B.C. Crow's Blog

Introducing, my second ever short film!(Also, check out my 1st short ever. It was a cheeky 1 minute movie for a FilmRiot competition.)Why Oh Why Didn't I Take The Blue Pill is a parody based on the first Matrix movie.Since this is the 20th anniversary of that movie's release, it's fitting that we celebrate with a little fun.For me, I loved the Matrix. It was new and fresh, in a dark-damp sort of way, and it had quite an impact on modern cinema, and is even influencing movies made today.Inspiration for this spoof stemmed from the first time I ever watched the Matrix. When Morpheus makes the Alice In Wonderland cracks, I thought, well, this is a no-brainer. Eventually someone is going to make a spoof where Neo actually ends up in Wonderland. Fast-forward twenty years, and I still hadn't seen anything like that out there. So as I was trying to find a movie to study and make my equivalent of a student film, this story was the most obvious winner.As you may or may not know, I am a self-taught film student. I've been writing books under the name B.C. Crow for a few years now, slowly gaining more experience in storytelling. My next two books, are currently being edited, and will hopefully be great successes. While I've been writing stories, I've also been reading textbooks and watching tutorials for a few years now, trying to learn the art of visual storytelling.But as I've studied and learned, I realized that it was time to take the plunge and make as great of a short film as I possibly could. After all, you can only take book-smarts so far. The goal on this movie was to see how close I could come to matching the cinematic style evoked by the original movie.I wanted to do this, so that I could learn from the experts who originally created the Matrix. At the same time, this was to be my first in-depth use of After Effects. I even dipped my toes into Blender for some of the 3D liquid mirror work.There was a lot to learn, so learn I did, mostly the hard way. I expected this project to last only a few months, but it ended up taking a full year to do everything I wanted to do. Granted, I had a cheap computer with only 8 gigs of ram and a pathetic graphics card, that took hours, even days to render 3 seconds worth of effects at a time. But much of the time I spent on this was learning how to do what I needed to do.After spending about 1-2 hours almost every evening for a full year, crashing my dinky computer countless times, and making my family think that I'd gone mad with obsession, I've come to really appreciate the work that goes into the modern visual effects that we see in Hollywood's biggest blockbusters. While there may not appear to be a ton of those in this short, I assure you that every frame has been touched, tweaked, or completely modified on my end.So while this spoof is far from a perfect example of cinematic wonder, it was a great tool to help me advance my film-making skills. With the things I've learned, which if there's any interest, I may share later, I think I could do a much better job next time.And there will be a next time. I'll leave the Matrix alone, but I'll study many other great movies, and see if I can't come up with another fun story to practice my skills on. I expect, given the extended duration of this production, and the fact that I want to push my limits every time, that I'll only be able to produce about one short film per year. Definitely not the way to become an internet superstar, but I'm not currently in this for the money. I'm in it for the education.However, if you did enjoy this, and since this did cost me a few thousand dollars to produce, please like and share this with your friends. Maybe I'll be able to eventually recover some of my expenses. But like I said, I'm not trying to make a buck off of this. Making shorts is my way of learning the trade.[image error]I also wanted to send a shout out to my friend Tyler Weston, who helped me as I filmed this. He truly is a professional in the real world, and I learned a lot by having him on set with me. For those of you interested, he does corporate videos and more for a living. You can learn more about him at TKWP.com. If there is anything good about this short, it was because of his help, and that of my cast. If there is anything lacking in quality, (which there is plenty) I own that fully. (Hey, I'm still learning)A special thanks to all of my cast and crew who worked so hard with me and put up with me as a rookie producer and director. You performed wonderfully, and I couldn't be more pleased with the results. I wish you the best in your careers.

Casting call for a short film in/near Lehi, Utah.Needed: 3 Actors, 1 Actress, 1 Hair & Makeup Specialist (Paid)***Filming: March 17th & 24th***[image error]Description:Matrix spoof- This will be a short creative satire of the first Matrix movie. It is only intended for YouTube release. It's essentially a *Paid* student film by a storytelling enthusiast. All crew/cast will receive a digital copy of the complete video, and mention in the credits.Why Oh Why Didn't I Take The Blue Pill?Casting:1 Male actor- To impersonate Morpheous. Preferably short (under 5'2" tall), black, hispanic, or other race/ethnicity of color. Age range: aprox 35-65, willing to be bald or wear a skin cap (bald would be better). This role will be dialog intensive.Paid: $385 cash for 2- 12 hr days of shooting. Non-Union. Please email a current picture, height, best phone number, best time to call you, and link to previous work (if any) to www.BCCrow@outlook.com***************1 Male actor- To impersonate Neo. Preferably tall (5'11" or taller), white with dark hair. Age range: aprox 30-45.Paid: $385 cash for 2- 12 hr days of shooting. Non-Union. Please email a current picture, height, best phone number, best time to call you, and link to previous work (if any) to www.BCCrow@outlook.com***************1 Female actress- To impersonate Trinity. Preferably average to tall (aprox shirt size = small), white with dark short hair. Age range: aprox 30-45.Paid: $240 cash for 1- 12 hr day of shooting + 1- 4 hr day of shooting. Please email a current picture, height, best phone number, best time to call you, and link to previous work (if any) to www.BCCrow@outlook.com***************1 Male actor- To impersonate Apoch. Any race/color/ethnicity, any size, preferably darker longer hair. Age range: aprox 30-50Paid: $144 cash for 1- 12 hr day of shooting. Please email a current picture, best phone number, best time to call you, and link to previous work (if any) to www.BCCrow@outlook.com***************Hair & Makeup Artist: Will be working with latex prosthetics (provided by us), and cosplay style makeup. Also must be able to help with normal male makeup for HD video.Paid: $300 cash for 2- 12 hr days, plus kit. Please send email with best phone number to contact you, best time to call you, and any pictures/links to work you've done.Details:This is a remake of the "Red pill blue pill" and "Awakening" scene of the 1st Matrix movie. In this version, we'll combine a few effects and fun, but the biggest difference will be at the end, when Neo wakes up into the real world. Instead of being in a battery chamber, he's in a tea cup, and the real world is really something out of Alice In Wonderland.Morpheous becomes the Cheshire cat, Trinity becomes the white rabbit, Apoch becomes the Madd Hatter, and Neo becomes Alice. This means that there will be a day of intense makeup.We will try to have this all wrapped up in 2 days of shooting. If it goes over, schedules will be coordinated and pay adjusted at the rate of $12/hr + time an a half for overtime.This is a low budget short produced by storyteller BC Crow.As a writer, BC Crow is striving to expand his skill at storytelling from the written word to the visual. This short film is the first in a long series of shorts meant to imitate over 30 movies throughout the last century. BC Crow will be working toward mimicking style, craft, effects, and other key aspects that helped define many great movies in an attempt to develop his skill at cinematic storytelling. So while he is not an official student of film, this is essentially a student film, but on his own terms.Participation in this short film does not guarantee future roles in any projects produced by BC Crow.

