Visiting hours at Alban Prison began around the fifth hour of the wind (around 10:00 AM).
Visitors would write down their addresses and names in a register and wait in the waiting room in the order of their arrival. The waiting time varied for each person, ranging from half an hour for some to over two hours for others.
The order of visitation was not necessarily based on the order of registration; it all depended on the convenience of the guards.
It was not uncommon to be kept waiting for a long time, only to find out that a visit couldn’t be arranged on the same day. Some people even resorted to bribing the guards to expedite their turn.
Those who brought gifts had to hand them over to the officials in advance for inspection. The most common gifts were food items. Since the prison meals were extremely tasteless, those with families greatly appreciated outside food.
However, during the inspection, bread, and cakes were often divided into multiple pieces to ensure that no knives or files were hidden inside.
Today, my duty was to oversee the visitation process. I would enter the private room with the visitors and prisoners, monitoring their interactions.
As soon as I looked at the list provided at the reception, I noticed that Jane had a scheduled visit.
The visitor was Mrs. Essel. Although it was believed that Jane had stolen Mr. Essel’s money, I couldn’t help but wonder about Mrs. Essel’s intention to meet Jane.
After coordinating with my fellow guards, I managed to arrange it so that I would be the one assigned to monitor Jane’s visitation.
When Mrs. Essel entered the small visitation room, Jane, who had already taken her seat, visibly tensed up.
“The visit time is limited to five minutes. Please conclude your conversation by then,”
I flipped the hourglass on the table after I explained.
Once all the sand had run out, the visit would come to an end.
Secretly, this too was subject to bribery. It was common knowledge that it cost around 500 gils to have the guard flip the hourglass once more and extend the meeting.
I had imagined someone colder and more aloof based on Kimberly’s account, but Mrs. Essel appeared to be an ordinary wife.
Although her facial features could be described as beautiful, there was something unremarkable about her overall impression.
She seemed familiar as if I had met her before, but I couldn’t recall where.
“Have you lost weight?” Mrs. Essel hesitantly spoke to Jane, but Jane didn’t respond at all.
Then, both of them turned to look at me simultaneously, as if to say that my presence made it difficult for them to talk.
However, as a prison guard, I couldn’t just leave the room.
In the silence enveloping the room, only the steady flow of sand through the hourglass broke the stillness.
“Did you really steal it?”
Breaking the silence, Mrs. Essel opened her mouth once again. Jane glanced at me for a brief moment.
“I… I didn’t steal it,”
Jane answered while looking down. Mrs. Essel gazed at Jane, her expression filled with contemplation.
After a few more minutes had passed, Mrs. Essel spoke again.
“Alright then. If you say so, I suppose it must be true. I will drop the charges against you.”
Her unexpected words left both Jane and me stunned.
“What do you mean?”
I was the one to ask that question.
“I mean exactly what I said. I will go to the police department and withdraw the accusation. Is there a problem with that?”
“No, not at all…”
“That settles it then. I’ll be leaving now. Is that alright?”
“Of course. Please finalize the procedures at the exit of the waiting room before you leave.”
As I watched Mrs. Essel’s departing figure, something struck me.
I had a feeling that I had encountered her somewhere before. Mrs. Essel resembled the type of woman my dead father would have been attracted to.
He had a penchant for those seemingly ordinary, slightly beautiful women who could be found anywhere.
“Sir Wolf…”
“Jane, somehow… it worked out, didn’t it? Mrs. Essel believed in you,”
Though I couldn’t fathom why.
Jane wore a puzzled expression on her face, but she awkwardly smiled and nodded in agreement.
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