Chapter 22: The first flaw in the contract
*
"Oh, you're awake, doll? That's very good! I was so afraid you wouldn't be able to do a second round for a little while! You can't imagine how happy you make me, my sweet Y/N. Now, be a good girl, and scream for me~"
*
You slowly opened your eyes with a little headache.
"Fucking nightmare... "you said in your mind.
*
You looked up at the ceiling, and you noticed quite easily that you weren't in your room.
You immediately felt your heartbeat accelerate. Where the fuck were you?
Before your heart began to race, a little breathing and a small weight on your body drew your attention.
You lowered your head to see Nikolai still asleep on top of you. You smiled in a maternal way while gently stroking his hair.
Oh yes, that's right, you drank a little bit to much so Charlie had insisted that you stay and you must have fallen asleep on the couch.
How rude.
You gently straightened up to avoid waking the little Beagle, however, you noticed with amusement that the smart guy was pretending to be asleep.
*
"You know you're a very bad actor, Niky?" You teased him...
"Mmmmhh stay five more minutes I don't want to get up" mumbled the boy as he huddled up to you.
"You know very well I have to get up, I have a lot of things to do. You, on the other hand, better finish your night in your room. It seems to be very early."
"I like it better when you're around."
"Please, you're not 5 years old anymore."
"I still wish I was five just so you'd stay."
You sighed, then you got up, leaving the little beagle on the couch. You cracked the bones in your neck and then you yawned as you wiped your eyes while looking at the clock in the living room.
It was nearly 7:00.
*
"Yes, you should go back to bed, sweetheart, it's barely 7:00 in the morning. "
"Why don't you go back to bed?"
"Because I work here, I'm not a client. "
"There's nothing to stop you from getting up later. Look at Husk" Nikolaï argue pointing to the cat sleeping on the counter.
"My angel, I'm not Husk, and you know I sent your brother to look for allies who could be useful against Vox if he decided to grant me this interview. »
"Oh, yeah, that's right, I forgot about that square head. Just a tip Y/N... don't mess with him... "
"Do you know him?"
"I saw him once from a distance, he was talking business with a pimp who ran a porn studio. Actually even though he looks like a clown with his screen as a head, I find him much more terrifying than the demonic Bambi, he looks more vicious and calculating, and his partner there ... this pimp, he really scares me Y/N, so please don't get into more trouble..." Nikolai asked with a downcast look.
A painful smile formed on your face as you tousled his hair.
"You know I make it almost every time, sweetheart."
"Yes that's the problem, you don't always make it Y/N..."
"Niky listen to me" You knelt down by the couch and gently took the boy's face in a cup. "Nothing's going to happen to me. I won't die again against scum like them you hear me? I won't give them that pleasure again."
The beagle nodded his head and looked down. He had a hard time convincing himself that you were right, how many times you tried to stand up to your boss?How many times had he heard you scream in pain? How many times had he seen you covered in bruises even when his brother tried to stop him from seeing you? He was so afraid for you.
"Fine, Y/N..." He sighed in defeat, "But please promise me you'll be careful."
"I promise you, my little angel." You responded by placing a kiss on his forehead. "Good, now go to sleep and rest."
*
The child nodded obediently, but before going up to his room he looked at his phone. His face became more serious for a moment and then he handed it to you.
"Boris left a message for you, look. »
You took his phone and then looked at the screen...
*
"Hi, Nik! I didn't come back to the hotel last night because I had a hard time to find our "old friends", we spent a lot of time fixing up the old bar that our little boss kindly pointed out to us on her territory. I preferred to stay there so don't worry about me, everything's fine.
Can you please ask Y/N to come to the bar as soon as she can? I need to introduce her to some people she might be interested in.
Love you,
Boris."
*
You returned the phone by nodding your head.
"All right, tell her I'll be there as soon as I can. Just enough time to make breakfast and eat. You, on the other hand, will get some more sleep. If Charlie asks where I am, I'm counting on you to explain everything."
"All right, Y/N "replied the child in a sulky tone, dragging his feet up the steps leading up to his room.
*
You stretched out and went to the kitchen to prepare breakfast for everyone, however, you were surprised to see that the drinks were already ready.
"Oh hello my dear! You're up early. "greeted you with a familiar voice. You sighed with a slight annoyance. Oh my God, you weren't in the mood and you weren't ready for it.
"Good morning, Alastor," you said coldly.
"My, my, why such a bad mood in the morning Darling ?" he asked in a honeyed tone as he poured a cup of coffee "If you want coffee, you can have some." he added, pointing to the cups on the table.
"I like to take my time in the morning, an over-excited person like you gives me a headache when I'm not fully awake," you argued bitterly without bothering to look at him. You took your cup and added a few lumps of sugar before drank it fairly quickly. "Thanks for the coffee" you mumbled.
