Section 15: The Wounded Wolf

I rushed over to Ellis who was still afraid, she even pushed Joel violently away from her. Joel tried to explain that he meant no harm, but Ellis yelled uncontrollably like an injured beast. I grabbed Joel's shoulder, I whispered to him to guard the entrance.

Joel gulped in bitterness, he left Ellis with a hurtful glance. After he left the premises we're in, I examined Ellis's nails and her injuries on her body. Her nails were bloodied, my suspicion has now proven to be true.

"Ellis did you-", I trailed in uncertainty whether to speak to her about her incident.

She was abused, morbidly over and over. The scars and the cigarettes mark on her body prove the abuse she received repeatedly on the same night. I looked at her despaired expression, her bloodshot eyes, and her bloody lips.

If my predictions were correct, she was abused after her husband was killed. The sad thing was her dead husband saw what these people did to her wife but he's already gone for good and it's the same for his wife.

She must be bewildered and ashamed to see herself being abused in front of her deceased husband. I clenched my fist in anger, whoever did this to them were no more than animals in heat.

"Ellis tell me, who did this to you?", I asked her.

Ellis was still confused and cried like a baby, she looked at me with blank eyes like a dead fish. I was angry and confused, I could feel the adrenaline took over and shoved her to the wall.

"ANSWER ME WHO DID THIS ELLIS!?", I yelled at her with all my anger.

Ellis was frightened and bowed to me pathetically like a servant.

"Please kill me, please kill me, please don't kill me, I beg of you", she contradicted her own words repeatedly like a broken cassette.

Ellis was broken, she had already lost her way when the abuse began. To be seen by your deceased husband that you were raped must be despairing for her.

"Please kill me, I don't deserve to live", she crawled to my leg as she begged me to kill her.

"I am no longer pure to even live my life, I am impure, my husband is dead".

Her eyes were no longer innocent and energetic like she used to be, the old Ellis has died for good. Swirling in insanity, her eyes directed their gaze onto me pleadingly to be killed. I shoved her away but she clinging on me broke and wanted to be killed by me.

"Please I have no reason to live anymore Aria", Ellis's eyes were insane. "My beloved Nash died horribly, I wanted to follow in his footsteps! I WANTED TO BE WITH NASH!".

'This woman disgusts me', that was the first thing I thought when I saw her become this pitiful. I gulped as I tried to hold my disgust and rage.

"Listen, don't be this pitiful Ellis, you can do better", I told her.

"But without him, I am no one", her eyes were blank.

"What are you saying Ellis, you're being ridiculous", I tried to calm my composure.

Thanks to Ellis ruckus Joel decided to come in, he was unsure what to do but he grabbed both of Ellis' shoulders nervously.

"Ellis, you'll be fine with us", Joel smiled awkwardly. "We can protect you and I'm sure your husband wants you to live".

Ellis' eyes were red and teary, she still refused to hear what Joel said. She is sickeningly sick, mentally ill because of her husband's loss. The scene in front of me irked me to no end, she reminds me of someone I detest.

I detested being like her, a human who disvalued herself because of her husband's death, she could live on her own without her husband. When you think about it, her entire existence was made with her own flesh and not him. She is mentally ill, she needs to be fixed.

"Thank you", Ellis said unsure. "But I want to be with my husband until the end, that's our vows".

"But you have to-".

Just before Joel could finish his sentences, I pushed him aside lightly. I looked at that distasteful woman in front of me. She looked at me, expecting me to say something to her. I aimed my metal bat at her horrified face, I grinned at her menacingly. I thought of something terrific to keep the clouds away from my chest, why didn't I think of this sooner?

I swung my metal bat to her skull, she was obviously surprised by my hit. As I swung my bat to her skull repeatedly, a sound of bone cracks gave music to my ears. I hit her multiple times without mercy, her warm red liquids were splattered on my face and body.

Her blood was warm and fresh, some of her blood entered my mouth, it tasted rather salty. Ellis was thrown back on the wall, she was no longer alive or breathing. Joel looked at me as if I was a monster, he was horrified and traumatized by the sights he saw.

Joel's eyes widened, he backed away from me afraid of what I just did to that woman that might have happened to him.

However, I paid him no mind as I let the metal bat on my grasp hit her entire body, I would like to make sure that she died for good. When I saw her obedience and her unending affection toward her husband, it disgusted me greatly. When I was about to swing my bat to beat that lump of meat, Joel circled his arm around my waist forcefully.

"ARIA STOP THIS! WHY ARE YOU DOING THIS!?", he hollered pathetically.

"She wants to die, so I grant her death" I answered plainly.

"But don't you see that she's about to change her mind!?", Joel yelled at me.

He turned my body around to face him, his eyes were sharper than I thought. I never thought that Joel had the capacity to yell at me, he has always been a lazy man who never thinks for himself. At first, he was intriguing, but he's just a dull man like everyone else. A man who had no courage nor determination to become outstanding.

However, his gaze now was firm and courageous, I never saw this side of him.

"Aria, I'm scared", he stuttered. "Why did you kill that woman? She was deeply hurt then why-".

"She was infected with an illness, I simply cure her of that illness", I replied robotically.

Joel looked at me in disbelief, he was shocked and angry. He grabbed my collar forcefully.

"What the heck are you talking about!? You're crazy!!", he snarled at me

My vision grew hazier, my head was enveloped with dizziness and cold sweat. I couldn't even stand on my own two feet, I panted heavily for unknown reasons. I pushed Joel away weakly, I walked limply toward the exit with heavy breath.

"Alert! Alert! Aria Schneider's mental condition has worsened!", the AI inside my sling bag spoke like an alarm.

Like a broken alarm, that damned AI repeated the same words as if to remind my insanity. Just when my vision turned into total darkness, a familiar man appeared at the doorstep. I bumped into that man, I was reminded of this familiar scent I always longed for.

"You look messy", that man spoke huskily.

I looked up only to see Ender smirk, that raven-haired man that I've been searching for this entire time. I have these mixed feelings when I saw his face, it was a feeling of gladness and something else I couldn't identify. He patted my head lightly with a wide smile, both of his hands went to my reddened cheeks.

"Wow, your face is so dirty, with blood", he said. "Plus you're kinda warm, maybe you're sick".

He wiped away the traces of fresh blood on my face with his thumb, his touches were warm and careful. I could meet in his arms if I could, but I refrain from doing such shameless acts in front of her and Joel. Before I could process why on earth this raven-haired man appeared out of nowhere, I sank my eyes to the darkness.