Chapter 146

Elena:

I knew that the man was surprised to hear my voice. I could tell by his gaze, but I also knew that running away and hiding was not going to get me anywhere. He wasn’t going to understand that it was hurting me if I proceeded this way, and I didn’t know what game he was playing at just yet.

“I’ll go first,” Vladimir said, and I nodded, looking the man dead in the eye as I waited for his question. “Why’d you trust me enough to speak?”

“You kept your word,” I said, and he frowned in confusion. “You kept him away from me. I knew that he would have come if not for whatever you’re doing.”

“Fair,” he said, “your turn.”

“Why do you keep coming despite knowing the consequences?” I asked, knowing that it wasn’t something that he was going to want to answer. But I also knew that he expected the question.

“You caught my attention.” He said, “a spark, a bond, if I can call it that. And now that I’ve felt it, I grew addicted.”

“Your turn,” I said, satisfied enough with his answer. I still knew that it was vague, but I knew better than to press on him with an answer that I might find myself regretting. If I learned one thing from Konstantin, it was that sometimes, I didn’t want to know the answers of some questions. 

“Do you want me to keep coming back?” He asked, and I looked down at my lap for a second, avoiding his gaze. I didn’t know what to answer him here, but I knew one thing, losing him was like losing a light that entered my life, and that wasn’t something that I wanted.

“I waited for you every day since you disappeared.” I said, and he smiled. “Though I still don’t know why you did, I would rather leave that for you to answer when you find yourself being ready.” 

“Can I consider that as your question to answer?” He asked, and I nodded. “I didn’t want her to find us together. She had her eyes and ears everywhere and I was working on breaking her moral and addiction to Konstantin’s loyalty. It seems to me that it came as harder than I expected, but she did crack more than once.”

“Yigrette?”

“Redhead bitch,” he said, and I shook my head as my lips twitched up in a small smile. “I am sorry for keeping you waiting. But I didn’t want to risk you getting in trouble with a bastard that I knew would be more than happy to hurt you if he can.” 

“You could have at least tried…”

“Believe me, I wanted to. And when I heard that you were sick, it took everything in me to stop myself from passing by to check on you. But when I saw you with him today…”

“Batrov?” I asked, and he nodded, pinching the bridge of my nose. 

“I knew that if I didn’t react, one of them was going to end up trying to harm you. Konstantin had them fixing the ventilation in your room. I saw them leaving the room earlier, and I also know that he would be more than willing to pass by if he can when he’s back.” He said, making me frown as a small frown formed on my lips. “One of the reasons why I am going to delay his coming back.”

“How are you going to do that?” I asked, shaking my head in question. He smirked, telling me, silently, not to ask too many questions. I took a deep breath and nodded, knowing to step back. 

“One day, you are going to understand who I am and what I am capable of doing.” He said, and I scoffed, smiling at the man.

“I think that I am already well aware of a sample of it.” I said, and he smirked. “If you can keep the house’s devil away from me, then I can assume that you can do almost anything.”

“I don’t like anyone touching what is mine.” He said, and I raised an eyebrow. “And I don’t look at another man’s woman unless I know that she wants nothing to do with him. Mind you, I think that you have made it very clear that you wanted nothing to do with the fucker. And I know for fact that you are going to be more than a little happy to find yourself being rid of him.”

“What you speak of is a dream that is never going to be a reality. I am not foolish enough to fall for dreams that can never be realistic.” I said, and he smiled. I learned a little too late that this was my fate, and though I did have my own dreams, I had my passion, and I had so much that I wanted to do; Konstantin managed to kill everything in me. It was something that I never forgave and knew that I never would forgive neither him nor my parents for. But I knew that it was far too late for me to be dwelling over it.

“I gave you a promise to keep him away from you.” He said, looking me dead in the eye. 

“Vladimir, this is a lot bigger than the two of us. While I do thank you for the first promise that you made, do not make one that you are not going to be able to keep. Konstantin is no child and he is not easy to get past when he doesn’t want to be.” I said, warning the man. He didn’t know him as much as I did, and he didn’t know what the man was capable of. I did, and I knew that it wasn’t a simple game of chess that he could win.

“Do you want a bet?”

“I don’t want you to get hurt,” I said, shaking my head. “My answer will be no, I do not want a bet. I am thankful for you and I will forever be grateful…”

The man’s lips touched mine before I could finish my sentence, stopping me. It took me a second to process the kiss and the spark that I felt coursing through my veins. He pulled away when I hesitated to kiss him back, his eyes meeting mine as he rested his forehead against my own, taking a deep breath as I realized that the man was crouched in front of me. 

“I give you my fucking word, malyshka.” He said, his voice above a whisper as he spoke, his hot breath hitting my cheek as he did. “I am going to have the man’s fucking life for you. And I am going to be sure that he pays for the pain that he made you live through. Maybe you don’t trust or believe in my word, but I am going to do what I can to prove it. I fucking promise you that I will…”