"You're welcome, dear. Without indiscretion, I heard you and that kid just now, where do you intend to go?"
Your body froze in disgust and without thinking twice, an acidic remark came out of your mouth while you stared at its red eyes with an icy look.
"For a gentleman I find it particularly rude to spy on a private conversation."
Alastor raised an eyebrow and then laughed at your remark, irritating you even more.
"Come on my dear, forgive my rudeness, but you and this child are not exactly discreet, I even wonder how you managed not to wake up dear Husk. Unfortunately, I was obliged to hear you."
"Speak for yourself ! Do you think you're better off with your screaming voice and your horrible radio sounds? Please don't make me laugh" on your words you started making toast while ignoring his presence.
*
You took a knife and started cutting the bread, toasting it and then adding butter. You thought the deer had left because the room had become strangely quiet.
Suddenly a shiver ran down your spine when a deep, almost sensual voice whispered in your ear.
*
"Is it necessary to have that kind of voice to silence your bad mood my dear Y/N? "
*
It would have taken almost a miracle to stop you from jumping out of your skin and sticking your knife in his balls. Instead you continued your work while ignoring the heat coming out of your ears and cheeks.
You chewed your lip so you wouldn't succumb to its smell.
Even though your pride was trying to convince itself that this kind of voice had no effect on you, you knew in your heart that it was not the case and it disgusted you and put you in a mad rage... you felt your stomach twisting in all directions, begging you to vomit, so nauseating was this feeling...
"Silence is much better." You responded in an icy tone without bothering to turn around while you finished making breakfast. You quickly ate two slices of toast to calm your hunger and then moved away from the deer which was much too close to you.
"You didn't answer me earlier, where do you intend to go?"
"Away from your unhealthy presence" you responded with a touch of pride in your voice. You didn't want him to have the strange idea of following you, you weren't mentally prepared for that.
*
The deer adjusted his monocle with amusement. Its shadow, on the other hand, looked at you with a black look. How dare you talk to its master like that? Other creatures lurking in the shadows looked at you with glittering eyes, their tight smiles alone reflected all the aversion they had for you. A few shadows whispered to their master to give the order to attack you, just so they could teach you the lesson you deserved, but Alastor disapproved by quietly waving his hand.
"Oh dear, is that how you see me?"
You turned around to look him in the eye. You crossed your arms and raised your chin while maintaining eye contact.
"How can I see someone who wishes to laugh at other people's failures and pain other than unhealthy?" You defiantly asked
The deer laughed again and then scanned you from bottom to top.
"And what about you Y/N? " He asked viciously, "What do you think you are?"
Before you had time to answer, the deer moved and bent over towards you.
"Come on, tell me, if I'm an unwholesome person, do you really think you're different? "His smile stretched beyond belief. You felt your heart squeeze as his face came dangerously close to yours. "After all, this child with whom you share all these good times..."
Don't you dare...
"You behave like a mother to him, don't you think that you are using him to replace your poor offspring whom you unfortunately failed to protect? »
You heard something breaking inside you, you could no longer feel anything, all your nerves contracted within seconds, your complexion slowly became white and your limbs began to shake.
You fucking lousy swine!
In an almost automatic gesture, your hands violently plunged your knife into the deer's crotch.
The demon's smile wavered and his whole body tensed with pain as you stabbed him a second time in the crotch before punching him in the head in an inhuman scream.
He couldn't scream because the pain was so monstrous, all that came out of his throat were distorted radio sounds at a dangerously high volume.
Before he could reply you grabbed him by the hair ferociously and slammed his head against the corner of the worktop.
*
""Now you listen to me, you narcissistic pervert, I'm all you want! ALL YOU WANT! But don't you dare make me out to be some kind of selfish, manipulative lunatic! " You turned his head towards you and forced him to face you. His eyes had changed to a radio frame and his smile was more threatening than ever. Unfortunately for him, you were far too angry and revolted to shake at his attempt to intimidate "DON'T YOU FUCKING DARE MAKE ME OUT AS THAT ! DO YOU HEARD ME ALASTOR?!" You yelled, slamming the countertop again and stabbing him in the stomach "DO YOU FUCKING GET IT !"
"WHAT THE FUCK IS GOING ON HERE! "Aggressively shouted Husk as he entered the kitchen
*
You made the mistake of turning your attention to the cat for a few seconds, allowing Alastor's shadows to aggressively pull you back and bite you wildly in retaliation. You were going to retaliate but a flaming ball made them disappear as quickly as they had appeared, Alastor's shadow had quickly retreated and headed back towards his master who was already regenerating his wounds.
