‎Chapter 10. A Waste Or A Challenge

Liam

The River hadn’t changed.

Still slow and silent, the water moved like a sleepwalker, reflecting the moonlight light flattering through the trees.

The stench of damp earth and decay hung in the air, clinging to my clothes, invading my lungs. It smelt like an opportunity.

I parked the sleek ATV a few metres back, killed the engine and stepped out, leather gloves on. Phone off. I wasn’t here for sentiment; I wasn’t here to mourn.

I was here to collect.

That body – her body – should still be right where we left it. Drenched. Lifeless. Drifting somewhere near the bend in the riverbank. But it wasn’t the corpse I needed; it was what lay inside it.

That power.

I’d read a legend no one else took seriously—I’ve dug through forbidden archives, even theories from secret societies. Goddesses, rebirth, celestial anomalies.

When I saw the faint glow on her body right before she hit the floor, even the first time I f**ked her I saw the mark on her butt,I knew there was something in her. It was not just a mark, it was unique. I’m pretty sure she had not noticed it.

Multiple lives 

Rebirth 

Resurrection 

Whatever powers her ancestors buried deep in her bloodline. I was going to own it. Break it. Control it. 

And now? Now I’m here to harvest it.

I stepped over the rutted fence and walked towards the muddy slope. It was sleek underfoot, but I’d been here before, when I threw her in.

Bliss was never going to marry me.

Not willingly, like I wanted her to. She had too many questions, too much curiosity. Her spine grew too fast for her own good.

She would have been a disaster if I didn’t do away with her on time.

One confrontation, one push, one accidental witness later , and boom— she knew too much. I had to end it, just like others. Clean. Quiet. 

All the fake love and presence were becoming too much; I was getting exhausted.

No one would look for her. She had no one but Ria, and Ria… well, Ria was too easy to manipulate. A few threats or two, a few kisses, just be good to her in bed. She folded like wet tissue every single time.

“What are you going to do there again?” Ria asked, before I left.

‎

I just shifted close to her, I needed her to keep her mouth shut without asking any questions. And of course I know exactly what she’s always in for. I put my hands in her clothes, moved my hand slowly to her p**sy, she was already wet

“You’re already wet?”

“Your presence alone makes me  wet?”

I sucked her lips and said. “Let’s continue this when I’m back.”

“I’ll be waiting, I’m not going home tonight.” She said, “don’t take too long.”

“Of course,” I said to her.

But as I stood at the edge of the river, flashlight flickering across the dark surface, a sick realisation bloomed in my chest:

There was nobody there.

Not even a trace.

The water looked unbothered. Not a single scrap of fabric. No drag marks on the shore. Just empty the current. Rippling gently as if mocking me.

I squatted, gloved fingers sweeping across the wet earth, feeling for something— anything. A shoe. A button. A lock of hair.

Nothing.

It can’t be that she drowned; that would be a waste.

My jaw clenched. Muscles tightened.

I wasn’t angry yet. Just… calculating.

Maybe she drifted downstream.

Maybe an animal dragged her off.

Maybe a fisherman got lucky and found something he shouldn’t have.

But none of those possibilities explained the deeper feeling clawing at the back of my neck. A chill that wasn’t the wind.

A whisper.

She’s still alive.

No. That couldn’t be right.

I watched her head bleed.

She didn’t even fight back when I picked her up.

I know she was unconscious —deadweight. I was sure of it.

But the body… was gone .

Was she eaten by the giant squid?

No, I didn’t take that much time to return for her to be eaten that fast.

My breath slowed. I stood, slicking my hand through my hair and clicking my tongue against my teeth.

This wasn’t panic. I didn’t panic.

That was for weak men. I dissected problems. I dismantled them. And then I burnt it; water was left. I killed and drained energy.

It’ll just be a waste if I don’t collect her powers.

I pulled out my phone and tapped in the private app— the one that tracked anomalies. Yes, I had it custom-built.

Call me paranoid, but when you’re collecting supernatural abilities and killing threats before they grow teeth, you can’t just rely on anything.

A small energy signature blinked at the bottom of the map.

Low frequency. Faint but familiar.

I smiled.

“ Well, well, Bliss, you’re not a waste yet.” I whispered, kneeling by the river and trailing my fingers along the water's surface.

“ You just couldn’t stay dead, could you?”

I opened my satchel and pulled out the obsidian dagger. Hand-forged, energy-conductive and lethal even to immortals.

The blade gleamed under the moonlight. This wasn’t for stabbing. Not yet. If I stab her, she’s not here for me to eat.