Running from the law, out of breath, and practically starving. This is the life of a young man known as Bradley Starnes. Bradley would soon know who I was and how I knew he was twenty-three and a convicted murderer heading for death row. I think that’s pretty funny since it’s named after me like I have done something special. It has been five days since he started running from the law and by now everybody knew his name.
He is one of the lucky few that escaped my grasps more than once. Let’s take a glimpse to the past to the first time he escaped me was the first time he ever came into this world. It was October thirteenth, 1989 when his mother decided to take the life threatening choice to make sure her baby would come into this world. Hillary Starnes wanted more than anything to have a child. She was told having her baby would either kill her or the baby and many people told her that she shouldn’t go through with having it. Since we already know he is alive we don’t have to go through any of the details.
So back to the scene where he escaped me once again, now don’t get me wrong I don’t usually let them get away more than once but my hands were full in this case. Usually when criminals try to escape they get shot by an officer, cut by broken glass, or even maimed by the dogs. This time there was no gun shots, no dogs attacking anyone, and no blood – well let me clarify, there was no blood from Bradley Starnes veins. In fact there was an excessive amount of blood, more than you would think coming from a bus full of convicted criminals all either murderers, gang members, and robbers also including one innocent man.
I’m sure by now you should have figured out that Bradley Starnes was an innocent man. He was indeed convicted of a crime he did not commit. How I came to know this you may be asking, well I will tell you that all in time. Right now let me tell you how he got away without a scratch, without a broken bone, without meeting me. He can feel my presents every time I’m around, ever since he escaped me the first time. That’s how he knew to brace himself. He knew I was coming. No. He knew I was already there.
I’m going to paint a picture for you before I go too far into it; I want you to see what I can see. There are about twenty people on the gray bus speeding down the road. The bus had a locked gate in the front of the sixteen criminals. They keep that gate locked to make sure the criminals don’t overpower the guards to keep the driver safe. But in this case they should have kept the gate unlocked. When the guards switched posts it would be the last time they ever switched again all because they forgot to hand over the keys to the guard going up front. While that was all happening the driver was meeting me for the first time. The poor fool forgot to take his heart medicine and his heart gave out. He has never seen anyone dead until today. Today he was seeing his own dead body at the seat of the wheel of a bus going down the road at about sixty-five miles an hour. No one knew he was dead except Bradley but he didn’t know who it was that was dead, just that I was there and I was about to take him. He figured out that it was the driver when the guard screamed for the others to get up to the front for the key. That’s when Bradley knew he had to brace himself; he had to get under the seat to pin himself so he don’t flop around and break his neck. He barely made it in time when the bus started rolling down the side of the hill they were on. His feet were pinned against the bars on the seat and his hands were pushing the bottom of the seat. While the bus was rolling down the hill all the windows where breaking and the people inside where getting hurt, all except Bradley which was unharmed under his seat, you would think he was protected by god himself.
When the bus finally stopped you could hear the moans of the men in pain. Thirteen of the prisoners and all three of the guards came with me that day. The other three prisoners were badly injured and died on a later date. I could tell you about their families and why they where there that day but I don’t think it will fit with this story so I’ll save that for another. You see I love telling stories and I have a million to tell but this one sticks out the most. It could be because of what he went through or the sacrifices he made for a young Jessica Striver, either way I am telling you this story and I hope you’ve liked it so far.
