Guilty = Absolute Zero
by
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It was a long corridor, with highly polished floors. A cold, harsh fate awaited him at the other end. Flanked by two military police guards and an officer, Major Craig Freemont approached a set of massive doors. "Try to relax," the administrator said. "Someone always has to be first. It's best to get it over with." Their footsteps echoed ominously as they continued along through the still, dank atmosphere, reminding him of dawn in Vietnam. Suddenly, he was overpowered by a wild desire to run. His eyes darted about, looking for a possible escape route. There were none. It was true then. Somehow, he had managed to ensnare him-self in this horrible reality. He would need to accept it now, and deal with it, in the only way that he could. "Wait here until you are summoned, sir," he heard another voice say. Looking up, he saw a handsome, boyish face, not unlike the face of his own youth, a face that still stared out of family photographs, and high school yearbooks with great confidence and joy. That had been his legacy, but now it was something else -- some dreaded, hideous fate that would soon be revealed. Of all the turbulent events he had ever experienced in his life, this one promised to be the most challenging. What made it so was the fact that he had brought it on himself. Down at the house he could see his mother walking toward the dinner bell, preparing to call them to supper. Her thin shoulders slumped forward, as if she were supporting the weight of the world.
Cache Valley, Utah 1940 At age fifteen, Craig was the eldest of five children. His sober nature was well disciplined and finely at-tuned to the needs of the family. Everything they had, and probably ever would have, came from the land. Admiring its broad expanse, he looked toward the Wellsville Mountains, silhouetted against the setting sun. This was the land his Mormon grandfather had personally selected in 1879. It was a fine piece of land, providing so abundantly that they had never known a single hungry day. Craig had already been working the land for seven years. Although he was proud of that, the thought of working it for a lifetime had never appealed to him. "That would be too much like being in prison!" he muttered under his breath, then shouldered his shovel and headed for the house. Craig and the others passed through the doors and into the courtroom, where he saw a blur of somber faces. According to the particular rules of a court martial, he knew he was guilty unless innocent, and so, there was no real hope. Actually, he had never been innocent, for to be truly innocent
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About the Book
Major Craig Freemont has been sentenced to death for his war crimes. He has also been offered a choice. His death, which cannot be avoided, can be accomplished in one of two ways. He can either be executed by lethal injection, or he can allow his body to be frozen as part of a Cryonics experiment which is being offered in order to effect some viable solution to the problem concerned with prison overcrowding. Death row inmates may choose to forego a lengthy term of imprisonment while they await an execution date, and Craig Freemont is the first to be offered this option. He is told that he will be revived at a later time and given a second opportunity to rejoin society. While his body is frozen, its cells will be re-educated in order to make his re-entry into the world more promising than his earlier sojourn on earth. The argument for Cryonics within the prison system is that freezing and storage eliminates the need for costly incarceration, that it will dramatically reduce incidents of violence within the system, and in cases where sentences are, in fact, overturned, society need not be plagued with the release of these hardened criminals who have been schooled by fellow inmates on matters related to committing even bigger and better crimes. Craig is divided in his feelings about this offer, and chooses to undergo a period of incarceration, thinking that life on any terms is still preferable, even as he toys with the idea that something may still happen to modify his sentence. By the time, it becomes clear that this will not happen, he has been subjected to the worst that prison life has to offer, and agrees to become part of the Cryonics experiment. During the time that he is incarcerated, and throughout the period that he undergoes psychological analysis in preparation for the freezing process, Craig Freemont must come to terms with his past, his present, and future. He senses that a dark secret hidden in his past is somehow connected with his war crimes, and that there is a need to uncover it. He is also determined to honestly confront his reasons for turning his back on a strict moral upbringing, a life based on strong spiritual values, and the love of a beautiful woman. Craig’s moment of truth provides the climax for this story, enabling the reader to draw his own conclusions on the matter of Craig’s choices in life, and quite possibly, his own.
About the Author
Bob Fernoff is an educator, psychologist, and lecturer. He was in private practice for many years and has taught at several universities. He was director of a satellite for Arizona State University. His prison experiences are reflected in this book.