Chapter 2 - Camp 47

Camp 47 where Karl's attache was being held had no walls, no barb wire and with the exception of a lone guard tower was manned by a few armed guards.  About three hundred inmates were held there and kept under the supervision of a handful of overseers who largely relied on a group of elected inmates who managed and kept everyone in line.  If someone wanted, they could simply walk away from Camp 47.

We were met by the Camp chief at the long driveway heading in the central L shaped concrete structure that housed the main administration offices, laundry, mess hall and other necessary elements of a prison.  He gave us a brief tour and directed me to a small room with windows open to the main prison yard.  A few dozen inmates were walking about on the yard and the Camp chief had one of his assistants find Karl's attache who was among those outside.

We saw a tall, lanky man look towards our direction and he walked towards the room and was seated across from the Camp chief, the Colonel and myself.  He introduced himself as John and he had worked for Karl for only a few months before the uprisings.  He confirmed he had been shot while trying to escape and that they were all imprisoned together.  As he had barely been with the Artesian movement, the judge gave him a lighter sentence of 10 years.  He has since served them and until recently was serving the final three months at Camp 47.

There was no bitterness or nervousness in his voice and he was calm and open.  He mentioned initially in the first year there was some roughness among the prison guards and he had been punched and kicked a few times, but in hindsight these were minor grievances.  All things considered, he looked forward to being released and closing that chapter in his life.  He genuinely felt regret and remorse for having wasted time being involved with the Artesians.

The Camp chief then left the room and we were alone for the rest of the day with John.  John then asked who I was and why my interest in his old boss.  He didn't feel comfortable in my asking about Karl and remembers the night he was shot.  They were in the same bunkrow and when they were to retire for the night, he bolted and tried to make it out to the prison yard.  The guards shouted and warned him several times and fired a few shots in the air before they finally killed him.

They gave him ample warning and it wasn't clear why he chose to run that evening.  The whole prison was locked down and over the course of several months a steady stream of officials including Gustafson paid a visit and there were countless investigations.  It was a tense period and there were still a few dozen Artesians that he remembered along with Michael and himself.  But within three years, only Michael and himself remained and the others died out from hard labor.  Nobody else was shot.

In fact, besides Karl only one other Artesian had been shot and it was one of the ringleaders of the rebellion, but that was during the more turbulent days shortly after their arrival to the prison.  Karl was visibly upset by the death of his friend and protested for weeks that culminated in a hunger strike.  He shared the same details with Gustafson who also opened an investigation to that shooting, but found nothing.

Gustafson was quite thorough and he was very upset with Karl's death.  While he never visited the prison until after his death, he ensured he was treated better than others and he made sure that all the Artesians were treated fairly, even though most knew they would never leave the prisons alive.

The Camp chief returned after an hour had passed and asked if we needed more time.  We ended the meeting and returned to our car.  The Camp chief handed me a letter to give to Gustafson and we thanked him for his generosity.  He shared further that John would be released in two weeks and would be at the Perkin's re-education institute, the same one where Michael was attending.  Gustafson fully anticipated we would seek them out later and decided to give this information after I had met with John.

I asked if there was anything more and the Camp chief said nothing that he could recall.  He knew of Gustafson and of his reputation, but he actually knew very little of the Artesians other than their rebellion.  He considered John nothing more than a petty criminal, but who had paid his debts to society.

The Colonel was now very intrigued and thought this a murder mystery worth solving.  Evidence, facts and even access to witnesses are now being given so freely, but why three years after Karl's death?  What was the significance or sudden about face?  The Colonel had one of the Captain's hand deliver the letter to Gustafson that day.