THE TORMENTOR
The Tormentor - Episode 31&32
( Blêed•For•Me, Ixora )
Book 1 in the Mindf+ck Trilogy
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Is this what a love confession feels like?
Several romance movies in the cinema with Nadine and many romance series which she watches on her laptop during her free times.
None of it was enough to prepare for the slam in her chest right now.
Is this fear? Or is her heart actually slamming with something else?
The moment his lips touched her sensitive neck, she felt like she was thrown on a rollercoaster that's not ready to stop, so her eyes dwindled.
"I promise to be loyal, please just look at me" Romeo muttered and was about kissing her neck again when she broke free from him.
The umbrella fell from her, and she didn't even care to take it.
"I can't promise you anything, Romeo. I don't want to get involved in any romance bullshit right now" she said, trying to sound as courteous as possible.
She witnessed Romeo's arms balling at his sides, then she went inside, deciding to leave her car outside.
She'd take it inside tomorrow morning.
Her chest slam has stopped, and she took three exhales to calm herself before proceeding into the house.
Immediately she entered, her nose caught a strong whiff of chicken stew, and she just knew it's her mom stewing.
Stonia rarely enters the kitchen except during Thanksgiving when she cooks with her special recipe.
She must be bored to have entered the kitchen when it's not even Thanksgiving yet.
Her stews are always mad delicious, and the aroma alone was enough to lift Ixora's spirit as she went upstairs to change her wet clothes.
She changed into a big tee shirt which reached the middle of her thighs, then she dried her hair and left it sprinkled over her lashes as she went back downstairs.
She entered the kitchen and met their four maids standing by the door, watching in silence as Stonia performed her magic.
Ixora walked to the tall woman and hugged her from behind.
"It's almost midnight, my love. Why are you just coming?" Stonia asked without turning as she stirred the stew on the gas.
"It's almost midnight and you're stewing too, I guess we're both questionable" Ixora replied, and Stonia finally faced her, her face lit with a radiant smile.
"Just be careful, I don't want any issue of you getting kidnapped by the notorious guys again" she said, stroking Ixora's hair.
"I'll be fine, mum" Ixora kissed her chin, and Stonia chuckled.
"I'll soon be done, let's have hot stew together before going to bed, the night is cold with the rain" she said.
"Call me when it's ready" Ixora replied, leaving the kitchen to go back upstairs.
She locked her door behind and rolled up the sleeve of her shirt, revealing the bandaged stab.
She pressed her fingers on it, and the moment pains zapped through her body, Warren's face came along with it, invading her head with his robotic presence.
She pressed the stab again, and his face became clearer in her head—the blankness and coldness.
The mysteriousness, the coldness.
She never stopped pressing, and the harder she pressed the stab, the harder she felt his presence surrounding her like a shawl.
Is he a god of pain? Why can she only imagine him when she feels pains?
Or maybe she's the one who's starting to get mental impairment?
Blood covered the bandage as a result of too much pressing, so she had to change the bandage and wrap a new one on the stab.
Stonia must not know about this.
Seeing this kinda wound on her skin will traumatize Stonia for life.
Ixora fell on her bed, and all she could think of is the feather torture.
When did he even invent something like that?
Why did she m0an and why did she get shamelessly wet by it?
She dug her face into her pillow, screaming into it as her phone buzzed.
She took the phone and saw a message from Romeo.
Romeo: I'll wait till you'll be able to settle how you feel, goodnight and sweet dreams.
She stared at the message for too long till Stonia opened the door, peeping her head inside.
"It's stew time, my love" she said, and Ixora followed her outside.
They were about to descend the stairs when Stonia stopped and faced her.
Ixora halted too.
"When I was young, I was very scared of getting pregnant. I got the irk whenever I saw pregnant women with their protruding baby bumps" she said.
Ixora blinked.
"So... When I got married to Rafael, I made it clear that I didn't wanna have a baby. I hated babies, but he had to force me to have you" Stonia further said, stroking Ixora's ear.
"But trust me when I say you're the best thing that has ever happened to me. I gave birth to you, and I fell in love with you my love. You're my life, I hope you know that" she said, her eyes brimming with emotions.
Ixora hugged her closely, causing the woman to sniffle.
"I love you so much, mum. I don't care about the past, but you're my mum" Ixora said.
"Thank you baby...I love you more, so much" Stonia tightened the hug.
