love on hold

Chapter 8 - the unforgettable woman

Blade's subconscious mind writhed in turmoil, tormented by the dark memories he'd tried to bury. His thoughts were a jumbled mix of guilt, shame, and self-loathing.

Blade had stormed in, his face twisted in a snarl. He shoved the first person he met there aside, sending the person stumbling backward. His eyes scanned the room, locking onto Celine with a malevolent glare.

With lightning speed, Blade pounced, slamming his palm into Celine's face. Her earring clattered to the floor as she cried out in pain. He grasped her hair, ripping off her wig, exposing her vulnerable scalp.

As Celine's screams filled the air, Betty, Blade's new girl walked in, a calculating glint in her eye.She had believed Blade when he told her that celine had been lyinyh about her pregnancy. She didn't rush to intervene, instead, she strode purposefully to the couch, her gaze fixed on Celine's crumbling form.She wanted Blade to teach Celine a good lesson

With a cold smile, Betty snatched the remote control and cranked up the TV volume, ensuring Celine's pleas for mercy were drowned out.

Blade's grip on Celine's shirt tightened, lifting her off the couch. He slammed her into the wall.

Blade's eyes blazed with sadistic pleasure as he sneered, "You thought you could trap me with a child? You're nothing but a disposable plaything."

Betty watched, unmoved, her presence a chilling endorsement of Blade's brutality.

Celine retreated, shaking. He seized her wrists, twisting them with cruel force. Celine moaned, her pain evident.

The knife slipped from her grasp. Blade's wicked smile resurfaced as he unleashed another barrage of punches, targeting her belly with sadistic precision.

Claudia was still a maid working for Blade's family then, and she witnessed the brutality. The time seemed to be frozen in horror. Her mother, unable to bear it, burst from their hiding place, her voice piercing the air.

"For God's sake, Blade! Stop! Do you want to kill her? She's carrying your child! Doesn't that mean anything to you?"

Blade halted, his chest heaving, as Celine crumpled to the floor. She clutched her belly, writhing in agony, panting and coughing desperately.

Claudia's mother confronted Blade, her face ablaze with indignation. "You'll stop this madness now! Can't you see she's bleeding? You've killed your own child! And now you want to kill the mother too?"

Blade's gaze locked onto Celine, his eyes scanning her battered form. Only then did he notice the blood staining her clothes. A twisted satisfaction flickered across his face as he stepped back, his breathing steady.

As Blade stood amidst the c*****e he had created, the bleeding Celine lay before him, her eyes filled with darkness and hatred, her fragile body broken and battered.

He knew he had achieved what his mother had wanted, but the weight of his actions crushed him, and he felt appalled by his own brutality. The memory of his mother's words echoed in his mind, "Do it for your dad, do it for your family," but now, faced with the consequences, he regretted his decision.

He had deliberately killed his own child, and the reality of his actions suffocated him. Blade's nails dug into the floor as he struggled to come to terms with his own monstrosity.

He knew he had to maintain the charade, pretend to everyone, especially Betty, that he was innocent, that he hadn't known Celine was truly pregnant. "I'm so sorry, you have to forgive me," he implored, his tears genuine, his heart heavy with guilt.

But Betty, oblivious to the truth, came closer and, placed a comforting hand on his shoulder. "Oh, Blade, I also thought she was trying to rope you into a relationship. I never knew her words were true.If we really knew she was pregnant,I guess I wouldn't let you beat her up so. Poor baby. Poor you honey.I'm so sorry you had to kill your old child, but it was a mistake, right? You can't move on. I will give you many more children, I assure you." Her words only deepened Blade's anguish.

His mind was tormented by the horrors he had committed, his soul forever scarred.

After the terrible beating, Celine was carried up to the basement. Everyone around Blade's family was loyal, so no one would expose their deeds. Besides, Celine didn't live with her parents anymore . Celine lay in the dimly lit basement, surrounded by the few necessities Blade and his mother, Laura, had provided. A bed, a small lamp, and a few other essentials were all that kept her tethered to reality.

Laura, a skilled nurse, had tended to Celine's physical wounds, cleaning up the blood and nursing her back to health. But despite her efforts, Celine's mental state began to unravel.

Blade, consumed by guilt and pain, tried to reach out to Celine. He brought her food daily, but she refused to eat. He spoke to her softly, hoping to break through the wall of silence she had erected around herself.

But Celine's world had shrunk to a single, all-consuming thought: escape. She was trapped, locked away from the world, and forced to endure the presence of the man who had destroyed her.

Blade's attempts at conversation were met with stony silence. Desperate to reconnect, he tried to touch her, hoping tenderness would bridge the chasm between them.

But Celine's nerves were raw, her emotions frayed. She saw Blade's touch as a violation, a cruel reminder of his brutality.

And so, Blade's actions turned dark. He forced himself upon her, again and again, until Celine's grip on reality faltered.

The basement became a prison, a torture chamber where Celine's sanity was slowly extinguished. Blade's daily assaults chipped away at her soul, leaving her shattered and broken.

Blade's mother, Laura, remained oblivious to the horrors unfolding beneath her feet. Or perhaps she chose to ignore them, her loyalty to her son blinding her to the destruction he had wrought.After all, it was her idea to beat the child out of Celine in the first place. So whatever Blade chose to do to Celine was his problem.

Suddenly, Blade seemed a distant observer to the scene before him.

Why did I do that? Why did I destroy the one person who loved me?

Blade's subconscious whispered a haunting truth:

"You are a monster. You destroyed your own child. You destroyed Celine!"

His mind recoiled in horror, unable to escape the guilt and shame.

He sought to shake off this memory playing in his subconscious. He desperately wanted to run, to hide away from all this.

***

Aurora's fingers wrapped around the syringe, her eyes locked on Blade's vulnerable form. He was in a coma, and could not move. She rubbed her hands together, a calculated gleam in her eye.

"Goodbye, Blade," she whispered, her voice dripping with malice.

With deliberate slowness, Aurora reached for the IV drip, poised to inject the poison.

Just as the syringe touched the tubing, the door creaked open.

Aurora froze.

"Aurora!" Blade's mother exclaimed, her voice shrill with alarm.

"Oh my God, what is going on here?" Laura rushed into the room, her eyes scanning the scene.

Aurora's gaze snapped toward Laura, her expression a mask of innocence.

But had Laura seen the syringe?

Aurora's fingers instinctively concealed the syringe behind her thigh.

Laura's eyes narrowed. "Aurora, what's going on?"

Aurora's voice was laced with concern. "Laura, I was just... checking Blade's IV."

Laura's gaze darted between Aurora and Blade, her expression unreadable.

Did she see?

Or did she not?

Aurora's heart pounded, her thoughts racing.

Laura took a step closer, her eyes locked on Aurora's.

"Aurora, I need to talk to you. Outside. Now!"

Aurora's grip on the syringe tightened, hidden from view.

As she followed Laura out, the syringe remained concealed.

But for how long?