Just in time for Christmas, and sorry it's a little late, but Swing Low, The Hangman Of The Woods is finally getting released.The official release date is today December 8th. You should officially start seeing it available in both print and ebook, wherever good books are sold.Also, for a limited time, if you sign up for my newsletter, you will receive a FREE ebook version of this novel. This promo will end on February 28, 2018, so don't delay.Also available, if you haven't had a chance to read The Nephilim Device, it is available for free on my Promo page. I'm just giving away books!!!

For a One minute short film, this horror/comedy (if that's what you can call it) has been one of my favorite distractions for the last month or two.Yes, the title is almost as long as the movie itself, but long titles are all the rage these days.Anyhow, I've never really made a real short film before, but Film Riot put together a one minute movie challenge that offered some amateur film-making gear as the prizes. Since my gear is even less than amateur, I decided to give this a try.I didn't win, but that doesn't matter. I still got to make a movie.I do plan on making more shorts in the future. Since I'd like to eventually make some features films, I need to learn the art. While I can read every book on film-making, the best way to learn anything is by doing.I hope you enjoy my very first movie. I wrote, directed, and basically did everything myself, with the exception of my actors/actresses (my parents), makeup (my sister), and music (which was provided by FilmSto).By the way, my mom definitely doesn't look that old in real life. We added a good 30 years or more to her face. Amazing what latex and makeup can do.Don't forget to check out my new release, Swing Low, The Hangman Of The Woods. It should be ready before the end of the year (2018)

Wow!What a busy fall.So for those of you, wondering what is happening and when things will be released, here's an update:I've recently gone through The Nephilim Effect and polished that up. Unfortunately, it will be another month or so before I can email all my followers the updated ebook version of that.Swing Low, The Hangman Of The Woods has finally finished it's final proofread as of yesterday. As promised, I will be sending a free ebook copy of that to all my followers also. The print version will be available for purchase around the same time. I'm swamped, but hope to have it ready by Christmas...One For The Money, Two For The Soul is still in editing. I estimate at least a year before it can be released. It'll be a fun book though. I can't wait to get busy with it again.Hard Boiled Cabbage from my new Gear Lock Series is about half-way through the rough draft. This will be a funny, semi gear punk, semi sleuth, epic fantasy. I get super excited every time I stand up to write this. (I say stand up, because I have a stand-up desk. They say it's healthy for you. Mostly it makes my legs tired.)I've been a little slower at editing some of my books, mainly because I got distracted by a side project. If you've been following me, you know that I want to be the best storyteller possible. Writing is just one form of storytelling.This year, I attended the Timpanogas Storytelling festival and conference. Awesome! I love oral storytelling.I also love visual storytelling. By that, I mean movies. I hope someday to make many of my stories into movies. This leads my to my fall distraction, of which I'll speak of more in a different post, but I decided to make a movie.Granted, the movie is a short film, my very first. Well, technically my second. When I was a cub scout, I tried making a movie called Snow Pink And The One Dwarf. It was really hard to tell a compelling story with a VHS camcorder, siblings who were as young or younger than me, and obviously me as a completely clueless kid. I hope it has found it's way to VHS heaven, never to be seen by mortal eyes again.Anyhow, this short film is titled: Never Talk To Pears When Walking Down Stairs. It takes about as much time to say the title as the movie is long. That is because this movie isn't just a short film, it's a one-minute film. I wrote it and am in post-production right now.A one minute film? That's been the cause of your distraction?Well, yes. By the time I'm done, I estimate that I'll have spent around 70-80 hours working on this one minute short. That doesn't include the 12 hour shoot that my 4 actors and helpers donated to make this possible.I'm sure that someone more experienced would have been able to do it all quicker, but I'm new to every part of filmmaking. It has been fun though, and I can honestly say that I've learned a ton. The only problem is, that as a full time non-story teller, my writing projects have suffered slightly. In another week though, I'll be back on my normal writing schedule.I will be posting that video here on my website as soon as the results from the one-minute film contest that I entered come in. Unfortunately, I can't publish it until after that happens.As always, thank you for following me, and thank you so much for reading my earliest works. I try very hard every day to improve my craft. I don't make any money with any of this (yet), but I love it, and I thank you for supporting me.

Hey everybody. Thanks for hanging around. I've just completed the first revision of my debut novel, The Nephilim Device. If you've downloaded it, but haven't had a chance to read it yet, re-download it for the latest version.You can do this forFREE on my Promo Page.I've corrected some errors and fixed a few problems. It might still be a little campy, but for a debut novel, its pretty good. I can honestly say though, that I feel like another author whose work I like, Joseph Lallo. He mentioned in his blog that as he fixes some errors, he tends to create others on accident.I hope I haven't, but no matter how much I go through a novel, i always find more things to improve on it. If you find some glaringly obvious errors in this latest version, by all means, send me an email with the page number. I want to provide the best quality book that I can.But for now, and for a limited time only, I'll be making this revised book available to anyone who visits. Mostly this is because if you're visiting me here, you've likely already bought the book and I don't want to make you buy it twice.I'm going to start revising the other two books in the series now. Follow my progress to find out when the revised editions of those will be available.Unlike the Nephilim Device, I will only make those next two revisions in the Nephilim Series available to my subscribers. Even that will only be for a limited time.Also, by way of updates:I've just turned in my first draft of "One For The Money, Two For The Soul" to bestselling author Dave Wolverton, aka David Farland. He'll be personally helping me with this first big edit, and giving me pointers.This excites me very much. He is an author whom I have a great respect for. He has helped several authors hone their skills and get noticed. Among his former students were authors like: Brandon Sanderson, Brandon Mull, Stephanie Meyer, to name a few.He is even credited for pushing Scholastic to publish the very first Harry Potter novel when nobody else wanted to.Other good things happening:I'm about two or three months away from going through "Swing Low- The Hangman Of The Woods" one last time before I publish it. If you've been reading the pre-release versioin of it on my blog, thank you for your interest. If you have any comments before my last and final edit, please feel free to comment on the blog or shoot me an email. Sometimes it's too easy to develope a blind spot when you've read the same manuscript a dozen different times.

I'm so excited and for more reasons than you might think. I've just finished the rough draft for my next book, "One For The Money, Two For The Soul".

Now let’s be clear, anytime I finish a book, I feel elated. But there is more to this than just another book completion. Yes, my skill has gotten better and yes, I do believe that this book will likely be a best seller, but I’m looking forward to more than just that.

If you follow me on Goodreads, you may notice that I enjoy reading books by all sorts of authors. One in particular has stood out to me. He’s the same author that imparted sage advice to other best-selling authors such as: Brandon Sanderson, Brandon Mull, Stephanie Meyer, and James Dashner.

He himself is also a best-selling author, and the same man who convinced Scholastic to first publish Harry Potter. His name is Dave Wolverton, aka David Farland. Maybe you’ve heard of him.