"STOP"
You recognized the Princess's voice. You turned towards her, your limbs still trembling with rage. Charlie was still in her nightgown, Vaggie too. Nicolai was also with them and looked at you with deep concern. Niffty, on the other hand, looked at Alastor in complete horror.
Charlie looked very calm but she didn't really seem very sure of herself, her horns had appeared, her eyes were bright in aggressive red light but they showed some reluctance, she didn't want to fight you, or hurt anyone, you could feel it easily.
*
"What happened Y/N?" she asked in a worried voice.
Curiously, your face was still neutral, even after Alastor's provocation, you didn't frown, you didn't cry angrily, no, you showed nothing but an empty expression hiding a boiling rage and a more than stifling pain. You stared into the princess' red eyes and your lips contracted into a fixed grin.
A laughter, almost painful, escaped from your vocal cords and you moved towards the exit of the kitchen. Instantly Vaggie leapt in front of Charlie to protect her in case you lost your mind again.
"Ask this scum who calls himself 'Gentleman' " You said coldly, pointing at the deer with contempt before pushing Husk aside and leaving the room.
Nicolai quickly grabbed your wrist in an attempt to restrain you, but you quickly released his hold.
*
"Not now, my angel... I... I have things to do, you know that."
"But Y..."
"Not now, be good while I'm gone, okay?" You asked sternly.
*
Without waiting for an answer from him you rushed in a quick step to the hotel doors and slammed the doors wide open.
As soon as the fresh air made contact with your skin and the doors closed again you let all the remaining pressure burst out in a dreadful scream that sounded just as infernal as nails on a painting.
You looked at your hands and noticed that you were still holding the kitchen knife with which you had stabbed the deer, it was now completely covered with its blood.
You stared at the object and the blood with repulsion.
*
Gross, Filthy, Disgusting!
*
You threw the knife on the floor and shook your hands with revulsion to try to remove even a little of this blood and few of these red hairs that were staining your hands.
"Disgusting." You mumbled furiously as you began to walk toward the bar you'd indicated to Boris. On your way, the demons quickly changed sidewalks or passed you by very quickly. You were still having a few spasms here and there and that was a warning enough for them not to piss you off.
All along the way the deer's words were repeated in your head like an old scratched disk, it was unbearable, your stomach hurt so much that you felt like you were about to vomit at any moment.
*
Shut him up! Shut him up!
*
You walked to the Liberty Bar and immediately saw that it was nothing like the old, dilapidated building you had seen the first time you had settled in.
The façade was much more welcoming, the terrace was very well furnished in a rather casual style with a few outdoor plants to bring a "touch of life".
Unfortunately you were too on edge to take the time to admire the outside, so you quickly entered the bar and immediately noticed that there were several demons you had already met when you found Boris in his stash.
Some of them were always looking at you with suspicion, especially when they saw the blood on your hands, others were looking at you with great admiration in their eyes, and the bravest of them were giving you provocative little glances in the hope of getting your attention and spending "a bit of a good time" with you. You greeted them with a simple cold look and a nod and then walked over to the Barman.
*
He was really build like a badass, he looked like he could turn a demon's head to mush with the touch of his hand. His jaw was like a horror movie jawbone and his claws were dangerously sharp... yes, he wasn't a person to mess with.
Hissilver-grey eyes looked at you suspiciously. He nodded his head and asked you whit a simple glance what you wanted.
"I'm looking for Boris." You said in a dry tone
"В комнате позади меня. "(In the room behind me.) He responded to you with an extremely serious and threatening Russian accent.
"Спасибо. " (Thank you.) You replied in an icy tone.
The bear looked at you as if he had been struck by lightning, then strangely, he gave you an almost welcoming smile before resuming his stern expression and returning to his work. He probably didn't expect you to bother answering him in his native language.
*
You walked to the room that the demon bear had pointed out to you and saw Boris sorting some boxes.
The wolfhound's ears turned to the sound of your heels and he turned around with a big smile on his face.
*
"Oh, hello little boss. I've been wondering- "
The features of his face changed in a flash from delighted to frightened when he saw the state of your hands and the lifeless expression on your face. He quickly gave up what he was doing and hurriedly walked towards you. He slowly took you by the shoulders and asked for you.
"Jeez.. What happened?"
You looked up at him with a downcast look on your face, then sensing that you were about to crack, you wrapped your arms around him and buried your face in his chest.
Boris raised his hands in amazement at your behavior, but when you had burst into tears he did his best to calm you down.
"Hey little boss, what's wrong? "he asked softly, but you didn't answer him, you kept clinging to his jacket so tightly that Boris wondered how the fabric hadn't given way yet.
He stroked your back in the hope of calming you down and reassuring you, it took time, Boris couldn't say how long, but he knew that what had happened had hurt you deeply.
