Birthdays. One muffin from the gas station nearby and an extra plate of fries from the club. That was how it had always been, the same thing every year until now, now I had no idea what was about to happen. All they had told me when I had gone this morning was that the others already had something planned for me.
They also told me that the one thing I had asked from them was ready for me to see.
I was sitting on the chair in the back room waiting for the go ahead. It had taken me 2 agonizing weeks to get out of the hospital. My wounds weren't completely healed the bullet wound was still wrapped in a bandage but I wasn't wearing a sling anymore.
The cuts and bruises that covered my body had healed quite a bit, the few deep ones left scars but thankfully I hadn't time to really analyze them. Finally Alex stepped out of the room, nodding his head towards me.
Taking a step forward I hesitated for a moment, did I really want to do this? Was I even ready? Fuck! Screw it, I deserved to do this. I walked inside the dimly lit room, my eyes snapping to the man in the chair.
Everyone around me stood silently around me. I dragged another chair from the other corner of the room; flipping it I sat with my legs on either side of it. "I want some time alone." I said distractedly as I opened a bottle of ammonia.
Their hesitancy was clear and I didn't blame them after all I was asking them to leave in the room alone with a man that almost killed me. But I needed this, "Leave. Now." My withering stare was enough to make them run out like their asses were on fire.
I held the bottle under Sokolov's nose until he jerked awake. "Good morning." I said setting the bottle down and picking up my karambits. These babies had been with me through a lot and it seemed fitting that they got a chance at this.
"сука" he spat towards me. I laughed, god the guy just didn't give up. "You say that like it's a bad thing. Honey, I won't be me if I wasn't a bitch." The confident smirk never left my face. (Bitch)
"You are a killer. You took her away from me." His thick accent could be easily detected in his speech. Somehow there was tiny part of myself that felt pity for the man, he was so blindly in love with my crazy aunt that he didn't care about anything else.
"Come on. Who here isn't a killer. I mean you have a way higher body count than me." Sokolov looked like he was angry and frustrated. I was dragging this out, irritating him just for the hell of it. I had been through hell for three weeks with him I deserved to have a little fun of my own.
"What is it you want from me?" He asked, I stood up as I circled him.
"You know my life was never the easiest. I had to fight every goddamn day so I could survive. For a long long time I was given no choice but to do things just so I get a tiny bit of food inside of me.
I had never known what a normal life looked like. I didn't know what normal 10 year old girls did, because they sure as hell didn't get beaten up by their mother everyday." I kneeled on one knee before him.
"I always thought that I was a bad person because of circumstance. I always felt like if life had given me another chance, just one more chance I could be better. And then I got that, I got the chance, a family, a house, shelter, food and everything I could possibly ask for. Yet there something that still bothered me. Care to take a stab?"
He didn't answer, it was clear on his face that he couldn't figure it out. I stood up again "It was this." I waved my hand around the room. "This chance, just me and some low life scum in a dingy cell as I tortured him to my heart's content."
I loved how his face paled, he gulped as he looked at me, starting to struggle against his binds. "Uh Uh Uh. You don't get to leave now. So you see in the end what I'm really trying to say is that; I finally figured out why I couldn't be a good person, I finally know what is it that I was missing. It was this. This torturing of people like you is what makes me Katherine Fucking Marino."
I took my place behind Sokolov my knife placed against his throat, the tip dug into his skin, a dribble of blood flowing from his neck. I wanted to move my knife but I couldn't, it didn't feel right. I couldn't do this.
I retracted my knife, a shuddered breath left Sokolov's mouth, as he slumped in his seat I set my knife on the table. "See, you do not want to do this." He spoke from behind me.
"You're right. I don't want kill you by slitting your throat." I spoke as I picked up something else. I turned back towards him, his relaxed eyes moved towards the syringe in my hand and the three separated bottles that sat near by.
"Did you know there are three drugs that go into making the lethal injection that is used for the death penalty in America?" I pointed to the bottles beside me. Sokolov stared at me with fear clear in his eyes. He knew he couldn't run anymore, there was no way he could be saved so in his final moments he didn't try to his anything, he didn't try to hide the true emotions he felt at the moment.
