All For Nothing

III

Victor was yet again unpleasantly awakened by a loud banging on the metal cell gates. It was the guard again.   

“What do you want?” Victor muttered.  

The guard cleared his throat.

“Victor Flores, we have now found the true convict of the serial killings from ten years ago. You have been proven innocent and are to be released after a period of five days. The preparations and final inspections must be made before you may leave,” the guard announced.  

“Isn’t that great?” Kevin smiled and applauded. “Congratulations.”

Victor was delighted. He was able to see his mother again. He was going to be set free in less than a week. But what Kevin had said to him last night still lingered and haunted him from the back of his mind. He stood up quickly and rushed to the cell gate before the guard could leave. Rifling through his pockets for the loose change that he had earned diligently from the hard labour work over the past week, he held it out through the bars.

“Please let me call my mother.”  

The guard nodded and unlocked the gate. Victor stepped out quickly. He was finally able to get away from that creep. He began to walk briskly towards the staircase, the guard trailing closely behind him. There were only fifteen minutes he could use.  

As soon as Victor stepped into the room, he quickly gave the coins to the guard, sat down onto the plastic chair, and dialed the number into the phone. Holding the phone to his ear eagerly, he listened to dial tone as he waited for his mother to answer the phone. Suddenly, it stopped, indicating that she had picked up.  

“Hey mum, it’s me.” Victor shifted in his seat, his whole body shaking from excitement. Was it too good to be true? “Listen—The police have found the true killer responsible for the crime that I was framed for. I’m going to be released in five days! Can you believe it?” He spoke quickly.

But the response that had followed was quite different than what he had anticipated. The voice on the other end had a deep, masculine tone.  

“Hello? Who is this? Please state your name. This is the police.”  

Victor shuddered. Why were the police on the phone? Had something happened to his mother?

“Victor Flores. I’m the son of Margaret Flores. I was calling to tell her about my current situation in prison and how I will be released in five days. Why do you have my mother’s phone?” Victor spoke clearly and calmly, although anxiety started to creep up on him. “Has something happen to her?”

“Ah. We are sorry to say this so soon, and so quickly following your release, Mr. Flores, but your mother has died in a serial murder incident two days ago. The police have her phone as we must investigate the crime. We are very sorry for your loss.” The policeman’s voice was robotic.

Victor jumped out of his seat, slamming his free hand onto the table.  

“Dead?” he cried.

Victor could not believe it. His breathing grew heavy and started to come in irregular patterns. He felt as if a nasty, cold claw had mercilessly clutched his heart. His voice quivered violently. He resisted the urge to wail and attempted to remain calm to talk to the officer.

“Mr. Flores? Mr. Flores? I know it’s hard for you, but please calm down.”

Victor took a deep breath.
    “H-how was she killed?” he stammered.

“She was killed with a knife, and repeatedly slashed countless times. We are still investigating the crime, but it is highly likely that her murder was supposed to be an act of revenge.”

Victor did not dare to ask any more questions. He was aware that he could not take it. He remained silent for a long while.

“You have one minute remaining. Thank you for using GTL,” the robotic voice broke in, signaling him to finish up.

Barely able to keep himself together, Victor slumped down into the seat, defeated.

“Thank you so much, officer,” he mumbled, nearly bursting into tears.

“Again, we are sorry for your loss, Mr. Flores.”  

With that, the police officer on the other end hung up. Victor got up, wiping away the tears that had collected in his eyes with his forearm.

“I assume it didn’t go well. I am sorry for your loss.” The guard that had escorted him dipped his head respectfully. Victor nodded once in response and turned to return to his cell.

When he arrived, Kevin was waiting for him on his mattress, staring out the tiny window, where a sliver of light shone into the cell. Upon hearing the familiar grate of the metal gate, Kevin whipped around.  

“Oh! You’re back already. Welcome! How was it?” he asked cheerily.  

Victor ignored his cellmate. His darkened expression reflected the answer. That alone was enough of an answer for Kevin.

“I see how it is.” Kevin’s seemingly sincere smile morphed into an ugly sneer.