Chapter 3: Alphonse - Turnabout

The internet was such a useful tool, probably the best invention of our century. You practically had access to the entire world’s archives of knowledge that have been assembled for centuries, all within the grasp of a few clicks on a computer screen. Not to mention how easy and fast it was to share information with someone on the other side of the world. The best part of all was that it was free.

Back at home, I tried to search for the biker I saw the day before. He looked like the sort of guy who belonged to a gang, the rotten fruits of our society. The problem was I didn’t know his name or any personal information on him so it would be quite difficult to punish him. But it didn’t take long for me to find him. The skull on his leather jacket was the big giveaway. And I was in luck. There was an online article from a tabloid that depicted his photo. According to the article, the guy was the boss of a small recently formed biker gang in the south of the city and was known for causing a lot of troubles in that area, ranging from robbery and drug dealings. But the scale of his organization was too small for the police to even care about him. In short, an easy target for a first timer like me. Which would be what I wished to say but…

Anyway, how should I make him pay for his crimes? Truth to be told, I had no idea just yet. I may have said this and that but I have never done anything like this so I had no idea where to start. Either way, I thought about stalking him for a while in order to find out more about his crimes, his weaknesses then decided what to do later. Depending on how things went, I might stumble across something. Justice took time. The more we waited, the more satisfying it was in the end.

Little did I know back then, that was one of the stupidest things I have ever thought of. Without any concrete plan, I decided to follow a gangster in hope of finding something. What could possibly be stupider than that?

But there were a few things I needed to take care of before beginning my mission. I have received a letter from our lawyer concerning some paperwork after the death of my wife and child. There seemed to be an urgent matter but the lawyer didn’t say anything clearly so I had to pass by his office today to take care of it. Secondly, my ex-company has finally sent back my stuff, along with a check of ten thousand dollars for compensation. Such a measly amount for twenty years of dedications! So that was all I was worth to them. After how they treated me, I was not even surprised. And yet, despite how disgusted I was with their money, I couldn’t just tear that paper apart. Now unemployed, I had no source of income, which would prove to be crucial should I pursue this plan of mine. Reluctantly, I put the crumbed check in my pocket, knowing I would need it in the future.

I realized that I didn’t have that much cloth to begin with. Well, there were quite a lot in numbers but they all had that same look of an office employee: basic white shirt and black suit. It was a little windy today so I added a brown long overcoat and a pair of black leather gloves just in case it turned out to be colder. My wife bought it for me on our last anniversary, saying it would change a bit from my usual outfit of black and white. Truthfully, I didn’t take it made that much of a difference but her thought was more than welcomed. As I closed the buttons of the coat in front of the mirror at the entrance of our home, I saw a woman’s silhouette behind me, helping me to wear it. To me, she was the most beautiful woman in the world. She used to flatten all the wrinkles of the coat, wrapping down that collar which I always forgot. But now she was gone.

I felt cold, despite wearing all these clothing. I missed her warmth, her touch. Still, I knew no matter how much I prayed or how much I begged, I wouldn’t be able to see her anymore. I wondered what she would say to me if she knew what I decided to do. What was I doing this for? For me or for her? We humans claimed to do a lot of things in name of the dead. The funeral, the prayers. But for who exactly did we do all those things for? I was never the religious type so perhaps my opinion differed a lot from others. But when you really thought about it, those ceremonies were only for us, the living. So that we could say our goodbyes, so that we could let go of our grief. After all, the dead didn’t talk, didn’t mourn. They didn’t feel anything because they were already dead.

With heavy thoughts, I set out to the lawyer’s office. It would be better to just finish it and leave it out of the way.

“Good morning, Mr. Alphonse! Please, take a seat!” The lawyer opened the door for me. “Thank you for coming today! Before we begin, my condolences for your loss! How are you holding up?” I noticed something strange in the lawyer’s behavior. In the past, I have encountered a few legal problems and it was this guy who solved them for me. He was rather crude when dealing with poor customers like me. While I hated to admit it, for the price he asked, he was good at his job, with ninety percent winning rate. Yet, that same man was here in front of me, speaking to me in such a polite way I found it a little creepy considering how long I have known him. He even asked if I wanted some tea, which was unheard of. What changed him all of the sudden?

“I can manage it. Thank you for asking! So why did you want to see me? I thought all the paperwork were already done.” I asked the lawyer.

“Most of them, yes. But there is one more thing. It is about the life-insurance policy to which your wife and child are subscribed.” Said the lawyer.

“What life insurance?” I inquired startlingly.

“Are you telling me you don’t know?” the lawyer opened his eyes questionably.

“No. I…I am not aware of any life insurance. I mean...There must be some sort of mistakes. None of us in my family have any life insurance. It is too damn expensive.” I said.

“Well, I have the documents right here.” The lawyer took out a dossier. “On the first page, both the names of the two misses are there, aren’t they?” He handed me the paper.

As he said it, there were really the names of my wife and daughter on what appeared to be a contract of life-insurance. When did this happen? I certainly was not aware of this and my wife would have told me something like this. I meant, who would put a life insurance on a child? Shocked by the news, I just sat there, motionless as I tried to figure out if I have missed something in recent memories. But no, no one has told me about this before.

“I have checked with the insurance company. Everything is in order. It might be disrespectful of me to say this but congratulations, sir! You are entitled to ten million dollars.”

