"The Ballad of 223," by Preston Lang, in Under the Thumb: Stories of Police Oppression, edited by S.A. Cosby, Rock and a Hard Place Press, 2021.
This is the second story by Lang to appear in this column.
It may be worth noting that my favorite story in this book is one of the few with a White protagonist. It is also one of the more -- I won't say optimistic, but less pessimistic.
Which may be considered as evidence that it would be helpful to have more people with varied backgrounds reviewing short stories. If anyone wants to get into the rewarding (well, only intellectually) business of writing a column like this, let me know.
Okay, on to the business at hand.
Alan makes his living play the lute at renaissance festivals. While hitchhiking to one on a highway he is stopped by state police officers who are baffled by the instrument, the man, and his costume. "Dancing around in tights and slippers?"
Things go badly sideways and Alan winds up in prison. But he has a plan on how to get out. It's a longshot, but any shot might be worth taking...
An intriguing tale.
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