Mark Taylor: Genesis (Prequel in the Mark Taylor Series)

by M. P. McDonald

Then only stillness. With a click, the bar released.

  “Thank you for riding the Scrambler.”

  This is more of an alternate scene. I wrote it well after No Good Deed was published. It was inspired by Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. I always felt so bad for Charlie in the movie Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory. He was so sweet and innocent and I remember in one scene, he could only look longingly in the window of the candy shop. If anything would make a grown man want to retreat to memories of a safe childhood, it would be imprisonment as an enemy combatant. If this scene had been in the book been, it would have taken place the day after Mark was released from prison. I saw this as him becoming like the man on Lower Wacker Drive that Mark remembers in No Good Deed. It was one of his worst fears.

  Candy Wishes

  The scent hit him first. Sweet and rich, it triggered memories of cold December afternoons when he was a child and he'd come in from sledding to the irresistible aroma of hot chocolate and marshmallows. His mother would ruffle his hair and comment on cheeks pink from the wind.

  Mark crossed the street, averting his eyes from the stares of the well-dressed commuters. He tugged the ill-fitting jacket closed, trying in vain to cover the dirty oxford beneath. Crisp and white yesterday, his tumble down the steps last night, and sleeping in it while it was still wet, had taken a toll.. He knew he should head in the other direction, down into the subways, but for just a few moments, he longed to drink in the aroma of chocolate. The morning sun reflected on the gold lettering, making it appear to flash, beckoning him closer.

  A woman exited the shop, allowing a mixture of chocolate, spun sugar and faint fruity scents to escape from the confines of the shop. Mark stopped beside the window and closed his eyes, nostrils flaring. His mouth watered as he touched the window with the edge of his hand and peered inside. Heaven. This is what heaven would look like. He was sure of it.

  A candy counter ran the length of the quaint store. Panes of glass separated the rows of chocolates in little brown paper cups from the sections filled with rainbow-hued piles of soft, chewy candies. Beside them, the star of the case. Huge, succulent strawberries dipped in dark chocolate with a delicate drizzle of white chocolate.

  Nose flattened against the window, he pretended he had money to buy the treats. Which one would he choose? Chocolate drenched almonds? Luscious strawberries? Tangy citrus chews? Mark licked his lips. Maybe a few of each? He smiled and let his imagination run wild.

  The door burst open, startling him from his fantasies.

  "You! Get away from the window!" The stout shopkeeper scowled at Mark and pointed to the grimy fingerprints on the glass. “Look what you did!”

  Mark tugged the cuff of his shirt over the heel of his hand and tried to erase the marks, but the man shooed Mark away, his lip curled with disgust.

  After a last lingering glance, Mark shuffled towards the steps. He inhaled through his mouth, hoping that if he took a big enough breath, he could hold off the inevitable stink of the subway. Exhaling, shoulders hunched, he descended into the reeking bowels of the city.

  Research Information

  The next book in the series, No Good Deed, came about when someone challenged a group of writers on a forum to have our character wake up in a padded room and wonder how they got there. I had just read a newspaper article about Jose Padilla, a real life enemy combatant who was from Chicago and was actually arrested at O’Hare Airport. I thought if my character was accused of something like being a terrorist, but he was innocent due to a bizarre paranormal/magical reason, he might have gone a little crazy and been put in a padded room. The story grew from there, with bits and pieces added on due to readers on the site asking for more. I finally scrapped that whole store and started over from scratch so it would be cohesive, but that original scene I wrote from the challenge has survived for the most part.

  When I started over, I decided I needed to know more about enemy combatants and began scouring the internet for everything I could find. I also tried libraries, but most of their books were at least several years old, which in terms of enemy combatant information, it meant they were already out of date. Digging deep, I found many articles and even more intriguing, information that had only been declassified shortly before my search. Some of it was heavily redacted, so I literally had to read between the lines to figure out what some of it meant.

  There have been only three American enemy combatants. (The detainees at Guantanamo are not Americans.) The three were held either at Naval Consolidated Brig, in Charleston, SC or at United States Navy Brig in Norfolk, Va. In my research, I found that the two U.S. based brigs were supposed to use the same rules for the enemy combatants as Guantanamo (info). Here is an excerpt from the linked article:

  As was recently revealed through the disclosure of military documents following a Freedom of Information request (PDF), al-Marri, along with two American citizens also held as “enemy combatants” — Yaser Hamdi and Jose Padilla — was subjected to the same “Standard Operating Procedure” that was applied to prisoners at Guantánamo during its most brutal phase, from mid-2002 to mid-2004. This involved the use of “enhanced interrogation techniques,” including prolonged isolation, painful stress positions, exposure to extreme temperature, sleep deprivation, extreme sensory deprivation, and threats of violence and death.

