Chapter 217 The Deepest Despair
Anand walked down the corridor and was escorted by the cell warden and several prison guards through the prison to one of the many large dormitories.
The large dormitory was twenty meters long and ten meters wide, with a high ceiling.
There are iron windows that look out onto the open space surrounding the building, and there are tall iron doors at each end of the dormitory.
Near one of the iron gates, there is a bathroom with three clean squat toilets.
They gave Anand five minutes to wash the blood off his face, neck, and arms and use the squeaky clean toilet.
There were 180 prisoners and 20 cell wardens in the large dormitory.
A quarter of the area inside is reserved for the cell wardens, who have their own clean blankets.
When sleeping, you can stack multiple blankets to form a soft mat on the floor, leaving some space between them.
The others were squeezed into two rows in the remaining three-quarters of the area, with a "Chu River and Han River" separating them from the warden.
Ordinary prisoners also have a blanket, which is usually piled in the corner and neatly folded.
It was removed at bedtime, and the prisoners lay on the narrow blanket, rubbing shoulders against each other.
Their heads would touch the wall, their feet spread out toward the center of the dormitory. The bright nightlight would always be on, and the warden on duty would take turns walking between the two rows of feet.
They patrolled the area, all carrying whistles hung from their necks to summon the guards if they encountered something they couldn't handle.
Anand was asked to sleep in the general prisoner area. He took a blanket from the corner and spread it next to Anil.
He couldn't sleep that first night, not because of the pain in his body, but because of the lice hiding in the blanket that disturbed him.
Its bite was stinging and as painful as a thumbtack. It would inhale its belly until it was round and plump, and when I pressed it on the stone floor, it was covered in blood.
The prisoners in the prison are bitten several times every night. Those round wounds will soon fester and then become pustules.
Those prisoners who stayed long enough would even have more than a hundred festering, infected wounds on their bodies, and nothing could cure them.
Anand wanted to get up and catch lice, but Anil warned him not to act rashly.
Because the warden would beat anyone who didn't sleep, and you couldn't fight against them.
"No matter what they do, in order to save your life, never fight back. This is not a world of the living, man. We are all dead here, you can't do anything!"
Although Anand listened to him, he was still beaten with a bamboo stick by the warden on duty for no reason.
Over the next few days, this situation continued to recur: the warden would beat him while he ate, while he washed, and even when he went out for exercise, he would be beaten for no reason.
Anand remained silent, enduring repeated targeting.
He was still angry, so he sent the message out.
As long as Ron Baba knew he was here, he would come to rescue him. He firmly believed this.
The warden took matters into his own hands and would not allow him to go to the sink early, but to stay at the end.
There is a large valve at one end of the sink, which a prisoner would turn on every morning for everyone to wash.
However, the water supply is not unlimited. When the water tank above is lower than the water level, the flow will be cut off.
As soon as the valve is opened, hundreds of prisoners will rush forward to grab the thin stream of water in a small pipe.
When Anand came forward with the aluminum tray, there was only a trickle of water left in the pipe. What was even more terrifying was that there were hundreds of water insects like silk threads wriggling in the water.
"Dude, they live in the gutters. When the water level is low, the water bugs come out of the pipes. But they don't bite, and they're much cuter than lice."
Anil held an aluminum tray full of water bugs, poured the water onto his chest and back, then reached under the water pipe to get another tray.
The water in the front is clean, but many people are rushing to use it. When it gets to the back, there is no one there, which allows a few people to take a bath happily.
Anand certainly knew water bugs; he had always lived in the slums and was no stranger to these little creatures.
They will die quickly if exposed to air, so there is no need to worry about them becoming parasites on your body.
He carried a plate to the dwindling water pipe to collect water, then poured the water full of wriggling insects into his shorts.
The weather in Mumbai has started to get mild, and if you don't take a shower, your body will soon become a den of lice.
As expected, Anand was beaten a few more times because he was the last one to wash.
He endured it and even stopped being angry with the warden.
Because there were two young prisoners who were about to be released. They were Marathi and lived in a village not far from Anand's hometown.
They were illiterate youths from the countryside who came to Mumbai and were arrested without knowing why the police were rounding up unemployed youths.
The two men spent three months in prison without any formal charges and are now finally being released.
Anand met the two men and told them Ron Soul's name and where to find him.
He promised to give them generous rewards, including arranging jobs for them, as long as they were released from prison.
The two young men put their hands together in blessing, then left with bright, optimistic smiles on their faces.
Later that day, the warden suddenly called everyone together. His tone was even harsher than usual, and he told the prisoners to squat against the wall with their heads in their hands.
Soon Anand saw the two young men who wanted to help him being dragged into the dormitory and thrown into the open space in the middle.
They were nearly unconscious, having been severely beaten, their faces bleeding from wounds, their lips swollen, their eyes bruised.
Their bare arms and legs were covered with snake-skin-like scars from being beaten with iron and bamboo sticks, just like Anand's.
"These two dogs wanted to take a message outside for that untouchable," the head warden roared, "and this is what happens to anyone who tries to help that untouchable, do you understand?
Now these two dogs have to stay in jail, on my territory, for another six months! Six months! Whoever dares to help him will suffer this fate!
