Sandhill Street: The Loss of Gentleness

by Rob Summers

Chapter 17 The Dispute Over the Body

  Upstairs in the prison’s main floor foyer, Dignity, Reason, and Fret waited at a counter that they had found manned by a lone, sleepy-eyed sergeant. He was partly turned away from them, on the phone to his superior, but his eyes kept getting wider and wider as he watched the foyer behind them fill with reporters, photographers, and video crews.

  Finally he put down the phone and turned to address Dignity, speaking as quietly as possible because of the press microphones nearby. “You can go home. Officer Law says the prisoner is not allowed visitors unless it’s family.”

  “No, not even his family has been allowed,” Reason corrected. “They’ve been driving themselves crazy this past week trying to see him or at least to obtain records.”

  “Anyway, we’re not asking to visit him,” Dignity added. “We’re demanding his release. We understand that he’s going to be executed tonight unless something is done.”

  The sergeant shook his head. “He’s serving a sentence. Go on home now. Gentleness Orchard isn’t allowed any visitors, and I can tell you there’s certainly no execution scheduled for tonight.”

  Before Dignity could answer, a reporter broke in. “Sergeant, we understand this Gentleness was tried and convicted of arson last week. Sentenced to die too. Will you go on record as saying his execution isn’t going to take place tonight?”

  “Cherish Veritas of the Heaven Channel,” said a woman as she extended a microphone toward the sergeant. “Has Judge Hate-good been called into City Hall tonight? Does that have something to do with the execution?”

  As the sergeant blundered through a reply, Dignity pulled Reason and Fret away from the counter. “Where did all these press people come from?” he asked. “I thought Grace said the City was keeping this execution a complete secret.”

  Fret looked up at him with brown eyes with circles under them. For a moment she looked so familiar that he was on the brink of remembering her from somewhere, but he couldn’t quite make the connection.

  “Of course it was supposed to be kept secret,” she said. “Isn’t that always the way this miserable, corrupt government operates? So that’s why I called the newspaper and the TV stations before we left the house.”

  “I’m not sure that was the best—” Dignity began.

  “You got a better plan?” she interrupted. “Do you have any plan?” She looked to both of them, and they had to admit to her that they had nothing but the intention of demanding that the execution not take place.

  “What good is that going to do if they deny there’s gonna be an execution?” she challenged. “No, if you want to stir things up, you have to give the City bigwigs two bad alternatives. Either they halt the execution, or they have to admit that they went ahead with it while ignoring the testimony of eyewitnesses who weren’t called to testify during the trial.”

  “Eyewitnesses? What eyewitnesses?” said Dignity.

  “Oh, no. I think I see what she means,” Reason said with a sinking voice.

  Fret handed Reason a manila folder. “I got these from Truth just before we left the house; it’s the pictures you took of Mr. Leasing’s City Seal contract. You’re going to need them or they won’t believe you.” She laid slim white hands on their arms. “Get over there and tell them everything you were doing that night.”

  Dignity frowned. “I don’t think that’s at all what we—”

  “No, it’s just right,” Reason interrupted. “Come on, follow me.” She pushed her way back to the counter, followed by Dignity, and interrupted the flow of reporters’ questions that the desk sergeant was ineptly answering.

  “Sergeant, get your Officer Law out here right now. I’m Mrs. Reason and this is Mr. Dignity, and we are confessing that we were in Leasing House on the night of the alleged attempted arson, that we sneaked in there as trespassers, and that Gentleness was keeping a lookout on the street so that we wouldn’t be discovered.”

  Dignity finally understood why this had to be done, so he plunged in loudly. “That’s right. We went in there secretly to photograph some very private, sensitive documents belonging to Mr. Guiles Leasing, and we did get those pictures and got out without being caught. We have the pictures with us, and we’re turning ourselves in.”

  The reporters immediately abandoned the desk sergeant and surrounded Reason and Dignity, firing questions at them more rapidly than they could answer. Fret backed away toward the wall with a sad, wistful smile.

  Mr. Power had just changed into some clean clothing and had rejoined Dr. Therion and the Lawyers Snare and Trial when Officer Law’s call came. He thumbed the telephone to its conference setting.

  “What is it? Make it fast, we’re waiting on some important news.”

  “Sorry, sir. We’ve got two people down here in my office, Mr. Dignity and Mrs. Reason, and they’ve turned themselves in for being involved with the attempted arson on Sandhill Street. They both reside at—”

  “I know where they live,” said Power angrily, “and I know what they’re up to. Kick ’em out the door. Don’t listen to them and don’t arrest them. Boot them!”

