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Across the wall from Ron's minimum security prison wing lay the standard cellblocks for violent criminals. The door of the old, deteriorating prison cell bore the prisoner's name: Andy Dufresne.
But the cell was empty, save for a poster of a once-popular 1990s actress tacked to the wall, smirking at someone unknown, a striking irony.
Behind the poster, a gaping hole had been dug through the fifteen-foot-thick concrete wall. Inside, a figure, with plastic bags wrapped around his feet, struggled to crawl out. It was the former prisoner: Andy Dufresne.
He knew that on the other side of this hole lay the path to freedom.
A thunderclap erupted outside, and a torrential downpour suddenly arrived, drowning out the sound of his crawling. Andy finally emerged from the hole, which opened onto a storm drain from another prison building, allowing him to crawl down, bit by bit.
But once he reached the surface, beyond the gap between the two prison buildings, there were no buildings blocking his view. Just a flat expanse of land, surrounded by high walls. The only exit was next to a 24-hour guardhouse.
There was no way he could escape from that spot. Fortunately, Andy had planned everything long before his escape, and hadn't considered leaving through the main gate. He climbed onto the storm drain connecting the two buildings, lifted a large rock, and, taking advantage of a flash of lightning and before the sound of thunder, hurled it down.
"Bang!" "Boom!" The two sounds echoed almost simultaneously, the sharp impact almost completely drowned out by the thunder.
With repeated, relentless hammering, the stone finally cracked the already weak, deteriorating storm drain, creating a small hole just big enough for one person to pass through.
But the stench of the prison's entire sewage system filled the air, catching Andy off guard and nearly making him pass out.
But after a moment's hesitation, his longing for freedom finally overcame his fear of the stench. Gritting his teeth, Andy double-checked that the plastic bag containing the clean clothes was sealed, carefully holding it close and crawling inside.
Through the unbearable sewer, Andy crawled five hundred yards toward freedom. The stench made him vomit several times, and he was forced to continue crawling through his own bile. Finally, he emerged from the sewer and jumped into the river of freedom.
Wading through the water with difficulty, he stripped off his stinking prison uniform and threw it in the water. He opened his arms to the rain and roared to the sky, letting out a cry of freedom that had been suppressed for over twenty years: "Ah..."
In the minimum security facility, Ron finally reached a deal with Mr. Channing and called the guards back. After a brief farewell, Ron declined the warden's invitation to dinner and drove back to Los Angeles alone, intending to hook up with Caroline or Max again.
The rain was still pouring down, faster than the wipers could clear the windshield. Ron had to slow down considerably compared to when he arrived. "Damn this weather! It was sunny when I got here. If I'd known it would be like this, I should have stayed home. I'll come back tomorrow. In this crappy weather, only idiots would be out!"
Ron had just finished complaining when he saw a man standing at the bus stop ahead, looking ecstatic like some lunatic.
"Oh my god, did I jinx myself today? Is this really some crazy person?" It was a remote area, with no town or gas station nearby. Ron honked the horn twice tentatively, and the euphoric man quickly stepped aside with a look of caution on his face.
Judging by his attire, he looked like a respectable middle-aged man. It was unclear why he was walking alone in this place. Despite his better judgment, Ron rolled down the car window. "Hey, man, why are you out here alone in the rain? Want a ride?"
"Of course, thank you, man." Andy, his expression composed, opened the passenger door and got in. He had already taken a good shower in the rain and changed into the stolen warden's clothes, which were also soaked by the rain.
"I'm heading back to Los Angeles. Where are you going?" Ron asked. Only then did he have a chance to take a good look at his hitchhiker.
As mentioned, he was middle-aged, with graying hair and a slightly weathered face. His suit was made of expensive material. Judging by the label, it looked like custom tailoring from Brooks Brothers. However, the cuffs were noticeably shorter than his arms, as if he were wearing someone else's clothes. This didn't make sense.
As far as Ron knew, that shop only did custom work and never sold off-the-rack clothing.
Andy's face also gave Ron an inexplicable sense of familiarity, as if he'd seen him somewhere before, yet not quite. This all piqued Ron's curiosity as an investigator.
