Alfred feels happy that he woke up early and he is going to see his friends once again. He decides to buy envelopes, books and pens so his friends could write letters for their parents.

Warder Luke walks to Scar’s cell. He looks angry but smiles when he met him by the gate of the cell.

“What are you doing to those foreign boys?” he says as he gets closer to him.

“I didn’t do anything wrong,” he claims.

“If anything happens, you will have me to deal with!” he looks straight into his eyes.

Warder Luke clicks his tongue and pushes him side. He walks away checking the cells. Scar didn’t notice that other prisoners were looking at him. He strikes the wall with his fist. He cries in agony and shakes off his hand. His gang laughs, he looks at them with fury. He walks inside the cell looks at his hand which already looks red and pained. One of his gang members, Shebby, walks to his bed and sits next to him.

“Boss, what must we do about those foreign–” he starts asking.

“Nothing will happen to those foreigners. Do you hear me? If you do something, that idiot Luke will know it’s us,” he answers harshly.

“But-” Scar slaps him on the cheek.

“Are you dumb?” he shouts and walks to the gate.

“If anyone put us in danger with Luke I will deal with you,” he said pulling the knife.

It’s breakfast time. They all walk to the dining hall. Scar and his gang sit at the table close to Tendai and Innocent. They sit with the same group who doesn’t like gangs as always. Innocent notices Scar isn’t threatening them as he usually does or even looking.

“What do you think happened?” Innocent asks.

“Maybe it’s an act. They are planning to strike when we are not looking,” Tendai answers glancing at him.

“Who are you talking about?” Tom asks, drinking his tea.

No one responds but they look at Scar. Tom finally knows who they talk about. Tom is their next door cellmate.

“I happen to know you aren’t Zulu or Khosa (Xhosa) or Sotho. You always speak in your fancy English as if you are white,” he chuckles.

The other group looks at them seriously. Dave then looks at everyone on the table. He looks at Tendai’s eyes.

“I think someone reported Scar, you boys are lucky,” he says and everyone nodded in agreement.

The Warder calls out names of those with visitors. Tendai expected their names to be called.

“You are becoming regulars,” Tom laughs as the two man walk out the dining hall.

Alfred sits with a book and pens. He needs two so they can write at the same time. The visiting time is only forty-five minutes. He stands up and hugs them.

“Is Scar still harassing you?”

“No,” Innocent responds.

He tells them to write letters to their mothers.

“I wish I could turn back the clock, I would have been somewhere,” Innocent says sadly chewing the cap of the pen.

“What is done is done. Let’s move forward now and pay for our sins. It could have been the three of us but you made something of yourself,” Tendai says cautiously.

“Thanks for everything. And if you did something about Scar, we are grateful. Thank you again!”

The letters are folded. Tendai has warned his siblings to go to school and to never take short cuts. Alfred hugs them and leaves. He decides to leave at night as it’s easier to drive than during the day. He can rest in Masvingo and carry on his journey.

He arrives in Harare around 3pm and then sleeps.

The next morning Alfred wakes up at 8am and bathes. He eats his breakfast, then notices and grabs the letters, he has to deliver them. Innocent’s mother is happy but decides not to give her husband the letter. She hides it.

Tendai’s mother is relieved, his siblings smile when they receive the letters. Innocent’s father won’t accept his. Innocent has been an ungrateful brat while his father gave a better life while he didn’t want to finish schooling.

Innocent looks at the sun through the window every morning thinking about his mother. He feels he has shamed her but knows that he loves her and she will forgive him. She always protected him even when he was wrong.

Tendai is now enjoying the prison life because no one is tormenting them but he hopes his family isn’t suffering. If he could turn the clock he would be someone respected by the community.

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