Life at Hard Labor chapters 57-58

Author: Fumpa
Title: Life at Hard Labor Chapters 57-58
Date: 24 March 2013

Chapter 57

Thankfully, I didn’t get too many more visits from boss Thompson. I sat day after day, cramped in the box; toiling and sweating my ass off. There was about one day a week where a trusty was able to talk to me, but I didn’t get any more extra rations, or any more pot. I did manage to get a replacement for the piss soaked t-shirt though. They couldn’t give me one with “TRUSTY” stamped on it, but they used the general population’s old worn out shirts to check the oil on the trucks. The smell of grease was actually a pretty big improvement for me.

About three weeks into my sentence, another con got thrown in the box. They put him right next to me. They gave him 5 days. One night after we had finished breaking rocks, I finally broke the silence with him.

“Hey man,” I said.

“Hey,” he grunted back. I didn’t recognize the voice.

“What they throw you in for?” I asked.

“Slackin,” he said. “You?”

“Backtalk,” I said.

“Oh yeah, your that fucker with the cigar. Heh heh.” He chuckled.

“Yeah. Listen, you guys get any new meat?” I asked.

“Not new. Couple fuckers from the chain I think. Maybe just one. I can’t remember. Why?”

“Just wondering. Gotta think about something else in here you know,” I said.

“Yeah.” he said. “Listen man, I’m dog tired.”

“Yeah. Night.” I said.

“Night.” he said. They let him out the next day.

Not long after that, I started to lose track of time. The trusties didn’t have any chances to talk to me or tell me how long I’d been in. All I got out of them was another load of rocks. My thoughts went straight back to boss Thompson, and how he’d treated me. I cracked another rock, imagining it was his nuts.

One morning, I was fully expecting another load of rocks to fall into my lap, when instead the door to the box swung open. I could feel a rush of cooler air flow in. A guard tapped on the side of the box.

“Alright boy. You ready to get back to workin?” He asked, and threw a normal sledgehammer on the ground before me. I crawled out, trying to steady myself. I put one hand on the hammer, and lifted myself up with the other. I stood erect for the first time in a month, and I stretched my arms out. I then leaned down and picked up the hammer. I didn’t even give the guard a second look. I walked out the gate, and caught up with the rest of the convicts who had just started to file out of the bunkhouse.

I caught up with Miner and Buck. Mark was well ahead of us along with Josh. “Hey.” I said.

“Hey buddy, how you feelin?” Buck asked.

“Like I’m not in the fucking box. How do I smell?” I asked back.

“Like you’re in the box.” Miner chuckled.

I leaned my arms on my sledge as if it were a yoke, and stretched out my neck muscles. I did seem to stink a bit more than everyone else. They had obviously showered the night before. I was the only dirty guy out there, though that would soon change.

When we got to the worksite, I was paired off with a new guy. Well not new, he looked a bit familiar. He was big, with a firm, stubby neck, and wide, calloused hands. More calloused than anyone else’s, even mine. His arms were tanner too. His hair was recently buzzed, and sweat beaded in it, but the clean looking hair couldn’t hide the story his eyes told. I could see the pain in his eyes as he started to swing his sledge. He’d spent a long time on the chain gang. Longer than anyone I had met in prison. Not 50 years ago, I was standing right next to him on the chain gang, along with Craig. It was Seth.

“Hey. I know you man…. You were on the chain with me.” he said “You’re….”

“I’m Matt. And you’re….. Seth?” I asked, and brought my hammer down.

“Yeah. Been a long time man.” he said. “I‘m still hearin‘ those grunts in my head. They finally let me off about a month ago.”

“Yeah, that’s when they put me in the box.” I cracked a chunk of the boulder off, and kept swinging.

“Can’t say as though I envy that,” he grunted out as he landed his sledge down, and took off a huge chunk of the boulder.

“Hey, cut that chatter!” The boss said.

“Damn,” I thought to myself. I still wanted to ask about Craig. It’d have to wait till midday. I lifted my hammer, and brought it down. Me and Seth moved on to another, larger rock, and kept pounding away at it for the rest of the morning. I could wait till then.

