The Pamphlet

Robert is laying in his dank cell, the odor of old urine heavy in the air. As he tries to get comfortable, the bones of his ribs grind together again, bringing forth a low groan, and sharp intake of air. He finally finds a spot that hurts less than the others to rest against. The sounds of moaning and screaming, making a faint chorus coming through the thick walls.

The twenty five year old man, reaches into the waist band of his pants, and pulls out an old, wrinkled pamphlet. On it’s front cover is a large cross, and the fainted word” Church”. The other words long ago scratched away. He carefully opens the flimsy paper, and just like the cover, most of the typing has been redacted. Names and phone numbers long ago forgotten, and no longer readable. What is left are a few chorus lines, and a couple of verses. His eyes track through the lines, and finding the words that have comforted him for so long, he begins reading John 3:16 For God so loved the world, he gave His only begotten son, that whosoever shall believe on Him shall have everlasting life.. Robert smiles, his lips parched and cracked, the scabs crack open again, from the many beatings. He has only three teeth left, he looks through the lines again, and silently hums the words to “Amazing Grace”.

Hearing footsteps coming down the echoing hall, and the sound of someone being dragged, Robert quickly folds the pamphlet, and slides it between the brick behind him, the heavy iron door rattles, and opens, his brother is shoved into the room, his head bouncing off the concrete floor, and moans. The guard steps over the body, crunching 2 fingers under his boot, and hauls Robert up, his dislocated shoulder making a sickening poping sound, as he is pulled through the door, over the body of his brother Andrew.

The questioner is the same as always, and the questions are always the same. The beatings begin, first the legs, kicking the shins, then the wooden mallet to his already shattered knees. The sharp kick to his enlarged groin, blood spurting from his ruptured testicle. Next a wooden bat to his left side, then the right, as another rib is cracked. He falls unconscious from the brass knuckled thud to his chin.

Andrew crawls over to where his brother had been sitting, carefully pulling out the pamphlet, he too reads between the heavily scared and scratched lines, finding the scripture and chorus. He sits and prays for Robert, then for Larry, the guard that pulls the brothers to and from the questioning room. Lastly he prays for Thomas, the man asking the questions, always the same question.

Where is the church bulletin?



by GS Robison