Reclaiming Souls by Arielle Caldwell

around and couldn't find anyone nearby so I headed for the judgment room, thinking maybe there were all there for some reason. I walked in and all the Collectors were sitting in the rows. No one was talking. I searched the crowd for Kellin or Lexie. When I spotted them, they were sitting across the room at the very top. I crossed over and walked up to sit by them. “Hey, what's going on?” I whispered.
    “Shh!” Lexie gave me a dirty look.
    I sat down by Kellin who leaned over and whispered, “Judgment day for one of the biggest serial killers. We don't know who he is just that he's killed a lot of people. Creator wants us all here for it. Didn't you hear the calling for us?”
    I shook my head.
    A horn blew loud and obnoxiously. Everyone watched the door as it squeaked open. A man shackled in chains was brought in. His head was down and he shuffled his feet. Slowly, he made his way to the front where the podium was. The large, majestic doors in front of him opened and the Creator himself walked out. Everyone gasped.
    “What's going on?” I again whispered.
    “He never comes out for these. This must be pretty bad,” Kellin responded.
    “Well, yeah, you just said he was a serial killer.” I turned my attention back to the man in shackles below us.
    “Cristen Oblevek, you are charged with the murder of over one hundred women. What do you plead?” the Creator boomed.
    “I don't know what you're talking about,” laughed the old man.
    “Do you really think you can lie to me? You can't even admit the error of your ways? It's taking everything in me to not crush your soul and just make you disappear but that would be too lenient of a punishment. You will go to straight to hell for your crimes. The hounds will tear you to shreds and when they're done, you'll regenerate and they'll do it all over again. The pain you feel will be nothing compared to what you've made all those women feel. I do not pity you but I am sad. Sad that such a promising human blew it away and ruined the lives of others with no remorse.”
    For the first time, the man looked up. Jackson, Lexie, Kellin, and I all gasped in horror. The three of them looked at me. It was the man who killed me. I stood up. “Sit down!” Lexie hissed.
    I ignored her and continued down the stairs. The Creator looked over at me and watched as I made my way down. “Do you have something to add, Devalynn Rose?”
    I didn't speak until I stood behind the man. “You. You took my life from me. You tortured me for days before throwing me, alive, into the ocean.”
    Cristen turned his head a little and glanced at me. “You were number nine this year. A bit of a slower pace than what I was used to.”
    “Do you want to know where I was going before you took me?”
    “Not really.” He turned away.
    I walked in front of him. “Too bad, you're going to know. I was going to meet my boyfriend outside of town for my birthday. You took that away from me. You took away me ever having a chance at being happily married, at having children, at having a life. Now I'm here, bringing back souls that were given a second chance. I never got that second chance. I watched you with number ten. I saw you carve into her hand and died a little more as she cried in pain and agony and here you are...you don't give a damn about what you've done to us all! My boyfriend died looking for me!” I paused for a minute.
    Everyone was staring at me with hands over their mouths. “I don't hate you anymore. I don't forgive you but I don't hate you. You're about to experience a pain worse than you've ever felt and it's going to last for eternity. I hope you enjoy your own created hell.”
    I walked away as fast as I could and bolted outside and then I ran to the stars. I jumped from star to star until I was so far away from everything; the only thing around me was the darkness and the twinkling of stars. I sat on one and stared off into space...literally. I felt a strange liberation at being able to