The Originals

Chapter Forty-Two: Stoll Finnegan

As they were escorted outside, there were cop cars swarming the whole property. It was hell at Silverleaf. "Ah shit," he muttered as Orchid shot him a worried glance. "What—" He was frozen in time as he saw Madeleine thrashing against a police officer by the school, hysterical. Her mascara was ruined as she choked out a sob. She wasn't the history professor that he had grown to care for.

"Where are you keeping them? Where is he? Where's Sam?" Madeleine screeched as someone tried to force her into one of the cop cars. Then her eyes caught Stoll's gaze. "Stoll! Please. Stoll, please!"

Stoll wandered over to her, jaw tensed and with a limp. His leg ached, a sprained ankle, he guessed, but he had to bring himself to look Madeleine straight in the eye. It hurt, it truly did. "Hi, Madeleine."

"Oh, my boy," she whispered, laughing. My boy. A police officer shoved Madeleine against the wall, making Stoll flinch. "Don't struggle," the cop barked and for a split second, Stoll wanted to yell at him to not speak to her that way. But he stayed silent as Madeleine panted, her breath ragged.

"Stoll," she said breathlessly, "I'm sorry."

He shot a glance back at Orchid, still being questioned by Officer North at Silverleaf Academy's entrance. There was a large crowd of students and professors surrounding them, watching this play out. He looked away from them, focusing back on Madeleine.

"Why?" he croaked. "Tell me why, please."

She gave out a cold laugh, humourless and taunting. "I'm a history professor, Stoll, I've grown to learn about all the injustices that have happened in our society. Samuel Anders and Maya Bell deserved to keep the academy—" She wriggled against the handcuffs, only to be met by a hard shove again. "Bill Johnston stole this land! He's a liar! Stoll, why can't you see he stole your future? All of this is yours and Sam's!"

Stoll flinched again, but this time, at Sam's name. "So you killed innocent people?" His voice was rising and the anger came back like a flood. Steady yourself, he shut his eyes. "What the hell, Madeleine?"

"It was all for you!" she screamed as the cop got Madeleine back on her feet. She scowled as she was being escorted, but Stoll trailed after her. "It was for you and Sam," she breathed, also laughing. "He wanted everything everyone else stole from him again, he wanted justice. So, yes, we did things that were considered strange." Her words were carefully chosen since there was an officer next to her, anything she said would probably be used in court. Smart.

"But the gothic works..." That hurt Stoll's head. Why go through all the effort to make each death a painful and brutal spectacle? If they wanted to get back at the academy, there were certainly more quiet ways to do it. As Stoll stared at Madeleine being forcefully shoved into the car, it seemed the professor could read his thoughts. "What the fuck were your motives? Don't give me some half-assed answers."

"I'm sorry, Stoll. I didn't lie when I said I cared for you and your brother. I love Sam," Madeleine said softly, a trace of her smile that Stoll remembered so fondly playing on her pale lips. The way that Sam called her Maddy. "When you're older, you'll finally understand." That made his heart shatter.

"I don't want to see you ever again, Professor Xing."

Stoll swallowed hard as the cop slammed the car's door on Madeleine, locking her inside. Madeleine closed her eyes, shedding a single tear that slipped down her cheek, her pale lips pressed together tightly.

Stoll finally looked away, shaken.