Klaus stood at the entrance of the graveyard. His solemn eyes laid on the small gathering before him.
The sky above was painted with gray clouds, reflecting the somber mood that enveloped the scene. It was a melancholic day, as Klaus found himself attending a funeral unlike any he had experienced before.
The graveyard seemed eerily quiet, with only a gentle autumn breeze rustling the leaves of nearby trees. Klaus looked around, his eyes landing on the two figures standing at the gravesite.
Sheila, with tired eyes, smiled bitterly. She had organized this funeral, having dedicated her life to caring for the orphaned kids who had passed away.
Beside her stood Sylvia. She had come to pay her respects to the young souls that had left this world too soon. Her presence exuded sorrow and strength, for she understood the pain of losing family at a tender age.
Klaus watched them in the shade of the oak tree from a distance.
Together, the two formed a silent duo, standing as a testament to the love and empathy that remained in the world. The sight was poignant, as the orphans they had gathered to honor had left behind no immediate family.
Sheila took a step forward, his hands clasped tightly together. She walked toward the modest gravesite, where four small coffins were gently placed side by side. Each bore a name, a story cut short, and a world of unrealized possibilities.
"Joshua Hill."
"Emma Stone."
"Denzel McGuire."
"Lucas Hood."
As the ceremony began, Klaus listened to Sheila's voice crack with emotion as she shared heartfelt words of remembrance.
She spoke of the laughter that once filled the orphanage, the dreams that danced within these young hearts, and their resilience in the face of adversity.
When the ceremony came to an end, Sheila lingered by the graves, lost in her own thoughts. She understood that even though the world had failed these orphans in some ways, they had found solace and compassion within the orphanage's walls.
"What a gloomy day to mourn," Klaus muttered.
After the chimera incident, the surviving kids were transferred to another orphanage. Roach had a subordinate who had a talent for manipulating memories. At Sheila's request, the memories of that terrible night were erased from their heads.
While the building used to house the children was taken over by Roach, Miranda was reported missing. The old woman's body was nowhere to be found, even after the fire burned down the lab. Some people speculated that the old nanny was burnt to ashes.
Also, the chimera experiment was covered up. No media or police managed to sniff it out. It was as if the incident evaporated in the air.
"What a cold wind. It looks like fall is coming soon," Klaus muttered. He decided to wait for those two women in the car.
As he arrived at the parking lot, he saw a woman in black clothes lean against his car. Klaus immediately used the [Thousand Face Bracelet] and changed his identity to Morgan.
"You wore black but didn't attend the funeral," Klaus said as he approached Izzy.
"I was going to come. But it seems like the mourning atmosphere doesn't suit me."
She handed him a brown envelope before Klaus asked her about meeting him. Opening the envelope, Klaus smiled as he read the paper inside.
"That's the data you asked for. Roach said he was looking forward to your promises."
"Say to him no need to worry," Klaus replied.
Izzy nodded and then left Klaus. As that woman was out of sight, he removed the arcana around his wrist, and his face returned to normal.
Not long after, Sheila and Sylvia arrived. They brought an aura of melancholy from the funeral. While Sylvia was overwhelmed with grief, Sheila looked the opposite. She was resolute, like the ground hardening after the rain.
The driver opened the door for them. Sheila and Klaus got into the car, but Sylvia was still standing outside.
The red-haired woman peered through the car window. "I'm not going with you. My younger brother is picking me up. We want to go somewhere after this."
Klaus nodded. "Alright. Take care."
The car drove off and left the parking lot. Sylvia's reflection grew smaller in the center mirror as the car moved away.
On their way home, there was nothing but silence inside. The driver was focused on driving, and Sheila was silent, staring at the window. Although she didn't show any sadness, her puffy eyes said her tears had been drained.
Klaus preferred to not say a word. Comforting the grieving was not his forte.
However, the silence was broken when Sheila opened her mouth.
"When I first met them, It was as if I saw hope."
Without turning around, Klaus knew his secretary wanted to vent her feelings.
"When working at the CIA, I made a big mistake," Sheila continued.
"Everyone makes mistakes." Klaus tried to console her.
Sheila laughed bitterly. "Believe me, my mistakes are unforgivable."
At that time, Sheila worked as a data processor. She had access to all information in the CIA, from trivial to confidential. Every day she sorted through hundreds of data.
Besides working for the state, she also had a side hustle. She sold crucial information on the dark web. Anyone who was willing to pay her a high price, she would provide information no matter who they were.
From this side hustle, she makes thousands of dollars in cryptocurrency. No one could track her financial traces.