  Here's a bit more:

  Although the treatment of prisoners at Guantánamo was disturbingly harsh, it can be argued — with some confidence, I believe — that the treatment of al-Marri, Hamdi and Padilla was worse than that endured by the majority of the Guantánamo prisoners, as all three suffered in total isolation.

  Those three enemy combatants became my template for Mark's experiences. Obviously, it's not like I could interview the subjects so I had to go by what I suspected and use artistic license. One reason I added the paranormal element of the camera is so that readers would understand that my book is complete fiction. Another reason was because I wanted readers to have no doubt that Mark was innocent. In the real world, nobody comes with a guarantee of innocence. Wouldn't it be great if we all did? However, that assurance I gave readers might have made the government look even more sinister. In the book, they don't have the same luxury of knowing that Mark is innocent.

  One of the most chilling pieces of information I came across was a copy of the minutes of a meeting. I have removed names, just using initials. I have edited for length. When I wrote the waterboarding scenes, a lot of the information about how it would happen came from these minutes. The doctor present, the wet towel and the sense of drowning.

  B We have had many reports from Bagram about sleep deprivation being used.

  LTC B True, but officially it is not happening. It is not being reported officially. The ICRC is a serious concern. They will be in and out, scrutinizing our operations, unless they are displeased and decide to protest and leave. This would draw a lot of negative attention.

  F The DOJ has provided much guidance on this issue. The CIA is not held to the same rules as the military. In the past when the ICRC has made a big deal about certain detainees, the DOD has "moved" them away from the attention of the ICRC. Upon questioning from the ICRC about their whereabouts, the DOD's response has repeatedly been that the detainee merited no status under the Geneva Convention. The CIA has employed aggressive techniques on less than a handful of suspects since 9/11.

  Under the Torture Convention, torture has been prohibited by international law, but the language of the statutes is written vaguely. Severe mental and physical pain is prohibited. The mental part is explained as poorly as the physical. Severe physical pain described as anything causing permanent damage to major organs or body parts. Mental torture described as anything leading to permanent, profound damage to the senses or personality. It is basically subject to perception. If the detainee dies you're doing it wrong. So far, the techniques we have addressed have not proven to produce these types of results, which in a way challenges what the BSCT paper says about not being able
to prove whether these techniques will lead to permanent damage. Everything on the BSCT white paper is legal from a civilian standpoint. [Any questions of severe weather or temperature conditions should be deferred to medical staff.] Any of the techniques that lie on the harshest end of the spectrum must be performed by a highly trained individual. Medical personnel should be present to treat any possible accidents. The CIA operates without military intervention. When the CIA has wanted to use more aggressive techniques in the past, the FBI has pulled their personnel from theatre. In those rare instances, aggressive techniques have proven very helpful.

  LTC B~We will need documentation to protect us

  F~Yes, if someone dies while aggressive techniques are being used, regardless of cause of death, the backlash of attention would be extremely detrimental. Everything must be approved and documented.

  BLEA~personnel will not participate in harsh techniques

  LTC B~There is no legal reason why LEA personnel cannot participate in these operations

  B~Videotapes are subject to too much scrutiny in court. We don't want the LEA people in aggressive sessions anyway.

  LTC B.~LEA choice not to participate in these types of interrogations is more ethical and moral as opposed to legal.

  F. ~The videotaping of even totally legal techniques will look "ugly".

  F The Torture Convention prohibits torture and cruel, inhumane and degrading treatment. The US did not sign up on the second part, because of the 8th amendment (cruel and unusual punishment), but we did sign the part about torture. This gives us more license to use more controversial techniques.

  LTC B Does SERE employ the "wet towel" technique?

  F~If a well-trained individual is used to perform [sic] this technique it can feel like you're drowning. The lymphatic system will react as if you're suffocating, but your body will not cease to function. It is very effective to identify phobias and use them (ie, insects, snakes, claustrophobia). The level of resistance is directly related to person's experience.

