Her Flaws

Chapter 28

I woke up early in the morning. I turned off the phone and handed it over to Sheridan. Everyone exchanged good wishes and Sheridan offered me a ride to Pasig. I had decided go and see my mom first.
"Shall we go?" Sheridan asked.
"I'm waiting for Jiovanni. He must be here any minute." I asked looking at the gate.
"Why him?" he asked.
"He was investigating my case. He can help further." I said still being the same. And after a moment's silence, Nef was there. As I sat in the car, everyone stood outside and waved at me and cheered me up until the car got out of their sight.
The road was all clear as always, only a few container trucks, one every twenty minutes, passed by. Whole way, my heart was beating fast. The car was at a normal speed but I was feeling like I'm racing in a sport's car. I wasn't scared this time. I was anxious and a little hyper. My stomach started feeling bad. Just after the highway, at the very start of Pasig market, he dropped us. I said goodbye and he seemed satisfied. It seemed like a burden got off his shoulders.
I and Nephi were both now sitting at the bus stop.
"Are you nervous?" Nephi asked.
"Yeah... a little." I said taking a deep breath.
"I can see that. Calm yourself. It will all be alright." he said.
Then he asked me some questions,
"Will you tell them about Mr. Clarke?" he asked.
"No. I will use my right to stay silent." I said.
We talked about some other fun things to get my mood up until the bus arrived in almost ten or fifteen minutes. It always feels longer when you have to wait or have a bad situation. We recalled our moments together, the day we met at the church and discussed how it was not a coincidence, but fate. And we remembered the day we three went to shopping - me, Jiovanni and Sheridan - and how Sheridan was being insecure and was acting strange. There were a lot of good things to talk about. We took the bus to my mom's house. As I stood outside the door, Nef lent me his phone for a few minutes. He guided me about what to say to the police.
"Hello?" a policeman attended the call.
"Hello, I'm Aceso Smith, the convict of a murder two years back. I want to turn myself in." I said in a trembling voice.
"Can you explain me your location or should we track you?" he said in a sudden.
"Oh. Flat no. 20, Sunlight Apartments, Pasig."
The call ended. I pushed the doorbell button. And Hailey opened the door. She had now tears in her eyes and seemed shocked. I hugged her without a second thought.
"Who is it Hailey?" mom shouted from the room and just after that, she walked out of the room and fell on the floor of shock. I ran towards her and hugged her, she hugged me back, and she started crying. Thanks to the Almighty, dad wasn't home. And then came the great Sybil walking out after hearing unusual cries. I was startled for a moment. She stood still at the spot where she noticed me and said nothing. Hailey told me that Sybil stayed in coma for a year but didn't die. She was in the state of prolonged unconsciousness. Meanwhile, the police arrived, the siren was getting closer ever quarter of a second, and my mom started panicking.
"Hailey! Hide her somewhere! Quick!" mom panicked.
"No. I'm turning myself in." I said calmly sitting still but with a slight smile and satisfaction on my bright face. Mom was still crying and Hailey, with tear flowing continuously, was trying to comfort her. The police got in as the door was already open and they quickly handcuffed me and took me away. Nef came with me too. I looked back at them from the window and could no longer hear their cries. I had tears in my eyes but they weren't of sadness. That was some strange feeling.
The police station wasn't far. It was a splendid building. Clean and busy. I had seen police station from inside for the first time. The prison wasn't a comfortable place. I was taken in custody. Later the prosecutor asked me questions. He wasn't a very pleasant man but tolerable. He investigated about where I was all that time of my escape. He asked if there was anyone who helped me. He asked about Nephi too.
"Who is that reporter with you? Did he help you?" the prosecutor asked with an expressionless face. He was a man in his early forties. But I didn't much like him. His eyes were really annoying, too annoyingly green. He looked like an ape at first, but if you stare at him for a few seconds, you would realise that he's a man. Well, he wasn't that much ape-looking, kidding!
"No. He is the one who convinced me to turn myself in." I told him the truth.
"I see. Is he your boyfriend?" he asked out of the blue.
"Why would you ask? That's not your concern. Do your work." I bluntly said this without thinking. I didn't know it would offend him so much that he turned red and called off the investigation for that time. The prosecution continued for several days. I was called multiple times for hearings in law court. At first, I felt so ashamed. But I got stable with it with time. The prison was really a rotten place. More than anything else, the people in my cell were the worst. And the food was all not good. What could I expect?
At a time, I even regretted turning myself in. Imprisonment is supposed to be rehabilitation. But almost in most of the countries, imprisonment has become torture. Punishment depends on the level of criminal activity. Everyone deserves a second chance. Criminals are not supposed to be treated like animals. Even animals are supposed to be treated well.