Chapter Thirty-one

Chapter Thirty-one

In a flash, Ethan was writhing on the floor beside me in pain, while I looked on in horror. Brandon was fuming dangerously at him with clenched fists, he looked lethal like an exploding bomb for a moment. He ignored Ethan completely and walked towards me with that stern look on his face. He seemed to be really mad at me - of course he had a point here. I was mad at myself too, but could I help it? I had no choice here. Ethan was blackmailing me!

“Are you okay?” He asked in a voice laced with anger and disgust, and instead of answering his question, I bursted into tears as I was too heavy with emotions to speak.

His furious countenance suddenly softened at my outburst of tears, and he gently cupped my chin as he examined me and the cut on my face. I couldn’t control my tears at all, so I let it all out, while he stood there, looking at me strangely like the tears weren’t real.

“Galena….” he called softly trying to pacify me, “I’m here now. Calm down.”

I wasn’t hearing any of that. How was I supposed to calm down when I almost got raped by that brute, Ethan? I was literally standing before two men that had hurt me so much in my life, that made me feel like a total mess, a total weakling, an absolute idiot! How was I supposed to calm down? No, tell me!

Tell me truly from your heart how you will feel if you were caught in such ugly situation as mine. Tell me truly how much you would cry if men like Ethan and Brandon were caught in your life at thesame time. Just two worse evils, and right now, I only crave the lesser evil I can find in my ugly situations. Somehow, I want to think Brandon is the lesser evil, but when I see how he treats people, killing someone without remorse, stripping a woman and afterwards, body shaming her just because she wanted a collaboration with him, stucking a knife by his bedside so he can kill me while I sleep? And I should calm down?

How? Tell me how?

He is a pure maniac! Infact, they are both maniacs! What do they want from me? What have I done to deserve only maniacs in my life? Weird, grumpy trolls, gnomes, devils!

Why me!? Why does it have to be Galena Fields? And this maniac is talking about calming down?

Lord! I want to disappear!

“Hey…” he called concernedly, but I was too blinded by my tears to see his face.

“Stop!” I screamed, “just stop! How do I calm down? No where is even better!” I screamed with tears frizzling more down my face.

“I’ll make somewhere better.” I heard the unmistaken voice of Ethan say in an ominous voice, he was standing directly behind Brandon, and immediately he spoke, he lounged an attack on Brandon with the dagger, but Brandon docked and caught the blade of the dagger with one hand, while the other helped in trying to push back Ethan’s persisting hand from driving the blade into his heart.

They looked fierce, like monsters released from hell, and all I could do was scream and cry, begging them to stop.

“Ethan stop! Please! You’re hurting him!” I screamed in terror, wailing, but they both seemed to be totally out of this world as their eyes burned with determination and hatred.


I tried to walk past them to find a weapon to at least use against Ethan, to stop him from hurting Brandon, but just when I was about to pass by Brandon, he pulled me back fiercely, screaming; “Stay behind me, Galena!” and Ethan siezed the opportunity to drive the blade into his chest and I melted in shock.

The last thing I could remember was saying “Brandon…” before passing out.

* * * * *

“I’m sorry Gin!” I cried as I stared at the back of Gin who stood across the room. He looked angry, sad too, or maybe, sober. He didn’t spare me a glance, I could see from his body language that he was really mad at me.

I crouched on my knees, begging him, hoping he’d forgive me after all I made him go through. I still held the blood stained dagger in my hand as I cried, wishing it had never happened. Wishing it was all a lie that he was dead, and he would just come here and hug me and tell me it was a prank, all planned out by him and Ethan.

I wanted to hug him so badly, ask him how he was without us, ask him if his soul was able to find rest even after the brutality of his death. He looked hungry, haunted. He looked lonely, deserted. He looked like he was aching to let something all out, aching to cry on my shoulder like he used to, or maybe, call me “Galene-girl” as he fondly used to. He didn’t seem to be mad at me, he seemed to be mad at someone else. It looked like he wanted me to see things for myself, but I was just too blind with grief and guilt.

“Say something. Please!” I begged desperately, as I looked at his back that was becoming a shadow. He seemed lost, and somehow, I wanted to run to him and hug him. But something was stopping me. Something I wasn’t sure of how it existed, so I just stayed there, on my knees, begging, crying.

Almost all his body was becoming a shadow and it looked like he would soon fade into the darkness, making me cry even more.

“Gin! Say something please!” I cried as my heart literally shredded to its thousandth piece. He reluctantly turned to me just before he faded away with a very sad look on his face.

“It wasn’t you. It has never been you.” He said before the last piece of him faded into the darkness.

“What do you mean?” I asked in frustration but he was already gone.

“It wasn’t me…?” I repeated slowly, hesitantly.

“It wasn’t you, but it was because of you.” A voice spoke beside me, and I seemed to have drifted to another world, a place with ACs and intoxicating body wash and perfumes. I felt numb on my feet, but I seemed to have transcended from the room I was earlier with Gin, and had teleported into Brandon’s room.

I fluttered my eyes open sleepily and saw mesmerizing grey eyes staring down at me sweetly.

Brandon! How was I here? Was I dreaming all along?

“But I still like your stubborn, miss Fields.” He smiled smugly at me.

“Where am I?” I asked darting my eyes around.

“Where monsters dwell.”