Post by bennett on Apr 28, 2022 21:28:49 GMT -5
A young man of eighteen years moves through the intake process at Rikers Island. Skinny, hunched-over and bespectacled, he looks entirely out of place.
The other inmates pick up on it the moment they see him.
Easy prey.
They hoot and holler, shouting threats and innuendo at the new arrival as they make lewd or threatening gestures in his direction.
He keeps his eyes fixed on the ground, doing his best to ignore everything as his heart pounds in his chest; it’s all he can do to fight off a panic attack.
Finally, he is led into his cell. He's not forced to share it with anyone else... yet.
Sitting on the bottom bunk, he buries his face in both palms and does his best to control his breathing, legs shaking as he pours sweat.
And now: enter the narrator. And the protagonist. He’s pulling double duty.
Hey, y'all. The name’s Bobby Bennett, and you’re probably wonderin’ how I ended up in here. Well, I’ll tell ya. But first, we should go back a li’l bit.
---
A few months ago, Bobby is handcuffed and bent over the hood of a police cruiser while he's being patted down. A second officer is rummaging through his car, pulled over on the I-95. Whistling, the cop holds up a Glock 19, walking over to his partner and showing him the weapon as they both whisper to each other.
Yea, that definitely wasn’t a high point in my life, lemme tell ya. But I meant further back.
---
Sitting on the porch of the main residence at the Bennett compound is a ten year old Bobby. He’s reading an old copy of ‘The Once and Future King’ by T.H. White.
Already had to wear glasses at that age. Ain’t that a bitch? Never did fit in with my brothers, either; I was everythin’ they weren’t. Weak, skinny, and more interested in learnin’ than huntin’.
His pleasurable afternoon in the sun is soon ruined as he's kicked in the back without warning. Falling off the porch and landing in the grass, he groans in pain and looks back. His eldest brother Bo laughs down at him above.
Don’t think he liked me very much. I hear the oldest brother is meant to look out for the others, but it wasn’t like that with us Bennetts. Bo could sniff out weakness a mile away, and loved to take full advantage of it... guess he just got bored easy back then. Fuckin’ asshole.
Shaking his head in disgust at his younger brother, Bo turns to walk back into the house, disappearing through the door just before Bobby hears a familiar voice.
"Damn bro, ya gotta learn to stick up for yourself. Ya think I had it any easier? Shit, what the old man puts me through makes Bo’s petty bullshit look like a nice day on Miami Beach."
Reaching down to pull Bobby back to his feet, Billy reaches behind her brother to brush the dirt off the back of his shirt. She’s only a year and a half older than him, but already an apprentice in the family business.
Ever since I can remember, I wanted to be like my big sis. Nobody ever pushed her around, not that I can remember at any rate. And the people who tried always ended up regrettin’ it. I didn’t care ‘bout bein’ respected, bein’ feared would be enough for me.
Bobby winces as his sister punches his arm, with enough force to stagger him despite her tiny frame. Despite the pain, he smiles down at her as she narrows her eyes, peering into his face as if looking for something there.
"Thanks, Bill."
"Mmm. No worries, kid. Tell ya what, though; how ‘bout I show ya a few things? Just don't cry if ya get hurt."
Ain’t she the best?
---
Back in the first week of his six-year prison term, Bobby has been assigned a job as janitorial staff. He didn’t get along well with the other people on his work detail; apparently they didn’t find his poor attempts at humour particularly amusing.
He always had a penchant for bad jokes, particularly when he was nervous.
They didn’t go over so well in prison.
They didn’t go over so well in prison.
Pressed up against a shelving unit full of chemicals by two men, Bobby remains silent as they punch him in the stomach, chest and face. He’s already learned that showing weakness here only made things worse.
Ooof. I’ll admit, the first week was an adjustment period. Definitely wasn't easy to make friends in there! But suddenly, I remembered something my sis taught me.
---
A twelve year old Billy stalks her brother around the family dining room during a training session. She’d been working on toughening him up for a few months, and it was slow going... but progress was being made.
Bobby shuffles away with every step his sister takes towards him; eventually, he backs up into a chair, almost falling flat on his ass. He’s able to steady himself, but Billy has already caught up to him, grabbing a full, sealed bottle of bourbon off the table and smashing it to pieces on her brother’s skull.
As he collapses backwards to the ground, blood running into his eyes from the cuts on his head, Billy stands above him and scoffs.
"Always know where ya are in a room, and what's 'round ya. That shit’ll save your fuckin’ life some day."
Good advice.
---
Bobby suddenly recalls the location of every cleaning solution and chemical on the shelves, reaching behind to unscrew a jar of lye and dump it into his palm. He his hand into one of his attacker’s eyes, as the caustic powder begins to burn into the man’s flesh to horrific screams.
The second attacker is disabled with remarkable quickness, as he moves on instinct learned during his sister’s lessons.
Then I thought, ‘damn, maybe I been preparin’ for this my whole life without knowin’ it.'
