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CHAPTER FORTY
Last Updated:
2024-10-29 19:42:56TRAITOR
May 20, 2021
GABBY
For the first time in my life, I committed a heinous crime.
I deceived the person who trusted me. No, she was not just a simple person in my life. She had been a part of me—we've known each other since we were kids.
I don't think I'll ever be able to forgive myself, not after what I did.
"Gabby, please stay awake." Lizzie's voice tries to keep me awake while lightly tapping my face.
I shiver uncontrollably, feeling the cold on every inch of my flesh. Perhaps this is my karma for what I did to Maddy. I never expected to find her there, and I never imagined Santi could do such things to innocent girls.
But what I didn't expect was
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SIX FEET DEEP [PART ONE]May 20, 2021GABBYMaddy's blood is getting closer and closer to my skin, and I can feel the sorrow rising in my chest as I stare at her with wide-open eyes. Everything happened so quickly, and my tears weren't stopping. At first, I believed Santi had fired his gun at me, but when he moved his palm across Maddy, I felt my strength dwindle ultimately.She was shot in the stomach. I couldn't stare at her any longer, but I also didn't want to avert her gaze. Maddy vomits blood while she lies unmoving a few steps away from me. When she gave me a faint smile, I shook my head in despair. I don't want her to do that to me; she can't just say goodbye after all these years of not seeing her. I can't just say goodbye to her now, not in this state.
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THE CONTINUATION... "Julius, you friggin' traitor!" When we came upon a wounded cop with blood splattered on his thigh, Santi ordered me to pull over with a gritted-teeth grumble. "Santi! Help!" Cried by the man on the ground. "I'm coming back for you! I simply need to—" He didn't get a chance to finish his sentence when I hit him in the jaw, causing him to collapse against the car door as he accidentallyrelinquished the gun, which fell to the floor. For a split second, I considered grabbing the gun lying on the floor in front of his feet while he's dizzy. But I was hesitating and thought that it would just be a trip to hell, so I opened the car door and tripped on the mud, but I quickly dragged myself to my feet a
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THE MADE-UP LIES [PART ONE] MAY 20, 2021 JACKIE We were urged to sit here in the living room by Santi after he yelled at us not to leave, and it was also the time two guys in police uniform knocked on the door. They instantly became familiar to me. They are one of Santi’s friends from last night. Lizzie and Gabby are in Zack's room; his breathing surprisingly returns to normal after he passes out. When the two cops arrived, Lizzie stopped, begging Santi to let us take Gabby to the hospital. We were all quite concerned about Gabby's condition, and I was afraid we would lose him. Fortunately, he is fine, but he still has a fever, so Lizzie is with him to care for him. It was still a mystery to me what happened to Gabby and Santi; they were together, and we had no idea where they went. And when t
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THE CONTINUATION...Zack took a step forward toward Santi, saying, "Do you know how Debbie constantly abused me when I was a kid?Debbie, who was sitting on the bed with Chloe next to her, scoffed in disdain."She's your grandmother!" Santi yelled like an older man demanding respect in return."Yet she didn't act like one!""Zackary! I'm just trying to keep myself under control right now. Don't test my patience!" I noticed Santi's fist clenched in rage, and his lips curled in contempt."Stop accusing me of abusing you. You're a scoundrel; I just did it because I want to remove the horns from your head! Zackary, you were such a stubborn child. There was
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The Letter; the beginning of a nightmareSeptember 29, 2003Dearest brother,I'm not sure if you'll ever find or read this letter. But I sincerely hope you do. This is a letter in which I apologize for any lies I told you that caused you considerable damage.I'm sorry for not wanting to go with you when you asked me to escape with you that night. You yelled and screamed at me, telling me what a moron I was for still wanting to stay with our mother despite the fact that I saw her murder our father with my own two eyes…I know you didn't believe me when my mom and I told you it was all self-defense when our father accused mum of stuff and assaulted her. But I still let you believe it happened, and I really regret it.Nonetheless, I believe you deserve to hear the truth fro
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The Letter: The devil"Don't be upset with the young lady, sweetheart." Santi softly let go of mom's hand. While I stood there perplexed, my gaze was drawn to them one by one.Mom gritted her teeth and pointed at me. "Talk to me that way again or I'll cut your tongue off!" Mom growled.Her words made me quiver and shake, but when she left the living room, Santi grinned at me. It wasn't a sincere and comfortable smile; there was something odd about it that I couldn't put my finger on at the moment. When he quietly went out of the room, I was left with the boy I had seen peering through the window the day our father died. I scrunched my brow in curiosity, but he simply bowed down and rushed across the kitchen as if he lived here.I didn't expect you to return home as the darkness fell. Sam, I'd
