001. Death in prison

A sudden painful thrust in the butt landed the young woman who had been idly standing in front of the open prison cell while gawking at the dirty brown wall of the medium sized room on all fours.

Infuriated, she ran her fingers through her frizzy dry hair which had been roughly chopped, Ariel's head bobbed back as she stared daggers at the masculine female prison guard's round smiling face.

"The next time you cause a pandemonium during a public gathering you'll have hell to pay. Stupid murderous bitch." The guard sternly warned as she spat in her direction right before vigorously shutting the door gate.

In response, Ariel Parker hissed under her breath as she clapped the dirt off her rough hands that were full of burn scars and tiny fresh cuts. She stood nodding her head in gratification with the results she had got from her last harvoc that she had created.

'I can't wait for the next Assembly, I'll keep creating chaos until someone of substance gives me an ear.'

She slowly walked to the tiny window which was the only opening through which one would be able to peer at the outside view although there was very little to gaze at.

Squeezing her big head through it, she was able to allow the evening Sunrays to caress her haggard face which was once the envy of all women.

It had been a period of two weeks since Ariel had last seen the light of day having been locked in solitary confinement for causing a ruckus at the Monday morning General Assembly where she had screamed over and over

"Am innocent, I didn't kill my father-in-law.....am innocent...please warden listen to me.....somebody...anybody.....all of you should know that am being framed...am innocent."

She desperately lamented despite the countless strong warnings from the prison warden whose uniform appeared to be ill fitting probably because of all the bribes she had eaten during her entire career.

"Keep your revolting mouth shut! Are you trying to slander the Robinson family? How despicable! A family that lifted you from grass to grace? Lock her up am tired of her rebellious behavior at each gathering and while at it, teach her a good lesson." She ordered the two guards who were already poking her with their big batons.

The two burly women violently dragged her by her arms and damped her into a tiny dark cell half the size of the one she had been originally staying in.

They continued to torture her, something that had become the norm although this time they went as far as to chop her long black hair with a pair of blunt scissors.

Tears brimmed at the back of Ariel's eyes when she recalled the dreadful incident, a lump formed in her throat as she twirled her hair with her finger and chewed on her chipped nails, a habit she had failed to drop since childhood.

"I'll keep confessing my version of the truth at every given opportunity afterall am innocent, I didn't commit the henious crime am being accused of." Determination coating all her words as she screamed

The horse voice that came from the lower bed of the old double decker caught her immediate attention.

"You're going to get yourself into a regrettable situation"

The fat older woman cautioned as she stretched and yawned loudly. She had watched the entire scene with a mixture of pity and slight amusement.

"I don't give a flying fuck if I get into any deeper trouble Raki, am the most hated woman in this country although am whiter than white."

Ariel spoke curtly with indiffence before turning to face her.

Raki checked through her belongings and tossed her a blue saviet that had left over food that she had sneaked into their cell the previous evening.

She was sure Ariel had been starved while in solitary judging by how much weight she had lost in a short period of two weeks.

"Thank you." She murmured

Ariel was grateful to be in Raki's good graces although some inmates had warned her that she was a snake in green grass, she was by far the kindest person she had come across since her ordeal.

Raki had been in prison for 9 years so far after being sentenced to 15 years for killing a man who had tried to rape her, although the inmates that knew her history believed that she was being untruthful, it was also rumored that she was the leader of the Fifty south gang inspite of the fact that she denied it profusely.

Further more,she had powerful connections within and outside the prison.

Being a close acquaintance to Raki Perez gave Ariel a safety net, for instance the prison bullies that used to bother her regularly had stopped because they were afraid of Raki who was believed to be a scary individual.

"Tsk, tsk, tsk, you must have had it rough this time around." She critically looked at Ariel who was gulping the food that was about to go bad.

"Being difficult is going to gain you more enemies than friends Ariel, I've told you times without number to maintain you're cool, don't attract unnecessary attention to yourself but I guess all my pleas fell on deaf ears." Raki handed her a small face towel to wipe the blood stains that were painted like art on her face.

A single tear flowed down her full cheek as she wiped her cuts gently with the small dump towel.

"Crying is a Weakness,I don't have the luxury to falter. Nomatter what they throw at me, nothing will kill my resolve." Ariel swore as she clenched on the towel.

Shaking her head in astonishment Raki continued to warn her that going up against the most powerful set of people in the country will only increase the number of her foes.

"What's you're end goal?" Raki slightly winced in pain as she squeezed her enormous pimple that were ripe to pop.

"I want to request for a retrial, That sham of a trial I was put through was shameful and inhumane and I wasn't in my right frame of mind through the whole damn process because I was always injected with a certain substance that keept me high the whole time." Prominent lines were drawn between Ariel's eyebrows as she narrated

Raki let out a long sharp sigh and explained that although all she had just said was the supposed truth, no one was ever going to believe her as the Robinsons had control over the media and the justice system, what they wanted automatically became the law.

"You are accused of killing 'THE' Mr Robinson not some homeless dude on the street,you have zero evidence, how exactly are you going to get this fair retrial?"

Ariel painful shut her eyes and remembered the kind and generous smile of Herbert Robinson her father in law who also doubled as the President of Kings group of Companies.

"Other than my husband and sister, he was the only person that truly loved me, he nurtured me to become an outstanding business woman, gave me a juicy position in his company and above all that, he stood against his entire family and accepted my marriage with his son. Although my memory is vague, how could I have possibly killed him? There is more to the story than what I was told, I must find out what actually happened."

"You are never going to stop, are you?" Raki stared at her with half lidded eyes

"Hell no,my poor husband is fighting on the outside and my memory is slowly getting clearer."

