a lot about one of the guys we met at lunch yesterday."

"Let me guess," Tionne said, "the one you couldn't keep your eyes off of?

"Yess," Dalearah admitted. "Rolando."

"He was pretty hot," Tionne said. "They all were hot."

"Yeah, but he was so yummy looking. And his smile was amazing!" She paused then continued. "I mean, there was just something about him. And I don't know why, but he's been on my mind since the minute we left the restaurant."

Tionne froze in her tracks amid walking towards the fridge. "Wait, really?" she said, surprised.

"Yes. And it's so strange to me because I haven't had this type of feeling about anyone since, well, you know. You were with me back when I first met Alvy," Dalearah reminisced. "I'm getting that same feeling now with Rolando."

Tionne looked blankly into the air. "Wow," she said to herself and to Dalearah. "I could tell you two were getting along well and all, but I had no idea you felt like this."

"Neither did I," Dalearah said, "until I couldn't stop thinking about him."

Tionne grabbed a cold bottled water from the fridge. "I don't know what to say," she admitted.

"Do you think I should get in touch with him?" Dalearah asked.

"You're not serious are you?" Tionned questioned. "If I remember correctly, aren't you married?"

Dalearah got out of the bed, still holding the iPhone to her ear. "Married? Hah!" she said, beginning to vent. "I mean, I love Alvy and all, but he is never around. These eight years we've been married it's only been business, business, business. He spends more time on business trips than he does with me! And when he is at home, sometimes he disappears at odd times of the night ... Like, have you even seen him since you been here these past few days?"

Tionne was speechless.

"Exactly," Dalearah said. "I'm so lonely I could scream!"

"I understand," Tionne finally said. "But you're married, you shouldn't think about other men like that."

"Well it's almost like we're not even married anymore," Dalearah countered. "He's married to himself and his work, not to me."

"Have you talked to Tahj about it yet?" Tionne asked.

"She had to go to that meeting this morning, remember. You're the first person I've mentioned it to."

"Wow, I had no idea you felt this way," Tionne said, after swallowing the rest of her spring water. "I thought you two were doing great."

"Great is a real overstatement," she said. "But things aren't all bad. It just seems like every year I see less and less of him. And he never gives me any attention that doesn't have a price tag on it."

"What's wrong with that?" Tionne asked, in a sarcastically serious manner. "The next best thing to being single is having a husband you don't have to see all the time, and who buys you anything you want!"

"I can buy things myself," Dalearah said. "That is not the point."

"Then what is the point?"

Dalearah recollected what she was initially trying to say. "I guess what I'm saying is, I'm not happy anymore..." Suddenly Dalearah paused like a comma, then forgot all the drama. "Anyways, enough about that," she declared. "It's no big deal. I just wanted to get your opinion."

"Sounds like it is a big deal," Tionne challenged.

"No it's not," Dalearah said.

"So, your interest in Mr. Tall Dark and Handsome is...?"

"Just small talk, nothing more."

"Well alright then," Tionne said, dismissing that part of the conversation. "So how about we go out for some breakfast, my treat?"

"Your treat, how can I turn that down?" Dalearah joked. "I can be ready in fifteen minutes."

"Me too," said Tionne.

"Okay, I'll meet you out by the garage," Dalearah said, before hanging up and tossing her phone on the bed.

# Chapter 11

*

After I finished twisting it to perfection, I placed it on top of my earlobe and grabbed my iPhone on the way out of the room. Everything was completely quiet throughout the house as I headed downstairs. Moms was already gone because she worked almost seven days a week as the Secretary of Commerce over in D.C. I'd been living at home with her while I was in grad school, which she loved because she didn't like being alone in a big house while my sister was away at boarding school.

When I made it to the main back door of the house it was eight a.m. I punched in the alarm code and opened the Cherrywood door that led out to the backyard deck. Outside it was calm and tranquil. I had on some flannel Armani jama pants and a wife beater, which was perfect for the mild morning breeze. I strolled across the concrete patio and found myself a seat on one of the stretch lawn chairs.

Most people start their mornings with a hot cup of coffee. I always started my mornings with a nice joint. The herbal THC reacted remarkably with my brain cells like water to plants, which gave me a feeling opposite to that of a headache. So basically, I smoked the cannabis leaf every day of the week. Once I was posted in the Earnes lawn chair, I took the joint from my ear and reclined to a comfortable position. Then I kicked back and fired it up, taking a nice refreshing toke of the Skittles flavored kush.

The sun hadn't completely made its way over the tall trees yet, but it's radiant brightness made the azure sky look celestial. While relaxing, I could hear a symphony of chirps from the feathered flocks flying above. My vision and my perception seemed to be high definition. I closed my eyes and took a deep breath to appreciate life. I was feeling great and my day was originating pleasantly.

I had a lot to be thankful for. I was finished with grad school and graduation was a week away, Amen. My girlfriend Shaile, who I hadn't seen in a while at the University of Delaware, was planning to attend my graduation after I thought she wouldn't be able to make it, Amen. My little sister Jetaria had just finished Chatham boarding school and was coming home next week, Amen. Also, me and the fellas had been having a sensational time with our pre celebration days leading up to graduation, Aye man...

I blew out a long stream of smoke while reminiscing about a couple of days ago. We ended up having a really great lunch with some ladies who were unbelievable. I mean, we'd often meet gorgeous girls of all types on the daily, but these women were next level beautiful, with an elegance I'd never seen before. And I was totally surprised when one of them found me and hit me up on social media. She was the one who I was most attracted to of the three, and I was crazy flattered when she invited me to go out to a comedy club with her.

Now like I said, being around different beauties with booties was nothing new to me. I had options that I never took advantage of, unlike my boys Gabe and Cherokee. Gabe had a girlfriend but he did his thing every so often, and Cherokee ran through more hot chicks than Chick-Fil-A on a Friday afternoon. So being around those two all the time was like a constant test of willpower. And I was pretty good at dodging new pussy.

But this lady here was different. She was so amazing that I couldn't turn down the opportunity to see her again. I mean after all, it was only a friendly comedy show. It's not like she invited me to a hotel or something. So I didn't look at it like it was that big of a deal. But still I further contemplated whether or not accepting her invitation was a good idea.

Nevertheless, I felt fresh, and terrific, because of graduation to be specific. But steadily lingering in the back of my mind was this wonderful lady who was one of a kind. Just the thought of her perfectly sculpted body made me very eager to see her. Eager as a beaver, and that wasn't a good thing.

The more I thought about it, the more I started to second guess my decision. I needed to get a second opinion, or some kind of opinion from an associate or close friend. The first person who came to mind was Gabe, but when I called I got his voicemail. Next I decided to give Cherokee a call, even though I pretty much knew that instead of giving me a sensible opinion, he would probably try to influence me to hurry up and fuck her.

I had to talk to somebody though, so I called him anyway.

# Chapter 12

4 a.m.

Hours of showers had emptied all over the south bank area of the Columbia River in Oregon. Sticky humid air drifted above the cool bay waters, leaving the whole district very foggy and dismal. An elite crew of Federal Task Agents, all draped in dark combat uniforms with matching skullies, were strategically stalking an old condemned building by the bay.

This decaying building was once called the Abbey Mills. It was located on the outskirts of downtown Astoria and was hidden by the more attractive buildings in the area. Alverez Zsapata purchased it over eight years ago when it was first abandoned by a local paper mill company. He kept it looking shabby on purpose, and used it twice a year to store his drugs as they arrived from Asia.

Kyme Lee was honored last week when Alverez asked him to assist Sergio with the northwest smuggling operations. The two of them rehearsed their smuggling techniques repeatedly for days before flying out to Oregon. As a former US Ambassador to China, Kyme was already familiar with the Chinese dealers and the Afghani producers. He was confident that he could serve a good purpose by joining Sergio.

Loads of cargo arrived on schedule yesterday. All of the freight was handled with care and tracked for accuracy by Sergio's workers. Ultimately, the total inventory was confirmed and unloaded from the submarines before dawn.

Presently, Sergio, Kyme and the Chinese drug suppliers were conversing on the inside of the storage house. They were in the midst of the last phase of the smuggling process. Posted outside of the warehouse in the darkness, were over a dozen Federal Agents who were eagerly awaiting the signal to invade. Back on the inside of the warehouse guarding the front entrance, were five armed henchmen looking evil like big bouncers holding video game weapons.

A dim light was shining over many scattered stacks of crates throughout the warehouse. Sergio and Kyme sat at a table in the middle of the factory, along with the two Chinese suppliers and their strapped bodyguards standing behind them. Sergio was smoking a cigarette and the supplier sitting next to him was puffing on a cigar. The other supplier was looking at his laptop while Kyme was on his cellphone.

Kyme closed his cellphone and smiled. "Confirmation has been received that the shipments are completed," he said. "The submarines are headed back to Asia."

"Excellent," Sergio said, before putting out his cigarette on the table.

Back outside the Swat agents approached the front and back entrances of the warehouse in pairs like ninjas. Then simultaneously they all burst through the doors ambush style, with heavy Terminator-type rifles and Glocks pointed.

"Freeze! Federal Agents!" they yelled. "Don't move! Freeze!"

Kyme and the Chinese suppliers immediately became startled. They froze like crystallization. The henchmen were surprised as well, but they reacted differently. They immediately opened fire on the Feds like Vietnam. Loud gunshots popped off like a fireworks finale as the Swat agents vigorously returned fire.

Sergio ducked out of his chair and tried to run, but he caught a stray bullet to the spine before reaching the exit.

Sixty seconds later the barrage was over, leaving the whole place smelling like gunpowder and tobacco smoke. Two Swat agents, two henchmen and both Chinese bodyguards were dead. Four others were critically injured, including Sergio who was quickly fading away.

All of the withered warehouse walls were left looking like Swiss cheese from the bullet holes. Kyme Lee and the two Chinese suppliers survived and were arrested on the spot.

# Chapter 13

Days later

Dalearah missed her right turn because the corner of Maplehurst Circle was slightly hidden by trees. Figuring that she had, she glanced into the rearview mirror and hooked a U-turn when the coast was clear, driving slowly in the opposite direction up to a red light.

While at the light she started to reminisce about the last seventy-two hours; a lot of which were spent hanging out with Rolando. She recalled them laughing hysterically and having big fun at the comedy club, then the next day sharing a first kiss at a picnic, then the next day holding hands on the beach while watching the sun set.

Suddenly a horn blasted from behind her car. Dalearah was unbothered when she realized that the light had turned green. She smiled and proceeded through the intersection like no one was there. Less than a minute later she detoured to a side road and wheeled the rented Jeep Wrangler onto a cement driveway, following it all the way around to the back of a nice house.

After turning off the ignition, she pulled out her cell phone and pressed his name.

"Hey Dalearah!" Rolando answered. "You here?"

"Yes I am," she said with glee. "I'm at the back driveway like you told me."

"Okay," he said. "I'm on my way down."

Rolando was downstairs and outside in two minutes. Shortly after that, the jade jeep was back on the main road and headed west on Interstate 66 in the evening traffic. They rolled for hours through county after county, admiring the incredibly vast Appalachian mountain ranges that bordered the freeway.

They ended up on West Virginia 55, where Dalearah drove twenty more minutes before crossing over to Sky Road. This road led them through the Dickey Ridge and into the Blue Ridge Mountains. Five miles later they were on a gravel path that came to an end on a heavily wooded plateau.

A fine crafted cabin sat stout and stag at the end of the plateau. It was gracefully shielded and secluded under an umbrella of tall trees with extensive branches. This cottage was made of interlocking logs that were well preserved and showed no signs of rotting.

Dalearah parked the Wrangler by the porch of the private getaway. She led Rolando on a short tour around the outside of the cottage before they went inside. The outside view was absolutely impeccable, overlooking a cliff that showcased a rugged valley and several flowing streams.

On the inside of the lodge it was dark and desolate until Dalearah turned on a yellow light by the bed. The bed was big and square with an enormous brass-framed mirror headboard. On the opposite side of the room was a fireplace along with two windows. To the right of the fireplace was a moderate kitchen with a small dining area connected to it.

This snug little cabin only contained the essentials, leaving plenty of room for the imagination when spending time alone or with company. The last time Dalearah set foot in this cabin was nearly three years ago, when she and her husband went to escape the stresses of the city. She remembered how romantic and passionate the atmosphere was; which was a major factor in her decision to take Rolando there.

The evening they shared turned out to be exciting and fun. Now she was anticipating and craving an even more enjoyable night.

*

Like something florescent in the sky, the orange crescent moon resembled a tilted parenthesis glowing in the dark. It projected a glare like a beacon at sea.

I was chillin' like a villain on the porch of the cabin. Our outing had been going great the whole time. Dalearah was on the inside hooking up a specialty dinner, and I was on the outside finishing up a killer spliff.

It had become apparent that Dalearah was not planning to take me back to D.C. I knew right then and there that I had no business being out with a woman as fine as her at that time of night. This made me start to ponder one of the most debated questions of humanity; why do men cheat?

In my opinion, the main reason is because of animal instinct. It's basically lust. Fresh new pussy is one hell of a drug. Whether in a good or bad relationship, most men are always tempted by the thought of new pussy from someone attractive. Once that testosterone starts to flood the cerebellum of a man, it's just as powerful as the 2004 Indian Ocean Tsunami.

That being said, I should have just ran away because my will power diminished every time I saw her. Although we'd only kissed once, it was clear that we were both attracted to one another. But she hadn't made any other advances toward me since then, so actually I had nothing to worry about ... Or did I?

My thoughts were stopped when the door suddenly opened and Dalearah came out on the porch.

"You've been out here for a while," she said as she approached. "Are you hungry yet?"

Before I could answer, she reached her arm out and took me by the hand.

"Follow me," she said over her shoulder, while leading me inside. "Our late night entrée is ready."

The fireplace was burning and she had a cozy candlelit setting on top of a table. Covering the table was a huge pot with two bowls and silverware, accompanied by a black and gold bottle of wine and two glasses.

That evening I experienced the best shrimp and lobster gumbo I ever had in my life.

"Damn that meal was delicious," I told her.

"Thank you very much," she said. "Would you care for a glass of wine?"

I glanced down at my watch. "Sure," I said, hoping she didn't notice.

She began to pour and asked, "Are you sure there's no one who will be worried about you not making it home tonight?"

"Nah," I blurted. "That's unlikely. How about you?"

"That's unlikely for me also," she said with a smile. "Shall we make a toast?"

I smiled and raised my glass.

"To us," she said.

The next thing you know I was buzzing like a bumblebee. And she was too. She scooted out from the table and slowly started to rise from the chair with an enticing stare locked in on me. I returned the stare while checking out her ridiculously perfect physique from head to toe.

She continued to gaze without saying a word. She put her hands behind her back and began to untie the strap to her top. When her blouse dropped to the floor my dick went from five to nine in two seconds. My shit was so hard that a midget could've done pull-ups on it. But I was still able to keep my composure.

Now she was standing with nothing on but pants and boots, looking stunning with an ass better than JLo. Her breasts looked unbelievable and I was mesmerized. I could just taste them in my mouth. They looked like two nice scoops of caramel ice cream placed flawlessly on her chest.

I got even more excited when she began to step towards me. I took another sip of wine and enjoyed myself while observing such beauty in motion. She stopped directly in front of me and reached out to grab my hand, effortlessly pulling me out of the chair.

"Do you like what you see so far?" she asked, inches away from my face.

"Very much," I responded.

Her body smelled like ripe strawberries and I was craving for some shortcake. She was so close that I could feel her soft breasts and hard nipples on my chest. I wanted to grab them but I decided not to.

"Would you mind staying here with me tonight?" she asked.

I temporarily went blank when I heard that question, seeing nothing but Shaile's face in my mind. But then the liquor and my hormones influenced me to say, "No I don't mind at all."

Dalearah was looking me directly in the eyes. The beauty and perfection of her facial features had me in a trance. Her candy-coated skin was glowing and her wavy black hair extended down to her shoulders.

She kissed me softly on the lips and started to gradually step backwards with her eyes still locked in on me. When she reached the bed she stopped and began to unbutton her jeans provocatively. My eyes bulged like an owl as she slid her pants down and let them drop to her ankles.

Her lower body was even more appealing than her upper body. She had long legs that were sexily arched at every angle, with alluring thighs and a camel toe that revealed the secret inside of her Victoria panties. The main mindblower though, was the perfect ass that she was packing. It was heart shaped and it touched my heart; also, the awesome teardrop formation of her ass nearly brought tears to my eyes.

Before I knew it, we were both butt naked on the bed, passionately kissing and rolling around like mud wrestlers. Her legs were wrapped around me and my dick was hard as a diamond. I knew she could feel it because her pussy got moister than an oyster.

She started to moan and breathe heavier as her arousal increased. She got on top of me and started to give my chest and my shoulders a tongue massage. Her subtle kisses and licks moved down to my abs, where she seemed to stay and play for a while.

I closed my eyes and positioned my arms behind my head as the pleasure enhanced. Vision was not needed when I felt the path that her soft lips were taking on my body. She knew exactly what she was doing and my body throbbed for more. She pulled a condom from out of nowhere and unrolled it on me. Then she got on top and sat on my dick like a saddle.

Dalearah let out a joyous moan while working it all the way inside of her. She could barely take it as she grabbed me tight and started to quiver. But once she got used to it she was all in. She grabbed my shoulders like handlebars and started to ride me nonstop while I gripped her hips. In two minutes, she came like an earthquake. And when the aftershocks of her orgasm were finished, I rolled us over without letting it slip out.

She laid back and spread her legs wide open like a fork in the road. I went to work in that pussy like an interior decorator. She was loving every minute of it. The sex was extremely great while I was looking at her gorgeous facial expression of ecstasy. We went through several positions and she came a couple more times. Once we got to doggy style it was phenomenal. She was looking so good in that position that I couldn't take it anymore. I busted a nut so big that it felt like time stopped. We both fell out on the bed like we'd finished a marathon.

She looked at me in amazement, then she made a statement.

"I've never had an experience like that before!"

"Me neither," I said.

"Oh my God, I came like... Four times," she said, holding up three fingers.

We both started to laugh and I gazed at her face, it was nothing but beauty all over the place. And I felt great as she lied on my chest. I thought to myself 'was that shit the best?'.

# Chapter 14

The inside cabin of the light Learjet was like a narrow luxury den. Its executive suite style had nice yellow lighting, thick almond leather seats, marble countertops and stark carpet. The light jet was flying thousands of feet in the air headed back to Maryland.

Alverez Zsapata sat alone working on his laptop with a glass of scotch. His cellphone started to buzz and he reluctantly picked it up. After looking at the caller id he decided to answer it.

"Stan?" he said, not expecting the call.

A male tenor voice spoke on the other end of the line. "I have a very disturbing video for you to see," he said. Stan was a government official and a secret mole for Alverez.

"I'm on a flight right now," Alverez said. "Can it wait?"

"I think you might want to see this," Stan suggested. "How about I email it to you and you look at it when you get a chance?"

"What is this pertaining to?" Alverez asked.

"It's footage from your lodge in West Virginia," Stan told him. "And it's pertaining to your wife!

Alverez wrinkled his face and said, "Send it to me now!"

-Hours later

Four empty bottles of Scotch were scattered throughout the Ritz-Carlton presidential suite. One bottle was on the dresser, two were on the floor and one was in the bed with Alverez. A television could be heard faintly in the background.

Alverez sat up against the headboard half coherent. With a slight struggle, he got out of the bed and went to the mirror. He grabbed his phone from the dresser and went to the voice recorder app.

"To be reevaluated when I am sober," he mumbled into the phone. "You cannot," he frowned at himself in the mirror, "you canNOT __ let this go unpunished. You should kill that bitch! You should kill them both!"

The scotch bottle on the dresser had a little corner of scotch left in it. Alverez grabbed it and swigged the rest of the alcohol.

"No, no," he continued. "Killing them would be too kind of a punishment. I will make them suffer instead!"

The channel 11 news at noon came on the television and grabbed his attention. He could hear the voice of the newscaster speaking.

'Breaking news from the Oregon DEA. Last night, a former Chinese Ambassador and others were arrested during a major drug sting in Astoria. Several people were shot and killed, including a federal agent...'

Zsapata's mouth opened wide but no words came out. He fell to his knees and yelled out loud.

"No, this cannot be!"

Right then his cell phone started to buzz and he stood up to get it.

STANLEY was in a nice room with a large mahogany desk, royal blue carpet and an American flag next to some silky window drapes. He was wearing a dark suit with his hair parted to the side and a Bluetooth 5 in his ear.

"We need to meet," he said.

"What the hell happened in Oregon?!" Alverez shouted into the phone. "Why did you not give me a heads up? I just spoke to you yesterday and you only told me about my wife!"

"I just found out about it this morning! I've been trying to get in touch with you for hours."

"Who is responsible for this?!" Alverez demanded.

"The President," Stan said. "He's trying to destroy all of the drug cartels, particularly yours."

"I pay you to supply me with information _before_ it happens! This is not acceptable!" he barked. "We need to take care of the President. I will pay you whatever it takes. The goddamn President must pay! No one threatens my business, no one!"

Alverez threw the Scotch bottle into the mirror and shattered it.

"You also need to use your resources to have that bastard who fucked my wife, arrested and locked up! I can't tell who he is from the blurry video, but find out and get him arrested!

Stan does not respond.

"Do I make myself clear?!"

"Yes," Stan said grudgingly. "I understand..."

ALVEREZ hung up immediately. Then he yelled out loud and threw a hard punch at the mirror as if it were a person. The mirror cracked in half and Alverez fell to his knees with a bloody fist.
PART  
THREE

# Chapter 15

North Oregon Interrogation Chambers

Kyme Lee had endured a few days of intense harassment from a rotating trio of rough Interrogation Specialists. He was constantly being grilled like a burger in the summer.

DEA Specialist David Aves was in charge of the Northwest Interrogation Division. He was allowed to run it however he pleased, with very few rules and little supervision. He viewed methods such as waterboarding as being for sissies.

