ISADORA
“A spouse from another place?”
I quietly watched them. The man whose name I did not know was smiling as he conversed with them. He sat on the sofa across from us, while Andres stood behind his father, silently watching me—us.
“I travel to different places because I am a businessman,” the man said. He smiled, and I could feel his hand gently resting on my waist. “That’s why you don’t often see me with my wife.”
“But why do you let your...” Andres looked at me. “...wife be alone?”
“To achieve the life I want for our future family, I have to make sacrifices,” he replied, and I couldn’t deny that he was a skilled liar. Something I found hard to do because my father said I’d end up in hell. “And isn’t it wrong to accuse someone of a crime they didn’t commit?”
I turned to look at the man beside me, and he smiled back. I couldn’t see any genuine joy in his smile. “Isn’t that right, my dear? Isn’t it written in the Bible that you should not kill a woman just because you can’t find her husband?”
“Please, stop,” I whispered to him. I was immensely grateful when he stopped and didn’t say another word.
Andres’ father stood up from his seat. There was a hint of doubt in his eyes, and it seemed they weren’t finished with me.
And yes, this is reality. You won’t be judged for your ‘crimes’; rather, you can be killed just because someone who dislikes you spreads a rumor. One word from one mouth, and the leaders will come after you and burn you.
They want you to scream, shout, and beg. Because it feels good to hold someone’s life in your hands—you feel more powerful than a god.
“We will be leaving now, sir,” said Andres’ father. “We apologize for what we have done. If you need anything, don’t hesitate to come to us.”
The man beside me stood up and shook hands with them. “I’ll remember that.”
Andres’ father smiled. I was about to breathe a sigh of relief as they walked out the door when Andres turned to us again. “What’s your name, sir?”
“Alejandro. Call me Alejandro.”
SILENTLY, I cleaned up the mess on the floor. I couldn’t understand what I was feeling right now. The man who introduced himself as Alejandro was just sitting on the sofa where the guests had sat earlier.
He watched me, and there was no noise between us except for the sound of me cleaning the plates and the broken glass.
It was also my doing. I was the one who scattered the things here... and yes... I felt better now. The maddening thirst I felt was gone. It was as if nothing had happened, and my body was back to normal. Except for my womb.
“Isadora.”
I froze but didn’t speak. I just continued picking up the shards scattered on the floor.
“Isadora.”
I looked up at his position. I saw his smooth neck, where earlier, blood had flowed abundantly that I drank for hours. My bite was gone, the torn flesh was gone. There was no trace of the wound on that neck earlier.
“Do you need anything?”
He patted the space beside him. Hesitant, I followed. I put down the cloth where I was collecting the shards. I walked slowly towards him and sat beside him. I didn’t protest when he took the end of my hair and kissed it.
“Do you want me to kill them?”
My eyes widened. “No, please.”
He let go of some strands of my hair and stared at me. “As you wish.”
As you wish?
“Why do you follow what I say?” I asked. But he got up and went to the large window that was open. There was no sun outside, but light still entered inside. I knew that my neighbors were peeking into my house. They were looking through the window from afar.
And he closed the window, causing the surroundings to be engulfed in darkness. My eyes quickly adjusted to the dark, and I saw him returning to my place. He sat beside me, his hand wrapped around my waist, and his face was at my head, softly kissing my forehead.
“Is it a sin in this place to follow a woman?”
“Something like that, but not really,” I replied. “It’s shameful.”
“That man is willing to be shameful to win your favor, my love,” he whispered, and his kiss descended to the tip of my ear. “Andres, right?”
I was about to speak when his hand slipped to the hem of my dress. “I watched you. Do you like him?”
“N-No—”
“But that’s what I see, Isadora.”
“No—I don’t like him!” I protested firmly. I was nervous because maybe...
He didn’t speak. I closed my eyes when his kisses and caresses became more direct on my skin.
I didn’t refuse this feeling. I didn’t refuse what he was doing to my body. But I was disgusted. I was disgusted because I couldn’t fight back—I was disgusted because I was a slave—I was disgusted because—what could I do if I tried?
In this world, all I had to do was remain silent.
“You can refuse,” the man said, softly biting the skin of my neck. “Remember that you can refuse.”
“Can I really?” I asked.
“Whatever you say, I will follow.”
“Are you also willing to be shameful because Andres is willing to be laughed at just for someone like me?” I asked softly, daringly. If I spoke to another man like this, my head would probably be gone by now.
“Are you also willing to endure my kisses because you are a slave to God?”
What?
I froze and looked at him. His face was close to mine, and his breath hit my lips.
“Endure?”
“Aren’t you?”
I shook my head. He slightly moved away from me and furrowed his brows, staring at my face.
“You’ve poisoned my mind,” I whispered.
“I’m not poisoning your mind, Isadora.” He laughed softly. “Don’t you understand? You like what I’m doing. You like the feeling of...” His gaze lowered to my lips. “...intercourse.”
I swallowed hard. “That’s not true.”
“You’re a sinner, my love.” He quickly brought his face to my neck and planted small kisses on my skin. “You can keep up with my desires because you’re a sinner—and you need to accept that you’ve been mine since the first time our eyes met.”
And he kissed my lips. I quickly responded because, as he said, I was a sinner. A sinner and a monster now. I held onto his neck tightly, and I knew my nails were digging into his skin because I could smell his sweet... blood.
I gasped for breath when he pulled away from my lips. “Is Alejandro really your name?” I asked as he removed the small piece of cloth covering my body.
“I have no identity, my love.”
“You have no name?” I didn’t mind when he tore my dress. I just stared at his perfect face and his eyes that were busy feasting on my body.
“Like rumors, I have no identity.”
“Why did you kill my sister?”
Our eyes met. I didn’t know if it was just me, but the circles of his eyes seemed to be turning red? Red. They were red.
“I didn’t kill her, Isadora. She took her own life when she found out I was a...” A small smile escaped his lips. “...demon.”
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