Chapter 6 #8
"You killed them even though you knew they were innocent!
" I screamed, struggling, but he was stronger and heavier than me.
"No, no, no, Stella, I didn't kill them.
You did. You killed innocent people, Stella.
You hid that phone in that poor girl's closet to frame her," he whispered above my face.
"Shut up!" Kenji yelled, but the guards' blows silenced him.
"You killed those innocent people, Stella.
You sacrificed them to survive," the Master continued as my brain processed his words.
He was right. Maybe I wasn't the one who put that phone in Wendy's closet, but it was as if I had.
If I had told the truth, Wendy and her Shadow would still be alive.
I had killed innocent people. "No listen him, Sienna!
No true! No true!" Kenji's voice echoed again, but it felt like my ears were blocked.
They were ringing, and my hands, which had been trying to push the Master away, suddenly fell limp onto the sand.
"Yes, Stella, you killed those innocent people to save your own skin.
I knew it from the first glance, I knew there was a monster hiding behind that angelic exterior," he said, his lips brushing mine, but I didn't react.
I was completely disconnected, my body was no longer mine, my thoughts were no longer mine, my soul no longer existed.
"And I know there's more behind that mask, Stella, and I can't wait for it to come to the surface.
I can't wait for you to be as dark and dirty as me," he whispered before kissing me on the cheek, and a tear ran down my temple.
He finally sat up and pulled me up with him like a doll.
My eyes fell once more on the two lifeless bodies, soaked in blood, two innocent people I had killed.
"Right, let's move on," growled the Master, signaling to his men, who suddenly lifted the corpses and headed for the cliff.
A new wave of nausea washed over me as they advanced toward the edge.
"No!" " I shouted, trying to stop them, but the arm around my waist prevented me.
I watched in horror as the men threw Wendy's body into the void, followed by that of her Shadow, into the darkness, into the cold.
They would never have a funeral ceremony, they would never have a grave where their families could mourn. Because of me.
"Now let's move on to your punishment, Stella," he said, turning me to face him.
"Kill me," I said without even thinking.
"Kill me!" I repeated more vehemently, struggling against him.
I couldn't live with this, I couldn't. "Come on!
" I screamed, tears streaming down my cheeks as I struggled like a demon.
"Sienna!" Kenji yelled, but I couldn't see him anymore.
He too would be better off once I was gone.
Maybe my sister would hear about my death and no longer let Antonio threaten her with my video.
Yes, I had to die, and then everyone would be better off.
Except Wendy and her Shadow, I had already killed them.
I was completely hysterical, screaming, struggling, hitting, scratching.
Suddenly, my cheek burned and I found myself on the ground, my clothes soaked with blood, Wendy's blood.
"Calm down," growled Mother's voice as she slapped me again, standing next to the Master.
The taste of blood spread in my mouth, my stitches had come loose, my hand rested against my sore cheek.
"Thank you, Katy," said the Master, adjusting the lapels of his jacket, "I'll let it slide this time, Stella.
I understand your shock and anger, but you'll get used to it.
It's in your nature, I can feel it." He smiled, and despite the emotions swirling in my head, I understood.
He was crazy, I could see it clearly now.
He wasn't just a sadistic psychopath who enjoyed making others suffer. He was completely insane.
"Well, I was talking about your punishment, so it's going to be in two stages," he said, glancing over his shoulder as his men dragged Kenji over to stand next to me.
"You see, young people, I invest a lot of money in training and maintaining my Stars, so there's no question of damaging them.
That's where the second role of the Shadows comes in," he explained with a mischievous smile stretching across his lips as Igor approached with a long knife in his hand.
"The second role of the Shadows is to endure the physical punishment of their Stars.
Why damage a beautiful flower when poisoning its soil is enough to make it wither away little by little?
" he continued as Igor grabbed Kenji's skull and lifted his face.
"Wait… what are you doing?" I asked, sitting up on my knees and trying to reach Kenji, but I was stopped.
"Stop! " I screamed as the knife slowly sank into my friend's skin, at the corner of his eye.
He groaned, breathing harder and harder as I struggled like crazy, "Stop!