Well, he has agreed to edit and advise me on this latest book of mine. He’ll be dealing with a semi-polished version of my first draft. Needless to say, I look forward to learning from a master.

Also, by way of update, my other book, the one I’ve recently pre-released on my website, Swing Low: The Hangman Of The Woods, is coming along nicely. I’ve finished the proofreading, but decided to shelve it for a few months so that I could take one last look through it with a set of fresh eyes.

Swing Low should be available for purchase later this fall.

Also, now that I’ve put Swing Low down for a little while, I’ve been able to re-focus on my first series, The Nephilim Series. This is a three-book set that I should have paid closer attention to before I published. Frankly I went through it several times and tried to have it as polished up as I could. Unfortunately, I was overeager to publish it and like the naïve writer I was, I didn’t shelve it like I’m doing with Swing Low. Needless to say, there were a lot of errors to fix.

For those of you who have read and enjoyed those books, I thank you whole heatedly, despite my earlier weaknesses. My skills have improved by leaps and bounds since that time.

Luckily, I’ve now had time to re-visit the first book in that series. Within the next month or two, I’ll have the Second Edition of The Nephilim Device finished and ready for print. My goal is to have that entire series revisited and published this year.

Since many of my followers have already bought or read that book, I’ll make the Ebook version of it available to you to download for a short time on this website for free. Just my way of saying thank you for your patience and your willingness to keep following me as I grow into the best-seller I expect to be someday.

If you want to read my latest pre-release book, by all means,check it out. Swing Low is an interesting coming of age novel, set in rather unusual circumstances.

Epilogue

You've made it. This is the final installment of Swing Low. This free book will only be available for a limited time.

I've extended the time to read this online for free, but come September, I'll be deleting this for good. At which time, all current subscribers to my newsletter will receive a free Ebook version of this story, complete with any last minute revisions.

I sincerely hope that you've enjoyed reading this. As always, I greatly appreciate any comments, suggestions, or reviews you may have about this book.

Keep your eyes out for my next books. I'll be revising my Nephilim Series this year. Hopefully all three of those books will be in their second edition print in time for Christmas.

Thank you again.

