DEATH PENALTY

A mystery which you have to read through without asking in the beginning. :p

It is already 3 hours passed since her husband has gone to the market for buying a few necessities. Usually, it takes only an hour or so for him every time he goes out but today it was a bit long and that strange feeling in Diane's mind worries her a lot. Diane was very anxious and restless. She could not be at peace. She was walking back and forth in the living room, getting extremely hyperactive. She was not like this before. She was very calm and composed but everything changed on that fateful day. A fateful day, when she became the reason behind a death penalty of someone, someone very dear and close. Diane went upstairs to her bedroom and opened the door to the balcony. She looked out on the road through the tinted glass panes as her eyes searched for her husband. But he wasn’t seen even on the farthest end of the road.

Her anxiety increased and she could feel rapid palpitations in her heart while her mind took her 10 years back, flashing a beautiful young lady in her early thirties. Diane Johnson was the most sought-after lawyer in the city that time with a record of cent percent success rate in winning her cases. Her aura and reputation were on high end. She used to thoroughly scan the pros and cons as well as the clients and the people involved in before taking their cases. The criminals used to lose hope when they find her as their opponent’s lawyer because of her reputation and skills. Many times, she was offered huge bribes but that was all in vain as she was not only a woman with wit and wisdom but a woman of truth who used to stand for the right cause.

But this time, it was different. She wasn't facing normal criminals but a notorious group. She was assigned by the government to investigate a case against a terror group and bust them out. She was in the top of the world when she was handed over this big task. And to add to her joy, she met Zardin, a man of her life. Her darkened lonely life was filled with light and happiness when she found Zardin while she was on this special assignment. That man was a dreaded criminal but because of Diane and her love, he literally shared everything about his crimes. He promised, in fact even left all that he used to do after meeting and falling in love with the gorgeous lawyer, Diane.

Nevertheless, her happiness and joy were short lived. Her heart stopped when she found out Zardin to be deeply involved in the crime she was fighting against and he was guilty of grievous offenses along with many others which could lead him to have capital punishment. Everything was alright for him till he was a full-fledged criminal but since she came into his life and he decided to leave everything for the sake of her, things went adverse for him. It was very difficult for Diane and she could not do anything as the case was almost on the verge of closure. Though she was on the verge of winning the biggest case in the country, busting a notorious criminal group yet, she was not happy… she was miserable… she was dying every passing moment…

The final verdict was announced. Zardin was sentenced death penalty by the judge and was dragged to the prison in front of Diane. There were praises and applauds all around her but she was standing helpless, in the depth of sorrows and agony with her tears rolling down through her cheeks. The night before the death penalty she visited Zardin in the jail for the last time. The jailor, Mr. Brian being Diane’s good friend allowed her to be with her dying lover Zardin for some time. They wept bitterly in each other’s embrace before she finally left, thanking Mr. Brian for the favour.

That night, Diane not only left the jail, but she also left her profession, her own life that she was enjoying… She had a massive nervous breakdown and was admitted in the hospital for months before Mr. Brian being a lonely man himself took the responsibility of taking care of her till she was alright. Eventually, he left his job as well and moved away to a far away country with Diane.

Diane came back to her senses and to her present when she heard the tapping sound in the bedroom. She looked back and found Mr. Brian entering the room. She walked back to the room locking the balcony door and flung her arms around his neck tightly… “Where were you, my darling…? I was dying every second waiting for you…”

“Why do you worry so much, my love? Can anything happen to me anymore when a lover like you with me?” He grinned as he kissed her lips.

“Mr. Brian, you should not forget that fateful day that took my everything… And the fear of…” Diane retorted with a wry smile on her face as she was still very anxious because of the flashback that came alive in front of her a moment ago.

“Shhhhhhhhh… And the fear of getting caught is no more there, my love... No more talking about that fateful day and Mr. Brian, my love… Yeah, I have his face to remind you about him all the time… but… You had won the case for yourself, for me and for both of us that day… Right, love?” He asked holding her head between his hands, clasping his palms around her cheeks lovingly.

“Yeah, poor Brian…" She said pausing for some time and spoke again, "Mr. Brian, had to bear the death penalty on behalf of my lover, my everything though he had his reward for the sacrifice he made for us… Isn’t it? He became the face of my lover…” Diane’s eyes squinted as she laughed wickedly, “Every time I look at my beloved, my Zardin, I see Brian and his face implanted on his.”

"Only the look, my darling... not my sensual body..." He said in response as they both burst into laughter...

Author's Note

Ignore grammar problems but definitely critiques are welcomed