The chasm between purgatory and hell, the abyss that separated Carmen and her unfortunate companions, yawned ever wider with each passing moment. But these were not measured steps; no, it was the compulsion of Bane's sidekicks that pushed her forward. She was but a pawn.

Carmen hoped to repent for her sins. She shrouded away from the feelings of unease and fear, trying to look past the thick, velvety material that sheathed her eyes. The lights felt warmer, the air less dense, and the tiles much harder. She blew into her eyes, hoping for the blindfold to give way. She could discern a stubborn shift, but her nose occluded the hints of clear sight before she could perceive the surroundings. 

The corridor was long and foreboding. Carmen had no real way of knowing if it was wide or narrow, but the voices that clung in the air and breathed despair shrunk into her. It felt narrow but again, it was one of her many observations that held no value in another man's world. She tried to keep track of the turns they made around the house; so far, there were none. But a single corridor couldn't be this long, she had been walking for ages. She concluded that she must have missed something among her inconsequential observations. 

At last, she felt her right shoulder brush across a door frame as she was ushered into the room hurriedly. The men that held her until right now seemed to share her anxiousness and Carmen found solace in the human feeling that filled them all. The implications of this feeling - that they might also be pawns in Bane's game - didn't bother her. 

They weren't the ones she betrayed. 

Carmen, she was the chosen one, the architect of his empire's ruin. And now, he hungered to resurrect it from the ashes of its own destruction. There was no time for delay; he couldn't bear to keep her waiting.  As Carmen was ushered into the dimly lit, dishevelled storeroom, Bane was already ensconced in the shadows, savouring the pitiful sight that she had become. Her once-lustrous curls now rebelled in wild disarray, her gaunt face a stark canvas of despair, cheekbones chiselled by suffering. Her limbs trembled, frail and feeble, while her very essence had been drained of its former strength. In this ominous chamber, Bane revelled in the twisted pleasure of her vulnerability, relishing every ounce of power he held over her.

Not a moment too soon, she laid out the words with calculated precision, "At long last, I have you within my reach."

"Indeed," Carmen responded. Her mind failed to come up with a snarky comeback, after all, purgatory was no joke. She couldn't think straight but deduced that an immediate answer was better than a late one. 

"You've ventured into the heart of the lion's lair, Carmen," Bane said, "There's no escape."

Carmen wanted to disagree. 

"You wanted to know who else is involved, right? Then I'm going to need you to cut me a deal," Carmen said. 

Bane guffawed, "You must have lost your mind in there. There is no escape, Carmen. I didn't trust my own wife, why the fuck will I trust your word?"

"Because you have no choice," Carmen gulped, "It's either that or I don't utter a word."

As the gust of wind swept through, Bane's fingers closed around Carmen's jaw with an almost brutal force. In that searing moment of pain, Carmen's world shifted, and suddenly, everything fell into place. With a determined twist, he lifted her head upward, causing the blindfold to loosen its grip around her eyes. The lower half of her vision remained obscured, but from the top, she caught a glimpse of the ceiling. 

The glaring lights blinded Carmen. The unfamiliar surroundings greeted her like a warm blanket, signifying her path to freedom. Putting the truth beside - that she was in more danger than ever before - Carmen found comfort in the room filled with tools that were within her reach. But the blanket was snatched away as Bane pulled her eyes to his, the cold stare haunting her with the return of the gun. Not the never-ending gunshots that signified guilt. Rather, the very gun that signified danger. 

"You have some nerve," he said gritting his teeth, "Tarot cards are a bunch of bogus and you thought you could trick me! Well, look at where you fucking are! And you dare to give me an ultimatum?"

The bags under his eyes distracted her from the firearm behind the hole in his eyes, but not for long. Carmen knew very well that she was a deer in the headlights, or, as Bane had said it, a deer in the lion's den. Her legs shivered even as she sat on a metal stool and it took all her might to keep the gasps under her breath, away from Bane. Her insides felt cold and runny, that sort of feeling when every internal organ was ready to let loose. 

"Have you forgotten what I did to Emily?" he asked menacingly. 

Bane had an ego, as did Carmen. Only, she wasn't in a position to exert it and he was. Carmen had no problem in letting go of her ego for the alternative was a much worse scenario. She changed her tactic and dropped her shoulder. 

"Please, Bane. If I had known anything about you, I would have steered clear! From one criminal to another, I'll take this secret to the grave! I just need an out!" Carmen pleaded. 

Carmen was aware that a pivotal plan was forming within the confines of the theatre. It was the very promise of this plan that propelled her to take a risk of such magnitude. She knew that within the hearts of Zane and Rylen, there was a plan. She only hoped that they could execute the very plan before it was too late. Oddly, she didn't want Bane to offer her an escape. 