If you're new to this, start atThe Beginning. And thanks for sharing my stories with all your friends.
Installment #31 of:Sing Low: The Hangman of the WoodsBy B.C. Crow (Epilogue“Why?” Duy moaned. “I was supposed to have been given another chance!”I pitied my roommate. I tried to tell him, but he never listened.I shook my head. I was still marveling at everything that had happened. It’s hard to believe the impossible. Most people would have said that my past two years were impossible. I’ve since learned that anything can happen. If the last few hours weren’t proof of that, then my last two years definitely were.When Duy and I first found ourselves back in this sleepy college town, we were really confused. I'd gone from being a round unattractive teenager to being a handsome thin man in my early twenties. Duy also looked unlike himself. He'd been fairly good looking before, but had changed into a stocky young man with a severe case of acne.These bodies were our own, though they looked nothing like our normal bodies. For the last two years, we'd spent our time living as these strangers. We debated whether or not to keep the same names that we'd known them by. They seemed fitting when we'd first met them, so we continued to call ourselves Thie’ng Won and Thie’ng Tu. What better names for two unnatural misfits?You could say we were part of a paradox. I don't pretend to know anything about such things, but I knew that in two years, I'd be meeting back up with Iddo and I'd give him my memories. He in turn would go back in time two years, inhabiting this body.Anyhow, we got an apartment with Iddo and Duy. I don’t suppose anyone could imagine how weird that was for us. I don’t know how many other people have experienced this for themselves, but I’m sure it can’t be many.So I enrolled in college. Luckily, proof of identification was easily overlooked in our small corner of the world. I suppose that’s one little blessing of living in a war-torn region that is still struggling to rebuild. I already had two years of prior medical schooling as Iddo, but no proof. I easily tested out of those earlier classes to begin my third year. I love how the schooling system here is organized. If you have the knowledge, you’re allowed the chance to test out of almost any class.Thie’ng Tu focused most of his time on befriending the earlier version of himself, but trying to reform Duy by changing his past was very unlikely. He couldn't see the futility of that effort. I tried to tell him. I’d always thought him a lot more rational before our unnatural transformation happened. Sure, he was still rebellious; I knew he could understand common sense, at least enough to consciously dismiss it, rather than ignore it for ignorance’s sake.As for me, I spent my time doing what I couldn’t before. Over the course of my two years, I worked my way into a job that gave me a degree of influence over the soon-to-be prisoners. There was nothing I could do to save the hangman of the woods, and really, I think he was okay with that. But I made sure to have a say in where the children of the woods were taken. He'd put a lot of trust in me to do that. I worked hard to research the best homes to care for and teach them. By the time I finished, I knew they'd be well off.Two years, living as Thie'ng Won, now I was back.I still felt a little wobbly, but that was fading fast. Daddy Smiling was gone and Duy was still moaning. I looked down at my hands. After two years it was like looking at someone else’s hands again. But they were mine. I was Iddo once again.Duy looked up at me. His face looked like snails had slimed their way up his blotchy skin, jabbing him in the eyes with their shells before crawling back down his cheeks. His bloodshot eyes were an even mix of anger and regret. “Why didn’t I get another chance?”“You did,” I responded carefully. I was always honest with him, even as his temper had grown worse over the last year.“But I wasn’t able to change anything.”“How could you? That Duy was already you. You’d already made those choices. You should have been working on the Duy that was Thie’ng Tu. Instead, you repeated all your old mistakes.”“You changed things for yourself, though,” he accused.“I didn’t interfere with the Iddo version of myself. I followed a different path. I didn’t want a second chance to change who I was. I wanted a second chance to change what I couldn't influence as Iddo.”“Yeah, but you’re still better off.”"Whatever you've done is in the past, your real second chance starts today. Every day you live, you have another chance to change."The clock attached to the courthouse gonged one o’clock. Had it really been an hour since the execution? I looked up. There were still some people milling about, but with all the wonder we’d just witnessed, nobody paid any attention to what had happened to me and Duy. The crowd parted a little, and I saw Midnight peek her head around the courthouse building.I’d told her to wait behind the courthouse for the clock to gong before coming around. I wasn’t sure what she'd think if she saw Thie’ng Won vanish into thin air.Getting her off the bus that was headed for China had been easy. I’d planned it all out in advance, making certain that her name was left completely off the transport roster for the other children of the woods. Nobody questioned me about it.When she saw me, not as Thie’ng Won but as Iddo, she straightened with surprise. I hadn’t told her what she’d see. I didn’t want her to rush out before I was ready for her. Now she broke into a run. I ran as fast as I could too.We held each other for a long time. Then with arms around each other, we left the square. As we walked away, I saw my reflection in a window. I was definitely Iddo again. Nothing had changed in my physical appearance. I was back to being as unattractive as ever, but I didn't see a fat unconfident boy anymore. I could see Thie'ng Won in me.In truth, Thie'ng Won was never anyone but me. He was full of confidence and self-worth. In my time as Thie'ng Won, I'd lost myself as I'd focused on helping others. In doing so, I'd unconsciously become the man I'd always wanted to be.I took in a deep satisfied breath, filling my chest to capacity. I felt tall and strong. Midnight looked at me and smiled. She'd seen this man in me before I'd ever known he could exist. She was as much a visionary angel as anyone could be in the flesh. I knew I'd have a lot to live up to if I was to remain worthy of her.Before I was too far away to view of the square, I paused once to look back at Duy. He was sitting on the ground with legs crossed and his back against the overturned wooden bench that had supported Daddy Smiling. Duy looked worn and faded like the weathered and chipping red paint of the picnic bench.A tuft of hair was balled into each of his fists as his arms sandwiched his head. He rocked back and forth. He'd been a Believer. He’d forsaken his knowledge. His group of Believers had been right all along, and he was now feeling the pangs of his conscience.I realized something then. When we eventually stand before our maker to be judged, we will have a perfect knowledge of our evils. God may stand in judgment of us, but we will be our own jury. I felt bad for Duy. He hadn’t been obliterated by the destroying angel that had passed by only minutes ago. But who’s to say that it wouldn’t return for him?Duy had even been given a second chance, and he’d foolishly repeated all his same mistakes. Still he lived. I don’t understand everything yet. I assume that the world will change. Still I get the feeling that part of life will go on.The Second Coming isn’t here yet. But today’s events were a witness that it was near. I had no idea how much of the world would hear or believe what happened in this sleepy little college town. Maybe events like this weren’t unique to us, but something deep down told me that the end was not quite here. Not yet, at least.Maybe the end would happen in my lifetime, maybe not. But it was coming. We and the rest of the world would be afforded a little more opportunity to grow, change, and become Believers ourselves. For me, becoming a Believing would come sooner for than others. Of that I would make sure.I hoped for Duy’s sake that he could still be spared. He did have a good heart. He’d fallen, but perhaps he still had time to change. I turned away. Whatever happened to him was up to him now. I hoped I’d see him again someday.I led Midnight home. Not to the apartment that I shared with Duy, Charles, and Jhon. I took her to a small cottage that I was able to rent as Thie’ng Won. I doubted we’d be able to get married today. Too much had happened. But in the next couple of days, I would see that we did.***Two weeks later, I stepped down from the same courthouse that had condemned Daddy Smiling. It had taken that long for the courthouse to open back up. A different judge presided over our marriage. Only a few people attended. Five, to be exact. Two were court-appointed witnesses. The other three were only visible to myself and Midnight. They were my own two parents, with Daddy Smiling standing next to them.After the ceremony, the judge and two witnesses left for their lunch break.My mother came up to me and gave me a warm hug. “I always believed in you.”Next my father shook my hand. “My boy, you’ve become a man. You’ve made a lot of good choices, and followed your own path. Thank you for not listening to this stubborn old miser.”“Dad,” I choked.“Iddo, I’m proud of you. You have my best blessings.”Last of all, I stuck out my hand to shake that of Daddy Smiling. I had to wait, of course, for Midnight to stop hugging him. He just bellowed out a laugh that filled the whole building. “You've done well. It makes me smile to see you two happy together. I’d stick around, but I’ve got work to do.”“We all do,” my father added.“We all love you,” my mother said. “Midnight, it was very nice to meet you. Take care of Iddo for me.”They faded away. I didn’t know what kind of work they had on the other side, but it wasn’t a sad parting. My heart felt light as I took Midnight in my arms and we walked toward the door.It was a busy day for the justice; many other people had decided to legitimize their partners. Some even had a kid my age, but had never officially married. Yes, the miracle of two weeks ago had a great influence on that. Many of the other people were just the normal backlog due to the two-week absence of a judge.As time went on, I knew many people would forget what had happened two weeks ago. Some would deny it. Others would find excuses. I couldn’t deny what had happened, though. No signs short of the actual return of the One could ever truly convince everyone. But I'd started believing before this sign. Maybe that had something to do with my being able to experience it all. Regardless of what lay ahead, I would live my life so that if I did see that great and final day, I’d be ready.As I escorted Midnight out of the courthouse, I saw Krystal. Her attention was on another recently married couple. Finishing her interview with them, she turned to face me. A wingless sparrow couldn’t have been more surprised if it had just found a cat standing right behind it.“Iddo! I was just writing an article on all these sudden marriages. I—what? Is this—”“Midnight,” I half replied, half introduced, “I’d like you to meet Krystal. We grew up together.”“You’re so pritty, yes you are,” Midnight cooed, as she reached up and fingered a strand of Krystal’s thick blond hair before running her palm across that Caucasian face. “Like sun, you’re so bright, like angel. Pritty angel.”Krystal blushed. Not something she was used to doing, I don’t think.“How are you, Krystal?” I inquired.“I’m good. It looks like you’re not doing too bad, either. Listen, Iddo, about what happened last time we met, I was wrong, please—”“Please, Krystal,” I interjected, “It’s all right.”She let a small smile show. “Listen, if you want, I can help you get your job back at the newspaper.”I laughed. Not rudely of course, just a friendly chuckle. “Don’t worry about me, Krystal. I appreciate all you’ve done for me. I know I haven’t always treated you the best, and I’m sorry for that. But I’m good now. I hope you are, too.”“You already have another job?”“Let’s just say that I tested out of a couple extra years of medical school, and qualified for a paid internship. I’ve also got a wonderful wife. The world isn’t perfect yet, but my little corner of it couldn’t be better.”We talked for a minute or two more, then Krystal raced off to weasel out an interview with the new judge who was finishing his lunch break.The old judge still stained the new judge's seat with a burn mark from when he'd disappeared. With any luck, the rumors of what happened would encourage this new judge to preside honorably in his court.The late-morning sun on any other day would have felt smotheringly hot. Today no blistering heat could have felt more soothing. Today was the beginning of something good. I looked at Midnight. She looked at me. We smiled. Then we kept on walking.The EndCopyright 2017: While I encourage you to share this link with your friends and family, please keep in mind that this is copyrighted material. Under no circumstances do you have the right to re-publish any or part of this content without specific written permission from BC Crow and Blue House Publishing.