Then something sparked in the back of my mind. “Midday…. Midday means Boss Thompson.” That cigar. The countless kicks in the gut. A wad of dip spit in my hair. It was all coming back to me. I smashed my hammer down hard on the rock, and sent a chip of it flying like a bullet down the hill. It pinged on the fence, and fell flat to the ground. All I could think of was that burning cigar. A shiny boot toe squashing it into the ground.

“Hey, get workin on that one with those two.” The boss directed Josh to help me and Seth out with the large rock we were working on. Seth nodded to Josh, and Josh nodded back, indicating some kind of familiarity. They worked pretty well together too. Josh’s hammer never got in the way of Seth’s or mine. It wasn’t easy, but we were turning Josh into the hardened convict that he’d need to become.

The three of us worked that way until midday, when the boss finally blew the whistle for chow. I was first in line, and I gulped what I had down as quickly as I could without choking. I had to talk with Seth. Me, Buck, Miner and Seth all sat together on the hot face of a large grey boulder. It was then that I realized that Seth didn’t have a ball and chain.

“Yeah, they never gave me one. I’m shocked too. Josh there read me my papers, and I guess I’m goin’ out to the cane field.” Seth said, as he gummed down his last mouthful of beans.

“Good, you can keep an eye on him for us.” Miner said. “We ain’t goin nowhere.” He patted his ball and chain with his left hand, and massaged his booted foot.

“Hey man, I wanted to ask you earlier. How was Craig when you last saw him?” I took a drink of water, and wiped my mouth off with the back of my arm.

Seth was stunned. His mouth and eyes clamped shut as if he’d been smacked in the stomach. “Oh god….”

“What is it man?” Buck asked calmly.

“Matt, I’m sorry man. I should have told you first thing. They took him man. He tried to take out the boss man, but he failed. They brought a permanent gang up to work the rocks with us, and they locked him on to it. The boss man gave a whole big speech about it and everything. He’s on the chain gang forever now. He’s not coming back.” Seth finished. “I’m sorry.”

I looked in the direction of the mining camp on the other side of the fence. I wasn’t looking at them though. I was staring into the dead space that was hovering in front of me. “He’s not coming back.” Those words stuck in my gut worse than any strap, or any kick I’d ever lived through. I listened to the other convicts talking. I saw one of the miners on the other side of the fence pat one of his buddies the shoulder as they walked towards the shaft. None of it even registered in my mind. It was completely blank.

“Damn.” Miner said. “I don’t even…” He couldn’t find the words.

“I know his fucking game.” Mark said. “That bastard sent Seth here as a fucking messenger. He’s trying to rope me in man.”

“That right, boss Mark? Why don’t you fucking do something about it then?!” I snapped at Mark. I‘d had it with his stupid ass conspiracy theories, and I didn‘t particularly like the way he was talking about Seth being some pawn. “You keep sayin’ all this shit about how he has it out for you, or me or whoever the fuck. What fucking good is it to know? What does it even fucking matter?” I wasn’t even speaking coherently. I wasn’t making any sense, and they all knew it.

“You know what then? Maybe I’ll finally fucking play his game. He wants me, he can have me.” Mark got up and walked off. He picked up his sledge, and walked back over to his rock. He sat down, and held his head.

“Matt, you gotta calm down man. There ain’t nothing you can do.” Buck said, patting me on the shoulder. He managed to calm me down enough not to throw something, but he couldn’t take the emotion away.

“God damn it Craig….” I whispered, as I held my forehead, trying to fight back tears. He’d done something stupid again. Whether it was the boss who made him do it or not, Craig did something stupid. And now he was on the chain gang forever. I’d only known one other convict who suffered that fate, and I couldn’t even remember his name. It might have been Chet or Chuck or something. Who gave a crap? He wasn’t coming back, because he’d done something stupid.

“ALRIGHT BACK TO WORKIN.” The voice of Boss Thompson cracked out, and broke my thoughts. There was the image of that burning cigar again, only this time, it was a real one, and he was really smoking it.

Mark stood up, and was about to start in on the same rock, but boss Thompson called him, me, and Josh over to work on yet another boulder that was better suited for a drill crew. All I could think of was that cigar. I wanted to slap it out of his face. I started to work on the boulder. I lifted the hammer, I bought it down.

