Page 12

K arma’s A Bitch

It’s been a week since their last job–they have been tracking a couple that runs a foster home. The couple have been verbally, mentally, emotionally and sexually abusing the children in their home. Azazel makes an anonymous call to CPS to have the children removed. One night while the couple, Lilith and Ryan are sleeping, Azazel and Cherrie break into their home and chloroform them both before dragging them outside and placing them into their trunk. They then make their way to an abandoned bar.

The dimly lit room is sparse with a bar table, some chairs, and the couple bound to them. Azazel and Cherrie have been tracking this pair for weeks, and now their fun is about to begin. The man and woman are terrified, and rightfully so.

Their wide eyes dart between their captors, taking in Azazel's tall, muscular frame and Cherrie's piercing blue eyes. They can see the madness in their eyes, a dangerous glint that promises pain and pleasure in equal measure. Azazel runs a hand over his head, a sinister smile spreading across his face as he looks at the man–tied down and vulnerable. "You both know why we're here. You've been very naughty, abusing and neglecting your foster children, now it's time for your punishment." His deep voice rumbles, sending shivers down the couple's spines.

Cherrie purrs, her eyes sparkling with excitement. "Oh yes, they've been so bad. And we're going to teach them a lesson they'll remember … Even in death." She traces a finger along the woman's trembling jaw, her red-painted nails a stark contrast to her pale skin. "But first, we play."

Without warning, Azazel grabs the Ryan by his brown hair, yanking his head back to expose his neck. In a swift motion, Azazel cuts the man's shirt from his body, revealing a toned chest that rises and falls rapidly with each panicked breath. "You see, baby, they've been hiding and running for years. And we can't have that now, can we?" Cherrie smiles, her full lips parting to reveal perfect, white teeth. "No, we can't. But I think they'll be much more compliant after we show them just how much fun pain can be." She produces a knife from nowhere, the silver blade glinting under the low light. Teasingly, she drags the flat side along the woman's cheek, who whimpers, her eyes squeezing shut. "Shhh, it's okay. You'll learn to love it, remember?"

Azazel's eyes darken while he slices through the Ryan’s pants, baring his lower body. "Let's start with something simple. Watch and learn, my pet." Azazel pulls out his bat and begins dragging it before turning to the man, whose eyes are now wide with anticipation and fear. With deliberate slowness, Azazel trails the bat along the man's inner thigh. "You see, pain and pleasure are so closely linked. We're going to blur those lines for them." Cherrie giggles playfully, a sound that belies the cruelty of her actions as she brings the knife to the woman's chest, slicing through her thin shirt to reveal her heaving breasts. "They're so sensitive, aren't they? Just like you, my love." She glances at Azazel, a shared look of eagerness passing between them.

Azazel grins, his white teeth flashing in the dim light. "Indeed, they are. Now, my pet, batter up." He raises the bat, bringing it down on the man’s penis. “That’s for Kelly.” The sound of the strike echoes in the room, followed by the man's sharp intake of breath and his frantic attempts to pull against his restraints.

"Oh yes, feel it. Feel the burn," Cherrie croons, kneeling in front of the woman and bringing her lips close to her ear. "Soon, we'll be inside your mind, and your body will be ours to play with." She bites the woman's earlobe, then soothes the sting with gentle kisses, running her hands over her breasts. She slowly takes the knife and cuts off the woman's middle and index finger. “That one was for Jamie.”

The woman screamed a high-pitch sound and starts to cry. Lilith pleads, “Please!Please, we’re sorry.”

Cherrie responds mockingly, “We’re sorry … You hear that, Daddy? They’re sorry.”

Azazel laughs. “It is quite too late for apologies.”

The man can’t suppress a groan, his body arching into the chair as the bat falls again, this time across his stomach. "Please... Stop..." he begs, his voice hoarse with a plea of mercy.

"Not yet," Azazel whispers, his hot breath fanning across the man's face. "Not until we've had our fill." He brings the bat down again, this time on the inside of the man's thigh, dangerously close to his aching dick. “That’s for the simple fact that you’re a coward.”

Cherrie squeezes the woman's face and makes two cuts running down her face from her eye to her lips. “I want you to cry crimson for me,” she said, watching Azazel's every move. "That's it, my love. We're almost there. They're ready for the next step." She sits back on her heels, her eyes never leaving the man's face as he writhes beneath Azazel's bat.

Azazel throws the weapon aside, moving to stand between the man's spread legs. "You like that, don't you?" he taunts in a low, hypnotic voice. "You like the sting and the burn. You want more." It isn’t a question. Azazel goes to his bag and retrieves his gun.

"Please … stop this." The man breathes, his eyes glazing over with tears and desperation.

With a wicked smile, Azazel shoots the man in the left leg. "That's it. Beg." The man obeys, screaming out for help.

Cherrie moans at the sight of the man's pain-stricken face. "Oh yes, so beautiful. Now it's her turn."

Azazel chuckles–a deep sound that vibrates through the room. "Indeed. But first..." He digs his index finger into the man’s wound and brings his finger to his lips, licking it clean with a lascivious smile. "Mmm, delicious."

Cherrie's eyes flutter closed at the sight. "I need to taste her next, my love. I need to feel her blood on my tongue." Azazel unties the woman, pushing her to her knees in front of Cherrie. "Make her bleed, Baby. Show her what real pleasure is."

With a feral grin, Cherrie pulls the woman closer, pressing their lips together in a passionate kiss as she works her knife slowly into the woman’s stomach. She breaks the kiss with a gasp, moving her mouth to the knife and licking it.

Lilith cries out and gasps for air. "That's it, bitch, bleed for me." Cherrie urges, her own breath coming out in short gasps as she brings the woman closer to death , then pushes her over. Cherrie leans over and whispers, “That one is for Bianca.”

The woman's cries fill the room, her body shaking as she applies pressure to her wound. Cherrie drinks in the sight and sound of her. As her

cries fade, Azazel unties the man, pushing him toward Cherrie. "Finish him, my pet. Show him how it's done."

Cherrie needs no further encouragement, moving to straddle him, his eyes wild with fear. She takes her knife, lifts it with both hands, and stabs him in the heart. “That's for Brandon.”

Cherrie sits back, her eyes sparkling with delight as she watches the man take his last breath. She turns to Azazel, who is on one knee, his eyes shining with love and lust. "Will you marry me?" he inquires, his voice steady despite the bloody scene before them and the ring, Cherrie’s favorite, a round cut garnet ring with a black diamond halo, metal rose accents, and bat wing-shaped red opal inlays.

Cherrie’s eyes widen, and for a moment, her usually unreadable expression softens. "Yes." She breathes, reaching for his hand. He pulls her to her feet. "Yes, I will, Daddy! YES!" As the victims take their last breath, Azazel pulls Cherrie close, his lips claiming hers in a kiss that is equal parts passion and promise. Their tongues dance, tasting each other as the sound of the couple's passionate cries fill the air around them. When they finally break apart, Cherrie smiles, her eyes shimmering with unshed tears of joy. "I love you, my psycho, unhinged killer." Azazel's eyes darken, his hand tightening possessively on hers. "I love you too, my crazy, beautiful queen."

And in that moment, Azazel and Cherrie know that their love is as unbreakable as it is unconventional. Theirs is a bond forged in blood and lust, and it will endure forever.