Chapter 30If you're new to this, start atThe Beginning. And thanks for sharing my stories with all your friends.
Installment #31 of:Sing Low: The Hangman of the WoodsBy B.C. Crow (Chapter 30Not a cloud in sight. I squinted as my eyes adjusted to the morning light. I’d slept in, and by the time I left my apartment, the sun was blazing away with all its might. Funny how such a bright sunny morning could feel so gloomy.“Are you sure you want to go through with this?” Duy asked. “Maybe it’d be better if—”“I’m going.”“Okay, okay. Let me just grab a drink. I don’t think I want to be sober for this.” Duy jogged back into the house. I shouldn’t have been surprised that he kept alcohol in our apartment, but I was annoyed. The last thing I needed was a drunken sympathizer. But I doubted that I could talk him out of coming.By eleven o’clock the town square was packed. In the center there was an old massive tree with a canopy that covered much of the square. It was the same tree that I’d occasionally found shade under during my protest two days ago.This morning, with a throng of onlookers to rub shoulders with, we surrounded that tree. At its base, there now stood a mobile podium with a park bench at its side. As the sun moved higher and the shade grew smaller, all spectators were forced into the sun while this stage hogged the coveted shade. Above the bench, hanging from one of those thick outstretched branches, was a rope. The noose at the end of the rope made the once serene tree now appear ancient and evil, as if it were the very heart of the woods themselves.The crowd of people continued to grow denser as the hour crawled slowly toward noon. At first I thought they were a bunch of morbid townspeople, here to witness an old-fashioned execution. I wanted to yell at each one of them, tell them how wrong they were to allow this to happen. But that wasn’t necessary. Several of them took notice of me. Taking turns, they placed hands on my shoulder, or gave me a hug. These were the protesters who’d stood with me. I wanted to cry. Biahn’s article, scathing as it was for my reputation, hadn’t disheartened my supporters. At least not all of them.I had one last fleeting hope that I could use these people to my advantage, maybe storm the lynching and save Daddy Smiling when he was brought out. Maybe the execution could be postponed until an appeal to a just court could be arranged. But that was a wild fantasy. I knew it couldn’t work. A large clock on the courthouse donged in the noon hour. Riot police and riot gear were marched around the tree. They weren’t going to take any chances. The cops all knew me by now. More than once I saw them carefully studying me behind their face masks. They knew that if I found some opportunity to stop the execution, I might take advantage of it.Oh, if only I could have gone back in time! I wondered what, if anything I could have changed. Could I have saved Daddy Smiling, or had his fate been sealed from the beginning? Could I have acted faster? Maybe I could have done something more to help Midnight and the other children.All I could do now was what I knew would happen as I walked here this morning. I would pay my last respects to Daddy Smiling. He deserved so much better than this. I had no idea what he'd be thinking. And though I couldn’t hold his hand, or even speak to him, I would not let him die alone. Even if it killed a part of me to watch, I was here for him. Most of us in the crowd were.Aside from the gruesome picture of the hangman that was printed in the paper yesterday, few if any of these people had ever seen him. In his picture they twisted his enormous smile to look menacing and dangerous. I wondered how these people could support and love him on my word alone.My heart calmed as the minutes ticked slowly away. What was taking so long? Half an hour passed.I couldn’t claim to be eager for the ceremony. Postpone it forever!I knew that wouldn’t happen. I don’t know why I cared about the punctuality of the execution. Maybe I was ready to have the whole disgraceful event over with. Even that thought made me feel guilty.The clock now read twelve forty-five. I heard him before I saw him. That signature song of his, bellowed in a deep bass voice that resonated with everyone around me. “Swing low, sweet chariot . . .” Even when Daddy Smiling was marched to the tree, few shrank back at his appearance. Those who did were the few morbid fellows who’d come just to see a hanging. When Daddy Smiling finished all the verses of his song, he started back over again. Even in his last hour of life, that head-splitting smile refused to shrink.He was placed just behind the bench that he'd soon be standing on. The executioner fingered a megaphone, handed him by the chief of police, and surveyed the crowd. He looked surprised that anybody had shown up at all. I don’t think he had much of a speech planned. At least not one that was meant for a crowd this size. He looked over at Biahn, who gave him a discreet thumbs-up. Ooh—that man really was despicable.With finger on the megaphone trigger, the executioner cleared his throat for all to hear. It wasn’t like he didn’t already have their attention. But the crowd was still a bustle of mixed voices mingling into a distracting hum. Now they hushed as he spoke to the crowd. “On this bright sunny day, we—will you stop singing that ridiculous song!”Daddy Smiling didn’t even acknowledge the demand.“Someone help me out here,” said the executioner. One of the men who’d led Daddy Smiling out pulled a dirty handkerchief from his pocket. It wasn’t nearly big enough to fit around the man’s mouth. A second handkerchief was then tied to it, then a third. Together they tightened it around the giant smiling mouth. Even then it was useless. The man’s abnormally large mouth just dwarfed the pieces of cloth. The handkerchiefs rolled into a relatively small cord that rested between his teeth. He almost looked like he could use the cloth to floss those enormous pale-white ivories.The executioner gave up. The singing wasn’t even muffled. It bellowed just as loud as the executioner’s megaphone.“On this day,” he shouted, clearly annoyed, “we execute judgment on a convicted murderer.”Some cheers, but more overwhelming boos echoed across the square. Those who had started out cheering shied back. Either they were surprised that the majority opposed the hanging, or they were afraid of causing a fight that might end badly for themselves. Either way, all voices now criticized the speaker.He might've been able to ignore the crowd, but he clearly couldn't ignore Daddy Smiling’s singing. He continued. “Known to us all as the hangman of the woods, this ruthless serial killer”—he pointed with rigid disdain—“was tried and judged in a court of law. He has not only been found guilty, but has been condemned to die by the same implement he used to strangle his own victims. There will be no long ceremony. He doesn’t even deserve the sympathy that you all give him today.”More angry shouting arose from the crowd. I was silent.“It is time. Help the felon onto the bench.”A man on each side of Daddy Smiling prodded the singing giant. He stepped onto the wooden picnic table bench. One of the men backed down as the executioner stepped up. The bench swayed under the high center of gravity imposed by the three men standing on it. The executioner moved slowly, not wanting to ruin his dignity by having them all fall to the ground.Then, with some trepidation, he strained to place the noose around Daddy Smiling’s watermelon-sized head. The executioner was very careful and tried not to lean on, or even touch, what he considered a large monstrosity. As if Daddy Smiling had a contagious disease, the executioner seemed afraid of catching whatever handicap had so affected the appearance of this giant.Once the noose was secured, the executioner gave a nasty sneer as Daddy Smiling sang, “A band of angels coming after me / Coming for to carry me home . . .”Both the guard and the executioner carefully stepped down from the wobbly bench. Grabbing the megaphone, the executioner again tried to be heard over the deep reverberating bass that was Daddy Smiling. I’d heard Daddy Smiling sing this song every time I’d seen him. I wasn’t sure that his vocabulary extended very far beyond the lyrics of this song. Paying attention to the executioner was difficult. Daddy Smiling’s low melodic voice drummed peace into my heart. “Tell all my friends I’m coming there too / Coming for to carry me home . . .”“We’d ask this murderer if he had any last words,” the executioner shouted, “but I think we all know what he’d say! Ha ha! So without further delay, we finish this.”“Sometimes I’m up, and sometimes I’m down / Coming for to carry me h—”The executioner kicked the bench. It wobbled, but the steady weight of the hangman kept it in place. He kicked again and it wobbled some more. He motioned for the two closest guards to help him with the next kick. They came over.I wanted to turn my eyes, but they were helplessly glued to the man who’d saved me and so many other children. I willed the bench to find solid footing on the earth so that no force of man could tip the giant from his perch. If ever my newfound faith could help someone, this was the man who deserved that otherworldly power of protection. Little puffs of dust splashed at my toes as salty rain dropped from my dark cloudy eyes.