Solid Base

A fallen Wall Street banker walks out of a federal prison after ten long years, with nothing left but an aging RV, a small bank balance, and a hidden offshore secret that threatens what little peace he finds.

Mitch Morrison was once a wealthy, high flying stock trader at global investment banking goliath. His greed backfired as he was left holding the bag when the authorities cracked down on their illegal trading schemes. We meet him on the day of his release from federal prison. Now, he can barely navigate a bus route, let alone his second chance at freedom.

Longing to reconnect with his estranged son, fuming over the long past betrayal of the colleagues who crossed him, and overwhelmed with shame, Mitch hits the road with no plan beyond cheap coffee, a working engine, and the search for somewhere quiet to disappear and set down roots.

As he drifts south into small‑town America, Mitch finds unexpected refuge in a worn‑in, no-nonsense boxing gym. He finds a sense of family in a grizzly old coach and in a struggling laundromat. He finds his place to set down roots through pain and suffering. Between heavy bags, late‑night drives, and the ghosts of his past trades, he’s forced to confront the final temptation of his past crimes —and the question that won’t let him go: does he deserve a fresh start, or a final reckoning?

This is a gritty, character‑driven story about shame, redemption, the weight of the stain of a felony, far beyond the headlines, and one man’s fight to rebuild a life when the outside world has already moved on. The ultimate lesson learned: there is freedom to be found in utter failure and when a man has nothing left to lose.

For the readers of Willy Vlautin, Philip Meyer and Peter Heller.