Twisted Ties of Love

Izabella reached out to touch it, her hand shaking as she brushed against its wounded body.

Her eyes were a terrifying shade of red, dry and itchy. She felt terribly uncomfortable, on the verge of tears but unable to cry.

Izabella didn't know how she managed to untie the ropes that bound Niki. All she could see were the burns on Niki's skin and the blood in its mouth, pierced with four tiny holes.

Its four sharpest teeth had been cruelly yanked out. Must've hurt like hell, didn't it?

"Niki, I'm taking you home, look at me. Didn't we promise to stick together? I've come back for you, can you hang in there? Don't leave me. I'll quit my job and stay with you from now on. I won't ever leave you with anyone else." Izabella, shaking, held the bloody Niki in her arms.

Niki lay in Izabella's arms, struggling to open its eyes at the sound of her voice.

So, it was Bella. Bella had come to take it home.

But it couldn't muster the strength to go with Bella.

Niki opened its mouth, blood trickling out. Its throat was completely filled with blood, it could barely make a sound.

It was only a cat, it couldn't even call out to Izabella.

Niki had been tortured by Ariana for a full twenty minutes.

It didn't want to die. It hadn't seen Izabella happy yet, hadn't seen anyone caring for her.

Only when its fur was beyond recognition did Ariana stamp out the flames that were burning its body.

From frantic struggles to feeble gasps, those twenty minutes felt like years. Niki was in pain, exhausted, and sleepy. It wanted to see Bella.

It was so tired, it wanted to sleep. But it knew if it fell asleep, it would never see Bella again.

It held on until now because it knew Bella would find it.

Niki didn't want to die. It had waited so long for Bella, for her to come get it.

What would Bella do if it died?

It didn't want to make Bella cry. What if it died and Bella got bullied?

Niki tried to open its blurry eyes and let out a weak "meow" with all its might.All text © NôvelD(r)a'ma.Org.

Its voice had completely changed. No one knew what kind of pain it had gone through in those twenty minutes.

"Niki, hold on a little longer. We've finally made it together, I'll take you to the doc." Izabella, holding Niki, stood up, her body swaying. "Meow," Niki struggled to raise its little paw. Izabella saw and lowered her head.

With its last ounce of strength, Niki raised its head and gave Izabella a gentle kiss on the face, a tearful goodbye.

Niki seemed to think: "I want to hold on too, I don't want to leave. If I could, I'd still want to be your cat. I'm sorry, I have to go first."

Finally, Niki closed its eyes, its heartbeat and breath gradually fading.

Its body was covered in blood, curled up in Izabella's arms, just like when it obediently slept in her arms. But Izabella could no longer feel its warmth. Izabella was shaking all over, staring at Niki in her arms. Her mouth was wide open, a silent scream. Her eyes seemed dyed red with blood.

A sharp chirp echoed in her ears, as if mourning Niki's death.

She thought she could protect what she cherished, but she ended up watching them get destroyed just like before.

She had felt uneasy these past few days. She had sensed Rachel's strange behavior. Why didn't she guard against it? Why did she only realize now that something was wrong?

Her chest was burning. Izabella's face was pale, a stark contrast to Niki's bloody body.

"Niki, I'm taking you home." Izabella held Niki and took two steps forward. She grunted and felt a taste of blood surge up from the back of her throat.

She hailed a car and took Niki to the nearest pet hospital.

On the way, many people took pictures of her and uploaded them online. The online writers didn't care about the truth. They only cared about attention and money, even if that money was stained with blood, made from other people's pain.

The topic of Izabella Abuses Cats was trending. Upon clicking it, one could see Izabella holding a bloody clump that was barely recognizable as a cat.

Netizens were all cursing her and the comments were vicious.

There were also rational netizens who found something amiss.

"Would Izabella, if she were abusing cats, be hugging one in public?"

"Of course she's abusing it! Look at her hugging the cat, her face is cold, not a single tear."

"If my cat were in trouble, I would be crying my eyes out! Izabella, such a wicked woman!"

