Tandem

Raechel Harchey

Raechel could practically hear her heart racing as she stood opposite the man who'd murdered Arina. The very man who'd been living beneath her all these years, a man she'd enjoyed speaking to, had empathised with, had liked, was responsible for killing an innocent young woman. He looked tired as though all the decades of running had suddenly caught up with him. This was the first time she had seen this man before her as Bertie and not Reggie. His eyes were piercing as he stared blankly back at her. It felt as though they were burning deep into her soul. The hair on the back of her neck stood on end and a shiver flew through her body. She noticed his two clenched fists, hanging beside him. Her thoughts immediately turned to Arina and how those very hands had forced a rock down upon her head. Despite being tightly clenched, his hands looked thin and old, almost incapable of violence. They were the hands of an old man who had completed many years of physical labour.

She felt a warm hand slot into hers and turned to see Jack standing beside her. He didn't take his eyes off his father and his face remained expressionless, even when Bertie's eyes widened in disbelief. It was as though Jack was looking at a stranger, someone he didn't recognise but it was clear that Bertie knew exactly who the man was standing before him.

"Jack," Bertie mumbled. "I can't believe it."

Bertie pressed himself up against the glass and placed a hand on the window. His eyes scanned Jack, taking in every inch of the son he'd not seen for decades. Their eyes met but Jack's expression never wavered. There was no softening his face like his father, there were no tears forming in his eyes, not even a frown. There was simply nothing.

"My grandson. My boy. I'd know those eyes anywhere. Not a day has gone by when I haven't thought of you. You have to forgive me. I need to know that you forgive me. Whatever happens, I need to know that."

Raechel looked at Jack and noticed how rigid his jaw was. He looked angry, as though he were about to punch the glass.

"Please Jack, please. I just have to know that one small thing."

Jack shook his head and squeezed Raechel's hand a little tighter. She squeezed his back, as if to say I am here.

"I beg you Jack. I have never begged before, do you hear me? I will get on my knees if I have to."

"No," Jack said. "I won't make you beg."

"So I have it? I have your forgiveness?" Bertie beamed at his grandson.

"No, you don't."

"Jack." Berties face contorted as he fought back the tears. He slammed both hands against the glass and placed his forehead between them.

"Tell me how I'm supposed to forgive you after everything you've done. Tell me why I should forgive you after what you did to Arina. You murdered an innocent girl and you betrayed my grandmother, the woman who stood by you no matter what. Tell me why you deserve my forgiveness after all of that. You're nothing but a vile stranger to me."

"I deserve to be forgiven. I have lived a life so minimal and uncertain, you wouldn't understand."

"You deserve nothing," Jack let go of Raechel's hand and approached his grandfather. "That's not true actually, you do deserve something. You deserve to stare at a brick wall for eternity and think about what you've done. You can reflect on all the lives you've ruined just because you were greedy. You couldn't have it all, so you made sure nobody else could. What I want to know is, why you had to kill Arina. Why couldn't you just let her walk away?"

Bertie shook his head and sat himself down on the mattress in his cell. He leant back against the wall and raised his head to the ceiling. He shut his eyes and sighed. "If I answer your questions, will you give me your forgiveness?"