The Bones Of Burriburn

The Bones Of Burriburn

By Paul McCann

 

Part 1

Ron had been a priest for over 40 years and had been to just as many parishes in that time . On request by the Bishop Ron was given some time off to do as he pleased . So after giving it some thought he decided to go on an adventure holiday for a few months and packed a few things into his  suitcases , loaded them into his van and off he went on a discovery trip around the country . He decided not to use a map and for the first week he drove where ever the road took him . His journey was interrupted when his van suddenly came to a sudden stop . Ron managed to steer the van to a rest on the side of the road .

He got out and opened the bonnet .  He muttered a few words and tool a look at the sky wondering what he was going to do . Just by chance a tow truck passing by on the road pulled over . The driver got out and walked over towards Ron and enquired .

 

“ Can I help or is someone on already on the way ?”

 

Ron replied .

 

“ Glory be to God , it’s a miracle . I had no idea what on earth I was going to do and here you are . My name is Ron and the thing is … what did you say your name was

 

“Luke is my name Ron pleased to meet you .“

 

“Well the thing is Luke I seem to be having a little difficulty with my van . It just stopped all of a sudden .“

 

“Can I have a Luke Ron “ 

 

“By all means , take a look Luke .“

After a quick inspection Luke said ,

 

“Well Ron looks like the fan belt has snapped and your engine is overheated “

 

Ron took a deep breath and said .

“ Is that a major problem .“

 

“Well I think we better get it to a mechanic .  Do you have one I can take it to?

 

” Well he’s too far from here Luke . Can you recommend one ?”

 

“The nearest mechanic to here is in Burriburn about a half hour from here .‘

 

“ Well if you could do that , I’d be most grateful Luke and I’ll pay you for your trouble “

Luke hitched up Ron’s van on the tow truck and off they went to Burriburn .

After a while the tow truck pulled up at a motor mechanics workshop where  Luke explained the problem to the mechanic  .

The mechanic explained it might take a week before he could get it finished . Ron was ok with that and asked Luke if he knew of a good hotel in the town .  Luke took him to the Easy Rest Hotel , a small bed and breakfast  opposite the river .

 

Luke got out of the truck and opened the passenger door and said ,

 

‘This is a nice place , You’ll enjoy your stay here “

 

Luke helped carry the luggage inside to the reception and waited for a few moment . He rang the bell in the counter and a tall thin gentleman walked out from a room and said  .

 

“Hello Luke . How have you been ?”

 

“I’ve been good Joe . This is Ron he needs a room for a few days . Can you look after him ?”

 

“Of course , I’d be happy to help .“

 

‘I knew you would , Well Ron its been a pleasure . I’ll be on my way now .“  ..

Ron took out his wallet and asked Luke what he owed him for his trouble . Them after paying him he thanked him for his help . Luke shook Ron’s hand . and they both said goodbye .

 

It was getting late and Ron tried to forget the troubles he had with his van  .

The proprietor of the Easy Rest Motel carried Ron’s luggage to his room and opened up the door allowing Ron to step inside .  Ron sat down at the small desk near the Television . The manager seemed to overstay a while in the room , checking the cupboards and dusting here and there . He checked inside the fridge and run the water taps and flushed the toilet .  

 

“Well it’s a nice place you have here.”

Said Ron .

 

“Why thank you . I hope you’ll enjoy your stay .“

 

Ron smiled and reached out his hand and said ,

“Sorry I’m very rude , I never even asked your name. “

 

The manager smiled and shook Ron’s hand

“Joe is my name , I’m very pleased to meet you . Breakfast is at 7am is that ok ?”

 

Joe turned on a bedside lamp and checked that the TV was working .

Ron seemed intrigued that Joe was handing around for a while .

Then deep in thought  it dawned on him . Of course he’s waiting for a tip .

Immediately Ron put his hand into his pocket and took ten dollars from his wallet and handed it over to Joe and said “

 

“Here you are . Thanks for your help .“

 

Joe smiled and took the money and handed Ron a set of keys then said . .

 

“Thank you , These are the keys to your room and the front door . Let me know if there is anything you need . Welcome to Easy Rest and enjoy your stay . I’ll leave you with a word in your ear , don’t be a prisoner in your room , Make your escape and discover what awaits you out there . Good night sir .“

He turned and walked quickly to the door .

 

Ron called him just before he got to the door and asked .

