Chapter 56. Death is the new beginning
The brothers entered their home, their heavy footsteps echoing through the now eerily silent halls. A tense silence hung in the air, suffocating their throats as they exchanged a fleeting glance filled with unspoken worry and fear.
"Baby," they called out. No one replied.
The brothers froze.
Their gaze shifted to the motionless figures strewn across the floor, their bodies sprawled like discarded rag dolls. The once-vibrant souls who had faithfully served their household now lay lifeless, their eyes vacant and their limbs twisted in unnatural angles.
The air hung heavy with the stench of death, a chilling reminder of the macabre scene that had unfolded in their absence.
The brothers' frantic footsteps echoed through the mansion, their once-confident strides now transformed into erratic dashes. Their eyes darted around, scanning every corner for any trace of their beloved Iris.
Sweat mingled with the furrows on their brows, mirroring the intensity of their desperation. Elias's hands trembled as he tore open drawers and flipped through papers, his fingers leaving smudges of anxiety in their wake.
"Where are you, Iris?" he muttered under his breath, his voice quivering with a mixture of fear and determination. His heart pounded in his chest, threatening to burst from the suffocating grip of worry.
Jasper's normally composed facade crumbled, revealing a raw vulnerability. He ransacked closets and overturned furniture, his fingers grazing over items that held memories of shared laughter and stolen kisses.
A guttural growl escaped his throat as frustration mingled with helplessness. "Iris, don't you dare hide from us," he pleaded, his voice laced with a potent mix of desperation and longing. "Where are you, baby?"
As they moved through the mansion, the eerie silence pressed against their ears, punctuated only by the echo of their anguished cries. The realization began to settle in, like a weighty boulder upon their shoulders.
Iris was kidnapped.
Soon a group of highly trained men entered the mansion.
Elias's desperation festered, twisting into a manic determination. His voice quivered with a mixture of fear and rage as he barked out orders. "Find her! Tear this place apart if you have to! I don't care what it takes, just bring her back to us!"
Jasper's composure shattered like shards of glass, his eyes ablaze with an unhinged fire. A chilling grin curled upon his lips, revealing a dark intensity that sent shivers down the spines of those around him.
"Liwei... that son of a bitch," he hissed through clenched teeth. "He will regret the day he laid eyes on her. I will tear his wretched existence apart, piece by bloody piece."
The sound of ringing phones and hurried footsteps filled the air as the brothers mobilized their forces. The echoing voices on the other end of the line exuded a grim determination, matching the intensity that coursed through the veins of their leaders. "We're on our way, sir. No stone will be left unturned. We will find her."
Elias's hands trembled as he clenched and unclenched his fists, his voice strained with desperation. "Raj, that necklace... the tracker. Is there any sign of her?"
"If not, there is a tracker in her shoes, her watches, her phone, her belts. Track each one of them."
Raj's voice crackled through the line, his tone laced with urgency. "I'm scanning the signal now, boss. It's faint, but we're narrowing it down. Hold on."
Jasper's laughter rang out, a chilling melody of deranged obsession. "Oh, Liwei, you fool. You've just signed your death warrant. There will be no mercy, no remorse. Only the cold, merciless embrace of death awaits you."
The brothers exchanged a glance, their eyes gleaming with a shared madness, an unwavering devotion to the woman who had captured their hearts.
They were prepared to unleash a storm of fury upon those who dared to cross their path, their very souls consumed by a single purpose: to rescue their beloved Iris.
"Check the CCTV footage," Jasper commanded, his voice laced with a dangerous edge.
The brothers huddled around the monitor, their eyes glued to the screen as the playback began. The break-in had been executed flawlessly, sending shivers down their spines.
It was as if the intruders had an intimate knowledge of every nook and cranny of the mansion, navigating its labyrinthine halls with an eerie familiarity.
"Boss, it looks like they used the secret tunnel," one of the men spoke up, his voice tinged with disbelief.
Elias and Jasper exchanged a knowing glance, their expressions growing darker with each passing moment. The secret tunnel was a well-guarded secret, known only to the Sinclair family. Its existence was shrouded in mystery, hidden from prying eyes, yet now it had been exposed to the world.
A chilling realization washed over them, like a frigid gust of wind slicing through their souls. Someone on the inside had betrayed them, granting the enemy access to their sanctuary.
The thought sent waves of betrayal crashing through their minds, fueling their anger and suspicion.
"There's only one person who could have known about the secret routes," Elias growled, his voice seething with venomous accusation.
"Our mother," Jasper sneered, his voice dripping with bitter contempt. "The woman who birthed us into this wretched existence, only to abandon us and betray everything we held dear."
Elias's fists clenched tightly, his knuckles turning white with pent-up rage. "I should have killed that bitch when we ended our dearest father's life. We spared her then, but now she will pay for her sins."
