Utopian Day
Authors: C.L. Wells
Tags: #thriller, #crime, #action adventure, #fiction action adventure, #fiction thrillers, #crime action adventure, #thriller action and suspense, #fiction crime novel, #thriller action adventure
Utopian Day
By C.L. Wells
Copyright Christopher L. Wells
(2015) - All rights reserved
Published by Christopher Wells at
Smashwords
Smashwords Edition #1 License Notes:
This free ebook may be copied, distributed, reposted, reprinted and
shared, provided it appears in its entirety without alteration, and
the reader is not charged to access it. This book is a work of
fiction.
Any resemblance to actual events or
persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.
Author’s blog:
www.fictionwithamission.com
Other works by this author:
The
Seer: Book 1 in the Supernatural Gift series
For a current list of titles by this
author, visit
http://fictionwithamission.com/books-by-c-l-wells/
To receive a FREE work of fiction by
this author, visit
http://fictionwithamission.com/ebooks/
Author’s email address:
[email protected]
Table of Contents
Chapter One
James stood on the dock wondering about the events that had
led him to this point. Just months before he had been a prisoner
serving time in a U.S. prison. Then, unexpectedly, his sentence had
been reduced and he was given a chance to start a new life and go
straight – a chance he was eager to make good on. But now he was in
a foreign country, on the run from the FBI, and framed for a crime
he didn't commit. He watched, feeling helpless, as the man who had
set him up sailed away on a yacht. Could things possibly get worse?
His mind drifted back to that fateful day that had started the
whole bizarre journey….
Six months earlier:
As he looked across the table at his client, Cecil
Brody Jr. felt pity and sadness. In his years as a public defender
he had seen many such young men follow a similar path. A troubled
youth with a difficult or non-existent family life had a brush with
the law and ended up in juvenile detention. They made friends with
the wrong crowd while inside, and went from bad to worse once they
were released from prison. Years and numerous incarcerations later
– assuming they lived that long – they ended up right where this
young man was.
Today, however, was different. Cecil was here to
offer his client something that none of his other clients had ever
received. He was, dare his frequently cynical mind admit, excited
about the possibility that today might be a turning point for the
better. Today might be the beginning of a genuine shot at
rehabilitation for this young man.
The guard who had brought his client in finished
securing one handcuff to the table to ensure the lawyer's safety,
and exited the room. Cecil, who had been lost in his thoughts, had
his contemplations cut short as he heard the door shut and the loud
mechanical lock engage. He brought his gaze up to meet the eyes of
his client.
“
James, it's good to see
you.”
He paused before continuing, but the prisoner did
not respond. “I have some good news for you. You have been selected
to participate in a special rehabilitation program that could cut
ten years off of your sentence.”
James sat up a little straighter in his chair and
leaned forward, obviously interested. He had so far been
incarcerated for two years of a twenty-five year sentence for armed
robbery. The idea of cutting his remaining sentence almost in half
seemed surreal. He wanted to make certain he had heard
correctly.
“
Ten years?”
“
That's right. Are you
interested?”
“
Is grass green?” James
responded.
“
O.k., here's how it works.” The
lawyer slid some paperwork and a pen across to his client. “It is a
highly selective and relatively unknown project the department of
corrections has been running for years. I didn't even know it
existed myself. If you sign up and keep your nose clean, your
sentence will be reduced by ten years. Everything you need to know
is right here.”
He slid the form across the table and paused while
James picked up the paper and began to read. James was sharp. He
may have been a criminal, but despite his bad choices he had
graduated high school with a 'B' average. He’d even been looking at
colleges before his life began to fall apart with break-neck speed.
Cecil patiently waited for the questions he knew would begin coming
once he finished reading the agreement.
“
What is this about 'prisoner
waives all rights,' and 'prisoner authorizes implantation of
required devices'? Am I agreeing to be experimented on or
something?”
“
No, nothing like that. This is
just the legal paperwork required for you to get into the program.
I've been briefed on the program and I think you are going to like
it much better than here. You will be living in a facility with
only nine other people. There won't be any cells like they have
here. You will have a real room all to yourself. The 'devices' they
refer to are for electronic surveillance purposes only.”
Cecil watched James' eyes as he read back over the
paperwork. James didn't appear to be as interested as Cecil had
initially hoped he would be.