Although Kyme had been suffering the consequences for his stubbornness, he was able to keep his mouth shut ever since he got arrested. However, his willpower slowly began to evaporate once he found out that Sergio had died from gunshot wound complications.

Dave had just reentered the chamber in order to once again try and badger some information out of Kyme. He stepped in with a Wiffle Ball bat in one hand and a folded piece of paper in the other. He had a look on his square face that clearly stated he was sick and tired of dealing with Kyme's nonsense.

Kyme appeared to be close to death. He was strapped to a chair with his arms stretched back and his wrists handcuffed behind the seat. His head was slumped and his chin was on his chest.

"Raise your fucking head!" David barked.

Kyme didn't respond, as if he was asleep or dead.

"Look at me!" David blasted.

Kyme reluctantly started to raise his head. He saw David standing directly in front of him, pointing the bat forward like a sword to only an inch away from his nose.

"Look man," David said. "I've had enough of your shit you little asshole."

David lowered the bat and used his left hand to shake open the folded piece of paper. He began to read the letter out loud, with the volume and vigor of a futbol sportscaster.

"Dear Commissioners and Agents of the United States Drug Enforcement Administration," he proudly commenced. "We have recently become aware of one of our former diplomat's unfortunate involvement in the major drug scandal that was uncovered by your forces. An investigation is being launched on our behalf to determine the extent of Mr. Lee's involvement in this matter. We are offering our assistance in any way possible to resolve this confusing embarrassment."

David took the document and slapped Kyme in the face with it.

"You know what this letter is basically saying? Your ambassador status doesn't mean shit anymore. Not shit!" he gloated. "So now would be a good time for you to cut this, bullshit silent treatment you've been giving me."

Without saying a word, Kyme just stared at his brutal innkeeper.

"Oh, okay." David said with a frown. "I see. You like to play games huh? ... Well, I have a game we can both play."

David walked over behind Kyme and pretended Kyme's head was a ball on a tee. He took a couple swings with the Wiffle Ball bat that rocked the back of Kyme's cranium.

"Ahhhh, shit!" Kyme yelled, as his chair almost tipped over.

David lowered the bat and slapped Kyme in the face with the letter again.

"Your ambassador status doesn't mean shit anymore!"

He raised the bat and was about to swing.

"Ok ok ok!" Kyme pleaded. "No more, please!"

"Oh?" David said sarcastically. "Now you're ready to talk?"

Kyme began to crack like a sidewalk. He was done with being a tough guy. His diplomatic immunity was no longer relevant and that frightened him a lot. He could tell that David would do any and everything to make him talk.

"Listen," David said, poking his finger down at Kyme. "It's time to tell me what you know. And I know you know plenty because you were involved ... If you cooperate, there's a chance I can arrange for you to just simply, disappear."

The federal agent stepped back and crossed his arms. Kyme raised his head up and started to sing like a bird in the spring.

"Alright," he slowly uttered like a busted child. "But first I would like to say that I was only the distribution investor in all of this."

"Distribution investor? What the fuck is that?" David said, frowning. "From the recordings and surveillance that we have, you seemed to be fully involved in all the functions going on in that warehouse."

David leaned over right in front of Kyme's face. "Don't bullshit me Mr. Lee," he threatened. "You bullshit me, I screw you. Understand?"

Kyme felt backed into a corner. He nodded pitifully as if it were going to kill him to tell everything. But in reality, he actually did face a very high risk of being murdered if he were to tell the absolute truth. He had to think of something that was at least halfway true and believable to tell the federal agent.

The room grew heated and Kyme began to sweat as he ad-libbed a clever narrative. Everything he told David was factual but he rearranged the names of the people in charge. Alverez was depicted as merely a minor investor in the Chinese poppy fields, and since Kyme knew that Sergio was dead, he named Sergio as the chief kingpin behind the whole operation.

Kyme also admitted his awareness of the prices and the quantities of opium being smuggled, but he stuck to his story about only being a distribution manager, confirming it with the locations of several poppy fields in China that he claimed were on land that he owned. He also provided the names of some of the big-time dealers who'd set up shop on these lands, tying them all in as suppliers for Sergio.

David recorded thirty minutes of detailed confessions and finger pointing. Kyme became obligated to administer that same information one more time, but in front of a judge.

# Chapter 16

Thin fog consumed the quiet suburb like a blanket on this gloomy day. Alverez was in a twisted mind state as he sat waiting impatiently in a gray maintenance van. He was parked in a gutter by the side of the road, anticipating the moment that Dalearah would drive her normal morning route to the gym for her kickboxing class.

He had already finalized his plans to evacuate the United States of America. He decided to leave all of his properties and all of his hidden millions for the IRS to discover and confiscate. He figured that even though he would be giving up a lot, the government would be satisfied with the money and complacent with his disappearance.

He found out from Stanley that Sergio had died and that Kyme Lee had snitched. This hit him hard, almost as hard as what happened with his wife. Alverez obtained the witness protection information on Kyme, and made a last-minute arrangement for him to meet his demise.

A car passed by and he checked to see if it was who he was waiting for, but it wasn't. His mind was running wild like a rodeo bull as he reflected on how scandalous his wife had been by sexually betraying him. Heinous thoughts had been crossing his mind ever since he saw the video the other day. He wanted to kill her but he did not want to kill her. Instead he was planning to deliver her to a place where she would constantly be reminded of how he felt about what she did to him.

The sound of fat raindrops randomly splattered onto the van's windshield. Alverez had a glass of Scotch in hand, but it was hard to sip it straight because his throat was still sore from the past two days of his yelling at the hotel room walls. He let the window down and stuck out his glass to catch a few raindrops in his drink. Then he eased the window back up when his taste buds agreed with the natural mixture.

He was still highly pissed off. He felt like he was in an Investigation Discovery episode, but this deadly affair was actually real. He slammed his fist on the dashboard and said, "I can't believe she did that to me... Cheating whore!"

Just when he said that, a black Bentley came zooming by cutting through the smog. Without delay, Alverez started the ignition and the windshield wipers waved back and forth. The gray van started to roll down the road at a moderate speed as the rain pounded and the haze thickened. His speed increased substantially when he saw the taillights of the luxury car. Then he cruised up to the side of the Bentley and equaled its speed.

Before Dalearah even realized that another vehicle was on the road, Alverez used the van to bulldoze the right back side of her car. The Bentley slung clockwise on the slick pavement and slid recklessly toward the boulevard divider.

Alverez kept driving forward past the accident with a mean smile on his face. He pulled over to the side of the road and watched through the rearview window as his wife's car drifted aimlessly on the street.

No one could hear her screams when Dalearah crashed into the median and the car bounced off like a pinball. The ricochet sent the car gliding diagonally across the road toward the shoulder. She closed her eyes and tried to hold on to the steering wheel in a desperate attempt to regain control of the vehicle, but it was too late. The car slid off the tar and the ground dropped from under its tires. A strong momentum sent the battered Bentley spinning in the air over a ditch. As soon as the car smashed into the upper section of a tree, Dalearah's horrifying cries ended in a high-pitched grunt.

The force of the collision hurled her body out of the window of the car. She didn't feel the immediate pain from the rugged tree limbs that were smacking her in the face, but her delicate skin was being cut up as gravity pulled her down through the branches. Her life flashed before her eyes right before she smashed into the mud. The impact knocked her lights out.

In a matter of seconds Alverez was out of the van and over to where Dalearah was. He knelt down and grabbed her wrist to check her pulse. Next, he lifted her over his shoulder before scrambling back to the van like a soldier carrying an injured comrade. Amazingly, the avenue stayed empty during the time it took for him to apprehend his wife. When he made it back to the van, he threw her limp body into the trunk.

His mission was completed. Dalearah was out cold and it was planned for her to wake up to a nightmare that she would have never imagined.

# Chapter 17

Things were easy like Sunday morning on this Sunday morning, until the parents' of Rolando Reynolds and Gabriel Juarez were notified about their sons' whereabouts. Neither of the two families could believe what they were told by the officials of the Montgomery County Police Department.

Desperately curious to find out what had happened, both families made it down to the police station as fast as possible. Upon arrival they found out that Rolando and Gabriel were charged with resisting arrest, possession of controlled substances with intent to distribute, DUI, and a host of other charges.

The news hit them all like a natural disaster on Christmas Day. Rolando and Gabriel involved in hard drugs? Not possible! No one could believe it. Their families refused to accept the twisted, simulated truth that they were being told.

Their buddy Chris, and Rolando's sister Jetaria, knew for a fact that something was wrong with this dilemma. They were all just together that night at the party. There was no way that this situation could be legitimate.

Rolando's girlfriend Shaile and Gabriel's girlfriend Chantel, both were visually distraught when they arrived at the police station together. They were demanding an explanation and almost had to be contained for misconduct.

Everyone's visit to the station turned out to be chaotic. The end result was that Rolando and Gabriel had to remain in custody and miss graduation. The police officers' reports were so dramatic that the crime was classified as a major drug felony. The Feds were not scheduled to take over the case until later in the week, which left Rolando and Gabriel stuck in the cold dirty holding cells for more depressing days.

5:20 a.m.

Semidarkness lingered throughout the plush Maryland neighborhood of Edgemoor during the calm of dawn. Nothing could be heard along the tidy tree-lined streets that framed the community's big yards and mansions. Two helicopters appeared out of nowhere in the glossy sky. They beamed bright spotlights down on a street that five DEA vehicles were speeding up. They were headed towards the biggest mansion on the block.

Ten federal DEA agents stormed across the shrubbery bordered front yard and barged in through the rustic castle doors of the Zsapata residence. Packed luggage and other things were scattered all throughout the living room area. Half of the agents combed the downstairs section of the house and the other half crept upstairs.

They caught Alverez by surprise in the master bedroom as he was yawning. Alverez shielded his face from the flashlights and the pointed guns.

The lead agent yelled out, "Freeze Zsapata! Don't move, you're under arrest!"

The other agents ran over and grabbed Alverez by the arms.

"What the hell is the meaning of this?!" Alverez ranted. "I'm a tax paying businessman! I want my lawyer!"

The agents remained silent while they apprehended him. The normal stoic disposition that Alverez usually exerted was gone. He was appalled while he was hauled off in his robe and slippers.

# Chapter 18

Weeks later

Somewhere in Central America

Dalearah Zsapata had a rude awakening around six a.m. She regained consciousness to a horrible feeling of penetration between her legs. Initially it all seemed like another nightmare, but in actuality her situation was real and crucial. Her partial vision was blurry and the confined room that she was in was smothered in black paint with no windows. It was impossible to distinguish what time of day it was.

Dalearah had been comatose ever since her final day in the United States. From the moment she regained her perception, her mind had been stuck in a traumatic state of consternation. Currently her spirit was distorted like she was in an altered reality. She went from being blessed with beauty and peace of mind, to lying naked on a filthy mattress with her wrists and one of her ankles strapped to the bed rails. Her body was so weak that it felt like she was paralyzed from the neck down. Never in her wildest dreams would she have imagined where she was.

Over the past few days, she'd been having recurring nightmares about being repeatedly raped. Unfortunately for her, that exact occurrence was what she seemed to be waking up to. A very heavy and hairy man was on top of her, jabbing harder and harder into her swollen vagina. His musty sweat was dripping and his loud moans and grunts were proof that she was not dreaming.

She tried to struggle but she lacked the energy to fuel the effort. She opened her eyes as wide as she could but they barely opened. Was it possible that her dreams had turned tangible? Had it really been a bunch of different men, repeatedly relieving themselves inside of her while she was drugged and unconscious? This was apparently the case. Now that she was conscious, she could really feel how awful of a predicament she was in.

Her muscles were of no use because her bloodstream was contaminated with Rohypnol. She tried to resist again but her weakness was overwhelming. A two hundred fifty-pound man was on top of her panting and grunting like a horse. His strokes became faster and faster as he was obviously beginning to bust a nut. When his climax ended, he stopped quivering and held still for a moment before pulling out.

Dalearah felt utterly disgusted and helplessly violated. She tried to raise her head but a migraine pulsed. The man got up from the bed and put on his pants. He said something in Spanish before leaving the room. She could tell by the sound of his dialect that she was no longer in North America.

Moments later, her cluttered thoughts began to merge as she wondered, 'Where ... am I? ... How, did I get here?' Amidst her mind-boggling thoughts, the door opened and a blinding stream of light pierced into the darkness of the room. The brightness from the other side of the doorway led her to decipher that she was probably trapped in a room of a big house or apartment building.

Before she could conclude her reasoning, a small man entered the room and immediately closed the door. She heard the approach of his footsteps until he stopped and sat down on the side of the bed. He tried to rub on her naked body but Dalearah mustered up enough strength to scoot away from his scrawny fingers. This made him angry and he started to yell at her. Then he aimed a hard smack directly at her jaw. The whole left side of her face began to numb.

In no time he managed to get on top of her and in between her legs, in order to slide his stiff little penis inside. This all seemed like a surreal horror. Dalearah was completely clueless about why she was in this dreadful dilemma. The trauma of the whole ordeal had her fading in and out of reality.

# Chapter 19

Inside of a glossy brown courtroom in the U.S. District Court of Maryland, Rolando and Gabriel were both dressed in suits and standing with their lawyers in front of a judge and jury. Their family and friends were behind them, teary eyed and attentive in the first pew.

Days seemed like weeks and weeks seemed like months during their intense and iniquitous court hearings. Ultimately it boiled down to their word versus the words of the arresting officers.

The day of the ruling was somber to say the least. The family and friends of Rolando and Gabriel erupted into protest when the guilty verdict was read. Their moms were astonished and broke down crying. The staggering sentencing for Rolando and Gabriel was fifteen years to life at Penitentiary Pacific. Rolando sat stone-faced and lifeless while Gabriel's eyes were closed in disbelief.

-Maryland Court of Appeals

A few days later, in a completely different and separate tribunal setting, Alverez Zsapata's legal team was concluding a fierce month of judicial jousting in court with the Attorney General's office. During his deposition Kyme Lee was trying not to talk too much, but the prosecution was able to pull a riveting testimony out of him that basically closed the case.

Notwithstanding, Alverez had elite lawyers who were able to get him off the hook for a majority of the crimes he was charged with, including his participation in multiple homicides and his dynamic drug distribution ring. Out of over twenty charges, the Solicitor General had to settle for a tax fraud, bribery, tax evasion and a money laundering conviction, even though it was suspected that he was guilty of everything. When all was said and done, Alverez was convicted and sentenced to 15 to life at Penitentiary Pacific.

# Chapter 20

64 year-old President McPhearse was tan with a nice full head of white hair. 54 year-old U.S. Attorney General Mike Coal was pale with a nice full George Clooney beard. They were having an unofficial meeting in the middle of the day at the White House Oval Office.

McPhearse was reclined all the way back on the couch, looking up at the eagle in the ceiling medallion while listening to a briefing from Coal.

McPhearse was reclined all the way back on the couch and looking up at the eagle in the ceiling medallion, while listening to a briefing from Coal.

"...And these new strategies we've enacted are producing results," Coal was saying, while pacing back and forth. "The DEA, CIA and FBI are all following through with strong and swift action."

"Very good," the President said, after taking his eyes off the ceiling.

Coal stopped pacing. "We're also working with several foreign officials in this drug war. Cooperation and gaining intelligence is our main focus. That's how we got Zsapata's cartel," he said. "We intend to eliminate all illegal drugs from crossing into our borders."

McPhearse sat up on the couch. "That's the best news I've heard all day!" he said. "One less drug cartel in this country. Who's next, the Artiz brothers?"

"And the Wong family. I was briefed yesterday. The DEA is all over it."

"Wonderful."

"One concern I want to mention though, slightly off the subject," Coal said, sitting down on the coach directly across from the President. "I've noticed Stanley Rheely several times, snooping around suspiciously in different offices throughout the agency."

"Assistant Attorney General Stanley?" McPhearse questioned. "I'm sure he was probably doing research for someone. He's a good kid. I've known his father since high school."

"No disrespect sir. But there's something about him I just don't trust."

"On what basis? Come on Michael, don't be ridiculous."

"But sir, I just think-"

"Hey, stop with the foolishness," McPhearse said abruptly, before standing up from the couch.

"Okay, you're right," Coal said, realizing the President was not trying to hear it. "Well, I have a meeting to prep for this evening."

"Where's your associate, Ms. Reynolds? I haven't seen her in a while."

Coal stood up and said, "Oh Deborah? Her son is in some type of trouble, so she's taking some time off. When I talked to her she was distraught, so she didn't go into details."

"Give her my regards, she's a very sharp lady."

"Will do."

McPhearse extended his arm out to shake Coal's hand. "We'll talk later."

Michael nodded and smiled as they shook hands. He left the room and was on his way.

*

My life as I knew it was over! We were sentenced to hard time in prison. Fifteen years to life! Never would I have imagined – not in my wildest, most horrifying nightmares - that I'd be spending the rest of my life in jail. I was barely in the prime of my life. This whole change of direction was completely out of sync.

Everything was all fucked-up and confusing. Lately I had been doing nothing but sobbing and holding my head in my hands while ignoring thoughts of suicide. All I could do was continue to pray and hope that I would soon wake up and things would be back to normal.

Ever since I was a child, the most important thing for me to do every day was to pray. I'd always trusted in God and believed that there was a purpose for everything that happens in life. But this sudden detour made no sense at all. Now more than ever I needed God to let me know what was really going on. I needed justification about why this had to happen to me. I know I hadn't been leading a perfect life, but I'd always been a morally good person. There was no reason for me to have been cursed with a destiny such as this.

And what was even more messed up was the fact that one of my best friends was in the same fucked-up situation. In court we were made out to be some type of dangerous drug couriers. The prosecutors declared that people like us who supply poison to the public could no longer be tolerated in American society. This was coming from some lawyers who probably did all kinds of dirt undercover.

When our sentences were administered, it seemed like time stopped. Gabe jumped out of his seat and rebelled while I remained disillusioned, like a frozen mime. Our images were totally shattered and publicly misconstrued. The entire city and everyone at my school were shocked by the news. Our parents did everything they could to help, but we were completely in the hands of the law; which was fucking ironic, because my mother was a government official and they still wouldn't let her do a thing on our behalf.

And why in the hell was it that we were given such a harsh sentence for having drugs? I mean, even if the drugs were ours, it wasn't like we'd committed murder or hurt anyone. We didn't even violate any of the Ten Commandments. So why was it that we were made out to be so evil?

After the court deliberations were completed, we were sent back to the holding cells where we'd been detained for over a week. In the morning we were supposed to be flown to an infamous underground prison out in the middle of nowhere. This place was said to have the highest standards of any prison in the world. I remembered hearing about it on the news one day in the past, wondering, 'how can a prison exist underneath the ocean floor?' Never did I think that I would find out first hand.

# Chapter 21

Dalearah's eighth intruder of the day had just exited the room. She'd lost all hopes of leaving this grisly place after being trapped for a while. During her first month of relocation, she actually thought that she'd only been dreaming about being trapped in a whorehouse. After the effects of the drugs temporarily wore off, she really became aware of what type of place she was in.

Weeks and weeks of abusive penetration left her vaginal area infected and sore like wasps had been stinging it. Forty percent of the daily guests she encountered did not wear condoms, causing her genitals to become polluted.

Almost every minute of every day was unpleasant. She was being pumped with more sedatives than she was food. Once a day someone would bring her a small portion of leftovers from the bar downstairs, yet twice a day someone would pump the veins in her arms with cheap but potent sedatives. Her once flawless body was thirty pounds thinner and she never had energy to move.

Shortly after the last rapist exited, another man entered the room holding a hypodermic needle. Dalearah could see the silhouette of his body as he stood in the doorway with the long needle pointing down from his right hand. She knew exactly what was about to happen and her skin started to crawl.

The man shut the door and walked over in her direction. He stopped by the head of the bed and knelt down in front of Dalearah. Her hands were tied and her arteries were wide open for the syringe. He pierced it deep into the center of her arm and shot the heavily distorting drug into her bloodstream. The left side of her body numbed and the other side quickly followed.

Her sight began to blur and she could barely feel his presence standing over her; but what she could feel was the tip of his extremely erect penis sliding across her shoulder to the side of her face. She was so drugged and relaxed that his penis was easily able to slide between her lips to the back of her mouth. Five minutes later the despicable man pulled out and squirted semen on her hair.

# Chapter 22

100 km west of Sapporo, Japan

Kyme Lee's witness protection hideout in the mountains of Niseko served as an ultimate blessing from God. He'd been there long enough to feel safe, secure and comfortable. He vowed to himself that he would live the rest of his life in complete solitude and peace.

He had little to nothing in his new place as far as entertainment, but he was content with chopping wood in the snow every morning deep in the surrounding forest. Today he showered and ate breakfast before starting his usual one-mile nature walk from the back of his hut.

Outside, chunky snowflakes floated down like shredded paper from the sky. Kyme carried a hand axe and a large thermos filled with hot coffee on his journey. The sky was pale and the flurrying flakes everywhere gave the wilderness a serene whiteness. His mind was at ease as he hiked down the trail.

Twenty minutes later, not far from his destination, Kyme failed to pay attention and stepped into the noose of a booby trap that was hidden in the slush. Before he could gasp, his ankles were caught and his legs were yanked from underneath his body like a rodeo calf. The thermos and the axe that he was carrying dropped to the ground and he was hanging upside down like a bat.

He began to panic when he heard approaching footsteps crunching on the crisp snow. Through his overturned view he saw five men coming his way from behind the trees. They surrounded him from every angle and were covered in black face masks. One of the henchmen carried a duffle bag on his shoulder and the others were empty-handed.

When Kyme recognized a sixth man coming from behind the trees without a mask on, he knew that he was in for a torturous punishment. Max Salasi was Alverez Zsapata's number one assassin. Kyme had been present to witness the brutal work of Max once before in the past. It appeared to Kyme that now he was about to be on the other side of the affliction. He began to squirm and twist like a worm dangling on the hook of a fishing line.

