The boat was called "Heart's Desire" and it left port the first day of spring. It was not a big boat, but it was luxurious. All the passengers were young couples, who didn't seem to have anything in common except that they were young and in love. As soon as they got on board, and had left their belongings in their cabins, they were requested to split up for the activities with men and women going to different places on the ship. A skinny brunette welcomed the ladies to a comfortable room full of plush sofas.
-Welcome to Heart's Desire's inaugural trip. All of you have been selected because you are an example of young love, of romance, exactly what this cruise experience pretends to embody. My name is Sasha and I'll be your host for the length of the cruise. During this week, we are going to visit the most romantic places in the Mediterranean Sea. Anything you can think of will be provided the moment you ask for it, so don't be shy. We have several activities planned for you, and I'll be in charge of the morning girl-only activities that will help you love yourselves better. Before starting, however, I would like to get to know you a bit better, your name, your age, what do you do, something about your boyfriend, and what do you enjoy doing the most.
There were six girls sitting on the sofas, most of them were around Sasha's age, mid to late-twenties. Each of them had her own beauty. The one sitting on the far left talked first, she was rail thin, had long black hair and dark large eyes, she looked sickly, a bit scarecrowish. Everything about her was a straight line, her hair, her lips, herself.
-My name is Maria, from Barcelona. I'm twenty-eight years old. I own a small shop where I sell clothes I have sewed myself, I have always loved design. I've been dating Ivan for three years, we meet through friends at a party. Recently, we moved in together, which was a big change for me, but it's been worth it so far. In my spare time, I like painting in watercolors, usually animal portraits.- she spoke in a lifeless manner as if someone had sucked the energy out of her. She didn't seem to have the strength to even pick up a needle.
-Thank you, Maria.- Sasha smiled at her politely, she then gestured to the girl sitting next to her.
-Hi, everyone. My name is Kayla and I'm twenty-four, I'm originally from Indiana, but I've been living in Rome for some years now. I'm a fitness instructor, and I used to be in the track and field team at university. I meet Marco at my university when he came to study his Master's, although I should probably say that I stumbled on him. We fell in love instantly, and believe me, I have never believed in these things. When he returned home, he asked me to go with him, and, despite having dated for only four months, I said yes. We are going to marry soon, barely a year since we have started dating. In my free time I love going to the beach, I love Mediterranean weather and the sea is fascinating.- Kayla had dark shiny skin, lots of brown curly hair, and the widest smile Sasha had ever seen.
This time Sasha didn't need to prompt the next girl to talk, apparently they were all eager to know more about the others. Just as Kayla had finished the girl next to her started speaking, she was plumpish, with porcelain skin, dark blond hair styled on a plaid, and roundish eyes that looked blue, but maybe weren't. She blushed as she started talking, she seemed delicate.
-My name is Elisabet, but you can call me Eli. I'm twenty-six, and from Girona. I work at a florist's, making arrangements for weddings. That's where I met Roger, he had come to pick up the flowers for his sister's wedding, and he fell in love with me. He would come twice a week from that day on, to talk to me. It took me some time until I finally accepted his invitation to go out, I had never dated anyone before, but he was patient and understood that I needed my time. We have been dating for four years and I couldn't be happier. In my free time, I like to knit sweaters and take part in charity events to help people who are going through hard times.- when she finished she had turned dark red, and something told Sasha that she had needed lots of courage to talk that much.
-I'm Helga, twenty-nine.- the girl sitting on Eli's right said without skipping a beat, she was tall, red-headed, and seemed confident.- I'm half german and I've always lived between Munich and Valencia. I'm a chemical engineer, and I'm currently working in an important company in Valencia. I met Dani in the Oktoberfest in Munich, and funnily enough we happened to be neighboors in Valencia, although we had never met. We exchanged phone numbers and promised to call each other, but I lost his and had almost forgot about it when he first called me. We started dating soon after, two years ago. When we are free we usually go outdoors and hike or ride around, I also enjoy scuba diving, but I can't convince him to try it.
The next girl was sitting cross-legged on the sofa. She had taken off her shoes as soon as they had been invited to sit down, and looked bored. Sasha had caught her rolling her eyes a couple of times. And she didn't seem to have any intention to talk.
