After I Destroyed Them, the Memory Extraction System Revealed the Truth

A serial killer targeted me. My sister-in-law was assaulted and murdered while trying to save me. Not only did I refuse to call the police, I pushed my father-in-law and mother-in-law down a flight of stairs when they came to help. I even helped the killer destroy the evidence. When my husband learned that his entire family got killed, he broke down in tears. He grabbed me by the collar and demanded, "Why? Why would you do this?" I deliberately waved photographs of his family's gruesome deaths in front of him and burst into laughter. "Why?" I sneered. "Because they deserved it." My parents begged me to cooperate so I wouldn't be sentenced to death. Instead, I publicly severed all ties with them. Meanwhile, the murderer who escaped justice struck again, claiming another victim. As public outrage reached its peak, I was selected for the Memory Extraction Program. Before the sentence was carried out, my husband asked me one final time, "The Memory Extraction System is still a prototype. You could die during the procedure. "Tell us the truth now, and there's still a chance to make things right." I slowly raised my head to look at him. "You're not getting a single word out of me." The crowd instantly erupted. People shouted that a worthless life like mine deserved to die. But when my memories were finally extracted, they were the ones crying and begging someone to save me. Chapter 1 I lay in my cell, waiting for the final judgment. My husband, Daniel Shaw, entered in silence with the execution officers. The moment one of them unlocked the shackles on my body, I gathered every ounce of strength and hurled myself toward the wall. Daniel lunged forward and barely managed to grab me, but I still slammed into it. Blood ran down my cheek and dripped onto the floor. Daniel yanked me up by the hair, his movements rough and merciless. His voice trembled as he demanded, "You want to die that badly? You'd rather die than tell the truth, is that it?!" Even so, I forced myself to lift my head and meet his gaze. "Yes. You'll never get a single word out of me." The eyes that were once filled with love now held nothing but seething hatred. Despite trying to restrain himself, he finally lost control and slapped me across the face. "Take her up." The two execution officers immediately stepped forward, hoisted me up like a dead animal, and dragged me toward the Judgment Platform. They pulled me out of the cell, and the blinding light nearly forced my eyes shut. The Judgment Platform stood in the center of the square, surrounded by a packed crowd. Among the sea of faces, I saw my parents. They had aged decades overnight, their hair completely white, so worn and haggard that I almost didn't recognize them. "Faith..." My mother cried so hard she was nearly hysterical as she shouted at me again and again. "Tell them, sweetheart! Tell them the truth!" My father stood beside her, unable to say a word. The man who had been strong his entire life was now weeping openly. I bit down hard on my lip until the taste of blood filled my mouth, barely holding back the sting in my nose. Still, I forced myself to appear even colder and pushed them away. "What are you doing here? I have nothing to do with either of you anymore." My mother fell to the ground from the shove and could only stare at me in disbelief. The crowd below erupted into even greater fury. "Kill her!” "A heartless ingrate like her deserves to be torn apart!" The execution officer frowned in disgust and shoved me hard toward the Judgment Platform. I crashed hard onto the cold metal platform. Daniel dragged his crippled leg behind him as he made his way toward me, one painful step at a time. "Faith, the Memory Extraction System is still a prototype." Chapter 2 "A steel probe has to be driven through the spine and into the brain. Once it connects to the central nervous system, the pain is beyond anything most people can endure. "And the voltage is unstable. It could kill you at any moment." He paused, as if offering me one last chance. "There's still time to turn back. If you're willing to tell the truth, I'll file for the proceedings to be halted." A bitter smile tugged at my lips, bloody foam spilling from the corner of my mouth. "I won't talk." The veins at Daniel's temple bulged, but he swallowed his anger and said nothing. Instead, he personally fastened the restraints around my arms, legs, and torso, securing me firmly to the platform. Then he picked up the steel probe gleaming with cold light and pressed its tip against the center of my spine. "Ah!" The probe pierced my skin, bored into the bone, and tore through my nerves. The agony was so intense that I nearly blacked out. "Faith! Faith!" My mother's voice rang out from below, shrill with desperation as she screamed my name. "Tell them! Please, sweetheart! I’m begging you! Just tell them!" But I clenched my teeth and refused to make another sound, even if it killed me. My refusal to speak made Daniel's gaze turn completely cold. "You're a hopeless monster." "Activate the current. Begin the extraction." Electricity surged through my body. Darkness swallowed my vision. The first memory pulled from my mind appeared on the massive screen suspended above the Judgment Platform. The scene on the screen took place not long after the tragedy. I was gripping a small knife, preparing to slash my wrist. Just then, Daniel burst through the door, rushed over, and pinned me against the wall, knocking the knife from my hand. He searched me from head to toe. To his surprise, he found a family photograph tucked inside my jacket—a picture of me standing together with his entire family. "Give it back!" I lunged for the photo like a madwoman, tears pouring uncontrollably down my face. Daniel caught my jaw in one hand and forced me to look up at him. "What is this supposed to be? You're pretending to miss them now? "The police said you were the only witness. You saw the killer! "Why didn't you tell them? Why?!" A bitter smile crossed my face. "You want to