Page 41 of Caged Heart
Suddenly, something took over me as I spilled a secret buried so deep within me that I knew once father heard it from my lips, he would never leave me breathing. Today was going to be my funeral as well. My feet stopped moving and I glared at the men who tried to touch me again and they didn’t touch me. I faced Father head on, “I killed your favorite child.” I admitted as if some sick, depraved part of me came out to play.
“What did you say?” Father let go of Ares and began advancing towards me. I didn’t give a flying fuck. Today, I was going to fight and die here. I already knew my fate and for once in my life, I was content. Ready for death.
“Listen to me,” I said, emphasizing each of the last three words. “I killed her. She wanted my brother and I chose him. I would kill for him, and you knew that, you knew it and you paralyzed me so that I couldn’t do anything,” tears fell down as I spat the words out through gritted teeth. Frustration and disdain were wrapped up in my confession. “Artemis wanted him to be some sick, twisted, perverse version of you and mother, but I wouldn’t let that happen. We fought after I let her out of the cage while you were away and when you found her hanging up like that, it was because I did it”
My heart banged inside my chest like a tiger raging against the cage that stole its freedom, “and I would do it again. This time, I would slice and dice then reach inside of her chest and rip her heart out for fucking with my head then I’d feed it to you so that you could see what it means to be duped. To be subjected to such filth and shit…and then,” my voice broke, not due to fear but sadness, it crept into me like some random rainstorm. “And then, I would kill the woman who birthed and broke me in, to do such vile things. I would stab her repeatedly just like what you all did to us. I would’ve done it!” I sobbed out not caring who was hearing me.
There was no time for me to get my bearings as I felt father’s fist as it connected to my cheek. I wouldn’t fight back, and I wanted him to kill me. He brought me into this world so he could take me out. Maybe if I died here today, he could go to jail so that Ares would be free of him.
“I regret nothing.” I gritted my words, not mincing anything for him and it drove him mad as he lifted my head and drove it back into the ground, he was trying to split my skull at this point… Good. It was his job to get rid of me anyway.
“Get off him!” I heard Ares but I was already on the floor as father’s fists hit me one after the other then he was off me faster than I could take the next breath.
Ares was fighting him as the men joined with pummeling their fists into me. I already knew they would do it, it was only fair and right. This was the Wick after all. You face the consequences of your actions.
Hearing Ares as he screamed out in full rage mode made me relax and succumb to my fate as I let the pain sink in. The darkness was calling to me and I smiled as I kept receiving blow after blow. I heard a shot ringing out and maybe I was the one who got shot, that would be okay if you asked me, that would give me peace. It was suddenly quiet, and that’s where I sighed, releasing my breath.
Finally, peace… Was all I could think of as I shut my eyes, I was going to get more than a good night’s sleep, wasn’t I?
“Mars!” A slap to my face pulled me away from where I was going. Wherever that was, I felt at peace, didn’t I? “Mars! Wake up! Please,” I heard Ares’s voice and his cries.
My baby brother. My twin, and the reason I stayed alive all these years.
He slapped me across the face again and my eyes fluttered open, but I could tell I was bruised up because my body flared with fiery pain slices. My gaze fell on eyes like mine, filled with sadness… too much has happened to us.
“Let me go, little brother. Just let me go.” I begged him. “I’m so tired.”
Ares shook his head. “No.” he said in a small voice.
He was bruised in the face, his left eye had a cut and was bleeding while the other was swollen. I blinked again as he sat me up a bit, he tried to assist me but as he propped himself up on his knee, it collapsed under him, sending us both back to the ground and stabbing pain shot to my body.
“Ares, it’s okay… I’m ready.” I said, trying to tell him to leave me here as the darkness called me again. It wanted me to return to that path again, didn’t it?
“Mars! Wake the fuck up! The only person who gets to kill you is me. Do you hear me!” he yelled as I felt him cradle me in his arms. I wanted to laugh at what brought me and my brother close but I couldn’t, everything hurt so much yet the darkness lulled me.
Welcome to the darkness, little brother… Artemis greeted me but this time, I wasn’t afraid. I would face her head on just like I did the last time before she took her last breath in front of me.
Ares… little brother, you’re free.
Chapter29
Ares
I’ve never prayed before this moment, but I did it twice. Once, when I prayed that my father wouldn’t touch Carmen with his disgusting hands and the second time was when Mars didn’t wake up again after he told me that he was tired. So many things have been revealed over the past two days that I can’t seem to leave my brother’s side. My father was shot by a crying Carmen as he fought me to the death. Some things possess a man to do what my father did and finding out about Artemis was the trigger.
If only Mars told me and then I would have toasted to the good life with him. I didn’t particularly hate Artemis but I didn’t love her. I didn’t love the ways she touched me and messed with my head either but I was mad at her. Mad that she kept coming back and that she hasn’t disappeared like she usually does in my head instead, there she is, holding Mars to her like he’s hers to hold.
“Why are you holding him?” I asked her. “He killed you.”
Artemis smirked and it made me realize that I didn’t see her the same as she was when she was alive. Our sister was beautiful, but the things our family was part of made her ugly like I see her in my hallucinations. I know she isn’t real. She would have tried to kill Mars himself instead of haunting me if she were. Maybe she was haunting me because she knew I would have helped Mars do what he did.
The vibration of my phone distracted me and I looked at it, it was Goldilocks. It was hard talking to her right now. I felt so ashamed for subjecting her to the ugly side of my family. I told her I would kill for her and meant it, but there she was, having to defend me. In the middle of all my shit when she was like an angel to me… she couldn’t be tainted with everything in my life. Sharing my past was never an option yet she discovered things I would have taken to my grave. Things that disgusted me and made my skin crawl until this day.
I watched as the phone vibrated and then sighed as it stopped. I couldn’t do it. I couldn’t talk to her. Another message comes in from her.
Goldilocks: I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to do what I did.
She thought I was upset about her shooting my father. I wasn’t. He didn’t die and that was what I was upset about. He should’ve died, but now, with all the news articles, it seems he was in some violent act gone wrong. He was being painted as the savior. Somehow saving his two sons from kidnappers and weird shit. Fuck him. I wanted to march into his wing and wrap my lean, long fingers around his throat watching the last of his breath leave his body but I couldn’t. I had to make sure Mars woke up so I could go back to hating him.