-Would you mind to introduce yourself?- she asked, sweetly.
-My name is Alex, I'm twenty-four, and I don't know why I was invited to this thing.
When Sasha saw that she wouldn't say anything else, she forced herself to ask her more questions.
-Tell us more. Where are you from? What do you do? How did you meet your boyfriend?
The girl rolled her eyes again, and ran her fingers through her short bright green hair.
-Okay. I live in Tiana but I loathe it, I don't see the time when I can move to London or any kind of decent place. I draw and write comic books. I've known Cesc for three months know after we ended up in bed together one drunken night, I don't consider him to be my boyfriend, he's just this guy I'm fucking. It's good sex, though. He has grown attached to me, however, and insists that I should meet his parents. I love reading horror stories and watching terror films.
She would be a handful, for certain. There was only one girl left to introduce herself, she was tan, and had her light brown hair pulled up in a bun.
-My name is Irene, I'm twenty-eight, and I'm from Sant Cugat. I work in the marketing division of a cosmetics company, I really enjoy the job although it pays worse than people usually assume. I've been dating Marc for two years, after we meet at a wedding, he was just out of a bad break-up, as I did, and we bonded over it. It was soon clear that there was something else between us. Theater is my passion, and I love both taking part in plays and going to watch them.
-Thank you, ladies.- Sasha intervened as soon as Irene finished.- Our first planned activity is fit-yoga. You will find all the equipment you need in the changing rooms, please inform me if there's anything else you need. Follow me, please.
From that day on everything stayed more or less the same. In the morning, Sasha would take the girls to do something all together, while in the afternoons the couples were free to spend time together and visit the different places where the ship stopped. There were also evening balls, however, Sasha was only seen in the morning. On the fifth day of the cruise, the girls had a chocolate and sweets degustation. Their faces lit when they saw the mountains of things they would be allowed to try. Only Alex was reluctant, the rest of the girls readily involved themselves into trying as many of the different tasteful bits as they could.
Roger woke up early in the morning, he had been sleeping on the sofa as Eli had requested him. They still had never shared a bed, Eli took things very slowly, but he loved her and he was willing to wait. During that week he had taken to wake her up, she looked lovely when she was still half-asleep, like an angel. That day he did as usual, he stepped out of the sofa and headed to the bed, he sat next to her, looking at her sweet face, her hair all spread out on the pillow. He kissed her on the cheek. She was cold, stone cold. Roger shook her, but there was no reaction. He panicked and fumbled looking for pulse. It took him some time to realize there was no heartbeat and no breathing. He ran outside, looking for help.
As Roger desperately looked for help, the other guys were waking up to similar experiences. Some of them had been actually sleeping hugging their girlfriends, and they found out quite quickly. Others took a bit longer, as they had jumped into the shower, not wanting to disturb their lover's sleep. Cesc woke up hearing Alex's heavy breathing, she was struggling for air. She was naked by his side, a reminiscence of the previous night, and her eyes were wide open. She couldn't speak, but the message was clear, "Help me".
The captain set up an emergency meeting. Everyone wanted to know what had happened, there were five dead girls and one that was struggling for her life, someone needed to be held accountable. They had been summoned to the captain's office while the bodies were taken care off in the ship's hospital. All of them were heartbroken, crying as they had never done it, bonding over tragedy. And there was no one to give them an explanation. They were getting tired of waiting when the door opened.
-You?- a choir of deep voices said.
Sasha smiled, they still remembered her. Good.
-Yes, me.
They all tried to talk at the same time, not realizing that they were actually meaning the same thing. They all had dated her, they all hadn't seen her in a long time. Finally, Marc realized they weren't going anywhere, that there needed to be an order, and that there were more pressing matters than catching up with an ex-girlfriend. He forced the others to shut up and asked what they should have asked from the start.
-What happened here? Why are they all dead?
-First of all, not all of them are dead. Yet.- she said staring directly at Cesc.- Secondly, they were poisoned.
-Poisoned?- Marco asked with a thick Italian accent.- By whom?
-By me.
