Maries Massage

***Damian***

The message burned into my consciousness like an unholy whisper:

*“I have not forgotten, Damian. I will see you soon. – Marie.”*

I felt the color drain from my face as my heart skipped a beat. The words were simple, almost harmless. But their meaning was anything but that. Marie. Just her name was like a dagger plunged deep into an old wound. I hardly heard the cell phone crunch in my hands as I clutched it tightly.

“Damian?” Celine's voice tore me out of my stupor. Her forehead was furrowed in worry, and she took a step closer to study my face. ”What's wrong?”

I couldn't look at her. My eyes remained fixed on the display as if hypnotized. As if I was afraid the words would disappear, leaving me without proof. Without saying a word, I held out the phone to her. She took it hesitantly and read the message. Her lips moved silently before she put her hand to her face.

“She's... she's kidding.” Celine looked at me, her eyes wide with shock. ‘She found you? Found us? How—”

“Marie always finds what she wants.’ My voice sounded hollow, almost like an echo. ”You know that.”

At that moment, Jax grabbed the phone and snatched it out of Celine's hand. As always, his manner was characterized by an unpleasant mixture of arrogance and nervous energy. He held the device like a hostile object, his eyes sparkling with anger.

“Typical Marie,” he snarled and shook his head. ‘Who does she think she is? She doesn't seriously think she can scare us with that, does she?”

“Jax—’ I started, but he ignored me and headed for his laptop. With quick movements, he connected the cell phone and began typing feverishly on the keyboard.

“What are you doing?” Celine stepped behind him, her arms crossed. ‘This is useless, and you know it.”

“Maybe we can trace the origin of the message,’ Jax replied curtly, without looking up. ”If we know where it was sent from, we can find out where Marie is.”

I laughed bitterly, the sound almost alien in the tense silence. “Jax, this is a waste of time.”

“And why?” He turned to me, his eyes flashing with defiance. “Nobody's infallible, Damian. Not even her.”

I leaned against the wall and folded my arms across my chest. “Marie is not just anyone. She's a genius. You know that better than anyone, Jax. Don't you remember? She was the one who supported you when you were looking for me and Celine. And you didn't even realize that she was manipulating you.”

He dodged my remark as if I had slapped him in the face and turned back to his laptop. “Maybe, but nobody's perfect. Not even Marie.”

“No, Jax,” I said, cutting across his words. “Not her. With Marie, every step is planned. Every letter in that message is deliberate. She doesn't make mistakes.”

“That's what everyone says until someone finds the mistake,” he snarled, turning back to the screen. The keyboard clattered incessantly, and I could almost hear him trying to drown his anger in work.

Celine, who had been watching me the whole time, slowly approached me. Her hand lay on my arm, warm and reassuring, but I couldn't relax. “Damian,” she began gently, ‘we can do this. No matter what she intends, we are together. We've been through this before.”

I looked at her, and for a moment I was tempted to believe her. But the name Marie was like a dark cloud, suffocating all hope. ’Celine, you don't understand... Marie is not like the others. She doesn't play. She destroys.”

Time dragged on like a cold wind while Jax feverishly continued his work. The tension in the room was almost tangible, an invisible weight that weighed us all down. Celine sat down next to me, silent, but her presence was comforting.

Suddenly, Jax's voice tore the silence to shreds. “I've got something!”

Celine and I jumped up at the same time. My heart beat faster, a fleeting moment of hope before reality caught up with me again. “What did you find?” I asked.

Jax turned the laptop towards us. A blurred image flickered on the screen, noisy and of poor quality. But it was enough to make my blood freeze.

A woman. Her face was shrouded in shadow, but the smile was unmistakable. It was cold, calculating, and sharp as a blade. Her eyes – goddamn eyes – seemed to look straight into my soul.

Marie.

“This is what she left behind,” Jax said, his voice flat and quiet. ”A gift. Or rather, a warning.”

Underneath the picture were words, written in a red that looked like it had been painted with blood:

“I see you.”

“This is her way of telling us she's there,” I whispered, my hands clenching into fists. ‘And that there's nothing we can do about it.”

“Maybe—,’ Jax started, but I cut him off.

“No, Jax. This is not a mistake. This is on purpose. She wants us to know that she's watching us. And she wants us to be afraid.”

Celine finally broke the silence. “What is she doing? Why now? What does she want from us?”

I closed my eyes to organize my thoughts. The memories of Marie came back, painful and vivid. “Marie doesn't work without a reason. If she contacts us now, it's because she has a plan. And I bet we're only part of it.”

“But why? You said that you were... “ She paused and looked at me as if searching for the right words. ‘You were... allies, weren't you?”

I laughed bitterly. ’Allies? No, Celine. Marie has no one. She works with you as long as you're useful. And when you're no longer useful, you'll be discarded.”

“So she wants to destroy you?“ she asked, her voice trembling.

“Maybe. Or maybe she just wants to play.” I opened my eyes and looked at her. “But I know one thing for sure: it won't end well for us.”

The hours passed, and Jax's keyboard clattered incessantly. Celine had fallen asleep at some point, her hand still on my arm. But I couldn't sleep. Not with the thought that Marie was out there, watching, planning, lurking.

“Damian,” Jax said suddenly, his voice low. ”There is something else.”

I looked at him, my stomach clenched. “What is it?”

He turned the laptop around to face me. On the screen was a map, with a red symbol pulsating on it, as if mocking us.

“This is the origin of the message. Or at least what it wants us to believe.”

I stared at the screen, my heart pounding in my chest. “This is a trap.”

“Of course it is,” Jax said. “But what if it's also a clue? Maybe she wants us to come.”

I shook my head. ”No. Marie wants to corner us. She wants us to react. And then she'll strike.”

“So we do nothing?“ he asked, and I could hear the frustration in his voice.

“We do nothing at all,” I said softly. “We wait.”

But waiting was the worst. Every second felt like an eternity, and the darkness brought back old memories that I thought were long buried. I knew Marie would strike. The only question was: when?