Ch. 8 iMove to the Death Cell/Freddie's Coma
Freddie had crouched next to the window of the house he'd seen the ski masked girl enter. She had taken off the mask with her back to the window, so all Freddie saw was red hair. Oh, shit, he thought. "I gotta tell Car-" He was cut off by a second individual striking him in the back of the head with a baseball bat. He was hit three times before the person entered the house. "Did you know you were followed?" he questioned the girl as he took his mask off. "How? I was careful," the girl replied. "Not careful enough," the male spat. "So who was it?" she asked.
"It was Freddie Benson. I hit him three times with a baseball bat." The girl smiled. "We should dump his body in the park. That'll fix him." The male smiled. "We'll wait till it gets dark." Two hours later, the sun went down, and the two put their masks on and carried Freddie's limp body to the park. They dumped him next to some trees and left. Meanwhile, Carly was really worried now. When she had called Freddie, asking him to come over, he said that he was on his way as soon as he finished an errand for his mom. That was eight hours ago. She hesitated, but took her cell and dialed Jocelyn's number.
"Hello," the girl on the other end answered. "Joceyln, it's Carly. Freddie's been missing I think he might-" Jocelyn had to calm her down. "Calm down, I'm on my way to your house now." Carly breathed a sigh of relief. She was right to put her trust in this girl. Ten minutes later, Spencer answered the door to a girl who was as tall as him. "Can I help you?" he asked slowly. "I'm here to see Carly," she said. As Spencer was about to invite her in, Carly bolted down the stairs. "I'm really worried," she said. Jocelyn grabbed her shoulder. "Don't worry, we'll find him together." Spencer was interested now. "Find whom?" he asked with a smile.
Carly turned to her brother and in a frightened tone said, "Freddie's missing!" Spencer immediatly appreciated the situation. "Ok, You girls start with the Groovie Smoothie. I'm going to tell-" He was cut off by Freddie's mother bursting into the apartment. "Has anybody seen Freddie?" she asked. "I sent him to Jax to pick up some stuff, but he hasn't got back and it's been eight hours." Spencer grabbed his car keys. "We'll check the school first," he said. Mrs. Benson nodded. Freddie had been withdrawn ever since Sam had been convicted. "We'll start checking stores," Carly said.
Carly and Jocelyn took off, but they didn't find Freddie for another hour. All the stores they checked came up nil, so Jocelyn had suggested checking the giant park four blocks from Bushwell. It took a while, but Jocelyn was the first one to find him. "Carly, over here!" she yelled. Carly came running. Freddie's limp body was on the ground before them. He was bleeding from the back of his head. "Oh my god, Freddie," Carly said when she saw him. She checked for a pulse, which he had. It was barely there, but he had it. "We got to get him to a hospital," Jocelyn said.
The call was made, and ten minutes later Freddie was strechered into an ambulance. Carly went with him after calling to notify Spencer. Jocelyn was going to meet her at the hospital with Spencer and Mrs. Benson, who were on route to pick her up. They arrived at Grace Hospital twenty minutes later to see Carly pacing in the waiting room. "They won't tell me anything," she said worriedly. Spencer hugged her close. Jocelyn remained silent. "Look, they probably don't know anything yet," Spencer said. "They just barely got him in. They need some time."
The nightmare came again. It was time for Sam's execution, and as promised Guard Sarah Greene showed up at her cell to be one of her escorts. The guards shackled her hand and foot, and as a final humiliation to the condemned, Greene placed a dog collar around Sam's neck that had a tag. It read "Puckett, Samantha Joy, Executed 2012." They led her to the death chamber, and just as she was forced on the gurney, she awoke in her bed, sweat pouring down her face. Every time she had this dream, hope faded that she would be free. It was more than a nightmare in that in a little over a year from now, it could actually happen. And there would be no waking up from it. Although Guard Greene had been told to be nicer, she still made cutting remarks when the warden was not around. Just earlier today she had asked Sam what it felt like knowing she was going to be put down like a dog.
