CHAPTER 21
THE PUNISHER
Ah, yes, the existential dread that gnaws at my soul, leaving a gaping wound where emotions should reside.
It’s no big deal, really. After all, aren’t we all just masterful puppeteers, manipulating our strings to feign genuine human connection?
But alas, there always seems to be one person who sees through the performance.
Sal, ever the perceptive can discern the truth behind my well-crafted mask, tethered not by love or commitment, but like a man sticking with his wife because she’s got the plastic card that keeps the lights on and the fridge stocked.
I shouldn’t be so hard on him. Through every moment – every storm this family has faced, every bad decision my father made that dragged us into hell – he was there. Unwavering.
But it took one girl, this girl, not Sal to open my eyes to what I had been blind to for so long.
I had been born into a gilded cage of power and wealth, where I have had and can have anything I could ever want.
But beneath the veneer of opulence lies a shadowy secret, a secret darker than the darkest night.
A secret so vile among the world’s elite, and that burden is now mine to bear. It’s become my burden, my… curse.
The Wilderness Warfare Games are no longer under his control – they’re mine now.
With my ascension, I inherit the land, the power, the chaos.
I can shape them, wield them, bend them to my will, or just burn the fucking lot down.
But the shadow of my father stretches long behind me, a ghost that clings to this legacy, this nightmare, this burden, but soon, it will be mine to command.
Beneath the stone edifice lies a subterranean fortress, where the twisted dance of pain and pleasure intertwine.
In this shadowy realm, the Wilderness Warfare Games can become my ultimate playground.
The inevitable ascension will grant me the power to reshape this dark dominion as I see fit, but until that moment arises, I remain a mere pawn, meticulously plotting and biding my time, inching ever closer to overthrowing the king and claiming my rightful place on the throne.
Sal dealt with the Albanians while I kept my mouth shut, my silence the only choice with their numbers stacked against us.
The transaction was quick – money for the cargo.
No arguments, no commotion – just how Sal preferred it.
They left as smoothly as they arrived, but the unease lingered long after.
Back at the coto , Carlos and his wife were already waiting, the hatch yawning open as I reverse up to its entrance. The van doors creak as I swing them open, the cold air meeting the unsuspecting faces. One by one, I guide each girl down, their faces pale in the soft light of the corridor.
‘Stay here, Sal,’ I command, my voice low as I step into the shadows of the cells. The air is thick, damp, carrying the faint stench of sweat and fear. I knew that smell well. My eyes dart from one girl to the next, scanning their faces, their hollow stares.
‘Looking for someone, arsehole?’ a girl spits, her brown eyes peering from the shadows.
‘Maybe,’ I reply, unbothered.
‘Well, I won’t tell you shit.’
She’s not quite defeated. Not broken – not yet.
‘Do you know something?’ I step closer. ‘I’m looking for a girl. Yay high, with cinnamon-brown hair.’
She spits again, the glob landing near my boots, her eyes blaze, daring me to react.
‘Tell me, damnit,’ I snap, my patience fraying. ‘Sorry.’
‘What’s in it for me?’
I reach into my pocket, and pull out a Snickers bar, holding it as a silent bribe .
‘Give it to me!’
‘Tell me what you know first.’
‘A girl, as you described was here. They took her away, a couple of hours ago.’
‘Who?’
‘That bitch.’
I hand the desperate girl the chocolate, her hands clawing at the wrapper like a rabid animal, and when it falls to the floor, I pick it up, slowly shoving it into my pocket before anyone knows what I had done. I turn, heading back to the van.
I glance around, Carlos smirking. ‘We’ve got a full house tonight.’
I give a curt nod as I climb back into the van.
It takes all of my strength not to get out and slit his throat for taking my girl, but I know it wouldn’t change anything.
Not now. The invitations have already been sent out, and tonight, the place will be crawling with some of the world’s sickest fucks.
If I lose control now, it’s likely I’d die before I can see Tarran, and these bastards would just carry on as if nothing had happened.
‘Why do I get the feeling shit is about to hit the fan, boss?’
‘She’s not here. We’ve got one chance at this. If we don’t find her tonight…’
Sal rests his hand on my arm. ‘Then we better make sure I reserve a booth, cause we’ll be bidding.’
Tonight’s auction has drawn some of the world’s high-profile people, including a few well-known A-list celebrities.
And the compounds armed guards are testament to the lengths taken to ensure everything goes smoothly – or as smoothly as such a sinister event can be.
The thought of these people returning home to their families after this weekend’s events is a bitter pill to swallow, but my focus has to remain on the task ahead.
But I’d be fooling myself if I didn’t admit to having my own fun.
I steel myself for what lays ahead, the dark corridors, the tense atmosphere, and the ever watchful eyes of the guards all serving as a backdrop for the night’s grim proceedings.
This was a world I knew all too well, where pain and pleasure are intertwined, and Sal and I are about to step into the heart of it all.
Fortunately Sal has a way with words, which secured us a booth last minute. He also managed to ingratiate himself into a few circles to find out if anyone knew where the girls were being held, but to no avail.
‘Only prize winners will be taken to the location,’ he shrugs. I knock back the remainder of my whiskey, licking my lips, relishing in the sharp sting at the back of my throat.
I’d be fooling myself if I was to say I didn’t enjoy being here, being around these people.
Here, I don’t have to pretend to be nice, normal or even sane.
It’s not like serial killers all get together at conventions, and there isn’t a secret club for monsters like us, either.
Finding a place where minds twisted in the same way can gather – it’s rare, almost impossible.
