Betrayal

Chapter 8

Chapter 8 – The Beginning

Ten Years Later

Adela was laying on her bed. She stared at the sleeping pills on her nightstand. She had been taking them for ten years in a row, since the day she saw her worst nightmare. She picked them up and took out three. The dosage of any lesser was almost nothing and did not work for her anymore. She placed them on the nightstand and decided to go out for a stroll.

She passed by her prior wing and as if driven by her intrusive thoughts, she started walking in it. Terror and dread filled her insides with every step. She took a deep breath and entered the room. It was just the way she had left it. Paint splashed on the walls and the carpet. The room was still as airy and beautiful like the way it always had been. Her eyes stopped at the spot her sister's murder took place and then almost immediately, looked away. She sighed and just as she was about to leave, she noticed something that was not there when she had left the place.

It was an envelope. She frowned at it and flipped it over. On the paper, in blood red ink, it read, 'to Adela Montego, from Margaret Montego'. Adela threw the letter and backed away. She tried screaming but no voice came out. She breathed heavily and looked around. There was no one there. She slowly walked towards the letter and picked it up again. She opened it and pulled out a photo of Adela's face marked with a cross and as she flipped it over, fear ran through her capillaries. There was a message. 'Girl, you have blood on your hands.'

Adela limped her way to her room. She placed the photo on her study table and took her sleeping pills. She laid on her bed and memories aligned with thoughts turned over her head. Slowly, she could feel the pills working. She felt dizzy, sleepy and almost as if obliged to sleep.

The next morning, she woke up with a headache. The pain was at first like a distant rumble of thunder. It slowly grew and Adela could feel her head spinning and turning over. She looked at herself in the mirror. Staring back, there was a girl of age 28 looking with the same light brown eyes and straight chestnut hair. Her eyes were bloodshot. She strode to her closet, which was the size of a hall. She slipped into a designer leather skirt and put on an oversized sage green blouse. This was what Eurus usually wore. She picked an emerald watch to match the outfit. Even her clothing style had changed the way Eurus did. The usual knock on the door came.

"Come in," Adela muttered.

Ann came in with a bunch of files.

"You need to attend a charity game coming weekend," she said.

"Alright. The signature ones?" Adela asked looking at the files.

"Just these," heaving them on the table.

"Oh my," Adela sighed.

Five minutes later, she made her way to the main hall. All three of her brothers were standing near the door.

"Finally! You took forever," Andrew said.

"The files took forever," Adela scoffed.

They got into a lamo SUV.

"Today is Eurus's death anniversary," Magnus sighed, "I understand, but it is important that we need to stop on our way."

"What's more important than that," Edmund whispered, his eyes red.

"We need to stop near the park around the corner as usual," Magus said hesitantly.

"Your communication network," Adela rolled her eyes.