Page 29 of The Black Lotus
They call Kelsey the Twisted Trickster for a reason and she definitely lives up to her name.
THIRTEEN
ASTER
“Asty!” The nickname she had for me as a child makes me internally twitch, hating the way it sounds coming from her lips. Kelsey’s chipmunk like voice echoes around the empty room as she waves around–is that an intestine?She’s dressed fully in her killer costume. Her face is painted white, a pink smile slashed over her mouth, with black diamonds shaping her eyes. She’s wearing a pink and black striped bodysuit and a frilly tutu to match.She’d fit right in at Graves. Every spot on her, from outfit to her face, is sprayed with blood from the victim she has hanging from hooks pierced into his back with a tube up his naked ass. I follow the line to the tanks that are stashed on the edge of the room, my face grim.That could’ve been Serena.Glancing back, his body is blown up, his eyes almost popping out of his head and his stomach slashed open, guts tumbling across the floor.
Fuck.
“Give me one minute; I'm almost done,” Kelsey singsongs, twisting the intestines together. “Ta-da!” She beams, holding her creation proudly in front of her. “Do you like it?” I squint, my stomach churning as Serena fidgets behind me. It looks like she made a heart with something dangling in the middle.
She skips towards us with a childlike glee and I walk to meet her in the middle of the room to shield Serena standing at the door from her line of sight, every nerve on high alert. The Kelsey I knew is not the Kelsey in front of us now.
I knew this killer, before finding out it was Kelsey, had a childlike mind, desperate to be loved and admired. Kelsey had a hard life; she always believed her parents would come back for her. They never did. Just like mine, her parents were serial killers, but hers dressed as clowns and never got arrested. She was abandoned at nine, but when she was sixteen she found out the truth. Her parents never gave her up, they were killed in a standoff with the cops. The real story of what happened was concealed from her and she grew up believing a lie. The day she learned the truth, something inside her snapped.
Her deranged behavior has me not wanting her to see Serena even more, but the way my vixen loves to put herself in danger, I know she will make herself known. I just hope she listens long enough to let me give her an opening. I need to trust that she won’t step foot into this room until the right moment. I need to concentrate on the psycho in front of me, make Kelsey believe in the same hopes she has dreamed of for so long. Create the illusion that is the Monet and trick her into my web of lies, entangling her in my words and actions until Serena bites off her head. I smirk at the thought of Serena as a spider, with eight legs and a dozen eyes always watching and waiting. A shiver racks my spine;actually I don’t like that image,it is rather creepy, I’d rather Serena just cut her head off. That image relaxes me and brings me back to the woman closing in on me.
She jumps to a stop in front of me, arms outstretched with blood dripping down her arms. The body part stretches as far as it can go since it is still connected to the man behind her. “I made it for you! It's your favorite, see?” She points to what looks like a red panda, made from other body parts, dangling in the middleof the heart. I just stare at it, curling my lip with disgust. My body tense waiting for her to make her next move.
She pouts, tilting her head. “Do you not like it?” She kicks away a pebble, her eyes dipping as her mouth twists to the side. “I worked so hard on it.”
Snap out of it Aster, you are the Morbid Monet, act like it.“That’s not my favorite animal anymore,” I state calmly, trying not to agitate the woman in front of me.
Her eyes light up, the pink smile growing across her cheeks. “Oh! Well, that’s an easy fix. What’s your favorite animal now?”
“I don’t have one,” I lie, not wanting to give her more than necessary, hoping that she can’t see through the facade.
She scrunches her brow, rocking back on her heels. “You grew up.” She looks me up and down, annoyance flashing across her features before she walks away. She throws the gift in the pile under her victim's body, her hands shaking. “I guess the police will get two gifts this time,” she grumbles to herself.
Taking a hesitant step forward, glancing back to make sure Serena is still behind me; I can’t tell if it is all an act or if that is how she truly is. It’s all a little unnerving, causing my steps to slow. Not knowing what she will do next keeps me watching her every move. She is kneeling down and moving the intestines around, displaying them.
I know we didn’t have a childhood growing up, and as we aged she never truly matured, but I thought once we both finally escaped that hell, she would finally act her age. I see now that is not the case. My shoulders slump as my mouth thins into a grim line.
She bolts up, startling both me and Serena by clasping her hands together, her eyes lighting up seeing my vixen behind me. “You brought me my gift!” she exclaims, grabbing her bloodied axe off the floor, tiptoeing toward Serena.
No way is she killing my vixen, especially with a weapon already used on her previous victim. Based on her little surprise taped on the door, she still has a crush on me, and for my plan to work, I need Serena to keep her emotions in check and trust me.
I look over my shoulder at Serena, determination and understanding shine in her eyes, giving me the reassurance I need. I step towards Kelsey and away from my future, sliding on the mask of the Morbid Monet with each step, the feeling of rightness settling over me.
Caressing her cheek, I lay on the charm as she nuzzles into my touch. “I love the gift, and I can’t believe you remembered my favorite childhood animal.”
She places her hand into mine and steps slowly into my chest as her other hand relaxes against my chest. “I don’t know what changed from when you came in to now, but I don’t care. I missed being held by you.” She breathes in my scent. “You smell different, but I like it,” she hums.
“I was just caught off guard after not seeing you for so long.”
“That’s all? You promise?”
“I promise.” The words fall out of me easily, the lies being covered by a half-truth.
Her fingers dance up my chest, but before her touch can land on my face, I stop her pursuit, wrapping my hand over hers. I hope Serena doesn’t kill me for flirting with someone in front of her, but I lay the charm on.I hope she knows I am doing this for her.I fight the urge to look back, keeping my gaze on Kelsey’s.This is the only way.
“I remember everything about you, Asty. Do you remember my favorite animal?” She looks up, batting her eyelashes and leaning into me further.
“Red panda.” I feel Serena’s blood boil from how quickly I answer, the energy switching from cool curiosity to a blazinginferno of rage. “You liked everything I did.” I quickly clarify, hoping that helps dim the fire swirling around us.
She twirls her skinny, blood-stained fingers around a lock of my hair. “I still do,” she whispers, standing on her tiptoes and looking directly at my vixen. My spine stiffens as all the oxygen seems to be sucked from the room.
She steps out of arms, the emptiness bringing relief. “Too bad the one thing you seem to like has to die.” She shrugs, swinging her axe towards Serena.