The most powerful people around the globe are here, for what this offers, but for now, I’m just one of them – another sick fuck about to buy their new toy. Most of them are paedophile pieces of shit – I’ll enjoy killing them first. Others, contract or serial killers themselves.
Three guards are stationed along the hallway, their presence overwhelming as Sal and I step back into the booth for the second time after a short recess. Eleven girls have been on stage so far, yet none of them have been Tarran.
‘Can we get €25,000 as a starting bid?’ the auctioneer announces, her voice booming over the room. The neon sign above flashes, the strobe of its light matching the energy of the eager participants as they submit their offers.
Sal is concerned, shifting in his seat beside me. ‘Don’t you think we should bid? Then we would know the location.’
I shake my head. ‘No, I want to make sure everyone wins what they came for. No one goes home empty-handed.’
Sal throws me a puzzled look. ‘And you, boss?’ he asks, tinged with uncertainty.
On stage, a girl teeters, barely able to keep herself upright, her legs shaking beneath her.
‘Going once, going twice…SOLD,’ the auctioneer announces.
Sal’s eyes scan the stage, leaning in closer. ‘Are you sure about this?’
I keep my eyes fixed ahead.
‘As usual,’ the voice from the speaker begins, ‘we’ve saved the best ‘til last. We hope you have enjoyed what you’ve seen so far. We’ll be taking another short recess.’
The room falls silent. Sal is mopping the brain matter off his face from the cunt that interrupted us as the large, oak door creaks open.
The auctioneer’s voice is smooth as it echoes around the stage. ‘For our final lot of the evening, bidding will advance in increments of ten thousand euros,’ she announces, pausing long enough to let the gravity of her words settle.
‘Once bidding has closed, winners will be notified via your booth speakers. Payment must be arranged within the hour. Only then will you be allowed to claim your prize – or prizes.’
She lets the room hang in heavy silence before continuing. ‘Failure to arrange payment will result in immediate resale, and the auction will continue.’
The neon sign above flickers, ‘Now, ladies and gentlemen, for our last girl of the evening, we have something truly…special. The Butcherbird .’
My gaze snaps towards the oak door, and there stands a girl wearing nothing but underwear and a black hood. My hands curl into fists as the guard whips it off revealing her face.
Tarran.
Hmm. A black hood. Fitting , really. It mirrors the Pied Butcherbird – the most common of its kind – a predator masked in the plumage of death, the black hood stretching from up and over its head, and down the nape of its neck, like that of an executioner.
They thought of everything.
‘Shall we start the bid at €60,000?’
The neon light flashes 60, then 70. Each bid fuelling a raging fire inside me. My fist hammers on my buzzer, the bidding rising over one hundred thousand euros.
‘Did I mention The Butcherbird is only recommended for the most skilled hunters?’ her words hang in the air, sharp and taunting. ‘Over the years, her reputation has garnered quite the following…’
It’s true – every eye in the room probably gleams with hunger. They all want her, to claim her as their own. But what they don’t know is that she’s already taken.
‘A prize that has evaded capture for twenty years,’ the auctioneer continues.
The crowd craves a challenge. And Tarran? She’s the ultimate prize. Her moniker isn’t just a name; it’s a warning. By now, everyone knows how she earned it, and every killer here sees her not just as a target, but as a trophy .
‘One hundred and fifty thousand. Do I hear one-sixty?’
Sal assures me I have the current bid, but despite her already being mine, it won’t stop some clients – those that get off beating women, breaking the rules and wanting her for themselves.
‘SOLD!’
‘Congratulations, boss.’
‘The fight isn’t over yet,’ I answer curling my lips.
Sal confirms the transfer, and with a click, our booth door unlocks. As the corridor fills with movement, my gaze locks onto the men emerging alongside us, their faces impassive yet tinged with the same hunger I saw earlier. I study their faces, faces that fixed their eyes on my girl’s body.
We merge into the flow, a steady stream of men moving down the hallway. We ascend the narrow stairs towards the exit at the far end. At the top, a security guard waits, his cold eyes scanning us as he verifies our winning bid. He nods once, granting us passage.
The winter chill bites the moment we step outside, the contrast of the stale heat of the auction and the crisp night air is jarring.
Parked in the darkness ahead are black SUV’s, their windows tinted so heavily they reflect nothing.
The engines hum softly, ready to ferry us to claim what we’ve bought.
‘I’ll see you back at the masia , Sal. This one, I’ll be doing alone.’
Having Tarran back here would have been my worst nightmare.
If I hadn’t got here when I did, she would have been sold off, trafficked to some arsehole who would have fucked her until she bled, or worse.
But she isn’t out of the woods yet – no pun intended, because from listening to all the chatter from the other bidders, where we’re headed, is far worse than any sex trafficking auction.
My god, father, what kind of fucked up shit have you set up?
I’m not sure what possessed me to claim this girl, but she’s been my obsession for twenty years.
From the moment I saw her, I knew I wanted her.
But back then, I was powerless – too weak to protect her from the world that sought to devour her.
I could feel her desperation, the fear radiating off her like a silent scream, clawing at me, begging me to save her.
And tonight, I saw it again – that same haunting look in her eyes, a ghost of the past that refuses to let go.
The memories crash over me, relentless, unforgiving.
The weight of my failure to keep her safe pressing down on me like a vice, crushing and suffocating.
For years, the fear of upsetting my father and uncle kept me shackled, and I was a coward in the face of what I knew was mine to claim.
But, no more.
This time, nothing will stop me. No force on earth, no man, no god. I will claim her, protect her, even if I have to burn the world to ashes, and watch it crumble in my wake.