Chapters
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I lay there next to Vanessa, her head resting on my chest and my hand stroking her hair. I listened to her breathing, slow and even, and I knew she was asleep. I couldn’t help but feel a sense of satisfaction as I thought about what had happened between us tonight. She was mine now in a way no one else could ever be. But as I lay there, I couldn’t shake the feeling that something was missing. It wasn’t that I wanted more from Vanessa. It was that I knew she wanted more. She had said Hadrian’s…
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58.3 K • Completed - Edited
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The crinkle of the black tissue paper was the only sound in the room as I folded the lip gloss and neutral eyeshadow palette, careful not to let my shaking hands tear the paper. I was about to put the customer’s address on the bubble wrap envelope when my phone buzzed, alerting me to a new text from Orpheus. He wanted to meet me at the back door, and I couldn’t help but wonder what he wanted. I walked through my house, my footsteps muffled by the plush carpet, and opened the back door, letting in a…
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58.3 K • Completed - Edited
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As I stand here, with the blood of my rapist staining my hands, I felt a mixture of relief and dread wash over me. The weight of what I’d just done was heavy on my shoulders, but the release of his final breath brought a sense of closure I never thought I’d feel. I couldn’t help but think about how far I’d come since that night in the alleyway and how much I’d changed. Orpheus and Hadrian took me upstairs, and as they led me into the kitchen, I noticed a cup of hot tea sitting on the counter.…
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58.3 K • Completed - Edited
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I held her tightly as she cried into my chest. My shirt muffled her sobs, but I could feel each one reverberate through my body. I hated seeing her like this, so broken and vulnerable. It made me want to tear apart the world to fix it for her. “It’s okay, Ness,” I whispered, stroking her hair gently. “I’m here now. I’ll never leave you again.” She looked up at me with tear-stained eyes, her face red and swollen from crying. “You promise?” “I promise,” I replied, pressing a…
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58.3 K • Completed - Edited
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The doorbell rang, jolting me out of my thoughts. I was in the middle of mixing a new scent for my soap line when the sound interrupted my concentration. Sighing, I set down the pipette and made my way to the front door. As I swung the door open, I was met with the sight of Orpheus, his tall, imposing figure standing in the doorway. He held a beautiful box in his hands with a letter attached to it. His expression was unreadable, but there was a sense of sadness in his eyes that I couldn’t ignore.…
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58.3 K • Completed - Edited
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At the same time... The wine glass’s cool weight pressed into my palm, its crystal surface reflecting the dim light of the room. I sat on the couch, my eyes fixed on the bottle of wine on the coffee table, untouched and unopened. My mind was a mess, a storm of emotions I couldn’t control. The weight of the world pressed down on me, crushing my spirit. My once-familiar life had shattered into a million pieces, leaving me lost and adrift in a sea of uncertainty. Each breath I took felt heavy…
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58.3 K • Completed - Edited
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As I approached Orpheus’s apartment, I could feel my heart racing. I’d only been here once, and the thought of returning had me both nervous and excited. I was here to check on him, to make sure he was okay after what happened with Vanessa. But I also had another motive—to bug his apartment with cameras. The door was unlocked, and as I stepped inside, I was met with an eerie silence. The place was dark and cold, and I could sense a lingering sadness in the air. I flicked on the lights,…
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58.3 K • Completed - Edited
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It had been a year since I found out that Orpheus killed Saul. I still hadn’t spoken to him, but every week, he delivered a new painting, some portraits of me and others showcasing important memories like those of his friends and family or significant moments of his life. Each painting came with a letter sharing the memories or feelings behind it, a vial of the paint he made from the blood of the men he killed, the blood he collected from them, and their bodies harvested for me in coolers so I could do…
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58.3 K • Completed - Edited
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I stared at my heart in my hands, contemplating the inevitable. Crushing it would be the ultimate act of self-annihilation, the solitary endpoint to a torturous existence. The past year of separation from Vanessa, condemned to silent solitude, had tested the limits of my resilience. Hadrian’s unexpected compassion softened the edges of my despair, granting me the solace of observing Vanessa through the cameras he had surreptitiously installed in her home. At first, I reveled in the stolen glimpses,…
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58.3 K • Completed - Edited
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Eight months later... I could feel the adrenaline coursing through my veins as I made my way back from the store, my heart racing with a mixture of excitement and apprehension. The sun had set, casting the world in a blanket of darkness that only served to amplify the sense of foreboding that had settled over me. As I rounded the corner, I spotted him—Orpheus, stepping into a nightclub with an air of confidence that was both alluring and intimidating. He was dressed in his usual attire, a black…
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58.3 K • Completed - Edited
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