“But still my soul feels heavenly bound / Coming in his chariot of gold!”With the force of the added kickers, the bench went crashing down, and we all shielded our eyes. Not from the sight of Daddy Smiling falling, to dangle like a fish on a pole, but from the brilliant light that threatened to blind anyone who looked on him. It was as if the noonday sun decided to come down from the sky and place itself directly around tree where Daddy Smiling was hanging.I couldn’t hear the words through my ears anymore, but in my mind, as clearly as if the sound was coming from my ears, I heard that low deep melody as it impossibly continued: “The brightest day that I can say / Coming for to carry me home / When Jesus washed my sins away / Coming for to carry me home!”When the song finished, the piercing light diminished. For a few moments, despite the cloudless day, with the sun shining bright as ever, early afternoon never seemed more dim.When the shock of the blinding light had passed, I looked at the tree. It seemed greener than before. But one thing was missing from its branches—Daddy Smiling. The rope was still there, too tight to have slipped over his head, but the hangman of the woods was nowhere to be seen. For that matter, neither was the executioner. A dark burn spot occupied the place where he’d been standing. I looked over to where Biahn had been standing. Again, another scorch mark, but no Biahn. There were several other people in the crowd who in fact were missing.A realization dawned on me. I don’t know if I’d heard talk of it from Duy, or someone else. But the whole world would be changing soon. I don’t know how I knew, but I did. I hadn’t been raised a Believer—but at this moment, I was a knower. I knew that He was coming back.Whether the end of days had just started, or if this was a sign of things to come, a destroying angel had just visited here. That time was near. For some it would be a time of rejoicing. For others it would be a time of weeping, wailing, and gnashing of teeth.A bottle crashed to the ground next to me. Shards of glass skated across the ground. I’d nearly forgotten about Duy. He was trembling. “Iddo, what have I done? I’ve sinned against the greater light.”A skull buzzing hum filled the courtyard as the crowd softly murmured their confusion to each other. Even if I had a better idea of what was happening, I chose to ignore them. “What are you talking about, Duy?”“You don’t know what it means to be a Believer. I knew this day would come. I just didn’t know when. I thought I still had time. Everyone I know thought it would come years ago, but it never did. It was almost like it might never really happen. Don’t you get it? I’ve been living the life of a sinner. I always meant to turn my life around. I just, I didn’t—oh Iddo, the last days are here, and look at the wretched life I’ve been leading!”“Duy, you’re still here. Others have been burned into nothing, but we're still standing.”“You don’t know anything. This day isn’t over yet. Anything could still happen, Iddo. The separation of the righteous from the wicked has begun. You don’t have much to worry about. First of all, you don’t know what I’ve learned. Second, even in your ignorance, you’re a better man than me.”“Duy, you’re not going to die. Stop talking like you are. You still have time to change.”“It’s not death I’m worried about,” Duy said. He sat on the ground, seeming nearly as defeated as I'd been during my own fit of despair just days ago. “I’m fit to be cut off. No glory, no salvation. I’m not worthy to stand before my maker. Not even to let him pass a well-deserved judgment against me.”My head stopped buzzing and a calm clarity filled my mind. I felt peace. I reached down. I wanted to touch his shoulder. I wanted to comfort him. Duy wasn't beyond hope. Somehow I knew this. There had to be a reason he was still alive. Then I paused. My palm was just a hand-width away from comforting Duy's shoulder, but something was different. Why had my head just stopped buzzing?Something with the physical world suddenly seemed wrong. Butterflies filled my stomach.I looked up. I saw a man on a bike, not more than two meters away. He was just passing by, but the crunch of his bike's nylon tires on the loose bits of gravel that lined the concrete courtyard should have made a sound. They didn't. The other people in the courtyard were still talking, but no voice found my ears. I was pretty sure I hadn't all of a sudden gone deaf. I could still hear my own breathing.I looked down. Odd. The sun was directly overhead, but the biker's shadow was pointing away from me. I turned my head to look at the rest of the crowd. I noticed them, but none of them seemed to notice me. Like the biker, their shadows all seemed to flow unnaturally away from me, also.Duy was the only other person who noticed. He turned to face me, his eyes nearly bulging when they rested on me.No, not on me.***Before I could turn to follow his gaze, I heard a familiar voice. I finished turning around, only to look up and see the biggest, tallest man I’d ever known. I say that I knew him and I did, despite the fact that nothing of his image was as I'd remembered him. Even then, there was something about him that let me know exactly who he was.If there had been any doubt, which there wasn't, that voice was confirmation enough. Nothing had changed in that deep, penetrating voice—nothing that is, except for his broader vernacular.His skin was darker than mine, but it also seemed lighter at the same time. There was a warm glow about him that made his brown features feel comforting and bright. I’d never seen a perfect human before, not until then. Gone was his deformed face. Understanding and knowledge seemed to fill his wise-accepting eyes.“Daddy Smiling?” I asked, choking on my own words.“Iddo, my boy, I know your heart. Would you like a second chance?”His words were soft in my ears, but somehow loud in my heart. My knees went weak. “I tried so hard,” I cried. “I couldn’t save you, or them. I’m so sorry.”“Ha ha ha!” he bellowed warmly. “My boy, don’t worry about me. Do I look like I need worrying over?”I couldn’t help but smile. Of course he didn’t.“Iddo, I’m going to help you.”“Me too!” Duy jumped next to me. “Help me, too. Give me a second chance. If you can do it for him, you can do it for me, too. Please, I’ve made such a mess of things. If anyone needs a second chance, I do.”Daddy Smiling, in all his brilliant glory, looked Duy up and down. His gaze seemed to penetrate Duy's soul.Daddy Smiling may have been an angel in life, but now he was indescribably more. His perfect smile faltered for only a moment, probably for the first time since the day he was born. But it returned again. “So be it," he said to Duy.With a wave of his giant arm, he summoned two people over. Thing One and Thing Two walked over from across the courtyard, penetrating the surreal atmosphere. My forehead wrinkled in confusion. I hadn't noticed them in the crowd before.Thing Two stepped forward first. “We have another shot,” he said to Duy. “We'll make it work this time. We have to!” He reached out and took Duy by the hand.It’s hard to explain what I saw next. It was as if a part of Duy swirled into Thing Two, and a part of Thing Two was absorbed into Duy. Then all was silent. Thing Two faded into thin air while Duy sank to the ground. He was weeping.I looked first to Thing One. He was shaking his head sadly. But his smile soon returned and he stuck out his hand to take mine. My breath caught. I angled my head to question Daddy Smiling. His warm expression never faltered. He simply nodded in approval.My blood felt like feathers tickling the inside of each vein. I took a deep breath and stuck out my hand to meet Thing One’s.A dizziness overwhelmed me. I had to fight to remain standing. The world around me swirled in bright colors. First I was looking at Thing One. Then I was looking at a hazy mirror image of myself.My vision of myself cleared for only a moment before it started getting fuzzy again. I turned my head—no, I turned Thing One’s head to see Daddy Smiling. I didn’t know what was happening. My voice couldn’t utter a sound. I mouthed the question, Why?He was the last image to fade, but before he was gone, I could hear him say, “You’re a good boy, Iddo. When last we met, you asked me a question. I approve. Take good care of my children.”Click here to read the EpilogueCopyright 2017: While I encourage you to share this link with your friends and family, please keep in mind that this is copyrighted material. Under no circumstances do you have the right to re-publish any or part of this content without specific written permission from BC Crow and Blue House Publishing.

