"Do you want to save your sister, Slater Bennet? I can save her and help you gain skills you never thought you’d gain. In return, I want you to kill soone for ."
Slater instinctively held his breath, the slight pang in the back of his head montarily forgotten as the hand gripping his hair tightened. For a mont, his eyes slowly dilated, his brain blanking as it tried to process the words that had just left her mouth.
"What?" His voice trembled. "Kill... soone?"
The woman lowered her head slightly. "Don’t worry. My n will teach you how. It’s just a matter of whether you want to save Penelope Bennet or not."
"..."
"You said it yourself. Your family is nothing, and just now, you’ve given up your life, haven’t you? If you’ve already given up, instead of dying miserably and without reason, why not use it for sothing more... aningful?" she urged calmly. "Why not spend the rest of your pathetic life helping others? For instance, helping your pitiful and innocent little sister."
"I—I—I can’t," Slater breathed out, his mind seemingly engaging in selective hearing as he ignored the rest of her remarks. He laughed nervously, shaking his head. "How can I kill soone when I can’t even hurt a fly?"
No matter how fierce and blunt Slater portrayed himself to be, he was, admittedly, a coward. He wasn’t like his second brother, who had no fear and would fight anyone who challenged him. Even though Atlas wasn’t like Hugo, Atlas was fearless as long as he was right. Atlas wouldn’t bow down, even if he were beaten to a pulp.
But Slater... he was scared of being hurt. He might act haughty, but he was still just a kid.
Yet, this woman was asking him to commit murder.
How could he do that?!
"Can you ask to do sothing else?" he blurted out nervously, shaking his head. "I can’t do what you’re asking to do. Just thinking about it... I can’t!"
The woman’s eyes drooped. "I’ll give you so ti to think about it," she said, pushing herself up. Once she was standing, she gazed down at him.
"However, before I leave you to think about my offer, know that your sister is going to die soon," she remarked, watching his pupils dilate. "Atlas Bennet is doing everything he can to stop her execution. Yet you have the opportunity to stop it. Would you really let Penelope die and even let Atlas die... just because you’re a coward?"
Sothing in her words stopped Slater’s world for a mont.
"Think about it, Slater Bennet," she said. "My n will be here with you. So, tell them if you’ve already decided. They will take you back if you want."
With that, the woman walked away from Slater. The person whose knees had been pressing on Slater’s back released him, following the woman quietly. All of the n around Slater left just like her, leaving him alone with the blinding lights and a few figures standing on the side.
Slater scoffed, still lying on the floor. He slowly pushed himself up after what felt like an eternity, and for so reason, he found himself sitting in the sa spot. He hugged his knees, eyes on the dirty floor, his mind filled with the woman’s parting remarks.
[Save Penelope Bennet.]
[Your First Brother is doing everything he can to stop the execution, but you...]
[Didn’t you just give up your life?]
Slater’s jaw tightened, his eyes gleaming with bitterness. He clasped his arms tightly. He was no longer bound, but sohow, he felt as though chains were crawling around his ankles and body. These invisible chains restrained him from breathing, keeping him still in the sa spot.
’I can’t do it,’ he told himself. The re thought of taking another person’s life filled him with dread. ’But I also... I also don’t want Penny to die.’
His sister was innocent, and Atlas hadn’t been resting—he had been working tirelessly to think of ways to stop her execution. Slater could see his First Brother’s determination, even at the cost of his own health.
[Didn’t you just give up your life?]
Again, the woman’s words filled his mind, deepening his bitterness. Slowly, he closed his eyes and breathed out. He rested his forehead on his folded arms.
Silence surrounded him, making him hear every beat of his heart.
’I did... give up my life just now,’he thought, recalling his thoughts earlier. How the Bennet family had fallen, and how they had all ended up... at rock bottom.
Why struggle?
What for?
Even if Atlas managed to get their sister out of prison, what would happen next? Their apartnt was small, and two people could barely fit. Moreover, their relationship with Penny was too strained; they couldn’t just forget everything.
Penny surely hated them, especially Slater, since he had never been kind to her.
So, what was the point?
"Have you decided now?" Suddenly, he heard the woman’s voice again. He hadn’t even noticed when she returned.
Slater slowly raised his head, eting her eyes gleaming under the dim light. His mouth opened and closed, his mind drifting over everything that had happened to them over the past months. He thought of Atlas, Hugo, Nina, and then Penny. He thought of their late parents and everyone.
To his surprise, the words that ca out of his mouth were not what he had imagined.
"Who... do you want to die?" he blurted out under his breath, feeling as though he were under a hypnosis. But he knew this wasn’t hypnosis or brainwashing. Slater didn’t want to live, but he was simply too scared to end it himself.
So, if there was a way for this to end... why not just do this? At least he had the chance to help Penny and Atlas, as well as a chance to... die.
The woman smiled in satisfaction, as if she had been expecting this answer. "I only have two people on the list. Although... you might want to add more in the future; I wouldn’t mind. As long as these two people et their end."
"Who are they?"
"The first is called Mint. You’ll find out more about her soon," she said casually. "The next one is... Zoren
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