My Meeting With The Devil

Chapter Six

♡ Chapter Six - Taking Control ♡

The large wooden doors of the building creaked as he pushed them open. He stepped inside and stopped in the middle of the grand entryway. He held his arms out and spun around to face Adelaide.

"Welcome to Greyholm my dear," he said. Adelaide stepped into the building. She looked around the room in wonder. It was beautiful.

"What is this place?" She asked looking back towards the man.

"It once was a hotel," he said turning and walking down one of the hallways. He motioned for Adelaide to follow. "Now however it is open to whatever use I desire for it. Today that use involves you."

"About that," Adelaide began to question. "What am I doing here? What do you want with me?"

"We are bringing out that fire of course." He said.

Oh yeah of course, why did I even bother asking? Adelaide thought to herself. The hallway was long, it had paintings of landscapes lining the wall. Adelaide reached out sliding her hand along the wall as they walked. The wallpaper was clearly old, this place hasn't been used in years she thought. She looked at her fingers now covered in a thin layer of dust. Soon enough the two reached the end of the hallway. They stopped and stood in front of a set of large doors.

"Here we are." He said looking towards Adelaide. Her chest tightened and she began to breathe fast again. "Are you ready to do what you were meant to do?" His gaze locked on her. She paused for a moment thinking to herself. Out of everything I thought would happen to me in my life, this was not part of the plan.

"Do I even have a choice?" She asked.

"Smart girl." He smiled at her. He reached out his arms and pushed the doors open revealing a grand ballroom. He motioned for Adelaide to step in first and she did. She looked around at the almost empty room, confused at its purpose. Near the center of the room was a chair, and in it sat a man. The man had a hood over his head, who he was and why he was here made no sense to her at that moment. She slowly began to walk towards him until she was just a few meters away.

"What is the point of this?" She looked back at the man.

"To bring out the pain." He smiled.

"But," she paused. "But you said."

"I know what I said." He raised his voice slightly. "That's why I am doing this." He took a deep breath and stepped towards her.

"I just want to put it all behind me, why can't you let me do that?" The tears in her eyes began to swell up.

"That's what I am doing!" He yelled and her heart dropped. He began to walk around her. "Don't you see Adelaide? I am doing what is best for you."

"Well, it sure doesn't seem like it."

"People let their pain control them, you do the same, but it does not have to be that way." He stopped in front of her. "That pain you feel deep inside of you," he pointed to her heart. "You will always feel it, Adelaide."

She looked at him, confused at what he was going on about. "What most people don't realize is that you don't have to fear it." He paused. "All that pain, that heartbreak, loss, it's all good." His voice grew softer. "It's all good."

Adelaide couldn't speak, she couldn't move. They just stood looking at each other for a moment. It can't be good, pain is not good.

"I... I don't understand." She said silently.

"Your pain is controlling you Adelaide and I, well I am here to help you gain control over it." He turned towards the man in the chair and began to walk towards him. "That is why this man is here today." He said ripping off the hood. "Welcome to the trail," The man yelled. "Court is now in session."

"What, does he have to do with this?" She questioned.

"The trail of the Hillside College shooter will now proceed. The man in front of the jury is accused of the killing of students at Hillside College common area on May tenth. Fifteen injured and six dead total. More importantly one Lyla Ann Black among the deceased."

The sick feeling began to return to Adelaide. It can't be? Can it? The thoughts swirled around in her mind.

"It can't be." Her voice cracked.

"The prosecution would like to present their first form of evidence." The man walked over to the shooter and lifted the sleeve on his left arm. "The very same tattoo described to police by the main witness, Adelaide Black."

"It's... it's him." She began to shake at the thought of the man in front of her. He did this to her. He did this to Lyla.

"The jury has found the accused guilty of the crimes." The man began to walk towards Adelaide. He reached behind him pulling out a pistol he had stashed in his dress pants.

"The penalty chosen for accused is," The man paused holding the gun out towards Adelaide. "Death by your hand." He smiled.

"What?" Adelaide looked at him in fear as she took one step back. He nodded towards the gun directing her to take it. She reached out her hand, it was shaking along with the rest of her body. The man walked behind her, he took her hand in his. He raised her arm out straight pointing the gun directly at the man.

"All you need to do is take back your control." He whispered in her ear. "Become who you were meant to be."

"I.. I can't" Adelaide looked away from the man, the tears beginning to fall down her face.

"Oh, but you can." He said grabbing her chin and pushing it towards the man in the chair. "But times running out." His hot breath beating down on her ear as his words cut through the air. Her mind raced. She wanted him to pay, pay for the death, the pain he brought her but she couldn't.

"Tick tick tick." The man said into her ear.

"He killed my cousin." She looked at the man in the chair.

"That he did, make him pay for his crimes."

"You did this to me." She began to cry. "You made me feel this pain, every night when I close my eyes all I see is you, you killing her."

"And it's your time to bring that pain to an end, Adelaide."

Her grief began to consume her. As she stared at the man the moments of that day replayed in her head. The image of her cousin at that moment kept replaying itself. She closed her eyes wanting it to go away, but it wouldn't. When she opened them all she could see was her cousin, standing behind the man. She looked the same, she smiled and her cousin smiled back. It was the first moment of happiness she felt in a long while.

"You're here." She said softly.

Her cousin nodded, the same smile on her face. The one that always fixed every bad thing that she went through when they were younger. Just when Adelaide thought things were okay she saw it, her cousins face dropped and the blood began to seep through her shirt.

"Lyla!" She screamed. Lyla opened her mouth, blood spilling out onto the ground.

"He did this to me Adds." Lylas gaze dropped to the man and Adelaide's eyes began to grow full of tears. She closed her eyes not wanting to see it all. "Addi, help." Lyla's voice rang in her mind.

"Do it." The man whispered softly into her ear. "Make him pay."

The noise of the gunshot ran through the ballroom, Adelaide shook and she slowly opened her eyes to see. See what she had done. The man's head hung back. She could see the blood dripping from the hole in his head. She lowered her arm, she left no emotion.

No pain, no guilt of what she had just done. Nothing. She dropped the gun on the floor and walked out of the ballroom, the tears now drying up.