The barman had suddenly entered the room, he wondered what was taking you so long and he was a bit worried.
When he saw you on your knees on the floor, sobbing against your friend, he looked at you in a completely bewildered way. The white wolf? Crying like that? What had happened to you? He glanced at Boris and then left the room for a few minutes before returning with what seemed to be a hot drink, a few wipes and a packet of tissues.
"Спасибо, Орсо." (Thank you, Orso.) Boris told him.
The bear nodded and left the room. Boris grabbed the cup and tapped your shoulder with his free hand.
"Here, drink this Y/N, you'll feel better."
You looked at the cup faintly and then gently took it in your hands. You stared at the liquid with empty air while the heat from the object relaxed you slightly.
You took a small sip of the drink and you felt that it was a kind of herbal tea with a little honey mixture, the taste was really soothing, little by little you came to your senses and you began to calm down.
You rested your cup and then washed your hands with the wipes and then you blew your nose.
"Feeling better, boss? "Boris asked anxiously.
You didn't look at him, you just took your cup and stared at the liquid inside. As if you wanted to dive into the liquid and drown yourself.
"Y/N look at me"
You turned your head in his direction and looked at him whit a dead look.
"Tell me what happened."
"...Nothing Boris it's my fault, I just took things too personally...heh... you know me, right ?" you tried to avoid the subject but Boris' frown was enough to warn you that he wasn't convinced of your answer.
"Y/N it's not like you to get upset like that, was there a problem with Nik? Or with Charlie?"
...
"With Alastor maybe?"
When your hands tightened around your cup, Boris knew he'd hit right on it. His mouth twisted in disgust and his fists clenched in frustration. Tss... obviously
"What did he tell you? What did he do to you?" he asked in a voice trembling with anger.
«...»
*
With a sigh you explained to him what had happened. The wolfhound remained very attentive to every word, his hands trembled when your voice threatened to break when you mentioned his provocation. His eyes slowy turned black and without a word he slowly got up.
When your (E/C) eyes met his, an unbearable fear almost prevented you from breathing. Boris seemed calm... but his anger was cold. You could feel it.
*
"I'm going to kill him..." he growled in a deep voice that sent shivers down your spine. Boris was rarely angry, in fact... you'd never seen him so angry.
Almost instantly you realized that talking to him about what had happened was a mistake, you should have taken the time to really calm down before you went to explain everything to him...
You idiot, you did exactly what he wanted!
"No no! Boris, please, you'll make it worse if you do something, stop! Please, it's no use."
"And what am I supposed to do Y/N?! "Boris asked dryly. "Watching him destroy you without saying anything? Shut myself up when I see you crying in pain? Just like when we were under the boss's control?"
"Because you're gonna do exactly what he wants if you attack him! "you yelled. After a pause you continued "My contract with him doesn't fully protect you unlike your brother Boris..."
*
The wolfhound stared at you with his blue eyes. He was completely downcast and frustrated by what you were saying. His arms trembled in disgust. Yes of course that there was that little loophole... that's why Alastor did this deal with you.
He simply wanted to hurt you in order to drive him crazy and make him attack first.
He used you like a puppet... like a toy.
His body shivered as he walked randomly across the room hoping to calm down.
"Such a coward..." Boris growled.
You hadn't said anything, in fact, you hadn't heard him. You were in your own thoughts. You'd almost made a catastrophic mistake, you'd almost served your best friend on a silver platter to that narcissistic pervert... He'd used you and your past... that's why he wanted to know more about you.
And in your anger you told him not only that yes, you did have a child, yes, you lost him, yes, you couldn't protect him, and yes, it hurt like hell... You fucked up...
Tears streamed down your cheeks again, alerting your friend.
*
"Oh my little boss please don't cry, I promise I'm not going to do anything against Alastor, there, you see? I'm not going anywhere" he said in a reassuring tone, taking you by the shoulders in a comforting gesture.
"That's not the problem!" you cried "It's my fault! I didn't see... I didn't see that he was using me, I acted like an idiot Boris! I couldn't control myself!"
"Y/N, I don't think any grieving mother would could put up with such a despicable and despicable thing. You did the right thing. Believe me, it's not you who should feel guilty. It's him."
Your only response was a heavy silence. Boris gave you a compassionate look and then hugged you again while giving you several pat on the back, as if to motivate you, and then a kiss on the forehead.
"Come on, stop crying, you wouldn't want him to see you like this, would you?"
*
You nodded your head and then moved away from him to dry your tears, then you took a handkerchief to blow your nose and tried to get your cold face back, but he was much more threatening, much colder, much more... lifeless.
Boris's eyes became saddened, oh God he hated that face, he had seen it so often in the mafia...
*
"So show me our future "Partners"
"Right away, my little boss, follow me."
*
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