“WHAT?” I jumped from my seat.

The lawyer laughed at me. “I know it is a shocking news. As your lawyer, even I was shocked to see such a thing.”

“But…but..how is it possible? I mean...can life insurance be that much?” I questioned.

“Indeed, ten million dollars is a lot of money for a life-insurance policy. Even for two persons. But it is what it is. The paper is authentic. The insurance company has also checked out. I have gone through every clause and found nothing suspicious. It is real. According to the insurance company, the money should arrive in your bank account within a few hours.”

Ten million dollars. Even if I worked until the last day of my life, I would never get that amount of money. No, gathering all the money I could possibly make my entire life would not even be half of it. How could I be oblivious to this? The only person who could do this was my wife. But if then, why didn’t she tell me anything?

What the lawyer said eventually turned out to be true. Later that day, I received a bank notice and checked my account from the computer at home. Out of nowhere, ten million dollars, just like that, appeared on the latest entry. I was left speechless, just staring like an idiot at the screen for an hour or so. When I was poor, penniless, there was a lot I wanted to do, things I wanted to buy. But now that I had the money, I didn’t know what to do with it. How funny life worked! Or perhaps, it was I who no longer desired those things. A large beautiful house instead of that small apartment? A luxurious car instead of that old thing? Travels across the world instead of simply local picnic? I longed for those because I believed they would make my life happier, my family happier. But now that they were gone, why would I need them anymore?

Strangely, the more I looked at those zeroes, the angrier I got. Somehow, it reminded me of the rich bastard who killed my wife and child. Of course, there were plenty of other bastards who abused their money and power. They thought they could toy with us common folk as much as they wanted. I would show them how it felt like…one way or another.

Now that I had the proper funding for my campaign, it was time to make the necessary preparations. After consulting a few online webpages, I set up to find that biker from the day before. The article talked about an alley in the southern district where he hanged out a lot. As I made my way there on the train, I wondered why I chose this man as my first target. There was no shortage of injustice everywhere I went. I could have simply picked a weaker opponent. But I didn’t. Perhaps the incident with him reminded me of what happened to my family. It was because of reckless bastards like him that spilled the blood of the innocents. Have it been a car, that woman could have ended up dead.

“We have arrived at Brookrows! Mind the gap between the train and the platform!”

Exiting the station, I headed for the location designated in the tabloid. And there he was, that biker, standing against the wall with his tough looking buddies. They all seemed like college students, reminding me of my school time. Unlike them though with their weeds and pots, I spent the entire time studying. I never went to a party, even the ones organized by the school. I was never the type to go out a lot, except when I really had to. Back then, seeing my classmates going out every night, I wondered how they could even have time to study. I looked down on them at first, thinking they were wasting their youths in those trivial activities. Yet, here I was, a simple office employee just like any other while my classmates have become the boss of their own firms. Just what exactly did I sacrifice my entire youth for?

As I contemplated about my past, a rough voice struck me. “What the hell are you looking at, old man?” I rose my head suddenly, fearing if my cover has been blown. It was indeed the biker who talked but it was not directed at me. “You again, asshole?” The biker grabbed a suspicious looking man with sun glasses by his collar even though it was evening.

“Wait wait. You are mistaken. I..I don’t know you.” the strange man said.

“Don’t you fucking lie to me! I know your face. You are that reporter who wrote about me on the net, ain’t ya?” The biker punched the guy in the face, making him fall down against the wall. “Fucking paparazzi. You don’t really know your place huh you piece of shit?” The biker stomped on the poor guy who could only curl up defending his head. The other gangsters soon joined beating up the reporter.

These kids were freaking nuts. They dared hitting people despite having so many people around. Yet, none tried to confront. To my own regrets, I understood their reasons. No one would want to be involved with these kinds of things. What if the bikers were associated with some sort of criminal organization? What if they tried to take revenge on them? In my own personal experience, no common salaryman would dare to do such a thing. Coward they might be, but I had no right to judge them. I too was a part of that mass, living their days while ignoring the suffering of others, sometimes even sacrificing their happiness for our own. It was something far too common in not just our society but the world.

However, things have changed. I was at this time a changed man, different from my past self. I could do it. I told myself so.

“Stop right there!” A brave man shouted from the standing crowd. It was me. It was time for me to abandon my weak past self and to embrace my new self.

Though sometimes, bravery and stupidity were two sides of the same coin. It was so easy to mistake one for the other.

“Shut up!”

The angry answer was accompanied by a heavy punch, blowing me away to the ground next to the reporter earlier. It hurt like hell. I felt like I have broken a tooth. Lying on the ground, I tried to stand up but a boot stomped onto my head, smashing it to the damp floor. My skin grazed itself against the rough cement below, scratching it lightly as the pressure on my head increased.

“Who the hell do you think you are, HUH?” The raging biker shouted loudly, scaring the bystanders. As for me, needless to say, I almost pissed myself.

“Your worst nightmare!” was what I wanted to say but unfortunately it didn’t happen. I missed my chance there. Ever since I saw it on a movie, I have always wanted to say it out loud. But when the time came, not a single sound came out of the opening on my face. Besides, saying that while being stomped by the person you were talking to didn’t quite have the same feel as the scene I saw in that movie.

After suffering a few more kicks to the guts, the bikers quickly retreated upon hearing the sound of sirens approaching. Whoever called the police, I thanked you.