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Mercer

“What the fuck do you mean they’re moving me to another unit? Why can’t I stay here?” I asked while they waited for me to pack up my little bit of belongings.

“Get your shit packed, Mercer. You don’t ask questions around here… just take demands.” One of the correction officers replied.

It had been months since I’d been in here and it was starting to look bleak. Like I would never get out of here and would take these charges they were accusing me of. Being arrested at the gala was embarrassing.

Being taken into custody like I was a common criminal. They could have called my office and asked for me to come into the precinct to speak. They made a mockery of me, and I hated it. My face was plastered everywhere for my kids and wife to see.

I had our family and friends reaching out to Sam, wanting to know if this was true. When my bail was denied, I could have died in that courtroom. That Black ass bitch of a judge sat up there and judged me before even knowing the case.

She tried her best to hide it, but she was disgusted with me, and I was working with my lawyers to get a new judge for the trial. We had been preparing for weeks on our defense. That fucking junkie Thea had reemerged after being missing for some time.

Thea was the biggest problem in our case. She knew too much and probably had too much evidence against me. The things she witnessed and allowed would send me to prison for the rest of my damn life.

That bitch allowed what went on and never complained. As long as she was high, she took Lucia’s call and arranged for me to see Elijah. I was only trying to help the boy and toughen him up. Either way, that bitch needed to die so they could release me.

Whatever happened to innocent until proven guilty? No sooner than bail was denied, I was fired and now referred to as “disgraced former surgeon general.”

Sam was struggling with believing me and what the people were telling her.

She was asking more questions, putting together pieces that now made sense to her, and looking at me differently.

My lawyers said they needed her pale ass front and center being supportive, so the jury would believe I had a happy marriage and life with a soon to be grandchild on the way, and would never do what I was being accused of.

It had been a week since Sam had been up here and every time I called, she said she needed time to think. What the fuck did she need to think about?

She wasn’t the one in here wearing a damn prison uniform and eating blended up food baked in one sheet cake that they called nutrition. I was the one that was suffering, not her. Why the fuck did she need to clear her mind?

Walking to another unit felt depressing. No sun or any look at the outside world. Just electronic doors housing dangerous criminals and a bunch of security clearances. I held my things in my arms like I did when I was an eagle scout as a child in summer camp.

Ready for a summer of fun with my best friends. Funny how I would give anything to go back to that. They stopped at my cell, and I noticed I had a cellmate and sighed. It was nice having my own space while it lasted.

He was on the top bump with blankets draped over him like a hood.

From prison movies, I learned that you didn’t speak to anyone.

Just kept your head down and did your time.

I was hoping the judge would look into the motion we filed for me to be out on house arrest during the trial.

I couldn’t sit in here another second, and they were estimating that the trial could take six months.

I stood there while the doors buzzed and then walked in. The doors wasted no time in closing, and the guards didn’t wait around. The shifts were changing, and they were worried about getting to their post so they could be relieved of their shift.

Like hell I wished I was a fly on their shirt, escaping this place. I wanted to scream until they let me out, but I knew that would never happen.

“Guess we should agree on a morning toilet schedule.” I spoke, and he never responded, but shifted his body some. “I have to take a morning shit… has to happen and I apologize ahead of time.”

He continued to remain quiet while I unpacked the books I had Sam bring me, and all of the pictures of my family. My team wanted to take pictures of my cell to remind the jury that I was a father, husband, and soon to be grandfather. I was still trying to debate on if I wanted to smile or not.

Smiling screamed guilty and then looking depressed showed I wasn’t happy here. I had a few days to decide on it before my interview. I sat on the bed and took a deep sigh before taking my slides off and making my bed up.

It wasn’t good for my back, and I missed my specially made mattress imported from Italy. Thinking about Sam sleeping on it while her confused ass couldn’t visit me infuriated me. Just as I rolled my mattress out, they shut the lights out.

“So much for allowing me to finish making my bed,” I grumbled and felt around, while trying to maximize the most comfort for this bed.

“You said you like little boys?”

The voice caused me to freeze before I heard a swishing sound, and the lights came back on. Menace Caselli stood in front of me with a plastic poncho top and pants over his clothes, and the devil dancing in his eyes. Behind him, the door opened, and another man came in.

He was familiar.

“Me…Menace, what…what are you doing here?” I had a membership with Case House to keep appearances up.

All of my peers frequented the Case House women, and it was the best kept secret.

When you didn’t partake in their poison, they often looked at you differently, and I wanted to earn these people’s trust.

He had the best of the best when it came to women. Kennedy was one of my regulars before she kind of fell back from accepting clients. We were invited every year to a huge party on his private island.

Menace never looked like he liked anyone, so I wouldn’t say we were even friends.

He kept his distance from becoming close with any of his clients.

All he wanted was those payments to come through.

Sam was looking forward to this year’s event.

I always sent her off the island at the end of the night and told her the guys played poker.

“Fucking place makes me itch.”

“You wanted to sit up on the top bunk,” the other man replied, leaning against the door. “Corleon got a hole in security for at least twenty minutes during shift changes.”

“Sue me for wanting to be fucking dramatic for once…”

Me and the other man looked at him. “ For once ?”

He looked at us, and then back at me. “Are you breaking me out?”

“Now Marvin, why the fuck would I do that shit?”

The other man remained at the doorway and was cracking his knuckles. A nervous feeling swirled around in the pit of my stomach. Why were they in this cell, and why had I been moved over here.

“I’ll scream.”

“And get your throat knocked out,” Menace replied.

“Why?” the other man asked. “Spare me the fucking details… why the fuck would you do that to him?”

“I’m being framed. Elijah is a good b?—”

The minute the words started to leave my mouth, he rushed me and held me against the wall, delivering punch after punch. There was anger and pain in his eyes as he continued to deliver punch after punch.

Backing up, I slumped between the toilet and the bunkbed, and he grabbed my head and slammed it onto the toilet. Everything was dizzy as he continued to stomp me out while I was on the floor.

I tried to yell, but I couldn’t find my voice. My body felt limp as I tried to fight back, and nothing happened. My body stopped trying to fight as he beat me bloody. While I dazed in and out of consciousness, I watched as he wrapped the rope supplied around my neck.

The tighter the rope became, the harder it was to breathe. I choked out some words before I felt my life slowly leaving my body as I heard the man’s last word.

“You fuck with the future King Inferno, you fuck with ….” I couldn’t make anything else out because everything faded to black.