--
Warren is still on his drive back to the hideaway.
He'd have arrived since long ago, but he had stalked Ixora on her way home.
Thanks to the tracker he attached to her car, he was able to have a clear view of her during her drive.
He knew when she came out of the car to look around the road, probably searching for him since she obviously felt his presence.
He knew when she got home, and he witnessed Romeo's silly confession which made him almost break into shrill laughter.
People still do such these days?
Fall in love and claim forever and ever in the name of stupid incessant heartbeats?
Well... Romeo has to act Romeo. He's following the legacy of his name, so it's not very surprising, but the main show is the neck kiss, and the way Ixora reacted to it.
He knew his dirty little lier has a weak point—two weak points actually, but what he didn't expect was that Romeo knew one of it.
Again, that's expected since he stole her virginity, so the only surprising thing is that fact.
Romeo and Ixora?
Ixora doesn't deserve happiness, and if Romeo is her way to it, then he'd ruin it.
Why does he badly wanna butcher Romeo right now?
Matron will cry for maybe a week and move on with her life.
After all, Bethel would still be there.
And as for Ixora herself? She'd wish she never got drunk that night.
He'd make sure she hates alcohol.
His knuckles were white on the wheel as he finally drove into the hideaway, and the first person he saw was Lydia who's waiting at the driveway, wet from the rain.
Lydia has never entered the mansion whenever she came to deliver messages, and she's the only one who knows why.
Not like anyone actually cares.
"Elder wants you to handle the mines supervision this week, kill any thief caught on sight. I sent the list of the new subsidiaries to your mail already" Lydia said and took a bow.
She smartly walked out of the compound, and Warren didn't give her another look as he walked into the building too.
He could just feel the new energy in here, and his intuitions are right cos when he got inside, Anfisa is in the living room with the guys.
She's playing chess with Capri.
"Oh...the main devil is here. Ash said you went to the house of gawd. Are you telling me you entered a church and the thunder that sounded some hours ago didn't strike you? That thing is not serious these days" She said with a scoff.
Anfisa has always been sharp-tongued, and her temper is also as sharp as Konstantin's.
"I'm not of gawd, but the devil knows his VIP, so thunder is probably scared of me too" Warren replied, and the lady sneered, returning to her chess.
"How's it going? Is she getting pulled in already?" Capri asked.
"Slowly" Warren replied with venom which is directed at no one in particular.
He's just not in a good mood.
Konstantin and Ashton are nowhere to be found.
They're probably in the cellar, drinking and avoiding Anfisa's tongue, so he went to his room and threw his leather jacket in bed, then he began walking towards the scan room door.
As he took each step, he reminded himself of an occurrence when he was in jail.
—Flashback, 3Yrs Ago—
It's a Saturday morning in the jail penitentiary, and Saturday mornings like this, the inmates go for their community service.
It's either freeing drainages or cleaning sewers or mending fences.
The inmates were lined out of their cell rooms, and Warren was the last to come out of his own room.
His two eyes are swollen, and he's barely seeing anything.
His foot is bare cos Hawke had seized his shoes. His jail uniform is torn at the back, and the khaki pants is torn in the middle of his legs too, revealing his boxers.
Hawke made sure he's the most miserable inmate in here, and as he got in line with the inmates, his hands are folded at each side of him.
The prison guards are currently calling their numbers and reading out their workplace to them.
Warren waited in line for his own number,but just as he was about to be called, someone stabbed his neck with an injection from behind.
The shot was released into his bloodstream, and his eyes rolled up, leaving just the white.
He began shedding blood from his eyes as he staggered around, hitting metals and woods before tripping heavily on the ground.
He howled like a wounded wolf, his voice echoing in the prison yard.
His sight got momentarily seized, and he sat still.
Hawke is holding the syringe and needle, and he's the first to start laughing.
He's the one who injected him, and the guards said nothing since he's the king of the prison anyways.
Hawke is a billionaire criminal who cracks bank accounts and steals funds, so he settles the jailhouse and they allow him to do what he wants.
The guards joined the other inmates to laugh as Warren struggled on the floor, searching the ground with his palms.
"The injection is capable of making you go blind for three days, so endure it for three days before you regain your sight" Hawke laughed, bending in front of Warren.
"I'll make sure you die in here" He said.
—Present Time—
Warren finally entered the scan room and slammed the door behind himself.
