An Encounter on the Roof

“You know… if your hand keeps shaking like that, you’ll just drop the gun.” 

Justin gritted his teeth and held on to the cold gun in his hand – although it still seemed to tremble slightly. 

“Why did you do it?” 

The man standing a few meters from him wore dark brown pants with a white button up. His hands were in his pockets, and he leaned back comfortably, his back touching the railing of the roof lightly. The sun seemed to shine down upon his head in a way that his blond hair glowed into a halo, and his eye lashes cast down a gentle shadow on his cheeks. He looked at Justin with a steady, calm smile. 

“Why? Because it was the right thing to do, of course!” 

 Justin’s eyes seemed to blur for a second under the heavy sunlight. He spat out harshly “What the hell do you mean – how is killing someone the right thing to do?”

The blond man looked at Justin dead in the eyes, his small smile disappearing into a solemn gaze. “Well, people are constantly being given the death sentence, are they not? What’s the difference between the state giving death as a punishment and myself giving death as a punishment?” 

Justin shook his head, not in the mood for his brother in law’s typical riddles. He shook his head in an attempt to clear his mind, before he spoke. “I don’t have time for your mind games today, Alex, save them for your class room. You know there’s a proper way to do things, and this… I couldn’t even imagine, you… going this far…” Justin trailed off before ending his sentence. The previous panic which had risen in his chest returned, and his grip on the gun faltered. The absurdity of the situation began tearing away at the calm demeanor he had tried to cloak himself with. He felt his heart beat violently in his chest as he squinted at Alex, who stood languidly across from him. 

“You’re thinking too deeply about this Justin. See – there were just two scenarios. One: me, an educated man who has a good sense of morality, kills the man involved in covering up corruption and child trafficking activities. Two: the police work up a file on this man, arrest him after gathering evidence, and proceed with a legal course of action to sentence him to an appropriate punishment. Only, the second option is much less likely to have taken place given that said “man” was a politician. And a corrupt one, so you get it! Myself, being the kind person that I am, decided to kill him as a favor for everyone else. Justice delivered, and fast!” With the last sentence, Alex held his hand to his chest in a proud, almost self-indulgent gesture. He looked at Justin with hooded, downcast eyes and a gleeful expression - the sight nauseated Justin and he took a step back to steady himself before speaking.

“We would’ve caught him. The case was ongoing – you didn’t have to do this.” Justin tried to keep a steady voice, but it seemed to lose its power by the last word. He was an officer, but even he knew that the politician’s case was close to being thrown out due to pressure from above, despite their having some evidence of his activities. 

Alex’s small smile melted away, and a strange calmness, or rather emptiness, replaced his facial features. “You’re repeating the same old story when you know how it ends. He was never going to get caught. So, I’ll admit it: this is all my fault. I did take the law in to my hands. Why shouldn’t I? How different am I from those judges on the bench who give away penalties and punishments? I’ve literally been teaching law for the past 7 years, Justin! I have the knowledge, the rationality, and… a sense of righteousness that dictates my actions.”

Justin grimaced as he looked at Alex. He knew that nothing could be done about people in power who got away with committing harrowing crimes due to connections and money. Is that not why he decided to become a policeman? To practice justice? To prevent evil? And yet, life had placed him in an unimaginably tragic position, where he was standing face to face with his sister’s husband, a man he had respected and admired for his ideals, sense of integrity, and intellect. Alex had seemed to be a good natured, kind man who always had a cheerful smile and calm demeanor. He had been married to Sarah, Justin’s elder sister, for the past 5 years, and never once had he betrayed ill will towards another person, let alone taken someone’s life. And yet, the recording that Justin had watched the night before was not simply an illusion – there was Alex, standing outside that politician’s gate. He stood there silently until the politician appeared in his night clothes, all alone, which was also something that struck Justin as odd. The two spoke about something briefly, before Alex took a gun out of his coat and shot the politician in the head. 

“Justin! You’re thinking way too much again. It really isn’t that complicated, you know. Besides, I’m ready to surrender! Take me! Take me into your custody, chain me away, let me rot in a cell! I am prepared for it all, anything but to be free!” Alex said in an almost sing-song voice as he held his arms out and looked up above. 

