THE TORMENTOR 2
THE MASKED
The Masked - Episode 9&10
( Where•are•you, Ixora? )
Book 2 in the Mindf+ck Trilogy
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Elsa's eyes dilated, nearly tearing her lids apart as she watched the occuring horror.
Blood is flooding out of Warren's stabbed eye, and both Capri and Ashton look like they just saw the darkest damnation as they stared at him with their jaws on the floor.
Warren removed the pin from that eye, then he began bringing it to the second one, and Elsa made to come out of her hiding place, but Mykel pulled her back, and she gasped.
"Let go!" She glared.
Mykel smirked, holding her second hand too.
"I'm not the type to listen to orders, you know me very well, Ixora" he sternly said, and then he pulled her out of the place.
Before Warren could stab himself in the second eye, Ashton and Capri held him
They had to fight him like they're his enemies, punching him countlessly in the face and chest before they could forcefully take the pin from him since he's so darn strong.
By the time they got the pin, Warren lay flat on the ground, looking up at the chandeliers with his one working eye as blood continued pouring out of the second wounded eye.
"Ixora..." He sickly muttered.
"Call an ambulance" Ashton told Capri, and Capri retrieved his phone.
--
Lydia is still on the chase with Maureen, and right now they're out of the hall premises.
Maureen knowingly began rounding the amphitheater, and Lydia ran after her like a hound dog, pouring all her energy into the chase and losing much energy in the process.
When she noticed it's gonna continue like this till probably forever, she entered the amphitheater and rolled out of the door from the other side, cleanly double-crossing her.
Maureen came to a half, dropping her sword on the ground before raising her hands up.
No part of her face is showing since the ninja outfit is securely wrapped around her head.
"Oh wow...you caught me" she said, her voice thick under the black wrap.
"Just give up, Maureen. Doreen died after giving birth to Warren, so what? Did he kill her?" Lydia replied, and Maureen laughed.
"His birth caused the death of Doreen, end of discussion" she said, rubbing her head.
"I know the exact reason why you're like this, it's not exactly because of her death, is it?" Lydia scoffed.
"Oh I see that crippled man already told you too much" Maureen replied with another crooked laughter.
"And you know what? You aren't even close to the truth! You'd be shocked when you find out you're after the wrong person" Lydia said.
"Pep talk? I'm so not a fan of it, so why don't we meet another time? I'm after Warren's legs, and till I cripple him like his father, I'll be unstoppable! The crippled fool left him in jail to protect him from me that year, right? But this time, he won't be able to hide from me! His legs and life is mine!" Maureen replied, his sneer evident in his voice.
Then she threw down a smoke shell, and then she jumped out of the corner, down the lawn.
Lydia covered her nose with an hand and ran through the smokes, jumping down too, but Maureen was already gone.
"Shit" she kicked the wall.
--
[Back In The Hall]
Tina and Monty are still in their hiding place below the platform.
They're both squatting, holding each other, but then noticed someone is in front of them, covering them from everything.
Monty stood and pushed the person with her leg, and he fell forward before facing them.
It's Bronx.
"What? You thought it was your brotherhood who attacked?" Monty said dryly, and he stood.
"You should reduce the way you're so gutsy, you think I'm lying when I say they're dangerous? I haven't even seen our leader before bî+ch!" He said, and Monty nodded.
"Of course, only Bronx would do something that idiotic, you're in a cult and you don't know the leader's identity? Let me tell you, just stay off the lane of Tina and I, I'm done with you and your cult" she said.
"I know you're still after them, i know you're still trying to track me down. But I don't want you to die pointlessly like your father, which is why I'm always taking my time to warm you!" Bronx snarled.
"You have no damn right to talk about my father! The same father you burnt his coffin? Shut your trap!!" Monty bit back, and when Bronx tried talking again, Tina stepped in...
"Stop it, you're doing too much, and it's irritating" she said, then she left the hall with Monty.
Bronx digged his fingers in his hair frustratingly, checking his phone.
He's supposed to kill the two tonight, but he didn't.
Normally, the brotherhood would have texted him to warn him, but there's nothing from them.
His messages is dry.
Their warnings are dangerous, but their silence? More dangerous.
He rushed out of the hall in fear.
It was Romeo who helped Serena up, but immediately she stood, she pushed him away.
"Ixora..." He blinked.
"I don't want you!!!" Serena's eyes are teary as she spoke, and her wounded knees are bleeding subtly.