  MAJ B~Whether or not significant stress occurs lies in the eye of the beholder. The burden of proof is the big issue. It is very difficult to disprove someone else's PTSD.

  F~These techniques need involvement from interrogators, psych, medical, legal, etc.

  B~Would we blanket approval or would it be case by case?

  F~The CIA makes the call internally on most of the types of techniques found in the BSCT paper, and this discussion. Significantly harsh techniques are approved through the DOJ.

  To sum it up, I gleaned as much information as I could from the memos, the minutes and other similar sources, and used it to try to paint an accurate picture of what it might have been like for Mark.

  Acknowledgements

  Once again, I would like to thank Jessica Tate for her continued support and mostly for pushing me to write on those evenings when I think I’m too tired. For the last five years or so, she and I have been challenging each other in timed writing sessions where we each write for about an hour and a half. At the end of the session, we exchange what we produced during that session, and knowing that someone is there waiting to read something, is very motivating! I would feel so guilty if at the end of the time, she sent me two thousand words, and I sent her nothing, so I always try to get at least 600 words written. In the beginning, we used to see who could write the most in an hour, but it quickly became apparent that she writes about three times faster than I do. In addition, she was one of my beta readers. Check out her books--she is an amazing author who writes under the name J.R. Tate, and her books can be found on Amazon.

  I also must thank Vicki Boehnlein. She went above and beyond the call of duty as a beta when she went back to No Good Deed and did some continuity comparisons. It made a huge difference in this book. Thank you so much!

  Also, I’d like to extend my thanks to Al Kunz. He also beta read the book and caught many of my errors.

  I want to thank my ‘forumily’ for giving me a place to toss around ideas, vent and for all of their support.

  About the Author

  I know a lot of these are written in third person, but that just feels too unnatural for me so I’m going to be a rebel and write this in first person. I’m M.P. McDonald, and I live in a small town in Wisconsin with my family, just a stone’s throw from a beautiful lake, and literally spitting distance to a river on the other side. We love the peace and quiet and being able to go down to the beach on a hot summer day for a quick swim. Chicago and Milwaukee are just an hour’s drive away in either direction, so we are never far from the excitement of a big city.

  As you can tell from my books’ setting, I love Chicago. One of my sons used to do commercials and modeling in the 90s, so we spent many an afternoon driving to auditions and look-sees there. Mark Taylor’s studio/loft is based in part, on the many cool photography studios we encountered during his years in ‘showbiz’.

  When I’m not writing, I work as a respiratory therapist at a small hospital that is part of a large hospital system in eastern Wisconsin. I am currently full-time, which makes it kind of hard to find as much time to write as I would like, but I recently requested a switch to part-time and that will go into effect very shortly. For me, that is the best of both worlds! I enjoy my job as a therapist, and yet I want more time to write, so I am lucky that I will be able to do both.

  I love to hear from readers. No, I mean it. I love to hear from readers, even if it’s not all good. Without feedback from readers, I might never have undertaken this book. I hadn’t planned on writing a series for Mark Taylor, but readers kept asking, so I was happy to deliver. I have an unrelated book I’ve put on the back-burner twice now in order to complete the last two books in this series. I’m hoping to finish that one soon and possibly start a fourth book in the Mark Taylor series.

  CONTACT ME

  Here are some ways you can reach me, and since I am an internet junkie, I’ll probably write back very quickly.

  Email: mmcdonald64@gmail.com

  Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/pages/MP-McDonald/143902672336564 I am especially active on my FB page, with updates on book progress, and an occasional book contest, but mostly, it’s awesome because of the amazing readers who are incredibly supportive We have a good time there, so come and join us!

  Twitter: @MarkTaylorBooks

  Pinterest: http://pinterist.com/mpmcdonald

  Find the first two books in the series currently available on Amazon:

  No Good Deed: Book One in the Mark Taylor Series

  March Into Hell: Book Two in the Mark Taylor Series

  Table of Contents

  CHAPTER ONE ~1999

  CHAPTER TWO

  CHAPTER THREE

  CHAPTER FOUR, July 2001

  CHAPTER FIVE

  Mark Taylor: Genesis. 1

  CHAPTER ONE ~1999. 4

  CHAPTER TWO... 10

  CHAPTER THREE. 25

  CHAPTER FOUR, July 2001 43

  CHAPTER FIVE. 62

  BONUS MATERIAL. 88