Against Devil

5 - Fairy Tales

For a whole week, I avoided Alex, thinking about what he asked me to do and what I had to tolerate to complete such a diminutive task - the task that cost me sleepless nights filled with suffering.

I saw my father standing right in front of me, repeating my name over and over again. Suddenly, ropes appeared on his wrists, lifting him up in the air. His throat is sliced open, blood trickling down his neck to his shoulders and chest. I saw the pain in his eyes as he was still trying to call me. I was frozen to the floor; I couldn't move but only watch.

I heard gunshots pricing the air around. And then bullet holes appeared on his chest and stomach as blood trickled from them, covering him entirely in it. He was screaming in agony, and I was calling him. But I could have done nothing to save him as I was forced to watch it.

But when I was able to move a limb, I ran toward him, shaking his shoulders and begging him to wake up, tears streaming down my cheeks. I violently kept on calling him, begging to stay alive. All of a sudden, his eyes snapped at me, but it wasn't my father - it was Jeremy who was looking into my soul with his pale red eyes.

See what you've brought upon us, he sneered, his voice sounding anything but human.

And at that moment, I would jolt awake, drenched in sweat, with tear-streaked cheeks from sobbing in my dreams. I would fall back onto the mattress and gaze up at the ceiling, my mind racing with the intensity of the night.

Just a dream, I repeated to myself.

Taking a cold shower was my only solace, but it offered no respite. Instead, I'd head to my desk after, unable to even consider sleep. There, I'd throw myself into finishing reports and fulfilling orders, all part of the job. Despite this, I couldn't bring myself to document what happened to Jeremy.

Alex took that upon himself.

He used to message me about other tasks I had to do, but I ignored his messages and left him on "read." He made me do something I wasn't trained for and then acted like nothing had happened.

"I wasn't even sure if he felt guilty. If he felt anything he could have at least apologized," I spoke to Jasmine as we set at the kitchen island one night, having a late dinner.

"It's never easy to break the news to someone that they've lost a loved one. But please, don't blame yourself for it. Promise me that you're not burdening yourself with thoughts that you could have somehow prevented it." I'll never forget the sound of her fork clattering against the plate as she tried to catch my eye.

I avoided it, by playing with my meal in my own dish.

"I tried to hold back, but when I saw the little girl desperately vying for her mother's attention, oblivious to her father's absence..." I couldn't bring myself to finish my sentence, so I took a bite of my steak.

"My father was always against Beta Female taking on this task. He preferred to send your father or Marcus's father to handle it. Men are less emotionally driven, and empathy is a concept they might only encounter once in their lifetime." Jasmine still stared at my face, "Same goes for Alex".

"He is just an asshole. Thinks that everyone has the same stamina as him and roughness. Do you know how many times I gagged while looking at Jeremy's body?" I uttered.

"Let's not dwell on that for now. How about we get Lizzy some fresh air? She's been cooped up in this house for too long." She quickly changed the subject, leaving me feeling puzzled.

"What do you mean?"

"Nate always tries to keep Lizzy from wandering too far, but let's be honest, Lizzy always manages to find her way to the most interesting places at the most unexpected times. I just hope she doesn't end up in the West Wing this time, but my money's on her finding her way there somehow," Jasmine said casually, absentmindedly picking at her nails while balancing an empty plate.