"You're bleeding, let's get you to the clinic" he held her again, but she pushed him away irritatingly.
"Don't touch me!!" She yelled, unable to fold that stupid scene away from her head.
The scene of how Mykel pulled Elsa to safety when the metal almost crashed on her.
She saw it, and her hate has been overflowing since then.
How dare Elsa even go near Mykel? How could Mykel touch her?
"But you're bleeding" Romeo's annoying voice spoke again.
"Look away!!! Don't just touch me you dirty, dirty thing!" Serena yelled, and Romeo's eyes widened.
Bethel and Winter joined them, and Bethel suddenly pulled Serena's hair, causing her to wail.
"I dunno what you ate that changed you during your one year absence, but you better lecture yourself on how to talk to people! My brother is not a pig!" She said.
"Let go of her!" Winter took Serena from Bethel.
"She doesn't want your brother, tell your brother to buy some self-respect, it's not hard" she continued, then she took Serena out of the hall.
Romeo almost followed them, but Bethel held him back.
"Let her go, don't be silly" she said, and Clover joined them.
"Are you sure this is Ixora? She's nothing like her" he said.
"Ixora is not the rising issue right now, we have drugs to collect at the port" Bethel replied, leading the way out.
Clover gave Romeo a jacket which he wore on top of his shirt.
"You saw what Mykel did, ri?" He said.
"How he joined the masked girl to cover Warren?" Clover replied.
"Don't try to stop me when I start with Mykel" Romeo said as they both exited the empty hall.
Clover grabbed him.
"Don't try anything funny, we need his connections, and we even went as far as forming a band to get him" he said.
Romeo broke free.
"Bullcrap, him protecting Warren? We're supposed to be enemies with Satan's Heirs!" He said.
"So what? You're gonna hurt the son of a mafia?" Clover said glaringly.
"I'll just give him a mild warning, that should do" Romeo replied.
"This isn't only because he protected Warren, right? It's actually because you know Ixora has been staring at him!" Bethel said, coming back to them.
Romeo pushed both Romeo and Clover out of the way and left them.
"He's hopeless" Bethel clocked her tongue as she shook her head.
"I just want all of these to be fuckin over" Clover said frustratedly.
--
[Park]
Mykel didn't let go of Elsa till they arrived at the densest part of the campus park, and she adjusted her mask, stepping back.
She could hear the wailing of ambulance as it drove Warren out of the campus, and that assured her that he's gonna be fine.
So far he's not dead, then everything is in control.
"Why are you masked? Why are you walking around wearing that mask and allowing that imposter to act like you?" Mykel asked.
"And who told you I'm Ixora?" Elsa replied with squints.
"You're still gonna deny? We're the only two people who covered Warren when the ninja woman was coming his way! He knew Ixora was beside him in his blind state, and I can't be Ixora, which means you!" He replied, and Elsa scoffed.
"Are you done? I really do not have the time for your shenanigans" she said and made a smooth turn, then she began sliding down the park, but she felt him close, so she stopped.
Mykel actually followed her.
He stretched his hand forward, trying to pull off her mask, but she avoided the hand by shifting, then she rested on a car hood and kneeled him on the chest.
Mykel only staggered roughly, but the moment he became stable, he pulled her knees and dragged her to the edge of the hood, taking her mask between his teeth and attempting to tear.
Again, Elsa escaped by elbowing him on the neck, and he let go, so she slid down from the car and began running down the park.
"Nadine your best friend is stuck in Russia, a call to my gramps will take her out of the Barinov guild" Mykel talked, had Elsa stopped running.
Warm sweat crawled down her temples, and her palms folded.
"If Nadine is not your best friend, if you didn't meet me at the mill when we were young, if you're not the Ixora whom I taught the guitar and scrabble—the one when smells fruity like peaches, then you can leave" he said, and Elsa released shallow hot breaths from her nostrils, her standstill more firm.
Her chest was pounding as her hand went to her face, and she untied the mask from where she had tied it behind her head.
The mask came off, and she turned back, walking slowly to him.
Mykel's calm got robbed from him the moment he saw her approaching, and he had to approach her too, meeting her in the middle of the park and hugging her tight.
Elsa reciprocated and hugged him back, making him smile heartily.
"How have you been?" She asked
"What do you think?" He replied, and she smiled, hugging him tighter.
Five minutes later, he was already in his car with him, and he drove them out of the campus to a street food joint.
"I hated street food, but I tried out Cali's, and it wasn't bad" he said.
"Haven't tried it before" she replied.
