Chapter 5

For Caleb's statement to be accurate, the correct answer should have been "of course not".

In a few days, Marcus would discover that there were no cameras installed in the bathhouse and restrooms. After staying a bit longer, he would also learn that even in places with cameras, there were blind spots and instances of malfunction.

It wasn't some monumental secret. The reason for not upgrading the surveillance system was that the prison was already heavily guarded by correctional officers. There were also patrolling teams who were on duty around the clock. As a result, the need for surveillance cameras was not as critical.

At Southern Prison, the officers rarely relied on cameras. Only Caleb alone possessed a secret unknown to others.

The library was located in a corner of the administrative building's second floor. Further in, there was a storage room that the inmates had taken over.

Originally, the storage room had been filled with cleaning supplies such as mops and small carts. However, at some point, the inmate assigned to maintenance duty had moved these items elsewhere, leaving behind only two cabinets and an empty room.

During the harsh winters and scorching summers, some inmates preferred to avoid the cold or heat in the yard area. They also didn't want to read in the library, so those people would come to the storage room to chat.

Eventually, the room was fitted with picnic mats. Inmates began bringing snacks, turning it into a recreational room for their free time.

When Caleb was first transferred to Southern Prison, he reported this issue to the warden. There were no surveillance cameras installed in the recreation room, so it was a haven for inmates.

However, by then, the recreational room had existed for years without major incidents. As the warden wanted to avoid provoking the inmates, he ignored Caleb's concerns.

So, Caleb had purchased a pinhole camera with his own money and installed it in the recreational room, intending to capture footage of inmates violating prison regulations. He did catch a few inmates smoking in the room, but such minor issues were not enough to prompt any changes.

Over time, Caleb gradually abandoned his intention to interfere too much, though he kept the pinhole camera in the recreational room. Each time the inmates were out for their free period, he would turn on his computer to see what was happening in the room.

It could be considered both voyeurism and surveillance, but Caleb didn't feel any guilt about it. After all, they were just inmates, unlike his neighbor.

Well, his neighbor had now become an inmate too.

Returning to his office area in the library, Caleb collapsed into his office chair and rubbed his temples wearily. The built-up shock from earlier exploded all at once. His mind kept switching between images of Marcus dressed impeccably in a suit versus of him in prison garb. It made it hard for Caleb to remember who his neighbor really was.

How could a perfectly normal person end up committing a crime?

Caleb abruptly straightened in his chair and picked up the folder he had thrown on the desk, flipping to Marcus' profile page.

The height and weight matched his estimate pretty closely, but the education section glaringly stated "high school". This was far from Caleb's guess. He had always thought Marcus was a social elite, at the very least, someone who had obtained a master's degree overseas.

A sudden voice from above interrupted Caleb's thoughts, "What's up? Is he your ideal type?"

"You're insulting me," Caleb replied, relaxing his grip on the folder as he glanced at the man who had spoken, Hector Lewis, with a leisurely expression.

He said it without remembering that, until today, Marcus had been the subject of his fantasies for over half a year.

Casually leaning against the edge of the desk and crossing his arms, Hector teased, "Isn't he your ideal type? Just like me—tall and handsome."

Caleb grabbed the folder and smacked it against Hector's back. "Get lost."

In reality, Hector wasn't wrong. He was Caleb's ex-boyfriend, who worked as a doctor in the prison infirmary across the hall.

They had met through mutual friends and dated for two years before having a peaceful breakup. It wasn't that there was anything wrong with either of them—their personalities were just not compatible.

Having realized that his relationship with Hector was more like a friendship, lacking any of the passion typical of a romantic relationship, Caleb had initiated the breakup. Most importantly, he wanted a relationship built on openness and honesty, but couldn't share the secret of his voyeurism with his then-boyfriend.

Hector had agreed to the breakup without hesitation. According to him, he also felt that they were better suited as friends.

After the breakup, they occasionally stayed in touch. It was Hector's job at the prison that had given Caleb a new perspective. Before this, Caleb never knew there was a job that perfectly matched his peculiar interests.

Setting the folder aside, Caleb leaned back in his chair and continued from where he left off.

He sighed lightly. "This person is an inmate."

If Caleb had felt a pang of guilt about Marcus previously, it had now vanished completely.

An inmate was an inmate. No matter how alluring they might be, Caleb wouldn't be swayed in the slightest.

"Yeah," Hector said, his teasing expression fading as he sighed. "He's caused many families to be ruined."

"Really?" Caleb wasn't very familiar with this case or its specifics.