Max smiled and calmly started to walk towards Kyme. "I know you didn't think you could be hidden forever," he said sneeringly, before stopping in front of Kyme and spitting at him.

"No!" Kyme said squinting, as the loogi landed in his eyes. "This was all the doing of the American government! They made me-"

"Shut up!" Max yelled. "Nothing you can say will make a difference now. Zsapata already gave the orders."

"But Max, they-"

Whap—

Max delivered a strong kick to Kyme's body like he was trying to tip a cow.

"I said shut up!" Max shouted. "You should have never opened your mouth!"

Kyme couldn't talk while gasping for breath. Max pulled out a vape pen and nodded at the henchmen. The one henchman with the duffle bag pulled out five steel shovels and started to distribute them to his fellow henchmen. Max took a long drag from the e-cig before walking over and picking up Kyme's thermos from the ground. He opened it up and saw that the thermos was filled with coffee, so he tossed the hot liquid directly into Kyme's face.

Kyme grabbed his head and yelled in agony. Now he couldn't see, but seconds later he could definitely feel the hard iron tips of several shovels as they began to connect to his body like he was a piñata. He tried to cover his midsection with his arms but they quickly fell when his bones began to snap like toothpicks. The shovels were hitting him everywhere except for in the head. After a while his frame was pummeled and his internal organs were rearranged.

Three of the henchmen abandoned the assault in order to start digging a ditch in the ground a few feet away. Max was leaning against a tree enjoying the nicotine vapor while watching Kyme get murked. Seconds later the henchmen finally started to tire from the swinging. By then the others were finished digging the hole in the ground.

One of the henchmen used Kyme's axe to cut the rope that was holding him in the air. Kyme dropped face first to the ground once the rope was chopped. Max walked over and used his foot to push Kyme's paralyzed body to the edge of the ditch. Then with one last kick he pushed him into the hole.

Kyme was barely alive when he landed in the grave. He had an unruly pain traveling up and down his spine like cars on a freeway. He wanted to cry but he was too sore. All he could do was tolerate the long seconds of distress while the henchmen refilled the hole by piling pounds of mud and snow on top of him. The damp sludge was so heavy on Kyme's chest that death by suffocation occurred.

Once the ditch was covered, it was impossible to tell that a hole had been there. Afterwards the henchmen gathered their things and disappeared from the scene of the slaughter as quickly as they had appeared.

# Chapter 23

Earlier today when Chris dropped Jetaria off at home, they spent about an hour parked in the driveway talking. He had just gotten off the phone with Tahj when he pulled up to the driveway. By the time Jetaria got out of the truck to go in the house, he had already told her everything about how he and Rolando and Gabe met Dalearah and her friends at The Pier Surf & Turf back in May.

"... Now these chicks were gorgeous," he told Jetaria. "So, you know I had to snatch one of 'em. And Gabe made plans to keep in touch with one of 'em too. But your brother ended up with the prettiest one of 'em all, without even tryin'. And we were like, 'Damn, that's good for him' ... I mean, I know he's got a girl and all, but this lady was on another level. Next thing you know, after about a week or so we figured that he must'a really liked her, 'cause they started spending a lot of time together and goin' on trips and shit. And that was so unlike Lando, to be spending time with another girl other than Shaile."

"Yeah I know," Jetaria said.

Chris's expression turned more serious. "So the woman who I just got off the phone with was Dalearah's friend Tahj. She told me that Dalearah, the lady who your brother was messin' around with, has been missing for a couple months. She also told me that this lady Dalearah is married! – Your brother was fuckin' with a married woman!"

"Whaaat!" Jetaria said, stunned. "Really? Did he know she was married?"

"Nope. He couldn't have. He wouldn't have fucked around with her if he'da known that. You know how he was about messin' around with other people's girls."

"Yeah I know," Jetaria said, as the look on her face became worried. "This is all fucked up."

"Yeah tell me about it. And it was my idea to go to that restaurant in the first place. That kind'a makes me feel like shit."

"So who is the husband of this lady who my brother was messin' with?"

"Uh... I forgot exactly what she said his name was. Somethin' like, Alberes, Sapata or somethin'."

"Is he missing too?"

"I don't know, but from the way Tahj was talking, it seems like somethin' is wrong. She said the last time when she spoke to Dalearah, Dalearah mentioned that her husband had been acting strange and distant. Then two days later Dalearah was supposed to be meeting up with her to go to Atlanta but she never showed up. No one's heard from her since."

"That is strange," Jetaria said, as an inquisitive frown formed on her face. "So, do you think any of this has anything to do with my brother getting arrested?"

"I don't know," he replied. "But we need to find out..."

For a few minutes they discussed the probability of Rolando being the cause of Dalearah's disappearance. Then they spent even more time discussing the possibility of Dalearah being the cause of what happened to Rolando. By the time the conversation was over, Jetaria got out and went to the house with millions of questions bouncing around in her head.

She felt one step closer to figuring out the true cause of her brother's injustice. Now it was time for her to talk to her mother about what had been going on between Rolando and this married woman. Maybe moms could help put together some of the missing pieces to this dramatic puzzle.

Chris put his truck in reverse and backed out of the driveway. His mind was twisted and he felt somewhat responsible for the fate of his friends. He vowed to himself that he would never give up on finding out the real reason for their incarceration.

# Chapter 24

For a prison facility, Penitentiary Pacific's shower rooms and lavatories were much nicer than most professional sports facilities out in the world. They were all state of the art and covered in shiny emerald quartzite. The washrooms were centered every few blocks on all floors of every sector.

Inside one of the 3rd floor South Sector shower rooms, three men were in the shower area finishing up with their cleansing. After a while two of the men departed and Alverez remained alone in his stall.

When his shower was completed, he turned the water off and grabbed a towel before starting to walk around the corner to leave the washroom. From out of nowhere appeared a fully clothed inmate coming right at him. The foreign inmate pinned Alverez against the wall with a forearm to the neck.

"What the-" Alverez choked.

"Look old man," said the inmate, pointing a sharp homemade knife at his neck, "I could slice your fucking throat right now, or cut off your dick and shove it in your throat, your choice." The inmate looked left and right to see if anyone was coming. "I know people who know people, and word is, you got access to a lot of money on the outside."

Alverez's face was turning blue.

"I need five grand in cash by next week," demanded the foreign inmate. "I don't care how you do it, but if you don't have it for me, I will find you. And next time I won't be alone!"

The inmate quickly removed his forearm from Alverez's neck and ran away. Alverez fell to the floor coughing and gasping.

-White House 2nd Floor

President McPhearse was lying in bed next to his wife as she slept. He lied cemented still in a daze, thinking about what happened at his family reunion a few weeks ago. Back when a bomb exploded out of a champagne bottle during his family's annual ceremony, destiny placed him more than fifty feet away. His brother, aunt and uncle were not as lucky though.

The President's temper had been hot like flowing lava ever since that happened. He felt horrible because the assassination attempt was meant for him. He was even more upset that no one had been apprehended yet. Two of the world's best investigation agencies were on the job and no progress had been made. This was turning his psyche inside out.

McPhearse still tried to do his presidential duties during the day, but very little was being accomplished. His focus was on finding the person who killed his family members. Little did he know, he had already taken down the initiator of the attempt on his life, although the actual installer of the explosive, Max Salasi, was still at large.

# Chapter 25

Jaclyn Reynolds's career as Secretary of Commerce was mentally and strenuously challenging. She kept it all under control and in perspective with hard work and the satisfaction of knowing that her son Rolando and daughter Jetaria were both happy. On the contrary, ever since this whole unbelievable ordeal began with Rolando, she'd been falling apart on the inside.

The conversation that she and Jetaria had the other day was much deeper than any 'birds and bees' talk they'd ever had. This conversation was serious and intense. Jetaria told her mother everything that she had recently found out about Rolando's involvement with a married woman, and how it might have had something to do with him being imprisoned. Jaclyn initially failed to see the logic behind what her daughter was insinuating, until the name of Dalearah's husband was mentioned.

"Oh my God!" Jaclyn gasped. "What's his name again?"

"I think it's, Alberes Sapata or something."

Jaclyn got quiet and stared blankly at Jetaria, as if looking straight through her.

"Mom?" Jetaria said, trying to get her attention.

Jaclyn snapped out of it and said, "Oh, I'm sorry baby. It's just that ... if this is the same person who I think it is, then this is a very dangerous man! He's been under federal investigation for years and was arrested a few months ago."

"Oh wow," Jetaria said, realizing that the husband of this lady actually did have enough clout to initiate a set-up. "I see now."

"You see what?" Jaclyn asked.

"Well, me and Cherokee were thinking that maybe Rolando and Gabe were framed. And now, learning that this guy is notorious and all, makes me really believe there was some foul play."

"So you're sure his name is Alverez Zsapata?"

"Well, yeah ... That's what Cherokee told me, and he was told by the best friend of this married lady."

"And what's his wife's name?"

Jetaria thought briefly and said, "I think he said

her name is Dalera. And she's been missing for a long time, they say."

Jaclyn shook her head piteously and asked, "Did Rolando know she was married?"

"Nope," Jetaria said surely. "Cherokee said that he's positive Rolando had no idea."

"How long was Rolando involved with her?"

"I don't know. But it couldn't have been that long. Cherokee told me they all met back in May."

A weird silence occurred.

"Oh lord," Jaclyn finally said. "This is much deeper than I thought..."

They talked for the rest of the day and into the night. Eventually they came to the same conclusion, which was that Rolando and Gabriel were framed.

Jaclyn vowed that she would get down to the bottom of this disastrous masquerade. She used her clout to arrange an emergency talk with her son at Penitentiary Pacific. It took a full day of negotiating and pulling strings for her to finally be granted the eight-minute Skype call. She wanted to hear Rolando's side of the story once and for all.

By the end of the next day, Jaclyn was at the Roosevelt Center communicating with Rolando. She melted on the inside and could not speak when she saw her son's face on Skype.

Jaclyn spent the first minute glaring at his image as tears flooded her eyes. She had not seen him in so long that it was hard for her to accept him in prison attire. His whole demeanor was depressing.

Rolando's discouraging appearance crushed his mother's heart. He was completely helpless and there was little she could do about it. Two minutes elapsed by the time she calmed down and got a grip. They started to talk and she inquired about his well-being before getting straight to the point and questioning his affair with Dalearah.

"Well Mom," he explained, "one day we met her and her friends at a restaurant and they seemed to be pretty cool. A day or two later, she called me up and invited me to a comedy club. I accepted and we ended up having a good time."

"So you gave her your number?" his mother asked. "I thought you were still with Shaile?"

"I am still with Shaile. And I didn't give her my number. I don't know how she got it. I was so surprised when she called that I didn't even think to ask."

"And you didn't find out anything about this woman before getting involved with her?"

Rolando rubbed his hand over his face and then took a deep breath. "No, but I wasn't tryin' to get involved with her like that. She was just so cool and down to earth that I couldn't help but to hang out with her at least once. After that one time though, we like, bonded or something. And she was so beautiful that I couldn't resist her. So before I knew it we ended up spendin' the night at her cabin. After that though, it was like she just disappeared because I suddenly stopped hearing from her ... Next thing you know, I'm getting arrested for some drugs that I never seen before in my life."

"And when you were arrested, what exactly happened?"

"Well, it went down so quick that we barely even had time to profess our innocence. Every time we tried to explain and reason with the cops they responded aggressively. They weren't tryin' to hear nothin' we had to say. They were just determined to arrest us and take us down to the station."

"Hmm," Jaclyn thought out loud. "Let me ask you this. During the arrest, were both officers in your view at all times?"

"Yeah for sure when they were beating us up," Rolando complained. Then he looked down and thought for a second before looking back up at the screen. "Now that you mentioned it, they did keep switching positions by the car when they first pulled us over, and one would be out of sight off and on for a while. But they did it so smoothly that it was barely noticeable." After a pause, Rolando asked, "But why were you asking about Dalearah, what does she have to do with me getting arrested?"

"I really don't know right now," Jaclyn said. "But it turns out that she's a married woman."

An expression of surprise and disbelief formed on Rolando's face as his mother continued.

"And maybe that has something to do with what happened to you," she said.

"I don't understand," he said.

"And I don't completely understand either. But I'm definitely going to find out," she said, deciding not to say what she suspected. "...So where is this cabin you two spent the night at?"

"It was somewhere out in West Virginia, up in the mountains," he said, before questioning, "Why?"

"Because I'm going to find out where it is and have it checked out." She glanced at her watch and said, "So don't worry, I'm going to get down to the bottom of this. I want you to stay strong in the meantime..."

For the remainder of the call, Jaclyn focused on filling her son with faith and love. They exchanged affection and Rolando was trying to say as much as possible. Unfortunately the time expired as he was sending out his love to her.

Jaclyn sat in place motionless for a while. She was highly upset that the call shut off in the middle of their goodbyes. On her way out of the building she decided that it was time to go straight to the top government official with her problem. She planned to have a heart to heart talk with President McPhearse.

THE next morning, Jaclyn woke up early after only a few hours of sleep. She got dressed and left the house to go to a prearranged meeting with the President of the United States.

She rushed out of the house at six in the morning and was looking and feeling terrible. Bags anchored her eyes and her face was sad as if she had just come from a burial. She was met by two secret service men and led through the front doors of the White House. They escorted her in on level one and guided her down the wide hallways to the president's chambers.

McPhearse was expecting her, but not in the condition that she was in. He raised his arm and signaled for the secret servicemen to leave the room. Jaclyn's feelings let loose as soon as they exited. Her words were cluttered and tears flowed from her eyes like a brook. McPhearse offered her a seat and tried to calm her down. She straightened up as much as possible and began to pour her heart out.

She told the President that her son was involved in an adulterous affair with the wife of Alverez Zsapata. Then she informed him that this lady had been declared as a missing person, right before Alverez had gotten indicted.

Jaclyn continued to explain how she believed that Alverez must have found out about his wife's affair, and that he was probably the person responsible for having drugs planted in Rolando's car. She admitted to McPhearse that Rolando was a pot smoker, but she assured him that the cocaine, pills and money found in the car were not his.

She compared the two cops' arrest stories and crushed their credibility. Her persuasive rationale exuded throughout the whole conversation. After all was said and done, her convincing facts and excessive sobbing persuaded McPhearse to launch an Internal Affairs investigation into Rolando and Gabriel's arrest.

Jaclyn hugged and thanked the President with her deepest and most sincere gratitude. She was full of hope and promise as she was escorted out of the White House by the same men who had brought her in.

# Chapter 26

Shaile Alexander and Chantel Capezio met one another through their boyfriends Rolando and Gabriel at a birthday party several years ago. The girls got along well and always enjoyed themselves whenever they hung out together. They became good friends over the years, but had never gotten as close as they had over the past summer.

They both had been going through the same type of emotional distress ever since their boyfriends' drastic downfalls occurred. Since then they'd been spending a lot of quality time together, causing their relationship to gradually escalate to a different level.

Today they were together at Chantel's apartment as usual. Shaile slept over last night because she did not feel like making the long drive home. Chantel made a morning breakfast and afterwards they talked for the rest of the afternoon. This was pretty much their daily routine.

Had they not supported one another throughout this heartbreaking period, they would've probably just let themselves go. Them experiencing the depression together accelerated the strong unconscious feelings that had been growing between them.

-Central Sector

In a crowded cafeteria with many rows of tables and benches, a long line of inmates were moving down the main serving line to collect their lunch. Cold, wet and disgusting globs of food were being slopped onto their plates as they passed by.

Rolando was sitting at a table near the main line. He noticed Gabriel leaving the food line headed towards a table several rows over. "Ayo Gabe!" he called out, waving his hand. "What-up man?!"

Rolando got up and took his tray over to the table where Gabriel was.

Gabriel saw Rolando and smiled. "Whassup Lando?" He stood up and they slapped hands. "Long time no see! You eat during this period?"

"Yeah," Rolando said. "What you doin' here this time of day? They switch your lunch period?"

"Yup, everybody on our floor got switched ... I was pissed at first, but now that I see you here, it's all good!"

They laughed and slapped hands again.

Gabriel pointed to one of the other men sitting at the table. "This is my cellmate, Arturo. Art, this is my best friend Rolando, who I was telling you about."

Gabriel then pointed to Alverez standing in the food line, and said, "That's one of my other cellmates over there."

Alverez was standing in line behind a huge bald inmate. The bald inmate turned around and stared at Alverez.

"Hey motherfucker," said the big bald beast. "Let me get your bread and potatoes."

Alverez looked at him and frowned.

"You got a problem hearing old man?" said the hairless bully.

Alverez looked away and tried to ignore him. The bald inmate got mad and slapped the tray out of his hand. Then he grabbed Alverez and put him in a sleeper headlock.

Gabriel noticed what had happened and yelled, "Aye! Let him go!"

Gabriel immediately ran over to help Alverez. Rolando looked confused for a second before deciding to go help Gabriel. Next a bunch of other inmates jumped in and a rowdy melee befell. There were clashes like rams that broke bones like dams, and punches were being thrown while chairs were being flown. Fortunately though, the Military Police were up in the mix in no time, with Taser guns and fire-extinguisher-sized cans of mace.

# Chapter 27

Attorney General Mike Coal was waiting in the parking area of a local high school. He was there because he had been trailing Stan Rheely ever since he left the headquarters.

From a parked car, Mike watched Stan walk across the parking lot at a fast pace. He got out and started to follow as Stan disappeared between two buildings. Mike pulled out his smart phone and started to record while power walking. He was barely able to keep up as Stan entered the door of a gymnasium.

Mike made it to the gym thirty seconds later, and eased the door open to peak in. Nothing could be seen but a shiny floor and stacks of bleachers in the empty gym. He quietly slid in and eased the door shut. Once inside he could faintly hear a conversation going on nearby. He started to follow the voices by tiptoeing along the wall in back of the bleachers.

He reached the other side of the gym and stopped in his tracks when he saw Stan standing in the corner by the pool, talking to a guy in a hooded sweatshirt. Mike stayed out of view but was able to accurately aim his camera at Stan and the hooded guy.

"Although all the objectives were not achieved," he overheard the hooded guy telling Stan, "Mr. Zsapata still honors the agreement by paying you for your services."

The hooded man handed Stan a briefcase.

Stan accepted it and said, "Thank you," before turning around and walking away.

The hooded guy left in the other direction. Mike ducked out of sight as Stan walked across the gym floor towards the exit. Mike was in a partial state of shock as he stood there watching them leave.

# Chapter 28

The Penitentiary Pacific institution was engineered and excavated by premier professionals from all over the world. Its steady expansion continued to occur even after it was established. The original foundation of the prison had five main sectors, and development beyond those sectors was ongoing.

The inmates were used as a free workforce to dig and build the additional penal sectors. Most convicts toiled daily, ten times harder than coal miners, at constructing the outskirts of the prison establishment.

Over at one of the worksites in the Northwest Sector, a pack of prisoners were digging and carving out tunnels with shovels and picks. Others were operating machinery while laying tar, brick and concrete. Rolando was one of the inmates amongst this group. He was working hard with a small jackhammer in the corner, until he started to get the urge to go pee.

Several Military Police were patrolling the worksite and Rolando approached one of them.

"Gotta go take a leak sir," he said.

One of the guards gave a mean stare and said, "Make it quick."

Rolando nodded and started to hastily walk in the direction of the corridors.

THE urinal area could be seen all the way down at the far end of the corridor. Rolando proceeded to speed walk ahead in that direction. Halfway down the hallway he started to hear a bunch of punching and scuffling sounds. Once he got down to where the urinals were, he saw Alverez getting his ass kicked by four inmates, led by the one inmate who was trying to extort him.

Rolando stopped in his tracks and turned around to go the other way. He did not want to get involved. But after a brief thought, he turned back around and started to run over to help Alverez.

The foreign inmate noticed Rolando coming their way and yelled, "Stay out of this man! This has nothing to do with you!"

"It does now!" Rolando grunted, before lunging out a chest kick that knocked him down.

Two of the other inmates grabbed Rolando and they all started throwing blows. Just in the nick of time, three Military Police guards came in and broke it up.

# Chapter 29

Still in his lower twenties, Chris was blessed to have lived the life that he had thus far. Nevertheless, with great privilege comes great responsibility, to one's self.

In his high school years Chris was smart, only having sexual intercourse in moderation and always using protection. Once in college though, he developed an alter ego named Cherokee, who was uncontrollably addicted to frequent fornication. Sometimes it seemed as if he enjoyed sex more than life itself. When things were good and even when things were bad, he relied on promiscuity to soothe his mind.

Now things were bad and he was not happy. Graduation wasn't the same without his best friends Rolando and Gabriel. After they were arrested and taken to jail, Chris was left stressed and depressed. It was hard for him to deal with the fact that his boys were shipped to a prison way off in another hemisphere. In the back of his mind he felt somewhat responsible for what happened to them. The remedy he used to combat his guilt was reckless sexual behavior.

Remarkably, today he woke up in his own bed instead of someone else's bed. It was Monday morning and he had a busy day ahead. Before getting out of the bed he stuck his hand in his boxers and started to scratch.

'Damn, my shit's been itching all night,' he thought, as he slipped on his house shoes and scratched some more.

He then deemed it necessary to take a shower before doing anything. He felt that a good body wash would put a halt to his genital irritation. Once in the bathroom he got undressed and turned on the shower. As soon as his clothes were off he looked down and almost choked when he saw his penis.

"What the fuck ... is this shit on my dick!?" he hollered.

His eyes were bulged as he stared down at patches of bright olive fuzz on the head of his penis. He jumped in the shower and started to cleanse as much as possible. He lathered and rinsed thoroughly like a washing machine. Once he finished he dried off and was shocked to see that the fuzz was still there. It was now a dull yellow color and was starting to spread.

"Oh, NO!" he cried out.

It was itching excessively and he was scared to touch it. He had no idea what type of infection it was. This frightening trauma made him instantly forget about his plans for the day. His only goal now was to contact his doctor.