But in times like this, no one paid attention to such comments. When chaos was the norm, innocence became a crime.

At the pet hospital, Izabella waited at the door.

Not long after Niki had been admitted, the doctor came out and shook his head at Izabella.

"It was already dead when you brought it in. There's nothing we could do."

Izabella forced a smile, "No way, we promised to be together. It wouldn't leave me. It wouldn't."

Izabella looked at the doctor, hoping he would say something to comfort her, like a mistake in the examination, or it was just a joke.

But the doctor kept shaking his head and apologizing to her.

She didn't need apologies.

"It was too badly injured." The doctor said with difficulty. It was the first time he had seen a cat so badly hurt. The person who had abused it was even worse than a beast! Izabella's eyes welled up with tears. Her eyes were so sour, her chest so tight, yet she couldn't cry.

Her heart seemed to be wrapped in a tight net, tightening more and more as if to stop her heart from beating.

Her eyes were so red that they lost their luster. Looking past the doctor, she saw Niki lying inside, its collar removed and placed beside it.

She took a step forward. The doctor moved aside to make way for her.

Right now, Izabella felt like she'd lost her soul, her body as stiff as a marionette. She walked over to Niki and picked her up again.

The taste of blood was becoming

denser in her throat, and her usually clear-headed mind was now a blank She held Niki and walked out. In the

hallway, she suddenly squatted down, shaking a bit before regaining stability.

Niki's blood had already dried, clotted and hard. She reached out, tenderly grooming Niki like she used to when Niki was still alive. She scratched her neck, but Niki would never respond to her again. She lowered her head, her nostrils filled with the sharp smell of blood. She was so deep in pain that she didn't notice a figure approaching her.

Not until a shadow fell over her: "Bella."

Izabella lifted her head to see Casey crouching before her, his eyes filled with pain. He wanted to say something, but seeing the bloodied Niki in Izabella's arms, he was too heartbroken to speak. He couldn't find the words to comfort Izabella.

יה

Just a couple of days ago, Niki had been perfectly fine. He had even put a carefully chosen collar around her neck and told her to be well. He never thought that the next time they met would be a permanent goodbye.

Izabella leaned her head on Casey's shoulder, her right hand gripping the collar tightly. Her knuckles were pronounced from the force, her entire arm trembling. She lifted her hand to Casey's chest. She was trembling like a blade of grass in the wind, like a strong gust could tear her tightly taut nerves.

Casey felt as if his heart was being cut with a knife. He held Izabella tightly and gently patted her shoulder. That pat brought out all of Izabella's suppressed emotions.

Her voice hoarse, she sobbed: "Niki, Niki is dead, she's dead."

This was the cruel reality she had to face, that Niki died in her arms. Breathing its last in the most painful way before the heartbeats stopped entirely.

"Bella, let it out, you'll feel better if you cry."

Tears filled Izabella's eyes, spreading slowly like ink drops in water.

She held Niki tightly against Casey and cried her heart out.

"Ahh" Her sobs were piercing like shattered glass. In an instant, her face was covered in tears, streaming endlessly from her bloodshot eyes.

Her emotions were shattered, to the point where she could no longer distinguish reality from nightmare. Her vision blurred, her ears seeming to lose their hearing, her mind filled with noise.

The pain was like a sharp knife,

slowly tearing through her preserved

memories. She searched

.net

desperately, but couldn't find a single memory of Niki in her prime. Her mind was filled with images of a wounded Niki, looking so hurt, so desperate to live, so loving towards her.

Pain and despair swarmed inside her, seeking an outlet.

Izabella grabbed onto Casey's clothes, her desperation only clear to him.

Her cries drew others' attention.

"What happened? Why is she crying so loudly?"

"Oh, her pet died. I caught a glimpse just now, it was horrific, all bloody."

"Just hearing about it breaks my heart."

"It's just a pet, her reaction is as if she had lost a family member. Maybe she didn't even cry this hard when her relatives passed."

"If it's dead, just get a new one."