RULES OF THE DAMNED

3. THE TRICKSTER'S REQUITAL

THE MOMENT I saw my brother making out with a woman inside my room, I knew I would succumb to another treacherous episode. Moans filled my ears. The book I had stolen minutes ago from Silvester's office fell, dispersing their lustful atmosphere. Caught off guard, two pairs of eyes looked up at me. The woman, too terrified to even cover herself up, squirmed and whimpered at the corner. Ricin, still fully clothed, let out an amuse chuckle. He spread his arms wide, beckoning me to his embrace.

"Welcome, my dearest sister! I apologized for my sudden lapse of judgement today. The woman had thrown herself at me and you know, chivalry is not my cup of tea."

The normal Belladonna would hug him, too, and would drag the woman by hair outside, just like how Silvester taught me to handle the situation. Now, the corrupted version of me roared to life. I did not want to be a slave to my father's suffocating rules anymore.

"Belle..."

The shadow slithered like a snake around my neck, provoking me to commit a sin. Warmth filled the void I had been carrying all my life. It dethroned the heaviness that sat like a king on my chest, replaced by the ecstasy the shadow had promised. Too caught up with the sensation, I adhered to its command.

I punched Ricin's face, because the shadow told me it was the right thing to do. He spitted a curse, but I no longer gave a damn about his reaction. Determined, I walked toward the poor woman and pulled a blanket along the way.

"Cover yourself up. Do not stoop so low. My brother is a piece of shit you should dump."

"What the fuck, Belle?!"

When I started helping the woman to get dressed, my brother, who knew me better than anyone else, noticed the signs of my anomaly. In haste, he pushed the woman aside and held my cheeks in between his palms. His sudden movement caused the woman to be out of balance. While I checked her body for injury, Ricin did not even spare her a glance. Instead, his amethyst eyes begged me, almost teary. For he knew if someone saw me in this state, they would execute me on the spot.

'The Damned have no mercy. All of us should be greedy. Helping is a crime punishable by death.'

Neither death nor my father's wrath could change my irrevocable stand right now. The shadow had my back, and I knew I would be safe even if this kingdom burned into ashes.

"What happened?" he asked in a gentler tone.

"Let go of me, you man whore! S-she still needs to get dressed!"

The sound of broken glass startled both of us. From the terrified looks of the woman, it seemed that she accidentally hit the wine glass placed above the bedside table, causing its fall.

Wide-eyed, her shaking finger pointed at me. "S-she must die! Y-you know the rules..."

"Shut up, Sancha! Damn it!"

Ricin pushed me in the bed before he dragged the woman outside, who kept on screaming for my death. As the door shut, laughter bursted out from my mouth. The shadow whispered in my ears, reminding me of my failure. My smile faltered; my shoulder slumped forward in disappointment. I sighed.

"I know I should help the woman because that is the right thing to do. But my brother interfered," I explained, dejected. "There are still a lot of things that I can do, though. I can tell Damon about what happened with Jurist Sandra. Will that be enough for my requital, hmm?"

The shadow showed agreement by kissing my cheek with its cold and airy lips. I knew that my disobedience with the Rules of the Damned would bring the shadow its happiness. The politics in Erideth was one of the things I must destroy.