Codename Vestia

Chapter :24

Gamal tried to jump out of the box immediately.

“Kunis, something terrible has happened. Adawi…!”

Kunis grabbed Gamal, who was trying to run toward Adawi, and spun her around so forcefully that it almost caused a recoil. Then he spoke firmly.

“He’s dead.”

Gamal’s expression turned puzzled, and then, as she realized something, her face twisted in horror.

“No way….”

Kunis pulled Gamal along without hesitation.

“Hurry.”

Gamal, still in shock, was dragged away. She couldn’t tell if this was a dream or reality. Kunis checked for any signs from behind the door and then stepped outside.

“Kunis…!”

“Quiet. They must not find Adawi yet.”

As if he had planned it all in advance, Kunis smoothly left the village and headed into the forest. Darkness enveloped them.

Only after being dragged along, gasping for quite a while, did Gamal finally realize it. This was real.

“Kunis!”

Gamal pulled her arm, shouting desperately.

“Kunis! We have to go back to the village!”

Suddenly, Kunis hugged Gamal so tightly that it took her breath away.

“I love you.”

And with a heated voice, he confessed.

“I love you, Gamal.”

“Kunis….”

Kunis pushed her away and roughly cupped her face in his hands.

Seeing his face burning with desire, Gamal was left speechless. She couldn’t believe it. This was the look Rantu and Adawi used to have when they looked at her. The desire of a man longing for a woman.

“Even the Pharaohs of Egypt married their own sisters.”

There was a sharp slap.

Kunis looked at Gamal with disbelief. But Gamal showed no sign of regret, her face resolute, even after striking him with all her might.

“So you killed someone because of that?”

For the first time, Gamal erupted in fury, a side of her Kunis had never seen before. Her voice was powerful, as if it came from deep within her core.

“How could you? Rantu and Adawi did nothing wrong! How could you…!”

Gamal gritted her teeth. Her eyes, brimming with determination, shone as if wet with tears.

“Go back to the village. Confess your wrongdoing. Pay for your sins!”

Ironically, at that moment, Kunis loved Gamal even more.

The girl who had always seemed so childlike, whose slightly shy face he always found endearing, his twin sister who now stood so upright and strong—it sent a shiver down his spine.

No, Kunis had always known better than anyone that Gamal had strong convictions and willpower. They were twins, after all.

Kunis grasped Gamal’s wrist firmly.

“Gamal.”

Unable to suppress the surging desire, he pulled her close, pressed his face to hers, and whispered.

“I love you. I want you.”

Gamal twisted her body, trying to break free, but Kunis tightened his grip even more.

“Kunis! Kuni….”

“Please, accept me. I have no one but you. It’s not that I haven’t tried to love other women. But no matter how many I held, they were all just replacements for you. This hair….”

He grabbed Gamal’s hair and deeply inhaled its scent.

“This skin….”

He cupped her face and pressed his lips to her cheek. Gamal, who had been resisting, was suddenly struck speechless by the shock. She felt something hard beneath her—a sign of his lust.

Thud.

Gamal pushed Kunis away.

“Kunis! You’re my brother. We’re twins!”

“Exactly!”

Kunis shouted, his voice thundering. Gamal was so startled she nearly convulsed.

“You were born to be mine. God gave you to me.”

Consumed by the madness and heat sparked by his violent actions, Kunis spoke in a voice feverish with delirium.

“You’re mine!”

He then gripped Gamal’s shoulders fiercely. The pain felt as if her shoulders were about to shatter, and she called out to Kunis, but he didn’t seem to hear her. Once more, Kunis shouted like a bolt of lightning.

“If you’re not going to be mine, what’s the point of you living?”

Suddenly, a powerful hand clamped around Gamal’s neck.

“Ku…ni…!”

She tried to call out in shock, but the strength of the hand around her neck was overwhelming.

“Ku…!”

“Say you love me!”

Kunis cried out, almost in a sob, shaking her neck violently.

Gamal clawed at the hands choking her, desperately trying to pry them off. Her fingernails dug into his skin, snapping off and flying away. But Kunis, blinded by irrational heat and rage, didn’t feel any pain.

As he pushed down, she fell to the ground, her mouth opening and closing as she tried to speak, but Kunis could only see it as a silent video playing before him.

In that video, Gamal finally lost strength and slowly closed her eyes.

Suddenly, Kunis snapped back to his senses.

With a gasp, he slowly released his grip. Gamal’s limp body didn’t move.

“Gamal…?”

Kunis called out cautiously. But there was no answer.

Her face had turned pale, a cold, bluish tint creeping over it, the kind that only death could bring. It was a cruel color that made the once radiant bride, who had just seemed as bright as spring flowers, look like a corpse.

“Gamal.”

Kunis called her name as if begging her to stop playing around, extending a trembling hand.

“Ga….”

It was at that moment. Gamal’s body slid down slightly, slipping further. The edge of the swamp she had been resting on had given way.

Kunis froze in shock. He realized that his own feet were on the edge of the swamp, and instinctively, he stepped back in a hurry. He knew very well that if he got sucked into the swamp, there would be no way to escape on his own.

Gamal began to sink into the swamp, starting from her head.

