Will she won't she

Stumbling onto the beach, the voices intensified, surprising Darla. She called out to a familiar one, "Daddy is that you?"

"Why, Darla, why, wasn't I a good father to you?" "Why did you kill me?"

"I didn't mean to daddy, I really didn't!"

Funnels of sand swirled around. She could barely see the wind was so strong. Sands stinging her face. A different voice shouting at her.

"Wasn't I good to you?" "Darla, wasn't I?" "How could you do me this way?"

"I loved you, Ricky!" "You shouldn't try to leave me!" "That's always what happens!" "They're always trying to leave me!" "It's not my fault you hear me!!"

The others watched from on top of the dunes. "I'm going down there to help her." Mike started to run. Charlene pulled him back. "No, it's her journey, let her be."

The sand funnels stopped and hit the ground "thud".

Darla was on her knees wiping away the sand and hair from her eyes, laughing hysterically and weeping.

"I deserve to be happy, and I'll do whatever I can to protect myself." "What's mine is mine!!"

She tried to stand up. Suddenly the sand started to shift and move around her like little crabs, but at a further glance. It was fingers, hundreds of little fingers wiggling through the sand and formed hands reaching towards and out.

"What the heck?"

Darla jumped to her feet. They stretched to reach for her, clawing at her clothes.

"No stop!"

Darla broke loose and started running towards the dunes to escape. The hot sand became even hotter, almost unbearable to run upon. She was almost there. She didn't realize she was running across glass now. She slipped and fell backwards, hitting her head.

"Crack!"

Dazed, she shook it off and turned over facing the glass sheet beneath her. It was a gateway to hell. She could see hundreds of people writhing in pain.

Standing on top of the dunes, Mike, Charlene and Maggie watched everything unfold.

"Pop" "Crack"

Darla struggled to stand up. Afraid that the glass surface would break, she backed off the sandy glass carefully watching the glass splinter under her feet. She looked down through the glass.

Mike looked at Charlene with pleading eyes. "Can't we do something?"

"I'm not supposed to interfere. I'm sorry."

"Then let me go! Please!"

Charlene released her hold. "What can you do?"

"Try!"

All of a sudden, the people had disappeared and smoke filled the area. Squinting to get a better look, Darlene peered down into the glass surface.

Something was quickly approaching. A flame flickered in the distance. Darla saw an outline, and she immediately knew what it was. Her heart sank. It was Asbeel approaching fast. It was too late to run. She closed her eyes tightly and braced for the impact. Asbeel broke through the glass, sending Darla up in the air. She quickly fell straight down into the hole.

"No!"

Mike sprinted down the dune as fast as his feet could carry him. But it was too late by the time he reached the bottom. She had already fallen in the pit.

Asbeel walked across the beach dragging his leash. Mike sank down in the sand and watched the pit slowly close up.

Maggie and Charlene made their way down the dune. Maggie reached down to touch Mike's shoulder.

"Michael, there's nothing you could have done." "Those demons that Darla was fighting." "She had been fighting them for a long time."

Michael looked up at Maggie, smiled and wiped the tears from his eyes.

"Thank you Ms. Maggie."

Mike stood up and walked toward Charlene. She had her back turned to him.

"You're not fooling anybody! I know this is affecting you. You're not this cold."

"You're still not understanding me. Interfering can affect where you end up at. So I keep my opinions to myself."

"You mean to tell me watching her die like that doesn't bother you."

"Bother me a great deal, but what you don't understand is, if I interfere." "She could be going somewhere." She turned her back and spoke trying to hide her face under her hood "She's not supposed to be going."

"Any place can be better than where she ended up at!"

Mike grabbed Charlene's shoulder and twirled her around to face him, still holding her in his hands. Pointing at the spot on the ground where Darla fell through.

"Nobody deserves that!"

Charlene broke his embrace and looked him dead in the face.

"Nobody huh!"

"What about all the people she killed! All those hands."

Charlene started wiggling her fingers in his face.

"Those were the people that she had killed. You know why she killed them. They either threatened to leave her or they didn't do something she wanted. She felt threatened and she killed them. You still want to stand there and proclaim that she didn't belong there!"

"I had no idea, she looked so normal."

"Most serial killers do!"

"I'm sorry it won't happen again."

"We don't really have to worry about that now. Do we, unless Ms. Maggie's hiding something, which I strongly doubt? We should have smooth sailing from here on."

"Right Ms. Maggie?" Charlene peeped around Mike to look at Maggie.

"Oh! Goodness, me, no." Maggie became pinkish in the face. "I don't know about you two young ones, but I'm sick of sand. Can we get out of here?"

"OK, you can lead the way."

Charlie shook off the sand and proceeded to walk. It took a little while before the sand became sidewalks, became concrete, then asphalt. The kind you would find in the parking lot.

"ReNew."

"I'm here Char."

"You see what it says about Mike's death?"

"Yes. He was killed by bullies."

"Location?"

"At the local Galleria's Food court."

"I can't ReNew not right now! We have to change the scenery to do something!"

The mall's parking lot was filled with cars.

"This looks so familiar." "I know this place." Mike started walking faster towards the entrance.

Charlene picked up the pace and walked as fast as she could to catch up with Mike. "Wait, Mike, wait!"