Chapter 44: Chapter 44

Stream of tears followed the cheeks of Fina as pain and suffocation overcame her. The overwhelming constriction of the strings of her heart knocked the air out of her. She felt lost as she heard more and more of what Alder was to say.

It was already difficult for her to ignore Madonna and pretend she does not know who she was but with Alder narrating the evil deeds he had done to her and her kin with Madonna in presence was nearly tormenting.

How her sister was putting on an amused face was beyond her understanding.

“The great Thorne family was adamant in not supporting me so I had to kill them all with the help of my other powerful acquaintances to gain their powers.” Alder said with a sigh of pretentious remorse although his face was adorned by a smirk.

Madonna’s hand formed into a fist as she hid it behind her. How she was controlling her tears and anger was surprising her as well.

If it wasn’t for Alder’s unknown cohorts who were helping him behind the shadows, she would have killed him slowly and painfully. If only she knew that one person or one group of people she was sure were still hiding in the dark while helping Alder, she would have had finished them and Alder once and for all.

Madonna leaned over the dirty stone wall in a relaxed manner as she adored her beautiful hand just as Alder turned to her. She put on a mask of indifference to divert Alder’s doubts from her.

“You sure did many things in your young years, Milord.” Madonna scoffed casually as she raised an eyebrow at the loudly weeping Fina.

Just as Alder returned her scoff with his own and turned to Fina, Madonna blinked for a couple of times towards Fina, silently assuring her.

“I could only acquire a small part of their powers as they were completely in the death halls. I was to use their burned ash to acquire more of their strength, however, someone dear to them outwitted me and took care of their ashes. But I am Alder Emor and I always have makeshift strategies in any case. Guess what I must have done then?” Fina glared at him as he kneeled before her as he asked her to guess his actions of past with such cheerfulness that she used all the energy she had at the moment and slapped him hard.

The sound of the smack resonated through the dark lanes of dungeons making Madonna take a step forward in an attempt to save her younger sister from the possibly angered Satan of a person.

Although she felt relieved that Fina smacked him hard which gave her a sense of satisfaction, it was foolish of her to choose that time to do so.

Alder’s old and weak body fell back with a thud at the strong smack he received from a young dainty girl. He should have slapped her back or tormented her in a worst way possible but Alder instead laughed out loud at the audacity of the young girl.

He was furious but he was amused as well. He cannot hurt the young Phoenix as he needs her blood for the night’s ritual so he laughed it out to confuse everyone.

“I see you got more of your mother’s attitude than her son. Your mother smacked me in the same manner several times all those years when I forced her in doing a grave sin.” Alder spoke out as he rubbed his cheek and went back to kneel before the young Phoenix.

Madonna seeing the opportunity, used her power and raised Fina off the floor with her magic as she threatened her to hurt her badly for pulling a stunt like she did against Alder. Alder stumbled on his feet and scrambled to Madonna as he ordered her politely to drop her down slowly without hurting her.

Madonna looked on to Alder for a moment and obliged. She knew Alder would not hurt Fina before she was no use to him so she took the chance to both protect her from possible strike from Alder as well as clearing away Alder’s qualms.

“All right, I will tell you what I had to do.” Alder resumed back to his tale of how he played cruelly with many. “When I said I killed all the Thornes, it was not completely a truth. I should have a Phoenix in my hand at my disposal so I had to save your mother, Lady Thorne from the mouth of death so she could give me a brood with Phoenix blood. But knowing how filial and kind the Lady was, it was not an easy task to coerce her into a sin. I had a very hard time to influence her mind and take control over it. Since everybody thought Lady Thorne was dead along with the others, it was easy for me hide her. Can you believe it took me nearly five years to tackle her magic and take reigns over her mind? She struggled, cried, tried to kill herself several times, attempted to end me too but I still managed to control her”

Madonna and Fina felt a blow of overwhelming sadness as they heard and saw how their mother had struggled all those years of being in Alder’s captive. Madonna’s lips quivered as the plethora of grief and enragement drowned her senses. She could not hear and see what had happened to their mother. She felt broken and there was no one to comfort her at that moment.

Fina, on the other hand, had been crying all the time as she saw the brutality their mother had to go through. She was wailing like an infant at the sight of her mother’s dead corpse in the visual that Madonna’s magic was portraying.

Madonna thought Knox Garrick was the worst pest she had even come across but unfortunately, Alder was beyond him. Knox can never compare to the malice Alder has.

“Once she was totally under my influence, I made her conceive you with the last of the Phoenix warrior. It had been rough years for me to control both the warrior and your mother but I still got what I wanted. Months later, you were born but while giving birth to you; your mother lost her life, sadly. It nearly tore my heart to look at the little girl she gave birth to cry for her mother but the mother was too heartless to leave her in the cruel society.” Alder frowned in dismay infuriating both the sisters.

It took all the strength in her for Madonna to calm down and compose herself before Alder could notice the hints of anguish on her face.

If only, if only she could torment Alder to her heart’s content like he did to her kin and her mother. If only she could give the same pain in double folds that Fina and she were suffering that moment.

A sudden realization dawned unto her as she looked back to how Orla had always refused to tell her the whole incident. Orla had always told her of how atrocious Alder was to their mother and her family but had never said the pain and suffering she had to go through.

She understood why Orla chose to tell the incident but not what happened fully. She didn’t know if she should be grateful to Orla for keeping her away from her mother’s misery or should she be angry for keeping her away from such important details.

“You son of a Devil! How could you do that to my mother?” Fina bellowed as she lifted her weak body and charged towards Alder.

In a matter of a moment, Madonna had to gulp down her emotions as she twisted her hand in a wavy motion to stop Fina from attacking Alder. She flicked her fingers and Fina was tied down in the corner of the chamber as she was crying profusely.

Alder smiled at Madonna and approached her as he studied her intently. “Madonna dear, I am ever so grateful for your aid against the young girl. I now kindly ask of you to act on the spell you had put on yourself.” Alder asked and walked back to Fina who was weeping out her misery.

“You think you can touch me, hurt me? Dear girl, you are not but a puppet in my hands, there were many who wanted to see my demise instead they had seen theirs. If it wasn’t for the anonymous person who took away you from me right after your birth, I could have been the only Emperor of this Land. Nonetheless, I have you here now and I plan to get what I always desired tonight.” Alder voiced out sarcastically as he expressed his plans for that night.

Fina scowled at the older Emor’s audacity to think she was weak, and laughed out in pure mockery.

“Not to worry, you shall see any desire you had for only tonight. Tomorrow morning shall be a mark of your misery and torment. I vow you that.”

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