However, one small transaction changed her life drastically.
Sheila received a request for information regarding the location of a man who was under witness protection. He was a former cartel member, and he would be a witness in the trial of a drug lord.
Sheila ignored the request, but the buyer offered 1 million dollars. Of course, Sheila was tempted. She knew he would die if she divulged his whereabouts.
Thinking that it wouldn't hurt to get one asshole killed, Sheila sold the information to the buyer. She was thrilled to have 1 million dollars worth of Bitcoin deposited into her account.
However, her joy was cut short when she saw the news appear.
The man under witness protection was dead. The cartel killed him in an inhuman way. But they didn't stop there. They killed everyone who had any connection with him.
His parents, relatives, friends, and even his family. The cartel left no one behind, including his wife and child. And to make matters worse, the man was funding an orphanage, and they didn't escape death.
After learning this fact, Sheila was in deep shock. The following days were filled with nothing but regrets. She didn't go to work for two weeks without permission, resulting in her dismissal.
Everything she ate tasted like shits, and her weight dropped dramatically. Whenever she closed her eyes at night, images of the dead victims haunted her.
Sheila fell into depression, to the point where she saw blood on her hands.
Later, she resigned and moved to New York, hoping to start a new chapter. However, the memories of her past followed her wherever she went.
Sheila continued to have nightmares. She underwent various therapies, and so on, but nothing worked for her. In the end, the former CIA gave in to her depression. She decided to end her life on the George Washington Bridge.
When she was about to jump into the river, she met Miranda. From there, her life slowly changed.
Miranda took her to the orphanage, introducing her to the kids. They played together, relieving some of the regrets in her heart. Miranda told Sheila to come to her place whenever she felt depressed.
Every time Sheila had nightmares, she always came to the orphanage. Her bond with the orphans gradually grew stronger as her inner wounds healed.
To atone for her sin, Sheila donated much money to the orphanage.
However, she didn't know her money was to fund Miranda's experiments.
"Just when I thought things were getting better, I found myself repeating the same mistakes," Sheila said bitterly.
After hearing the long story of her life, Klaus felt the sadness that she was experiencing. Falling in the same hole for the second time.
Sheila was drowning in sorrow and regret. Klaus knew what would happen to her if he let her drag on in her grief, but he didn't know how to comfort her. There were no right words to ease the pain in her heart.
"I can't let her be like this," Klaus muttered. His fingers tapped, thinking of a solution to her problem.
Klaus held her hand, and she turned her head with a sad look. Silently, the driver glanced at them in the rearview mirror.
"I can't comfort you, but I can make you better."
Sheila smiled weakly. "Thanks, boss. But I'm not sure you can do it."
"I can," Klaus replied. "I'm giving you two options. First, you can erase your trauma memories, so you never have to have nightmares again. Second, I can help you fight your regrets without having to erase your memories of them. But with severe consequences."
Raising her eyebrows, Sheila was curious. Then, Klaus explained his method.
He would give Sheila [The Gaze of The Penitent]. If she succeeded in fighting her past sins, she could get rid of her depression and the nightmares that haunted her all this time. But, if she failed, she would end up just like Miranda. Trapped in the limbo of regret forever.
Sheila contemplated his offer. She wanted to be free from guilt and the sins of her past. At the same time, she didn't want to forget her sweet memories with the orphans.
"Do you want to do it?" asked Klaus.
After a long silence, Sheila made a decision. "Give me [The Gaze of The Penitent]. I want to fight my sin."
Getting a solid answer. Klaus smiled. "That's good. Just what I expected from you."
They both held hands, and their eyes met. Klaus could see the readiness in her eyes.
Not long after, his eyes glowed like the sun. When Sheila looked at him, anxiety gnawed at her heart, and the cries of ghosts who died because of her echoed in her ears.
Sheila trembled, then she screamed hysterically in the car. The memories she had buried deep in her heart resurfaced and played in her head like a movie.
For almost ten minutes, Sheila faced her past sins. The driver broke out in a cold sweat, as he was trapped in this situation.
As the light vanished from his eyes, Sheila stopped screaming hysterically. Her condition seemed fine, although she looked pale.
"You did it," Klaus said.
A smile bloomed on her face. She was about to say something but was still in shock. In the end, she could only say, "Thank you, boss."
After that, Sheila collapsed on Klaus' lap. She passed out with a smile.
"I thought you would fail," Klaus muttered.
The driver acted as if nothing had happened. He looked straight at the road. Meanwhile, Klaus smiled with relief. Today he could save his subordinate.