"Coming" he said, exiting the car.
Two minutes later, he came back with a paper bag of burgers and pies which he dropped beside her.
"I see you're still obsessed with burgers, you kept singing about your love for it at the mill" Elsa said, smiling as she picked one.
Thanks to the tinted windows, no one can see the inside of the car.
"Hmm! Not bad" she nodded as she ate.
"Eat up, you need it after saving two people during that pandemonium" he said.
"I had to, Serena has to believe I'm under hypnosis to protect her" she replied.
"So it's Serena? Your cousin? Carrying your face?" He asked.
"You're not to tell anyone till I decide to tell" she replied.
"What about Warren?" He asked.
"Can we not talk about him?" She replied, taking another bite from her burger.
"You still got feelings for him?" He asked, and she choked on the burger, coughing out.
He quickly offered water which she drank in a rush.
"I told you I don't wanna talk about him." She strictly said.
"Sorry" he replied, and she sighed, resting back on her chair before checking the time.
She'd get an earful tonight when she gets back to the mansion, but she doesn't care.
"So...if I tell you to marry me before I'll help you save Nadine, what are you gonna say?" Mykel asked, and her eyes lifted, slowly.
"Is that a joke?"
"Joke?" Mykel smiled.
"Do you know how many years I've kept this?" He said, bringing out the scrabble piece which has IXORA written on it.
"I carried it around like an amulet, and I planned marry you on the spot the next time I set my eyes on you again. You're the only one I can actually speak to, Ixora. My voice wouldn't open if I tried to speak to my parents. It's only you, you're the only one who has actually heard my voice, so if you think I'm letting you go, then you don't know how hard I can chase" he said.
Elsa closed her eyes, her chest heavy.
"And Nadine's case is not the only one I can help with, I know Evelyn's new face too" he said, and her eyes opened widely.
She grabbed his arms.
"Seriously?"
He nodded simply.
--
[Crescent Hospital]
The stretcher carrying Warren is just riding into the hospital with Ashton and Capri at each side of it, wheeling with the nurses and doctors.
The blood from his eye hasn't stopped pouring, but the second eye is still open, so painfully red.
The stabbed eye is obviously starting to affect the fine one too.
He was wheeled into the EU, and both Ashton and Capri were locked out at the hallway.
They began pacing, waiting for when the doctors will come out, but it took more than an hour, and nothing is happening.
Not even a single doctor came out of the EU which just shows how critical it it.
Capri didn't bother to wipe his tears as they fell slowly, and Ashton had to stop to stare at him.
"Why the hell are you crying?" He demanded, and Capri sighed, sitting on the bench.
"Hawke is my father, isn't he? I ran away from the truth for so long, I warned y'all to never address him as my father cos I was ashamed. It was my father who made War pass through hell in jail. I chose to bear Leo—my mother's surname instead of Benson—Hawke's surname, cos why? I couldn't stand it, but what now? He has ruined him so there's no point running around in circles. He didn't only wreck him physically but also mentally and emotionally! War can never be normal again I swear" he said, wiping his tears.
"So what now? You're gonna do what?" Ashton questioned.
"I'm gonna go into the core prison tonight and get rid of him" Capri said, but Ashton scoffed.
"He's not yours to kill, War could have killed him before he left prison, but he chose to keep him alive for this long cos killing him would be too nice! So calm your balls and chill out" Ashton replied.
Konstantin's call on Capri's phone lessened the tension, and Capri got his phone with cold hands, swiping green.
"What's up, gee"
"Not cool, y'all have to come down to Russia and attend my wedding, with Akem" Konstantin replied, and their eyes popped.
"Yeah...I'm shackled, so there's no hope of ever coming out of here. It'd have been easy if Nadine isn't involved, but she is...if I make one wrong move, then she'd die" Konstantin explained.
"You can't be in a gay marriage you motherfûcker! You can't give up! You don't give up!" Ashton shouted.
"I give up!! I fuckin give up!! Being a part of Satan's Heirs made me forget my roots for a while. I can't change nothing, I'll remain the son of the Evil Witch forever. Till we meet again, mates" Konstantin replied, hanging up.
Ashton and Capri exchanged glances, then Lydia wheeled Elder Creed into the hallway with Beatrice behind them.
"How did it happen?" The old man asked.
"The night blindness thingy" Capri replied.
"Is it making any sense? He's the strongest when he's blind cos he functions better in the dark! His other senses stay at alert whenever he's blind so why would anyone be able to stab him in the eye?" Elder Creed said.