Alarmed by the news, Raki dashed to her side and roughly held her face, looking deep into her eyes as if she could see her soul she asked " What you mean? Has you're memory returned? "

"Yah, bits and pieces but it's getting vividly clear with each passing nightmare that I was framed." Ariel pushed her hand aside

Suddenly Raki jolted her aggressively "young woman I've seen alot of complicated situations in my lifetime and I'll give you unsolicited advice "In this country,Justice is only for the rich and powerful, serve your sentence quietly or better still play dead."

Ariel gently pushed her away breaking free from her tight grasp "Not in this life time, I'll give them headache. Am dishearted because I was expecting you as my trusted friend to cheer me on, Raki am not backing down!"

"Money is the only thing that you should trust in this cunning world." Raki mumbled as she secretly pulled out a small button phone and texted

-

She won't burge, what now?.

**

Proceed as planned

-

Later that night when all inmates where asleep,the gate door buzzed open as the guard called out for inmate 1543 to report to the infirmary.

Puzzled she wondered why a healthy person like her was being given such an order.

"I didn't ask to see a doctor, you must be mistaken. " She told the impatient guard who reluctantly checked the forms she was holding.

"Are you inmate 1543?"

"Yes"

"Step out please."

The icy look the new guard gave her sent shivers down her spine, she shuddered as goosebumps broke out all over her body, forcing her to wrap her arms around it like chains as they headed to the infirmary with her in the lead.

Suddenly she felt a sharp pain in her head as she fell on the ground, her vision became blurry right before she lost consciousness

Ariel winced in pain as she slowly tried to open her eyes with little luck since the blood that was oozing from her head injury was making difficult.

She tried to stretch her hands but couldn't since she was handcuffed to the back of the heavy steel chair while her legs were tightly shackled too.

Her attempt to scream failed as her mouth was deeply gagged with a cloth and cell tape, all she did was wiggle and voice out painful groans which attracted the attention of two camouflaged women who were waiting for her to wake up, one dashed and stood before her.

Suddenly the stout woman begun to punch her countless times in the stomach making an effort to inflict pain on one spot blow after blow.

She and her colleague laughed as they spat and spewed insults at her

"Cinderella turned into a killer." One uttered recklessly

"Life imprisonment was not punishment enough in my opinion, such daughter's in law deserve death nothing less and the way she has been carrying herself around here, ha-ha do you still you're still this great nation's

sweetheart?" The other commented as she tugged her hair

Ariel's eyes were sore and dry. It was too painful to cry, all she did was moan for help although little sound could be heard emerging out of her tightly gagged mouth.

"That's enough." An authoritative familiar voice commanded from the pitch black corner.

Her breathing fastened as she squinted her eyes so as to get a clearer vision of the person, although it was pretty difficult with just one light bulb loosely hanging over her head.

'Raki...thank God.' She thought as she let out a weak sigh of relief on seeing who it was

Ariel rapidly blinked as Raki pulled a metallic chair and sat before her legs wide apart. she let out a big puff of smoke and silently watched her squirm, casting her a glance that could be described as a mixture of disappointment and anger

"You have something to say? " She asked Ariel who was vigorously wiggling.

She nodded rapidly as the tears that had brimmed at the edge of her eyes finally flowed down.

Raki ordered the women to untie her immediately "Wipe her face and put that cloth over her injury." Pointing at the cloth that was used to gag her.

"Thank you Raki, I owe you one" Ariel swallowed her bloody saliva as she caressed her bruised wrists, her body hurt like hell especially her head.

"You're gullible." Raki murmured as she leaned back.

"I told you to live quietly but you stubbornly refused, see where you are now. You've pissed off some top dogs"

Ariel glared at her "I can be anything but I'll never allow my baby to grow up as a murder's child, I'll fight the Robinsons until my last breath. "

Raki let out a guffaw as she clapped thunderously " Ask and you shall receive....uhm however am truly dumbfounded by your tenacious behavior, I can't believe you still have it in you....wait you're pregnant?"

-silence-

"Answer me, Ariel"

-silence-

"Stubborn bitch" She mumbled angrily

"Bring those damn papers." Raki pointed at the green folder that rested on the wooden table. She handed a pen to Ariel and instructed her to sign them.

"What are these?" Ariel naively asked frowning her brows as she lifted the papers to read through.

-

Transfer of shares.....

-

"Just sign them." Raki curtly ordered. Ariel began to doubt whether Raki had really come to rescue her or join her tormentors

"Raki please, my husband will give you as much money as you need...." She pleaded and tried to reason with her

Raki reluctantly scratched the small itchy pimples that covered her face "just do it for the baby." Her voice sounded impatient

"What? Whose shares are these and why am I signing this? if my husband gets to know...."

"Shhhhh, If you want you're baby to live then sign it or else... you know how this will end."

Raki's eyes were as cold as ice not warm like they usually were

Ariel contemplated and made a momentous decision that nothing was more important than her baby's life.

As for the shares she didn't understand anything about that nor did she care.

She grabbed the pen and hurriedly signed the forms

Raki grabbed the papers and handed them to the smiling woman on her left.

After a few minutes of Ariel watching her smoke like a chimney, Raki came closer to her and whispered "I have a message from someone"

Ariel let out a short sigh and informed her that she didn't want to hear anything Stella Robinson, her mother in law had to say because she was obviously behind her torture sessions.

Raki took out the small shimmery hair pin that she always wore and got even closer, so close that Ariel could smell the rotten stench that emitted from her body

"You're sister sends her regards."she whispered as she deeply thrust the small sharp knife into her abdomen multiple times without any remorse.

In a state of ambivalence, Ariel fell on the floor 'What? Megan? How...what the fuck, God please my baby' her heart ached as she breathed her last.