LiTTLE CHERiNE Book 02 - post262
How was I to know that passions had run high that night and a young girl of nineteen even at that moment lay suffocating in her own blood.
1358
I spent the night mostly walking to keep away the slight nip in the air and feeling a lot calmer and in control I was at the door of the hotel when they opened them. The old lady was experienced in these situations and with nothing more than a good morning sir, let me in and I went straight to my room for a bath, the one draw-back I dislike about this old hotel is that they do not have showers and even the few bathrooms are shared by all the guests.
The girls had felt my return and soon as I was ready we trooped into the restaurant for breakfast. In contrast to our normal noisy entrance we all were quiet and the fear of upsetting me could be sliced with a knife.
“This is the gentleman officer, the one who spent the night outside. I let him in at just after six thirty this morning.”
It did not take too long for us to find out what it was all about. The officer was very insistent that I accompany him immediately to the station. He was almost hostile; though he tried to cover it, I could feel a cold fury in him. I was tired and hungry and I flared up.
“I did not have any supper last night and I intend having my breakfast. You may wait here or at the station, I will come soon as I am finished. I am not prepared to stay hungry just because of some bureaucratic nonsense.”
This angered him and he spoke without thinking. “We do not consider murder bureaucratic nonsense.”
“Murder! What the hell are you talking about? Who was murdered?”
He had recovered and refused to answer. I sat looking at him, drumming my fingers on the linen.
“I would venture a few guesses. The murder was committed last night and you were advised I’d spent the night locked out of the hotel. Therefore you suspect me?”
“I think it would be better you come to the station with me now sir. If you are innocent and can prove it, I’m certain your questions will be answered in due course.”
“Tell me, if I were in a cell, would you leave me without supper and breakfast? I thought not. I have no intention of running away. I just want to have a meal and then I will accompany you. Officer, this is a small village and though I do not know many people well, I have met most of them. From your attitude I can tell it was somebody popular and the loss is felt keenly. Please tell me who was murdered, the knowledge will not affect your interview or my statement. If you had arrived here half an hour later I would have known anyway.”
“Mr Teller you leave me no alternative. I am arresting you on the suspicion of murder committed last night. If you refuse to immediately come with me, I will note that you resisted arrest.”
“Then note it. I am having my breakfast.”
The hotel owner spoke up, her eyes like ice, including my sweet loves in her obvious hate of me. “I am afraid there will be no breakfast this morning. The brutal murder of Lillian has upset all of us and there is no one to prepare breakfast.”
“For god’s sake Robert, just go. I’ll bring you something to eat.”
“You will not. Call Rob and arrange for you to stay elsewhere. If the village think I committed this crime they will not be friendly towards you either. I want you out of here within the hour.”
1359
“I am afraid that will not be possible. I insist they all accompany us to the station. We will require that they make a statement.”
“Bullshit, in a case this serious you do not have the right to demand anything until we have an attorney present.”
“And you persist in your instructions to the ladies that they leave immediately?”
“Of course not. If you require their statements you shall have them. Thereafter I hold you responsible. If any harm comes to these young ladies, I will spend my last cent if necessary to see that you pay for it.”
He turned to the hotel owner. “You are witness to his threatening me?”
“I am officer.”
I ignored the legal games he was playing. “Lillian. Isn’t she that pretty girl of about nineteen, long dark hair and deep blue eyes? I talked to her once for a minute or so. She seemed a nice girl. Why would anyone want to kill her?”
“You are a witness that he confessed he knew the victim, had spoken to her and that I did not prompt him to do so?”
“Officer, you may go on in this vein for as long as you like, you will not end up incriminating me. If you are not able to find the true murderer, then I will have to do so for you.”
“You do that, as long as it is from within your cell.”
Now came the crunch. We had not thought to prepare ourselves with false documentation. My fingerprints were exactly the same as those of Rob. To go to the station would cause us trouble, whatever the outcome. I looked at my hands, carefully realigning the whorls so that they would no longer match those of Rob.
The officer made notes and putting away his notebook reached out for me. I told the girls to ignore him and walk out, soon as each of them got out of sight they were to jump to the farm. I promised to join them there.
I made it difficult for him, resisting just enough to ensure his attention was on me and the girls left silently. The old lady saw this and called out a warning.
“You come back here right now!”
