Madman’s Cure: Madman Duet Book Two

by Mason, V. F.

  I block away all emotions; otherwise, I’ll crumble here, whimpering by her feet. That’s not what she needs from me right now. “I’ll call 911,” Eachann repeats for the second time tonight and then dashes away, probably in search of a phone while all I can do is beg.

  “Arianna, please hold on, princess. Just a little bit longer.” I’m afraid to even touch her skin with the tips of my fingers, for I don’t want to bring her agony or scare her if she wakes up.

  I know better than anyone what it’s like when your body and spirit are destroyed by others.

  A familiar throbbing in my temples starts, sending awareness through me and the desire to run away, to hide from this unbearable pain that tears me from the inside out, suffocating me to death and demanding vengeance, even though I can’t find him.

  He hurt her. My greatest fear has come to life.

  Slapping myself harshly, I don’t allow my consciousness to slip away, to give power to Eunan to shield me from this.

  I should allow this hurt to spread through me so I can see the consequences of my decision when I decided to hope and believe in a greater good.

  Hope brought me nothing but misery, proving me wrong time and time again.

  An illusion that got shattered, and Arianna is the one who had to pay the price for it.

  “I’m sorry I failed you,” I whisper, hearing sirens in the distance and sighing in relief that they came so quickly. “But I promise you, everyone will pay for this. Whoever hurt you will die a thousand deaths, and even that’s not going to be enough.” That’s a vow I intend to keep no matter the cost.

  * * *

  The sound of Matilda’s sobs fills the space of the hospital waiting room while I pace back and forth, waiting for the surgery to be done.

  They disappeared with her behind the white double doors, and I gritted my teeth, barely stopping myself from running after them while her parents cried and cried. Laura is sleeping on a nearby chair at their side. We couldn’t leave her home after what happened, and Dad is flying from New York right now.

  As always, he is not here to share this burden with me, so I have to deal with this alone.

  Even if blaming my father in this moment is irrational, I don’t have enough fucks to give.

  When one lives in a nightmare that becomes scarier and scarier over the years, he starts to fuel his anger with whomever he sees fit.

  Pressing my back against the wall, I keep cracking my fingers one by one, imagining they are Liam’s, only if they were his, I would use pliers.

  He touched her. Hurt her. Raped her.

  I will kill him, but he will be tortured for so long and so miserably he’ll think the years under Uncle’s reign were heaven.

  “Who could have done something like this to our girl, Ted?” Matilda sobs into her husband’s neck, gripping the front of his shirt while he hugs her close and his own tears stream down his cheeks.

  “We will find out. Shh, my darling. Our girl will make it.” He catches my eyes on them, and he must read agony there, because he adds fiercely, harshness strengthening his voice like it will not welcome any objection. “She will. My girl is a champion. She is strong.”

  Before I can say anything, the elevator dings and then Dad runs toward us. He hugs Eachann first, breathing heavily, and then moves to me even though I stay stone-cold in his embrace. “You’re all right,” he murmurs. His eyes land on Laura, and he walks to her then kneels, lightly running his fingers over her hair. “My little girl.” Anger boils inside my veins at the sight of him so well put together in his three-piece suit, not a wrinkle in sight while all those people died in agony because of us.

  The action doesn’t even register in my mind before I’m on my dad, grabbing him by the lapels of his suit and throwing him against the wall to collective gasps. Fury overpowers me, and all the years’ worth of resentment piled up inside me comes to the surface, demanding an outlet, and who better than on my father?

  A father who forgot what it meant to be one when his wife left him.

  “Everything happened because of you, and you don’t even ask how Arianna is?” His eyes widen, but he raises his hand to Ted whom I see from the corner of my eyes make a move to help him, his gaze train on me. I don’t pay attention to the pain displayed there, because it doesn’t compare to mine.

  And I’m fucking tired of keeping my mouth shut.

