The girl froze, clearly caught off guard by the unexpected remark.
"I mean it!" she yelled, tightening her grip on the knife. "If you come and close I'll do it!"
Madeline sighed softly and dragged a chair closer to her, the chair legs scraping harshly against the floor, she then nonchalantly sat down, crossing her legs as if she had all the time in the world.
"The position is wrong."
The girl blinked, confused.
"What…?"
Madeline gestured towards the knife.
"The way you're holding it," she said calmly like she was talking about the weather, or chatting with a friend.
"You'll bleed out slowly that way, which will be painful and not worth it."
She locked eyes with her and lifted her hand slightly, demonstrating without standing.
"If you just move it a bit higher… about two more inches, you'll hit a major artery. That would be quicker, still painful but quicker".
The girl stared at her in shock, her grip loosening immediately.
The knife fell from her hand onto the floor with a clang.
Madeline chuckled quietly, relaxing back on the chair,
"If you can't do it yourself, I can assist," she said in a casual tone. "But after all the trouble you've caused me, I can't promise it'll be quick."
The girl dropped to her knees.
"Please… please don't! I didn't do anything, I don't know anything either. I swear!"
Madeline's expression turned impatient.
"If you don't know anything," she said, pulling out the confession note she found on the table "then what is this?"
She held the paper in front of her.
"Care to explain?"
"I didn't write it! I didn't do anything!" the girl sobbed, her voice cracking.
Madeline frowned, growing irritated with her cries.
She bent down, retrieved the knife, and stepped closer.
The blade grazed the girl's cheek.
Cold.
The girl stiffened, her entire body going rigid.
Madeline leaned in, locking eyes with her.
"Start talking."
The girl swallowed forcefully before explaining.
"Director Lee and I have been seeing each other for some months now, but it was nothing serious we were just using each other to get what we wanted, I didn't hurt anyone. I swear!"
Madeline's gaze scanned the room, landing on a photo by the bedside. She stood up and walked towards it, scraping the knife on the wall.
"Do you know Mrs. Lee?" she inquired.
The girl paled instantly.
"Y-Yes…" she stammered, before coming to a realization about something "Wait…did her family send you, I am innocent".
"How? Don't even think about lying to me," Madeline warned, waving the knife in her face.
"She… she's my sponsor. I grew up in her orphanage," the girl replied, releasing thr breath she had been holding.
Madeline scoffed. "Sponsor, huh? How old are you?"
"twenty one".
"Don't judge me!" the girl protested, catching the mockery in Madeline's gaze.
"The old hag treats us like charity cases for the media. She doesn't care about us. All the children at the orphanage are just props to show her philanthropic side."
"But you…are a charity case, aren't you?"
The girl fell silent.
Madeline leaned down, gripping the girl's face, the knife glinting in her hands.
"You're an ungrateful, selfish, idiotic human being. Even if she used you for her public image, the fact is you were well taken care of. What more do you want from her…being included in her will?"
"What's the connection between you, Lee, and this letter?" Madeline asked, her disgust evident at this entitled brat.
The girl hesitated slightly before continuing, she didn't know who this was and she wasn't about to bare all her secrets out to her.
Madeline noticing her hesitation, waved the knife in her face.
"Hmm".
The girl immediately started talking…
"Months ago, my brother was diagnosed with an illness, and scheduled for surgery. I went to her for money, but she refused. I begged repeatedly for a loan and even offered to work for her for free if I couldn't pay it off but she wouldn't help. Instead she threatened to report to my boss about my "pestering".
"I was desperate, and then her husband offered me money in exchange for…"
"I don't know if it was desperation or revenge, but I accepted and it thrilled me to know that she was flaunting her perfect husband while he was with me and likely many others."
The girl replied, wearing a somewhat maniacial smile and a twinkle in her eyes, clearly immersed in some weird thought.
"And the baby?" Madeline interrupted her thoughts.
The girl calmed down slightly before continuing.
"When Stacy found out about us, she threatened to expose everything to the media, so Lee pushed her down the stairs, and she fell into a coma, it was him not me who did it, but she's showing signs of waking, and that bastard is trying to blame it all on me. He's threatening me with my brother and I feel trapped. Maybe if I kill myself, it'll all go away."
"And where do I fit into all this?"
The girl locked eyes with Madeline, realization setting in about who she was before quickly withdrawing her gaze.
"Well…, Lee received a call from someone, I don't know who but the caller pointed out the similarities in our silhouettes and that we could escape blame and the public will buy it. Well… since you've never been known for anything good." Her voice dropped to a whisper.
"And then everything spiraled from there. He got someone to take a picture, released it to the media and everything was going fine but your brother returned earlier than expected and Lee realized someone else would need to take the fall, and that's where the note came into play."
And then…
…
By the time she finished, dawn was breaking outside.
Madeline glanced briefly at the window before seizing the girl's arm and pulling her up.
"You're coming with me."
The girl attempted to resist, but Madeline wouldn't allow it.
She dragged her toward the door and flung it open, then paused.
Someone was standing there.