Kenji! I beg you, don't do this!" "Oh but there is a way to avoid that for this time," the Master suddenly replied, stopping Igor by raising his hand.
"Tell me who you called with the phone. Who is this person so important that you risked getting the phone ?
And delete their number?" he asked me as I struggled to concentrate.
I felt like I was going to faint at any moment.
"Tell me, and I'll let you off the physical punishment this time," he said, placing his hand on top of my head and gently stroking my hair. There was no sound on the video, they didn’t hear my conversation with Selina.
And Olga had deleted the number. She had deleted Selina's number before hiding it in the closet. She had protected me.
I looked at the Master and he stared at me with a smile.
Tell him who I had called? No, I couldn't tell him about my sister.
It would be horrible for her and me if the Master got in touch with Antonio.
They would use us against each other to blackmail us, and we would never be able to get out of this hole.
I couldn't do it. I couldn't let my sister become Antonio's slave even more.
My gaze met Kenji's and he understood, he knew I wasn't going to do what the Master asked me to do.
I shook my head, "I'm sorry," I sobbed as the Master sighed.
"In that case, you can save your own skin, boy.
Tell me who she called and what they talked about," he said, walking toward Kenji with his hands in his pockets, his gaze resting on the knife stuck in my Shadow's skin.
It was the end. He was going to find out about my sister, about me, and about Emilio's death, and he was going to use it against me.
Kenji had to tell the truth to save himself, and he was right to do so.
But then he shook his head. "No!" Kenji shouted, and I stared at him with wide eyes.
He had said no, he had refused, he hadn't betrayed me.
His gaze met mine, dark and determined, as I shook my head slowly.
He didn't have to do that. We had only known each other for three weeks.
He was only seventeen, too young to bear such a mark.
"Very well, let's get this over with," growled the Master, and the knife began to slide through my friend's skin, tearing through flesh and muscle, and his scream pierced the night.
blood flowed, and I closed my eyes and lowered my head, unable to bear the sight, but a hand grabbed my hair and lifted my face.
"Look, look what you've done," Mother's voice whispered in my ear, I watched as the knife continued its path to the corner of Kenji's mouth, his scream echoing off the cliff walls, his body writhing under the hands of the three guards holding him down, skin and muscle giving way under the sharp blade.
Igor finally withdrew his knife and Kenji's body fell heavily to the ground, kicking up dust. I broke free from the hands that were holding me back and dragged myself to him, sobbing, gently catching his head and laying it on my lap.
"Kenji? Kenji, look at me," I begged as his blood ran down his cheek, soaking his T-shirt and then my dress.
"Kenji?" I sobbed as he gently fluttered his eyelids.
"Sienna," he whispered, "I'm sorry, I'm sorry, Kenji," I gasped, bending down to press my forehead against his damp but cold one "I'm sorry. "
"Enough," growled the Master, grabbing my arm and dragging me away from Kenji across the sand.
"No! Let go of me!" I shouted, struggling, and he sighed, lifting his chin toward Igor.
I froze when he pulled out his gun and pointed it at Kenji, who was half-conscious.
"Obey, or a third name will be added to your list of innocents," spat the Master, letting go of me and I fell on my backside, my gaze fixed on my friend.
"Let's get to your punishment, Stella," he said, taking off his jacket and handing it to Joana, who had been standing back until now.
"Kneel down," he ordered me as my throat tightened when I saw him unbuckle his belt.
No, not again, I didn't want to. "Well, if you don't want to.
.." "No," I cut him off, pressing my hands against the cold floor and pushing myself onto my knees.
"Sienna," Kenji called weakly, but I didn't look at him, not now.
The Mother slipped behind me and undid my braid, my hair falling against my back and cheeks as the Master unzipped his fly.
"That mouth I've been dreaming about for months," he sighed as I closed my eyes, letting reason leave me, shutting my thoughts and emotions deep inside me, like last time, to protect myself, to protect Sienna.
"Take him to the infirmary, Joana go with them.
Katy and I will be busy all night with Stella," he said as he grabbed my hair, but I didn't open my eyes, forcing myself to feel nothing, to think nothing.
Kenji's voice called out to me, but I ignored it, simply ignored it.