  “Uh, right, sir, but they wanted to make written confessions that involved trespassing and theft, and so we just followed routine and, well, we’ve already arrested them. You see, they brought evidence with them that pretty well proves their story. It’s photographs of the Leasing House’s City Seal contract. There’s wording about the Hellites in it.”

  Dr. Therion was seated on a couch, nursing a lump that had belatedly raised on his head as a result of the Heavenite attack earlier in the evening. Now he lurched to his feet.

  “Law, burn that evidence. Destroy it.”

  “Will do, sir.”

  “These confessions are some kind of trick,” Therion said. “Grace is behind this.”

  “That’s right,” said gray, old Trial, his long face looking a warning to the others. “When those people confess a crime, it always works in their favor and against us.”

  “Show them the door, Officer,” Power said.

  Law did not answer for a few seconds, and when he did, it was in a miserable voice. “But you see, Mr. Power, these two came in and started confessing everything out in the foyer where there’s a bunch of reporters.”

  This was enough to make everyone painfully thoughtful.

  “Hell, what were reporters doing there?” Power said at last.

  “We know exactly who tipped them off, sir. One of my clerks phoned Editor Varnish and put some pressure on him, and he said his caller ID shows it was one of our people, a spy in Grace House. She’s—”

  “I know who she is!” Power thundered. “She’ll pay for this like nobody’s ever paid before.”

  As the phone’s second line rang, Power looked down at the caller ID and shuddered. “It’s Grace,” he said. “I might have expected he’d call about now. Law, go ahead and release them anyway. That’s all for now, but you blew it bad, buster, and you’re going to feel what it’s like to let me down.”

  He broke the connection with Law but waited a few moments, preparing himself, before he answered the other line.

  “Grace, what do you want?”

  “Ah, Power, good evening,” said Grace evenly. “I knew you wouldn’t keep me waiting so long if you weren’t having a difficult night. My sympathies.”

  “Get to the point.”

  “Always focused, aren’t you, Power? Yes, let’s do keep this strictly business. I want to ask you and the Mayor to do something for me. I’ve decided that your prisoner Gentleness ought to have a pardon, an eleventh hour pardon as it happens.”

  “But you can’t pardon him,” Power said.

  “Can’t I? Let’s pass over that. I know that two of my people made a confession tonight and exactly what they confessed to. I don’t know if you can quite suppress the story. I believe it’s already going out over the radio and the internet. But even if you can bury it, an
other of our people, formerly your spy, will tell the whole Sandhill neighborhood about how she saw Reason and Dignity turning themselves in so as to get that innocent boy pardoned. After what they’ve been through this evening, the Sandhill area families are quite ready to believe anything about the City, especially if it comes from someone known to have been part of your organization. I might add that Reason and Dignity have written out and filed their confessions. Will the City ignore the testimony of eyewitnesses? No, I think you can hardly go through with an execution now. The public’s awareness of new evidence just can’t be ignored.”

  “For once I’ve got you,” Power huffed back. “Your little arsonist dies. I just let Reason and Dignity go, and so all your leverage disappears. If they’re not in prison, that shows we didn’t believe them, and their story has no weight. We’ll tear up their little confessions, and considering what would have happened to them if we had accepted their story, they’ll be glad enough to get out of here unhurt and to keep their mouths shut from now on.”

  “Of course, of course. It’s right to let them go. We can’t have these young people falling on their swords every time they break a paltry City law or two.”

  Power swallowed this unwillingly, saying nothing.

  “But reverting to Gentleness’ case,” Grace said, “you must recognize that I do have authority to pardon him since he’s a Heavenite citizen.”

  “Not true,” Lawyer Trial said in his bass voice. “The boy has gone to City schools, and has a City driver’s license. Regardless of where he was born, he’s never done anything to renounce citizenship here, and I can cite you case after case in which those with dual citizenship have been properly, legally tried by the City.”

  “That’s right, and executed too,” Power said to Grace. “It isn’t the first time, buster. We’ve got a string of cases going all the way back to Cain vs. Abel.”

  “But which brother are you referring to as being tried?” Grace said. “Naturally, I’m aware that the City has a bloody history of murdering the innocent.”

  “That’s enough of that,” Power said. “We might, just might, consider putting off the execution and just keeping your boy locked up, but a pardon is out of the question. Just a minute, I’m putting you on hold.”

  The other line had rung, and it was Officer Law again.

  “Sorry to bother you, sir. Sorry.” Law sounded emotionally distraught on the speakerphone.

  “Well, what is it?”

  “The prisoners Reason and Dignity, sir. I told them we were releasing them, but they’re refusing to leave without Gentleness. That little woman—Mr. Power, she pitched my softball trophy right through the window of my office door! Then they both started tearing out my files from the cabinet and throwing them on the floor. I pulled in help and they’re taking them down to cells right now.”