"First there is sodium thiopental, this renders you unconscious." I picked up the bottle inspecting it for a moment before I dropped it to the floor unceremoniously. "No!" He screamed but I payed no mind to him
"Second we have pancuronium bromide, this paralyses you." I filled the required dosage in to the syringe. And finally I picked up the last bottle. "And last but certainly not least potassium chloride. This little thing..." I filled the injection the rest of the way. "Kills you."
I pulled his collar away from his neck placing the needle on his skin as I leaned down to whisper in his ear for one last time "In the most painful way possible." With that the needle broke through the barrier of his skin, entering his body and expelling the drugs inside his bloodstream.
He convulsed in his chair, his mouth hung open as his body moved ever so slightly but I could see the pain it was clear as day on his face. Every part of his body including his lungs were all paralysed so he couldn't even breathe.
I just stood there, taking it all in, I stood and watched until he stilled completely. And god did this feel good, I was right, it felt right to hurt him. And I don't care if that makes me a monster, I don't care if that makes me a heartless bitch because people like him deserve all of this.
~~~~~
I was standing in front of my mirror, fixing my hair, it was currently hanging in loose curls down my back, I was dressed in a black dress it had net sleeves and was frilly towards the end, the neck was deep meaning the scar on my neck was on full display.
Which was the reason I was stood here right now trying to cover it with my hair, this was a dress I had chosen long back and didn't want to change it now. Suddenly my door opened and in came Eren.
"Hey we're all waiting what's taking so long?" He asked and I sighed looking at him through the mirror. "I'm trying to fix my stupid hair."
His face softened "Oh Katie." I hated that the bastard could read me so well. "You know what screw it. I'm changing." He caught my arm before I could leave "No, look in the mirror. You want to know what I see?" He asked and I reluctantly nodded.
"I see a brave, strong girl, a girl who has a family that loves her no matter what. I see a girl who has boyfriend who is head over heels for her. I see a girl who has best friend who also happens to be her biggest hype man. And lastly I see my best friend, I see the one person who has been by my side from the very beginning. I see the girl who taint me what it meant to be strong. I see a girl who gave me the inspiration to be better in her own weird way."
Tears brimmed my eyes as I hastily linked them away not want to ruin my makeup. "And you know, if I'm being honest I kind of think scars are cool." He held up his left palm the diagonal scar that ran on his palm was visible in the mirror, I held my palm up as well, showing the exact same one.
A stupid pact we has made as kids had resulted in these, but I still held that line dear to my heart. Eren gave me a hug from behind dropping his chin on my shoulder "You're a fucking badass Slayer. Don't let a little piece of skin take that away from you."
I could never thank Eren enough for all that he had done for me. "Thank you Devil." It wasn't nearly enough but my name for him held a lot of value between us. Our way of letting the other know how much we mean what we say.
Downstairs everyone was gathered around the couch in the living room, on the coffee table sat a mountain of gifts. I took a seat in the middle of the group after I was wished happy birthday again for the millionth time everyone agreed that I should open the gifts first.
First went Elijah, he was almost jumping out of his seat in excitement. The box was long and big getting rid of the wrapping paper I opened the lid inside sat a sword. A red handle was visible. I remove the sheath to see a shining new sword inside. "This is amazing." I hugged him tight which he gladly returned. "Benefits of having a boyfriend in the mafia." Elijah simply shrugged. And sat back down with a smile.
Next we're Luca and Marco both of them handed me two boxes, Luca had given me a set of Jane Austen classics while Marco had brought me a huge set of paints and other art equipment. Saying that they wanted to encourage my other passions besides my music.
Next went Dante, his wrapping was a disaster, the closely wrapped paper was clear giveaway of what was inside. A golden gun engraved with different patterns the handle had a marble pick effect on which my name was engraved. I hugged a as well thanking him proudly for his gift. I had my knives but now I officially had my gun.
Eren handed me a small box. It was clear that it held jewellery. Opening it I took out the charm that was inside. On a silver chain there hung a charm of a grilled cheese sandwich? When I looked to my best friend in question he raised his hand to show the identical charm expect a smaller piece.
