And we got to see Vladimir's dark side for his mate...
Konstantin: I watched as my nephew left the office, most likely to go to his room with Elena. The fact that he was falling for her only made this a lot more pleasing. At least I knew where I had him, and I knew how to wrap my hands around his neck when I needed to remind him of his limits. But for now, I had to admit, I did find it pleasing to know that he was willing to challenge me for her. It only showed me how far he was willing to go, and it seemed to me that he was willing to go a little too far for the woman. I called Batrov, knowing that he was going to know what to do when I sent him away. And though I knew that Vladimir was not going to go anywhere without her for a while, I knew that a little stir was going to remind him who was boss here. Especially when the woman ended up being put in my mercy to save. My second hand walked into my office, choosing to use the backdoor so as not to catch attention. He frowned at my sight and the sight of the broken desk before he shoo
Elena: I frowned when I saw Batrov in the garden, walking aimlessly as if he had nothing to do. The man had lost more than he would want to, and I knew that deep down, despite him not saying anything about it, that he might be blaming me for it. “Batrov.” I said, calling the man who had hurt me the other day. I could still remember how he held me the other day. The man who I trusted with something in this house was another to have hurt me. It was a shame. I had to admit, I didn’t like where things went, but I knew not to be foolish to trust him again. “You called for me, Elena.” He stated, looking down at his feet, avoiding my eyes. I could still remember when he would watch as his boss took me mercilessly. The man never bothered to stop him, but I knew that he had no other option. He wasn’t Vladimir, and he was loyal to Konstantin with everything that he had. But he still did suggest that he would help me run, and that was something that I couldn’t understand. Everything about him
Vladimir: “You are yet to answer my question, Vladimir.” Konstantin said, and I smiled at the man before pulling my phone out to show him where I was going. It was a message from a friend, Han Yong, a Chinese ally of the family. -The drinks that you’ve asked for are ready, Mr. Vladimir. Do you need us to deliver? -Han Yong. -No, I’ll pick them up in a bit. Have the men stow them well, I don’t want the bottles to break. -Vladimir. “You are going to get your drinks?” He asked, voicing out what he just read. I put the phone back inside my pocket. One of the things that were in the text was a picture of the bottles of wine, scotch, and vodka in a box. “You are playing with trust, Konstantin. And I think that you should know, more than anyone, that this game does not often end well, especially not for a man like yourself.” I said, nodding at the door. “Can I leave? Or do you have other things that you need to investigate?” “You are the heir of this whole family. Everything that I
Konstantin: “Boss, you are falling for his games and he is taking advantage of the soft spot that you have toward him. Do not allow it.” Batrov said, and I frowned at the man who was daring to question me. “I fall for no games, Batrov.” I said, glaring at the man who looked down at his feet, avoiding my eyes. “The fact that you believe that you can question me is amazing. I think that Vladimir was right, you really do seem to be forgetting your place.” “I am not forgetting my place, boss. I know that YOU are the one boss in this home. I cannot say that it is the same thing with the man that you want to address as your heir. The man seems to have more motivation than just being your heir. He is only taking advantage of what you are giving him, and to make matters worse, he is taking advantage of the fact that he KNOWS that he has an advantage over everyone here. He knows that you would be listening to what he says.” “And that is exactly how it is supposed to be. As my heir, my nep
Vladimir: Little did you know, sister, that years later, your own son would prove to be just like his uncle. And the funniest part was the fact that the offer came from you this time. Ah, how time can show things differently, right?” I watched as Konstantin spoke, voicing out his thoughts while I sat in Han Yong’s bar. His eyes met mine and I pinched the bridge of my nose. “Well, at least you know that he’s ordered against touching the woman that you fancy,” he said, and I rolled my eyes. I knew that he wouldn’t just stop there. No matter how much I wanted to believe that he would; this was far too easy to be true. “He has no other choice for now. The man has to believe that he needs me and not the other way around. And while I don’t like the idea of him thinking that he can get what he wants, simply because he wants it; I know that this is something that I am going to have to deal with,” I said, shaking my head. Han Yong was a friend, a good acquaintance of Killian and I, and one
Elena: “I am wondering what you’ve done to my nephew. The man seems to value you a little too much.” Konstantin’s voice broke my attention as I was working on the piece that I was knitting. It was the one thing that brought me peace within this place when Konstantin wasn’t here. He would often have the maids bring me fabric, and I would make stitches on handkerchiefs, scarfs, or sometimes my own dresses. I put the yarn down as I looked at the man, shaking my head in question, waiting for him to complete his sentence as I stood to face him. I looked down at my feet, not daring to look him in the eye, not wanting him to grow aggressive with me. It was a fear that I had, one that I knew he was going to take advantage of, one that killed me inside in ways that he did not understand at this point, but I knew better than to argue or question the fate that I had to deal with. “What kind of sorcery did you use on him? It is not like you’ve been untouched, nor is it like you are for him al