know? Fine. I'll tell you." Daniel unconsciously leaned closer. But in that instant, I snatched the photograph from his hand and tore it to pieces right in front of him. "No!" Daniel instinctively tried to stop me. I simply flicked my hand and let the fragments drift to the floor, refusing to say another word. He dropped to his knees and gathered the torn pieces one by one, staring at the barely reconstructed faces of his parents and younger sister. The last shred of Daniel's sanity snapped. He lunged forward and wrapped his hands around my throat, then grabbed the knife from the floor and pointed it at me. I closed my eyes. I didn't try to dodge. But the knife never came down. Daniel's gaze fell on my swollen belly. Our child was there. The knife slipped from his hand and clattered onto the floor. He clutched his head in despair, letting out an animal-like howl of anguish. Then, in the end, he turned and charged toward the balcony, throwing himself over the edge. And I simply stood there, watching it all happen. From beginning to end, I refused to say a single word. The memory ended there. My entire body shook violently with convulsions, and the image on the screen faded away. Daniel stared at me, then slapped his hand against his right leg—the one left crippled after the fall. His teeth clenched as he spat out the words, "I hate you. I hate that I didn't kill you that day. And I hate myself..." His voice broke. "Why didn't I die when I jumped?" Chapter 3 Tears streamed down my face, but I couldn't say a word. The violent current surged through my nerves, and the memory shifted to the second scene. On the screen, Anne, my sister-in-law, and I were decorating our new home together. "Faith! Doesn't this vase look perfect here? My taste is way better than my brother's, isn't it?" Anne fluttered around me like a cheerful butterfly, chattering nonstop. Then she mysteriously pulled out a small box. Inside was a beautiful necklace. "Faith, I bought this with the allowance I saved up myself. I hope you and my brother stay happy forever!" My mother-in-law, Emily, squeezed my hand and passed me a wedding card with a generous check tucked inside, her smile brighter than ever. "We're family now. If Daniel ever gives you a hard time, you tell me. I'll set him straight." The whole family huddled together happily and took that photograph. As Daniel watched the laughter and warmth on the giant screen, tears blurred his vision. He rushed forward and grabbed my shoulders, shaking me frantically. "Please! Tell me who the killer is! Please tell me!" His outburst caused the steel probe fixed to my spine to shift out of place. Pain exploded through my back, as though every bone were being snapped apart one by one. The doctors hurried forward, trying to pull Daniel away. "Mr. Shaw! Please calm down! She's going to die!" Daniel froze for a moment before releasing me, allowing the doctors to drag him back. But the crowd below erupted in shouts. "She deserves it!" "Let her suffer too!" With trembling hands, Daniel pulled out a sheet of paper and held it in front of me. His eyes were filled with desperate pleading. "Faith, that serial killer... he's issued another murder warning. At least for the sake of those innocent people, tell us who he is!" His voice cracked with emotion, but I only spat a mouthful of blood onto the ground and turned my head away, refusing to look at him. Daniel could only stand up and say to the doctors, "Extract the memories from the day of the incident." … "No!" One of the doctors stared at the readings on the monitor and shouted in alarm. "The extraction is failing! Her brain is violently resisting the process! We have to increase the power!" Daniel slowly rose from the floor and walked to the control console. Without a moment's hesitation, he slammed his hand onto the red button. The effect was instantaneous. It felt as though my entire body had been thrown into a pool of molten lava. An unbearable burning pain erupted from my spine and tore through every inch of me. Thick streams of blood began pouring from my eyes, ears, nose, and mouth. Everyone below watched coldly as I endured the torture. Some even spat in my direction. "Increase the power!" "Kill this monster!" As my screams grew more and more horrifying, new images finally appeared on the giant screen. The room was dimly lit. Anne's face was pale with terror as she desperately shoved me into a wardrobe. She trembled and mouthed the words to me. "Faith, don't make a sound! Whatever happens, don't come out!" Heavy footsteps echoed from outside the bedroom. Curled up inside the wardrobe, I clamped both hands over my mouth. A violent struggle soon erupted beyond the door. But only seconds later, all that remained were Anne Shaw's bloodcurdling screams and her muffled sobs as she begged for mercy. No one knew how much time had passed before a sliver of light finally appeared. I pushed the wardrobe door open just enough to peek through the crack. And on the other side, I met Anne's eyes. Chapter 4 She lay in a pool of blood. Her clothes had been torn away, her arms and legs brutally shattered. She was barely recognizable as a human being. Yet when I pushed open the wardrobe door, she still used her final breath to whisper to me, "Faith... live... Run..." Those were the last words Anne ever spoke to me. The memory froze there, cut short by my overwhelming resistance and unbearable pain. The entire square fell silent. Then came a tidal wave of outrage. No one had expected that even after being tortured into such a horrific state, Anne was still trying to protect me. "Oh my God! She was dying, and she was still telling her to run!" "This Faith is unbelievable! Anne gave everything for her, and this is how she repays her?" "How does someone like that deserve to live?" With no way to vent their rage on me, some of the crowd turned their fury on my parents instead. "You raised a daughter like this! You're no better!" They began beating my mother and father. My parents could only curl up and shield their heads as fists and kicks rained down