Underneath The Obsidian Veil

“Disgusting b***h! How dare you call out Nathan’s name with your foul mouth!” A voice clearly laced with disdain spat above her. A hard slap landed across her cheek, her head swung to the side due to the impact. Kate's breathing was shallow as tears fell from her eyes, which were still blinded with the fabric covering them. The blindfold was ripped off her face forcibly. She looked up, and her eyes shot wide with surprise. Nathan was standing behind Vera, arms folded against his chest, unconcerned and seemingly not bothered about her welfare. His eyes were cold and distant as they locked on hers. "Nathan?" Kate whispered, her mind in chaos as she struggled to process the scene before her. "Vera, what is this? Why did you both lock me up here?" "You still have the nerves to ask why?" Vera sneered, her fingers digging into Kate's hair, jerking her head backward painfully. "You really think you're so special? You think you could just walk in and take everything that was rightfully mine?" Kate's brows shot up in pain as tears streamed down her face. She didn't understand why her husband would stand back and watch her being molested. "What are you talking about?" She said, glancing at her husband. "Nathan, please say something. What's going on?" "You'll understand soon, Kate," Nathan said with an expressionless gaze. "You stole my man," Vera replied, saying every word slowly that made Kate's heart thump in her chest. She glanced at Nathan, who stood there with a mischievous smile on his face. It can't be true! Vera and Nathan? "Br-Nathan, is that true?" She asked, hoping and praying that it was all a lie. Vera was just making jokes. Nathan was hers and hers alone. "Kate, you were a fool to begin with," Nathan scoffed. How could you think I would fall in love with a boring woman like you? You can't even please me well in bed. "You're just a boring and naive woman who's good as a homemaker and nothing more." He grabbed Vera's waist tightly and stared into her eyes, ignoring the pain-stricken Kate. "Vera was my first love and my only love and woman. She has all the qualities that you could never have. She's smart, confident and knows how to please me. You mean nothing to me, and you're only a mistake I made. Vera is my future." Kate struggled hard to breathe, her hands trembling, and for a moment, it seemed like a big chunk of her life had been ripped off. All the memories crashing down on her. For the past ten years of their marriage, she had tried to please Nathan and his family in every possible way. She had even become a slave just to gain his favor and even when Vera had come into the picture, she had never questioned their relationship. "Nathan, tell me this is not true! You won't betray me!" Kate cried out. Vera leaned closer, her lips twisted into a smirk. "You really thought you were the only one, didn't you? It's been going on for months, and you didn't even notice. Pathetic!" "That's not all my lovely wife," Nathan's voice was filled with mockery. " We didn't come here to explain things to you but to bid you farewell." "Wh-what do you mean?" Kate stuttered in fear, glancing at them both, panic rising within her. "What he means, darling, is that you have to die after all you're the stepping stone to our wealth. Once you're dead, we will have access to your family's wealth. After all, your family is dead, and you're the only one left," Vera said with a conceited laughter. Nathan took a slow step forward, his footsteps receding in the almost silent room. Kate's heart raced, her body trembled as she stared at him. He reached her, standing so close, his eyes, which were always filled with love and affection, were cold and distant. How could he pretend so well? He had promised to cherish her always. Did he lie about that? All the vows he took on their wedding day, were they all lies? Suddenly, Kate felt dizzy, her vision blurred for a month as her breathing became shallow. She felt a sharp pain in her chest and she began to gasp for breath. Not now, she thought, desperately trying to will the episode away. Not in front of them. Nathan, however, noticed. His cold eyes flicked at her and Vera smirked. "Nathan, it seems she's about to have an episode," Vera sneered, her voice full of mockery. Nathan crossed his arms, seemingly uninterested in her welfare. "Let's hope she dies from it. It's not like she's useful for anything anymore." Kate's heart sank as Nathan's words cut in deep. His mocking tone hurt her deeply. Her heart condition was getting worse by the day, and now she felt it was draining her energy. "You're so pathetic, Kate," Vera continued, staring at her with disdain. Even your body can't keep up. You're just weak and useless. No wonder Nathan's so tired of you." Nathan slowly leaned in, his hot breath fanned her skin, causing a shiver down her spine as she swallowed hard, stricken with fear. "You weren’t really going to live long, especially with your heart condition, so we didn’t have the patience to delay your death date. See you in your next life, dearest wife," he icily uttered. Before Kate could react, she felt a cold metal against her chest. A sharp pain shot through her, her breath caught in her throat. Her eyes widened in horror and shock as she looked down at the blood seeping out of her chest and down her clothes. She looked up at Nathan, he held the knife in place and roughly took it out. "Goodbye, Kate," Nathan muttered, throwing the knife which was covered with her blood onto the floor. He exchanged glances with Vera, who was now holding a kennel. The warehouse reeked with the smell of fuel, which made Kate dizzy with the pain and fear of dying. The warmth of her blood ran down her skin. With one last glance at her, Nathan lit up a lighter and threw it on the floor with a puff. The whole place was covered up in flames. Vera roughly held Kate's chin, and stared into her eyes with malice. "Don't worry about Nathan, Kate. I'll take care of him for you. And also about your parents: We killed them." With loud laughter, Vera and Nathan held hands and walked out of the engulfed warehouse, leaving Kate staring at them with tears running down her eyes. They had both betrayed her.