The Devil Within

Kornelius’s POV I am a terrible person. I don't deserve to live another day on this planet. Why has the earth forsaken me? Why has everyone turned away from me? It’s almost as if I no longer desire to live anymore. My heart is drowned with sadness and anger. Everything around me keeps falling apart, I have terrible insomnia and the little amount of sleep I get takes me down a memory lane of my family. I constantly close my eyes as an escape from reality to hide from the memories, but they keep finding their way back to me. Their faces. Their voices. No one acknowledges what I face. They tell me time heals, but with time, it changed me. I became quiet, cold, angry and completely heartless. Fear has many languages and I basically became fluent in them. That’s probably one of the reasons I became a detective. Grief has taught me a lot too, how easily one can disappear in the blink of an eye. And also how easy it is to cover up a death. I see them. Not specifically in my dreams but… I hear her, I hear them. I hear my baby girl wailing through the hallway. I hear my wife singing her favorite One direction song. Am I a lunatic? …1 year earlier.. *At 5pm* “ Honey, I got assigned to a case and I need to defend someone in court," I said. My wife exhaled because I was rarely home for dinner. “Just make sure you’re home before dinner, okay?” *My daughter ran to me with teary eyes* “Daddy, you never stay to read me my bedtime stories.” I bent to her eye level. “My princess, I promise I'll make it earlier tonight. We can also have a family game night. What do you all say?” My wife squealed in excitement. “Yes, we haven’t had enough time as a family lately, get home safe. Okay honey?” *I leaned in to kiss her on her forehead, while my daughter squeezed my legs* …on the way to work… I got to work, and it was so exhausting, my table kept getting filled up with paperwork one after the other. Time was moving way too slow. I woke up to my boss yelling my name from across the office. “Kornelius!..Kornelius!! It’s past 10PM. Get your ass out of this office, you lazy son of a-“ *I exclaimed* 10pm??? “Uh oh, i have to be home. No, no, this can’t be happening,” I said while rushing out the door, forgetting my blazer. I frantically scrambled through my work bag searching for my phone. I then feasted my eyes on“ 17 missed calls." As much as dinner was not enough reason to call that much, I started having this feeling in my gut that something might’ve happened. I dialed her number with haste. *calling….ringing…ringing… Leave a voice message for wifey or call back later”* *I murmured underneath my breath in anger. I hopped into my car with haste and drove as fast as I could. I hit a sharp turn to my local 24/7 local supermarket. *I wondered* .. What I could get my wife as a “Sorry I came home late present”. Hmm… probably flowers, i guess, but what even are her favorite flowers? *I ask myself* Well, anything should do, probably these sunflowers. aghhhhhh! *I exclaim* “There’s a tarantula on these flowers!!!!” *The worker runs towards me with a baseball bat* “Excuse me sir? That’s a dried petal,” she said. *I glance at her name tag* Well okay kaysha, I said in disgust. “It’s actually pronounced Keisha, sir,” she said while walking back to her counter. I grabbed the flowers. And asked,“ Are there any gluten-free cookies for 5-year-olds?” *she slams a box of cookies on the counter* “Is that all sir?” she asked. “Yes, yes, that should be it.” “That would be 12.95 sir.” I gave her a 20 dollar bill. *she calculated the change and handed it to me* I said “Thank you” as I turned for the exit. “Not even a dollar tip?” she said. *I turned around and threw a penny in her direction* *She looks towards it and scoffs* ………. I got into my car again. *I started the engine* It made a terrible noise and turned on, on the second try. I started speeding, overran a red light. Even hitting a stray dog in a hurry. I got home, searching for the right key to unlock the door without even getting to the door yet. The front door had an unusual creaking noise. I pushed it with my foot and it was unlocked, but the door wouldn’t open completely. It was as if something was set behind the door to keep it from being opened. I glanced through the living room without stepping inside. *Babe? Babe!…I yelled. Instead of a response, my voice bounces back as an echo. It sounded like a void. It felt like no one was home. I walked away from the front porch in anticipation of entering, with fear overpowering my sanity. I tried yelling her name once again, but I didn’t get a response. I backed away slowly to get to my phone in the car, I tripped on an object and as I picked it up in the dark it felt lubricated. I assumed it was one of my car tools my mechanic must have accidentally left on the porch. I wiped my greasy hand on my shirt. And as I scramble for my phone in the car, I reach for the interior light. Before turning it on, a car drove past the neighborhood with its overhead lights flashing. I used that opportunity to quickly look for my phone. I glanced at my shirt for a second in total horror. I began stuttering and shaking. “I-I-Is that blood, why is it red?” I realized the object I tripped on wasn’t a tool and was definitely a weapon because I had wiped the stain on my shirt. I picked up my phone that had fallen in between my car seats. I hoped it was just one of the silly pranks my wife would pull as a punishment for coming late. I tried her phone again while walking towards the front door. *Calling…Ringing…Ringing* I heard the ringtone, It sounded muffled like the phone was being hidden underneath something. I listened closely, and it was coming from behind the door. I pushed the door with strength, while turning on the flash of my phone because it was pitch black. I squeezed through the little opening on the door. I pointed my phone flash towards the back of the door to see what caused an obstruction. I braced myself for what I was about to see. My blood pressure dropped. And I yelled out the most painful scream.