Their mother, the epitome of their shattered family, had long been a source of anguish and resentment. Her absence had left a void in their lives, a void that had been exploited by the darkness that lurked within their bloodline.
The seed of betrayal had been sown, and now its poisonous fruits had come to bear.
"Let's find her," Jasper hissed, his eyes ablaze with a savage determination. "She must have orchestrated this, colluding with Liwei to strike at our hearts."
Elias nodded, his features contorted with a mix of fury and anguish. "We'll tear this world apart if we have to, but we will find her. And when we do, she will witness the depths of our wrath."
----
A woman in black sat alone in a lavishly adorned room, her figure emanating an air of elegance and refinement. Her slender frame draped in a flowing black gown, every inch of her attire exuded a sense of mystery and allure. Her age, somewhere in her early fifties, had only added a haunting beauty to her countenance.
As the melancholic strains of a mournful classical composition filled the room, she sat with an air of tragic grace, her posture exuding both strength and vulnerability. Her fingers, adorned with dark, lacquered nails, danced lightly upon the armrest of her chair, like delicate spiders spinning a web of sorrow.
To behold her was to witness a living embodiment of sorrow and regret, a haunting reminder of the fleeting nature of happiness and the inevitability of pain. She had embraced her role as the harbinger of despair, accepting her fate with a twisted sense of satisfaction.
As if she knew her fate.
The door slammed open.
"I expected you, my dear sons," she smiled, looking at them.
"Where is our wife," Elias growled, storming closer to her.
Amusement danced in their mother's eyes as she observed Elias, her hand gently caressing his face. "Ah, the resemblance is striking, my dear. You possess your father's features, both captivating and haunting."
Elias tightened his grip on her hand, inflicting pain to extract the information he desired. "Where. The. Fuck. Is. My. Wife!"
A smirk curled on her lips, revealing her twisted satisfaction. "If only you had shown this passion to Henry, he might have chosen you over Jasper. But alas, your fervor is wasted on a girl—no, a dead girl," she taunted, a giggle escaping her lips.
Jasper, unable to contain his anger any longer, seized a knife and held it against her throat. His voice, cold and filled with determination, conveyed their shared exhaustion with her manipulations. "We've grown tired of your games. If you want an easy death, reveal where our wife is."
Their mother hissed as the knife pressed against her neck, the sting of its cold metal serving as a reminder of the imminent danger she faced. Defiance glistened in her eyes as she uttered a single word. "My son..."
Jasper's sneer revealed the bitterness that had long festered within him. "Don't call me that. I was never a son to you. You failed to fulfill your role as a mother."
A flicker of sadness passed over their mother's face as she defended her actions. "How could I be a mother to you both when you were nothing but a reflection of the man who married me out of convenience? He used and possessed me, treating me like an object. He threatened my loved ones, confined me, and when I grew older, he abandoned me," she laughed bitterly.
"You both bear his likeness, his flaws, and his darkness."
Elias's grip tightened on their mother's hand, his face contorted with anger and anguish. "You abandoned us, just like he did. Left us to fend for ourselves, to become the men we are today. But unlike him, we will not let you walk away unscathed."
Jasper's eyes burned with a mix of hatred and determination. "You think you can manipulate us, control us? No, we are not our father. We are not him, nor are we you. We are our men, shaped by our own choices and experiences. And today, we choose to end this twisted legacy."
Their mother's eyes flickered with a mixture of defiance and resignation. "So, what now? Will you kill me, just like you killed your father? Will you find solace in shedding more blood?"
Elias leaned closer, his voice dripping with venom. "You helped Liwei. You betrayed us, your sons. You took away our wife, the woman we love. Why? Why did you do it?"
A twisted smile formed on their mother's face. "Revenge, my dear sons. Revenge for the pain I endured, for the life I lost. I wanted you to suffer, to understand the depth of my anguish. And now, you will suffer the loss of your beloved Iris."
Jasper's grip on the knife tightened. His voice grew cold and calculating. "If you wanted us to suffer, you succeeded. But know this, Mother: our love for Iris will drive us to unthinkable lengths. We will find her, and when we do, we will make sure you witness your failure before your life fades away."
A twisted laughter echoed through the room as their mother reveled in the chaos she had unleashed. "Kill me," she whispered.
"I, Katrina Volkov, have no regrets," she declared, disavowing her connection to the Sinclair name. Her gaze lingered on her sons, a mixture of bitterness and cruel satisfaction flickering in her eyes. "May you never find true happiness, my sweet boys."
Without hesitation, Jasper drove the knife into her neck, silencing her spiteful words. The sound of gurgling blood filled the air as Karina Volkov, no longer a Sinclair, succumbed to her fate. A macabre satisfaction twisted her features, a grotesque display of triumph.
"She has w-watched all of this. Your lo-lovely wife."
And their mother took her last breath.
Hehe...
To be continued...
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