“Hey, how you feelin boy? I kinda missed you.” boss Thompson said as he leered at me, holding his cigar in his lips. “I’ve been havin’ fun with Joshie here though. Right boy?”

“Right boss.” Josh said, trembling a bit.

“Right boss what?” He asked.

“Right boss Thompson.” Josh hurriedly said.

“WRONG! The answer was ‘right boss, we’ve been having fun,” Thompson said this last line in a mock convict voice, and laughed to himself. He unhooked the strap from his belt, and took the cigar out of his mouth. “Here, hold that for me would you boy?”

He shoved the cigar into my hand. I stared at the thing. I could hardly believe it. A fiery rage was building up in me. I stood there with the cigar in my hand, heaving heavily. I had lost it.

“Get down on the ground and give me 20 boy. Count em out.” Boss Thompson said. As he gloated over Josh. Josh started to do pushups. He had the arm strength, but his knees were shaking in terror. Boss Thompson ground his boot into Josh’s back, and whipped his dick out. He looked like he was about to take a piss.

Before Josh could get to 2 pushups, I lunged at Boss Thompson. I put the cigar out square on his forehead. Then Mark leapt at him too, and held him down. I unhinged. I kept smacking him with my fist. I couldn‘t think. I just kept hitting him. I got knocked back by something. Then I regained my senses for a few seconds. Mark had gotten a sledge handle around the boss’s neck, and was choking him. I sat there, breathing heavily as I watched boss Thompson’s body slowly stop moving. He was dead.

Another guard had just run up the hill, and he had his prod out, swinging it wildly at us. Me, Mark, and a few other cons that got caught in the crossfire were shocked into submission. I couldn’t move. All I could hear was the prod sparking, and a bunch of bosses shouting. I felt heavy cuffs snap on my wrists, and I felt my feet being tied together with rope. They hogtied me and Mark, and threw us in the back of a truck to drive us back up to the bunkhouse.

The last thing I saw out the back of the truck as it idled, was Buck and Miner staring at us with open mouths. Miner hung his head down, and put his hand to his eye. We’d started our sentences the same day. He had every intention of following me to the end, but this time I wouldn’t let him.

With every ounce of strength I had left, I cried out. “Miner, you stay with Buck, and look out for Josh. I gotta go it alone. I’m gonna find Craig.” I then went limp. Buck put his hand on Miner’s shoulder, almost as if to hold him back. Miner stopped, and just held his eyes. He snuck one last look at me as the truck took off up the hill. He said something loudly, but I couldn’t hear what. I never got to speak to him, or Buck again.

Chapter 58

I heard Mark moaning in pain, struggling against his bonds, and failing to move an inch. “God I’m sorry Matt.” he said. “I didn’t want to drag you down with me.” He thought I was still unconscious.

“Mark, it’s alright man.” I groaned. “I’m sorry for what I said.”

“You were right though Matt. I’ve been running from that fucker my whole life. Now I’m gonna take what I have coming.” Mark moaned again.

“Well, he got three of us for the price of one.” I chuckled, and coughed a bit. “Hope to God that’s enough for him.”

“Never will be. But at least this way, he won’t take Buck or Miner. I never thought he’d let Seth go.” Mark whispered.

“Shh. They’re coming.” I whispered.

The door to the bunkhouse slammed shut. I heard keys jingle, and the door to the truck open and close. It didn’t start however.

“Which one of these assholes did it?” I heard a guard shout. “I wanna blow his fucking nuts off.” I heard a gun cock, and he shot it into the sky.

“Fuck em. They both fucking did it and they’re both gonna pay a hell of a lot harder than that. Let em’ keep their nuts. The boss man out there’ll think of something fun to do with em.” another guard said.

“Yeah, yeah. Still fucking chaps my ass though. I mean, I don’t know anyone who liked Thompson; convict or guard. But these convict shit stains go and kill him? I bet it was one of those old timers. They should put all those assholes on the chain.”

“Most of those old timers are fucking cows. Wouldn’t swat a fly without askin it first. Get a look at em if you want, they’re layin’ in the back of the truck.” the calmer boss said.

I could see the silhouette of a guard against the bright blue sky. “Yep. Old timers.” the guard said, and spit on Mark. “So what the hell are those guys down on the chain waitin’ on anyway?”