Chapter 29If you're new to this, start atThe Beginning. And thanks for sharing my stories with all your friends.
Installment #30 of:Sing Low: The Hangman of the WoodsBy B.C. Crow (Chapter 29Morning came. I rolled out of bed. My back ached and I should’ve felt more depressed, but the fire of hope or determination hadn’t left me. Deep inside I knew that the trial had been rigged. I’d known that the verdict would be guilty, even before I’d staged my protest. Still I was crushed to actually hear it.The first thing I did after leaving the apartment was to pick up the day’s newspaper. My protest yesterday had made the front page. I wasn’t surprised to find Biahn’s name under the headline, “Protesters Rally Behind Liar.” I read on. The whole article was just the usual propaganda. It debunked me and anything I’d said. It painted the hangman as a terror who was finally caught and tried.If I didn’t know better, I could easily see myself being swayed by Biahn’s argument. Worst of all was the last paragraph. The judge decreed that the children be sent away to a foster agency in China, and that the hangman be executed in the same manner that he murdered so many others. He was scheduled to swing at noon tomorrow.“Barbarians,” I screamed beneath my breath.Those prison tents with all those children looked foreboding. Even from several blocks away, their faded tan canvas rippled like a stale nightmare. Careful not to raise any alarm, I approached the camp. The tents smelled worse today than I remembered. Nothing much had been done to improve the sanitation of those living spaces. In front of each tent were two armed guards. Two other guards were positioned at the rear corners of the tent, in case anybody felt inclined to dig or cut their way to freedom. I wondered if they’d heard the bad news yet.The guards around the boys’ tent seemed tougher and more vigilant. There must've been some escape attempts from there. Those guards were actually some of the guerilla fighters, more mean and vicious than the ordinary guards watching the girls’ tent.I couldn’t see Thing One anywhere near the girls’ tent, so I figured that he was off duty. That made me wonder where he might be, since he wasn’t at our apartment. I still couldn’t believe that he’d throw his lot in with these men. With little chance of a sneak meeting with Chirp-chirp, I meandered closer to the girls’ tent. I waited until one of the guards had his back to me, then I scurried with as much stealth as I could control.Leaning up against the tent, I searched for a hole or rip or anything. The tents were old, but in surprisingly good condition. At last I found a small burn hole. Maybe it was from some ash of a campfire or cigarette, I couldn’t tell. The hole was smaller than my pupil, but I pressed my eye to it, anyway. Inside I could just make out the profile of a little girl, maybe six years old. “Pssst.”She was alert. Her head swiveled around to find the source of the sound.“Over here,” I whispered as I tapped the canvas.She glanced from side to side before easing over to me.“Find Midnight,” I whispered. “Tell her it’s Iddo.”“Midnight? Iddo?”“Yes. Hurry.”She stood, didn’t move for a minute, then ran off. Great. She wasn’t going to be much help. I pressed my face up to the canvas to search through the pinprick again. Maybe someone older would wander by. It better be soon. I wasn’t sure how much longer I could go unnoticed by the guards.A figure passed by the hole. I couldn’t see who it was, but I knew that she was much taller than the six-year-old I’d just talked to.“Pssst.”The figure backed up past my hole again. “Iddo?”It was Midnight. The little girl had found her after all. “Midnight, it’s me. Are you okay?”“I’m scared, Iddo, yes I am. Children scared, too. You help? Please you help.”"I'm here, don't worry, it'll be okay," I tried to calm her.“Daddy Smiling—you see Daddy Smiling?”“No. They want to execute him, though.” I winced. Maybe that wasn't the best way to calm her.“Ex-y-coot?”“I'm sorry, they’re going to kill him.” I didn’t know how to break it any easier to her. I shouldn't have told her. “They want to kill him, then send you all far away.”“Why?” she whimpered.“They don’t like Daddy Smiling, and they want you all far away so you don’t tell anybody the truth. At least they don’t want anybody around here to know.”She went quiet, but I heard a sniffle. Then she spoke again, her voice trembling. “I want be with you. You help?”She sounded so sad. My heart ached just listening to her. “Yes, Midnight. I will help. I don’t know how yet, but I’ll find a way. I’ll be back here soon. Can you stay by this spot, so I’ll know where to find you?”“I wait for you, Iddo. You be Daddy Iddo with me soon. I wait for you.”“I love you, Midnight. I promise I’ll find a way to get you out of there.”“Hey!” one of the guards shouted.I looked up. The guard who had his back to me was now running toward me. I jumped up and sprinted away. For a fatty I found the strength to outrun the guard. Luckily he wasn’t in a chasing mood, or he might have caught up to me when my breath finally gave out. I was only a block away at that point, and I leaned against a tailor shop. I wheezed. The sewing machine in the windowless shop raced against my breath.I tried to calm myself and think about how long I’d been by that tent before getting noticed. It had to be under five minutes. The guards might be a little more vigilant now that they’d seen me. I wouldn’t have much time. Even if I did manage to stage a breakout, I doubted I could free anyone but Midnight.Midnight was my biggest priority, but I knew I’d still feel bad about leaving the others behind. I tried to think of alternatives but there weren’t many. Even if I could free all the others, there was no way I could get them all back to the woods safely. I almost felt guilty for wondering if they'd be better off in China.The Americans and Europeans wouldn’t likely be too interested in taking the children. So far, their interest seemed to stretch only as far as planting their language into our culture, or like Krystal’s father, taking advantage of certain local hospitalities. The Chinese were increasingly fractured, but were still the closest major country where it made any sense to send the orphans.I’m sure that enough families could be found locally to take them all in, but that would risk exposing the corruption for what it was.I wasn’t sure when the children would be sent away, but I knew they couldn’t stay much longer in the tents. Not only was sanitation a problem, but the city was too small to afford feeding and guarding them much longer. I had no time to wait.I didn’t have a plan as I hurried back to my apartment. All I knew was that I needed a knife.I returned less than an hour later. The same two guards were on watch. Luckily my encounter with them earlier hadn’t affected their level of vigilance. Perhaps they supposed me to be long gone. All the better for me.Still, I didn’t want to rush. From behind a row of dense shrubs surrounding a neighboring building, I watched for about fifteen minutes. Aside from the guards, who rarely checked around where I wanted to free Midnight, there was no other people around. I could do this.With one last look at the sharp reflective metal waiting in my hand, I stepped out from hiding. I crept closer, only to shimmy back as the guard decided to walk around the tent, right to where I was wanting to go. With lazy ease, the guard lit a cigarette and puffed away directly in front of me. Even if he casually turned around, he'd see me crouched down. I didn't have enough time to fully retreat