  “If you’d paid attention to us all this fucking time, when Uncle took us, you’d have seen what was really going on. You’d have seen that he, along with his friends, raped me every summer and winter break.” Silence greets my words, interrupted only by my father’s heavy breathing. “You’d see my scars. You’d see why DID happened. And you’d have fucking stopped me interacting with Liam, who got obsessed with the idea of his father’s legacy. He wouldn’t have killed our family and hurt Arianna.” I shake my dad, pushing him against the wall again and fisting his suit more, because I’m seconds away from beating the shit out of him for his indifference. “Mom left us. But you know what? So did you!” I shout the last part and push him one more time before stepping back while he continues to breathe heavily, holding his chest.

  I gulp for breath, needing a reprieve from this anger that usually only killing can soothe, but my victim is nowhere in sight, and I can’t track him until I have some news on Arianna.

  But the stunned silence still rings in the air and finally my words dawn on me with the truth displayed for all of them to see.

  “My boys,” Matilda whispers and starts crying even harder while Ted just sits there, shocked.

  I’m sorry I’ve hurt them, but I’m not sorry for the agony flashing on Father’s face, and even that’s not enough. His indifference to see what was wrong with his child brought us here. Now I understand how Uncle manipulated my emotions all along. He created this big disaster in my head that would happen if I ever said a word to anyone about it. Scaring me with threats of hurting my loved ones.

  Things all child predators do to lure their victims and keep them from speaking up about the abuse they are going through. It’s the responsibility of the parent to see that something is wrong with their child.

  But my dad?

  He didn’t even give enough fucks to check why I have DID or what triggered it.

  I glance at Eachann to see his reaction with my revelation about the hell I endured. I worry his fragile soul might not survive knowing that I got hurt while he enjoyed his piano lessons, but I don’t see agony there or shock or shame.

  Instead, there is only sadness with resignation and something akin to… regret?

  “Tell me he didn’t touch you,” I address him, not giving a shit who hears it, because I need my twin to confirm for me that my sacrifices have not been for nothing.

  That even though Uncle was a piece of shit, he kept his word and my twin stayed pure from all the madness. That he hadn’t been manipulated into thinking that sacrificing himself to Uncle and his friends was the only thing that kept our family safe.

  “Tell me,” I order, harsher this time, but he doesn’t say anything, just looks to the side, and I see his knuckles turning white from how hard he fists them.

  “He didn’t touch me,” he finally says, but that’s all I need to know. All our years back there flash in front of my eyes, showing me his exhaustion after piano lessons and how he went there despite hating everything about it.

  But also how he flinched whenever I hugged him and quickly would fall asleep after his shower, not wanting to talk with me.

  Throbbing in my head intensifies, the sorrow wrapping around my heart and squeezing so hard I’m afraid it might stop beating, and I long to go back in time and save my twin from this destiny.

  Our past brings hurt, but our present is no better. There is a limit to how much I can stand, and by how much the headaches increase, I know I’m close to switching.

  But I can’t let DID win this time, because Eunan might take my pain, but it won’t erase the current situation. So I stay numb o
nce again, pushing all my emotions aside; it’s the only way to survive right now. Otherwise, my subconscious will bring back Eunan to help pull me from the madness, but there is no cure from it anymore.

  With his actions, Liam just succeeded in sending me in such a dark spiral I’m not sure I’ll ever be able to find my way back from it.

  One thing is crystal clear though. I will find those piano teachers and kill all of them for the hurt brought to my brother and who knows how many other kids.

  Monsters are never satisfied with just one victim.

  An incoherent sound slips past Father’s lips like he is in pain, and we both glance his way. He is still holding onto his chest and breathing heavily.

  His eyes travel up to meet mine, and I read them so easily. They are a reflection of ours.

  He is sorry.

  Unfortunately, his sorry doesn’t change anything in this nightmare that has become our reality.