He started to rummage around his room in search of his phone, all the while trying not to look down because he got the chills every time he saw his junk. Once he found his cell he was so frantic that he accidentally dropped it on the floor and broke it.

# Chapter 30

Rolando and Gabriel were in the main cafeteria at a table eating dinner and talking. Rolando had a black eye and had just finished telling Gabriel about the violent escapade he found Alverez in a few days ago.

"So how's he doing?" Rolando inquired.

"He's still in the hospital ward," Gabriel said sadly.

"Damn, that's messed up," Rolando said. "I kinda feel sorry for him. Why does he get fucked with so much?"

"I don't know," Gabriel said. "I tried to talk to him about it but he's always vague when I ask questions ... Maybe it's because he's older."

"I don't know man. I don't see no other older inmates getting jumped on like he does," Rolando noted. "Seems like he gets treated worse than snitches do. What's he in here for?"

"Some type of major white collar crime, I'm not really sure. But I've heard rumors that he's paid." Gabriel took a bite of his rubbery garlic bread. "And oh yeah, he did mention a few weeks ago that somebody was trying to extort him for money."

"Really? Damn," Rolando said, before sipping some water. "Well look man, Alverez is cool and all, but I'm starting to think it's not such a good idea for us to be affiliated with him."

Gabriel looked at Rolando and said, "Aw come on man, we don't have nothin' to worry about."

"Yeah maybe so. But realistically, it's hard enough making it in here as it is. We don't need no extra problems."

"Don't worry, we won't have any," Gabriel assured. "Alverez aint no punk, he can handle himself."

"I'm sure he can," Rolando said. "But man, if I have to get into one more fight because of that dude..."

"I feel you man. But trust me, he's a good person. It might sound crazy but he's become like a father figure to me," Gabriel professed.

"Yeah you're right," Rolando smiled. "That shit does sound crazy."

Gabriel chuckled. "Look man, the bottom line is, I got you and you got me up in here," he preached. "So no matter what, we don't have nothin' to worry about." He extended his hand out to Rolando. "Na'mean?"

"Yeah bruh, you know I gotchu," Rolando said.

They bumped fists and eventually went back to eating.

# Chapter 31

Dalearah had been treated horribly for countless months. You would think she'd be dead by now from all the cruel abuse.

Each day the harsh treatment was pushing her more and more into the hands of death. The owner of the brothel finally recognized this and ordered for an improvement in her nutrition and a reduction in her drugging. She was bringing in so much cash that he wanted to keep her alive for as long as possible.

With consistent care she was soon no longer on the verge of dying. In this slightly better mind state she was able to realize that the straps around her malnourished limbs had become very loose. She quickly started to wiggle her wrists to try and maneuver them out of the durable rope straps. She was moving as fast as possible because she was afraid someone would walk into the room.

Moments later, her eyes opened wide with surprise when her arms were free. One of her legs was still shackled to the foot of the bed though, but she was confident that she could get it loose. She'd lost so much weight over the past months that even her ankles had thinned.

Dalearah closed her eyes to say a brief prayer. After that she took a deep breath, then kicked her right knee forward as hard as possible. The momentum of her body stripped her foot from out of the brace and left a deep scar. A short scream erupted and the pain was indescribable when her ankle snapped the shackle in half.

As soon as she was loose from the bed she started to hear footsteps outside of the room. It occurred to her that someone would probably be coming into the room at any moment. She got out of the bed but fell to her knees because her legs were weak.

A loud thump vibrated when she hit the floor. She became more nervous because she thought someone heard it. Nevertheless her determination to escape gave her enough strength to rise to her feet, despite the agony.

She limped over to the wall and used her hands to feel her way to the doorknob. Then she hid by the corner and patiently waited as her heart thumped rapidly.

'I have to get out of here!' she thought desperately.

As previously assumed, the doorknob turned and someone was about to enter. Dalearah instinctively froze like frost. The door opened and a streak of light protruded onto the floor to the far wall. A man wearing a sombrero stumbled into the room. He was obviously drunk because he stood wobbly in the middle of the floor rubbing his eyes trying to focus.

Dalearah slowly and quietly bent over to pick up the broken shackle from the floor. She used this opportunity to sneak up behind the man and bash him in the back of the head with it. His hat flew off and he collapsed forward onto the bed. She quickly closed the door and began to strip the man of his pants, shirt and shoes.

The man was thin and only two inches taller than she was. She dressed up as him and slipped on his oversized boots. Before leaving the room she tied her hair up and put the man's sombrero on to cover it. Now she was ready to go. She went to the door and cracked it open to peep out.

The light in the hallway was dim but brighter than the pitch-black room that she was escaping from. The whole place was filled with tobacco and cigar smoke, yet she could still see that she was up on the second floor. Dalearah's back stayed close to the wall while she avoided looking downstairs over the railing. She scooted sideways all the way down to the end of the hallway, past several other rooms that were obviously holding other innocent victims.

Dalearah was terrified and felt like she was in the middle of a nightmare. This ironically provoked a feeling of invincibility. Her movements seemed slow yet her abilities seemed divine. She got to the end of the hallway and decided to wait before going downstairs. Somebody was coming up the shabby staircase so it was time to hide.

After spotting a halfway open door at the end of the hallway, she scurried over to glance inside. She saw nothing but brooms, mops and sanitary canisters in there. She stepped inside and shut the door, allowing herself a little more time to think of a way to escape. She was weak and confused but her head was clear enough for logical cognition. As soon as she heard the footsteps go away, she began to activate a spur of the moment plan that popped into her head.

Dalearah grabbed a jug of disinfectant and loosened the lid before glimpsing out into the hallway. The coast was clear when she exited the closet. She mustered up enough energy to toss the one gallon container over the banister. Then she rushed back into the closet and softly shut the door.

The white container of antitoxin floated through the air while descending downward into a crowd of inebriated men. It landed on a pitcher of beer at the top of the bar. The pitcher went splashing and flipping down the side of the bar, causing beer and chemicals from the jug to fling into the eyes of the surrounding people.

This provoked major chaos on the first floor. Everyone was already stoned and a massive brawl ensued. Bottles whizzed through the air and folks were being stomped, punched and stabbed. Men were even coming out of the downstairs rooms to join in on the disorder. Chairs and barstools were shattering and people were getting hurt. The entire affray was out of control and breaking it up was close to impossible.

Dalearah could hear all the commotion going on. She figured that now was the perfect time to make a move. She crept out of the closet but it happened to be at the same time that Felipe – the man she'd knocked out with the shackle – was coming out of the room holding his head in distress.

"¡Eh!" he yelled in his Castilian dialect. "¡Vuelve aquí!"

Dalearah saw him and took off running towards the stairs. She almost tripped and fell over her big shoes, but luckily she was able to hold on to the handrail while running down the steps.

Felipe started to chase her down the staircase while waving his hands in the air to get someone's attention. He was in his underwear and socks but no one noticed until he twisted his ankle and stumbled down the steps. He tumbled a few times and collided into the back of Dalearah, knocking her over like a bowling pin near the bottom of the steps.

Most of the people who saw them figured that they were fighting like everyone else. Dalearah landed on her ass but was able to spring back up. There was no suspicion when she took off running towards the door like a fleeing coward. However, on her way out the sombrero flew off her head revealing her long hair.

"¡Que alguien la atrape!" Felipe cried, while struggling to get up.

It was too late. Dalearah bolted out the door like lightning. Two security guards helped Felipe up to his feet. He told them that Dalearah had taken his clothes and was getting away. The guards immediately went to tell the brothel owner about it. The news about the escape made him go berserk.

# Chapter 32

Cherokee's carefree carnal conduct continued to spiral out of control, eventually putting him in a position he never thought he would be in. He was now faced with a troubling decision that would affect the rest of his life.

Dr. Grey Jones had been his family doctor for decades. He'd known Chris since he was born. This made it very difficult for him to give him the ill diagnosis of his condition. Jones was teary-eyed when he informed Chris that he was infected with Rhizopious-Sepsis. This fungal infection emerged in Europe back in the nineties and died out in the early two-thousands. Only rare cases still occurred.

The good doctor thoroughly explained to Chris that this STD was capable of fatally crippling a person after only ten days of contact. He suggested, or rather told Cherokee that he needed to have his penis amputated soon or else the fungus would spread to the rest of his body and paralyze him.

Chris was devastated. This was his worst situation ever. He'd contracted an infection because of his recklessness. The choice he had to make was obvious, but he could not bear the thought.

# Chapter 33

*

After months of incarceration I started to lose track of time. The only joyful thing that had happened to me since going to the pen, was when I got to talk to my mom a couple weeks ago. Other than that short and unforgettable blessing, everything else was really depressing.

In this habitat of convict slavery, we were treated with no respect and forced to work all day. At first I didn't know if I could continue to deal with all the bullshit there, but once I got used to it I began to learn the ropes a little.

One day I was finishing up on a long day of laying wet cement in the Northwest Sector. I was looking forward to going over to the Central Sector to kick it with Gabe for a while after work. Almost every day we would meet up at the main cafeteria to talk about our day's occurrences, and to complain about how fucked-up it was to be locked up for no reason. The little time we did get to spend together kept us sane under such hopeless circumstances.

-Far West Sector worksite

Gabriel's twelve hour workday was finally about to come to an end. He and thirty other inmates were anticipating the minute that they'd be able to vacate the ventilation tunnels and go elsewhere for their free period.

Gabriel's palms were sore with calluses from weeks of laying exhaust pipes in the left sector tunnels. His endurance was at its limit so he was glad the workday was almost over. It seemed as if he was always being assigned the worst jobs. He hoped that his last day of working in this hot and stuffy section of the penitentiary would be coming soon.

Finally when a loud bell rang, everyone began to scramble from the worksite with no hesitation. Gabriel was tired-to-death but wasted no time getting out of there with the rushing crowd of inmates.

After entering the main corridor, instead of heading west with the other inmates, he walked the other way to one of the elevators. He was planning to meet Rolando on level three of the Central Sector, so he figured that he would make it there faster by going up to level three first, then catching a less crowded Shuttle Bus from there to the Central Sector.

The elevator was taking too long to get there, so Gabriel went to the adjacent stairwell and ran nonstop up six flights to level three. The spurt up the steps temporarily exhausted him. He stopped for a moment and put his right hand on the wall and lowered his head while breathing. He considered resting for a minute but he chose not to because his free time was limited. So he decided to continue on, but when he raised his head his neck was suddenly caught in the grasp of two burly brown arms.

These strong arms belonged to an inmate by the name of Big Grimey. He was nothing nice and his name was an understatement for his personality. He was part of the first shipment of prisoners ever sent to Penitentiary Pacific, and he was head of one of the prison's most menacing gangs.

Grimey's chokehold was so secure that Gabriel was stuck like a vice grip. Gabriel tried to throw some bows but the effect was like a child hitting a punching bag. The limited air circulation to Gabriel's brain began to blur his vision, causing him to collapse in five seconds.

Big Grimey picked Gabriel up and threw him over his shoulder. He carried him down to the basement level to a deserted area at the far end, where the lights were eighty percent darker than the normal glimmering lights everywhere in the prison.

Gabriel woke up minutes later in a steam-filled boiler room, feeling drastically vertiginous. He had no idea what was going on but he could see several huge shadows lurking around in the background. Quickly he snapped to his right mind and immediately tried to get up and dart out of the predicament that he was in, but Grimey reached out and grabbed the back of his uniform collar like a lasso.

Gabriel yelled for help but suffered a fatal chop to the back of the neck. Grimey's thug accomplices then stuffed a wad of tape into his mouth and pinned him down. Unfortunately Gabriel had been at the wrong place at the wrong time, and became a random victim to one of the horrors of being at Penitentiary Pacific.

After beating Gabriel into submission, Big Grimey and his gorillas started to viciously gang probe him like a hardcore prostate exam.

*

WTF? I don't know what the hell happened to Gabe.

I'd been sitting and waiting for over fifteen minutes and he still hadn't shown up. I wondered what the holdup was ... I decided to go ahead and walk the route that he should have taken to meet up with me. I needed to find out what was going on before our free period was over with.

I smiled at a bunch of guards when I left the cafeteria area headed to the main boulevard to leave the Central Sector. As I approached the avenue my pace increased. Five minutes later I saw a Shuttle bus going my way and I flagged it down. Ten minutes later the surroundings started to look desolate, like a swarthy cave. I got off the bus at the end of the avenue near the far West Sector where Gabe was supposed to have worked.

When I arrived no inmates were around. There were five military guards though, clutching their rifles and eyeballing me strangely as I approached. One of them pointed his weapon and ordered me to stop. I put my hands in the air and spoke up to let him know that I was looking for a friend. He told me all the inmates had already left a long time ago. I asked if they knew who Gabriel was and they looked at me like I was crazy, so I told them thanks and turned around to leave before they could start questioning me.

Now I was really starting to get worried. My first thought was that maybe he'd gotten sick and had to leave work early or something, but you damn near had to be on the verge of death in order to miss a day of labor. Then it finally dawned on me that something bad must have happened.

I walked away at a fast pace back to the main hallway and crossed over to the other side to look around. Once on the other side I entered a dim lit staircase. This section of the prison was not as bright as everywhere else. I thought my mind was playing tricks on me because I started to hear strange sounds coming from somewhere near. Immediately I paused and thought it was Gabe. My heart rate increased as I followed the noises down to the basement.

Once I made it to the cellar I eased my head from out of the stairwell to peep around the corner. No one was in sight but I could still hear the same muffled noises coming from nearby. I cautiously stepped out of the stairwell and curiously began to inspect the premises. I was hoping Gabe wasn't in trouble but I was getting a bad feeling.

The strange sounds led me all the way down to the opposite end of the basement toward what looked like a boiler room. I got closer and had to slow down a bit because it was hard to see through the thick steam. I continued to follow the faint noises toward what looked like a huge metal door.

The groaning noises got louder and a bad vibe overtook my body. Something was telling me that Gabe was behind that door. So without even thinking, I yelled out, "Gabe!" and then sprinted to the door and barged in with my shoulder.

The door flew open and I was tripped up by someone who was obviously waiting for me to come in. Skillfully though, I caught my balance with the palms of my hands before stumbling to the floor. However, before I could push to my feet I was viciously attacked like a piece of meat by a school of piranhas.

What the hell did I get myself into? I was being beat down for no reason. I could barely even see who was attacking me. I tried my best to struggle but every time I resisted I was struck in the head by something much harder than a fist.

Those savage mothafuckers dragged me across the floor and threw me up against the wall next to a person who was already laid out moaning. It looked like it was Gabe. I tried to move towards him but I was grabbed by my shoulders and pinned down with a knee to my back. I elbowed one of those fools but another one of them twisted my arm until it snapped. I grunted in pain and could not believe this shit was happening. I was enraged but totally helpless.

-Ventilation worksite

The 2nd shift quintet of Military Police had been on duty at the ventilation construction site for over an hour when Rolando came by looking for Gabriel. They started to get suspicious when they saw the stray inmate snooping around. One of the guards in particular, M.P. Brown became extremely dubious because Rolando was in such a hurry and was looking worried.

A minute or two after spotting Rolando, Brown decided to follow him to make sure that he was going back to the general population. The other guards remained at their posts while Brown left to trail the inmate.

Brown was checking the whole basement area to see if anyone was lurking around. He aimed his flashlight and clutched his rifle when he started to hear odd noises. Were his ears playing tricks on him? He didn't know. It could have been the humming of the generators causing the noise, then again it could have been something else.

Ultimately Brown proceeded slowly toward the boiler room. He arrived and eased the door open, only to be startled by what he saw. Before he could yell to break it up, all of the perpetrators scattered out of the boiler room like fleeing roaches.

It all happened so quickly that Brown had no time to clearly see or apprehend any of the inmates who got away. They were long gone. He radioed for help and tried his best to assist the two victims.

-Two days later

*

I couldn't believe I was all fucked-up ... And so was my pride. Those mothafuckers who assaulted us got away scot-free. And it didn't seem like the prison personnel was doing anything to find out who did that shit.

This bullshit was the last straw. I could no longer put up with it. At this point I felt that I'd rather be dead than to continue being a victim in that corrupt penitentiary system. I was left with only two options, either suicide or escape. And escape seemed more appealing, although it was pretty much congruent to committing suicide.

Later on we were scheduled for more treatment before being released from the Intensive Care Ward. Afterwards Gabe and I were looking forward to putting together a plan to try and get the fuck out of that hellhole. I knew he was down for it because we'd discussed it before.

# Chapter 34

Over the summer and the autumn months, Shaile and Chantel grew together like caterpillars in the same cocoon. They were no doubt the best of friends. They even got an apartment together because they were always with one another.

For the past thirty minutes they'd been chatting about their upcoming Christmas dinner, deciding only to invite family and close friends. Food preparations were the topic, and Shaile was praising the lasagna that Chantel's mother had once made for them.

"... It was the best!" Shaile raved. "Tasted so perfect. What kind of cheese did she use?"

"Who knows," Chantel replied. "Probably several kinds."

"Mmmm, mmm," Shaile said with a smile. "Make sure you ask her to bring some ... Tell her I said please!"

"You know she will."

"Great! And I'll have my mom cook a turkey and a basil chicken, and some of her spicy collard greens."

"Sounds tasty!"

"She'll probably make some of her world famous black-eyed peas too. Wait 'til you taste them. They're perfectly buttered and melt in your mouth."

"Oh my God," Chantel said, licking her lips at the thought. "This talk is making me hungry."

"Me too."

"Do you think that'll be enough food?"

"Yes," Shaile replied. "It should be more than enough. We're only inviting what, ten or eleven people?"

"That's about right."

"Ok. And we've got plenty of movies to watch, and a bunch of games to play after dinner. It'll be a lot of fun!"

"It will," Shaile mumbled, beginning to stare into the air. Then she sighed and said, "That's what me and Rolando did after Christmas dinner last year ... We had so much fun that day." She started to get sad. "I miss him so much."

"I know what you mean," Chantel said, understandably, "I feel the same way about Gabe. We were together during the holidays last year too. We drove to the beach and had a candlelight dinner on the shore." She paused momentarily and said, "It's those kind of memories that make me miss him so much."

In remembrance of their boyfriends, they both got quiet for a while and dropped their heads to sob. A minute later Chantel raised her head and put her hand on Shaile's shoulder. Shaile lifted her head and managed to squeeze out a small smile.

Chantel returned the smile and put her other hand on Shaile's shoulder. "Don't worry," she said in comfort. "As long as we've got each other, we'll be fine."

Shaile gave an appreciative smile, then leaned in and rested her head on Chantel's shoulder. Chantel started to hug and rub on Shaile's back. Next they embraced one another with pure female sentiment. Being in one another's arms was the only thing that seemed to take the pain away.

"Things aren't as bad as they seem," Chantel whispered convincingly.

"Yeah, I guess not," Shaile replied with a sniffle. "It's just so hard to get used to not having my man around."

They both got quiet again, staring deeply into one another's eyes without blinking. Eventually Chantel's emotions compelled her to inch closer to Shaile's face and plant a quick kiss on her lips.

Shaile was surprised and speechless after the kiss, but when Chantel reached out and stroked her hair, she started to feel comfortable.

"Do you want me to stop?" Chantel asked.

After a moment of hesitation, Shaile replied, "No."

Chantel slowly leaned forward and Shaile began to shiver. Their lips met in unison and they started to kiss awkwardly like inexperienced teenagers. Shortly afterwards they began to follow their instincts, caressing and holding one another the exact same way that they each liked to be caressed and held.

Shaile leaned back on the bed and Chantel was on top of her. They parted lips and Chantel started to kiss Shaile on the neck and on the breasts. Both of them were thoroughly enjoying the pleasure. This was apparent as they licked all body parts.

Shaile and Chantel experienced a very intimate night together, satisfying one another gently, congruently and passionately. Their relationship went to a different level - a level that it was bound to have reached sooner or later. Together they formed an extraordinary couple.

THE solid outer section of the Earth's crust goes from the ground to about sixty miles deep. The next layer is the mantle, which goes down a hundred times deeper than the thin crust. Below that is a liquid outer core and a solid inner core of rapidly rotating iron.

The Earth's core is staggeringly hot. The hard inner core spins extremely fast and the outer core's molten iron flows around it, producing a magnetic field that protects the Earth. Furthermore, the core's intense heat sends out massive energy, some of which escapes through volcanic activity but most of it is stored in the Earth's thin top layer.

The surface of the earth is on a crust that is fragmented and held in place like a jigsaw puzzle, with rough and jagged edges instead of smooth round edges. These puzzle pieces are Tectonic plates, and after a period of time, the accumulated stored heat from the core causes major tension in the plates and pressure between each piece. The tension and pressure on the plates causes shockwaves of released energy to occur. This discharge of power causes intense ground shaking.

Over the past few weeks, the energy buildup on the western edge of the Pacific Plate was more extreme than it had been in centuries. The Marianas Trench was essentially sitting on a boiling inferno, ready to rupture at any time.

Meanwhile under the trench, minor tremors were not a rarity at Penitentiary Pacific. They had a Disaster Control Center that constantly monitored the Magnitude Scale. Today the readings were up slightly. This troubled the D.C.C. staff a bit, but because the island had been known for fluctuating seismic activity, most of the personnel dismissed the vibrations as harmless. Therefore no one at the Control Center did anything to prepare for a worst case scenario.
PART  
FOUR
Chapter 35

Foster residence

"Webster how could you have been so corrupt!" scolded Pamela Foster. "You're supposed to be a police officer ... to protect and serve, not to destroy an innocent person's life!"

She verbally chastised her husband because she was furious and embarrassed by him. "How in the world did you think you could get away with what you did? What goes around comes around! You know that!"

Unlike Webster, Pamela was big on morals. "I wonder how many other people you've falsely accused. And for what?! Money? It's not like we needed money ... But now we will, because your career is over!"

Yesterday was the day that Officer Foster and Officer Tweed finally came clean about what really happened back on the night of May fifteenth. They admitted to the authorities that the arrest of Rolando Reynolds and Gabriel Juarez was a setup.