  “I told you to let them go!”

  “I know, sir, but they won’t go—not without Gentleness.”

  “Well, threaten them! Threaten them with Captain Brutality, talk to them about torture, anything.”

  “I don’t think it’ll work. Honest, I’ve got no power over them!”

  Power had no answer for this, having never dealt with anyone so eager to reside in a City prison cell, so he told Law to wait and put him on hold. He looked around at the others and saw no inspiration in their faces.

  Suddenly Grace’s voice, came from the telephone. “Well, there you are, Power. If you don’t release Gentleness, you’re going to be saddled with Dignity and Reason indefinitely.”

  “I put you on hold!” Power said.

  “I know, but it was necessary for me to remain in the conversation.”

  Power found himself sweating. Besides Grace’s spooky control of his supposedly highly secure office phone, he had to consider that the cover-up of all that had happened lately on Sandhill Street would be seriously compromised if Dignity and Reason were reported as having sacrificed themselves for Gentleness’ sake. People might call it goddamned noble and admire them, and that could lead to follow-up stories by the media. After carefully unplugging the phone, he said so to the others.

  “But if they’re released,” said Lawyer Snare, his beady eyes gleaming, “I mean all three of them, Gentleness included, the media won’t make us much trouble. Even the Heavenites can’t make much out of that to put on their channel. As for our media, at the most they might report that some crackpot Heavenites were trying to claim that Leasing House was, and is, contracted for Hell. Then they’d drop it. No story here.”

  The others eagerly echoed the words ‘no story here.’

  “Take that approach,” Lawyer Trial added, “and Grace might try to get a little coverage for the rumors about Sluggard House too, with the link being Leasing’s little girl. I don’t like that, but I don’t think it would actually grab much attention if it’s reported at all.”

  “It must not get any attention,” Therion said. “Not one word about Sluggard House.”

  “All right, so we make sure nothing gets reported about the Sluggards, we cover that like a blanket. If it works, then we have a relatively painless option. I say let’s release all three of them.”

  “Yes, you’d do best to handle it that way,” said Grace from the unplugged phone. “As I said, let the boy go.”

  “We’re bugged!” Trial said.

  Power picked up the phone and slammed it down on his desk so hard that it broke. “The boy is condemned!” he shouted at it. “Nobody in hell can get him out now!”

  “That’s your concern. I’m not from Hell myself,” Grace said from the broken phone.

  Power walked to the window, opened it, and threw the telephone out.

  He returned from the window looking shaken. “That’s one for Intelligence,” he said. “I never thought the Heavenites could bug this office. Chief Sordid just lost his job.” He sat down at his desk. “Sheesh, what a night. So what do we do? I agree we can successfully spin this for the City at large, but I’m not so sure about the Sandhill neighborhood. That’ll be tougher, especially since our spy looks to have changed sides and will be talking up the Heavenite version.”

  Lawyer Trial said, “Right, it’s a tougher sell on Sandhill Street, but if we do release all three, it’ll still be good damage control there because the City won’t have officially charged Reason and Dignity with anything. So they could only say without evidence that the City was planning to execute Gentleness and that they were ready to go to prison in his place. Sure, our spy’s double cross hurts, but in my opinion Dignity and Reason’s confession, along with its information about Relocation, won’t sway their neighbors, not if we don’t provide the publicity platform either of Gentleness’ execution or Dignity and Reason’s arrest and public trial. The story just disappears.”

  “On the other hand, if we go through with the execution,” Snare said, “or even keep the boy in jail, then in the light of day Dignity and Reason will be a problem. In that scenario they’re known to be imprisoned, will be interviewed, and will lead the press back to the Sluggard House story.” He laughed airily. “Hey, Gentleness is just a lightweight anyway and won’t add much strength to the Heavenite cause. Let’s throw him back to them.”

  Dr. Therion, whose head lump was reaching alarming proportions, groaned at this. “Don’t ever let one of them go if you’ve got him,” he said. He trembled. “But maybe you gentlemen know best,” he added weakly.

  This was enough for Power, who took out his cell phone and called Law. “We’re going to release Gentleness to them,” he said. “Destroy the records of the other two’s arrest. It never happened.”

  He hung up and called down to the execution room.

  “Temptation, I haven’t had a report from you in twenty minutes. What gives? That’s OK, never mind. I think someone’s been monkeying with my desk phone, so maybe you couldn’t call. Anyway, get this: I want you to halt the execution. It’s off.” />
  He listened for a moment and became very still. “When?” He put away the phone and looked to the others. “They injected him five minutes ago. The boy’s dead.”