Vladimir: “I am curious, Konstantin, what are you trying to reach?” I asked, shaking my head at the man who was sitting in the living room, clearly waiting for me to come and snap at him. I wasn’t planning to, not this time at least. The man was going to know what it was to be challenging me the way that he was, and I was going to be sure that he ends up regretting doing so. If anything, I knew that he would start thinking twice about approaching my mate, I just had to find the right approach to doing so. Elena, who was now in the garden, roaming around with three maids keeping her company, was relaxed, happy, and more calm than she knew that I was home. But I knew that it wasn’t something that lasted for long, not when an enemy like Konstantin was here just waiting for me to leave the house for him to come and hurt her. “I believe that you’re still aware that she is my slave. The woman might be yours, but it is only because I am allowing her to be. It doesn’t mean that I am going
Elena: I ran my fingers through my mate’s hair, gently massaging his head. His eyes met mine as he looked up at me, and I couldn’t help but smile as I leaned in to connect my lips with his. He kissed me back, and I ran my fingers through his hair, deepening the kiss. The two of us pulled away to look one another in the eye, and Vladimir’s purred, making my heart swell. “You’re a gorgeous woman, have I told you that before, malyshka?” I bit my bottom lip, and he ran his finger over my waist. He massaged my back, and I couldn’t help but laugh as he tickled me. “You are my beauty, my mate, and the one woman that I would ever think of looking at. Don’t let anyone, not Konstantin, not Batrov, and not anyone in this world convince you otherwise. I am going to break their heads if they try to tell you that something is different.” “You don’t need to tell me twice, Vladimir. I know that you only have eyes for me, and I know that you won’t be looking at anyone else if they offer themselves
Epilogue:“I now pronounce you husband and wife, you may kiss your bride.” Vladimir didn’t wait to be told twice to kiss Elena.He smiled into the kiss and she wrapped her arms around him, pulling him closer.“Elena Ivanov.” He said, taking both her hands in his as he kissed her knuckles. The two of them smiled as they looked at one another, and she blushed.Killian, who was his beta’s best man, looked at her and the two of them smiled before he walked toward towards Eleanor. Elena frowned in confusion, but the Alpha was quick to turn to face her with a black box in his hands. His eyes met hers and he took a step forward.Vladimir tightened his arm around her, pulling her to his chest as she looked at the Alpha. His eyes were fixed on her as he opened the box, revealing a topaz and diamond necklace.“You are now not only our Beta’s mate, but also my brother’s wife. The two of us may not be brothers by blood, but we have chosen to be ones. We have chosen to make it our duty and goal to
Vladimir:I looked at Elena who laid on my bed, not saying a word.It was on Natasha that I couldn’t approach her. The woman would not let me near my mate. And though I understood her reason, I had to admit, I couldn’t help but find myself hating it.“She is going to need to think, don’t press on her, Vladimir.” Natasha said as she and Eleanor walked out of the room, leaving us alone. My chest ached as I walked toward her, and when I sat by her side and she didn’t turn to face me, I had to admit, I couldn’t help but find myself regretting the fact that I brought her family over for her.“I know that you are in pain, malyshka. But had I known that them being here was going to hurt you this much…”“I had to see them, Vladimir.” She said, stopping me. She sat up, and I watched as she wiped her tears from her eyes as she curled on the bed. I don’t even remember when was the last time I saw her this broken. But it pained me to know that I was the reason behind it. “I just didn’t think that
Elena:“We didn’t think that he was being honest when he told us that you were alive. The fact that we believed that you were dead…”“Why didn’t you come looking for me?” I asked, stopping my father. His eyes dropped to the ground and for a moment, I had to admit, I regretted the fact that I asked. Seeing his pain in his eyes told me that there was more to the story than I knew. But even so, I knew that nothing was going to explain what I went through. I lost my life because of them.“We did, Elena. For months, we searched for you. Konstantin convinced us that you were dead. He wouldn’t allow us to see your body. But he showed us your pictures, he showed us your grave, and it was then that we left.” Mom said, choosing to be the one to answer. “I know that you have been through a lot…”“You know nothing of what I’ve been through.” I said, looking at my brother and sister. “I lost my life and everything because of all of you. You chose to sacrifice me to a monster, and not once did you s