on them. I closed my eyes. I couldn't bear to watch. Daniel collapsed to his knees, sobbing so hard he could barely move. "Anne adored you... Even with her dying breath, she was still worried about you... "Faith... how could you do this to her?" The excessive voltage had completely destroyed my spine. I could no longer control my body. All I could do was slump helplessly against the chair as tears streamed down my face. My lips parted. In a barely intelligible voice, I managed to force out a single sentence. "I'm sorry..." "...the time..." "...hasn't come yet..." The crowd below didn't catch the second half of my words. They assumed it was nothing more than a hypocritical apology from a dying woman. "Hypocrite!" "What good is sorry now? Just die already!" As curses echoed through the square, the memory replay above shifted to another scene. At the time, I had not yet been arrested for destroying evidence, but news of my refusal to reveal the killer's identity had already spread. The families of the other victims came looking for me. More than a dozen of them gathered outside my door. One after another, they dropped to their knees before me, crying and pleading. "Miss Dean, we're begging you! Please tell us who that monster is!" "We'll get on our knees and beg if we have to!" Anyone who witnessed that scene would have felt nothing but heartbreak and sympathy, yet I rejected them and turned to leave. The moment I did, a burlap sack was thrown over my head, and I was dragged away. When I woke up again, I found myself tied up inside an abandoned warehouse. Desperate to force the killer's identity out of me, they resorted to torture. They severed the tendons in my wrists and ankles. They used razor blades to slice strips of flesh from my body. They even buried me alive, leaving only my head exposed above the ground. The child growing inside me died because of it. I nearly died as well. But from beginning to end, I repeated only the same words. "I'm sorry... Just wait a little longer..." The audience erupted into discussion. "My God... that's horrifying. They never should have taken the law into their own hands." "But she deserved it! She protected a murderer!" "Still... this should have been handled through proper legal channels." "I don't know... the things she said at the end sounded like she was hiding something." "Or maybe she's just a selfish ingrate making excuses to save herself." At that moment, the machinery on the Judgment Platform emitted a piercing burst of static. Chapter 5 "Mr. Shaw, we can't continue!" One of the doctors shouted, "The damage to her brain and spine is too severe! The connection is becoming more unstable by the second. We can't extract any more memories!" Daniel acted as though he hadn't heard a word. By now, he realized that there seemed to be a reason behind everything I had done. A reason that drove me to this point. "Faith, what are you waiting for? Tell me." He crouched down in front of me and asked with genuine seriousness. But it was too late. My brain had already suffered catastrophic damage. Blood and saliva trickled from the corners of my mouth, and all I could offer him was a vacant, foolish smile. The sight of me like that made Daniel reach out, intending to release me from the Memory Extraction System. The doctors immediately stopped him. "She's not going to survive!" "Even if you take her off now, she'll die!" "We should use the auxiliary extraction unit and drive the system at maximum power." "At least... at least we might get the killer's identity!" That final argument made Daniel hesitate. His obsession with the truth overcame the last remnants of trust and love he still held for me. He stood there in silence for a long time. Then, at last, he retrieved the specialized extraction helmet designed for the Memory Extraction System. Inside the helmet was a specially engineered steel spike nearly five inches long. It was designed to bore directly through the skull and force a memory extraction at twice the normal power. With trembling hands, Daniel lowered the helmet onto my head and activated it. The spike punched through my skull and drove deep into my brain. "Ugh..." Blood-flecked foam spilled from my mouth as my entire body convulsed uncontrollably. "While the spike is still holding! Maximum power!" Under the overwhelming surge of electricity, I unexpectedly regained a fleeting moment of clarity. With immense effort, I turned my eyes toward Daniel and forced out my final words. "What I needed to do... is done. The rest...is up to you..." The massive screen above erupted into fragmented flashes from different periods of my life: childhood, school, to the years after I met Daniel. Countless memories flickered by in chaotic succession. In the end, the images settled once more on the night of the murders. Under Anne's desperate protection, I climbed out of the wardrobe and escaped through the window. Using the drainpipe, I avoided the killer and made my way into the stairwell on the floor below. The moment my feet touched the ground, I ran into my in-laws, who had been trying to reach us and were on their way upstairs. "Faith?" The instant Emily saw the state I was in, she pulled me into a hug, her face filled with concern. "Oh my God, what happened? Where's Anne?" I couldn't speak. I wanted to grab them and get them out of there. But my father-in-law, Jack, had already taken out his phone and was preparing to call the police. Then I heard footsteps coming from the floor above. The expression on my face slowly changed. Without warning, I slapped the phone out of Emily's hand before she could make the call. Before either of them could react, I shoved them both down the stairs. My in-laws tumbled down the staircase. They died on impact. At that moment, a pair of black rain boots stained with blood appeared at the top of the stairs. And I slowly lifted my head to look at their owner. A collective gasp swept through the audience. The killer I paid such a terrible price to protect... The person whose identity I concealed no matter the cost... Was actually...