What if they were wrong?
Matthew moved his head over to see the Justice of the Peace. “I can’t think of anything else from that morning. Just the fact that we were out of carbons and I had to take the bus.”
Madison just nodded her head slowly. “Let’s just file that for now.”
Matthew interrupted before she could go any further. “Can I see my wife?” he said in frustration, then on the verge of tears, “my family?”
Madison just nodded her head, no. “Not just yet. I do not think that seeing any of them will aid in your criminal rehabilitation just yet.” She stopped and touched her Bluetooth extension. “Okay.” She said, and then looked at Matthew. Pressing a nurse call light next to his bed she said, ‘I have to cut our session short today.”
She picked up her case to leave. “We will start bright and early tomorrow.”
Matthew watched her leave; he closed his eyes in annoyance as the nurse came in. Before he could say anything she had injected something into his IV and the room went dark.
The next morning, Matthew groggily woke up. He noticed that he was still strapped down to his bed. He looked back up at the ceiling. “Guess I could count holes in the ceiling,” he thought chagrined. No sooner than he started, there came a knock at the door.
“Ready for our next session?” Madison Lefluer stated upon entering the room. Without waiting for a response she sat down, reached for her recorder and grabbed her laptop. She glanced at her notes for a moment and began, “Let’s see, we discussed the beginnings of your sedition yesterday.”
Matthew started to say something but was cut off by Madison. “Tell me what happened after you left for work that day.” She leaned forward,” Tell me about the Bus Stop.”
The heat of the June Texas sun beat down on Matthew. He wiped the sweat from his forehead as he stood waiting for the metro bus. Even in the relative shade of the canopy over the bus terminal, it was hot. He looked at the poster on the back wall. It showed a happy family walking to their destination; in big letters were the words, “We do our part!” Underneath was the Department of Health’s emblem. His face soured as he waited. He mentally thought about everything he had to do today. Having a car would be convenient right now, he thought.
He heard a voice next to him. “Hot day.”
He turned to see an elderly man standing there. The old man looked as if he were about to melt into the sidewalk. Sweat was, it seemed, pouring from the man. Matthew nodded, “it is.” He said, “A real scorcher.”
The old man looked at Matthew, extended his hand and said, “The name’s Rick.”
Matthew clasped his hand replying, “Matthew.”
With a sigh, the old man remarked, “It seems to be getting hotter every year.” He looked at the few cars on the road, he chuckled, “I thought the Climate Bureau promised us a cooler summer…”
Matthew did not reply for a moment, looked at the near-empty road, “it takes time to undo the environmental damage.” Rick simply snorted and muttered, “They’ve had twenty years.” I remember a time before the Climate Bureau. Before the DHS started running our lives.” He smiled in recollection.
Matthew looked at him. “We are better for it.” He defended, “ever since it was decided that crime is actually a mental affliction and began treatments.” Matthew added with more resolve, “And without the climate board, the planet would be a wasteland right now. They are saving the environment.”
He looked at the cloudless sky. “Ever wonder if they were wrong about the environment?”
Before Matthew could respond the bus arrived. They boarded the bus in silence. Matthew spent the whole trip lost in thought.
“What if they were wrong?”
Copyright 2014-2021 Kohl Media Solutions. All Rights Reserved.
This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, businesses, places, events, locales, and incidents are either the products of the author’s imagination or used in a fictitious manner. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, or actual events is purely coincidental.