“I think you have a dilemma officer. Either you chase after them or hold on to me. Keep going girls.”
He was now angry enough to forget about calling me sir and placed handcuffs on me, my arms behind my back.
I grinned at him. “You been seeing too many American movies officer?”
He marched me through the main street and I felt every eye upon me. Some stood on the pavement and reviled me, calling me an animal. I ignored them, my mind racing, trying to recall a suitable spot for my disappearing act. As we passed the local pub I saw some steps going down to a cellar. I needed only a second. As we came to the steps I stumbled and rolled down the concrete steps and jumped as I hit bottom.
I nearly knocked down some of the girls as my momentum was transferred with me.
“Robert, are you alright?”
“Give me a minute and I will be. I’m not an accomplished stairs tumbler. Can one of you get these handcuffs off?”
As they got them off me Diana giggled. “That must be one very puzzled policeman.”
“Don’t turn against him loves. His job is to protect his people. I was a rather obvious target for his suspicions. I had to rile him so as to get away, that does not mean I do not respect what he was trying to do - even if I am innocent.”
“What now?”
“That is painfully obvious. I have to return to the time and scene of the crime. We cannot do it in our bodies. I am going as the void. I want all of you to get away from here, this is an obvious place to search for us. You will have to take my body with you.”
“You cannot move through time from the void, we will all have to return home and return here to just before the murder, then you can go from the void.”
1360
I have not mentioned that I had felt a liking for the murdered girl and I was furious about her death. There is no acceptable reason for anyone killing a child of nineteen, whatever their faults; that it should happen to someone as sweet as her made my blood boil. This was not just a case of proving my innocence, I wanted the killer to pay.
I also admit that I am against the death penalty, but find it unacceptable that a person may commit such a heinous crime and find themselves free within a matter of years, without any counselling or therapy, placing society at danger again.
From statistics I’ve seen, I understand that to the contrary of theoretical intentions, such people when freed are even further hardened by their time in prison. I’m certain that to the inmates, the idea of time off for good behaviour must be a joke, another sign to them that society is soft and foolish. Not that I’m against it per se, but I wish there was some way for Normals to properly evaluate the apparent changes in their criminals.
What is the purpose of placing criminals in prison? If as a society we are only looking for revenge then the softness of our system does not satisfy that need. Ask any person who has lost a loved one, do they feel revenge has been meted in full when they see the murderer out within a few years? Of course we do not call it ‘revenge’, we just say the criminal must ‘pay’ for what they did.
If it is not revenge, but so as to protect society from the criminal, then I am totally at a loss for words. We take a person who commits a crime, place them in an institution that hardens them, teaches them to lose all respect for human life, teaches them to look after numero uno only and kills any compassion for others and respect for law. Soon as we have effectively turned them into a true menace we then free them.
I am not talking about the minor crimes, not that the difference is so great. Our need to show compassion for the criminal should be tempered by common sense - plus a reasoned sense of purpose that reflects the society and its mores. I am certain judges face many dilemmas if they still have a conscious and wish to improve society. There are thousands of laws on the books that should not exist and there are many prisoners who should not have been incarcerated, for their crime caused no harm to society.
I am digressing without arriving anywhere so I better return to the subject.
I knew the murderer would be placed in prison, I would see to that. I also knew that he (I presumed a ‘he’ from the method of killing) would get time off for good behaviour and in ten years or so would be free with his conscious assuaged by the feeling that he had ‘paid’ for his crime. I am not interested in the crime he committed against society and its laws; contrary to what many believe, I consider them only secondary. I am interested in the crime he committed against Lillian. If her soul were still around (if so I would find her) it must be crying out for some form of reparation, some vengeance for all it had lost. She must have had those she loved and would no longer be with, she was missing out on all that would have given her life meaning. I meant to see that she got some measure of comfort.
Strangely, Cherine the giver of all that is finest in our makeup is the only one who understands me. The rest, including Dommi, see my role at this time as being solely that of finding the evidence to have the right person incriminated and myself absolved of all charges. They prefer to leave it to our government, the systems in place to punish him.
If we had a system that ‘cured’ him, made him see what a heinous crime he had committed I would agree - till then I will use my abilities as I see fit, for my responsibility lies with the future, not just the past and present.