“Beats me.” The other guard said. “I don’t know how the hell they do things out there, and I don’t care to learn.”

“I hear that. These fuckers are gonna learn though.” he banged on the back of the truck with his club. “You hear that you worthless sacks of shit? You’re goin on the chain. For good.”

Mark and I pretended to still be unconscious. We weren’t going to give them the pleasure of watching us squirm. But still, hearing those words spoken struck me in the gut. I was headed for the chain gang, and I wouldn’t come back.

“They’re still out? Musta got shocked pretty good. Serves em’ right. I hope they don’t wake up till they’re locked on the chain.” said the guard with the cooler head. “Anyway, it’s getting close to quittin’ time. I think the captain wants to make an example of these assholes.”

“Maybe that’ll sink in with those stupid ass drill crews. You believe those lazy ass sons of bitches?” The two continued talking as they walked back towards the bunkhouse, and out of earshot.

“They’re probably gonna drag us out and show us all hogtied like this,” Mark said.

“I hope they do,” I replied. “I hope we’re the last guys in that quarry to do something as stupid as we did.”

“We might be,” Mark said. “For good reason too. Seth will teach them.”

“Yeah,” was all I could think of to say. I had a lot on my mind.

A few moments later, we heard the convicts coming back up the hill from the quarry. A few were talking quietly, but they were drowned out by boots scuffing on the ground. A guard opened the flatbed of the truck, and stood by it.

“ALRIGHT, CONVICTS! LINE UP!! ANYONE SAYS ONE FUCKING WORD, THEY’RE SPENDING A WEEK IN THE BOX.” Shouted a loud, vaguely familiar voice. It was Captain Parker. We hadn’t seen much of him in recent years. He had gotten older and greyer, while us convicts stayed in the same, work hardened form; roughly the same age as we had been on our first day. I heard the convicts stop some ways away from the truck where me and Mark were tied up.

The guard who had opened the back of the truck grabbed me by the waist of my jeans, and dragged me out, setting me down on the ground, so that I was facing the lineup of convicts. The guard then set Mark down next to me. I could see Buck, Miner, Josh, and Seth standing together close to the front of them.

The captain walked in front of us, and faced the group of convicts. “Aright convicts, listen up. Before I retire next year, I’d better have a word with you boys. I think you know who these dumb fuckers are, and why they’re tied up here. What you may not know, is what’s going to happen to them. Why don’t you fall out there 67?” He motioned to Seth, who reluctantly shuffled forward.

“Now this big fucker just got back from the chain, and I’m sure he’s had plenty of time to tell you all about it. If not, ya’ll can ask him. You’ve probably heard rumors about how much longer you have to work, or where you gotta sleep. I’m gonna tell you right now, these boys are in for a hell of a lot worse, and unlike 67 here, they ain’t coming back from it. I’m sure these boys might have been your buddies. Take a good last look, and say your goodbyes. They’re getting locked on the chain for good, and they’re getting sent to different gangs. No love stories here boys.”

We were going to different gangs. It was the first time I’d be going on a chain gang without anyone I knew. The fact that it’d also be the last time offered me no comfort, not surprisingly. I was staring right at Miner and Buck. They were staring at me, their hands limp at their sides, and their heads bent in sadness and shock. I’d never see any of my buddies again, and even though we shared the same fate, it was likely that I’d never see Craig again either.

“So if any of you think about tryin’ anything like what these fuckers did, you look at them lying on the ground there, and imagine them on their feet from before sunup to after sundown, working without a break. When you’re layin in your bunk with your nice warm blanket, and your buddy next to you, imagine these assholes cramped in a fucking dog cage all night.” He tapped a coiled up strap in his hand as he spoke.

“Now just to give you boys a little taste of what’s in for these assholes, shower and laundry privileges are revoked for a month. Evening rations are cut for all convicts for a week, and for convicts with a ball and chain for a month. Then when that’s over, you’re gonna remember how good you motherfuckers got it.” The captain paused. I saw Josh’s eyes close. Seth looked like he could fall to his knees at any moment. “Alright, load em up and ship em out.” The captain said. Miner and Buck hadn’t looked away from me. They stood so close, their biceps were touching. They looked like they wanted to hold each other, but didn’t dare. I gave a firm, straight faced nod to them, and then a guard hoisted Mark and I up, throwing us back in the truck. I never saw Buck or Miner again.

