The Decimation of Mae (The Blue Butterfly) by D H Sidebottom

need for attention repulses me.”
    “D…Demi!” Frank stuttered a warning from across the room.
    We both turned to him. He was looking at us but his eyes
were hard and blank. His body was huge, the width of him as considerable as his
height. His eyes were cold and empty but his face appeared soft and almost
childlike. His short blonde hair was cut to perfection, almost military in
form. Both of his large bulky arms were adorned with a mass of ink, large faces
of ladies and numerous weapons decorating his skin in various colours. I wasn’t
sure what it was about him that soothed me but he exuded a tangible serenity,
even with the sheer size of him.
    “Go to hell, F...Frank,” Demi mocked with a hiss of
hatred to her voice. Her jeer at Frank’s speech impediment made my blood boil.
    She pulled out some things from a small box and I watched,
mesmerised as she threaded a needle with suturing thread. “You obviously enjoy
pain, rat, so I’ll not bother anaesthetising your arm.”
    Frank sighed heavily and I lifted my focus to him as Demi
started her torturous procedure. Every harsh stab of the needle made me wince
but I sank my teeth into my lip, refusing to let her witness my discomfort. She
was obviously a bitch, a heartless cow who thought she remained above the
rankings of others. Her idolisation of Master was just as apparent as her
hatred for me.
    I smiled at Frank when his eyes kept flicking in my
direction. He never smiled back and his gaze never roamed over my bare body but
his eyes softened with each of my attempts to connect with him. He seemed the
lesser of the two evils in the room and I desperately tried to relate to him
with each of my looks.
    I winced when Demi speared my skin deeper than was
necessary. I dropped my eyes to study her suturing. My eyes widened at the
hacked attempt at repair. The stitches were large and angry and would most
definitely leave more of a scar than my track lines would have.
    Frank shook his head in anger as he checked out Demi’s
work. “F…Fuck sake, Demi. D…Daniel told you to fix her up, not m…mar the poor
girl.”
    Demi shot upright and glared in his direction. “One,
never call Master Daniel in front of the stock, you retard. Two, never question
my motives, and three, keep your senseless opinions to yourself. Master won’t
tolerate your contempt towards me.”
    He stared at her, his eyes cooling further with every
passing moment. His hands fisted by his sides as his throat bobbed with his
fury. Eventually, he relented under Demi’s glare and shook his head.
    I flinched when Demi’s fingers wrapped around my hair and
she pulled me across the room. “Get the fuck off me, you bitch,” I spat as I
attempted to yank her fingers from their cruel hold.
    I choked on the blood when she rammed one of her heels
into the side of my face, the tip dislodging a tooth under the force of it.
Coughing loudly, I spat the tooth out with a mouthful of blood.
    Her eyes widened as anguish covered her face. My hand
lifted instinctively to my cheek, holding my face as the pain throbbed. “Ahh,
shit,” I mumbled.
    Demi pointed one of her long talons at Frank, her eyes
blazing in severity. “She fell into the wall.”
    Frank lowered his eyes, worry evident on his face. His
eyes moved over my face, softening when they landed on the trail of blood
trickling from the corner of mouth. “B…But…”
    “No buts, freak. I’m warning you.” She turned to me. “If
either of you tell Master then I will make your lives miserable. There are so
many things I can tell him that you did today, like how you punched me, how
your language was pure filth and how evil you were to me.”
    My eyes widened. “What? I haven’t even…” The funny
sensation of talking with a gap in my teeth made my brow furrow even further.
    “No,” she butted in. “But Master isn’t aware of that, is
he? And if you think he’ll believe you, rat, over me then I’m afraid you’re in
for a shock.” She bent