I think I gave the girls a shock when I explained to them that if I were taken to court for loving them, I would be given a longer jail sentence than the murderer of this poor girl. That once in jail I had little chance of coming out of it alive as the other criminals would make it their ‘business’ to see that I ‘paid’. Why, is it because some of them are parents and feel I am a threat to their children? I think not. It is mostly the instinct we have that demands we protect all children.
I hope you enjoy reading this long, long story of fantasy, adventure and love.
Αλέξανδρος Ζήνον Ευσταθίου
(Alexander Zenon Eustace)10th June, 2019
* posted on Steemit: 10th June, 2019
@nikosnitza - @wakeupkitty
Loved reading it. A lot to think about.
Personally the idea of prison is good. Perhaps the prisoners, esp the dangerous ones should live isolated instead of gangs. I know many do, also that not all come out worse and they are teached skills as well. Farming, languages, repairing cars, they can even teach others and train dogs.
Kids are punished if they do something wrong which is called raising them.
Some adults has to be raised too, with a group it will not work and never will, no matter how hard you try.
There is no satisfaction or paying back possible if you are (seriously) harmed/molested... it means life time and you have to find a way to survive.
The killers/molesters/rapists get out or even never in (being confused is a good reason and a bad childhood), they continue their "lifestyle" and enjoy it... on the other hand.. self defence and an accident are punished in the same way (being confused is not a good reason, neither is the bad childhood or being molested for years).
Even after being punished/in prison the society will not forget, wants revenge, to punish for ever. In some way it doesn't make sense.
Death sentence... there was a time I was against it. Now I am not.
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Robert is troubled and trying to work his way through conflicting ideas - which, ultimately, means that I too am doing so.
I hope he finds some resolution, so that he can show me the way.
It is amazing how often even the most innocent of them has done so for me....
Perhaps you and Robert should stop the thinking out of ideas and act or let it be, trust the universe and watch and see how things solve itself.
Some lessons has to be learned.
P.s. how is your life up there?
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By 'up there' do you mean, here in south Africa (?) or, when I am visiting my loves in their Cherinian universe? I only began to visit them a bit later in their lives - and I love it when it happens (what many call 'lucid dreams')
I meant South Africa
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Being a pensioner (state pension, which is peanuts), without transport of my own (anyway, I should not drive anymore) I tend to spend all week in my room, preparing posts and reading news.
Some people speak of all being okay here, while some speak of how bad it is. I tend to be friendly when meeting people I do not know, but I do not make friends and as the black South Africans tend to be respectful and friendly to old people, I rarely have to worry about being attacked - would probably worry about it more in Europe, the way things have changed there.
I would say that the worst about living here is the loneliness. When I stayed in athens, within months I was greeted by name and if I went to the same coffee shop often enough, I would be treated as a friend. That does not happen here - everyone is too suspicious of everyone...
If I had the choice, I would rather live on a small plot with a small house but space to grow my own veggies and fruit trees. I did that for 3 years and I think I was the healthiest 70 year old I knew :)))
The wotld has changed. There is less respect for elderly people and they are frequently victim of robbery andolesting especially 85+ years old.i wonder why.
I live in a small place people know me but if they would help me?
Don't you miss Greece?
What a pity people became so suspicious.
At times I meet someone talking to me, just a chat. They are friendly but being friends is something different. It is enough for me.
I am easily out of energy
💕
P.s. Would you like to live forever?
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Would I like to live forever?
If 'forever' means a very long time...or, at least, until I am tired of living, then the answer is 'Yes'.
I explore this question often in the books, as I made the mistake of arranging that their healers keep rejuvenating them, so that, theoretically, they could live for billions of years. Although they cannot give up the gift of eternal life (especially the thought of those they love dying upsets them) they consider the gift I gave them a curse - so do all the alien species. For a time I am not very popular in their realities.
I love Greece and the Greek way of life, but it has never been home to me. I would love to visit there at least once a year for a month to three. If it happens, I must have a home in a village close to Athens, with my own figs/cherries/pomegranades and so on...
:))
Δεν κατάλαβα γιατί κατηγορούν τον Ρόμπερτ για το φόνο....
Epeidi perase to vradi ekso. I ksenodoha eidopoiise tin astynomia oti o Robert den koimithike sto domatio tou, alla gyrise ksimeromata.