the truth

Gleb overheard a conversation between Zhdan and Giers about the death of Isaakovich.

He didn’t fully understand what had happened or who they were talking about, but what shocked him was Giers’s indifference. It was nothing like the man Gleb thought he knew. Giers had always seemed to him like someone of a higher moral caliber, someone who didn’t belong in prison, for whom crime was something beyond acceptable norms. Valeriy often spoke to Gleb about his moral principles, how he couldn’t tolerate lies, how every life was valuable, and how, above all, people should remain kind and empathetic.

But the conversation between Giers and Zhdan was the complete opposite of everything Valeriy had ever said.

For Gleb, this was the final straw.

Many inmates and guards had warned him about staying away from Valeriy, saying he wasn’t someone to trust. Gleb had dismissed it all as baseless gossip or an attempt to push out someone who didn’t fit in—a kind of bullying of the "black sheep." He tried to convince himself of this and ignore all the red flags.

Yet sometimes, Gleb couldn’t shake the unsettling feeling he got around Giers—the emptiness in his gaze, the strange unease that crept over him. It was as if some deep instinct in Gleb screamed that he was in danger, but he couldn’t pinpoint why.

Wanting the truth, Gleb turned to Zhdan.

Zhdan was reluctant to share anything. He knew what Giers was capable of and how much Valeriy valued Gleb, so he wasn’t eager to cross that line. But perhaps Zhdan felt sorry for Gleb, or maybe he had his own reasons or plans involving Giers or Gleb—whatever the case, he ultimately decided to help.

Zhdan didn’t say much, but he showed Gleb plenty.

There were cold, hard facts: news articles, archival records, crime scene photos from newspapers. He told Gleb about the prison warden, his own scar, and backed every word with evidence.

In the end, Zhdan confessed he doubted that Valeriy truly felt anything for Gleb—or felt anything for anyone at all. Zhdan admitted he didn’t know how to explain it, but something was off about Giers—something you could see in his eyes.

And Gleb understood exactly what he meant.

It became clear to Gleb that Valeriy had simply used him, just as he had used everyone else in his life.

The perfect image Gleb had painted of Valeriy shattered.

All this time, Giers had seemed to Gleb like an innocent victim of circumstances and malicious people. Gleb’s mother often told him that prisons were full of people who didn’t deserve to be there—often the best of society, caught in the wrong place at the wrong time or who crossed someone with more power and money.

Gleb had been convinced that Valeriy was exactly that kind of person.

But the truth turned out to be the exact opposite.