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The Letter: Lie in the water's depths. [PART ONE]As soon as you told me your intention to leave the house, I was ecstatic. When I experienced that reaction, it was as if my blood came to life and raced through my veins for the first time in a long time. Neither was it out of disinterest in seeing you again. Because I am proud of you, that is. After all, you took a risk and made the right choice. Because I know Santi doesn't want you in the house, and I'm afraid he’ll kill you if you stay too long.But, before you left, you begged me to come withyou. My heart shattered as I realized I couldn't go with you. West Lake—no, the lake house—kept my body and spirit entwined with every aspect of it. Because the agony and terror lingered in me, after Santi gained control of the entire house, I experienced the worst sensation—numbness. I don't feel anything
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THE CONTINUATION..."I need her."His words accelerated the pace of my heartbeat. It grew so bad that I could hear my pulse racing through my ears. As I hollered at Santi, the hairs on the back of my neck stood up as if something were blocking my airway.Every time he took a step forward, my body was trying so hard to crawl backward as if it had its own mind. My back was suffering from the fall, which was why I couldn't stand up and ran away."N-no... please don't," I cried. I sobbed in desperation, pleading with Santi not to harm me.But his lips were smeared with a wicked grin. When he crouched down and approached me, he encircled me in his arms like if I were a bird without wings. I kept pleading wit
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THIS WILL BE THE LASTEPILOGUEONE YEAR LATERZACK"Congratulations, Zack. I’m so glad to say that this is the end of our sessions." Dr. Peterson, my psychologist, said to me as we both stood up and embraced.I couldn't believe that after a year of therapy, I was finally done. I was diagnosed with PTSD, and it took us a long time to cure the nightmares that I had been having since the night Santi was captured. I admit that lingered with me for a long time, and it's still difficult for me to this day, but it lessens; most of the time, I'm paranoid, thinking they're simply around me when they're not."I'm going to miss sitting here," I chuckled, and he agreed and laughed too.
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A NEW NIGHTMAREMAY 30, 2021ZACKSeveral different colors of lights blinded me as soon as we walked out of the garage door, indicating that we were being directed to the ambulance. The general public and the media were quick to follow. I was expecting the cops to put us in handcuffs, but they didn't."Zack!" When I heard my sister's voice, I blinked and sat on the stretcher, searching among the crowd for her. As reporters fought to get a hold of us, several cameras flashed through us, but the police were quick to stop them."Chloe!" I yelled, I was going to hop out of the ambulance when the nurses stopped me, till Chloe got close to me with officers sprinting behind her back."I-I'm truly sorry!" Chloe sobbed as she climbed into the ambulance and embraced me. "
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IN HELL, WE ARRIVEMAY 26, 2021ZACK"What were you thinking?!""Don't listen to him; he's brilliant at manipulating us, just like you said. So anything he says will only end up being a lie." Julius murmured, but he didn't look me in the eye."What I'm saying is true; their names are Kevin and Daisy. They were such sweet children, Zack; you should’ve met them. But sadly, they both died in the lake—Debbie killed them both," Santi stated once more. "That bitch is a badass when it comes to drowning kids."Santi laughed.When I return my gaze to Julius, he is glaring at Santi with his fists balled and quivering, as if he is angry at what Santi has said, which further adds to my skepticism.I shiv
THIS WILL BE THE LAST CHAPTER FIFTY-FIVE
HONEST ANSWER May 26, 2021 ZACK "Are you certain about this?" Julius asked nervously as he handed me the chainsaw. I nodded at him and looked at Santi, who was roped to the chair and had a tape across his mouth because he was still attempting to get free. "I've never been more certain," I said. While I was looking at him, Finn walked towards me, placed his hand on my shoulder, and nodded, showing his support. The notion of torturing someone has given me a thrill, and I'll confess that I'm a little anxious and a little scared. This isn't the first time I've killed someone, but it is the first time I've felt a rush in my stomach at the prospect of torturing someone. And it just so happened to be my father, and the fact that I am so thrilled is terrifying.