Vladimir:I watched as Elena walked out of the house, gathering her courage to see her family.Her eyes were fixed on them, and though I would have normally gone out to stand by her side, I knew better than to do so. For this, she was going to have to do that on her own. I was going to have to stand back for her to be able to do it“Mom?” She whispered, looking at her mother.“Elena?” Her mother responded. Her whole family got up, and I smiled before taking a step back. I turned to find Natasha standing behind me. Her eyes met mine and I smiled, extending my hand toward her, hugging the woman who grew as my sister for a long time.“I haven’t thanked you after saving her.” I said, and she smiled.“You know that you didn’t need to thank me. She is my brother’s mate and I wasn’t going to leave her to die.” She said, making me smile. I kissed her forehead, letting my lips linger there for a moment.Flashback:I watched as Konstantin’s body dropped to the ground before rushing to Killian as
Elena:“You are the famous Elena who had Vladimir staying a bit longer than we expected.” A woman, who I learned is Eleanor, said.“Human,” Natasha, the woman who actually got me out of the room, said. The fact that she did had me scared to death, but when my eyes met Vladimir’s…Flashback:“Open the damn door, Elena, I am Natasha.” She said, making my heart drop at the urgency in her tone. I opened the door, and she nodded, holding her gun in her left hand as she bared her canines. Her eyes were golden, but she didn’t bother as she nodded at me to follow her. “Vladimir…”“Come on, now is not the time to ask questions. There was a lot of gunfire, and the last thing that I am going to need for you is to be caught in an ambush.” She said, making my heart drop. “We’ll get you to Vladimir when he is out of this place.” “He’s…”“So far,” she said, looking down at me. “Let’s hope that things proceed to remain in our favor. But you know, being his mate, and being as special as you are, we
Konstantin:“Everything is going to be over very soon.” I said, looking at Vladimir who nodded.“Indeed. However it may end, I will be sure that things take the path that we chose.” My nephew said, and though I stayed quiet, I was forced to stop myself from scoffing. I needed his loyalty to be mine, and sometimes, I doubted that it was.“You are going to be killing Killian. It is going to be the one way that his reign ends. While Eleanor may have lost the child, it does not mean that he might not have more. I do not want that to be a matter of…”“The two of us already discussed the matter, and with Killian’s death, we are going to gain the power that we lost. We are just going to need to be careful. You know, he has his men swarming around the corner. One wrong word, sound, or even tone, and these wolves are going to be more than willing to tear everyone down.” He said, stopping me. “I am going to take charge of killing him. It is going to be in your office where they cannot hear us. Y
Elena:I was quiet as Vladimir walked out of the room.For a whole week, the two of us wouldn’t speak. However, to my surprise, neither once did he insult me. Even when I knew that I was doing something that he didn’t like, when I tried to attract his attention. All he did was look at me. He didn’t say a word to comment.Tears fell from my eyes, but I was quick to wipe them before anyone saw them. I knew that I was going to need to leave the room, and the idea of meeting Konstantin was not one that I wanted. But I knew better than to keep hiding.I walked out of the bedroom, my heart aching when I saw Vladimir with one of the maids. The two of them spoke, and I could swear that I saw her trying to flirt with him.“You see, I told you, it was only a matter of time before he grew tired of you. And here it is, the man has grown tired of you to the point where he doesn’t even bother looking at you.” Konstantin said, catching my attention. I took a step back and turned to look at him, knowi
Vladimir:I had to fight back my anger as I knew that my mate was doubting me. And the fact that Konstantin was going to be taking advantage of everything that he could do to break my mate. And the idea of that happening was not one that I wanted to allow him to try, not again.“Think, Vladimir, think.” I muttered to myself, knowing that the night was going to be longer than I wanted it to be. “You are not going to betray your pack, your Alpha, nor are you going to let your mate go. But how the fuck do you intend to do so without breaking her heart?”I tapped the sink counter twice before looking down at my reflection. I was furious, but I didn’t know how things were going to be, not now at least. “You are going to need to choose. Are you going to weaken for your love? Or are you going to be pulling yourself together to do what you came here to do?” I whispered before turning the water tap. My hands shook, and I knew what I had to do. Elena, for her safety, I was going to have to do
Elena:Now, if I thought that I would be getting used to the peace this much, I was going to believe that I finally lost it.Konstantin has been gone a week, and never in my life have I felt like everything was finally in place.No one was there to argue or fight, and I was able to get full sleeping nights without the fear of him approaching me in the middle of the night if Vladimir wasn’t around.“You are lost in your thoughts,” Vladimir commented, wrapping his arms around me from behind. I smiled and leaned in to his touch, thankful for it.“I am embracing the peace that we are living through. You know, it is not one that I am used to,” I said, turning to face him. “I thought that you would be at work?”I wrapped my arms around his neck, pulling him to me as he wrapped his around my waist, raising me to sit on the dresser. He smirked and leaned in, brushing his lips against my own as he did before he bit my bottom lip gently.“I was supposed to be, but I have a few things to deal wi