I guess it had all got too much for Abregon in Chonchocoro and he just snapped. At least, that’s what I would prefer to think happened, but from the details I learned later, it seemed that he had the whole thing planned. And his girlfriend, Raquel, was stupid to have visited him, after what she had done. What did she think – that he would be happy to see her and want to give her more money?
It was Julián who broke the news to me and he did it in a very strange way. After Samir’s escape attempt, all visitors were banned from La Grulla except those visiting the politician. However, Julián could get past the guards because he was delegate. He came into the cell block and knocked on my door very early one morning, even before the guards had let us out. I was barely awake, but I knew by the expression on his face that it was something serious.
‘How much money do you owe Abregon?’ he asked, after shaking my hand through the hatch.
‘Nothing. I don’t owe him a cent.’ I stopped rubbing my eyes and looked at Julián. ‘In fact, he owes me money. You know that.’ I had never mentioned the Chilean stolen car deal to Julián because he didn’t like to know about anything illegal that went on in his section. But he knew that Abregon and I were business partners and that Abregon owed me for something.
‘Are you sure? People are saying that he left you all his money when he went to Chonchocoro,’ he said, looking at me like I was a complete stranger. My mind started racing.
‘He did. But I gave it all to his wife. Why are you asking me all this? You were there. You were my witness,’ my voice squeaked. A wave of panic came over me. There was no way that Julián could have forgotten that amount of money, so why was he pretending not to remember? And why was he looking at me as if he didn’t believe me?
‘But you definitely haven’t got any more of his money?’ he asked me in an even tone.
‘Julián, you were there,’ I repeated, and that empty feeling in my stomach began to grow. ‘You counted the money yourself. Don’t … I mean … What, are you accusing me of cheating him?’ Then a thought occurred to me and I felt my legs go weak: What if Julián was the one trying to set me up? He had been the witness for the loan contract with the Velascos. He had been the witness for when I gave Abregon’s wife the money. He had been my witness at the police setup. He had sat on my case at the discipline committee meeting. He was the one I relied on to send messages to Abregon. What if he had been against me the whole time? Who would ever believe my word against his?
‘No, Thomas. I’m not accusing you of anything.’ Julián’s face relaxed. ‘I’m sorry that I had to ask you that. I just wanted to make sure.’
‘Make sure about what? Why? What’s happened? What did he say?’ I was in such a state of confusion that it took a while for his answer to sink in.
‘Abregon’s dead.’ Julián paused. ‘He died in Chonchocoro yesterday afternoon. I’m sorry, Thomas.’
‘How?’ I eventually managed to ask.
‘Suicide. He hanged himself.’
I was still stuck on the idea that Julián was the one betraying me, so my first thought was that he had had Abregon killed and was trying to make it look like a suicide. But I was wrong. Julián had nothing to do with any of it.
Even though Chonchocoro was a maximum-security prison, it seems that prisoners were still allowed television sets. Abregon had cut the electrical cable at the back and had it ready when his wife visited him in his cell. He turned his stereo up loud and strangled her. No one heard a thing. Afterwards, he hanged himself. Julián had just been doing his duty to Abregon’s family by asking me those questions about whether he had any money left over.
‘Is there anything I can do?’ he asked gently.
‘Yes. Get my television back for me.’ Julián looked at me strangely, thinking I might have been planning to do the same thing as Abregon. I wasn’t. ‘I want to watch the news.’
The guards couldn’t find my TV, but Julián persuaded them to lend me theirs, which was smaller and black and white. They were probably using mine. The news reports said that Abregon had been depressed by the prospect of his sixteen-year sentence and had selfishly decided to take his young girlfriend with him when she visited him.
‘Are you OK? Is there anything else I can do for you?’ asked Julián when he visited the next day to check on how I was doing.
‘Yeah. Call the governor. Get me out of here.’
I had been in La Grulla for sixty-six days when the governor finally signed my release form. The Velascos were released on the same day. They couldn’t look me in the eye after what had happened with Abregon, but as far as I was concerned, the fight between us was over. The money didn’t matter anymore, they could keep it. What I didn’t realise was that our fight had barely started.