  * * *

  I shut the door to Arianna’s hospital room and lean on the wall, banging my hand against it over and over again, welcoming the discomfort traveling from my bleeding knuckles to my elbow, hoping it can erase the rage inside my chest from seeing my girl in so much pain.

  Or wipe away the memory of her terrified voice as if she saw Satan himself and was willing to tear her throat anew just to get away from me.

  Why shouldn’t she be afraid though?

  I failed to come to the rescue when she called for help. I failed to stop them from raping her, and I failed her by allowing Liam to execute his plan.

  My whole life, I’ve suffered for her just to save her from exactly this thing, but yet I still failed.

  Maybe people are right.

  There are no happy endings for monsters. We should wallow in our darkness, hiding away from the world so we won’t bring more damage to it.

  I push my arm back, ready to hit the wall with all my might, hoping it will break some bones, because thoughts about Arianna drive me insane.

  A hand stops me though, catching my elbow and pulling me around to face my twin. “Enough,” he says, similar pain etched on his face too, but he reins it in, giving me a blank stare. “Enough, Eudard.”

  “Let go of me,” I grit through my teeth, silently begging him to listen to me, because in this moment, I don’t trust myself not to hurt him. “Now.”

  Eachann steps back, and I punch the wall again, enjoying how blood smears on the paint, leaving a permanent imprint of my hurt in this hospital.

  I wish I was the one lying in that hospital bed and not her. Because she is paying for my sins.

  Maybe my destiny is to bring misery to whoever I come in contact with, like a bad curse that never ends, because no one wants to save the beast.

  The one who tried almost died herself.

  “She is lying in that bed because of me!” I shout, and several nurses glance our way, but they quickly try to look busy, not wanting to get on a Campbell’s bad side.

  After all, isn’t it our father’s donations that keep the hospital afloat and fitted with the latest equipment?

  “She is there because of Liam!” he seethes into my face and then shakes me so hard my teeth snap. “Stop this and focus on finding him.” That’s all I do every day and night, barely sleeping, hunting for him in any place he could be hiding. I’ve asked all my friends to search for him.

  Not one single trace, nothing. It’s like he doesn’t exist and just appears to fuck with me until the next time.

  I’ve traveled to Chicago, since it’s his hometown, going through everyone on the list of potential suspects, but we can’t find him.

  Even the Four Dark Horsemen told me to wait it out, because hunters like him love to strike when we least expect it. But how can I?

  Fury shakes me just thinking about it.

  However, with no sources to track him down, what else is left but to leave a decoy for him?

  Then my mind swirls, remembering Florian’s words.

  “You are his best friend who betrayed him. Create an illusion for him.”

  “What the fuck does that mean?”

  “Invite your best friend over and let him stay in his house. Liam is fucked up in the head. He will consider that guy as someone who took his place. Use it as a bait.”

  I told him to fuck off. No way was I putting anyone in a dangerous situation, but then a name pops in my head of someone who could withstand it.

  As long as he knows the rules of the game.

  He is not really a friend, more like a guy who shared our past, but he’d be perfect for Liam to get pissed off about, because he’d think I chose that guy over him, even though we went through the same thing.

  He just has to agree to it, and with him… one never knows.

  Pressing his number on my phone, I wait for him to answer. On the second ring, his annoyed voice speaks into my ear. “It better be good.”

  “Callum, I need your help.”

  Good plans though have a tendency to go to hell.

  Cassandra

  Stepping in the middle of the street, I hear music coming from various speakers. The scent of delicious food floats on the air, and I place my hands on my stomach and groan. “I’m so full I think I’m going to burst.”

  Laura laughs next to me, dipping the spoon into her ice cream and moaning. “This is the best, Marta!” she yells to the coffee shop owner who currently stands by the ice cream case filled with delicacies she made. Ever since we were kids, she only prepared them for the town’s anniversary, claiming that the secret recipe should never be shared with anyone. “The best ice cream in the world!” Marta puffs her chest and nods in agreement, which in turns earns her a few snickers from the teenage kids hanging around the parlor. “Want to sell me the recipe?”