“Is this… is this a joke to you? Why would you throw your life away like this?” Justin asked coarsely. What he had previously always perceived as Alex’s kind yet slightly reserved attitude seemed to be replaced by a menacing, cold and calculating one before his eyes. He suddenly thought of his sister, who would be devastated to learn about what her husband had done. Her innocent, soft brown eyes brimming with tears – for a sensitive girl such as her who has always taken care of everyone, down to the cats and dogs in the street – her sweet nature would not permit her to endure a shock such as this. She would be at home right now, probably working on one of the pro bono cases which she occasionally took up to help those who could not afford expensive lawyers. Her warm smile flashed before Justin’s eyes as he shook his head and tried to steady his shaking hand, this time by holding his gun with both hands. Alex stood quietly, witnessing Justin break down before him, with an indifferent expression.  He gave a small sigh, and then continued, “You’re probably concerned about Sarah. Well… don’t be. She’s a strong woman. As to the question about why I did this – ah, well. I don’t like people who embezzle funds and traffic children!” 

“That can’t possibly be the only reason!” Justin shouted. He was vaguely aware that shouting might attract the attention of those a floor below the university’s roof, but he couldn’t help it.

“Hmm… I guess you’re right. Or perhaps you need to see, in more depth than the measly evidence the police department has collected, the true extent of that man’s activities. Your sister is pretty good at gathering up information, you know.” Alex’s mouth had once again twisted into a cold smile, and he gazed at Justin with a strange intensity in his eyes. 

“Wha – What do you mean? How is Sarah related to any of this?” 

Alex’s eyes travelled lazily from Justin’s now panting figure to the sky above.  

“You know, Justin, I hate righteousness. I have always hated people who wanted to do the right thing for a “reason” – whether that’s to go to heaven, or look good in front of others, or even look good in front of your own self. I find such people to be the most shrewd and cunning of all, who let their own ego and pride become inflated by this false sense of “doing good”. I hate it, I detest it, and it repulses me. If you want to do the right thing, you ought to do it for the sake of it. Doing good not as a means to an end, but as an end in and of itself…” Justin stood and stared at Alex, at a loss for words. He felt himself grow hot, and not because of the sun which had risen higher overhead. There was something else burning up inside of him – was it anger? Fear? He couldn’t put a finger on it yet. 

“Stop lecturing me, and answer! I know you killed the man – whether your intensions were right or wrong doesn’t matter. A crime is a crime.” Alex’s eyes suddenly opened wider, and seemed to be sparkling with excitement. “Yes! Yes! A crime is a crime! And every crime has a punishment! I know I was telling you to arrest me earlier, but… I’ve decided against that. The time for my punishment is not here yet. Speaking to you here beneath this vast sky has made me realize, I don’t want to be caged just yet.” Alex looked at Justin with a genuine smile this time, a sweet and kind smile which almost reminded Justin of his sister. There was something earnest in Alex’s expression, as he said “Let me kill a few more. I promise to bear the burden when the time is right. I will bear my punishment, and you will perform your justice. Let me go today, and we’ll pluck out a few more bad seeds.”

Justin felt a chill go down his spine as he listened to his brother in law’s words. “You… you have seriously lost it, haven’t you? What am I going to tell my sister?” Alex scratched the back of his head, almost sheepishly, and looked at Justin with his head cocked to one side. “You don’t need to say anything to her.  She understands everything – even better than I do. Honestly, she’s much smarter than both you and I. How do you think we executed the crime so smoothly?” 

There it was again. That strange sensation of heavy pulsation in his chest and neck, along with the blurriness of his vision. His hand, which was holding the gun, had fallen to his side, and he took a step backwards. “Sarah… she? What do you mean by ‘we’?” Alex put his hands in his pockets and shrugged, before continuing “Well, she was the one who sent you the video, you know. She’s the one who made it. We thought it would be easier to explain everything to you after, well, the ‘incident’ had occurred. She was sure you would confront me before involving anyone else in an official capacity to the matter, given that we are family. So! What do you say, my dear brother in law! Will you help us out on our quest to eradicate evil? With your sister’s intelligence, my knowledge and your gun, we could do a lot, you know!” 

