Adelaide

Robin Kocher
ENG-122

I expected she would look older than a girl merely in the prime of her youth. After all it had
been, what, seventeen years since I had last seen her face. Yet there she was, just as beautiful,
and youthful, as I had always remembered her to be. How was that possible? Surely she had to
age, every one ages that is a part of natures course.
As she strolled toward me I felt myself start to panic. Well this is new I said to myself,
not entirely sure of why I was reacting this way. Adelaide and I had been friends once, so why
would I suddenly start to panic? I knew things hadnt exactly ended in the most ideal way
between us, still that was no reason to panic, she was harmless.
When we were young, Adelaide had fallen head over heels, story book, in love with my
older brother. With her long flowing black hair, eyes green enough to shame the most precious
of emeralds, and porcelain skin, she was the most desired young woman in three counties. So
naturally Beau had fallen for her in return. They would make the most beautiful couple ever
seen. Something right out of a fairy tale.
The engagement was short. Beau couldnt wait to marry the girl of his dreams. And
Adelaide, well she couldnt wait to be married either, and start her very own family. After all,
she was turning twenty two this year, time was ticking by for this young beauty. Before anyone
knew it, they were married and expecting their first child, a girl, Genevieve. This beautiful
young girl had beauty to rival her mothers, and was the light of Beaus life.
Shortly after Genevieves first birthday, things changed in my brothers house. They
went from being a happy fairy tale family, to being secretive, distant, and even cold. I could see
that something was wrong in my brothers eyes, yet he was never willing to talk to me about it.

And he certainly wasnt willing to let me into his home to discover things for myself. He
accused me of being to nosey, and not understanding my place in his new life.
It was then, that I realized just how much my poor brother had changed, and it wasnt for
the better. His eyes were sunken, his skin pail, hair disheveled. I wondered to myself if he
wasnt ill, but didnt dare ask, for fear of pushing him further away than he was already. I had to
figure out what was happening before I lost him, and my niece completely.
Just a short six months later, my Beau, my brother had disappeared. Adelaide accused
him of having affairs, said he probably ran off with one of these other women, but I knew better.
Adelaide and Genevieve meant the world to my brother. He would never abandon his family
like this, not when he had so much to lose. So where was he? Now, seventeen years later, my
brother was still a missing persons case, presumed dead.
Hello Adelaide I sounded rather sulky, and was embarrassed by myself in this moment.
Hello Melinda, you are looking rather well she replied. There it was again, that panic starting
to rise again. You look magnificent, like you havent aged a day since the last time I saw you.
How is Genevieve? She must be what, seventeen now? I would love to see her again. I was
starting to ramble.
Genevieve is well, she is away at a boarding school for gifted young women, but I will
be sure to let her know you were thinking of her. Adelaide looked rather irritated with my
presence. Oh, of course. We must catch up, I want to know all about your life since my
brother. Uh, I mean, well what I meant to say was, how have you been? I really seemed to have
no control over the words coming out of my mouth, what was wrong with me?

Adelaide raised one perfectly groomed eye brow in my direction, I have been well,
although rather put out having to raise a daughter on my own since being abandoned by your
brother. But that is all ancient history now. I have managed to make due. What about you, my
dear Melinda, I see that you have still not married or started a family after all these years. Surely
you must be aware that a woman of your age is running out of time she replied, looking rather
pleased with herself, clearly seeing that her words had cut right through me.
My brother would never abandon his family! Something happened to him, and Im
going to find out what that something was, youll see! Why was I shouting? She wasnt worth
the emotions I could feel rising within me. I turned away on one heel, prepared to storm away in
an attempt to show her how I felt, and instead fell flat on my face. What a day this was turning
into.
After putting myself back together, I managed to storm away, although without my
dignity intact. Feeling a renewed sense of determination, I decided I was going to go back to the
beginning of my brothers disappearance, and I was going to find out exactly happened. While I
was at it, I was now determined to figure out how exactly it is that Adelaide managed to appear
as though she had not aged a day. That of course was simply because I had had my feelings hurt,
and had no real relevance to my brothers case. However, I felt, at least temporarily, that finding
such trivial information would make me feel better.
My first stop was the police station to see if there had been any new information added to
the case report since I had last visited some years ago. Even though I knew deep down in my
heart there wouldnt be, it couldnt hurt to ask right? Upon arriving at the station, the lead
detective on the case noticed me and quickly got out of his seat headed in my direction. I knew
from the look on his face that he wasnt exactly happy to see me, even after all this time. The