Fighting against her self-preservation, she realised, she didn't want to escape alone. 

Carmen's thoughts drown under the maniacal laugh of a deranged man, It was the laugh of someone who hadn't slept for days, who floored his eyes out by staring at every movement of four people all at once. It was the laugh of a man beyond sanity. 

"I am not a criminal, merely a businessman," he said, his eyes convulsing.

"There are ups and downs in business, no?" Bane mused, "Of course, your business doesn't match my calibre but you know a thing or two about killing someone for your gain. We're alike, you and me."

Suddenly, an aggressive, blinding burst of light lanced into her eyes, jolting Carmen's senses into a frenzied state of panic. The light seemed to originate from an ominous, gleaming structure, its metallic surface radiating an unnatural glow that threatened to consume her vision. As Carmen's heart pounded like a terrified drum, her breaths came in erratic gasps. The tension in the room intensified as Bane silently moved away from her, revealing the ghastly object he held in his trembling hands. It was none other than the accursed firearm that had killed Emily – its dark history laid bare for Carmen to endure. 

"Your fate is in your hands," Bane said, his unwavering gaze fixated on Carmen, "You can die right now, or you can give me the name. You can buy yourself time."

Carmen was in a state of flight or fight. Her heartbeats spiked up impulsively, her breaths turned into gasps as her life flashed in front of her eyes. The room was suffocated with items but all she could discern was her wobbly feet and the stable weapon. 

She could never win a fight against Bane. 

Tell him the truth! Tell him no one helped! 

Her conscience muttered insensible thoughts, ones she could not ignore. Anything she said would stall him, she could buy herself time! But the moment he found out that it was just her, he would have no purpose for her to be alive. He would kill her, without a doubt!

I can't think, she thought. Her head was dizzy. 

Flight it is, then. 

Carmen's heart thundered like a war drum as she exploded from the cold, metal stool, her every nerve alight with a surge of adrenaline. In an unplanned collision of heads, her skull met Bane's, but there was no time to register the pain. Her survival instincts had kicked into overdrive, propelling her towards the narrow door opening like a bullet fired from a gun. Bane's anguished cry echoed in her ears as if chasing her down, but she couldn't afford to look back. Two imposing figures, obstacles in her desperate dash for freedom, blocked her path to liberation. The thunderous thud of their boots crashing into her hips sent agony through her body, but Carmen's adrenaline-fueled determination drowned any pain that dared slow her down. 

She burst through the other side, stumbling forward, but her legs found their balance as she sprinted down the dimly lit corridor. Her breathing spiked up and up, flying away from normality. The corridors were new and unwelcoming and Carmen failed to register her surroundings. The long corridor ahead of her seemed to have doors, either or neither could be the path to freedom. However, she simply did not have time to stop and check. 

For a moment, there was silence. Carmen's footsteps stopped and the chase behind her failed to continue. The next second, the loud blare of a gunshot echoed through the halls as a guttural scream emanated from Carmen's throat. It tore at her vocal cords as her face planted to the ground, the adrenaline slowing down to match the pace of her heart. 

Her legs were on fire. 

"It's burning," she screamed at the illusion of a fire. 

Expecting to face an orange, airy substance that seared through her skin, all she saw was red. Red as the first man she killed. Red as Rylen's anguish in the crowded road. 

Red as Emily's unheard cries. 

There was a hole in her leg and a gap in her brain, her physical and mental psyche dispersing away from each other. Her senses lost reason but her watering eyes could see the silhouette of Bane clearly. 

Through the suffering, he was a constant. 

"Speak. Now."

Carmen's eyes darted anxiously in every direction, scanning the room for any possible escape. She did everything to avoid meeting his intense gaze, fearing the panic it would unleash. She felt his presence closing in on her, the mere sound of his steady breathing sending shivers down her spine.

But amid her panic and disorientation, Carmen's gaze fixed upon the open door to her side.  Instead of leading to freedom, it opened into a room that seemed like a dead-end, an eerie chamber filled with strange, unidentifiable objects. The monitors blinked with cryptic information, while peculiar electronic devices filled the room in an organized manner.

The room was familiar to her, a stark contrast to the rest of the corridor's eccentricity. What struck her even more was how this room seamlessly blended with the theatre's aesthetic. The carpeted floor and the thick black walls made it feel like an extension of the ominous theatre itself, Carmen's home for the last few days. 