Chaos ensued, they all started shouting, crying. Sasha stared at them impassively, nonchalantly leaning on the door frame, she waited until they all fell silent again, horrified by what she had just said.
-Why would you do that?- Dani asked teary-eyed.
-Why wouldn't I? You all broke my heart, you deserve to know what a broken heart feels like. You deserve to feel how hard is it to have your heart smashed, walked on.
-You're a psycho!- Ivan managed to say.
-You have no idea, dear, you have no idea.- she said before turning around and leaving the grieving men alone.
During the next hours, the guys tried their best to make contact with the external world, but their efforts were futile. They couldn't get any help from the crew either. And Sasha was nowhere to be found. When night came, each of them returned to their rooms for a sleepless night. As soon as Ivan entered his the door locked behind him, he turned around, alarmed. Sasha was there, slyly smiling.
-What are you doing here?
-I came to visit you. To talk, about that little girlfriend of yours, Maria. She was a skinny thing, I guess a gust of wind could have made her fly. She was a bit dry, too. She seemed to think she was above the others. I didn't like her, but this doesn't matter anymore, does it?
-What do you want?
-Talk, I told you. Do you remember the day you broke up with me? I guess you don't. I had loved you truly. I had. But you didn't care. You dumped me because you had grown bored, because I wasn't a fun toy anymore, because you needed to work. You knew I was depressed problems but you didn't care, it didn't matter, everything that mattered was you. When you left, leaving me alone in that bar, I had an anxiety attack. Have you ever had the feeling that all the air of the world is outside, but none of it enters your lungs? Have you?- she didn't wait for a reply as she pulled out a thin knife, almost a needle.
Ivan wasn't fast enough to realize what was happening when she punched some strategic points causing him a pneumothorax. His lungs collapsed from the air that was filling his pleura, he struggled for air like a fish outside the water. Sasha had seated on the couch across the room, patiently waiting for him to die.
Nobody noticed Ivan's absence the following day. Cesc spent as much time as possible beside an unconscious Alex that looked as vulnerable as she could have ever possibly done. The others stayed in their rooms as much as they could or wandered around, defeated lacking the energy to grieve and face Sasha at the same time. She was surprised at how easily they had crumbled, and they said that men were the strong ones.
The following night, Sasha visited Marco. He was an extremely intelligent man, and she had always admired him. He received her coldly.
-What had ever Kayla done to you? She didn't deserve it. I was the one that broke your heart.
-In war, she would be called a collateral victim. But you're right, she didn't deserve it. I almost feel bad at her dying. Yet, it was the only way for you to experience part of the pain I endured.
-I'm starting to doubt you can even feel pain.- he spat out.
-Dear Marco, this is very unlikely of you. Anyway, you made me suffer in other ways, and you know it. During all our relationship I worshiped you, you enlightened me. And in the end, you made me feel like a fool as if all the neurons I had, had died. You made me feel empty-headed, idiot. And you'll go through this too.
-Will I?- he replied defiantly.
-Oh yes, you are. You should start to feel the effects soon.
-The effects of what?- he panicked, he had almost not been able to pronounce those words.
His thoughts started piling up, mixing up without any order. He couldn't control his mind. Sasha forced him to speak, making him realize he could no longer think.
-Are you enjoying it? It's a little trick I have, a poison that melts the brain, it has some quite funny effects, too bad you can't really appreciate it.
Marco was soon reduced to a babbling mess, and after that, he peacefully died in his newfound ignorance.
Sasha had started with the two guys who had bonded less with the others, as she knew that they would be missed latter. That meant that it was probably the last night she had before they started teaming up against her. Until then they had been too subdued by the situation, and it also helped that she had made sure that they were constantly drugged. She had to choose wisely, she needed to eliminate the one that could be more dangerous, the one that was the better leader. She spent all the day thinking about it before she took a decision.
Marc had gone for an evening walk around the decks when Sasha got into his room. He would still speak as if Irene were next to him, as if she was still alive, only to turn around and find empty space. He returned to his room past midnight. When the lights didn't turn on, he knew something was amiss. There was a slight trace of perfume in the air. Sasha's.
-So, you came.- he said with a tired voice.
-Yes.