"No one stabbed him" Capri said again.
"Huh?" Elder Creed replied.
"He stabbed himself" Ashton added, and the old man gasped.
And then the doctors finally came out of the EU, looking tensed.
"He needs an eye donor. We have to operate on the stabbed eye and replace it, else...the second eye will go blind completely too" the doctor said.
"Take one of my eyes" Elder Creed immediately said.
"Sire!" Lydia and Beatrice chorused shockingly.
"Take me eye" Elder Creed repeated.
From the end of the hall, Chicago stood like an assassin, watching the scenario like she payed for thriller.
"Shit, dude's gonna get himself killed" she muttered, slipping out of the hall.
"He can't get an old man's eye, that'd be useless. I should take Ixora's eye or something" she continued talking to herself as she left the hospital.
--
[Romeo's Mansion]
The three partners already arrived from the port, and right now they're repackaging the drugs as usual on the large table.
"Is it just me, or is Bronx involved in some shady shit?" Bethel said.
"Are you only just realizing? He belongs in a secret cult" Clover replied.
"Isn't he Ashton's brother? I heard their father is crazily abusive. He beat their mother to death" Bethel said.
"Every student of ILC have sob stories to tell, baby sis" Clover replied, and they both looked at Romeo who's not contributing into the discussion.
He just stood there, staring into space while thinking of the wounds on Ixora's knees.
Will she be ok?
The chiming of his phone made him jerk, and when he checked the message, he grimaced.
Unknown: Outside your mansion, Rom-Rom.
"Be right back" he said, rushing out.
Bethel immediately sat on a chair, licking her pale lips to hide their chapped nature.
Clover sat in front of her.
"Don't you think it's hightime you tell me what's going on? I know you've been taking the drugs since last year" he said.
Bethel looked up, and he nodded.
"Tell me, What's up?" He asked.
--
On getting outside, Romeo met the person he expected, sitting in front of the gate and smoking sinfully.
Chicago.
She stood immediately she saw him though, and he angrily walked to her, punching her in the face.
The cigarette fell from Chicago's lips, and she chuckled.
"I know you're the one who pushed the mounters in the hall earlier! You hurt Ixora and ruined the concert, and then you had the guts to come here?" He sneered.
"I wanted to kill Ixora, you should be glad she only got hurt" Chicago replied.
"Carina..." He continued glaring, and she smiled.
"I hate that name yunno? But when it comes from you, It's not that bad. You moaned it so loud when I gave you your first orgasm. Your d+ck was in my mouth when you were like Carina...oh...oh..f+ck!" She mimicked, and Romeo punched her again.
This time, she punched him back, their respective hits leaving imprints on their faces.
"You never visited me for once in jail, that's enough reason to kill you. The fact that you're now obsessed with Ixora? That's enough reason to kill her. We never broke up before I went to jail, we only took a break, so I dunno what excuse a fucked up bitch like you is gonna give, but you and your new obsession better be ready for my brutal arse clap back" she smiled, taking her cigar from the ground.
She resumed smoking as she walked out of his sight, and Romeo fisted his jaws.
--
[Stonia's Mansion]
When Elsa got back, she was told that her attention is needed in the living room, and she just knew it's what she has been expecting.
She entered the mansion and met Serena with Stonia.
Even Winter is with them since she followed Serena home.
Serena's legs are on Stonia's laps, and she just finished applying balm on the peeled knees.
Rafael isn't here, probably still battling with the government at the commissioner's office.
Gently, Stonia dropped Serena's legs, then she stood, walking slowly to Elsa.
"You left her for danger when everyone was running away from the hall? I thought you were professional" she said.
Elsa kept shut, and Stonia angrily slapped her.
Elsa's face reddened, but Stonia slapped her again, and again, and again.
Four good times, till Elsa fell on her knees in front of Stonia.
Stonia proceeded to kicking her, and Elsa fell on her butt.
Serena smiled, and Winter sat with her, both watching with joy.
"She's my world! You have no other use than to protect her with you life! I didn't assign guards to go with her cos I believed you're enough, but she got hurt at your watch? How useless can you be?" Stonia kicked Elsa in the jaw again, and Elsa shifted back, wiping her bloody lips with her palm.
"Go out! You're not allowed to sleep in your quarters tonight! Go sleep in the streets and reset your sleepy brain then come back tomorrow morning, out!!" Stonia yelled.
Elsa stood and left the house, her steps slow till she stepped out of the gate.