Anil looked at Anand with fear in his eyes, as if to say, "Man, you are in real trouble now. No one will help you later."
The truth is, Anand is in bigger trouble.
The group of dormitory supervisors gathered together to discuss for a few words, and then surrounded him.
They forced him to lie on his back with his head against the iron railings. Then they found iron handcuffs from somewhere and raised Anand's hands above his head and fastened them.
Then he took a coconut rope and tied his legs together at the ankles.
The cell leader squatted down, put his face close to him and smiled.
If you want to know how evil a person's heart is, just look at his smile.
They began beating him, taking turns hitting him, focusing on his face and groin.
After beating them for more than twenty minutes, they were out of breath and could no longer lift the bamboo sticks.
The bamboo stick dug into Anand's flesh, breaking his skin from head to toe.
Anand suddenly started laughing, a silent laugh, and he was looking at them.
The warden seemed to be provoked, and they continued to beat him, even calling the warden next door to take turns beating him.
Anand was covered in blood and his eyes were almost closed due to scabs.
But he was still smiling, a smile that would never give in.
He thought he was probably going to die, his hopes were shattered, and the whole world was gray and cold.
He, a pariah in the eyes of others, decided to despise all living people, those who stood before him, before he died.
This completely pissed off the warden, and they dragged him away, put a metal ring around his neck, like dragging a dog.
They dragged him outside to the field, under a big tree, and had everyone come out to watch.
Anand's limbs were also tied with ropes and stretched out in a spread-eagle position. Three people were on each rope, pulling with all their strength, as if they wanted to tear his arms and legs off.
He was placed on a large rock with his left arm stretched straight. Then a warden climbed up the rock and jumped onto Anand's left arm.
With a snap, the arm was broken in the opposite direction, and the flesh and bones made a creaking sound that was unbearable to listen to.
Anand could not scream because his mouth was gagged and the collar around his neck was too tight.
The veins in his neck seemed to burst, his legs began to twitch and spasm, and violent tremors spread throughout his body.
Several housemasters turned him 180 degrees and placed his right arm on a large rock.
It was the same man who went up. He first glanced around proudly, then jumped onto the right arm.
Anand's right arm broke and he passed out.
The warden pulled the rope and dragged him out of the open space. His arms were hanging behind him, dragging on the ground with a clattering sound, limp and lifeless.
After venting their anger, the dormitory supervisors became worried that Anand would not be able to hold on.
So I tried to find some painkillers to feed him, but there was no doctor in the prison.
They carried Anand out of the dormitory, through several clean and spotless courtyards, and to a tree-lined corridor.
There are fenced open spaces on both sides of the road, with a sentry box in the space.
A new prison guard here is said to be smuggling drugs to the prisoners.
These common anti-inflammatory and analgesic medicines have always been popular in prisons.
Ward supervisors sometimes act as brokers, helping these prison guards sell drugs to prisoners.
They carried the man in, and saw the new prison guard sitting there chewing betel nut with a dejected look on his face.
Anyone who was a patrolman who was once a majestic person on the street and could collect bribes every day would be depressed if he was suddenly thrown into the same group as habitual criminals who had little money.
When he heard that his wife was cheating on him, this guy filed for divorce and was immediately transferred to another position. It was his father-in-law from his wife's family who wanted to teach him a lesson.
"What kind of game are you guys playing? Killing someone is pretty troublesome."
"Sir, I accidentally overdosed myself." The cell leader smiled. "What medicine do you think I should give him?"
The prison guard yawned and stood up with an impatient look on his face.
He walked closer and squatted down to check the condition of the figure on the ground.
Just as he tried to lift up the hair that was soaked with sweat and had become dirty and tangled, his hand froze in mid-air.
Anand has regained consciousness, having been staggered here all the way, and is screaming from the thousands of wounds covering his body.
He struggled to raise his head and open his eyes, and then he saw the prison guard, Rajesh.
The patrolman they first bribed at Victoria Station.
Rajesh recognized Anand almost instantly. Although he was tortured beyond recognition and was barely thinner than a monkey, he still recognized him at a glance.
He wanted to shout but suddenly saw Anand’s mouth shape.
He understood, and he stood up angrily.
"Look at him! You idiot pigs! He looks like he's been skinned!"
"Sir, it was the boss who asked us to beat him up." Several dormitory supervisors were embarrassed and tried to shirk responsibility.
The boss they were referring to was the head of the prison guards, the highest ranking officer in Arthur Road Prison.
"I told you to beat him, not to kill him!"
Rajesh stood up and quickly took out a few pills from the drawer, then poured water and fed them into Anand's mouth.
"What happened to his arm?"
"This untouchable wants someone to take a message out. Let's teach him a lesson."
"Broken bones? You idiots are so brave! Don't you know the rules of the prison? You can only bleed, not break bones!"
"Sir, what do you think we should do?" The warden came hurriedly to find medicine because he knew this rule.
Now that Rajesh had frightened me, I felt a little scared.
"Take good care of him. Don't let him get hurt again! And don't make any noise. I'll go find a doctor. There's a guy there who's very good at trauma."
Rajesh left in a hurry, and the warden stood around nervously.
Anand was laughing, laughing with tears in his eyes, laughing with his whole body trembling.
(End of this chapter)
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