March 24, 1996

The only sound in the large room was the ticking clock that stood on the wall, ticking away. Moments passed by in long, agonizing seconds, the clock just ticking away. The sunlight filtered through the curtains, lighting the otherwise damp and dark room.

Greg Stillson sat in the leather chair in his office, leaning back studying a folder in his hand, flipping slowly through papers. Every moment or so, he would glance at the man sitting opposite to him in another chair, waiting calmly. The clock continued to tick away. Greg Stillson closed the folder shut and leaned forward, elbows on the desk and his hands folded underneath his chin.

"You have quite a history here Sonny. Used to serve in the military a few years, came back, moved here in 91'."

"That's right, Mayor," Sonny Elliman replied

"No, no, call me Greg, please. Let's see… assault, DUI..." Stillson continued to read out his crimes from the folder. Sonny had enough and was beginning to get annoyed. He didn't want to play any cute games.

"Yeah, so what," Elliman snapped.

Greg's face turned dark and he stood up slowly. He didn't like to be interrupted. "You better be careful, Sonny. You don't want to mess with me. Not many people in this town like you too much, but I do. You better listen to what I have to say, or I can put your ass back in jail where you belong."

Sonny kept his mouth shut, a pair of angry eyes set on Stillson's.

Greg started walking around the room. "You need a job, I need an assistant. You've got a lot of potential and I could definitely use you around here." Greg stopped right behind Elliman, angry eyes still fixed in his head. "You believe in destiny, Sonny?"

Sonny was baffled by the question. "Why?"

A smile eclipsed on Stillson's face. "Because I do, Sonny."

Greg walked toward the window, looking out at the city of Ridgeway. The buildings, while small, were breathtaking as the setting sun on the distant horizon shined rays which reflected off the windows. Ridgeway was a city of gold. Stillson squinted as the sunlight shined down on him. "See that city out there? I control it. I have power. I'm authority." He turned back to Elliman. Stillson's demeanor turned dark. "And let me tell you something, Sonny. I like it. It's like having something you'vealways wanted, something so great that not evenright in the palm of your hand." Stillson gave a sinister smile. Then his expression went dark again. "But I can't help feeling… something's wrong; that there's something more, something better. I know there is, Sonny. It's like a thousand little voices in my head screaming… screaming that I can have more." Sonny noticed the devilish twinkle in Stillson's eye. "That I can have it all. I want it all, Sonny."

Sonny's expression went from angry to curious. He couldn't help thinking that this man in front of him, a mayor in a relatively small town of Ridgeway (and doing a damn good job of it, too), was a man completely different then who he thought he was at first. Sonny Elliman was not very impressed with many people, but this man… this mayor, was something. He's not just a small town, hick mayor, he was something more. Sonny believed no one. Not since his military days. He lost respect for authority and command. He respected only himself, because he was the only man who could be trusted. But listening to Stillson and his speech, he couldn't fight the fact that he believed him. He might be a little crazy, but he believed him. And that scared him. Nothing ever scared him.

Sonny never usually felt like this. Never. He never felt this way about anybody for a long time. He studied the mayor with narrowed eyes, trying to find out if he was mistaken. It was all too good to be true, he thought to himself. But the more he thought about the more he knew this man was very, very much the guy he knew he was. Sonny saw the fire in his eyes.

Elliman asked, "What kind of job you had in mind?"

Stillson simply smiled. "Sonny, this is the beginning of a great friendship…"