-I was wondering if you would. I was expecting you to. It took you long enough.
-I had other matters to take care off.
-Marco and Ivan.- he didn't ask, he knew.
-Yes.
-And now you've come for me. It makes sense, I'm the most dangerous one. Yet, I'm sorry to disappoint you, but I don't have the strength to fight. You killed my reason to live, so now death chases me everywhere that I go. It's not bad company, however, it's like an old friend, it's a comforting presence.
Sasha stared at him, blankly, she had not expected that, she almost felt the urge to let him live, but she knew she had to kill him, that had been the reason for all that.
-Do you remember when we broke up?
-I do.
-You told me it was my fault, that my heart was frozen, that I couldn't love anyone. That it hurt more to you than to me. My heart wasn't frozen, however, but it froze. It did. My blood became as thick as honey and my heart slowed down so much I was always cold. Irene told me that you met at a wedding after a break-up, you met her after breaking up with me, didn't you? Irene seemed a decent girl, we could have been friends if I hadn't needed to kill her, but I hate you more than I could have ever liked her.
-What's in store for me?- he asked.
-This easy?
-Yes.
She turned on the light and picked up a suitcase that had been lying on the floor. Calmly she took out a syringe and several metallic flasks. Marc lay on the bed, accepting his fate.
-Talk to me.- he demanded.
-What do you want me to tell you?
-What are you going to do to me. I deserve to know.
Sasha sighed and set everything aside. He was proving to be harder than she had expected. Emotionally hard.
-I'm going to inject this liquid into your veins. It will cool you down, slowly, until your heart stops from low temperature. It is going to take some time, however. You will start feeling almost nothing and then move from mild to severe hypothermia. You will want to have a blanket, but that is only going to make it last longer.
He nodded, encouraging her to continue. Sasha stood up and sat next to him in the bed.
-You know that's what you deserve, don't you?
-I do.
She searched for a vein on his arm, and softly stuck the needle on it. The syringe was already full with the first dose, she pushed it gently, feeling it cooling down the blood inside. It lasted a second, however. She continued, it took almost fifteen minutes until Marc started feeling unwell, and an hour until he was deep into hypothermia. His lips were blue, his voice cracked.
-You have taken what I most loved, but I must thank you because you are not letting me live without her.
He died after whispering those words. Sasha pushed his hair away from his face and kissed his dead lips. He had been the one that had hurt her the most, but also the one she had loved the most. Yet, love can easily turn into hate that burns as bright. Only three men remained, Roger, Dani, and Cesc. Cesc did still spend most of his time in the ship's hospital, taking care of Alex, despite the little hope that was left for her. Roger and Dani had started spending more and more time together, and she guessed that they had already started planning something, despite figuratively being in an inhabited island were they were prey for the predators. Yet, she couldn't let them organize, she had to streak while they were still scattered. She would need to kill again that night.
Cesc was sleeping on a chair, his head laying on Alex's bed, he was clutching her hand tightly. Better for Sasha, although he would wake up as soon as she had started. The hospital was the perfect place for what she intended to do, there were all kinds of medical material. She quickly found a scalpel and examined her victim. She needed to do a cut that would bleed enough, but wouldn't hurt too much. Looking at him she had a better idea. She approached his neck and found the jugular, she practiced an incision that was large enough for Cesc to bleed to death through it, but small enough for him not to do it immediately. He flinched and opened his eyes, not knowing where he was. Sasha took advantage of that and resected a vein on his left arm, and aimed for his femoral vein, missing it out, but leaving him with a deep gash on his thigh. His t-shirt had turned deep red in the few seconds it took for Cesc to completely wake up. He was bleeding profusely, but not as badly as it could have been if Sasha had cut an artery. She wondered if she would regret not having tried to. Cesc tried to speak, but couldn't find the strength.