"I just happened to be going your way. Thank you so much," Andy said quickly, feigning relief.
"Really? That's quite a coincidence. You don't look like someone who can't afford a car, so why are you out here alone in the rain?" Ron asked casually.
"Ah~" Andy sighed softly, quickly brainstorming a story. A new narrative quickly took shape in his mind.
"You know, there's a prison not far from here. My wife and I were supposed to be visiting my brother today, who's locked up for armed robbery and murder. But on the way back, we had a huge fight, and that bitch actually left me stranded on the road and drove off.
So, I had to try to walk back slowly in the rain. Lucky you came along, friend. What's your name?"
"Me? My name is Ron Lee Cooper, and I'm an IRS agent." Ron sniffed. "Hey, why do you smell like a sewer? Did that bitch cause that too?"
Andy shrugged calmly. "Yeah, she was driving, and I was caught off guard. I got pushed straight into a ditch, which seems to connect to the prison drainage system, so, you know."
Andy's answer remained seamless, but Ron's suspicions grew. He swore he'd seen this middle-aged man beside him before, and not in person.
It couldn't have been on TV, could it? Could he be some celebrity? Ron thought absently, but then a sudden realization struck him. He turned and took a long look at Andy, finally confirming that he had seen this man on TV!
It wasn't some celebrity news story, though. It was a movie from his past life, and a news story in this life: the murder trial of banker Andy Dufresne and his wife.
Shawshank Prison, a thunderstorm. A middle-aged man, reeking of sewers but dressed expensively. Ron slapped his forehead, thinking, "I should have realized this sooner! He's Andy from The Shawshank Redemption!"
Ron's intense stare frightened Andy, and he felt the urge to open the car door and bolt. In fact, the moment Ron mentioned his profession as a federal agent, he'd already had the urge to run, but he suppressed it.
This guy couldn't possibly be coming specifically for me, could he? The guard shift change was scheduled for seven the next morning. There was no way he'd been discovered so soon.
"Ron, right? My name is Andy, nice to meet you." Andy's heart seemed ready to jump out of his throat, but he still tried to appear normal. "If it's too much trouble, how about you drop me off at a motel in the next town? Maybe going home now to continue fighting with that witch isn't a good idea."
"I'm not married yet, so I don't know much about marriage, but my mom taught me that there's nothing between spouses that can't be solved through honest communication. Maybe you two need to have a good talk, right?
Where is your home? I can drive you straight there."
Ron smiled mischievously. Are you trying to play me? I'll see how long you can keep this up~ I don't believe you can actually give me a real address.
"No, no, I'd better spend the night out. My family situation is complicated, and it can't be explained in a few words." Andy was in his element, playing the role of a frustrated middle-aged man suffering from his wife's emotional abuse to perfection.
This made Ron sigh admiringly, "Honestly, the Academy really owes you one, you know? My buddy Tom Hanks's acting is nothing compared to yours."
"An Oscar?" Andy's heart skipped a beat. Did he mistake me for some celebrity? It sounded like his friend was also an actor, so Andy decided to play along and continue the charade, extracting a few more words from Ron to build his character.
"Since you've figured it out, I won't hide it from you. Yes, I am Andy. However, I haven't finalized the divorce yet, and I don't want any rumors to spread, so I hope you'll keep today's events confidential.
My acting skills still need work, and an Oscar might be premature, but that's truly my lifelong goal. Which movie of mine first caught your attention?"
Andy's performance was flawless, instantly transforming from frustrated middle-aged man to celebrity who didn't want his private life exposed. If Ron hadn't been driving, he would have applauded him.
Ron smiled knowingly. "Of course it's your movie, The Shawshank Redemption."
Hearing the name Shawshank, Andy's heart trembled violently, but Ron didn't intend to let him off the hook and continued.
"Do you remember that movie? It's about a banker whose wife cheated on him and was sentenced to life imprisonment for murdering her with a gun. Then, using his superb financial skills, he won the trust of everyone in the prison and finally found an opportunity to escape."
Author's Note: The tension builds as two master manipulators face off in an unexpected encounter.
(End of this chapter)
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