The Mystery of Ariella

Fourteen: The Asylum part- two

She had waited for what seemed like what hours, the cool breeze had spiked up the hair on her arms. She was tempted just to walk back to the car and get inside, but from what she knew of Mag.  She had probably locked all the doors.

She thought of her principal, she imagined her a pudgy woman, with groomed hair and thin-rimmed glass, maybe with a leather agenda in hand. She would greet her with the ‘welcome to our school attitude’. It was actually a bit terrifying.

Before she had time to look back again the door opened, and the woman wasn’t really a woman at all. What stood in front of her was a stocky man, he was tall and from the lack of hair, anybody could’ve thought he was part of a biker gang.

      Ariella opened her mouth to say something but he beat her to it.                                    

      “Ariella Hite?” He asked, his voice sounding just as she had imagined.

      Ariella shifted uncomfortably in her place, staring at her polished shoes. “Yes that’s me… Are you the principal?” She looked up. He was wearing a thin black tee shirt and cargo pants. What a silly question, of course he wasn’t the principal.

      “No,” he laughed, “I’m not nearly as nice. He is stationed at our other school a few hours away. He likes to keep a close eye on the more… delinquent kids … But don’t worry,” he winked, “I have your back.”

      A second passed in silence before he decided to look over Ariella’s shoulder, to the eighties car parked on the side of the road. Ariella turned to where he was looking and saw her grandmother’s face flush green.

      “Is that your grandmother?” He asked, taking a step out of the doorway.

      “Yes, it is.” Ariella felt his hand on her shoulder as he gently pushed her aside. “Do you know her?”

      The man kept his eyes on her, not giving any sign that he actually heard her question. He started walking down the stairs and before she could think to follow him, he was already halfway to the car. Ariella watched as Mag’s face turned from scared to horrified, watched as she fumbled with the key, watched her look of relief as the engine started, and watched as her car’s tires screamed against the road as she floored the gas. The man was already an arms length from the window as she sped off, and Ariella couldn’t help but feel a sudden drop on her chest.

      Her steps seemed slow, like she was wading through a pool of molasses, and she could barely feel the touch of the man as he wrapped his hand around her forearm.

      He led her up the steps and inside, which blew a sudden gust of wind against her face. The images in her eyes were still blurred from the sudden tears that had crept up on her. But from what she could she, the inside was nothing as she had imagined it.

      The curtains were drawn giving the room very little light. The walls were painted with a thick grey, making it feel like she was stuffed inside a concrete block. On one of the walls was a series of pictures, featuring men’s facing wearing the same black suit with red tie. She guessed they were the ‘principles’ but she still could see their faces very clearly.

      On the other wall was filled with taped or stapled pictures of boys and girls, ranging in age and race, but they all looked the same to her, and she couldn’t quite figure out why.

      As she was switching her gaze back and forth between the two walls, the man grabbed the back from her should and disappeared into another room. Her vision was coming back into full focus and she finally got a detailed look of the room.