 

“Tell me my good man , is there a restaurant in town you could recommend and would I need to order a taxi to get there .  I think I might go out for a while and get acquainted with this quaint little place .“

 

Immediately Joe responded .

 

“Well done sir :You know what there is this very popular place called The Three Swallows . Just  follow the pathway to the left out side that takes you alongside the river to old prison wall . Right opposite there is the courthouse and beside the courthouse is The Three Swallows . It’s a  yellow brick building with these brown shutters on the windows and above the front door is a sign  that says Established 1823 . I’ll make you a booking if you’d like for 7.30 would that be ok ?” 

 

“Thank you Joe , that would be perfect .“

 

Joe smiled and opened the door . Ron thanked him as he left .

Ron stood there in silence for a few moments and started to talk to himself as he had done for most of his life . It was as if there was someone there .

Well here I am again  . Into the unknown . The oblivion side of life where nobody ever goes and what awaits , Well only God knows I suppose and the thing is you see , that’s exactly why I’m here , isn’t that right . Of course its not the first time I’ve been here . Isn’t that true . I’ve been this way before , beyond the door .    Them he opened up one of his suitcase and hung up some of his clothes in the wardrobe . He looked out the window just before the sunset and sat there for a few moments in silence and he said a prayer thanking God for keeping him safe .

 

In the still of the twilight he reflected on life and where he was and where he would go from here . He had reached a crossroads and wondered about his role as a priest . He once thought he could change the world but now he thought what it was all about . He closed the curtains as twilight was almost gone . It was time to get moving so he had a shower and got changed into some clean clothes and made his way out the door in search of the three swallows .

 

Following the directions he was given Ron walked along the path until he came to the prison , Sure enough there it was a yellow brick building all lit up with spotlights . He walked inside and gave his name at the reception , A waitress took him to the table , There were two other people there eating ,

Ron sat down and thought , a popular place ?

A few more people arrived as he was eating his meal . Now and then he could hear someone far away screaming but nobody seemed to worry or show any concern .

Ron asked for the bill and paid for the meal he had then went out the door .

As he started to walk home again he could hear distant screams . They seemed to come from behind the prison walls . 

Ron walked back to the hotel and thought about how hard it would be to be locked up in prison and what a lonely life it must be . Many years ago Ron was a prison Chaplin and during that time he was able to help a lot of the inmates cope with prison life through music . He had set up a recording studio in the prison where prisoners could record some original music and songs , Some of the stuff they did wasn’t half bad , He even was able to get air play on the local radio station for a lot of the recordings . Ron decided he would pay a visit to some of the prisoners while he was in town .

When he got back to the hotel , Joe was sitting there at the reception desk , He smiled and said  ,

 

“Well I hear you found the restaurant , How was your meal  ?”

 

Ron nodded his head and stretched his arms and yawned then said . . 

 

“Yeah , it was very nice thanks , The seafood was excellent . “

 

“I hope you don’t mind sir .  but I rang the owner of the three swallows just  to check you got there . I didn’t want you getting lost on your first night in town ”:

 

“Thats very kind of you , thanks . Well I think I’ll go to bed now , its been a long day . Good night  Joe .“

 

“Good night sir .”

Ron made his way to his room and got ready for bed , He lay down and fell  sleep right away but during the night he woke up after having this a vision of him climbing a ladder up the walls of Burriburn prison and when he was at the top two shackled hands came and pulled him inside . That’s when he woke   opening up the in a dream frequently . His mind was troubled about the screaming in fright . He couldn’t sleep after that and It was a long night .

Morning took a long time in coming and he spent the time saying some prayers before going down for breakfast where he sat at a table beside the window . The dining room was half full . There was a young couple who sat  holding hands , a small family of four who were already finished ,  a well dressed man reading the morning newspaper ,  a teenage girl in a school uniform who was reading from some textbooks and three well dressed elderly ladies pouring tea into cups from a large silver teapot .  .

 

Joe brought a Ron a tray with a cooked breakfast and placed it in front of him and said

 

“Good morning sir . How are you today “

 

“I’m fine thanks , Could you tell me about how many prisoners there are in the prison  ?”

 

 

Joe responded ,

 

“Well there are no more inmates here in Burriburn as all the prisoners were moved to Goldman Prison many years ago , The prison here is closed now “

 

“That’s strange . I thought I heard some screaming there last night .“

 

Everyone stopped talking and it went quiet for a few moments .

