HER CARE

Chapter Twenty-Two, Back To The Present, Arias Narrative

Roslyn sits in contemplative silence after hearing the painful recounting of my past, her expression reflecting deep thought. In contrast, recounting my experiences at The Care only fuels my anger, reminding me that my freedom has been snatched away not once, but twice. The memories of that place feel like a prison, and just when I dared to hope it was all behind me, Roslyn arrived, ushering us back into captivity once more. It makes me question if true freedom was ever meant for me, if I was destined to live a life unbound by constraints.

"So it's true" Roslyn asserts, taking me out of my thoughts.

Her bright green eyes glimmering in contrast of the blue evening sky as the bamboo trees sway and brisk winds blow. The once bright blue sky has now been swapped for an enthralling navy cerulean sky that harbors a bright full moon and its adjacent stars. Nature at its finest. Roslyn and I have since spent the last five afternoons in this little camping spot as I narrate the gory details of my yore.

"What's true?" I ask

"That you led to her demise" She accuses, her facials displaying a stoic expression and I shudder.

"How dare you?" My words hiss through clenched teeth.

"No, how dare you? You admitted that your confrontation with Grace drove her to madness," she insists, surprising me with her conviction.

"You must be joking," I protest, struggling to comprehend.

"No I'm not! Couldn't you just be grateful, instead of setting out on your little voyage of discovery?" She screams and I see red. Had it not been for the heavy chains that bind me taught, I would be smacking the absurdity out her.

"What should I have been grateful for? The untimely death of my mother? Chloe's demise? Or the gruesome murders of all twelve of our parents? Not to mention the horrific experiments she conducted on us and the corpses of our loved ones! They didn't even get a chance to rest in peace because of Her!" My voice reverberates with fury.

"Fuck that Aria, you have no idea how much darker foster care can be! If you understood, you'd be satisfied with the life she provided you!" Roslyn's words hit me like a blow, and suddenly, it dawns on me that there's more to her connection with Grace. No sane person would hear everything I just revealed and perceive Grace as the victim, let alone a therapist.

"You must be utterly deranged not to see that she orchestrated our lives in the most horrifying of ways! If it weren't for her scheming and deceit, we wouldn't be in this mess," I seethe, frustration boiling beneath my skin.

"No, you're the one who's deranged because from where I stand, she was desperately trying to fix your lunatic of a mother! Something she couldn't do for her own," Roslyn retorts, her words igniting a fiery rage within me at the mention of my innocent mother. Curse these fucking chains! If it weren't for them, she'd be on her way to unite with Grace in the afterlife.

"You know nothing about Grace!" I spit out, my jaw clenched in fury.

"I do!" Roslyn's voice rises in fury and defiance. "She was my foster mother long before you and Caleb came into the picture. But the more she dedicated herself to finding solutions in the lab to aid your deranged parents, the less time she had for me. Because of this, I was torn away from her loving care," she confesses, and I freeze. It all falls into place now. This is why she's adamant about confining us to a mental institution. This is why she's so desperate for me to reveal every detail about my life at The Care.

"Look at me!" She states, roughly taking my face in her palms as she forcefully turns my head to face her "Aria I was gang raped by my alcoholic foster dad and his crack-head friends, before being forced into sex work whilst I remained drugged to a palp and you think what you went through was bad?" She cries, her crazed gaze fixed into mine and I still at her unexpected confession.

"Am I the scapegoat for your trials? How does your pain negate mine?" I state, jerking my face from her grip as tears stream down my face.

"Aria, if Grace hadn't fixated on your deranged mother, I'd still be basking in her love. Unlike you, I'd cherish it," she retorts, her reasoning warped by her obsession. "And don't talk to me about love and support when she left her fortune to your ungrateful self!" She shouts

"So, it's about the money? You're just like her, holding us captive for inheritance? Fine, take it all, just let us go," I plead desperately.

"The inheritance is just a fraction of what I seek. It's restitution for my suffering, payback for Grace's demise. You don't deserve anything from her!" Her words sending shivers down my spine.

As reality sinks in, it's starting to dawn on me that this nightmare is far from over, Grace lives on through her crazed foster child Roslyn and she is hell bent on getting vengeance.

THE END.

TO BE CONTINUED IN SEQUAL CALLED 'LIFE AFTER HER CARE'