Primitive Panic
...tremendously short temper. His clothes were ragged and messy, like no other teenager. Charles had heard the following charges against Collin the other day at work: 168 slashes across the chest of his boss, the cutting of his eyeballs, and 35 cuts along his legs and upper thigh. Charles had some strange feeling that Collin was not responsible; there was a voice within him stating that Collin was innocent. To make sure that the voice inside him was correct, he would talk to Collin at the prison. If he looked innocent to Charles, then maybe Charles would take the case and save this innocent boy’s life. Finishing off his scotch, Charles journeyed to the county prison. Thirty minutes later Collin’s prison was like no other prison in New York. The walls of the cells were covered with signs of torture. Tic marks covered one wall, marking the number of days the previous condemned men waited for their death penalty. The objects in the room were the following: a mattress, a toilet, and some toiletries. For fun the prisoners were allowed one hour of T.V. per day; food was served once a day with apple juice. Their curfew was at 8:00 p.m. Sitting in the jail cell, Collin sat wondering about his case and if he would be put to death. What he did not know was that he was about to have the most well-known lawyer fight the case for him. The aged lawyer sauntered up the steps of the penitentiary and toward the jail cells. He asked the guard if he was allowed to see Collin. The man, in the black and blue police suits, answered affirmatively and then led the way for Charles. Gradually nearing the cell door, Collin realized that there was someone coming. He turned around and firmly stated, “I…I…got no money.” Charles frowned while entering the cell. “My name is Charles Brentwood. I am a lawyer of the Bentley Mirchelago Xander Law Firm. You don’t need money. I am just here to ask you a few questions.” “O…ok but… but… trust me, I didn’t kill Mister Smith if that is what your gonna’ ask.” “I believe you,” declared the lawyer taking a seat down on the worn-out mattress. The voice inside his head kept repeating that Collin had not committed the crime. Gradually through the interview he started believing it. “My first question is if you had any reason to hate your boss. If so what was it?” “Oh…I had no reason… reason to hate Mister Smi…Smith. He was like….like a father to me. I didn’t kill him!” Collin exclaimed. “Then tell me why you were at his building, covered in blood, and with a knife in your hand!” “There was another person in the….the room. He… he was a dark figure. I… I was... returning a book to his library,” he uttered. “After….aft…after I did so, I heard lots of noise and ran to… see Mister Smith. He was on the floor covered in blood. I…I didn’t know what to do. I thou…thought I could stop the bleeding with my hands by putting them on his wounds. Then… all of a sudden I was … covered in blood with a knife in my hand. But I swea…swear to god it wasn’t me! I looked up to see if… if I could catch the murderer. When I glanced… glanced up he started at me. I was confused and shocked. I kind of lost time.” “What do you mean by you lost time?” questioned Charles. “See… when I was you…young boy, I would start to forget a lot. Kinda’ like…passin’ and blackin’ out at the same time. I would loose time and would not know what had happened before… it’s been happening since I was young.” “I see…but then why did you start running when you heard the police sirens?” Charles asked. “I…I…I didn’t know what to do. I felt…felt… like I was gonna’ get hurt so I ran. I was confused sir.” “All right, I have decided to take your case and try my best to get you out of this mess. All I need from you is to be honest and truthful. Not one lie young man. If that be the case you shall receive the death penalty, you understand? I will need you to see a doctor for that forgetfulness you have. The doctor will arrive tomorrow morning at this prison. She will ask you some questions. Please answer them and be truthful. She will also give you psychiatric help. Just to let you know the case will be h...