For weeks, both officers had been intrusively and intensely investigated by Internal Affairs. It was like a 24/7 invasion of privacy. Authorities scrutinized everything there was to know about the officers and discovered tremendous fiscal deposits made to their bank accounts back in May. This enabled investigators to rigorously drill them about where the money came from.

Law enforcement used the officers' financial discrepancies and weeks of consistent pestering to get them to disclose the details behind the arrest. Tweed and Foster admitted with reluctance that they framed Rolando and Gabriel. The news of the conspiracy spread through the Montgomery County Police Department like a virus. It also leaked out to the media and was exposed to the public by the next morning.

President McPhearse pressured Internal Affairs to find out who was behind the set-up. At first the cops were very disinclined to name the person who'd paid them. It took badgering and threats of life in prison for interrogators to get the information.

The officers finally named Stan Rheely as the person who hired them for Alverez Zsapata. They fully squealed and got a full deal. For their cooperation they were merely fined, given probation and kicked off the police force. What a shame.

President McPhearse was not aware of the deal that was made between Internal Affairs and the two police officers, nor did he care. He was just pleased to have gotten all the information he wanted to know.

-Honduras countryside

The way Dalearah fled from the doors of the horrific brothel was symbolic to an eagle fleeing from a birdcage. She felt as if her feet were not even touching the ground. When she ran out, her pupils initially caught a retina shock from the sky's brightness, but her legs never stopped moving. By the time she made it to an alley in a nearby town, the boots that she had on had fallen off.

Nothing but acres of rural scenery and green mountains surrounded the X-rated tavern that she had escaped from. Miles beyond that was a town with dirt roads and Dalearah was walking barefoot down one of them. A few street vendors noticed her wandering around looking desperate and desecrated, but they paid her no mind.

Dalearah could tell that she was no longer in the United States. Her first thought was to try to find an American Embassy or something, but she had no idea where to find that at.

She was fatigued to the max and did not know where to go. She noticed a Fred Sanford truck by the dumpster behind a building. The bed of the truck was lined in two-by-four wood. She climbed onto the back of the truck and barely made it over the barrier, falling right onto the cushion of a bunch of big flour bundles. Then she crawled over to the corner of the truck bed and squeezed herself in between the bundles until she could no longer be seen. This gave her a chance to slow down her breathing and think about what to do next.

The pickup truck driver was in the front seat drinking a beer and looking at a map. Dalearah was directly behind him in a fetal position under the flour bundles. The only thing separating the two of them was metal and the back window.

The engine cranked and Dalearah was startled when the truck began to move. Thanks to the bumpy road and the bumpy ride, the driver had no idea that he had company.

# Chapter 36

Beneath the Marianas Trench

All the residents at Penitentiary Pacific began to experience a rude awakening early Friday morning. Destructive tremors began to rock the walls of every sector in the prison's perimeter. The ceilings and the floors were stable but the whole place was being jarred like a can of spray paint before usage. Even the personnel at the Disaster Control Center were surprised by its potency.

The quakes measured over 8.0 on the Richter scale. These dangerous readings were more than enough for the Disaster Control Center to set off an emergency earthquake alert. They blasted boisterous alarms that echoed unpleasantly throughout every sector of the penitentiary for five minutes straight.

*

I woke up from my sleep in the middle of the night to some extremely loud and annoying sirens. They were blaring nonstop like it was the end of the world.

Emergency lights were flashing all over the place when my cellmates and I woke up wondering what the fuck was going on. I immediately rolled out of my cot because the room was shaking like a convulsion. Each of my cellmates jumped to their feet and we all looked at each other like, 'Oh, shit!'

We started to scramble around our cell like blind chickens. I could hear a bunch of other inmates down the hallway on my floor shouting and scrambling around too. Then there was a deep foreign voice that began to speak over the intercom.

"As you all have noticed, we are currently in a state of emergency. We need everyone to cooperate and treat this as a normal earthquake drill. Guards will be coming to your cells to let you out in an orderly fashion. They will coordinate you all and lead you to your sector's Safety Shelter ... Everyone must follow directions for the process to occur smoothly. Please remain calm. Thank you."

The voice ended abruptly and I was shocked that this was the real deal. We had earthquake drills all the time because the prison was located on a very fragile part of the Pacific Plate, but never had there been a real bad earthquake since I'd been there.

Without delay, the entrance light to the cell deactivated and four armed guards came to our cell barking at us. "Hurry up and get in a straight line convicts! Come on, quickly!"

We lined up in a hurry.

"Come on come on!" rushed one of the guards, shoving me out of the cell.

Once out in the hallway, I could see a bunch of other guards unloading inmates all the way down to the far end of the tier. I could even hear loud voices and chaotic yelling coming from the floors above us.

Keeping everyone orderly and together seemed to be becoming a difficult task for the guards to accomplish. When everyone on our floor was released, we were all organized in long lines of threes that stretched all the way down the hallway. Soon after, the guards started to lead us down the corridors toward the South Sector Safety-Shelter.

In the past when we had earthquake drills, everything would go smooth and easy. Everyone would remain quiet and orderly and we'd be guided to the shelter and back to our cells in less than thirty minutes. This time it was much different. Today everyone was either extremely hyped or extremely frightened, even the guards. Everybody was rushing and moving hastily because the entire place felt like it was about to fall apart.

The group of prisoners on my floor started off in trios, but by the time we made it to the corner of the hallway we were all walking in one big jumbled cluster. Further down the corridor was another large group of unruly inmates who came scrambling down the staircase in our direction. They were coming down the steps so fast that disarray began to build as their crowd was running into ours.

To my surprise, I couldn't believe my eyes when I saw Gabe coming down the steps along with the other inmates. I slowed down a little and fell to the back of the crowd to avoid all the turmoil that was stirring up by the staircase. I raised my arm to get Gabe's attention and luckily he saw me. After we made eye contact I slowly began to maneuver through the crowd to get over to where he was.

When we met up we slapped hands like we hadn't seen each other in weeks. While we were standing there watching the crowd move further away, I heard a voice in my head say 'Now is the time!'

I think I was having an epiphany or something, because I was feeling very bizarre. It was like all of my months of depression and frustration started to surface along with my adrenaline.

Straight ahead of us were a few dozen guards trying to bring order to hundreds of prisoners. Behind us was an empty staircase showcasing nothing but freedom. All of a sudden it dawned on me that this was the chance of a lifetime.

"Aye Gabe!" I whispered. "Let's get the fuck out of here man! Let's go, this is our chance!"

"Huh?" he said, with a disoriented look on his face. "Chance for what? To escape?" he asked.

"Yeah, now's the perfect time!" I said. "With all this shit goin'on, they won't even notice we're missing."

Gabe looked even more confused. "But how we gonna get outta here?" he said. "The entrance tunnels are way on the other side of the prison, and that's miles from here ... How we gonna make it all the way over there on foot without being seen? And even if we do make it over there, you and I both know that whole area is full of guards and police."

He was speaking the truth, but I was convinced that we needed to go for it. It was a precarious predicament but I was feeling possessed. My mentality was do or die.

"Yeah I see what you sayin'," I admitted, "but this is the perfect opportunity for us to go for it! There's a serious earthquake goin'on! All the guards and everybody else are on their way to the Safety Shelters."

"Yeah, but what if this whole place collapses and we're not in a Safety Shelter? Then what?"

"I'm not even thinking like that. All I know is that the guards and everybody else are preoccupied, so this is the perfect chance for us to get the fuck outta here. We can do it!"

I was scared to death but I was more than willing to take the risk. The last thing on my mind were consequences.

"Let me come with you," someone said from behind us. "Please!"

We were slightly startled. We turned around like, 'Who the fuck?' It was Gabe's cellmate Alverez.

"Oh, hell naw," I blurted. "Gabe we aint got time for this."

"I can help," Alverez said with sincere desperation. "And if we get out, I can make you both very wealthy!"

I didn't believe that shit, so I looked at Gabriel and said, "What's it gonna be G? Me and you can do this, right now!"

He thought for a second. "Alright let's do it," he said. "But this man here is like an uncle to me. We should let him come. We can all help each other."

I peered at Gabe for a second and saw that he was serious. "Aiight fuck it," I said. "Let's go!"

Gabriel nodded at me then nodded at Alverez. I could tell he was scared but there was no time for fear. My adrenaline was pumping and I was ready to take action. This was our one and only chance to get the hell out of there, so we had to move fast and precisely.

We stayed near the back of the crowd while everyone else gravitated toward the front where all the commotion was. There must have been a fight occurring because all the guards were hustling towards that direction. The whole cluster of inmates was pushing forward, while me, Gabe and Alverez lagged behind, basically ending up alone near one of the side staircases.

Now it was time. It seemed like I could hear action movie music playing in the back of my head. We slipped into the staircase and bailed down the steps all the way to the basement. I hated being down there because it smelled like a landfill. Not to mention it was humid, dark, and so congested that it seemed impossible to find our way around. Even worse, the earthquake's rumbles sounded twice as loud as they did upstairs. It felt like we were going to be crushed by an implosion.

The stressful situation we'd gotten ourselves into had us awestruck. I could almost feel the fear emitting from Gabe and Alverez.

"Which way now?" Alverez asked hopelessly.

"This way," I said off the top of my head.

I started to jog and they followed behind me. I didn't know exactly where I was going but I was running on faith. Our goal was to make it over to the North Sector, but without a compass we could have ended up anywhere.

Eventually we made it through the grotesque section of the basement and I sped up the pace because I knew that time was running out. We continued to hustle through a labyrinth of hallways like rats in a sewage system. More than twenty corners and T-intersections later, we slowed down to a jog because it was not only dark but it was starting to get steamy. We were lost for a while until we made it to another section with less steam and better vision.

I accelerated the pace again and we became fatigued soon after. I was out of breath and didn't know if my lungs could take it anymore. However, the fear of being crushed by the ceiling along with the fear of being captured by the authorities, kept my legs moving and my mind focused on freedom.

By the time we caught our second wind we were running with the energy of a supernova. We scurried nonstop through many turns and curves for six or seven more minutes, until something caught Gabe's attention.

"Lando wait!" he said, grabbing the back of my shirt. He pointed to the right. "I think I see a light over there."

I slowed down and stopped to turn around and see what he was talking about. Alverez caught up to us and was looking relieved that we stopped. I looked in the direction that Gabe was pointing and saw an exit sign. We jogged over there in less than a minute and it turned out to be a stairwell going up. We eased up the steps and my anticipation grew as we made it to the first floor.

Alverez was out of breath and rested on the top step while Gabe and I peeked out into the hallway to investigate our whereabouts.

"This is it," I whispered in an excited tone. "We're headed in the right direct-"

"Get back!" Gabe interrupted, ducking back into the staircase and pulling me with him.

Four armed guards were coming down the corridor as our necks were sticking out from the corner. Luckily they didn't see us. We turned around and started to tiptoe back down to the basement in a quiet hurry.

On the way down the last flight of steps there was another set of earthquake tremors that rocked the walls like a bomb blast. Those powerful vibrations knocked me off balance but I caught myself before falling. Gabe on the other hand, stumbled and fell to the bottom.

"Ahhh, fuck!" he yelled.

I helped him to his feet and he was able to stand up,

but he was limping in pain with every step.

"I got you man," I said. "Can you keep going?"

"Yeah I think so," he winced. "I fuckin' twisted my ankle."

"Damn," I said.

I didn't expect for this to happen, but we were too far-gone to turn back now, so I put my arm around his waist and his arm over my shoulder to hold him up.

"Let me help," Alverez said, holding onto Gabe from the other side.

"Can you run with our help?" I asked Gabe.

"Yeah, but don't go too fast," he said.

I told him that he needed to run as fast as he could, then we took off.

Using the vague memory I had from when I once worked

down in the cellar, I led the way as we ran continuously for several minutes. We were sprinting our asses off until we got tired and couldn't run anymore. Gabe was starting to weigh us down and my strength was withering. I told him he'd have to run by himself for a while and he frowned, but he had no choice.

We started off again with a moderate jog and sped up to a much faster pace. Eventually the hallways narrowed and we slowed down in order to weave through a bunch of cluttered storage. Gabe was doing his best but several minutes later he fell and we had to help him run again. We were trying our best to get away but it seemed more and more hopeless by the second.

I had no idea where we were, but somehow we came up on another open stairwell. We went over there and sat down on the bottom three steps to rest for a second. I felt like I was about to faint. My breathing was so hard that I thought my chest was giving in.

Two minutes later we rose and proceeded to walk up the steps in an unsure fashion. About twenty steps later we made it to the first floor. I peeped out of the stairwell to see where we were. We'd been down in the dark basement for so long that I had to squint my eyes to adjust my pupils.

At first I didn't know where we were because there were no jail cells in sight. But then I figured that we must have been somewhere near the North Sector because everything was much nicer and immaculate. The corridors were all carpeted and sparkling clean like a five star hotel.

"Aye fellas," I said. "Let's go this way. I think we're on the right track."

We carefully proceeded out of the stairwell and into the empty corridor. We followed the executive-styled hallway all the way down until it turned into another hallway that was lined in fancy offices with glass doors and walls.

It dawned on me that we were in a forbidden part of the prison. There were plush offices lined all the way down the hallway as far as my eyes could see. All of them were equipped with nice office furniture and hi tech equipment.

At the end of this long classy corridor, was a huge Control Room filled with computer electronics and dozens of monitors and surveillance equipment behind thick plexiglass walls. We passed the state of the art command room and then passed through a fancy lobby area that connected to an X-intersection of four other hallways. Those hallways split up to eight hallways, then to sixteen, and so on. This region was even more luxurious and resembled the setting of a resort. I couldn't believe we were still in the same prison. This side compared to our side was like night and day.

We were even more confused now because we'd never been to this side. Time was running out and we were lost in unfamiliar territory. Eventually we chose to take a path that surpassed the entire area. Before I knew it we were at an intersection of four more passageways. These hallways were a bit different from the others. They were still clean but they had no offices and no carpet and no cells.

We chose a passageway that turned out to be a dead end. It was an empty freight elevator shaft that was under construction. I cautiously stepped to the edge of the shaft and looked down into a deep black hole. Then I looked up the shaft and saw a trace of light along with a bunch of elevator cords hanging down. Our predicament was so desperate that I decided we needed to climb up the cables toward the light above.

"I can't climb that far," Alverez complained.

"Yes you can," Gabe assured. "You can do it."

"You got no choice," I said, as I prepared to start my climb. "It's either this way or go back."

I closed my eyes to get my mind right. After taking a few deep breaths I was the first one to go for it. I jumped out into the shaft and caught on to one of the thick dangling cords. The steel cable felt like it tore through my palms when I grabbed a hold of it, but I kept my grip and held on tight, trying hard to prevent myself from falling into what looked like a bottomless pit.

After a short hesitation, Gabe went next. He jumped out into the shaft and caught on to one of the elevator cables with both hands. He got a good grip and stabilized himself from swinging.

Alverez was still standing in the hallway afraid to jump.

Gabe was trying to give him encouragement. "Come on Alverez, you can do it man."

I was already climbing to the top while Alverez was still down there trying to gain courage. To my surprise he finally took a leap of faith and held on successfully.

Eventually we all made our way up the wire ropes like monkeys on tree vines. The long ascent was a difficult task to accomplish. I give Alverez credit for making the climb because it was very straining.

Fortunately I made it to the top and was able to swing over to the ventilation duct where the trace of light was coming from. I squeezed myself into the vent and scooted further inside to make room for Gabe. He made it up and swung over to the opening with no problem. Then at last, Alverez climbed up and was barely able to swing over to the edge, where Gabe had to hold on to him to pull him in.

The ventilation duct was very small but surprisingly clean, with the exception of some dust and cobwebs. We were on our hands and knees and it was so narrow that we had trouble turning around. I was in front, Gabe was behind me and Alverez was in the back. We crawled as fast as possible through the long uncomfortable vent, which seemed to stretch the length of a city block.

As it finally came to an end, I was beginning to get nervous because it seemed like the duct was leading us out to an empty hole to nowhere. Once at the edge of the vent I cautiously peeked out and saw that it led out to a huge, cavern looking tunnel.

"Anything out there?" Gabe asked from behind me.

"Looks like a cave," I replied. "Or a tunnel."

Looking down the left of the tunnel was pitch black, but down to the right I could see many tiny LED lights, lined along what appeared to be railroad tracks.

"Wait!" I said, "I see something."

Gabe and Alverez simultaneously said, "What?"

"I see train tracks, and it looks like they lead further down to one of those shuttles we were brought in on!"

I wasted no time carefully prying myself out of the duct and onto the inside wall of the tunnel, where I held onto the crevices tight like a rock climber. Gabe squeezed out of the vent next, then Alverez.

We all started to carefully scale down the side of the rugged tunnel wall like Spidermen. Midway down to the bottom, Alverez lost his grip and fell recklessly down the jagged wall. He hit the bottom and let out a loud shriek that echoed. He stayed on the ground until we got down there to help him up. He was holding his shoulder in pain but he was okay.

"I can't believe it!" Gabe said, peering down the tunnel. "I think we're close!"

"Let's go," I said.

We started to run down the tunnel right alongside the tracks. Soon I could clearly see a Shuttle Train at the end of the tracks.

"Oh hell yeah!" I shouted, while starting to run faster.

Then out of nowhere, loud sirens that were different from the earthquake alarms, started to blast all over. Those alarms must have been for us because the earthquake alarms had already stopped a while ago.

We rushed down the tracks all the way over to the Shuttle Train. Once there we stopped by the front of the train and marveled at how big it was. The hinged door was on the side and I was completely surprised when I pulled the latch and it slid open. It felt like a straight blessing. I thanked God several times as we jumped on the train and slid the door close.

With no hesitation I went straight to the front of the Shuttle where the controls were. It was difficult to get the power authorization started because the control console was plagued with unlabeled buttons. I tried to recollect how the driver was operating it back when we were first shipped there, but I was punching buttons and flipping switches to no avail. After the fifth try, the Shuttle train miraculously started to vibrate and rev-up like a powerful jet.

We rejoiced with glee like we were free. But the moment was short lived when I made eye contact with a passing Military Police guard on the other side of the Control Room.

He pointed at me and yelled, "There they are!"

The M.P. guard ran to the door of the Control Center but could not get in. Several other police ran over and accumulated outside of the hub. One of them was able to get the door open and they all rushed in with guns up. Most of them ran straight towards the Shuttle Train while the others ran to the control board to try and power down the train.

Gabe was cheering me on as the lights and the seatbelt signs came on inside the Shuttle Train. We strapped ourselves in and the train began to pulsate.

All of a sudden the noise volume from the ventilation ducts began to louden and everything started to shake. The Shuttle Train began to slowly move forward on the tracks. Most of the Military Police running towards the train were knocked to their feet by the pressure and the force.

"Yes! Thank you God!" I praised.

Gabe shouted, "Whooooo!"

Alverez was bent over praying.

The Shuttle Train quickly started to pick up speed while proceeding up the inclining tunnel. We were moving up the ramp like it was climbing to the top of a rollercoaster. My stomach got heavy and I began to experience a weird feeling of excitement. But I was scared as hell.

Everything turned black as we continued up the tracks. Then in an instant, the Shuttle Train took off like going into warp speed. We were sucked up the tunnel like fluid through a straw, reaching speeds way past two hundred miles an hour.

It was like hitting Mach 1 as my body jerked and I was pinned to the seat. The force of the acceleration made me slightly dizzy so I closed my eyes and tried to visualize freedom.

Minutes later ... I think ... My body felt the motion of the Shuttle Train slowing down. I slowly opened my eyes and took a deep breath as the slope leveled off, changing to a forty-degree angle and then to a twenty-degree angle.

When the train finally emerged from out of the tunnel in the ground, I was marveled at the sight of the sky that I'd been deprived of for so long. The outside world looked so lovely, despite the fierce storm that was going on.

Hard rain was pouring down like Noah's Ark. Tenacious winds were bending trees and blowing debris all over the place, and tall tidal waves from the ocean looked like they were going to swallow up the whole island. It was then that I realized that the success of our escape was far from over.

I gazed out of the Shuttle Train window in astonishment as it slowly glided to a complete stop. I was nervous as hell, and Gabe and Alverez looked just as terrified when the Shuttle Train started to rock from side to side like it was going to fly off the tracks.

"Oh shit!" Gabe yelled. "We gotta go back!"

"Go back?" I said. "We can't go back now! - Not even if we wanted to."

It took a few seconds for him to accept the truth. "Okay you're right," he admitted. "But we gotta do something man, we'll die soon if we don't!"

I was scared and anxious too, but it was far too late to be turning back. We were in it to win it, and deep down I was more afraid of being sent back to jail than I was of the storm. So we decided to make a run for it.

On the count of three I hit the latch and the door slid open. The heavy winds and severe gusts instantly swept us off our feet like sand in a sandstorm. Gabe was flipped uncontrollably in one direction and me and Alverez were tossed in the other direction. The last thing I remember was spinning helplessly towards a mountain while praying. Then I suddenly blacked out.

# Chapter 37

A comely brunette in a burgundy suit escorted Stan Rheely down the hallway to the front door of the Oval Office. She knocked on the door, smiled at Stan and walked away. When the door opened Stan stepped into the office. He was surprised to see Mike Cole sitting on one of the parallel sofas in the center of the room.

Over at the far end of the oval, President McPhearse rose from behind his Resolute Desk and motioned his hand for Stan to come sit in the chair next to him.

"Afternoon Stanley," McPhearse said. "Have a seat."

Stan looked over his shoulder and saw two 'Men In Black'-looking Secret Service agents standing by the exit.

Stan gave a nervous smile while taking a seat. "Good afternoon Mr. President," he said. "I thought you invited me to a private meeting?"

"This _is_ a private meeting," said the President. "Never mind them. Let me get straight to the point. I'll start off with a question ... How well do you know Alverez Zsapata?"

"Who?"

"You heard me, Alverez Zsapata ... Come on Stanley, I know you're aware of who he is. How well do you know him?"

