Eyes So Blue I Drown

51| Psychopath

ARABELLA

The abrupt disturbance snaps my focus, and a surge of adrenaline course through my veins. In that moment, I run towards the second last room of this floor which would lead me to Tess.

Now when we got some backup, this is the right time, I need to take Tess with me and head downstairs as soon as possible.

As I swing the door open, an unusual scene unfolds before me. Tess is seated in the center of the room, accompanied by a lady. Both are positioned on the floor, each wielding a paintbrush, immersed in vibrant colors.

Tess appears to be a living canvas, splattered with colors from head to toe. What the fuck is happening here?

"Turn around," I instruct the woman. Tess, upon hearing my voice, changes her whimpers into a loud cry.

"Tess, come here," I call her, and she rushes towards me. When she attempts to hug my legs, I gently back her off, raising the gun in my hand, "Didn't you hear me? I said turn around, or I'll shoot you in the head!"

She stands up with her back to us and slowly turns around, revealing a face covered in weird, scary drawings. Is she for real? It's as though the intention was to evoke fear, the strange patterns creating a haunting appearance. And it's not just her face - her clothes are also messy with random paint strokes.

Her white gown is covered in red. I can't be sure if it's blood or just the color of the paint.

Shifting my attention from the paint-covered face, I focus on the person behind it.

Gradually, it dawns on me who she is. I always had a feeling something was off about her.

The countless times I've seen her silently standing around were always suspicious.

I doubt if she's even mute and deaf. She's one of the cheaters. The one who had been around Luca but worked for Romano.

Maybe she was supposed to stay near Luca to get information of everything going on inside his house.

Maybe she's the one who I saw near the pool and who threw the mobile in the pool. Everything is beginning to make sense now.

"What else are you hiding behind that hideous self of yours?" I say.

She wiped her mouth and stands still, with her arms resting on her sides, her head bent down a little and eyes staring into mine without even a single blink.

"I'm not afraid of you" my voice is bold and confident, "I know you can hear me, stop this act"

A smile creeps on her lips as her gaze moves at Tess. I feel my leg getting gripped by small hands when Kehlani points her oil painting knife towards us.

She slowly walks towards us, taking small pause on her way here as she carefully scans my reaction.

She stands right before us and blinks twice at me.

She's not giving me good vibes. It's not really about a feeling of unsafe here, there's something beyond that that I feel.

In easy words, she doesn't seem normal.

Maybe it's just because of her creepy makeup.

Her hand moves just to get a hold of Tess by her wrist but I stop her. "Leave her alone"

She shakes her head smilingly and points at Tess' face, showing me the undone spots of painting.

I furrow my eyebrows, "You need to... complete the painting?"

She gives me a nod.

"There's no time for this, let's go," I say, reaching for Tess's hand to leave the room.

Suddenly, I feel a sharp pain in my shoulder as she stabs me with a painting knife. Gasping, I instinctively push her hand away, the blade slicing through my flesh.

"You bitch" I hiss, pushing her away with a forceful kick to her leg.

Swiftly, she storms back, delivering a punch that forces me to the floor. My gun clatters away from her powerful blow. Holding my bleeding shoulder, I plead, "Why are you doing this?"

She points the paint brush at me. "Ain't no way she's doing all this paint other people's faces" I whisper with self realisation.

Standing on both of my arms, she gazes down at me, her head subtly tilting to the right. I endure the weight on my arms, wondering about the thoughts consuming her mind.

She leans in, her painting knife getting stained with my blood as she traces it through the flow from my shoulder. I keep an eye on her every move.

She grabs the knife, dragging it across her cheek, creating a bloody, unsettling smile that stretches to her ears.

I gulp, shifting my gaze to the door, "Julian... Fantino, where the fuck are you all at?"

She swipes the knife in my blood once more. "You're the most disgusting person I've ever seen," I mumble, staring at her perched above my body.

"You're a psychopath, Kehlani," I groan in pain as she crushes my arm beneath her foot. "Stop!"

As she stands up, I summon all my strength, curling my arm around her legs to make her tumble to the floor beside me.

She'd already stabbed my shoulder when I attempted to take Tess away. What more does she want?

I rise, bracing myself for whatever comes next.

Holding the knife upside down for better attacks, she charges at me before I can fully prepare. Spotting a broken metal rod, I grab it just in time.

I twist her arm beneath my neck, a crack resonating as she releases a silent, breathy scream. Continuing the twist, I deliver a punch to her face, causing her to collapse on the floor like a lifeless body.

"Tess, are you okay?" I cup her face, checking on her. She appears to have a minor injury on her leg.

Feeling the pain from my bleeding shoulder, I quickly reach for it. The cut is deep and throbbing.

"Home," Tess cries out, looking up at me, and shaking my hand. "Go."

I nod, "We'll go home, but not like this." Scanning the area, I find plenty of cloth to bind our wounds with.

When it's Tess' turn, and I'm sitting against her, I notice her jacket. It's the same black one I had. Panic grips me, and I swiftly unzip it, discovering a machine attached to her body.

No thoughts cross my mind; in this silence, I only hear the beat of my own heart.

"You're okay," I smile at her, zipping up her jacket. Unsure of how to detach it from her body, I can't risk attempting it.

Fantino and Julian can handle this. Turning around, I say to her, "Hop on my back"

"Tess, come on. It's safer this way; we're leaving," I say, looking back at her when she doesn't respond.

She continues to stare at Kehlani's unconscious body.

"She won't hurt you anymore," I reassure her.

"Lei ha sorriso" she replies. I stare blankly at her. What does she mean?

I strap Tess on my back, grab the gun, and leave the room. Walking through the corridor, strange sounds surround us, indicating a rush downstairs.

Two injured men appear in front of me. I raise my arm and quickly shoot them down. The gun is out of ammo, and even if there were more, I wouldn't know how to reload it.

My shoulder throbs with pain as I lift my arm. My hands ache, and my entire body feels the toll of the fighting and falling here and there.

Walking towards the stairs, I notice a group of them running upstairs. I attempt to shoot, but as expected, there's no more ammo.

As soon as they notice me, they rush towards me to fight.

"Hold on to me tight, Tess," I say and grab the metal rod I see on the ground.