Apocalypse Queen: My Space, My Rules Chapter 70: Blood Ties Mean Nothing

Once Kingston had captured Mariella, there was no way he wouldn't slash her face, gouge out her eyes, break her fingers, and shatter her legs.

He'd torture her until she was barely human before dragging her back to Harvey.

That kind of torture took time, and he wouldn't want anyone interrupting, which explained why he'd gone silent.

So Roxanna wasn't worried at all.

But Harvey couldn't shake the unease. He had a bad feeling. Something about this didn't feel right.

"This isn't right. Send someone to check immediately!"

...

Mariella dragged Kingston into a hidden corner of the office building. She stripped him of all his weapons, then pulled a rope from her storage space and tied him up tight.

She took his phone and tested his fingerprints one by one until she found the right one, his right thumb.

After unlocking it, she skimmed through his apps and messages, finding plenty of shady dealings.

She tossed the phone into her storage space. Then she stuffed one of Kingston's shoes into his mouth before splashing cold water from the pond in her storage space onto his face.

Kingston jolted awake, only to find himself bound in a pitch-black room, with a shoe jammed into his mouth.

He gagged, nearly vomiting.

"Mmm... mmmph... mmm!" He thrashed wildly, trying to free himself, trying to spit out the shoe.

Mariella kicked him hard in the stomach, knocking the wind out of him instantly.

It felt like his insides had ruptured. A strangled groan escaped from deep in his throat.

As if casually reaching into her bag, Mariella pulled a military knife from her storage space. The blade flashed. Blood sprayed.

Kingston let out a muffled scream, tears streaming down his face. His right thumb had been cleanly cut off.

Mariella wrapped the severed finger in a plastic bag and slipped it into her storage space.

She'd need it later to unlock the phone again.

Blood poured from Kingston's hand as his body convulsed in agony.

Before he could recover, Mariella pulled a stun baton.

The moment he saw it, he forgot all about the pain in his hand. His eyes widened in pure terror.

Step by step, she advanced like a demon.

Kingston tried to crawl away, but his limbs were tightly bound. He could only wriggle like a worm until his back hit the wall.

"Mmm... mmmph..." He tried to beg, but the shoe blocked every word.

Mariella's face was hidden in the darkness, her silhouette ghostlike and terrifying, driving him to tears.

But his tears meant nothing to her.

She switched on the baton and methodically shocked him from head to toe.

His body convulsed violently. He vomited and lost control of his bowels. His entire body breaking down under the assault.

The shoe in his mouth warped his jaw, trapping the vomit inside, nearly choking him to death.

Only when his eyes rolled back, and he was on the verge of passing out, did Mariella finally pull the shoe from his mouth.

Kingston vomited uncontrollably, collapsing into his own filth, nearly fainting from disgust.

Mariella put on a medical mask just to block out the stench.

"Mariella... y-you need to let me go!" Kingston had meant to threaten her, but after everything she'd done, all the fight had drained out of him.

Now, he was in pain, terrified, his entire body trembling uncontrollably.

Mariella looked down at him, sneering at his hollow bravado. "And if I don't? What are you gonna do about it?"

Kingston's fear finally broke him. He couldn't keep up the act anymore.

Switching tactics, he tried to play the family card on her. "Mariella, we're family! We share the same father. We're siblings. You can't do this to me..."

Mariella found that even more amusing.

A soft, almost delighted laugh escaped her. "Family, huh? Yeah, we're family all right. A family full of vicious, rotten people."

A chill spread through Kingston's entire body.

When did she become like this? She was never like this before.

The Mariella he knew always backed down, always gave in, always seemed weak.

That was why he loved bullying her. She'd swallow it every time, smoothing things over.

Even if she complained, their father would never take her side, which only made him bolder.

After the incident at Celestine Ridge, when his dog attack failed and she fought back, it ignited his desire for revenge.

He wanted to break her, force her back into that weak, submissive version of herself.

But the Mariella in front of him now was completely different. She was cold and cruel, like something possessed.