“Ga….”

Kunis flinched and reached out his hand, but he already knew it was too late to pull her out.

Her face disappeared into the thick, muddy swamp, followed by her shoulders, and soon, the bloodstained and dirt-smeared wedding dress she wore was swallowed up. The legs, clad in that once-bright dress, vanished as if they were being pushed under.

Finally, even the hem of the white bridal gown was sucked in, and silence fell.

The swamp that had swallowed the corpse of the young bride was mercilessly quiet. All around, insects chirped, filling the air.

Kunis broke into a silent sob. Tonight, he had killed three people: the man who married the woman he loved, the woman he loved, and his only sibling.

“No… no… it can’t be!”

Kunis collapsed to the ground, sobbing.

“I’m sorry, Gamal. I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to do it. I was just so angry…. I didn’t mean to!”

He didn’t know how much time had passed, but gradually, his sobs began to fade.

But no one would ever find Gamal’s body. A corpse that had sunk into the swamp would never resurface.

Gamal was the only person who knew that Kunis had killed Rantu and Adawi. That meant if he returned to the village, no one would ever know what had happened tonight.

Kunis slowly lifted his hands away from his face. The surroundings were still. The insects chirped.

And then it happened.

Splash.

The swamp suddenly erupted, as if it had exploded. Kunis looked up, eyes wide, staring at the sight that resembled the roar of an enraged god.

***

Gamal crawled up from the swamp, coughing and sputtering. Muddy water dripped down from her hair.

The swamp was a ravenous beast, one that never let go of its prey once it had swallowed it. Yet somehow, she had managed to climb out of it. She didn’t know how—it just happened.

The noise around her was overwhelming. It was strange. There was no one nearby, and yet the sounds ringing in her ears were so loud that she could hardly think straight.

It was as if she could hear people shouting, and the chaotic pounding of footsteps echoed in her ears like someone was hitting her with a club.

“There she is!”

Suddenly, someone shouted. Then, a crowd, dark and dense, began to close in, surrounding her. It was the people of Adawi’s tribe.

She recognized a few familiar faces here and there. But Gamal couldn’t understand it. The way people looked at her—eyes full of contempt, anger, and fear.

These were the same people who had smiled at her at the wedding, who had blessed her with their well-wishes. Now, they looked at her as if she was something dirty and vile.

Someone shouted in a voice filled with malice.

“A woman who killed her husband on their wedding night!”

Gamal still couldn’t understand any of it.

“What…?”

“Get up!”

The men roughly pulled Gamal to her feet. No, as they tried to lift her, one of them stumbled and fell on his backside. Another man scolded him.

“Can’t you even do that properly?”

“I slipped!”

The man snapped back angrily, then got up and hoisted Gamal again.

“Why is she so heavy? Is it because of the dress?”

With that, they began to drag her away.

Gamal struggled to look around. Kunis was nowhere in sight. She vaguely remembered the surprised look on his face, but she had no idea why he looked that way or where he had gone.

“Kunis… where is Kunis….”

Gamal mumbled, but in the loud chaos, no one heard her. Or rather, no one was listening.

***

The people yanked open a tent and dragged Gamal inside.

Someone was lying on the bed. It was Adawi, dressed in the garb of a warrior. His hands, clasped over his stomach, held a bouquet made up of all the flowers that bloomed this time of year, and there were flowers adorning his ears as well.

But his skin had turned a bluish hue.

Gamal flinched. It was Adawi’s corpse. She hadn’t noticed it at first because of the floral decorations, but there was a white cloth wrapped around his neck.

“To do something like this on your wedding night!”

Someone shoved Gamal as they shouted. Although they pushed her with all their might, she only staggered a bit, but soon others began shoving her from side to side.

“Vile woman!”

“She’s a demon!”

Eventually, Gamal fell to the floor.

Even then, the people continued to hurl curses at her. Gamal was terrified. Up until now, she had been more dazed than anything, but now she felt like she was being stabbed by the words, as if the verbal blows were physically hurting her, making her whole body tremble and ache.

She hadn’t killed Adawi. But she couldn’t say that Kunis had done it. There was no proof, and she simply couldn’t bring herself to utter the words, “It was Kunis.”

To accuse Kunis, her twin who had always been kind and put her first in everything….

“Lock her up!”

The men lifted Gamal again. Their hands were rough and harsh, as if they were handling something other than a person. If she were still fully human at that moment, her entire body would have been bruised and scratched.

They dragged her off and shoved her into a makeshift cell. Gamal fell, bruising her knees. She barely had time to think about how it didn’t hurt as much as she expected before she quickly turned and asked,

“Kunis… where is Kunis?”

The man glared at her with undisguised disgust.

“He hasn’t come back. Did you kill your twin too?”

Gamal frantically shook her head.

“No, I…!”

Bang.

But the door slammed shut. Outside the hut, the noise continued. The sounds of people shouting and arguing in excitement reverberated through the walls, echoing like a dull hum.

Trying to calm her trembling, Gamal wrapped her arms around herself. She couldn’t help but wonder where Kunis had gone, and why she felt this strange, unquenchable thirst.

She licked her lips. It felt like they were cracking open.