chapter ten, kiss me or hate me

e v e l y n
|tw; mentions of sexual violence|

     TOM WAS TESTING HER AND SHE WANTED TO RIP HIS HEAD OFF HIS BODY. Not only he didn't admit that he was head over heels for her and stood to his ground that feelings are a sign of weakness. But also, there was a hustle in the manor and a very pleasant smile on her father's face.

     Igor Krakov was coming for a visit.

     What hurts the most was that Tom's kiss still lingered on her lips, making her swoon like a teenage girl with a silly crush. The attraction for him was unbearable, especially after that heated kiss in the inn, but she could not let her ego get beaten up with his idiotic snarls about Amortentia and foolish love.

      However, his plan to bring Igor here, to devour him like a beast and throw him to the side for her to finish him, worried her. There wasn't an ounce of happiness in her chest about seeing that old man again. Tom will let Igor hurt her if that meant for him to grasp more power. That's how Tom loved her.

     Evelyn wasn't afraid of possessive love. In fact, she wasn't afraid of Tom at all. Nevertheless, he was about to bring the man of her nightmares right to her and make her suffer and she won't stand for it. Tom was underestimating the power of Igor, the power of his mind - he has no idea what that old wizard is capable of.

     Antidote or not, Evelyn will not be thrown to the hounds just because Tom desired to.

     "Eta shto?" Evelyn slammed the door into his room forcefully, the door opening in a theatrical motion, to find Tom calmly reading a book while sitting on an armchair.

      "Manners, my darling, hm?" Tom simply gazed at her, not even bothering to close his book, pissing her off even more.

      Evelyn huffed out. She was the definition of elegance and manners— how dare he? "Tom, you are crazy, did you know that?"

     As soon as she moved closer, slamming the door close with the back off her heel and sitting on the armchair just an arm's length away from him, making him raise his eyes at her.

     The man only chuckled, "First you call me a psychopath and then crazy?"

      "You don't know what you are getting into. Igor is a fucking bitch, alright? He is not coming here to play nice. Especially not to listen to a guy twice younger than him," she scoffed, leaning back on the cushions as she crossed her legs.

      Tom closed the book in a quick motion, placing it beside him, "Are you worried about me?"

     Oh, great, he was playing her own game. Evelyn really didn't think Tom would benefit at all from her agreeing that she is in love with him. However, knowing that he wants the world to move around him, it would make sense for him to hear that she is in love with him. It would make him feel even more powerful.

"Worried about you?" Evelyn scoffed, moving the end of her skirt with her fingertips in an anxious manner, "I am just giving you a friendly warning."

Tom chuckled, leaning back on the cushions, extending one hand to the side, and placing it on the top of the armchair. "I thought we agreed on something. I will let you kill him once I am done with him."

The woman shook her head, "We agreed on nothing. You don't know what you are letting inside your territory."

He suddenly leaned in, grasping the leg of her armchair and pushed her closer to him without any difficulties. "Are you scared?" He murmured, his frame right in front of her, their legs touching.

Yes.

She chose not to answer since her defensive manner will only tell him that she is terrified.

Tom placed his hand on her thigh, softly moving his cold hand in a stroking manner, letting out a quiet hum. "Afraid I will let him hurt you, aren't you?"

Yes.

"He will hurt me at any given possibility," she admitted, her voice bitter, "Knowing you... Wouldn't you like to see me suffering?"

The chuckle on his face only told her that he would enjoy seeing her in a situation where she didn't have an upper hand. The sadistic side of his would thrive with unusual happiness and he wouldn't even try to hide it.

"What did he do to you?" He questioned her, eyes dropping on her as the grip on her thigh only tightened, dreading to get into her mind.

Evelyn shook her head, "Unspeakable things, Tom. But you wouldn't understand."

His jaw tightened, grasping her thighs with both of her legs and pushing her closer to him: "Show me." He demanded.

Hopefully, her lips didn't quiver from the thought of Igor. With a brief motion, she pushed her hand to his cheek, letting down her mind barrier just enough so he could see what he dreaded to see.

"You are promising," manipulative undertones reached her ears, shivers running on her back, causing her to feel slightly dizzy already.

"Is that what you told her?" Evelyn gritted out the words, her eyes stuck on the dead body in front of her... Which one was it? His thirteenth or fourteenth wife already?

"Ah, my beloved Ksenija... I must admit I only took her in for her looks, not her brain," he placed his hands on her shoulders, gripping her delicate skin roughly, staining her softness with the roughness of his skin and with the blood of his hands.

"Let me guess, I seem like a pretty face, too?" Evelyn scoffed, rolling her eyes, hushing the urge inside of her to scream since she couldn't move. Bound to the chair, bound by his touch she could not move.

"I have observed you ever since you were..." he hummed, his voice unusually rough when he spoke English. Igor Krakov knew well that his accent disgusted her, that's why he took his chances speaking with her like that.

"All but seven?"

"Now you are just making me look terrible," he scoffed, pushing his fingers in her voluminous hair, letting out a groan of satisfaction. Everything about her was turning him on. Everything.

"Unbound me." She demanded, her voice shakier than she expected it to be, but she did not expect her father to leave her in this situation. Orlov Hawthrone knew what Igor Krakov wanted to do with his daughter. Everyone knew what happened to his previous wives and now that Evelyn was within age— she was a bride to be.