last time we had spoken he informed me that I was nothing more than a pain in his departments
rear end.
Detective Monroe. I tried to sound light hearted and casual, although I was terrified.
Melinda. What are you doing here? I told you that I would contact you in the very unlikely
event that something new were to turn up with your brothers case the detective sounded a lot
more annoyed than I had actually anticipated. I understand detective, I was just in the
neighborhood and thought it worthwhile to check anyway. I am sorry. I would like to ask you
though if youve ever given any thought to the possibility that Adelaide might have had
something to do with my brothers disappearance I knew it was a bold question, and based on
the detectives face, he agreed with this sentiment.
Melinda. Do you really think that after all of this time, a thought like that wouldnt have
crossed my mind? If you think that you are more capable than I am of doing my job, then please,
by all means have at it. Honestly, I understand your desire for answers. I cant image what this
must be like for you even after all of these years, but I promise you Melinda, I am doing
everything I can, no matter how much time has passed, to try to get you, and Adelaide answers.
Detective, I appreciate all that you are doing, but theres just something not adding up. I
saw her today. Adelaide. She looks exactly as she did seventeen years ago. How is that
possible? What if she did something to my brother to remain young? Before you say anything, I
know how crazy it sounds, really I do, but please just think about it.
Youre right. It does sound crazy. There is absolutely nothing illegal about aging well.
Adelaide was dismissed as a suspect years ago. Unless you have something substantial for me to
go on, there is no way that I will even consider revisiting Adelaide as a suspect.

I understand, thank you detective. I will be back with new evidence though, I can
promise you that. I turned on my heel, feeling deflated and slightly hurt. I knew how crazy it
sounded, but I also knew deep down that I was right. I wasnt entirely convinced that her lack of
aging actually had anything to do with it, but I still knew she had something to do with Beaus
disappearance.
Almost a year later, I was still searching, although day by day I was losing hope all over
again. There was nothing, absolutely nothing that could possibly be found. Maybe everyone
was right. Maybe Beau had in fact just disappeared. Maybe it was possible for him to abandon
his family, change his name, go into hiding, and just never be heard from again. If he had been
dead, at least something would have showed up by now. Eighteen years is a long time for no
evidence of foul play to ever surface, or for someone to go without slipping up.
I was ready to put the past behind me now. I was moving on. I was going to bury all
hope. There was only one thing left for me to do. I was going to have to ask Adelaide for her
forgiveness. I had spent eighteen years hating her, blaming her, when I should have been there
for her. After all, she had lost a husband, and father to her only child. She had suffered with
Beaus disappearance as well. It wasnt fair to her that I had harbored all of these feeling for all
of these years.
As I approached the large, white colonial house I started to get an eerie feeling.
Something wasnt right. No, you cant do this again. You came here for forgive, and be
forgiven, not speculate or accuse I reminded myself. What was wrong with me? Why was it so
hard to let go of these feelings?

I was standing on the large wrap around porch talking myself into knocking on the door,
when I heard what sounded like a mans voice, weak and weary, pleading for it to stop. Please,
not again, I cant handle anymore. Please just let me die. It sounded like Beau! It couldnt
possibly be could it? Was that voice in my head?
I snuck around to one of the windows to get a better look inside. There he was. My
brother, after all of these years. He looked awful. He looked as though he had aged one hundred
years over the last eighteen. What was wrong with him? I had to get inside to find out.
Before I could start back toward the door to get inside I saw Adelaide coming back into
the room holding what appeared to be a cup and a blade of some sort. I stood horrified, my
imagination running wild, waiting to see what was going to happen next. Was she going to kill
him?
Adelaide looked as though she was glowing. Actually glowing, like there was a light
focused on her, no not on her, coming from within her. She appeared to be smirking. As she
slowly approached my poor brother I could hear her faintly whispering something. No it wasnt
a whisper, it was a chant of some sort.
She quickly took the blade and sliced it into my brothers chest. What was she doing? I
couldnt look away despite the horror. She was removing his heart from his chest, very carefully.
It was still beating. I didnt understand what was happening. She slowly, and methodically
started to pour the blood from my brothers still beating heart into the chalice that she held.
When she was finished she quickly shoved his heart back into his chest still chanting.
Impossible as it may seem, Beau quickly came back to, looking even older than he had just
moments before. Adelaide drank from the chalice, and suddenly looked even more radiant than

before. Now however she looked angry and frustrated as well. She started to yell at my brother
that he was no longer suitable for her. She needed someone younger, with a fresh heart.
It finally occurred to me what was happening, and I knew I had to move fast to get to the
detective and let him know what I had just witnessed, before the same fate fell upon someone
else.
She must have felt my presence there. Before I could move so much as one foot off of
her porch, she was standing beside me, smirking. I knew in that moment that I would be her next
victim. There was nothing I could do. I was suddenly unable to control my own body. I felt
myself walking into her house despite trying to tell myself to stop.
The next thing I could remember was kneeling in front of Adelaide, my heart pounding,
begging for her to stop. I swore that I would never tell another soul if she would just let Beau
and I go. Silly girl, your brother has given up his fight for his life. You however, still have
plenty of fight left in you. Enough to sustain me for many more years to come. It will be a
delight to watch you suffer the same fate as your brother after all of the hell that you put me
through. She then turned the blade in my direction. The world went blank for me after that.