Chapter 1239 1239 Abandoned Land
The sun at ten in the morning was already vicious, swaying brightly, blurring the space between the sky and the ground, making everything seem hazy. Penetrating the waterfall of sunlight projected vertically and entering the main body of the prison, the icy cold that penetrates the heart instantly invades, and the change from extremely high temperature to extremely low temperature makes the heart numb in an instant.
It's not because the prison has air conditioners. On the contrary, this old and dilapidated Angolan prison has not yet installed air conditioners, but because the gloomy rotten atmosphere in the prison jumps up from the depths of the ground, and even the projected sunlight has become It became thin and hazy, and the cold breath gently blew across the skin, goose bumps popped out in an instant, and then shrank back abruptly, making people shiver a few times.
Hugo had been here for three weeks, and he was still not used to it.
"Hey, man." The guard standing at the door took the initiative to greet him, holding a baton in his hand and handing over a plastic box, "Sorry to trouble you today."
Hugo and Joseph skillfully handed over the backpacks they were carrying, and Joseph said with a smile, "This is your job, and we naturally have to cooperate." Then he put the wallet, keys and the like in his pockets. All in plastic boxes.
Then Hugo and Joseph filed through the metal detector, and the two passed the test without a hitch—they had known the rules for three weeks, and after the guards checked everything in the plastic box, they returned the items to the Gave it to Joseph, and said kindly, "Hope everything goes well today at work."
This is just the first level passed. Then Hugo and Joseph, led by another guard, walked along the path surrounded by barbed wire, and gradually walked towards the main body of the prison in the center. . Going to the two sides is a field divided by barbed wire, four of which are basketball courts, and the rest is an open loess field. This is the place where the prisoners take a break.
At this time, a small group of black people, Chiguo, were playing basketball on two different venues. The barbed wire cut the crowd into different small pieces. There were only four or five people, but they were intertwined, making it dazzling. The presence of Hugo and Joseph in this place of exile where almost no one is usually placed is obviously a big deal. The black people turned their heads and laughed loudly, "Yankee boy, come to work again today? There is no one here. Can pay you." Then everyone burst into laughter.
The guards who accompanied Hugo and Joseph waved their batons and shouted, "Shut up, if you think the exercise is too long, you can eat **** there."
Hugo was accustomed to this. When he first came here, he was still chatting with them with great interest, either cursing back, teasing each other with words, or sincerely trying to communicate... But all kinds of methods have been tried. After that, Hugo realized that they were just too boring.
The arrival of anyone is a concoction in the dull and tasteless life of their step-by-step towards the end of their lives. That's all. Knowing that nothing could be detected from them, Hugo ignored them.
After walking for ten minutes in the sun-drenched passage, after passing two levels, Hugo and Joseph entered the real main body of the prison. In fact, the straight-line distance is not that far, mainly because the layers of separation walls erected by barbed wire in the middle are made into a labyrinth-like passage, so the distance of going around becomes long.
A prison guard was replaced. After registering again at the gate, a prison guard will be sent to each block again. Only after the prison guard's notification will the next block open the iron gate to release, Hugo et al. You can only pass in the company of the prison guard.
In less than fifty yards of the walkway, there were four iron gates before Hugo and Joseph reached their final destination: the interview waiting room.
The prison guard sitting behind the iron net had already received the notice, stood up and said with a smile, "Clarke said he received a gift from you. It seems that the boys are going to be lively again today."
The Louisiana State Prison is the highest-level prison, and ordinary residents can only have one visit a month, and each visit cannot exceed 60 minutes. Logically, Hugo couldn't have been here every day for three weeks, and there were many days when Hugo stayed longer than six hours.
For this matter, Rick found many people through layers of relationships. Later, he relied on Steven to connect with the governor of Louisiana, and after obtaining the approval of the Supreme Judge of the Louisiana State Court, the plan was made possible. Take the trip. But even so, Hugo still has to abide by many rules and regulations. Last Tuesday, the prison was thrown into chaos because of a group fight. Hugo planned to stay and observe the situation, but was forced to leave the prison. He was in the prison that day. Only stayed there for less than fifteen minutes.