"Your tone pains me."

"I cannot care less about your pain."

Igor chuckled, pushing his fingers on her collarbone, moving down to the end of her cleavage, "All of them learned to behave."

"All of them died from behaving so well, I believe?" She chuckled.

Igor gripped her neck, pushing it down for her to look up at him, noticing only the sly grin on his face as his face was drowning in the shadows as if he belonged in the deepest circles of hell. "One potion down your throat and you will be in love with me. One potion more and you won't disagree with me. Another potion and you will learn how to speak properly. Maja krasyyvaja, do you wish to end up like your pathetic mother?"

He knew where her painful spot was— mentioning her mother and he was quick to manipulate her with it. The anger that raised in her body was making her shake as the fear of being touched by him deceased— wasn't the first time.

"I will kill you."

"I do not expect any less of you," he smirked, before releasing her neck and pushing her around to face him as his hands moved down to his pants. "You would be quite boring, like my Ksenija if you wouldn't wish that."

What happened next, she couldn't let herself to re-live again. With a forceful move, she pushed her hand away from him, barricading her mind as tight as possible as she rose with anger in each other movement, walking to the window. She hugged herself, trying to force herself to stay strong.

"Your father left you there to be..." Tom started, wanting to say that word that wanted to make her scream out loud.

Evelyn breathed out, "Yes. Igor promised my father a good amount of wealth to have me. That's why he is so keen to make me marry him— that means more money."

The man stood up, but she didn't even want to look at him. He won't understand what he had to live through. He doesn't understand what it meant for her to be used like that as if she was nothing. Just because she was seen as a weak woman.

"He touched you."

"He ruined me, Tom!" She snapped her head back in anger, nostrils flared. "Do you know how long I spent locked in the depths of Russia, hiding from that monster and getting deeper into Dark Magic so he could never touch me again?"

His stare was cold, unbothered and she wasn't supposed to expect any pity from him. He wasn't that kind of guy to offer her any pity at all— he doesn't understand.

"Those scars on your back..?" He asked.

"You know yourself that you pay the price when you use Dark Magic. I accepted it with pride, just so he could never touch me again." Evelyn admitted, shaking her head softly.

Tom tilted his head slightly, voice calm, "Show them to me."

She furrowed her eyebrows in confusion, knowing that he has seen her scars before and she didn't understand why he was so keen on seeing everything today. Oddly enough, she wanted to get a reaction out of him, instead of seeing him contained, but she won't get what she wants.

However, she didn't care. She turned around, pushing her hair away, revealing a zipper that moved down her back, down her dress and she just stood still. Without a second to spare, he walked closer to her, unzipping her dress slowly, pushing it apart just to uncover her bare, scarred back.

It worried her not being able to see his reaction, how he was looking at them— did he feel disgusted by them? The cold touch of his fingers caused her to suck in a breath, standing still as he moved his fingers through her scars, reminding her once again in what places they were.

Surprisingly enough, his touch was gentle and delicate, his other hand resting on her hip that slowly moved to her stomach, wrapping it around her waist and pulling her back to him, his lips on her shoulder. The woman shivered from his touch, melting into his almost straight away as she was forced to hold her breath longer than she expected to.

"He won't touch you again," he murmured against her skin, making her turn her head to the side and look at him, briefly. "If he is going to— I am going to kill him myself."

The rough undertones of his voice made her knees weak. He was serious. From the way his lips slowly moved on her neck, leaving small kisses on their way, she shivered once again, looking straight.

"If you will let him touch me— I will kill you myself."

Tom chuckled against her skin, zipping her dress back up and gently pushing her hair back, watching the way she turned around to face him, his hands on her waist, pushing her closer. "You made a mistake coming in here, Evelyn." He admitted. "You made a mistake threatening me with your foolish knives and idiotic remarks... Oh, darling, you are mine."

Evelyn didn't like to be labelled as her soul always wished to be free, but the way his hands were on her waist, the way his blue eyes stared into her soul— it made her fold. "Would you kill for me?"

"Yes."

"Would you torture someone for me?" She asked.

"I would," she smirked, pushing the little strand of her hair behind her ear. "All you have to do is stay by my side."

Evelyn breathed out, placing her hands on his shoulders, feeling slightly light-headed: "Why?" She knew he will never admit that he is in love with her, but it was worth trying.

"Because you got into my mind like a plague, Evelyn. There is not a minute where I don't think about you, where I don't need to feel you against me. You are my torture, the worst torture of them all... Yet, I have never known anything apart from suffering, making me want to have you..."

He said those words, his voice even and calm, but she could feel with every ounce of her body that he wasn't playing with her. These words were a hundred times better than saying those three words and it put a smile on her face, making her breathe out with relief— he was absolutely mad for her.

"I promise you the world."

"Do you think you are the first one who promised me the world?" Evelyn tilted her head.

"But would they destroy it for you?"

Her eyes flickered with wickedness, feeling the way his hands softly moved down to her hips. She didn't need to answer him, knowing that their fate was decided right here and right now. Pushing their lips together, they sealed their fate, their desires and their lust.

May all die in peace before the two of them will gather their souls in torment. The devil finally found his match.