A silent pause occurred.

"Well, outside of the intelligence reports and the information released during his indictment, I don't know him at all."

McPhearse stared at him for a moment. "So you've never met him or talked to him?"

"N-No, I haven't," Stan stuttered.

President McPhearse turned around in his swivel chair

and looked out the large bay window for ten seconds. Afterwards he sighed and turned back around toward Stan.

"Look Stanley, I have a load of proof that shows otherwise," McPhearse said. "And to be honest, at first I didn't believe it. But after seeing and hearing the evidence, I'm disgusted with you! You are the Deputy Attorney General for Christ's sake. How could you betray your country like this?"

"Like what?" Stan asked, playing dumb.

McPhearse frowned and got up from his chair. He walked up to Stan and stood over him. "Like what?" he said sarcastically. "Like providing valuable and confidential information to a murdering drug kingpin!"

"Murderer? I had no idea."

"Bullshit!" McPhearse yelled. "I have plenty of evidence that points to you as his mole!"

Stan's chin dropped to his chest. "Mr. President, sir, I beg your forgiveness," he asked, raising his head. "Please, I only provided him with basic information. I only confirmed things that he already knew. I certainly wasn't trying to cause or contribute to any harm." His eyes watered as he whined. "I really needed the money because I'm in debt. I've been struggling since my father passed."

"What?" McPhearse said, losing his composure. "How dare you use your father's memory in vain as an excuse!" He grabbed Stan by the collar and yanked him up to his feet. "Harry was an honorable and righteous man. He would have never sold out his country the way you did. He's probably turning over in his grave right now!"

McPhearse let go of Stan's shirt and looked at the Secret Service men by the door. "Get him out of here!" he demanded.

The Agents went over and grabbed Stan by the arms. One of them proceeded to slap handcuffs on his wrists.

"No need for those," the President told them. "I don't want to draw any attention to this matter." He stepped directly in front of Stan's face and said, "I'm going to keep this under wrap. But you will pay dearly for your treachery."

McPhearse stepped away and said, "Take him out through the Rose Garden."

"Mr. President, please!" Stan begged, as they pulled him out. "I sincerely apologize!"

McPhearse turned away from Stan and looked at Mike Cole. Mike parched his lips and shook his head in pity. McPhearse walked over and slammed the door when Stanley was taken out.

"I'm sorry to have brought this to your attention," Mike said. "I know that wasn't easy for you to do."

"That's okay ... I'm more disgusted than anything." McPhearse took a deep breath. "I'm just, bewildered by his stupidity. I've known him since he was a child."

"Yeah, it's sad to see such a promising young man fall victim to greed."

"And the compromising of his integrity," McPhearse added. "Such a shame ... But don't fret. You were just doing your duty by informing me." The demeanor of the President quickly changed like a light went off in his head. "And speaking of such, I need you to do me a favor and get the pardon petition started immediately on the case for Jaclyn's son."

Mike rose from the sofa as if he was about to give a salute. "I'm on it," he said with pride.

"Great," McPhearse responded. "Send me the paperwork as soon as possible so I can sign it."

WHEN President McPhearse notified the Secretary of Commerce about her son's innocence, her spirit was uplifted like never before. He vowed to take all steps necessary for Rolando and Gabriel to be exonerated and pardoned by the end of the day. After speaking with Jaclyn he tried to call the head warden of Penitentiary Pacific, Rho Vladimier, to inform him about the two inmates' innocence.

The International Justice Building in Guam unfortunately could not be reached because the circuit lines and cell towers were all down. The President tried once again but was unsuccessful.

Now perplexed, McPhearse called his personal secretary to have her try to get through. She informed him that all communications to Guam were temporarily down due to last night's typhoon and earthquake damage. She told him that she would notify him as soon as the power was restored.

The President thanked her and the call ended. He began to organize his thoughts as he leaned back and stared at the extravagant design patterns on the ceiling.

# Chapter 38

Six am Guam time

The aftermath of a disastrous night was finally about. The ocean and the sky were calm but the island was ravaged. Military Police and several teams of trained bounty hunters were carefully combing over half of the island's surface.

Growling dogs lead multiple search teams around the peninsula while vigorous vehicles were treading over the weathered terrain. The loud noises woke Gabriel up like he was at the climax of a nightmare. Once awoke it took no time for him to realize that he was not dreaming. Everything was realer than real and he was still on the run.

His nerves were disturbed and his heart pounded off track. He surveyed the surroundings and Rolando was nowhere to be found. It was obvious there was a manhunt going on, and it was even more apparent that it was time for him to get moving.

He was on a side ledge of the lower part of a mountain range. He had no idea which way was which, but his goal was to quickly get out of sight. He started to trot down the slope, and meticulously move around the mountain ridge until reaching a flat section that resembled a trail. He continued to maneuver down the narrow path with balance and accuracy like a squirrel on a tree limb.

The little faith that he had was not restored until he reached the bottom of the mountain. He saw Rolando and Alverez laid out near a pile of rubbish. He hastily ran over there and frantically shook them both to wake them up.

"Yo fellas! Get up!" Gabriel said to them. "We gotta go! Come on!"

Rolando and Alverez were within several feet of one another and were badly bruised and knocked out. Rolando came to his senses first and struggled a bit to stand up. Then Alverez woke up and Gabriel helped him to his feet.

Rolando looked abroad and got a depressing reminder about their situation. "Damn, they're fuckin' everywhere!" he said.

"Let's go!" Gabriel said, "We gotta get outta here."

"And go where?" Alverez asked.

"Anywhere but back to jail," Rolando said. "Come on

y'all."

They began to flee in the opposite direction of where the bounty hunters and the dogs were. They scurried over small hills and high grasses until making it to a huge mountain that was too tall to even think about going over. They went to the right and began a counterclockwise rotation around to the other side of the mountain. This was such a difficult and arduous task that eventually they fell to their knees in exhaustion.

They were sweating like pigs and shivering like it was zero degrees while camouflaged beneath the tall grass. Rolando was bent down on one knee, Gabriel was squatting and Alverez was crouched down on the ground.

"Those mothafuckers are all over the place," Rolando said, while catching his breath.

"We gotta keep movin'," Gabriel rushed. "Let's get going!"

"Wait!" Rolando said. "First we need to come up with a plan. We can't just keep runnin' with no destination."

"Okay, what you got in mind?"

After moments of silence, he said, "First we need to disrupt these sensors in our nostrils, because once the power's back up they'll be able to track us."

"How we gonna do that?" Gabriel asked.

Rolando looked around and saw a broken block of cement on the ground. He looked at Gabriel and motioned at the big stone.

"Uh, so what are you getting at?" Gabriel said to Rolando, with a whatchu-talkin bout-Willis type of look on his face.

"I want you to take that brick right there and use it to hit me in the nose."

Gabriel gave a bizarre look and said, "You serious?"

"Yeah man. That's the only way we can break our tracking devices..."

They each sat there in their dirty fluorescent uniforms, looking at each other with apprehension. After a short hesitation Gabriel shook his head and picked up the brick. Rolando took a deep breath and braced for the impact. Alverez squinted and turned his face when Gabriel used the cement block to punch Rolando in the nose. Rolando let out a brief wail and fell backwards.

Less than a minute later it was time for him to return the favor. With the same brick he let Gabriel have it, then Alverez was the last to get socked. Afterwards they ripped their uniform pants into shorts and used the rags to wipe the blood.

"Now we need to try to make it to the coastline without being seen," Rolando said. "Then we can try to swim to one of those nearby islands and hide out until we figure out what else to do."

Gabriel gave an awkward look and said, "You sure?"

"You got any better ideas?" Rolando challenged. "Cause I ain't going back!"

"Me neither," Alverez added.

"Okay then, that's what we'll do," Gabriel said. "So let's go!"

With no hesitation they sprinted off and maintained a

steady pace through fields of thick grass. Before long they approached a river basin filled with vehicle parts, tree branches and electrical power lines. Slowly they treaded through the smelly and murky thigh high water while holding their arms up.

Halfway through the strenuous wading, Rolando yelled, "Aaah, shit!" He saw a small water moccasin slithering away from him in the river.

"What happened?" Gabriel asked.

"A fuckin' snake bit me ... Fuck!"

Gabriel and Alverez went over and helped Rolando cross the rest of the way. Once they made it to the other side of the inlet they had to take a breather. They were dead tired with soaking wet shorts and shoes, yet still they were impelled to keep going.

Beyond the river was an enormous forest with broken trees everywhere. They proceeded through the edge of the woods as fast as they could. Over five minutes later they made it out to where the dirt turned to sand. They could see the ocean not far away and their hopes began to expand.

Then unexpectedly out of nowhere came dozens of bounty hunters and attack dogs from east of the forest.

"Over there!" yelled one of the bounty hunters.

Rolando, Gabriel and Alverez dashed to the left as the ferocious, wolf-looking hounds began to chase.

Three Jetcopters came into view and started to hover

over them while they were fleeing.

"Stop!" someone demanded through a bullhorn from one of the choppers. "Stop right now!"

They continued to run for their lives but the vicious

canines were quickly gaining ground. Fortunately there was a muddy, swamp-like terrain lying directly between them and the seashore. It wasn't until they started to track through the soggy soil that most of the attack dogs were slowed down.

Rolando, Gabriel and Alverez made it through the marsh with a good lead on their pursuers. One of the bounty hunters fired two warning shots in the air. The fugitives stopped running for a moment.

"Look over there!" Rolando exclaimed, pointing to a dock about a hundred yards away. "Let's go that way!"

They took off running and each stride felt like slow motion. They noticed more Jetcopters starting to appear in the sky. Their brains filled with fear and they almost panicked until they spotted some unattended water vehicles parked horizontally by the shoreline.

Each Water Rocket Capsule was shaped like a nine foot long bullet, and was shining as if made of glass. The fugitives saw these water craft machines as their only way to escape. They sprinted full speed ahead towards the shore like it was a finish line, but a few of the dogs that had made it through the swamp were still in pursuit.

Alverez tripped and fell to the ground while Rolando and Gabriel were getting away. Rolando had no idea why he stopped and went back to help him, but he did. The wild dogs were getting closer so every passing moment was crucial.

Ten breaths later they made it to where the high tech watercrafts were. They loosened the chain anchors and proceeded to open the fiberglass covers on the top of each capsule. Next they each slid into the machines by entering arms and head first.

In their respective vehicles they each were positioned on their stomachs with their hands on the guidance controllers. The glass covers started to close as soon as the dogs were nearing. Instantly the Water Rocket Capsules ignited and the canines were almost roasted by the fire coming from the exhaust pipes.

In only five seconds the Water Rocket Capsules reached a speed of ninety miles per hour. A few seconds later they were going a hundred fifty miles per hour while skimming over the ocean waves.

Although they were unable to look back and see how far ahead they were, it seemed to them as if they were successfully getting away. However, the military Jetcopters were still trailing in hot pursuit, like a deadly swarm of locusts.

-4:30 pm Washington DC time

After trying all day, the President's personal secretary was finally able to get through to the Justice Building in Santa Rita, Guam. She connected McPhearse through to the office of justice Rho Vladimier.

"Hello Mr. President," Vladimier said in his smooth Polish accent.

"Mr. Vladimier!" McPhearse said. "Nice to speak with you again."

"Likewise," Vladimier said sincerely. "Your secretary tells me you have been trying to get in touch with me all day."

"Yes I have," he said. "But I heard about the disasters out there."

"Horrible, just horrible," he said. "We were hit with a double impact. It was so devastating that everyone on the island's surface had to spend the night down in the penitentiary for shelter ... I'm surprised the headquarters are still standing. Almost everything else is damaged."

"My goodness," McPhearse said sadly, "I hope there weren't any casualties."

"Not many," he said. "And I'm very thankful for that." He gave a long exhale. "So, how are things going?"

"Well," McPhearse began to explain, "about six months ago two inmates were sent to Penitentiary Pacific for drug trafficking and conspiracy charges. But it turns out that these two young men were wrongly accused and I have granted them both federal pardons. Their names are Rolando Reynolds and Gabriel Juarez."

Vladimier released an awkward gasp as McPhearse continued.

"The paperwork is already signed, so in order to avoid any complications, I need you to do me a favor and have them placed on the next flight out of there."

Vladimier was shocked. "Mr. President," he said hesitantly. "Inmate Juarez and inmate Reynolds are fugitives! They escaped yesterday and are on the run as we speak!"

"Wait, wait ... What?" McPhearse said, astonished. "Fugitives, on the run?! How in the world could they have escaped?"

"No one knows, but it occurred last night during the disaster and all the confusion. They never returned to their cells after the earthquake subsided, and later they were spotted hijacking one of the Shuttle Trains..."

President McPhearse was appalled and completely overtaken by what Vladimier was telling him. He found himself very nervous for Jaclyn's son because he knew that the Penitentiary Pacific authorities and bounty hunters were merciless.

"Mr. Vladimier!" he said anxiously. "You must call off the manhunt, immediately! Those two young men are innocent! They were model college students with bright futures. One of their parents is a cabinet member of mine!" McPhearse paused to catch his breath and calm down. "Mr. Vladimier ... Rho, it is very detrimental, I mean, very, very detrimental that you call off the manhunt right now. Please!"

Vladimier could clearly hear the desperation in the President's voice. He told him he would get on it immediately but he could not guarantee how soon it would be because of the limited communications issue. McPhearse accepted the situation and expressed his gratitude before they hung up.

After all was said and done, the President felt slightly better because he was able to get in front of this important task. He made the decision to invite Jaclyn and Maricela out to join him on Air Force One. In the morning they were scheduled to fly out to Guam to pick up Rolando and Gabriel.

# Chapter 39

The brothel owner was on the brink of crying tears of anger when he found out one of his girls had escaped. He sent his guards after her and demanded that they not come back without her.

The security team sped off from the tavern. Their thick Kawasaki dirt bike tires grinded through the surface of the central highlands. Two miles later they reached the city and stormed the streets aggressively inquiring about Dalearah.

One of the guards got word from an old beggar who had seen her climb into the back of a pickup truck. The guard gave the almsman one quetzal for the information before quickly going to tell the others what he'd learned. They all gathered and bolted off in hot pursuit.

Aljondro was an ex-convict who'd gotten his life together and started a one man business delivering produce from town to town. He had a low tolerance for other people and stayed out of trouble by consuming his time with work. Currently he was driving his pickup truck on the main road up a semi steep hill. Out of nowhere several motorcycles appeared to be trailing him. Quickly they caught up and positioned around the truck in a threatening formation.

Two of them were on each side of the truck and the other one was following close at the rear. The biker nearest to the driver's side pulled out a gun and waved it at Aljondro to pull over. Aljondro took the gesture personally and became defensive. He jerked the steering wheel and swerved the truck to the left. This forced the guard with the gun to skid into the opposite lane of traffic and end up getting brutally run over by a station wagon.

The guard on the motorcycle at the rear immediately pulled out a gun and started to shoot at the truck's tires. The back tires popped and the truck went into a wild tailspin. A reckless twirl ensued as the truck headed up the inclining road.

Each motorcycle was in the way when the truck lost control. The one by the passenger side was batted into the air like badminton. The guard flew off the bike and landed over twenty meters away on his neck. The other two guards suffered treacherous deaths while trying to steer out of the way of destruction. One of them caught fire while crashing on the side of the road. The other lost both his arms and legs when his bike started to flip and bounce on the pavement.

The guard on the bike at the rear tried to avoid the collision by hitting his brakes. Just as the road declined at the top of the hill, he ended up skidding and floating in the air underneath the spinning truck.

The truck flipped so many times that Aljondro was tossed through the windshield like a crash dummy. Everything from the back of the truck flew out like confetti. When the metal pickup finally hit the ground it landed on top of the guard and his motorcycle like a plastic toy.

THE crackling of gunshots sounded like thunder when Dalearah first heard them. She knew something was about to go wrong. She balled up even more in the corner of the truck bed, folding her legs to her chest and wrapping her arms around them like a knot.

Suddenly she heard a deafening boom, followed by a long five second screech. Faster than she could realize, the truck started to spin uncontrollably and the gymnastics began. Most of the flour bundles ejected from the back of the rig as it flipped sideways in the air. The centrifugal force held Dalearah in place until the third revolution occurred, after which her flight began.

Dalearah and about twelve bundles of sugar were slung fifty feet into the air with powerful force. She opened her eyes and started to scream, realizing that she was tumbling upside down in the air as high as the trees.

Most of the flour bundles hit the ground before she did. At least ten of them landed in the same spot that she ended up landing in. They plummeted into the grass on the side of the road, all bursting open on impact. A huge mound of flour resulted from the bundle bursts. Seconds later Dalearah landed smack dab in the middle of the three foot pile.

The momentum of her plunge was to the front so she landed on her backside. The wind was knocked out of her and she couldn't move a muscle. She felt paralyzed when in fact her right hip was the only thing broken.

Before she could get her breath back, a loud explosion ignited from the truck and she could feel the heat from afar. She slowly turned over and rolled off the flour pile onto her hands and knees. Then she tried to get up and walk but she fell down on the first attempt. This made her start to weep like a willow.

After a brief sob, she looked up from the ditch and saw a massive fire on the road. She started to crawl away but it was very difficult because her hip and groin were hurting. She kept going though, and eventually managed to gain some distance between herself and the accident.

# Chapter 40

*

Whoa! I can't believe all those fucking helicopters caught up with us so fast! At least twenty of them were flying right above us. One of the bounty hunters was yelling through a bullhorn but we couldn't hear anything that was being said. The noises from our Water Rocket Capsules and the even louder sounds coming from the helicopters was deafening.

The Rocket Capsule I was in was slicing through the ocean waves like a sharp blade. Gabe's capsule was gliding parallel to mine and Alverez was trailing right behind us.

We were traveling so fast that my ears could not stop popping. But no matter what speed we were going it appeared that our efforts were becoming futile. There was no land as far as my eyes could see and giving up started to seem like the best option.

THERE were two bounty hunters in each of the Jetcopters that swarmed over the fleeing Water Rocket Capsules. All of the officers in the copters were becoming fed up with the long and drawn out chase. Most of them were eager to put an end to the whole ordeal, regardless of how.

Onboard one of the Jetcopters, Captain Yhana was listening to the logic of his copilot, Officer Duke.

"...And besides Captain, you and I both know that those Water Rockets can outlast our Jetcopters out in the open ocean. The only way we'll be able to apprehend them is if we fire a warning shot; maybe then they'll get scared and surrender."

"Maybe," Yhana said after consideration, "but what if they don't stop? Then what?"

"I don't know. But if you were on the run, wouldn't you stop and surrender if someone started shooting at you?"

Captain Yhana gave no answer and continued to navigate the speeding Jetcopter. Several seconds later he glanced at Duke and mumbled, "Just be careful."

Officer Duke smiled and said, "Yes sir."

He slid the tiny side window of the Jetcopter open and stuck a Barrett rifle out through the opening. Next he rested his right eye near the scope lens and hastily flexed his index finger. This caused an entire round of slugs to carelessly ring out.

Multiple bullet splashes randomly popped up in the water around the capsules, but the vessels kept going.

Duke got angry and cried out, "Dammit!"

Before Yhana could say anything, Duke started to blast more shots at the moving capsules. With ill intent he sprayed a total of four consecutive rounds at the fugitives. A few of those bullets strayed into the path of the vessel that Gabriel was steering. Those slugs penetrated through the thin metal and caused an engine fire.

Gabriel's damaged Rocket Capsule started to spiral out of control towards the direction of Rolando's Rocket Capsule. The two vessels collided and ignited an explosion that produced a mushroom cloud so big that the Jetcopters had to sway out of the way.

When the smoke finally cleared, the only things left were scattered debris and small pools of fire floating on the ocean waves. The bodies of Rolando, Gabriel and Alverez were nowhere to be found.

AFTER ten minutes of searching for the bodies of the three escaped convicts, it became apparent to Officer Duke that he should not have fired at the Water Rocket Capsules the way he did. His careless anger had gotten the best of him, and as a result he was responsible for the disappearance of the fleeing fugitives.

Duke knew he was wrong for what he did, but overall he did not care. He knew his fellow bounty hunters would back him up on any excuse he fabricated.

Each of the Jetcopters' paging systems started to receive an urgent communication signal at the same time. The transmission resonated and the bounty hunters became quiet.

"Attention Officers of the Sixth Calvary Bounty Squad! This is Supreme Justice Rho Vladimier, relaying an extremely important message..."

The dispatch was full of static and interference but the officers could clearly understand what was being said.

"The Code Red has been cancelled! I repeat. The Code Red on the two fugitives has been called off! Please do not injure the escaped inmates in any way. It is now your duty to bring them back safe and unharmed."

Officer Duke, Captain Yhana and all the officers on the other Jetcopters could not believe it. They were all dumbfounded. Now Duke was starting to regret it.

# Chapter 41

When the drizzle started and the celebration moved to the inside of the monastery, Sister Bria volunteered to drive a few miles up the road to the market for some more needed items. On the way back she was cruising in her station wagon until slamming on the brakes after spotting what appeared to be a dead body on the side of the road. She pulled over and discovered that it was a female with an active pulse.

Sister Bria got the injured female and drove her to the hospital before it was too late. Then she called the Abbess of her convent to get her blessing to stay at the hospital with the wounded damsel. Bria quickly grew attached to the girl because she was reminiscent of her deceased daughter.

Over time the doctors found out that Dalearah had been physically and sexually abused. Sister Bria's heart was touched and she ended up going back and forth to the hospital for weeks until Dalearah's condition became stable.

Early one morning Sister Bria was standing with two doctors in Dalearah's hospital room. She was looking back and forth between the doctors as they explained the details about Dalearah's condition.

"The days of recuperation she's had since you brought her in have helped tremendously," said the doctor with the comb-over hair. "She's healthy, she can walk again, and the nightmares have decreased substantially."

They were looking at Dalearah as she slept peacefully on the hospital bed.

"Did you know the extent of her physical and sexual abuse?" asked the other doctor wearing glasses.

