Louisiana, 1935
In a small town during the Great Depression, we see a teenage girl riding her bicycle on a street. She had light skin, long blonde hair, and blue eyes; she also wore a white shirt under a red dress, brown shoes, and a yellow necklace. The girl's name was Bobbie-Jo Edgecomb, and she was on her way home from doing a few errands around town. Inside her bike's basket was a bag full of a few groceries; even though money was tight, Bobbie-Jo did whatever she could to help her family, especially since her father, Paul, wasn't feeling well recently. On this day, the sun was shining brightly, the birds were chirping, and Bobbie-Jo was in a cheerful mood. "I can't wait to tell Daddy and Mama about what happened today," she told herself with a smile. During that day, the young girl found some good bargains for some of the food her family needed at the market, and she was eager to see how proud her parents would be at her for being frugal.
When she came home, Bobbie-Jo took the grocery bag out of her bike basket before tying her bike to a tree with a strong rope. She then ran up to the front entry of her house with her bag in one hand. When she opened the door, she called out, "Mama, Daddy, I'm home!" There was no answer. Bobbie-Jo walked into the house and looked around before she set the bag on a nearby table. She then looked down and saw a note on the table, which read:
Bobbie-Jo, your father is having some trouble urinating today. He had to come home from work early, and so he and I are up in our bedroom – he's taking a little rest, and I'm giving him some water to help him a bit. Do not be concerned when you come home from the market.
Love, Mama
Bobbie-Jo immediately knew something was wrong, so she ran up the staircase as fast as she could. When she got to her parents' bedroom door, she saw that it was closed, so she knocked. Her mother, Jan, opened it up; Jan had dark blonde hair and blue eyes, and she was wearing a green and white polka dot dress made from recycled chicken feed sacks, stockings, and brown shoes. "Come on, honey," she told Bobbie-Jo. Bobbie-Jo slowly stepped into the room and saw her father, Paul, resting on a bed. He had dark hair and green eyes, and he was wearing a white dress shirt that was unbuttoned at the top, black-navy blue pants held up by suspenders, and black socks. "Your daughter wanted to see us," Jan said to Paul.
Paul saw Bobbie-Jo walk towards him and said with a weak smile, "Hi, sweetheart. Did you have a nice time in town today?"
"Yes," Bobbie-Jo said with a sad smile, "The stuff we needed was cheap today – so I bought some things we needed. What happened, Daddy?"
Paul sighed and explained, "It's pretty hard to explain. Today at work, I tried to 'drain myself,' but I had a hard time for some reason. Whenever I tried to do so, only a little bit of pee made it out. About an hour ago, I had the urge again, but I had a little accident before I reached the restroom. So I just told all the other men I work with to take care of the Mile while I went home to rest." Paul was a prison guard at Cold Mountain Penitentiary, the local prison, and he worked on the E Block, which was home to death row inmates. In those days, death row was called the "Last Mile," because the inmates walked the floors of that place before their execution by the electric chair. E Block was nicknamed the "Green Mile," because the floors shone green like a peridot in the sunlight.
Her father's mention of the Mile made Bobbie-Jo think of something. "Daddy," she asked, "What's it like working with dangerous people who've done evil things? Do you ever feel sorry for killing them in the end?"
Paul hesitated for a moment; no one, not even his daughter or adult son (who was away in college), ever asked him that question. "Well, Bobbie-Jo," he answered, "Not all those inmates appear to be evil. In fact, something happens to them when they're under my supervision, along with the other men I work with – Mr. Howell, Mr. Terwilliger, Mr. Stanton, Mr. Wetmore, and even Warden Hal Moores. The monster inside them, I suppose, just disappears and they almost become friends or even family. However, we still have to be hard on them, 'cause of the horrible things they did before coming to death row – raping, murdering, assaulting, you name it. As for when they're executed, you may feel a small pain in your heart for doing it, but you're putting them out of misery for the better."
"So that way people can learn their lessons about what'll happen if you do what the inmates did?" Bobbie-Jo asked, feeling sorry for what she asked her father.
"I suppose so," Paul replied. His expression changed to slight annoyance as he asked his daughter, "Bobbie-Jo, why did you ask me those questions?"
"Just outta curiosity," the girl replied, "In fact, sometimes I wish I could be a police officer someday."
Jan put her hand on Bobbie-Jo's shoulder and asked, "Honey, why do you want such a dangerous job? Especially in times like these when crime is growing?"
"Mama, I wanna make a difference," Bobbie-Jo said, "I am my father's daughter, aren't I? That's why I think it's important to keep Louisiana safe from evil."
Jan said with a stern voice, "Bobbie-Jo, you know that women just can't be cops. It's unladylike and, like I said, very dangerous."
"Besides," added Paul, "Even if you were allowed to become one of the first female police officers, you'd have to go through a long time of law school and police academy – you'd have to learn how to run through different obstacle courses, how to shoot a gun, and how to reason safely and wisely with other citizens!"
Bobbie-Jo turned away from her parents, and went out of the bedroom before closing the door. She then went to her own bedroom to think to herself for a little while. Why can't I be able to make a difference? she thought, Someday, I'll prove both of them wrong. I'll prove I can do big things, too!
