1927: Redemption

Death

“It is said that your life flashes before your eyes just before you die. That is true, it's called Life.”

2021-DECEMBER-FLORIDA

“Dead" is a transition of matter and soul, as there is no creation or destruction of energy, both become recycled, returned to whence they came.

Adeline watched in horror and wondered from where the hell did this Beast come into her life as she had never seen someone fight with the ferocity he had. His face was an emotionless mask, but she could see and feel the fire burning deep in his eyes.

He was different, he had an animalistic way of killing that was foreign to everyone on this planet at this point. The beast followed no rules, no style, no technique. He used brute strength and speed to end his victim’s life in the most painful way possible.

Even with all of these facts in mind; why did Adeline still feel safe around him?

Was it because he saved her life five years ago?

The beast turned to the last man who was much smaller than his companions. This man was smarter than his friends as he turned to run but he had waited a moment too late, the beast grabbed the man by the back of his neck and slammed him to the ground.

Adeline wanted to turn her head, she really did, but her eyes were glued to the man lying on the ground, his eyes seemed to glow in the barely lit subway as the inevitability of his death dawned on him.

It was not just the blood that she hated the most, nor the gore of killing. What she hated the most about death was the look in the victim’s eyes when realisation set in. No one could truly accept the end of their life, not until they stared it in the face. The realisation that crossed their vision was both astounding and heartbreaking. The moment they truly understand life as they now knew it was over.

Death always reminded her of that unforgettable night when she saw her grandfather lying in the pool of his blood with the exact same look in his eyes!

The Beast looked out of control when he shoved his claws into the man’s chest with a sickening tearing sound and ripped his heart from his chest. Her eyes were locked on the bloody organ as he crushed it in his hand and threw it on the ground.

Four men down!

Adeline sucked in a sharp breath, and she hadn’t realised that she had been holding it this entire time.

Staring at the beast’s profile, she was unsure of what to say and how to feel. She should be petrified right now, also should be scared from seeing four men brutally murdered. The fact that they had come here to harm her did not change a thing.

Well, not caring about anything in this world, he wiped the fresh blood from his hands on one of the men’s shirts and stood motionless.

Turning toward Adeline, his eyes were still blazing, but there was certain cautiousness to the way he looked at her. Like a lion watching a startled deer, or well like a wolf.

Approaching her slowly, Adeline watched his every move. His eyes still had small golden flecks swirling within them, and his jari had some splatters of blood within it.

As much as she wanted to take a step back and run away, Adeline couldn’t. Something in his gaze rooted her to the spot and filled her with a strange sense of safety.

She could feel herself slipping, and she desperately did not want to break down in tears. And she was determined to hold herself together.

But, for how long?

The Beast or her stranger was only a few feet away from her now, he did not slip away from her into the dark like before, he just stood there stoic as ever. And, Adeline felt herself move forward. Flashes of blood and lifeless eyes ran through her head as she collided with the Beast’s chest.

Adeline was not thinking about his aversion to being touched, she did not care at that moment. She just needed some form of comfort, of security to get her through these next few moments, or in Ace’s words, she needed a shoulder to rely on and he was right. The Beast was indeed her shoulder.

Her face slammed into his hard chest, as she wrapped her arms around him for dead life. The itchy fabric of his long sleeve shirt rubbed against her skin, and she could feel the sticky blood that had seeped into his clothes. The smell of fresh blood stung her nose, but his scent was also mingled in the putrid smell.

Not exactly sure what to expect, Adeline clung to him, and she visibly jumped as his large arms came gently around her back. Well, there was no need to be afraid as he was the same man who cooked lunch for her sometimes.

He stood silently, his clothes arms resting against her back as she took the time she needed to compose herself. A few deep breaths of his scent and warmth from his body eased the dead that she had been feeling. Adeline was not afraid anymore, but she was completely exhausted.

Pulling away from him, she let out a shaky sigh. She could not stop herself as her eyes roamed over the four dead men on the counter.

“Don’t look.” He spoke, his voice deep and rough. That was the first he spoke after that night when he gave her Jack’s diary. Adeline felt herself shiver, only this time it was not from the cold. He stepped in front of her line of sight and blocked the dead bodies from her view.

“They are not the first dead body I have seen.” The words came from her lips before she could think them through. She was surprised at how her voice sounded, almost like an Alpha Male. Indeed there was sadness in her voice, but also longing and a strange sense of conviction.

Her eyes met his and she did not argue when his hand grasped her arm and she immediately felt electrified as if an ample amount of energy flowed through her veins whenever he touched her as he led her up out of the subway, He turned his body, blocking any view of the dead men she may have. If only he knew the damage had been done five years ago. She had seen each of their eyes, and the light of life that had left them.

Death wasn’t something she relished in, and nobody could ever enjoy death.

It’s inevitable, but we still try to fight the journey of life that ends with death, and that is fate, everything ends and begins with DEATH.