However, the efforts of Joseph and Hugo in the past three weeks have not been unrewarded at all. These originally cold prison guards have become friendly, especially Joseph. Because Hugo spent most of his time focusing on the inmates who volunteered to cooperate in the conversation, Joseph spent more time with the guards.
Hearing the prison guard's ridicule, Joseph directly replied with a smile, "Don't worry, Hank, I haven't forgotten tonight's poker night. On the way here, Brian was already gearing up, and he said that tonight you will definitely be It's ugly to lose."
The prison guard named Hank immediately sneered and laughed, "Let him let him go, the last time he lost the money to buy beer, and he was worried that he would be scolded by Hailey when he went back. But I didn't plan to let him go." After reading the joke, Hank looked at Hugo, his expression was slightly withdrawn, and he tried to remain serious and serious, "Hugo, the first person to come out to interview you today is Derek, are you okay?"
"Derek. Cruz?" Hugo, who has always been insensitive to names and even has memory problems, spent three weeks in an Angolan prison, but remembered the names of many criminals, which is not easy matter. But is this really a good thing?
"Yes." Hank pursed his lips and nodded with some embarrassment, and said hesitantly, "If it doesn't work, we can make some adjustments and give us some time..."
Hugo knew that all the procedures in the Angolan prison were cumbersome, and the high security level meant being cautious, and the whole atmosphere seemed solemn and desolate, so most of the prison guards here became rigid and serious, even a little cold.
There are many reasons why the prison guards are now friendly to Hugo. At first, it was because the governor and the highest judge had spoken out, so they had to be careful; but then they felt the hardships of Hugo, and Hugo during this period of time. The prison guards couldn't understand the pain and suffering he suffered, but Hugo was not a priest or a priest, he was just an actor. This made many prison guards admire Hugo very much.
The guards first called Hugo a little white face, which was contempt; later they began to call Hugo "Mr. Lancaster", which was respect; until recently, they called him by name, which was intimacy.
"No, no, just Derek." Hugo took a deep breath. Since every day's volunteers were arranged temporarily, the prison guards would look for a suitable object after Hugo left that day, and carefully and strictly The next day's interview was scheduled to ensure as much order as possible in the prison and, of course, Hugo's safety. So, Hugo knew that changing the order or something was not good for prison security.
Derek Cruz is a brutal killer, he's strong. He raped and murdered a family of five, including an eight-year-old daughter. The methods were appallingly cruel and remorseless.
At first, when Derek suggested that he wanted to talk to Hugo, the warden was a little hesitant because he was worried that Hugo would not be able to bear it, but Hugo's nod made the meeting between the two go. Because Derek was sentenced to death ten years ago, but has not been executed, it was confirmed not long ago that the death penalty will be executed at the end of July, and there is only less than a month left in Derek's life. Hugo wants to communicate with Derek.
Hugo communicated with Derek twice before and after, the first time Hugo was provoked to anger, because when Derek described how he tortured and strong. During the process of raping the dead, Hugo couldn't stand the part about the young girl, and beat Derek severely, and the situation was completely out of control; the second time Derek was suddenly unwilling to cooperate. He didn't say anything, and Hugo couldn't calm down, and in the end he could only break up unhappily.
Today is the third time.
Hugo knew that this was a land abandoned by God, and he had no religious beliefs, so he did not know whether God would redeem everyone, even if the person was extremely sinful, even if the person had no remorse, but he knew that if God Willing to redeem someone like Derek, he'll be disappointed. Even though he knows that the death penalty is cruel because it is a forced deprivation of a person's life, does Derek really deserve forgiveness and compassion behind what he did?
Hugo came to prison for the role of Matthew, but he began to experience the mixed feelings of Sister Helen. It's just that he is not a priest or a priest, and he has no faith, so he does not have the broad-mindedness of Helen to accommodate everything. Hugo wanted Derek to be executed.
"Hugo, are you sure?" Joseph came over worriedly and asked.
Hugo didn't speak, just raised his hand to stop Joseph, and then took a step towards the interview room. Hugo knew that he couldn't face Derek calmly, but it was his job, he had to face it, it was his own choice. He has seen the beauty of this world, and also experienced the filth and disasters of this world, but he has never truly understood the darkness of this world.