-Don't talk. It's been a long time, Cesc. A really long time since we both were the goth kids at school who would cut themselves to block out the pain. Or to be trendy, in your case. Do you remember how we used to dress? We were ridiculous, we were indeed. It would take me one hour to put on all that make-up, and another hour to wipe it off. Do you remember how we planned the ways we would kill ourselves? You did it because it was edgy, because you needed the attention of your careless parents. But I meant it, and I almost succeeded. When you left me, when you and your parents left without even a goodbye, I slit my veins open. I was unlucky and someone found me before it was too late. Maybe I should have said that you were unlucky, because if I had succeeded none of this would have happened. It all depends on the point of view, really. I was bleeding out, just like you are, feeling the life escaping my veins. It was a soothing feeling, somehow.
Cesc passed out without being able to say a word. Sasha left him to die, watching someone bleed to death was a tedious affair. Roger and Dani found him on a pool of his own blood, dead. They had just found Marc in his room, stone cold, and hurried to warn Cesc. His body was not yet completely cold, but he was clearly not breathing anymore. Between the two of them, they moved Alex into another bed that wasn't soaked in blood, and then they put the other guy on the first bed. They were horrified about what was happening, and terrified about what would happen to them. They would need to stick together if they wanted to survive for as long as they could, not that the result would be any different, they would both end up dead for sure, but they wouldn't go down without a fight.
Sasha decided to take a couple of days off. That would keep them on their toes, scared of every shadow. And as soon as they were ripe, she would take them. She studied them, seeing how they started getting paranoid, seeing how they started suspecting of each other. It was entertaining, but it only made everything get delayed, she would need to attack, and soon. The ship had some hidden corridors that allowed her to move in and out of the rooms unnoticed. Dani and Roger had started sharing a room the night they found Cesc dead in the hospital. However, they couldn't be together all the time, and they had assumed that as long as they were both in the same cabin it would be okay. They were wrong.
Dani was taking a shower while Roger lay on the bed, Sasha took profit of the situation and sneaked into the bathroom. She locked the door to make sure Roger wouldn't be able to hear his friend screaming. Dani hadn't even noticed her, she slipped into the shower and forced him down on his knees, he had never been too strong. She pulled his face under the showerhead, forcing him to breathe water and cough. At the same time, she put the plug in the bathtub, for it to fill up.
-You were always weak, weren't you? You didn't even have the strength to break up with me. Do you know how many days I worried, wondering why weren't you replying to my messages, wondering if something had happened to you? I cried a lot, I did. I cried so much that I thought I was going to drown in tears.
-Don't kill me.- he begged, she pushed his head under the water.
-What did you say?- he coughed out water as all response.-That's what I thought.- she replied before holding his head under water again.
Dani struggled for some minutes, before becoming unconcious. Sasha held him for some more minutes until she was sure he was dead. His body lay face down in the tub. She got out of the shower, soaking wet, and headed to the room, to finish her mission. Roger was lying on the bed, facing the ceiling.
-It took you long enough for a quick shower.- he said, thinking that it was Dani the one who was entering the room.
-Well, he seemed to have some trouble breathing water.- Sasha replied.
He sprang out of bed, his hands in fists.
-Am I the last one?
-Yes, you are. As you were the first one I loved. I have to say, I was very disappointed by your current taste in women. Eli was a bland thing, she didn't even let you sleep next to her. Yes, I know. It was sad, so sad seeing you care so much for her. Did you truly love her so?
-Does it matter anymore?
-It does.
-I did, I loved her that much and even more.
-I loved you too, you know that. I felt butterflies in my stomach when I saw you, when I talked to you, when I thought of you. And you killed them. You killed them dead. As you will be.
She had moved closer to him as she spoke, and while walking she produced a knife from her pocket. He backed up against the wall, but stumbled on the night stand. He leaned against the wall, awkwardly, knowing he wouldn't be able to defend himself. Sasha stabbed him on the stomach, and twisted the knife. She then stabbed him again in another place, and yet another. His pain was sharp and he fell on the night stand, hitting his left thigh. Sasha helped him back on his feet and into the bed.
-I've cut your stomach open, the gastric juices are going to digest the tissue around it. It's going to hurt a lot, you are going to suffer a lot. Have fun.
She turned around to leave, but was interrupted by his shouting.
-You won't leave me like that, will you? What if I don't die?
-Believe me, you will, I have put lots of study into this kind of injury.
With a satisfied smile, Sasha locked the room behind her, she had finally done her job.
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