A Race Against Time

It's a race against time on a country road,
a repentant man carries a heavy load.
He's in a situation that he can't win,
for that load he carries is a load of sin.
Tonight's the night a man will fry,
if he tells the truth the man won't die.
So he's trying to make all things right,
if he can get to the prison by midnight.
You see, it was on February 5th, 1995,
the last night Mary Sue Blake was alive.
She was to be Billy Ray Smith's brand new wife,
together they had planned a happy life.
But, Mary Sue wanted one last spree,
so she went out drinking with ole Bobby Lee.
Soon, word of the two got around,
and Billy Ray knew where they could be found.
The sunken gravel pit off Highway One,
was where kids went to have their fun.
Billy Ray sneaked up on them real quite like,
came up from behind the earthen dike.
Saw that the two were passed out cold,
that's when Billy Ray grew very bold.
In a hurry and in great haste,
he pulled a gun from his waist.
In his anger he was going to kill them both,
but then he said to himself a mild oath.
"I'll kill Mary Sue and then I'll flee,
but I'll make it look like the work of Bobby Lee!'
So, Billy Ray put the gun to her head,
pulled the trigger and she was dead.
Left the gun in Bobby Lee's lap,
he'd be accused and take the rap.
When Billy Ray read in the paper about the crime,
he smiled a smirk that was so sublime.
He went to the trial and was there that day,
they announced that for this death Bobby Lee would pay.
"I'm sorry" the judge said "To tell you son,
you've just been convicted of Murder One!"
Bobby Lee was led away from court in tow,
to live the rest of his life on Death Row.
Over time Billy Ray thought of his murderous whim,
eventually his conscious got the better of him.
So Billy Ray found himself in a race,
to tell the truth of what happened at that place.
He didn't have much he thought, but he had his pride,
he put out his thumb to ask for a ride.
A car drove by and then it slowed,
the driver looked out and the window rolled.
"Where you bound for son?" the driver said,
"To the State Penetentiary just up ahead."
As the lights of the prison began to near,
Billy Ray's mission became so clear.
But, what if the guards didn't believe his story,
what if they denied him of his last minute glory?
Euphorically, Billy Ray stepped out of the car,
unfortunately for him he didn't get too far.
His face contorted and he fell on his back,
Billy Ray Smith died of a heart attack.
As the guards gathered around to look down at him,
the lights of the penitentiary flickered and then went dim.
And so two souls met their maker on that night.
one died of electrocution, the other from fright.
No one knew of the life he tried to save,
for Billy Ray Smith took the truth to his grave.
So let this be a lesson to those who do crime,
for you may find yourself in a race against time.