One of the elderly ladies looked over and accidently dropped her teacup and tea spilt all over the floor , Joe went to clean up the spill and Ron looked away and stared out the window .

,

Everyone but Ron had almost finished breakfast Joe was clearing up the tables . Ron gave Joe  a wave and he came over .

 

 

 “Is there anyone you know who has a key to the prison , I used to work in the prison system and I’d love to have a look around the old place “

 

Ron smiled but Joe seemed troubled and very nervous . Then he abruptly replied .

 

“No there is no one has a key . The prison gates are shut now . You can’t get in . So you better just put that thought out of your mind , “

With that Joe walked away ,

 

Ron was intrigued now and eagre to investigate the old prison . So after breakfast he asked Joe where the library in town was .

 

Joe said .

 

“There is no library , It was burnt in years ago and all the records and books were destroyed ,“

 

Ron responded ,

 

“Tell me what about the local church is there minister here I could talk to ?“

Joe became agitated and reluctant to answer , After a moment he replied .

 

“I’m sorry sir you’ll have to excuse me .  I have a lot of work to get done , Have a good day .“.

 

Ron went for a walk around town and spoke to some shop keepers , Everywhere he went he had a similar response to his questions and he  sensed there was a problem here in Burriburn as if it had a dark past or a history people didn’t want to talk about and if there was one thing in life that got to him it was people who disclosed the truth or kept things hidden .

Now he realised his visit to Burriburn was not an accident .

He realised he had a mission to fulfil .

 

That night Ron went to bed and again woke up with another vision , This time he was chained to a post and being beaten with a stick .  He woke up in a   sweat and sat on the edge of his bed .

 

 

Ron spent all day making phone calls to people he knew in the corrective services system . He could tell that most of the officers he spoke to were withholding information about Burriburn prison and he was getting nowhere with his enquires . That’s when he crossed the line and made contact with some of the ex-prisoners he had helped and as it turned out many of them knew about the goings on at Burriburn prison ,

Ron was horrified to hear that there was a royal commission at Burriburn prison and everything was hushed up when the bodies of prison officers and the warden were found in the basement of the prison . All of the victims were  decapitated and in some of the cells prisoners were found hanging in their cells . The information was never released and the prison was closed with all the  other prisoners sent all over the country . The word that went around was that the ghost of Barney Jones was responsible for the murders in the basement . Barney had been sent to prison for life for the murders of four police officers . Many people said he was not guilty and that the evidence was manufactured . Barney was treated very badly in Burriburn and was often chained up and left in the basement where he was beaten by the guards . They say his screams were heard all through the night . Ron knew he was on to something and he began to pray for guidance .

 

A letter was left for Ron at the hotel , It was from the motor mechanic who stated that his van  was ready . When Ron went to the workshop there was no one around . So he went looking around to see if he could find anyone . He noticed there was a lot of things lying around outside the workshop , old engines , hoses , a bathtub , a large extendable ladder , bicycles and old washing machines .  It looked more like a scrap yard than a mechanics workshop . He went inside the workshop and called

 

“Hello “

There was no answer  .

He looked at the things on some of the old shelves , old photographs of the town and then he saw a book of poetry called Behind The Bars . It was an anthology of Poetry all the original work of the prisoners of Burriburn ,

Ron could hear someone coming so he quickly put the book into his pocket .

The motor mechanic approached Ron and said ,

 

“Sorry to keep you I was inside the house having a bite to eat . Didn’t know you were here . Hope you weren’t waiting long.”

 

“ That’s ok , so how much do I owe you for the van .“

 

Well it took me a few hours to do the job but a few days to get around to getting it started .All up it will cost . let me just have a look ..”

 

He went to a small desk and turned over the pages of an invoice book ,

 

Ron asked .

 

“So how long have you been in Burriburn then ?

 

The mechanic looked up and said

 

“ Oh here , well my father actually was the very first mechanic on town and he died nearly 20 years ago at 98 years of age . I guess its over a hundred we been here , Now did you want a receipt for this work I did ?‘

 

Ron replied ,

“No that’s ok , I don’t need a receipt .“

 

“Well then without a receipt it will cost you three hundred dollars .“

 Ron paid the bill and drove the van back to the hotel .

After he parked the van he asked Joe about extending his stay at the hotel for a few more weeks .

 

 End of Part 1