In the pitch of night: When He Finds You

Chapter 47

Up in the conference room they were all gathered around the table. Thalia's parents were even with them. Holding on to Thalia's hand they listened to what was being said. They were discussing what to do next about Ezekiel. They were debating on keeping him alive or killing him.
"We have to kill him. He will never be able to be rehabilitated. There is just too much wrong with him." Cazmir said. "Look at his fucking teeth. Who does that to themselves? I will tell you who. Someone unstable."
That was true. The mother fucker filed his own teeth into points for no other reason than to look scary. "I agree with Cazmir. He can't be left alive. He will just do the same thing again." Maxius said.
"If we kill him we are no better than him. We can't kill him." This from someone down at the other end of the table.
This was going nowhere fast. No one could agree on what needed to be done. Everyone was on the fence about it. They needed to hurry and decide. There had to be a decision made one way or another. Either alive or dead. It wasn't too hard. The main question was were we like him or are we different. If it was him he would kill us all. There was no way he wouldn't.
"Let's take a vote." Xavier said. "All that wants him dead raise your hand." Only about thirteen of the thirty raised their hands. "All in favor of keeping him alive?" Everyone else raised their hands. "There it is settled. We will keep him alive and try to rehabilitate him. You never know we might be able to."
"This is a mistake." Thalia said angrily. "You aren't the ones that had been running. You aren't the ones that got kidnapped and tortured. You are not the ones that were kept prisoner for over a year and had god only knows what was done to them. I think the people in this room that were affected should get to make the choice. That would be me, Psyche and my parents. We should get the final say in this matter. I want him dead."
"I second that." Psyche said.
"Now Thalia." Her mother chided. "We don't want to be like him. So I side with keeping him alive."
"Thalia sweet heart, I have to side with your mother. We are better than him. We should do what he wouldn't do. We will keep him alive."
So even that way they would be tied. He really hoped they were making the right decision. He didn't want the man breathing the same air as Thalia but there wasn't nothing he could really do about it. The final decision wasn't his to make.
"But what about everything else he has done. He wiped out anyone that stood in his way. And we're just going to let him live. After all that he has done." Thalia demanded, looking around the table while standing. "Fine, have it your way."
Then she was storming out the door. She did have a point and he wished they could all see that. She was the one he was after. Standing up he took off after her. By the time he made it to the corridor she was already on the elevator and the door was closing. And the elevator was going down. He could only imagine where she was going. She was going to go and take care of Ezekiel herself. Disappearing then reappearing in front of the elevator door he made it just in time. He shoved his hand in between the gap to get the door to open again. Then he grabbed her by the shoulders and pulled her out of the elevator.
"Don't do this Thalia. You are better than him." Maxius said quietly. "You really don't want to do this. You are just angry."
"No, I want to do this. You don't understand. He was after me. Not anyone else. Me!" She hollered. "Don't you get it. If he is alive I will never be safe."
Then he wrapped her in his arms. "He will never get to you again. If he does he will die. I will promise you that. I am sorry I didn't kill him when I had the chance. I should have killed him out right."
"You don't understand." She pounded on his chest. "I will never be safe if he is alive. I never will. There is always a chance he will get free. Or what if he pretends he is good and they let him go and he comes after me again." That is when the first tears hit her cheeks. "Just let me do this. I need to feel safe. I have never known what it was like to be safe."
That he thought was the absolute truth. She had truly never been safe. Not since the day she was born. Once Ezekiel heard about her he came after her. He just held her tight in his embrace and kissed her on top of her head.
"We are better than this. You will see this is the right decision."
"Oh the Thalia." Thyme said flying over and landing on her right shoulder. "Do not the cry. We will keep the Thalia safe." Then Thyme patted her cheek and wiped away her tears. "Just think. The big the bad the ugly is locked up for now."
When he looked back down at Thalia she had a small smile on her face. "The big the bad the ugly huh? I think that name fits him perfectly." Then to Maxius she added. "I hope this is the right decision."
Then he watched her take a deep shuddering breath and exhale. She seemed to get her emotions under wraps. Even if she did have every right to be upset.