  “Nope.”

  “Why not?” Laura sounds offended at this and says back to her, “It’s not like you have any heirs to give them to. This way your legacy will continue to live on.”

  “Well—” Whatever the old lady replies though is lost to me, because Meghan and Sam pull me back by my elbows into the shadow next to the fountain, where the water cascades so loudly no one will hear us.

  “Girl, spill,” Meghan demands, wiggling her brows. “All the dirty details. Why are you living in sin with Eudard even though you claimed nothing was going on?”

  I groan inwardly. When they hadn’t voiced their questions throughout all the hours they’ve shown me around town, I thought they’d forgotten about grilling me over this subject.

  It seems they just didn’t feel right asking me with Laura around. “No dirty details please,” Sam says, wincing. “He is my boss. I don’t want to know—”

  “Look, after my divorce, this girl”—Meghan points at herself—“hasn’t gotten laid in like, ages. I want to live vicariously through her at least.”

  “I’m not one to kiss and tell,” I inform her, and her face sours with a pout. “But I’m not living with him. I just had to stay at his mansion, because—” I hectically search my brain for a good excuse. “—because my pipes are broken.”

  Meghan blinks at this, leaning back and crossing her arms. “Really?”

  “Yep.” The more I roll my words in my head, the better they sound. Maybe she can spread this rumor around, instead of the one where I’m that newcomer who jumped into his bed so quickly.

  Which is true, but it doesn’t mean I want the entire town to assume that. “So the mayor offered you to stay at his mansion. What a gracious mayor we have,” Meghan says sweetly, and I sigh in relief but then tense when she continues. “Nice lie.”

  Sam giggles, waving at someone in the distance, and I recognize Valerie, who holds hands with some guy, all blushing.

  A couple in love, judging by his adoring glances her way and the arm tightly wrapped around her waist.

  What would it be like to be on a date with someone you adore so much?

  As of yet, I haven’t had the chance to find out.

  “Hey!” I exclaim and then shru
g. “Unless proven otherwise, it’s just an assumption.”

  Meghan’s mouth widens in a sly grin. “Everyone knows the Campbells took care of the Griffin house for years. Sam can attest to that.”

  I turn my shocked face to her, and she nods, finishing her popcorn and throwing the pack in the trashcan, dusting her hands. “She’s right. The house was checked regularly, like the pipes, heat, and electricity, so nothing would blow up or burn down.” Warmth spreads inside me hearing how much he cared about the house.

  But not because the house is all right. It’s about him believing I’d come back, no matter what. Between the two of us, despite his darkness, Eudard is the only one who hasn’t given up on us and our future.

  My dark monster who hunts in the night, yet his claws never touch me.

  I haven’t shown him the same courtesy, but thankfully we have all the time in the world for me to fix that.

  “All jokes aside though, I think you make a good couple.” They both hug me from different sides. “And I think that if you intend to stay in this town, we will be the best of friends.” Before I can comment on that, which sends another shot of warmth through me, giving me a glimpse of what kind of friendship it might be, Meghan shouts, “Dibs on being the maid of honor.”

  “Hey!” Sam says, and Meghan taps her on the nose.

  “You snooze, you lose.”

  “It’s really too soon to talk about a wedding,” I announce, hoping this conversation will die down, even though butterflies erupt in my stomach at the prospect of marrying him.

  Not soon though and not before all the pain between us is gone. However, it’s pretty clear to me we are each other’s forever regardless.

  Laura is running back to us holding three cones of ice cream, and I blink in surprise. “How did you convince her to give you more?” Marta was strict about giving only one per person, claiming she had no time to prepare extra ice cream for our greedy mouths.

  She winks. “I have my ways. Still no recipe though.” She extends her hands to the girls and me. “It’s for you.” They take theirs from her, but I shake my head when I hear music from the speakers and my feet instantly itch to dance around.