Hector elaborated, "From his most recent scheme, at least two or three people have committed suicide by jumping off buildings."

Caleb had long known that the stock market was risky, which was why he had never touched it. But many out there still hoped to strike it rich in the market despite the risk of losing everything.

"Many in the prison probably won't like him," Caleb said objectively.

High-profile cases like this one drew attention even from the inmates. And since Marcus had committed an act that stirred public outrage, it was inevitable that some inmates would want to take matters into their own hands.

"That's for sure," Hector said, pushing back his glasses with his middle finger. "Want to bet on how long it will take before he gets roughed up?"

"One week," Caleb replied.

"I'll bet three days," Hector countered.

Caleb was somewhat aware of Marcus' fighting skills and felt that the man would likely protect himself, so three days seemed a bit extreme.

He confidently proposed, "The loser treats the winner to dinner at a Michelin-starred restaurant."

"Deal," Hector agreed before suddenly thinking of something and changing the subject, "By the way, what about that blind date I set up for you? Aren't you going?"

Caleb looked away. "No."

"Don't say I didn't give you a chance," Hector said in a sage-like tone, patting Caleb on the shoulder. "You're going to end up lonely if you keep this up, buddy."

"Are you seriously telling me that? You?" Caleb brushed off Hector's hand. "What about you? Aren't you still single too?"

"We're different. I have a love interest, even though it's complicated. What about you?"

"I don't need one."

Caleb didn't need a love interest. He only needed someone to satisfy his voyeuristic interests to be content in his mental world. But now his sole object of voyeurism... Well, it was too disheartening to think about.

On his way home from work, Caleb saw a middle-aged woman carrying two cartons of milk outside a small convenience store near his neighborhood.

The woman was Lily, who lived behind Caleb's house. She was a very pleasant person. On weekends, she would occasionally share homemade treats with the neighbors.

Seeing her struggling with the heavy cartons, Caleb slowed down and stopped next to her, rolling down the car window.

"Get in, Lily. I'll give you a ride."

Lily's furrowed brow relaxed as she wiped the sweat from her forehead and sighed with relief.

"Thank you, Caleb."

Caleb's old habit of analyzing people hadn't changed. Though he and Lily were only casual acquaintances, he had instinctively deduced her situation from their few interactions.

Lily probably didn't have a man at home. Otherwise, tasks like carrying heavy milk cartons wouldn't fall to her. She likely had children, but they weren't around, which was why she enjoyed interacting with the young people in the neighborhood.

Caleb had a knack for reading people accurately. After chatting with Lily, he discovered that his guesses about her situation proved correct.

To this day, the only person he hadn't been able to figure out was Marcus.

-

At nine in the morning, while the other inmates were still attending their morning education session, the three new inmates had already submitted their test papers.

The test consisted of thirty multiple-choice questions and one short-answer question and was scored out of one hundred points. Regardless of how the inmates answered the multiple-choice questions, Caleb would award a decent score as long as the short-answer question showed a sincere attitude.

The papers submitted by the telecom scammer and young thug were quite normal, with at least a hundred words written for the short-answer question.

However, when Marcus handed in his test paper, Caleb immediately called out to him, "Is this your test paper?"

Marcus stopped in his tracks and turned to look at Caleb. "Yes."

"Why didn't you answer the short-answer question?"

"I didn't know how to," Marcus replied nonchalantly.

He then pushed open the door to the conference room and left under a correctional officer's supervision.

In reality, the short-answer question was very straightforward. As long as the response was a sincere confession, it would earn high marks from Caleb.

Having overseen so many new inmates, Caleb had never encountered one who didn't write a single word. Well, to be precise, Marcus had written one word under the question—"Answer".

Caleb had never expected inmates' handwriting to be particularly elegant, but it was rare to see someone like Marcus who couldn't even write his own name legibly. It seemed almost a waste of Marcus' good looks.

Caleb had always believed that a person's handwriting reflected their character. If Marcus' appearance earned him a lot of points, his handwriting deducted an equal amount.

When the tests were graded, Marcus' score came out to be 1 point.

To put it in perspective, each multiple-choice question was worth 2 points. Even guessing randomly would likely earn a person at least a few points. Yet, Marcus had managed to avoid all the correct answers, and only the single "Answer" written at the bottom of the page earned him that solitary point.

In fact, Caleb had been reluctant to give Marcus even that 1 point. He had always thought that a career in finance would involve a certain level of intelligence. Given the high-profile financial scandal, the main perpetrator should have been quite clever.

Now, Caleb's only thought was that with such a low level of intelligence, it was no wonder Marcus had ended up getting caught.