"I - I ... No, I did not," Bria answered.

"Thank God you found her when you did," he said, taking off his glasses. "It turns out she escaped from a brothel and was involved in a major car accident."

"Oh my," sister Bria said. "Really?"

"Yes. She was in bad condition ... But she is much better now, and we need to know what you plan on doing. Her release date is approaching."

"Ah, yes," Bria said. "The sisters and I have already agreed to take her into the Abbey."

"That's great to hear," said the balding doctor.

"And listen," said the other doctor, putting his glasses back on, "if you're able to get more information about what happened to her, don't hesitate to notify the police."

"I won't," Sister Bria said. "And thank you very much, both of you. I will come back to get her first thing Monday morning."

-St. Veronica Abbey

At the hospital was where most of Dalearah's physical recuperation occurred, but it was back at the Abbey where she endured the long days of mental recovery. She dealt with constant nightmares, irritability and tear-jerking migraines the whole time.

The only way she was able to handle this terrible period of withdrawal was by being treated with essential medicinal herbs. The care that she was given caused the regeneration and healing process to work extraordinarily well. Her skin was no longer exfoliating and her body weight was almost back to normal.

Dalearah still had scars and marks on her body in remembrance of her devastating stay in hell. She was unsure about how she ended up in such a horrible situation, but she had her intuitions. She tried for a while to contact her husband in Maryland, but to no avail.

Although she knew that someone had done her wrong, she put it all in the past and tried to keep it out of her mind. It was almost as if her previous lifestyle as a model was an entirely different existence. This time around, the beauty of her soul and not the beauty of her physical was the obvious blessing.

Dalearah and Sister Bria ended up bonding like spiritual glue. She joined and happily submitted to the Roman Catholic teachings of the convent. She felt resurrected and was happier than ever before. She had no urge to go back to the United States. The objective of her new focus was now crystal clear. She wanted to dedicate her life to helping people in need.

# Chapter 42

*

All I remember was that we were skipping across the water going fast as hell. I was constantly glancing over at the capsule that Gabe was in as it fled parallel to mine with little distance between us.

After hearing a bunch of gunshots ring out, I saw his capsule catch fire and swerve out of control directly toward mine. The next thing I saw was Gabe ejecting into the water from the bottom hatch of his capsule. Our machines were on a direct collision course, so I pressed my eject button just as his capsule skidded to within a few yards of mine.

Before I knew it I was under the cold water holding my breath. Then it seemed like the sun exploded when an intense heat and blinding light instantaneously occurred. The massive force was so heavy that the powerful momentum shoved me deep down into the ocean.

My brain felt like it popped as everything paused and muted. All of a sudden I was somehow hovering over the ocean, but actually it was not me. I mean, it was me, but I wasn't inside of my body. My substance was like an illuminated oval of energy in motion. It was like my consciousness was floating above the water.

My mind was blown. It felt like I was waking up out of a wild dream. Instead of having the normal five basic senses, I had dozens of senses, all exerting extreme pleasure and enlightenment. My conscience was more aware than I could have ever imagined. Everything made sense and I came to the realization that Love is everything. All I could feel was love. And when it all dawned on me, I started to remember everything. I mean everything. Including all of my past existences and all of my natural spiritual abilities.

I understood that I was infinite potential and that I could do anything. With one thought I was able to zoom to the outskirts of the Milky Way galaxy ... then out past millions of galaxy clusters into the actual fabric of space and time.

There were unlimited cosmic components working together in perfect sync. Neurons were constantly coalescing in numerous nebulas, releasing extreme energies and creating elements everywhere. It was all impeccable and intricate, like as if the entire universe was inside of God's brain.

I'd always thought that outer space was mainly pitch black, but the boundless blackness was actually dark energy composed of unlimited luminous colors beyond what the human eye could see. The darkness in the matter was made up of immense magnificence that glowed in phenomenal designs and astonishing formations.

I was able to see from the absolute perspective and from the relative perspective, noticing that all was happening at the same moment. It was amazing! Gazillions and gazillions of positive and negative energies existing together with perfect balance like an eternal reflection.

One of the biggest actualizations that appealed to me was the fact that my thoughts controlled my experiences. Whatever specific materialization or mindset I wanted to go into was just a thought away. Therefore I had to think thorough thoughts or else negative cognition would take over.

Positive thoughts vibrated my soul like a pulsar when I recognized my boundless potential. I was in the midst of sensational sights and supreme enlightenment. But I felt that my life on Earth was incomplete. So with one thought I zoomed back to the time and the place of what was to be the end of my physical existence there.

Instantly the divine energy from within, rushed my soul back to Earth down into the depths of the Pacific Ocean, back into the body of Rolando Reynolds.

# Chapter 43

One by one, each of the ten Jetcopters approached the landing strip like some giant condors. They touched down fifty yards away from two parked vans. The bounty hunters unloaded off the copters in pairs like Valentine's Day. They marched over to four suited men who were standing by the vans.

Justice Rho Vladimier was with a Four Star General and two other military officials. When the Bounty Squad stopped to salute, Vladimier noticed there were no fugitives with them. The look on his face became confused and irritated.

"Where are the prisoners?" he roared, while around for them. "Where are the escaped prisoners!?" he repeated. "Did you apprehend them as I ordered?!"

Captain Yhana stepped up front and started to explain what had happened. Vladimier couldn't believe what he was hearing. He yelled at the top of his lungs for five minutes straight to convey the significance of the situation. Then he commanded them to leave and not return without the fugitives.

IT was lights out for Gabriel when the collision befell between his Water Rocket Capsule and Rolando's. The heavy force of the blast almost crushed his vertebrae like a matchstick, but he did not feel the pain because his consciousness was already separated from his physical being.

Instead, he felt sensational and extreme peculiar pleasures of all measures. Infinite and assorted states of fulfillment overwhelmed his soul, along with the soothing and rhythmic sounds of the universe.

The extra sensory perceptions that he was indulging in were unimaginable. At first he didn't know what was going on because his body was filled with adrenaline when he crossed over, but

he was quickly enlightened when his unlimited potential became apparent. He was able to see the past, present, and all the limitless possibilities of the future.

One probability he foresaw was having a slightly handicapped future if he chose to return to Earth as Gabriel. This was very unappealing of course, but the degree of love that he had for his family was more important than his own personal gratification. He also knew that finishing his life on Earth would only be a fraction of a partial second in the realm of absolute time.

So even though he was being flabbergasted by what he was experiencing beyond the limits of having a body, and although he knew that his human physical was damaged, he made the decision to go back to Earth and finish out his life as Gabriel Juarez.

# Chapter 44

St. Veronica Abbey

"I'm so excited Sister!" Dalearah said, smiling like a child as they walked down the sidewalk path through a well-manicured garden. "I haven't had a good surprise in so long."

"You will like this surprise my dear," Sister Bria said as they continued down the trail.

Daleaarah's smile widened as they approached the largest of three buildings in the area. Sister Bria entered the cafeteria and held the door open. Dalearah walked in and glanced around with a confused look on her face.

Only a few people were there eating breakfast. Dalearah noticed an oddly familiar looking lady sitting alone at a table. Dalearah almost screamed when she realized it was her old friend Tionne.

"Oh my goodness!" Dalearah said, hugging Sister Bria.

Tionne stood up and smiled at Dalearah. They ran towards one another and gave a big hug.

"Tionne is this really you?" Dalearah asked, looking

her up and down. "How did you find me? How did you get here?"

Tionne smiled and said, "Sister Bria contacted me and flew me here." They hugged again and Tionne poked her lip out. "Aww, honey I'm so sorry about what happened to you . Thank God you're okay."

They both got teary eyed.

"But you look great!" Tionne complimented.

"Thanks," Dalearah said. "You do too, just the way I remembered you. It seems like a lifetime ago since I've seen you."

Sister Bria came over and put her hands on their shoulders. "I'm going to leave you two alone for a while," she said. "I know you have a lot of catching up to do."

"Thank you so much Sister," Dalearah said, kissing her on the cheek.

"You are very welcome my dear," Sister Bria said before walking away. "See you later."

Dalearah and Tionne took a seat at an empty table.

"Oh my gosh Dalearah, when I got the news that you were alive, I was so happy and thankful!"

"You thought I was dead?"

"Yes, everyone did. You were all over the news. You'd been missing without a trace for weeks and everyone started to expect the worse. Especially after your husband got arrested."

Dalearah's face wrinkled in surprise. "Alverez was arrested?! For what?"

"For drug trafficking and some other things. He's been in jail for a while now."

"What?! Drug trafficking?" Dalearah was speechless for a moment before thinking out loud. "No wonder I haven't heard from him."

Tionne's expression saddened as she said, "It also got out that he found out about you and Rolando."

Dalearah's jaw dropped.

"And in response he paid to have you captured and sent to a bordello."

Dalearah was stunned. "No!" she exclaimed. "Tionne please tell me you're not serious, please!"

Tionne reached across the table and held Dalearah's hands. "I'm sorry Dalearah, I'm so sorry."

Tears rolled over Dalearah's cheeks as she said, "I can't believe it, I just cannot believe it."

Dalearah let go of Tionne's hands and then crossed her arms on the table before burying her face in them. Sniffles could be heard coming from within.

Tionne looked at Dalearah with a somber expression. "But that's all in the past," she comforted. "The important thing is that you are alive and safe ... What happened to you was not your fault. You didn't deserve any of it."

Dalearah raised her head and wiped her eyes. "Thanks Tionne," she said. "I appreciate your support."

Tionne smiled and said, "I just thank God you got your health back, and your beauty. I mean, look at you, you're still stunning as ever!"

"Thank you."

"You know I can have you back modeling in no time. All you have to do is come back to the States. How does that sound?"

Dalearah thought and said, "That sounds good. But no thanks. At least not right now ... I've found great comfort here at the convent. I feel better than I ever have. Now I have a purpose. I want to help victims the way I've been helped..." She paused and looked Tionne in the eyes. "But do me a favor, I want to keep the fact that I'm alive between me and you for now."

"I understand," Tionne said with a nod. "My lips are sealed." Then she smiled and said, "Oh well, maybe you can do some monastery modeling in the meantime."

Dalearah smiled.

"I'm just kidding," Tionne said, as they both laughed.

"I see you haven't lost your sense of humor," Dalearah said.

"Sure haven't, nor my appetite!"

"You hungry?"

"Yes."

Dalearah rose from the table and said, "Follow me. The food here is delicious."

Dalearah led her down the aisle towards the front of

the cafeteria. They walked away hugging happily, like BFFs.

THE beaming midday sun, combined with the dizzying motion of the sea was making the search mission tedious and nerve-wracking. Each Jetcopter had an officer who was peering down at the giant ocean waves through Nikon high-powered binoculars.

Twenty minutes elapsed and the search was going nowhere. All the Jetcopters hovered five hundred feet above the water and were strategically spread out over a ten mile radius.

Meanwhile, near the ocean surface, a group of seven Stenella dolphins strayed away from a much larger school of beautiful cetaceans. They got separated from the pack while playing, but their playing came to a halt when their passive sonar sensors became alerted.

The seven dolphins dove deep into the blueness and used echolocation to find three sinking objects that happened to be bodies. The distress was easily perceived, so they began to initiate high-pitched ultrasonic sounds while swiftly circling the bodies like a whirlpool.

Three of the seven bottlenoses broke the cycle and used their expert maneuverability to get underneath the wounded individuals. Next they used their melons to push the bodies all the way up to the surface of the ocean. Once the bodies were floating on top of the water, the dolphins began to circle them at a much slower pace.

Captain Yhana's Jetcopter was at the far corner of the search circumference when Officer Duke noticed what appeared to be a small eddy down on the water. Initially he thought he was seeing things, but after squinting and refocusing, he noticed there were bodies floating in the middle of the vortex.

"There's something on the water over there!" Duke pointed.

Yhana grabbed the communication handset and summoned everyone's attention.

"Alright listen up men," he alerted. "We have activity at about 13.5 degrees latitude, 144.8 degrees longitude. Stand by for further instructions..."

Yhana navigated the Jetcopter in the course of where Duke was directing. They began to rejoice because they realized they had just located the bodies of the fugitives.

"Sir we found what we've been looking for!" Duke said.

Yhana radioed the other Jetcopters again. "Ok we've located our marks! Immediately commence Rescue Plan Alpha."

The dolphins gracefully swam away once the noise and the wind from the Jetcopters arrived. Yhana and two other pilots lowered their copters close to the water. One officer from each of the three copters jumped down into the water and secured the bodies with Teflon harnesses. Next they gave the thumbs-up signal to be lifted out of the water back up to the copters. Once on board they performed CPR on the drenched bodies.

Captain Yhana was overwhelmingly relieved. He and his bounty squad had successfully found and retrieved the bodies. Now they were headed back to Guam to have them hopefully resuscitated.

MCPHEARSE realized a long time ago as President, that when he received bad news he received good news, and when he received good news he was bound to receive bad news. A successful day of briefings and meetings was almost complete when he received a call that would reverse his vibe.

The phone buzzed and he answered jovially. "Rho! Greetings my friend ... Any update on finding my boys?"

Vladimier took a deep breath and slowly started. "That's what I was calling about ... Now Greg, you and I have been friends for over fifteen years and we have always been truthful with one another."

"Uh, yeah..."

"Well the truth is," Vladimier said delicately, "they were apprehended recently but severely injured during their escape. Now they're in a coma at the Hospital Ward emergency room."

"What?!" McPhearse said in shock. "Are you fucking kidding me? ... This is not good." He leaned his forehead on the desk with the phone still at his ear. "They're in a coma?" he questioned.

"Yes. And they've suffered body damage as well ... But there is still hope," Vladimier reaffirmed. "They're still alive and we have the best doctors and surgeons on standby with the best equipment available."

"My God! This is terrible ... If those boys don't make it, their blood will be on the hands of our justice system."

"I know sir."

After short thought, the President said, "I'm taking off for Guam in less than an hour."

"Okay, I will meet you as soon as you arrive ... But do me a favor and try not to worry too much. We're going to fix this situation," Vladimier said, sounding more optimistic than he actually was. "It will all work itself out."

McPhearse gave a long exhale. "I guess I have no choice," he contended. "But this ordeal is horrible. Like I said before, one of my cabinet members is the mother of one of those boys. I'll have to be the one to break the bad news to her."

Quietness suddenly dominated the conversation. Vladimier didn't know what to say and McPhearse didn't know what to do.

Eight seconds passed before Vladimier finally spoke. "I'm sorry it turned out this way. But we're doing everything in our power to correct the circumstances," he noted. "But let us not forget, the prisoners did try to escape."

"I would try to escape too if I were innocent in a place like that," McPhearse noted.

Another prolonged pause occurred.

"No one is at fault here," Vladimier admitted, "not

us, not them, and certainly not you ... The outcome is left up to God."

"That's true," McPhearse said. "Let's just make sure they get the best medical care possible."

"I will."

"Alright Rho, thank you very much."

"Thank you, Mr. President."

McPhearse hung up and took a deep breath. He reclined all the way back in his chair and closed his eyes. Tiny red dots started to move around and blend in with the blackness of his vision as he pondered on a way to reveal the news to Jaclyn. He concluded that being straightforward and honest would be the best method.

After a mild meditation, he opened his eyes and rose from the chair. He paced around the office for a while before going back to his desk and dialing Jaclyn's cell phone number.

Jaclyn was in a conference with two top U.S. Economic Advisors when her phone vibrated. Though she was hesitant to answer, she politely excused herself from the lunch meeting after seeing the caller id.

The economic advisors resumed the discussion as she walked to the corner of the diner to tend to the call.

"Mr. President?" she answered.

"Jaclyn, how are you?"

"Doing okay," she said. "How is everything?"

"Well, you know I already signed the pardon papers for the immediate release of your son and his friend from prison..."

"Yes?" she said inquisitively, as her dimples disappeared and her smile faded. "And?"

"Well, it has just come to my attention that your son and his friend tried to escape from jail. They-"

"Escape?" Jaclyn interrupted.

"Yes," he continued, "somehow they escaped. And I'm told they ended up injuring themselves in the process."

Jaclyn's body temperature rose four degrees and her head became light. "Why would they try to escape?!" she exclaimed. "Didn't they know they were going to be released?!"

The economic advisors on the other side of the room could not hear the gist of Jaclyn's conversation, but they could tell it was getting intense.

Jaclyn's legs turned to noodles and she collapsed when the President told her that Rolando was in a coma. She crashed to the ground and the economic advisors almost knocked over the table trying to scurry over to help her.

# Chapter 45

A little time and a bit of cold water was all it took to snap Jaclyn out of her temporary loss of consciousness. By the time President McPhearse and his entourage arrived, she was back up and ready to go. The limousine driver was instructed to take her to the Forestdale Subdivision so she could pack a bag of luggage.

From Jaclyn's residence, the presidential motorcade stopped by to pick up Gabriel's mother Maricela on the way to the south lawn of the White House. They all boarded a huge helicopter and headed to Andrews Air Force Base. Thirty minutes later they were flying west on Air Force One.

*

My field of vision was more like a blurry dream vision. I could see moving bodies in hundreds of rooms on different floors from a cloudy type of aerial view. All of a sudden I couldn't prevent my essence from being overtaken. Something powerful drew me specifically to one of those many rooms. In this room there were eight or nine bodies, some pacing and sobbing, some gathered talking, and some who were going in and out of the room at different times.

Also in the room I could see a huge machine with colorful blinking lights and three beds on each side of it. Two of the beds contained bodies and the other bed contained the silhouette of my body.

Nothing was making sense and I was oblivious to what was going on. I could no longer feel any pleasant sensations vibrating from within. Instead I was feeling an excessive pain thumping inside of my head and chest.

Everything was strange and uncontrollable. I was able to hear noises and conversations but I had no idea what was happening. My soul felt trapped, confined and limited, and my normal senses became active as extreme soreness ravaged my body.

I tried to open my eyes but the glaring lights stung like a bee. I started to panic when I realized that I was back at the penitentiary in the hospital. The pace of my breathing increased and my pulse skipped double time. This caused the life support machine to start going crazy.

PRESIDENT McPhearse and the warden Rho Vladimier just so happened to be in the Intensive Care room when the respirator began to sound off. Out of the seven medics assigned to care for Rolando, Gabriel and Alverez, only one surgeon and two doctors were actually in the room when they regained consciousness.

Gabriel resurrected first. His mother started gasping for air when she saw his eyes open. The doctors rushed to his bed and immediately enacted the appropriate procedures to keep him alive. Maricela was very joyous as her son's body temperature and vital signs began to stabilize.

Five minutes later, on about the twentieth time that Jaclyn glanced over at Rolando to check on his condition, she heard the EKG machine beep when a positive pulse activated. Rolando's eyes popped open and his mother let out a hysterical scream of happiness. She ran over to Rolando's bed and practically lied on top of him, showering him with so much love that the doctors had to get her off of him.

Jaclyn regained her composure and dropped to her knees. "Thank you GOD!" she praised. "Thank you!"

Maricela knelt down next to Jaclyn and put her arm around her. They both started to rejoice in the middle of the floor in front of everybody. Their undying hope and faith had finally manifested and their sons were alive.

The doctors got to work and the surgeon assisted them. McPhearse and Vladimier were on the side watching intently

"Make sure we don't lose them," Vladimier strongly encouraged.

The medics treated them and determined that their vital signs were positive and their cognitive brain functions were almost back to normal. Jaclyn and Maricela were pleased and teary-eyed. Rolando and Gabriel on the other hand, were confused and in pain. A majority of their bodies were damaged. They couldn't even move their heads to look around

After a detailed analysis of the bodies, the surgeon explained to everyone exactly why Rolando and Gabriel were physically stagnated. He expressed a glimmer of hope by letting them know about the high possibility of reversing the paralysis through extensive and intensive stem cell surgeries. He believed that the reconstruction of their skeletal, muscular and nervous systems would allow movement again and eventually lead to them regaining bipedal mobilization.

President McPhearse guaranteed Jaclyn and Maricela that he would arrange to acquire the highest quality stem cells available, as well as provide the most experienced medics on the planet to administer the cell cloning procedures.

# Chapter 46

Dalearah had only seen television twice during the months of her residency at the Veronica convent. Today as she walked through one of the cloisters, she passed by a dayroom and overheard her full name being mentioned during the cold opening of a television show.

She stopped in her tracks and stood by the doorway to listen to the program's synopsis about what could have caused her own disappearance. She was intrigued. She was even more astounded by the high fashion photos of herself being flashed on the screen. She'd become so used to her new look of innocence that she could not believe her old look of elegance.

After viewing the nine-minute segment, Dalearah was dazed at the actual reality of what had happened. It was as if she had been thrust into a different life without really appreciating the life that she had been thrust out of.

The segment ended and she exited the cloister en route to her destination. While walking she debated with herself about whether or not she should call the American Embassy to report her existence. The choice was questionable, because she felt that her proof of life would interfere with her new life of peace.

After additional thought she realized that she needed to at least notify her mother about her survival. She could always tell the rest of the world at a later date.

-Weeks thereafter

In a huge fiberglass room guarded by Military Police guards, Rolando, Gabriel and Alverez were resting on separate hospital beds. After a month of surgeries and treatment, they were laid up recovering, still a little bruised but in good spirits.

Rolando looked a few feet over at Gabriel and said, "Can you believe all shit we went through? We almost got away with it."

Gabriel turned his head toward Rolando and said, "We did get away until they shot us up ... Shit still hurts."

Alverez was in a bed on the other side of the room. "You know what?" he said, jumping in on the conversation, "I've experienced a lot of things in my life, but my experience with you two at this place has really changed my outlook on things." He gave a reminiscent pause before resuming. "Until being locked up, I was always able to solve my problems with money."

"Yeh," Gabriel said. "Money makes all the difference out in the real world, but up in here..."

They all nodded in agreement.

"You know Gabriel," Alverez said, "you're like the son I never had ... And Rolando, thank you for coming back to help me when we were on the run."

