Ch. Finished 8 Finished 8

C

Chapter 8 

The next day, news of Caroline being burned to death in the suburbs hit the trending list. 

By the time the cops got there, all that was left was a charred, unrecognizable body. 

According to the coroner, before she died, someone had doused her in gasoline. They burned her until she was barely hanging on, then put out the flames with an extinguisher. 

After a while, they poured more gasoline and set her on fire again. 

It went on like that over ten times, until she was burned completely black. 

She didn’t just burn to death–she was tortured alive. 

While a few nurses gossiped about the story, I was lying on an operating table, going through my sixth skin graft. 

My mentor stood beside me, eyes full of worry. “Are you scared?” 

I shook my head. 

After surviving fire–twice–nothing really scares me anymore. 

On my wedding day, if she hadn’t seen the news and caught a red–eye back from overseas, I’d be nothing more than a corpse now. 

Her eyes softened. “Linda, you’re my proudest student. Six months from now, at the International Super Model Contest, I want to see you shine.” 

With her help and the doctors‘ relentless work, six months later, I stood on that runway. 

Chapter 8 

I didn’t let her down. When I held that championship trophy on the podium, it felt like every star in the world was shining for me. 

I cried through the cheers and the flowers. 

I thought I’d never cross paths with Kenneth again. But there he was- showing up out of nowhere. 

As I stepped off the stage and said goodbye to my last well–wisher, I turned and saw him standing in the cold night air. 

288 Vouchers 

He was unshaven and worn out, his smile awkward and almost pleading. 

“Linda, I came to take you home.” 

He pulled a diamond ring from his pocket–the same one I’d thrown into 

the flames. 

“Look, I kept it. Let’s have another wedding. This time bigger and grander, by the ocean–just like you always wanted.” 

His eyes were full of emotion, as if his own words moved him. 

I laughed, bitter and sharp. “If you had even a shred of conscience or shame, you wouldn’t be asking me to marry you again. 

“Do you have any idea how many skin grafts I’ve had? 

“Eighteen. And every single cut across my body reminded me–you gave me all of this.” 

He broke down in front of me, his tears hitting the ground. “Linda, I know I deserve to die a thousand times over. I’m not asking for forgiveness. Just… one chance to make it right, please?” 

“Leaving my life and never showing your face again–that’s the best you can do for me.” 

08:170 

Chapter 8 

288 Vox hers 

He stood there in silence, shoulders sagging. A bitter, self–mocking smile tugged at his lips. “You’re right. I’m not worthy to stand next to you. Don’t worry. I won’t bother you again.” 

Half a month later, news came from home–Mom had overdosed. 

When they found her, she was holding a photo of me as a child. 

I wired a large sum to the best funeral service in the country to take care of everything. 

Not long after, Kenneth turned himself in. He confessed to setting me on fire–and killing Caroline. 

He got a suspended death sentence. 

Two years later, I received a suicide note and a massive inheritance through a lawyer. 

I didn’t even read the letter. Tore it up and tossed it in the trash. 

The inheritance? I donated it to the World Institute on Disability. 

From then on, I lived facing the sun–my life bright as the stars and moon. 

The end.