Publisher's Synopsis
My friends call me Jensen, at least my close friends do. I live in San Francisco. Dr. Michael Benson, a leading theoretical physicist, had contacted me about a very strange experience I had in New Orleans nearly a year ago. The secrets of the event were kept from the press and the public, but Dr. Benson had learned of them and wanted to know more about what really took place. I had traveled to New Orleans, and out of curiosity, took a detour to the swamps of Louisiana where I learned that the bayous could be both fascinating and terrifying. At the end of the road, in the heart of Cajun country and the heat of the swamp, I met an "o-wom'n"-Mothe' Moses-a clear-minded woman of the swamp who introduced me to her "li'l babies," and my life changed forever. I left the swamp with a load that is far heavier than I ever thought I could carry. The load was accompanied with a hiss and rattle that pierced my nerves and made my hair stand on end. Back in New Orleans, and without realizing it, I dragged my best friend, Bob, and his wife, Anne, into a terrifying balancing act; in this case, it was the balance of the scales of justice. After a week in the city, they saw first-hand that the application of Cajun justice is far different than the justice meted out by the United States judicial system. We all learned we are a composite of our experiences and choices, and that justice might be applied in ways and means that are completely undreamt of, and certainly unexpected. I will never forget the sights and sounds of the living bayou, including its slithering creatures, the musky scent of foggy, black swamp water, and the questionably joyous revelers on Bourbon Street. Had you been there, it would have grayed your hair and left you in a cold sweat. I had explored a world of previously unknown punishment and encountered the concept of mercy in a way that was unexpected, terrifying, but, in the end, justifying. The information that Dr. Benson gained from our interview became powerful evidence to the premise of his theory and research because I told him the entire story.