"Don't mention it," Rolando said. "We were all in it together. Any friend of Gabe's is a friend of mine."

Without warning, a Military Police guard entered the room and said, "Inmates, prepare for an important visitor in less than ten minutes."

The M.P. guard exited the room and Rolando, Gabriel and Alverez all looked at one another with concern. Rolando and Gabriel were totally unaware of the good news about their pardons. They were expecting to get bad news about the consequences of their escape attempt.

\- 15 minutes later

President McPhearse walked into the Penitentiary Pacific Intensive Care room with Rho Vladimier and a couple of M.P. guards by his side.

Alverez frowned when he saw the President and the Warden together. Rolando and Gabriel's eyes bulged as the Warden walked over to their beds.

"Gentlemen," Vladimier stated. "Your attention is required. I have the U.S. President here to deliver some important news."

President McPhearse walked over and pulled out two folded documents from his coat pocket. He smiled at Rolando and Gabriel and said, "Young men, these are for you." He stepped between Rolando and Gabriel's beds and handed them each a document. "You've been exonerated of all your charges, you both are now free men!"

Their faces lit up like a zillion watts.

"You mean we can get out of here right now?!" Rolando asked, while scanning the document.

"Yes," McPhearse confirmed. "We have a private jet waiting to take you both back to Washington D.C."

Rolando and Gabriel looked at each other with extreme amazement.

"Yes! Thank God!" Rolando shouted.

"I can't believe it!" Gabriel said, looking at the ceiling. "My prayers have been answered!"

Rolando almost hurt himself trying to reach for his crutches on the side of the bed.

"Whoa whoa," McPhearse said. "Hold on a second. We will help you."

Another pair of guards entered the room, pushing two empty wheelchairs.

McPhearse smiled and said, "These men here will help guide you to your freedom."

Beaming smiles covered the majority of Gabriel's and Rolando's faces. Then Gabriel's smile decreased when he looked over at Alverez.

"It's been an honor knowing you man," he said to Alverez. "I wish you the best up in here."

"Thank you," Alverez said. "Congratulations on your release my friend. You deserve it." He looked at Rolando and said, "Congratulations to you too. You both are good men."

"Thanks," Rolando said. "You're a good man also."

Vladimier had a smirk on his face while watching them

exchange pleasantries. "By the way," he said to Rolando, as the guards were putting him in the wheelchair. "Do you remember a lady by the name of Dalearah?"

Alverez looked over at the warden and scowled, then he started to glare at Rolando.

"Uh, why?" Rolando asked, with a confused look.

"Well, just to let you know ... she is the wife of this man right here," Vladimier said, motioning his hand at Alverez. "And she's been missing for months. So if you know anyth-"

"Mr. Vladimier!" McPhearse interrupted. "Those details will be discussed later."

Rolando was stunned and blown away. He immediately had a flashback of he and Dalearah having passionate sex back at the cabin.

"Ok Mr. President," Vladimier conceded, "I apologize. But I'll definitely be talking with Mr. Zsapata regarding this matter later."

Alverez momentarily reminisced about watching a shadowy figure on his laptop having sex with his wife. He could not believe he didn't recognize that Rolando was the guy!

His whole face was wallpapered with absolute anger and astonishment. As the guards began to push Rolando and Gabriel out of the room in the wheelchairs, Alverez and Rolando stared at each other in utter disbelief.

# Chapter 47

Andrews Air Force Base

In the grass at the end of the main landing strip was a long banner stretching from pole to pole that read:

WELCOME HOME ROLANDO AND GABRIEL!

Family, friends and strangers were all present and excited as they saw Air Force One approaching from above.

Inside the plane were two pilots in the cockpit preparing for landing. Back in the staff meeting room of the Boeing, McPhearse was with two government officials. Over in the cabin area sat Rolando and Gabriel, along with a couple medical doctors, several security agents and a few other people.

As the plane descended towards the runway, Rolando and Gabriel looked out the window and noticed the banner. They started to smile eagerly.

"Man I've been fantasizing about this day for months!" Rolando said.

"I feel like I'm dreaming," Gabriel said. "Like I could just wake up in a second and be right back in that prison."

"Well that shit ain't happening," Rolando guaranteed. "That nightmare is over..."

A security agent walked past them going towards the cockpit.

Gabriel looked at Rolando and said, "Man life is crazy huh? I mean, who would've thought that Alverez was married to the lady that you... I mean, what were the odds that y'all would end up-"

"Gabe!" Rolando interrupted. "Let's not even talk about that right now. I just wanna think about positive stuff ... All I can say is that, life and freedom are so precious that I'm gonna be super cautious about everything I do from now on."

"Me too," Gabriel agreed. "But that's easier said than done, so we gotta stay focused."

The security agent came back down the aisle and stopped between where Rolando and Gabriel were seated.

"Ok gentlemen," he said to them. "We've arrived at our destination. Buckle up and prepare for landing."

He walked away and Rolando and Gabriel smiled at each other. They slapped hands and fastened their seatbelts.

Rolando leaned his head back on the seat cushion and said, "Thank you God!"

NEWS vans and news crews from the local stations and the cable networks were all waiting at the end of the tarmac. Air Force One touched down successfully like a Mahomes pass. Five minutes later the door opened and an electronic boarding ramp folded down to the landscape.

Loud applause erupted as the men of the hour were rolled out and lowered down to the ground on the wheelchair lift. Rolando and Gabriel were ecstatic.

-Two weeks later

Alverez Zsapata was lying on a cot gazing at the dirty ceiling in his 6x6 confinement cell. He'd been in a daze for hours while reflecting on his life. He was startled when he heard an unexpected knock on the door.

"Who's there?" he said as he sat up.

"It's the prison Chaplain," a voice answered. The door opened and a calm man walked in wearing a Roman collar pastor shirt. "Good afternoon Mr. Zsapata. I was sent to come check on you. They say you haven't eaten in days."

"I don't have an appetite," Alverez said. "I have not been able to sleep either."

"I'm sorry to hear that," the Chaplain said after entering.

"Every time I go to sleep I have horrible nightmares," Alverez divulged. "In these dreams I find myself as a victim to all of my past bad deeds."

"A victim of your past bad deeds?"

"Yes. In my dreams I'm being tortured, swindled, abused..."

"Please explain," the Chaplain asked.

Alverez put his head down pitifully and said, "I don't want to go into details, but I've done a lot of bad things to people in the past. Now it's all coming back to haunt me!" He raised his head and looked directly at the Chaplain. "Even when I'm awake I have hallucinations of the people I've hurt. I think I'm going insane!"

The Chaplain sat on the cot right next to Alverez. "What you are going through is chronic remorse," he said. "And it doesn't help that you have not been eating. Would you like to elaborate on your feelings?"

"No ... Or, yes," Alverez said in a confused manner. He took a deep breath and continued. "You know Father, I had a life, a career, a wife who loved me, I had it all ... But greed led me astray. Greed, stupidity, and jealousy."

"Those are normal human evils you have to learn to overcome," the Chaplain advised.

"I don't know if I can," Alverez admitted. "I've done so much harm, too much harm ... My evil resentment even led me to cause harm to my precious wife!"

"What did you do?"

"Oh God, I'm too ashamed to tell you," he said. "But I don't deserve to live!"

"Come on Mr. Zsapata, don't be too hard on yourself. Everyone makes mistakes. It's about what you do to make up for your mistakes that matters."

Alverez silently let those words sink in. "I'm a terrible human being," he finally said. "I actually deserve to rot in here for the rest of my life."

"Listen to me," said the Chaplain. "Sometimes in life you have to hit rock bottom in order to bounce back. It's now up to you to create a better reality for yourself. Once you accept this opportunity, you can change. It takes time but you can do it."

"It will be very difficult," Alverez said, shaking his head. "Decades of undoing. My mentality became distorted when I was a child. I witnessed my parents' demise during domestic violence. I remember it like it was yesterday ... After that, life for me was about getting money by any means necessary."

The Chaplain looked him in the eyes and said, "That mentality has to stop. You are in control of your own destiny, even in this place. You have the choice to be positive or negative, and I can help you with that."

"I'm willing to try," Alverez said.

"Are you ready to go back to the general population?" asked the Chaplain.

"Yes, I think I am. Or, I don't know."

The Chaplain stood up and walked two steps over to the wall. "Here's what I'm going to do," he said, as he turned around, "I will have the warden to allow you to stay here in the hospital solitary room for two more weeks. During this time I will be visiting you daily to help you work on a new path in life."

"That sounds great Father," Alverez said, as a small smile tried to develop on his face. "I want to thank you in advance for your help and concern."

"Don't mention it," the Chaplain told him. "Everyone deserves help."

"I'm sincerely gracious," Alverez said.

The Chaplain smiled and headed towards the door to exit the room.

Alverez leaned back on the cot and gently put his head back on the wall, as a teardrop rolled down his face.

-Coverdell Peace Corps Headquarters

9 months later

In the middle of a large stage bordered in purple velour drapes and curtains, stood a fancy pulpit type of podium covered by a sign that read, 'Evening of Honor'. Behind the podium was a bald professor in glasses who was speaking to a packed crowd of attentive audience members.

"So without further ado," said the professor, "it is a pleasure and an honor to introduce this year's recipient of the Franklin H. Williams Award, for her outstanding work against human trafficking ... Sister Dalearah Carrera!"

A colorful spotlight followed Dalearah as she walked onstage looking radiant in a black dress. She gave off an aura as alluring as an aurora. Her smile was glowing and her eyes were watery as she accepted the award from the professor.

Rolando was in the audience in the back. He stood up and started to clap along with the rest of the crowd.

# Chapter 48

The well-seasoned, sophisticated voice of Lucy Lindsey began to sound off as a capital letter L formed to spell out her name in cursive in the middle of the screen.

"Good day everyone! Welcome to the Lucy Lindsey Show," she said, as her well preserved appearance exuded on the screen. "Today we are pleased to bring you a very special program unlike any other we've done in the past."

She was draped in a soft lavender pantsuit with a white silk blouse underneath.

"Today's show is special for two reasons," she explained. "First is the fact that the entire program will be aired commercial free. Second and more importantly, this show's content deals with two innocent young men who were imprisoned for more than six months before unfortunately dying in an escape attempt ... Weeks later they were miraculously brought back to life, and today they're here to share their story with us!"

Nice interlude music played as a variety of photos of Rolando and Gabriel flashed on the screen above the stage. Images were displayed in sequence from their toddler years to their high school and college years, all the way up to the photos of them lying in the Penitentiary Pacific surgery room with tubes and patches all over their bodies.

The studio audience sighed and a brush of silence came over the crowd while Lucy finished disclosing their misfortunes. Then a three seconds display of attentive audience members flashed onto the screen as the music subsided and Lucy began the show.

The first guests she introduced were the parents, Jaclyn and Maricela. She sat them down and compassionately eased into the discussion about what happened to their sons. Jaclyn narrated the details like an author and Maricela assisted like an editor.

Lucy was intrigued with the specifics, and after a few minutes she had to be subtly reminded by the stage director that it was time to lead into the next segment.

"Wow," she finally said, staring at Jaclyn and Maricela. "I can't imagine how it is to go through something like that..." She took a deep breath and looked toward the cameras. "So right let's bring out these two amazing young men and talk about their experience."

The studio audience was indulged by the theme of the show. Almost all of them stood up and clapped when Rolando and Gabriel came out to the stage. They were wearing big smiles as Lucy met and greeted them with hugs before seating them by their parents.

"Thank you all for such a warm welcome," she said to the audience. The applause faded and Lucy took her seat on the couch at the center of the panel. "Whew," she gasped, "I don't know where to begin."

Jaclyn and Maricela both were showering their sons with love. Lucy noticed the emotions flowing and said, "Guys, I know it must feel wonderful to be back home, recapturing your lives."

"Wonderful would be putting it mildly," Rolando politely specified.

"For real," Gabriel complied. "Being back home feels glorious to say the least! And now finally walking again is a miracle and a blessing!"

"Exactly," Rolando agreed. "I couldn't have said it better myself ... I know it's been over a year, but it seems like only yesterday when we were stuck up in that hellhole of a prison." He took his eyes off Lucy and spoke to the audience. "I never really knew how precious life and freedom were before that horrible experience. It feels great to be alive!"

Lucy smiled and said, "Especially after all the things you guys went through. From what I understand, you two were unconscious for weeks after being caught in the middle of an explosion ... What was that like? I mean, you guys were literally fleeing from the island, right?"

"To be honest," Rolando divulged. "I don't even remember being in the explosion. I must have blacked out or somethin'."

"Me too," Gabriel said. "The last thing I remember was hearing gunshots while we were racing across the water in the rocket capsules. After that it was kind'a like, as if I went blind and deaf at the same time. Everything slowed down to where it didn't even seem like time existed."

"Let's talk more about that," Lucy suggested. "Can you remember what happened after you blacked out?"

"Not everything," Gabriel said. "But the parts I can remember, I remember vividly."

"This really intrigues me," she said, scooting to the edge of her seat.

For a few moments, the whole studio was quiet enough to hear a pin drop. Lucy put her thoughts together and asked, "Did you see the well-known, bright lights and beautiful white clouds that we all associate with the afterlife experience?"

"Not really," Gabriel answered, "but at the beginning there was a big bright flash. Then there were massive multi colors and formations everywhere; colors I've never seen before here on Earth ... And there was so much other stuff happening too, so much that I could barely comprehend. It was so mind blowing!"

Rolando spoke up as if making a declaration. "I'd like to start off by telling everyone that we're not crazy or delusional up here. And we're not trying to be religious or philosophical either." He switched his attention back to Donna. "I know everybody has their own beliefs and viewpoints, and some people might think what we're saying is preposterous. But I know what I experienced, and it felt real..."

Soundlessness occurred until he continued.

"Some scientists say that the human brain is programmed to go into some type of hallucinogenic state during severe trauma, but I don't think that's what happened to us ... It was the most real and vivid experience I've ever had. It felt much more real and actual than me sitting here breathing and talking right now!"

Seconds of silence elapsed and Lucy said, "I can't speak for anyone else, but I think what you two are describing is fascinating. Whether actual or imagined, what you've been through is captivating in itself!"

One of the cameras flashed to an audience member who was nodding in agreement. Ninety-five percent of the crowd was silently concentrating on the conversation while the other five percent were whispering about it. Jaclyn and Maricela were as quiet and attentive as the audience members were.

Lucy continued with the inquisition. "So was it like, reaching a Nirvana of some sort?"

Rolando looked thoughtfully in the air and said, "In a way I guess." His face lit up as he spoke. "But it was much more. Way more than what we think of as a Nirvana. It was like an ultimate rebirth of life on a much greater scale. Like as if a piece of me was reemerged with the whole of me ... I'm not sure how much sense that makes, but that's about the best way I can explain it."

"Was it like you were flying through space or something?"

"Umm, not really," Rolando clarified. "It was more like I was floating on thoughts. As if my soul was transmigrating from one experience to another. I felt like a cell in a boundless body, flowing freely on the arrow of time."

Lucy paused to take it all in. "Very well worded," she acknowledged. "I'm starting to understand a little better."

"My experience was weirdly familiar," Gabriel elaborated. "It was like being at a place where love trumped all. I felt like ... I don't want to sound cliché or anything, but I felt like I was one with God. Or actually, like I was a part of the whole consciousness."

Rolando was nodding in congruity. He took his focus off the audience and looked directly into Lucy's eyes. "It felt as if the Universe, or God, whichever you wanna call it, experiences everything there is to experience through all sorts of beings on all scales of intelligence and beyond ... This cycle of enhancement is what seemed to be advancing his absolute energy and expanding the universe."

Half the audience members were now whispering amongst one another as Rolando continued.

"I really think that physical life is a spirit's dream, and when we die we wake back up to the reality of the whole."

"I'm at a loss of words," Lucy said.

"When I was young," Gabriel started. "My Nana used to tell me that God is everywhere at all times, and I would always wonder, how is that possible? But now I think I know. It's because God is within everyone. I think that's the reason why everyone has an inner conscience."

Lucy listened intently but kept her focus on hosting the show. "That's a very interesting and logical thought," she said. "So let me ask you this, how long did it seem like you were gone? Because according to the hospital reports, you two were out for a while."

"I'm not exactly sure," he said. "But it felt like I was gone for a length of time much longer than my current life span."

"Really?"

"Yeah."

"And what would you guys say was the most important thing you learned from this whole, afterlife experience?"

"That's a good question," Rolando said before Gabriel could speak. "I guess the most important thing I learned is similar to what Gabe was saying, which is that the essence of God exists within all of us ... And the greatest thing I learned is that everything comes from love."

Five audience members began to clap, causing a chain reaction that resulted in a standing ovation.

Meanwhile, Gabriel was having an epiphany about the fact that he and Rolando's experiences were so similar. "My sentiments exactly," he proclaimed. "In a way, I think my experience was a blessing in disguise. It gave me a whole new perspective on life."

"Me too," Rolando agreed. "Since that incident I've had all types of enlightenment about life. Like first of all, all humans are essentially the same. The main differences we have are physical. But beneath the surface we all pretty much do and think the same things, whether we like it or not ... And religions too. They're all focused on the same goal, which is to fulfill our deepest, innermost urge to find and reach a higher power. The problem is, the different religions have different methods and guidelines of trying to achieve that goal. And who's to say whose method is the correct method? ... The only thing we can be sure about is the fact that good and evil exists, and the type of positive or negative energy you put out will come right back to you every time."

"Yup," Gabriel continued at the end of Rolando's sentence. "It's like, the key to life is so simple that it's almost impossible to realize ... Love is everything and God is everything. Therefore, loving thy neighbor is showing love for God."

For the third time, everyone in the studio was speechless. Lucy broke the silence and said, "So you already mentioned the different colors and the different feelings you experienced. Did you guys suffer any kind of pain or painful sensations?"

"Nope," Rolando answered, after thinking about it. "I didn't experience anything like that. But I did experience many other distinctive sensations that I'd never felt before."

"I don't recall going through pain either," Gabriel said. "Until I regained consciousness. Then I started to feel the agony."

His mother flinched at the thought.

"Sounds severe," Lucy said.

"For a while it was," Gabriel replied. "Until the IV

medication kicked in."

Lucy looked to the camera and said, "We're now going

to show some more pictures of how they looked when they were in the hospital. Compared to the way they look now, it's hard to tell these are the same two people."

Four different pictures, two of which were close ups of Rolando and Gabriel lying helpless in the hospital beds, displayed on the big screen as Lucy narrated. "Both of these very blessed young men were severely paralyzed from the neck down. But thanks to today's stem cell technology, doctors were able to take the process of regeneration to another level." She looked at Rolando and Gabriel when the pictures paused. "I'm amazed at how well you guys have recovered from your paralysis. These photos say a lot about how bad a condition you were in."

"Yeah," Gabriel admitted. "We were messed up."

Jaclyn's eyes watered and she put her head down.

Lucy noticed and said, "I'm sorry, I know it must be difficult to look at those photos."

"Yes it is," Jaclyn said. "It takes me back to those depressing days of worrying. But I'm okay."

Lucy smiled at Jaclyn and put her hand on her knee for comfort. "You're truly a strong woman," she told her, "and you as well," she said to Maricela.

Lucy quickly regrouped and said, "We're now going to introduce the doctors and the surgeons who were so skillfully instrumental in aiding Rolando and Gabriel back to proper physical condition."

The audience began to clap as the medical group of seven stood up from the front row and walked to the stage to shake everyone's hand. They all sat down as the applause faded. Lucy initiated the questions and the doctors explained the anatomy reconstruction procedures they used, as well as the specifics behind the whole recovery process.

Afterwards Lucy brought out their best friend Chris Klughes as the first surprise guest. He talked about how great it was to have Rolando and Gabriel back home, describing it as a deep-rooted reunion between brothers from another mother.

Things became even more joyous when Lucy brought out Shaile and Chantel. Shaile went over to Rolando and hugged him affectionately, while Chantel and Gabriel kissed passionately.

Everyone in the audience could feel the jubilation on the stage. They were all smiles and some of the spectators were even in tears.
EPILOGUE

*

Life. I wonder. Will it take me under? I don't know... That's what a great poet once said a long time ago. As far as I was concerned, life took me under for a while but faith allowed me to hold my breath and fate got me back afloat. It took losing my freedom and basically dying for me to realize that I needed to fully appreciate and preserve my existence.

Looking back on it, I can't believe we actually got away from that hellacious prison. The whole escape was like a bad nightmare that ended with an explosion instead of a cold sweat. After all was said and done, the reality was that I lost almost everything important to me. But by the grace of God I ended up getting most of it back.

The one thing I could not get back but I missed the most, was my ex girl Shaile. She decided to end our relationship once everything came to light about what I did. We tried to work it out but the fact that the public knew about my affair was too much for her to deal with. I deeply regretted making all those bad decisions. It damn sure wasn't worth it because in the end, my heart suffered a major loss because of my dick.

For what it was worth, I explained to Shaile that my love for her had never faltered; and that the only thing to cause me to do something as stupid as what I did, was the magnetic, kryptonic powers of new pussy. New pussy was able to take over my mind and body, but not my heart. I still loved Shaile and I cherished her friendship dearly. I was very happy that she forgave me and she had no hard feelings. She moved on with her life and didn't seem to be caught up in the past.

Me personally, I didn't know if I could ever have a serious relationship again. Intimate relationships can be more complicated than physics, and that's mainly because relationships deal with the physics of emotions. Men especially, are wired with toxic lust, and are normally the reason that relationships go bad ... But the way we naturally are is no excuse. I'm the one who made the bad decision and I'm the one who had to suffer the consequences.

The good news though, was that I was alive and I was ninety five percent healthy and a hundred percent revitalized. I learned a major lesson, and was no longer guessing about whether my life was a blessing. My outlook changed forever and I knew I was alive for a real reason.

I couldn't have felt more blessed and grateful. I was a free man, my life was back to normal and I was walking again. What more could I ask for? ... Oh yeah, where's my lighter?