and thus was in the open.I gripped the wooden handle tighter. With a quick lunge forward, I could bury my blade in the man’s back. It would be easy. But no. I couldn’t do that. Never could I do that. Instead, I stood frozen in place, not daring to move lest my slightest motion or noise draw his attention to me.I waited for him to finish his smoke. Once done he dropped it on the ground and stepped on it. Then, as if he’d just finished a bowel movement, he left his designated waste area to return to his former position.Keeping him in the corner of my eye, I sneaked over to the tent. The guard was stretching, not paying attention as I carefully slipped the knife into the canvas. I had to be careful. I didn’t want to accidentally stab my future bride.As the knife penetrated the canvas, it made a parting rip that I was sure could be heard clear up on campus, nearly two kilometers away. I paused long enough to look over. The guard was still unaware of my actions. I hoped that the cut couldn’t be seen from the cameras inside the tent. I proceeded to saw-cut a vertical slit up the fabric. My teeth ground together after each centimeter of canvas voiced its approval at being divided.So close to freeing the woman I loved, I couldn’t help but wonder again, how would I support her. With no job I’d have to either get a paid internship or find another job. Not only did the internship pay better than any job I’d likely find, but it would also be a good step at a real career. My only problem, I was still short two years of schooling to qualify for it.One more pass of the blade was all I’d need. I glided the knife out, finishing the cut. But the tearing threads of the canvas had other plans. I stared in horror as the cut turned into a rip. The tightly stretched tent, old as it was, made up its own mind to continue my new door higher and higher. The higher the rip climbed, the louder and faster it parted.Now my intrusion was receiving notice. The guard responsible for watching this portion of the tent was running and yelling at me. Another guard from the other corner of the tent stepped around to join him. All I had to do was stick my head in, grab Midnight, and run. So why did I just stand there, looking from one guard to the other, back to the climbing rip, then back to the guards again?After a sufficiently stupid amount of time, my body decided to respond to my will. I shouted, “Midnight!”Her face appeared in the opening. I reached for her, but she moved so slowly, like she was unsure of what to do. The whole world had slowed down. When at last I could grab her hand, I pulled her through the tent and started to run with her in tow. I lost my grip on her as the first guard slammed into me, flattening me on the ground.He was just about to get to his knees when the other guard caught up, bent down, and slammed a steely fist into my head. My world went black.When my vision returned, I could see that the tent had fallen down. The out-of-control rip had stretched all the way up and over the tent, eventually causing the tent to split in half. The two guards had left me unconscious on the ground. A plastic zip-tie held my hands together. Another zip-tie lay unfastened near my feet. The girls must have stampeded out of the collapsing tent. Why else would the guards have been too distracted or overwhelmed to finish tying me up?Luckily, I'd gained consciousness before they finished wrangling the horde of confused girls and placing them in the boys’ tent. No doubt they’d return to arrest me, or worse. Midnight was back under their guard. I’d lost my opportunity. Before the guards noticed me, I got up to leave. I'd taken only a few steps when one of them shouted "Stop!"I paused. My luck exactly. I'd come around just long enough to gain a degree of hope, only to be captured again."Hey, I said stop!" He shouted again.But I was stopped. Suddenly thoughts of brutal beatings entered my thoughts. He was going to over-react and give me a royal beating when he caught up to me. I slowly turned, raising my hands above my head.One of the guards from the boy's tent only spared me half a glance as he sprinted past and took the arm of one of the orphaned girls that I hadn't seen just ahead of me. My head must have been hit harder than I thought. I didn't recognize the girl, but her simple primitive woven clothing marked her as one of the girls from the tent.I took a quick look around, just in case I'd been mistaken and Midnight hadn't been taken. None of the girls that were still being gathered were her.Quietly, I slipped away before any guards could recognize me.Oh, my head hurt. The pain from the fist kept pounding at my temples. The pain of failing Midnight squeezed the rest of my head.I returned an hour later, my wrists were now ringed with purple bruises from the zip-tie that I’d removed. By this time, the commotion I caused had settled, not to mention the throbbing in my skull. My hopes sank when I beheld the new arrangement. All the children were in a single tent. The guards from the damaged girls’ tent had joined the guards for the combined tent now. In addition, they’d been strengthened by about four more guards, including Thing One.Anger boiled inside me upon seeing Thing One. It wasn’t fair of me. He was just doing his job. Besides, he truly believed that the children would be taken somewhere better. What irked me was that he wouldn’t help me free Midnight. Maybe he might, but there was no way of getting to him to talk about it. He was in the company of far too many other guards. If he’d at least come back to the apartment I could have talked to him about it, but given his recent behavior, that was unlikely.No matter how hard I thought, my mind refused to cooperate. There was no way I knew to free Midnight and the children. Maybe if I went for a walk, I could clear my head. I had to make a plan.Once out of sight of the guards, I couldn’t help but think, maybe Midnight would be better off without me. No, that was still muddled thinking. I had to free her. But there was still the problem of not qualifying for the paid internship for another two years. That didn’t matter. “Focus,” I scolded myself. “How do I free her?”After all, if worse came to worst, we could get by without an apartment. It’s not like she wasn’t used to living in the woods. For me it would be a longer commute to school, but cheaper. Dropping to my knees, I wanted to shout. I couldn’t concentrate for the life of me, or for her!Still with no clear idea of how to rescue her, I found myself back at the makeshift concentration camp. In the ten minutes I’d been walking, several buses had arrived and the children of the woods were being ushered onboard. There would be no camp left here tonight. I watched as Thing One, once my role model, ushered Midnight onto one of the overcrowded buses before following her in and shutting the door.I imagined myself chasing after the bus, but it would do no good. There was nothing I could do. I sank to my knees. I’d lost, again. This was the last time I’d ever see Midnight, Chirp-chirp, Grub, or any of the others.I sat on my knees long after everyone else was gone. There was only one thing left for me to do. It would be just as defeating, just as hard. Just as well; I knew I couldn’t avoid it.Click here to read Chapter 30Copyright 2017: While I encourage you to share this link with your friends and family, please keep in mind that this is copyrighted material. Under no circumstances do you have the right to re-publish any or part of this content without specific written permission from BC Crow and Blue House Publishing.