2040

                       2040

Suzanne Marsh

“There was a time before all this surveillance, and such wasn’t necessary.” The elderly woman began.

“I was a teen back in the early twenty first; that was when everything that was the United

States, went to hell in a hand basket. The parties back then were Republicans and Democrats.

they could not agree on anything especially the national debt that was in the trillions of

dollars. Gas and food prices soared. There were mass murders taking place in schools,

stores, gay clubs. It was not a good time in history.”

She knew what she was saying was treason, but someone had to speak out before things became worse. She was a petite woman with white hair everyone called her Grandma Connie. She preferred that to Connie or Constance. She was speaking today from a small home just outside the perimeter of barbed wire that had been placed around the capitol earlier in the day. She was one of the few survivors of the third revolution; she had to speak out now.

She glanced around the room; was she being watched and listened to? She hoped not; it could mean her life; although she had lived a good life; she wanted to live longer. Going against the government was forbidden. She hated the way life had become and was determined to take her own life back. She hated computers and cell phones alike. Convenience was no friend. Her thoughts meandered from helplessness to wanting to blow up the large computer than ran the town she lived in. Town, the time was it was a small dot on the map of Texas now it wasn’t even a dot. The entire town of Uncertain, consisted of the small brick hotel where Connie Berra lived. Her family owned the only hotel for miles.

The “people police” as they were referred to were surveillance teams who watched every move and heard every spoken word. Connie knew there were spies everywhere; for all she knew her son could be one. She prayed that when he had been taken to refresher camp; it would refresh his thinking or, so she had been told. That had been three years ago; she had not seen nor heard from him since then. He was twenty and as the young often do he declared that he was not a robot, nor did he care to become one.

Connie was exasperated with how her country had become. She had told her children that the country was becoming Socialistic, but they would not believe her. She warned her children to not say or do anything to attract the attention of the authorities. She had no idea what would happen twenty years ago, now she knew and understood. Time was on the side of liberals who thought more of lining their pockets than the people who needed their help. Now the time was past for caring now was the time to act. Connie remembered going to Caddo Lake as a child; that was perhaps better than hiding in Uncertain; hiding in the swampy area would afford more protection. No one would know where she went since she planned to leave around midnight by boat directly into the swampy area. She had to survive, and this was the only way any of the group could think to keep her safe.

Several weeks later there was a three-knock signal in place; the “people police” were closing in. Someone informed on the group. Connie heard the three knocks; she opened the door. Before she could even scream; a cold steel hand covered her mouth. She was thrown into the back of a car trunk. The car sped down the road to heaven only knew where. Before she was removed from the trunk of the car a black blindfold was used to cover her eyes. She had a good idea where she was, the old King County courthouse. The old jail had been next door; that was where they took prisoners who were to be tortured. It had never entered the equation that she would be tortured. She was shoved into a cell that she could only stand. Jim Sutton, head of the “people police” strode down the hall to the cell where Connie was being held. He motioned for them to remove her. She was then taken to an antechamber. She glanced around; she noted a simple steel backed chair, and several straps. She had heard of this torture but had never experienced it; until now.

She began to scream and squirm as they pushed her roughly into the chair and tied her arms and legs as tightly as was possible.

“You have once chance to tell me how to wipe out your organization.”

“Go to hell!”

Jim nodded; the chair was tipped backwards toward the ground. Connie could feel severe stress on her back, neck and spine. She screamed in rage and pain. Still, she refused to speak. She was returned to her cell. A light bulb overhead was all that she saw. Sleep, how could she possibly sleep standing up with a light on. Sleep deprivation was torture being carried to an extreme in this manner. The following morning, she was once again removed from her cell. She was taken to the same room, different torture device. A cattle prod was used to shock various part of her body. She begged to die; their answer was to water board her. She would not break. Time was not on Jim Sutton’s side; he had to ensure the group was found and murdered.

Connie through it all still hoped that Jack Torreson would come to her rescue. He was only twenty-five; he had been her lieutenant for six months. Jack would find a way if there was one. She prayed it would be soon if she were to be rescued. Her heart began to beat rapidly, she was sure Sutton would return at any moment to begin another torture. Jack, in a borrowed janitorial uniform waited and watched. Connie was once again taken to the room, what was left of her blouse was ripped off her back. The ‘cat o nine’ tails ripped her flesh as she screamed and lost consciousness. Jack waited until she was returned to her cell; he then quickly moved toward the cell. He handed her a cyanide pill; she quickly swallowed it. She was dead before she hit the floor. Jack quickly left; he was ready to attack with their group. He knew that he had to get Sutton before Sutton got anyone else. 2040 was the year of the great revolt.