The Beacon -Paul Lahote 2-

Chapter 32

Mavis had made a lot of bad choices in her life. She was young, and mistakes were bound to happen. But now, she had to make the right choice. It wasn't easy to leave behind everything she knew. Mavis had to make a choice. Save lives by leaving or visit Claus and see if he knew how to stop the deaths of her friends. There was no right decision. Either way, it was a risk. Mavis wasn't sure what to do, but she had to trust her gut.

The car came to a stop outside Bridgeport Psychiatric Institute. Mavis stepped out of the vehicle. Instantly, there was a weight on her shoulders. She felt as if something was wrong. There was a heaviness in the air. She felt as if she was sinking into the ground. The voices inside her mind had returned, and that scared her. The fear she felt was overwhelming, so overwhelming she ignored the instinct to run.

Mavis's desperation to save her friends clouded her judgment. Shaking off her hesitations, she approached the building. Each step was harder than the next. It felt as if her body was attached to a rope and it was tugging her back.

Mavis walked into the building, her eyes on the man she had seen last time. He seemed to recognize her. "Here for Claus Everton?"

"I am," she smiled at him. Although, her heart was racing in her chest.

"Visting hours are Monday through Thursday. Nine to five."

"Please," Mavis pressed. She needed to see him. It wouldn't be long before the Cullens realized she had fled. There was a chance her note would convince them to let her go, but if it didn't, and Claus couldn't help her, she needed to put as much distance between her and this place as possible. "I really need to see him."

The man sighed but grabbed his keys. It seemed to her that he didn't want to deal with the hassle of an argument. "Fine."

"Thank you."

He didn't respond. Like last time, he walked towards the door and scanned his key card. Mavis followed behind him silently. She had done this before. This time, the man was silent as he led her up the stairs to the third floor.

Mavis had several questions for the doctor. She needed to know if it was possible to change a prediction. She needed to know if there was time to save her friends. It seemed to her that she would be the cause of their deaths. Right now, she didn't understand. Mavis would never intentionally hurt them, but she knew what she saw. Paul was going to die because of her. She had to stop it. She had to save him.

They got to the third floor, and he opened the door. "You know where he is."

"Yeah, thanks." Mavis walked down the corridor towards the last room. She was determined to stop whatever was coming and hoped Claus knew what to do. "Claus," she stood in front of his room. "I need to talk to you."

Nothing had changed since she was last here. It was all the same. He sat in the corner of his room, a smile on his face. "Mavis Hale," he called her by her full name. "I knew you would come crawling back to me."

She cleared her throat. "I need your help." A chill went down her spine. Mavis looked around the area. Down the hall was a door. It sounded as if people were behind it—each of them clawing at the metal, begging it to open.

That caught his attention. "My help?" He set the book down. "With what?"

Mavis felt the weight on her shoulders get heavier. "I need to know if you can stop a premonition."

"What did you see that concerns you enough to stop the natural order of death?" There was something about his words that shifted something inside of her. "What did you see?"

"I saw my friends dying. All of them, and it was because of me."

"A unique ability you have." Claus had told her that before. "I told you once you open that door, you can not close it." He did tell her that, and she didn't listen to him. Mavis should have listened. "I knew you wouldn't listen."