Justin felt a slight ringing begin in his ears as he listened to Alex’s words. He stumbled further back and could barely stand up straight. His mind had gone blank by now, overwhelmed by questions, confused by the words he had heard, and in a way, he felt his heart begin to break. The image of his earnest and gentle elder sister began swirling before his eyes, twisting into a mockery of the person he thought he knew. It is true that the footage he received had been recorded on a cell phone, and had been sent to him on his personal number by an anonymous source. When he had tracked down the number this morning, the address which showed up was his sister’s apartment. He had assumed that Alex was the one to send him the video after having committed the crime, so as to turn himself in, which is why he didn’t show anyone else the footage and went straight to meet him at his university. There was something which had been bothering him the whole time, which he simply couldn’t shake off, and now was the time to ask that question. He looked at the gun in his hand, and then at Alex.

“Where did you get the gun?” 

Alex smiled brightly, and answered in a cheerful tone. “I’m glad you finally asked, Justin! Well, see, it’s not like we wanted to get you in trouble or anything, but… well, you are the only one in the family licensed to carry a gun so… when we came over to stay at your place the other night, Sarah and I made a plan where we could ‘borrow’ your gun for some time! Sarah was keeping an eye on you while I took it from your room. We left that night, went to that politician’s place, threatened to leak out information of what he had been doing unless he came and met us alone at the gate, and poof – job done! Honestly, it went much smoother than we had anticipated….  I do wonder about that.” 

Justin had gone pale by now and sat down on the floor. “You… why are you framing me? Once they find the body, they’ll know the shot... was taken from my gun.” He rushed to Alex in a spur and held him by the collar, barking out “Why did you do this? To get away with the crime? You knew I would never show them the video to protect Sarah! I will never let you go. I will be discharged from my duty due to my negligence but I will make sure you’re behind bars before that happens, and I will say you manipulated Sarah!”

Alex looked at Justin’s face with the same indifference as before. “This wasn’t to frame you, it was to make sure you join us. I guess it is a threat… Sarah and I have taken measures to get the body hidden for now, but yes, if it is found, then you would definitely be in trouble… Also, if you do ever come forward with the video, I’ll admit that Sarah was involved in planning the murder with me, and all of us go down. It is obvious from the video that there was a second person present at the crime scene. Is that what you want? For your sister to be charged as an accomplice to murder?” 

Justin suddenly let go of Alex’s shirt and collapsed, sinking to the floor, as fear pierced his heart. His sister – the only family he had left, the one who had taken care of him after their parents had passed away, the one who made sure he was loved, and cared for…. He could not imagine a world where she was the one suffering, at any cost.

“Hey… Justin. If you don’t join us, I’m going to drop a tip at the police station about where the body is, and let the mystery unfold – your gun, my crime, your sister’s involvement – it’ll all go downhill from there. So, come. Join us. It’s what your sister wants as well.” 

In an instant, Justin realized that he had been utterly trapped. Coming forward with the video meant that he would be putting his sister at risk of being apprehended. The alternative was to stay quiet and go along with whatever insane plan Alex was talking about. He also desperately needed to speak to his sister. Slumped down, he gazed at the patterns of dust on the white floor. “Why?”

Alex leaned back against the railing of the roof, and looked down at his feet. “Your sister and I want to be the ones doing the punishing for the crimes committed around us. We need your manpower, and your skill. I know, we have kind of cornered you for now, and you might hate us for it…. but we thought if we involve you now, in this manner, maybe in the future you will also see things the way we do. Our ideals will align, and we will be able to work smoothly, with no threats or lies. How does that sound? Working together to achieve a just world!” 

Alex looked at Justin with genuine smile. For a second, he looked like the ‘old’ Alex. His face radiated a kind of divinity Justin couldn’t put a finger on, and yet in that instant, it seemed like he could trust Alex with anything. A just world – a world where evil is punished. Like the drunk driver that killed his parents, and yet was never found or apprehended. He had always believed that there was a right way to carry out justice, even if the world is wrong and twisted. That is, within the bounds of the law. And yet... here he was, being forced to stand across the fence rather than within it. 

Justin continued to stare at the swirling patterns of dust, while Alex looked off at a distance, covering his forehead with his hands to avoid the striking rays of the sun from hurting his eyes.