Chapter 1
January 8, 1896- Marion, Indiana, Near Midnight
The cold, wet snow continued to fall as both men trudged silently onward toward tonight’s house of entertainment.Patsy’s was a small local establishment where men of color could drink their fill of home-made gin and freely mingle with soiled doves for any personal pleasure they can afford. From the outside,Patsy’s looked like any other run-down two-story house located in the housing development on the east-side of the railroad tracks. Often referred to as Johnstown by the Negro population living there, it was a constant reminder to all that the races of mankind remain segregated. The older folks accepted this unwritten law as the way it had always been, while the younger ones hoped that the day might come when their children would be free to live wherever they can afford to live. Too many though, felt that day might be a hundred years or even further away. Only time will tell if this wish would one day come to pass.
Both men, cold but determined, continued their onward trek. They were brothers, recently released from a three-year jail sentence for armed robbery. They now lived in a small run-down shack towards the rear-section of Johnstown. Just for fun and spite, the brothers threatened the poor old home owner with a severe beating if he didn’t allow them free use of the rental property. Terrified, the old man had no choice but to give in. It was not like the white police force would come to his aid in this matter. Law enforcement’s main concerns lay on the other side of the tracks and within th