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FILM SHOWMay 26, 2021ZACK"This will be the last," I murmured firmly as I gritted my teeth into him, my gaze fixed on his. I blinked before returning my focus to the fragments of his photograph."And these? And all of these?" I paused. "If you think you can trick me for the second time, you've failed," I sneered. As I watched the rage cross his face again, I narrowed my eyes at him. He looks like he's about to erupt at any minute.I exhaled furiously as I leaned back in my seat and messed up my hair, but I was startled when he smacked his fist with a gun on the table, forcing me to return my sight to him. I'm not sure what happened to me, but I don't feel anything. I don't feel any emotions other than fury, but all the fears I've felt toward him? They're all gone.
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ALL TO BLAME MAY 20, 2021 ZACK I gritted my teeth as I pushed open the garage door, clutching the gun tightly as I walked carefully inside. Before I decided to step my foot inside here, I made sure to steady my breath and settle the panic inside me. I don't know where Chloe is, and I'm not going to stop looking for her; after I remembered that I witnessedthe filthy animal things he did to my mother at such a young age, I'm convinced that my sister is suffering in the same way that my mother did at his hands. Gabby was mistaken about my lack of familiarity with Santi. Because I do, I just forced my little old self not to remember Santi's true colors. Santi's awful crimes were kept hidden because of my cowardice. It was all because of me if I didn’t absentmindedly twisted my memories of him and choose to believe the few kindnesses he g
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DREAMING OF MEMORIES MAY 20, 2021 ZACK "W-what am I doing here?" I asked myself, but as I looked up and saw my mother standing there, I pursed my lips in surprise. I swallowed the lump that had formed in my throat as panic starts growing within me. I moved my eyes around without moving my body, and when I saw my mother's room, I got chills all over. There are many posters of various singers, bands, and celebrities on the wall, as well as many of her belongings scattered on the floor; everything is in disarray, and tears welled up in my eyes as I returned my gaze to my mother. I came back from when she was still living, and I don't like this memory; I pushed it to the back of my mind so I wouldn't think about it again, but now I'm here again. Mom is grinning at me, her hair is a tangle, and she
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BURIED DEEPMay 20, 2021ZackI forced all the air out of my lungs and exhaled as forcefully as I possibly could. Any attempt to get me up only results in me dropping to my knees on the ground, where I end up wailing and sobbing all by myself. Just as I was about to close my eyes, I noticed my grandmother gently fading from my vision as she drifted away with the wave, but instead of floating, the water ate her body, sinking her.I just found myself again and stopped crying when the sunset and the light in the sky faded. I mustered the will to get back on my feet and walk briskly toward the door. My foot is still blazing in pain, as if someone had slammed a mallet into the interior, generating a searing sensation inside of my foot.With he
THIS WILL BE THE LAST CHAPTER FIFTY
DRIFTED BY THE DARKNESS VAST "Your son has dissociative amnesia, a condition in which your child blocks his memory because of acute trauma or stress; it can also be hereditary." The doctor in front of them said. "Based on his testing, his condition is still not so severe, but it could become so if he continues to forget memories." Olive grasped the strap of her sling bag as she returned her gaze to Zack, who was sitting by the window, refusing to play with the toys scattered on the floor mat. Olive's eyes filled with concern, which her husband immediately noticed; Sam reached for her other hand, which was sitting on her lap, and gently squeezed it, which drew her attention. "Does it have a cure?" Olive asked Mr. Peralta; a child psychologist offered them a tight, warm smile and nodded, causing her to sigh with relief.