I watched the sky darken as the truck rolled down the road away from the quarry. We drove through the night. I couldn’t see Mark in the darkness, but I could feel his booted feet digging into my back. Every once in a while, his ball and chain would roll toward my butt. Even though I wasn’t struggling, the ropes dug into my wrists, and my hands were clammy with sweat.

“Matt, I just want you to know I’m sorry man. I’m sorry for what this world is like. I’m sorry for all the shit you’ve gone through cause of assholes like me.” Mark finally said after a sharp turn brought his mouth close to my ear. The sky was starting to lighten again.

“I can’t blame you for the way the world works man. We were all on the outside at one time, though I don’t remember one day of it.” I said.

“I remember it,” Mark replied in a low, distant tone. “I remember every fucking minute. I remember him making me whip that poor chained up bastard.”

“What’s his name anyway Mark? That boss on the chain?” I asked, hoping it was something stupid so I’d have something to laugh about as he beat the tar out of me.

“I don’t know. No one does.” Mark answered. “We just called him “sir.” Bosses don’t dare ask what his name is, and of course the convicts on the chain aren’t allowed to talk unless they’re ordered to. As far as you and I are concerned, he’s just Boss, and now he’s owns our asses.”

“Yeah.” I paused for a few moments. What do you really say when you’re hogtied in the back of a truck?

“I guess it sucks we’re going on different chains.” Mark broke the silence. “Kinda hoped I’d go with someone I knew, and someone who’s been through it before you know?”

“Yeah, I hear ya. It ain’t really gonna matter in the long run anyway man. We’re gonna be on the chain. Your whole personality’s gonna change. You’re just gonna be a stupid, sun burnt slave. You’re gonna learn the drills, grunt like a stupid ape, and sing those corny ass songs they make you sing at the top of your lungs. You’re gonna be identical to every other con on that chain gang. So it ain’t going to matter much who you were, or where you are. Shit ain’t gonna change.” I said.

“Yeah, I know that much I guess. I’m gonnna miss you just the same. I’m gonna miss all of them back there. I hate the thought of going on this shit all alone,” He sounded like he was trying to hold back a kind of fearfulness.

“Alone? On the chain? Hell naw. You’re never gonna be further than 5 feet away from another man. Every mornin’ there’s gonna be a guy behind you with his hand on your shoulder. You’re gonna be behind another man, and your hand’s gonna be on his shoulder. That’s all you really get, but it’s somethin’.” I hoped I’d reassure him.

“Yeah, I guess it’s something.” he said.

“There you go guessing again,” I said with a smirk on my face that Mark couldn’t see, but could definitely hear.

He chuckled a bit, but then the truck slowed down dramatically, and eventually came to a stop. The engine shut off, and I could hear chains rattling, and metal banging. The flatbed opened up, and they dragged Mark away.

“Alright shit stain. Welcome home. You keep quiet.” They pointed at me. I clenched my teeth down, and shut my eyes. I could hear someone banging on metal, and what sounded like chains rattling. I knew the sound all too well.

“Hold still.” I could hear a downtrodden voice drone. That was followed by the sound of metal clanging at a high note on an anvil. It kept clanging and clanging, until finally it clanged at a lower pitch, and was followed by silence.

I heard footfalls crunching the gravel, coming back towards the truck. I opened my eyes and looked around. The sky was cool, but it was getting brighter. I could see smoke or morning fog rolling over me. The footfalls stopped. Mark’s ball and chain fell in front of my face with a thud. The chain clanked down over it, and the ball rolled toward me. The shackle hung open. The ball and chain was followed by two big cans of gasoline which they set on the other side of the flatbed. The truck door shut, the engine started, and we sped off. I shut my eyes, and tried to make it all go away. We drove up a hill away from the place, and my eyes were jostled open by a pothole. Now that I was alone, I could see through the steel mesh that made up the tailgate. I could just make out the dim figure of Mark being filed into position between 7 or 8 other convicts, and chained to them. For the first time in all my long years, I really felt alone.