She walked as far as possible from the mansion before digging her phone out of her boy shorts pocket.
She dialled Dr. Fat.
"Yes?" His voice boomed.
"The swim session I asked for, can it still be done tonight?" She asked.
"I think so" he replied.
"Then book it, and send me the location" she hung up, then she dialled Mykel's line.
It was ringing as she walked down the road, and when he picked, she halted.
"Get Nadine outta Russia tomorrow, and you can get me a ring tonight" she said.
--
[Crescent Hospital, Warren's Ward]
Capri and Ashton are outside, even Elder Creed and the rest.
Warren didn't allow the entry of anyone else.
He's up from the bed right now, and his stabbed eye is blocked with a slightly bloody eye patch.
He stood by the window, lips pale and face sick as he made deductions.
Even Ixora covered him in the hall earlier, he didn't only perceive her scent..he perceived another scent.
The smell of potpourri, and that only means two people covered him.
Who smells like potpourri in the whole of ILC?
Maybe if he identifies that person, he'd find Ixora.
Also...the fool pretending to be Ixora, he made his deductions about her before he went to the hall earlier.
There's only one person who's obsessed with Ixora's parents, so much that she fantasizes them as hers.
It's Serena, her cousin.
According to research, Serena has been with her grandma in Serbia since last year.
But what if she's not actually in Serbia?
What if she's the one carrying Ixora's face around?
He has to find out, as soon as possible.
He picked his hood and put it on, zipping up.
Not minding the hellish pain crashing his patched eye and the splitting headache slamming his head, he opened the ward window and looked down.
It's not so high, so he jumped out, landing on the ground with his knees which bled out immediately.
However, he stood..., not feeling it at all as he walked out of the hospital, dialling Chicago's line.
"Who allowed you touch your phone, cyclops?" Chicago's loud voice came.
"I'm gonna need you to make a check on Serena in Serbia" Warren replied, stopping at the back of a truck.
There's more bloodstain on his face white eye patch right now.
"Done, you'll get her location tomorrow, but on one condition" Chicago replied.
Warren rested on the truck.
"I'm gonna kill Ixora, and I'm gonna take her eyes" she said.
"You can do whatever the f+ck you want with her, she's a f+ckin fake" Warren replied, hanging up before dragging himself to cross the road.
--
[Dee Swimhouse]
Dr. Fat made sure to book exclusive services, so Ixora got her separate swimming hall.
She didn't hesitate to jump into the water after getting rid of her disguise and changing into her black bikini.
As she swam back and forth in the blue pool, her mind wandered back and forth too.
From Nadine, to Stonia who slapped her four times, to Serena who's probably feeling on top of the world right now, to Evelyn who's hiding wherever she is.
All these shit has to be over very soon, and she has to start from somewhere.... from Nadine.
Nadine has to come back from Russian first, then they can face Evelyn together.
She surfaced in the pool when someone entered the hall, and she came out, water dripping down her body to her hips and thighs as she walked on the pool edge to the person who just entered..
Mykel.
"Swimming at night? New" Mykel said, walking to her too.
"What? You don't want a wife who swims at night?" She replied, and he stopped in front of her, touching her lip burst.
"Who did this?" He demanded.
"Why? So you can go fight for your wife to be?" She replied.
"Who?" His eyes caught with hers, and she adjusted her bra strap.
"Are you more interested in knowing who hurt me? Or are you more interested in getting engaged with me?" She said.
"I'm not proceeding till you tell me who gave your lip this cut" he replied, and she sighed.
"Fine, you'll know who did it after I become your fiancee. Let's get it done, and by tomorrow, I want Nadine out of Russia" she said.
Mykel was still staring at her bruised lip as he dipped his hand into his pocket, bringing out a ring box.
"You have no idea how long I've been keeping this" he said.
"How many years?" She smiled.
"I'll tell you after I become your fiance" he replied, and she chuckled.
"Are we playing games now?"
"You started it, jewel eyes" he replied, opening the box and revealing the most ethereal ring existing.
Built with diamonds and pearls, crafted with regality and power, crusted with substance...
It's so beautiful it'd make the devil cry.
Elsa kept her smile intact as Mykel slid the ring into her ring finger, then he brought the finger to his lips to kiss.
"The engagement documents will be ready tomorrow, you'll have to follow me home to sign with my parents" he said.
"Sure, husband-to-be" Elsa replied, and Mykel smiled so wide that his lips almost tore.
He kissed her forehead.
TBC.
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