An extension of the theatre! Immediately, her mind rushed back to one of Rylen's only contributions. The tease of a breakthrough got her adrenaline pumping once again, as her pursed lips strayed away and her leg grew numb. Carmen remembered Zane shutting Rylen's idea down but he had mentioned something about the tools required to keep a home theatre running. That was his breakthrough and now, she had found it!

She had found it!

She let the excitement remain; without it, the adrenaline would go away. However, she was oblivious to any importance this room held. Only one person knew and that was Rylen but he wasn't outside with her. 

So I have to bring him out. 

In an instant, Carmen knew what to do. Her urge to flee had been shattered by the gaping hole in her leg but she could still fight. If not with her fists and legs, with her words. 

With her lies, deceit and manipulation. 

"Fine," she said, gasping. The air in her lungs was diminishing, "I did have someone to help me, but you have to hear me out."

Carmen struggled. She was taking a huge risk. If Bane cut her off or saw through her bullshit, he would have them both killed. It was all or nothing. 

"Rylen was helping me," she stuttered, "How do you think I was able to predict your future so perfectly? Yes, I was eavesdropping but that was after your reading. I was able to predict a reading that matched your drug business because Rylen told me about it."

Carmen felt her eyelids droop. She had to speak without stopping, or else he would ask questions. If he asked questions, there was no escape for her or Rylen. She had to ensure two lives. 

"I only caused his accident because he refused to give me the drugs you supplied to him. I told him about what you did to Emily and he was too scared to persist. That's why I had to take matters into my own hands. I wasn't scared then, I was only doing my job," Carmen said, breathless. 

Bane revelled in sadistically, a sinister grin stretching across his face as his heeled boot descended upon the wound on Carmen's already battered leg. The excruciating contact sent shockwaves of pain coursing through her frail body. Carmen's agonized yelps and blood-curdling screams echoed through the corridor. 

"That's a load of bullshit. I surveyed Rylen before I let him work for me. I am not an idiot," Bane seethed. 

"But you never believed in psychic bullshit," Carmen gasped, "You would have never expected him to work for me, or for that to be a problem. Why do you think Rylen has been silent the entire time? He is not a sentimental piece of shit. He was keeping quiet so that both of our covers wouldn't get blown!"

"You have ruined my business with your lies once before," Bane said. However, the surety in his voice did not match the doubt on his face. "You won't fool me once again."

"I gave you what you fucking wanted!" Carmen roared through the pain, "I can prove it to you! Bring Rylen here, I will make him speak! I've done it before!"

Bane laughed, "You think you can bring each and every one of them out, one by one, don't you?" 

"I don't give a fuck about them. I want an out and if Rylen is my out, then so be it! What do you think I can do? Roll my way to the fucking exit?" Carmen's shouts masked the agony that churned on her insides and on her vulnerable leg. 

"Your attempt is foolish," Bane remarked. 

"It's not an attempt! It's the truth! And if it's foolish, you shouldn't have a problem verifying it with him. Bring him here, and I will prove it to you!" Carmen exclaimed. 

It felt as if she was fighting a losing battle. Bane could take her to the theatre instead of bringing Rylen to her and that would ruin everything. Once in the theatre, there would be no room for escape and she would have ruined everything. She was taking risks upon risks and it seemed to be futile. 

She heaved a sigh of relief as he detached his feet from her leg, staring at the walls that surrounded him. Involuntarily, she folded her knees, rubbing the shin area that surrounded the big, bad hole. She blew the air around her, kissing her knees as Bane remained mute. 

Carmen felt the world around her jade away. Her eyes were blurry, but not from tears. Her heart slowed down, but she wasn't dying (debatable). Her concentration was waning and she didn't have enough time. She was going to plummet to the realms between life and death - unconsciousness. 

She cherished memories of her father, a light in the darkness. He had an uncanny knack for easing her worries and insecurities, and in his absence, she imitated his tricks. Of these was counting. Counting the number of sheep before falling asleep. Counting the stars, even on a cloudy night.

Counting until she calmed down. 

So she did, waiting for Bane's anticipated response, she counted. 

One...two...three...four...five...six...seven...eight...nine...ten...eleven...twelve...thirteen...fourteen...fifteen...sixteen...seventeen...

Seventeen was a random number; it never held any significance. However, when Bane spoke immediately after the seventeenth count, she knew this number would be etched in her heart for a lifetime. 

"If you try anything you shouldn't," Bane warned, "You will join my wife."

No risk, no reward. 

𓆩⟡𓆪

A/N: Carmen has been taking a lot of risks lately, something she doesn't usually do. Do you think this will pay off? More importantly, how do you think Rylen will react to this situation? What would you have done if you were Carmen? Let me know, I might just make her follow in your footsteps ;)
WC: 2817