Chapter 1
301words
She walked straight to the basement, the heavy metal door slamming shut behind her with an ominous thud.
In the basement, Steven Kane was setting up cameras and adjusting lights, preparing for tonight's darknet livestream.
She entered just as the basement's red light flickered on—the signal that thousands of darknet viewers were now watching.
Steven smirked as he yanked her in front of the camera; she was still clutching her shopping bags when he began tearing at her clothes.
"Look at this unpunctual bitch," he sneered at the screen, as Bitcoin donation alerts pinged incessantly.
Linda kept her head down, listening to the growing excitement in her husband's voice—this was how he made his money.
"Kneel down." Steven barked, and Linda obediently dropped to the cold concrete floor.
Her knees scraped against the rough surface, sending involuntary tremors through her body.
Steven continued his performance, the dark web audience's donations pouring in, his Bitcoin account swelling by the minute.
The powder on Linda's knees rubbed away, revealing a strange crimson mark underneath.
The mark seemed to writhe, pulsing as if alive, but no one noticed in the dim red glow.
After the livestream ended, Steven counted his earnings with a satisfied grin, completely ignoring Linda huddled in the corner.
Late at night, after making sure Steven was dead to the world, Linda finally dared to slip into the bathroom.
With trembling hands, she slowly wiped away the thick layers of makeup from her face.
The mirror gradually revealed what lay beneath—a face nearly rotting, with something writhing beneath the skin.