“
Listen James,” Cecil began as he
stared straight into the younger man's eyes. “Chances like this
don't come around that often. In fact, I can almost guarantee this
chance won't come around again. If you don't sign this deal today,
I walk out of here and you stay here for the next twenty-three
years, barring an early release, which we both know won't happen in
this state unless hell freezes over.”
Cecil paused again to let his words sink in as James
stared down at the paperwork in front of him. This was James' third
serious conviction with jail time – by far the longest sentence. He
thought back to his previous sentence of five years and how he had
almost committed suicide in the fourth year because he was so
depressed. He was on medication now, but it didn't really help
much. He knew in his heart that he would never make it twenty-three
more years. But thirteen, and in a better environment… maybe he
could make it. He would still be young enough to build a different
life when he got out, maybe go straight the way his mom would have
wanted him to. Just maybe this could be the first break he had seen
in a long time.
James picked up the pen and signed his name.
Chapter Two
Mia was in a sour mood, and it wasn’t because of the
dining experience at Del Posto. On the contrary, the baked striped
bass had been excellent. Followed by the fette biscottate for
dessert, it could hardly have been a more delicious meal.
Mia’s mood had everything to do with the fact that
she was about to end a three month long relationship with Thomas
Pendleton. He was a nice enough man, an investment banker, and he
was fun to be around. They had met at a party for a mutual
acquaintance. She had been working at the time – the only time she
ever went to such functions.
Thomas had tried to strike up a conversation with
her, and she had politely told him that she was working and could
not stop to talk to him. He had given her his number and asked her
to call him so they could have lunch sometime. She had thanked him,
stuffed the number in her pocket, and continued working. A few
weeks later she had called him up and they had been seeing each
other ever since.
But now, however, there was a problem. It was the
same problem Mia always had with anyone she had dated. Once it
started getting too personal, a switch flipped inside of her head
and she started feeling like she was being suffocated. After that,
the relationship was doomed. She would normally break it off within
a few dates after she started getting that feeling.
This
date was
that
date.
Thomas reached his hand across the table and gently
caressed Mia’s hand. It made Mia tense up, though she tried not to
show it.
“
I’ve just bought a new sculpture
from an up and coming artist and I’d like to show it to you. Why
don’t we go by my apartment before I drop you off at your place and
you can see it?”
She knew where this was going. Tonight was the most
expensive restaurant that he had taken her to so far. He might as
well have asked her outright if she wanted to go back to his
apartment and have sex. She was glad she had already made plans to
take the subway back to her apartment building after she ended the
relationship. She felt a twinge of guilt about dumping him after he
had just spent over three hundred dollars on dinner, but it
couldn’t be helped. Now was the time.
“
Thomas, I really like you, but I
am just not ready to get serious in a relationship right now. My
work keeps me very busy, and I don’t think it is fair to either one
of us to continue to see each other right now. I need a break. I’d
like to keep your friendship, but not the dating
relationship.”
She had given this same speech so many times she
should have a patent on it. It rolled off of her tongue like the
well-rehearsed script that it was and to the desired effect. Thomas
slowly withdrew his hand back across the table, crestfallen. This
was the worst part. At least he wasn’t getting angry. A fair number
of men became belligerent after being dumped. She even had one man
follow her to her car and try and force himself on her. He hadn’t
made it to first base, but he did manage to get to an ER to get
treatment for his broken nose afterwards.
“
But we’ve been having such a good
time together. If things are going too fast, I can slow down. I
don’t want you to feel pressured. I think we’ve got a good thing
going here and I’d like to give it a chance. I really like you Mia.
So… I’ll back off and give you space, then in a few weeks I’ll give
you a call, and see if you still feel the same way. Fair
enough?”
“
O.k. Thomas, we’ll see. I really
need to go now. Thank you very much for dinner.”
Thomas held up his finger to a passing waiter.
“
Check please,” he said with a
forced smile.
“
No, Thomas, I’m taking the subway
back to my apartment.”
“
But, Mia…”
Before he could finish his sentence, Mia stood up,
and walked away from the table and out the door.
When Mia had first started experiencing what she had
started to call ‘the Mia phenomenon’, she had blamed the men for
being too pushy. But when it happened over and over again, she
started to believe it was just something wrong with her. She read a
few books trying to figure out what was wrong, even going to a
psychologist for a while. The psychologist had listened for several
sessions, and then she had suggested that Mia was having trouble
trusting men. She theorized that whenever the relationship started
to progress past a point where minimal trust was required, Mia
bolted.