Beyond Redemption (Manifest Delusions, #1)

by Michael R. Fletcher

Most only dare tread the waters of insanity at night as they lie dreaming. Cowards. Dive deep into your psychopathy. Let loose the demons of delusion and know, in the end, when they finally devour you, you swam with sharks.

“If we don’t report it, it didn’t happen.” The younger guard frowned at the old man. “Wouldn’t that be a dereliction of duty?” “How can it be dereliction if it never happened?”

She only ever had sex if she could guarantee her partner’s disgust and her own pain. Intimacy was something she both feared and craved. Self-hatred was both weakness and strength, prison and protection. No one loathed her more than she and thus none could truly harm her.

His delusions would tear apart his mind. I will shred everything he is, bathe in his despair, drink deep of his faltering thoughts.

“People enjoy seeing imperfection in others. They feel better about themselves. This explains why you love and hate Bedeckt. You see how vastly flawed he is and know you could do better.”

As long as I can remember who I am, I’ll be fine.

An important lesson, he thought. Trust your fears. When a quiet voice whispers, You are being used, listen. Ignore your baser desires.

Though he hoped they would enjoy the short time left to them, he knew they wouldn’t. They were as incapable of taking comfort in each other’s company as they were incapable of honesty.

The voices in my head just told me they were hearing voices. They said the voices wanted them to do something dangerous.

My mirror never shows me what I want to see. I can’t possibly be that fat and ugly!