"I owed you the bigger part of the sandwich." The distant memory of our childhood unlocked again at his words. Us meeting for the first time, his eyeing my sandwich in hunger and me giving him the bigger piece because I couldn't handle the thought of him going hungry.
He had always said that he would me back the sandwich I rightly deserved and he did. I made him clip it on me. A few tears slipped my eyes at the memory as I hugged him too.
Next was Ace, he held up a huge gift. He opened it for me and my hands went straight to my mouth at the portrait of myself that was in front of me. I held it in my hands and looked at my boyfriend with tears eyes. He spoke softly as if wanting our conversation to be just between us.
"It was after our date at the museum, you were crazily invested in the book you were reading and you had this smile on your face and when I looked at you it's like I just knew how much you meant to me in that moment. How I can't live without you. So I decided it capture that moment forever."
I laughed lightly through the tears. "You're an idiot." He wiped the tears from my cheeks. "Well I'm your idiot so you can't get rife of me." He kissed me softly and was about to deepen it before an aggressive clearing of throats drew us apart.
Alex held out a box similar to Eren's "More jewellery?" Inside there was a metal bracelet. One that was certainly not my style. I forced a smile onto my face. "Thank you, this is a...great gift." Alex laughed "Oh please I know better than that. This is actually dad's." The forced smile slipped from my lips.
"What?" "Yeah, dad used to wear it all the time. But after he passed we kept it with us the whole time. None of us felt worthy enough to wear it but with you I fell like it's the right place it belongs." I stared at the bracket in my hand.
A little trinket that belonged to my father, I could bet he hadn't even thought a whole lot when he had bought it for himself. But god this old fading metal thing meant the world to me. "Thank you." I whispered as I slipped it on my wrist.
Last was Xavier, he heisted a little before he me my gift. He hadn't even bothered to wrap it. The tape lay in my hand, on the back the name was written in messy writing 'Kate's 1st birthday'. When I looked up he was already up on his feet his hand held out for me to follow him.
In the tv room we all sat together as Xavier put in the tape. "Dad had made this on your first birthday he wanted to give it to you on your 18th birthday but I think you waited enough.
The video started, the quality of the picture told me that dad had definitely used a very old recorder. The video aimed in on five kids. Two kids who held big smiles, twelve year old kid and an eight year old whom I guessed would have been Xavier and Alex.
Beside them were two identical looking babies, three year old Luca and Marco sat on the floor babbling aimlessly and finally Dante was in Xavier's arms he looked at the Sameera innocently, having no clue of what was really happening.
All them collectively went to the other room where I was sat, my mother no where in the frame, rather a maid that held me up as I myself slapped the table in excitement for the cake in front of me.
For the first time I heard my dad talk and I almost broke into a sob right there. "And here is our birthday girl! Hello baby!" Setting the camera on the table he came into frame taking me from the maid he sat back in the chair in front of the cake.
He held me so delicately, like I might break any second yet even with the delicateness he looked so sure of himself. "Smile for the cameras honey! Yes you can look there." He pointed to camera and I could hear a chorus of voices in the back from my brothers trying to make me look at the camera.
When I finally looked I laughed like I had seen the funniest thing in the world. My father ushered the boys beside him. I had no idea where the hell my mother was and I was fucking glad she wasn't there to ruin the perfect moment.
Dad talked to me softly, telling me to make a wish and blow out the candles. I put every thing I had in my body into that one blow but the flame didn't move an inch in a hurry my dad blew it out from behind me. I being the little baby I was didn't question it and clapped happily.
After a few more laughs the video came to stop, the last still visible to us of my father kissing my cheek as my brothers obsessed over the birthday cake.
Right now my cheek rested on Xavier's shoulder as tears streamed down my face rapidly. I had long forgotten about my makeup. I didn't care if it got ruined.
All I cared for right now were the people around me and god I couldn't be happier than I was right now. Best birthday ever.
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It's over.
I can't believe this but this is the end of our long journey together.
The epilogue would be posted next week!
I have no words this time. Nothing I can express how I am feeling right now, the happiness and sadness hitting me right now is unreal. But just know that all this has only happened because of you all of you.
I will be posting a final goodbye after the epilogue and I will also be informing you all about my upcoming projects!
Do tell me how you liked this chapter!
Love you all!💕💕✨✨