Normally, Sam would have a whitty comeback to put her agressor in her place, but lately, she didn't have it in her. The longer she stayed in prison, the more she became broken inside. She had no idea how to escape this horrible fate life had thrown at her. Spencer had told her that he was trying to appeal, but the judge hadn't got back to him yet. She was told there was a ninety-five percent chance that they would be turned down. Whoever had set Sam up had done a damn good job. The evidence seemed overwhelming.
A doctor approached the waiting room where Carly, Spencer, Mrs. Benson and Jocelyn had all been waiting. They tried to remain optimistic, but the wait for answers was getting to Carly. She tried to maintain her composure as she saw the doctor approach. "Mrs. Benson and friends, my name is Dr. Adams. I have good news and bad news about Freddie." Carly began to smile as the doctor continued. "The good news is that he's alive. If you had been a half hour later it would be too late. We managed to steady his vitals, even though he's still in critical condition." The doctor hesitated. There was no easy way to say this. "What's the bad news, doctor?" Spencer pressed.
"The bad news is that Freddie's in a coma. Whatever did this, hit hard enough for his brain to slowly shut everything down. We have him on life support, but there's a seventy-five percent chance he'll never wake up. And if he does, there's a ninety percent chance that he'll suffer irreperable brain damage as a result." The doctor let this sink in for a moment. Carly was fighting tears. Something bad had happened to each of her closest friends. Freddie never hurt any one. He should be hanging with Carly and the rest of his friends, not lying in a hospital bed hooked to various machines that sustained his life.
"If he doesn't come out within four months, it is my opinion that given the severity of his injuries, he may not come out at all. I will leave it up to you at that time to take him off life support." The doctor left the group to ponder this. "Freddie's a fighter," Mrs. Benson said. "He'll pull through." Carly tried to keep from breaking. "I hope so. I can't lose another friend." She left the room angrily. She had to tell Sam about this, but it wasn't the second or fourth Saturday of the month, so she took a chance. She got on the phone and called the prison on her phone.
Sam was just getting up the following morning when a guard informed her she had a visitor. She entered the room to see Carly trying to hold back tears while Jocelyn stood quietly. "What happened?" she demanded. Carly began to studder. "Fred... Freddie's in a coma," she answered following several attempts at coherent speach. "How?" Sam asked. "We found him in the park. My guess is he probably found whoever framed you," Jocelyn answered. Sam absorbed the information. She didn't realize until then that she actually loved him. She wished she could be at his bedside when he came to.
April 7, 2012 (present day)
She had seen the letter mailed. Today was a day that she had dreaded for two years now. Guard Greene showed up at her cell with three other guards. "Today's the day, Puckett." Indeed it was. Her appeal had failed, and today was the day she moved to the death cell. The guards moved quickly and efficiently. They began the procession like a practiced unit. The chains around Sam's ankles rattled slightly with every step she took. She tried to maintain a brave face. It was customary on death row that the other prisoners beat their cell bars with cups as a sign of respect to the condemned. Sam was no exception. The banging gave her hope. Surprisingly, the first prisoner to start a fight with her, Leanne Jackson, was leading the noise.
She entered her final home and as the guards closed the cell, she took her surroundings in. The death cell was nothing short of solitary confinement. The state wouldn't want to be deprived of their pleasure by having a prisoner commit suicide before their execution date. One ray of hope was that Freddie did come out of his coma, but he was still in a hospital bed. The bat attack had damaged the areas of his brain that controlled motor function, and the doctors thought he would never recover. Sam was also informed that all visits before her execution date would happen in her cell. "Not long now, Puckett," Guard Greene said as soon as they were alone. With that, the guard left her and she broke down at the hopelessness of her situation.
Jocelyn had been checking the mall when she saw someone who looked just like Sam. The girl looked like she'd been crying. She felt a hand tap her on the shoulder. "Melanie Puckett?"