The Corpse And The Crazy

Chapter 39

"If this is to end in fire 

Then we should all burn together."

-Ed Sheeran (I see fire) 

'How long do you think it would've been, until he'd discover the truth? Until he started revolting?' 

My heart drops.  I don't know if it is the medicine, but I can't support the weight of the world pressing down on me anymore. I sink to my knees and tears start to form in my eyes. 

The Duke kneels down in front of me, lifts my chin so I meet his eyes. 'Oh, dear. I thought you had already figured out I was worse than Miller?' 

He gets up again and continues talking, 'I'm glad you decided to show up. It saves me the trouble of tracking you down again. I wasn't sure you'd come at first as Miller's dead already, so you can't really take revenge for all of the trauma he caused. But I suppose that you went a little crazy in that asylum, so critical thinking won't be your strong suit.'

He's turned his back now, continuing to monologue. 'And if you hadn't made the mistake of coming back here, you might have stood a chance. But now, in my mansion, with my men, with the immense protection I have here, you don't even have the slightest chance of winning.'

I take a deep breath when I realize that there's no one to save me anymore. It stings my heart to think of Matthias. There's no one on my side and I'm truly alone again. 

There is one thing, though. The one thing that keeps me from losing hope. 

The medicine has yet to take effect on me. Yes, I did sway on my feet and tremble. But that was  so that he thought he'd won. But he hasn't, not yet. I still have a trick up my sleeve. 

So, while he thinks I'm about to slip into sweet unconsciousness, I get up. Before he has the chance to turn around, I slip the knife in his back, right into his heart. 

While he gasps and struggles, I whisper into his ear, 'I'm not the only one making mistakes.'

He falls unto the ground, face first. I take out the knife and it doesn't take long for him to bleed out. I thought I'd feel good, knowing that I got revenge for what I've been put through. But I feel empty. The only thing I can think of is Matthias. 

I get the axe and behead the Duke. There's no way he gets up from that. I take the axes and his head, and walk up the stairs to the main floor. 

Once there, I'm greeted with a small army of guards. They all aim their guns and various other weapons at me, but when they spot the head, they hesitate. 

I just need that small moment of hesitation to throw the head at the first guard, and behead him in one clean swing. Before the first body hits the ground, I'm already chopping into the next one. 

My sight gets clouded by the tears filling my eyes. I scream and rage, as a tornado of lethal blades. I rip into them, not even thinking of granting any of them mercy. 

The first gun shots sound when I've already taken care of three guards. Only one bullet actually hits the side of my arm, but thanks to superhuman healing, it doesn't take long before it's healed again.

More guards run to the hallway to see what's going on, and immediately get greeted by a whirlpool of violence. The bodies start to pile up but I can't stop. My muscles barely tire, hacking into them in pure blood rage. 

And the one thing on my mind is Matthias. He didn't deserve this, this wasn't his fight. It was mine, and he died for it. That thought alone gives me extra drive to keep going. 

He would never discover the atrocities that the Duke committed, he'd never discover the truth. He'd never be able to return to his old life. Repay the debt he had and be free. He has died in service of his one true tormentor. 

But I suppose he knew that last bit, deep down, he did. 

The constant stream of guards seems to quiet down. I've painted the hallway a deep red, I can count a several dozen bodies without their heads. Their blood drips from my hair and soaks my clothes in warm terror. 

I walk over the bodies to my last remaining victim. He clenches his hands on a wound on his side. One of his colleagues is dead on his legs. I squat down beside him. He struggles to get free, but there's no power left in him. 

'Where is he,' I state, 'where is Matthias.' My voice is raw from screaming and I must appear like the devil himself. 

The man painstakingly points a shaking finger to the end of the hallway. 

As a way of thanking him, I let him die there, alone in his suffering. 

I drag the axe against the walls, ripping up the wallpaper as I go. The guards that are late to the party and arrive just now, don't attack me. They stand there, in awe and fear, frozen in their tracks. 

When I reach the metal door, I use Yasmine's keycard to unlock the room. 

And there I see him. 

He seems to be sleeping in a chair, beside a stretcher with Winston on it. On the ground is a little cup of dried up blood, which probably fell out of his hand at some point. 

I walk over, and I fall to my knees. And when I do, I can smell the scent coming from the small cup. I know what it is. It's the pills that I used to poison the guard, all that time ago. The Duke used it to take the one person from me that cared for me. 

 I press my forehead against his cold hand, and let the tears flow. 

The bitter irony.