Falsus is already in there, and the bird flew to his shoulder, cooing in a low voice.
Warren poured some caviar out of a glass jar into a glass bowl on the table, and the bird flew down to start eating immediately.
He didn't bother to turn on the screen to watch Ixora tonight since he's not feeling like it, so he drew out his phone to check the list of subsidiaries sent by Lydia.
Till daybreak, he stayed in the room, not blinking at all.
At 6am, he left the room for the bathroom where he cleaned up.
He ditched his leather jackets and dressed up in a black dress-shirt and same color slacks since he's gonna go for the mines supervision as early as possible.
He was wearing his wristwatch as he came out of his room, and when he got downstairs, he met the rest who're also already dressed for the campus, including Anfisa.
"Don't tell me she's entering the campus" Warren snickered.
"You mean ILC is only made for dark devils' like you?" She replied.
"I just don't like bi+çhes on that holy ground" Warren replied, signalling at the others before leaving.
He already texted them on their group last night about his supervisions, so they understand.
"Remind me to get a coffin for him before I leave this country, I can never get used to his aloofness" Anfisa said, carrying her bag.
"When are you going back to Russia?" Konstantin asked.
"Was just about to ask that" Ashton added.
"You two are so eager to see me go, it's sick" she clicked her tongue.
"I want you to stay though" Capri said.
"Of course, you're the better one" She replied, leaving the house with him.
"Capri smells like a backstabbing bitch" Konstantin said.
"Ignore him, my wife" Ashton replied.
"And you? I'd gladly run you over with a car if I get the chance, so far it stops this MY WiFE shit" Konstantin rolled eyes before leaving.
Ashton was grinning with his pop in mouth as he left too.
--
[Ford Salon]
At 6:30, Romeo is already brushing in the joint bathroom.
He has an 8am class, and Ixora has one too, so he has to set out early to pick her.
As he brushed in front of the mirror, his mind swayed completely to her, and he found himself zoning out, the toothbrush stuck in his mouth.
He didn't even know when Bethel came in, so he jumped when she touched his arm.
"What the eff!"
"Lemme guess, you're thinking of Ixora again? Aww, you'd die young at this rate" she said, rolling her hair in a small bun.
"I...told her last night" he said, and she blinked twice before coming to stand in front of him.
"Wait...what! You did? And she turned you down?" She said.
"Are you psychic?" He pushed her off.
"I don't need that ability cos I know you like the back of my palm. If she said yes, you'd have a smile on your face instead of zoning out" she said.
"So you got turned down?" Mr. Ford said as he entered the bathroom too.
"I'm not giving up, her dad is in support, so I just have to keep trying" Romeo replied, and the man touched his shoulder, so Romeo faced him.
"Don't hold on to it for too long even if her father is in support. If it gets too much, obsession creeps in, and I'm not ready to see that part of you again" Mr. Ford said meaningfully.
"I understand, dad" Romeo replied.
--
[Stonia's Mansion]
Ixora made sure to wear a fur jacket since it's a cold morning, and she's wearing lace pop socks under her black skirt to cover up well.
Romeo was already waiting in her car at the park when she got outside, and the mere sight of her made his eyes brighten.
When she entered the car, her fruity scent and the fresh scent of her hair wash made him hold his breath.
It's like he's just seeing her for the first time, and his heartbeat ratio is insane.
"Good morning, beauty" he greeted.
She smiled a bit, and he took her knuckle to kiss softly before driving her off.
Instantly after he drove out, Serena drove in.
She was taken to the hospital by the dinner staffs last night, and though her face is a mess cos of the brutal wire wound, she can't go down yet.
She's wearing a nose mask to conceal the wound, and when she came inside, she met Stonia by the door.
She's ready to go to work.
Stonia is obviously still angry, so she walked past her, the clicking of her heels on the ground haunting Serena till she got in her car and left.
Serena went to her room and removed her mask in front of the mirror, then another round of tears rolled out of her eyes.
"My face...my...my face is ruined"
--
[Imperial Levels College]
Getting to campus, a show is already waiting, and this time, it's for Romeo.
New week, new madness.
On almost every wall of the school, Romeo's pictures are pasted.
Pictures of how he's barbing in his father's saloon, so many of it.
And the students are already having the time of their lives, gossiping.
* You didn't know?
* I didn't know! He has the face of a rich dude!
* Ford salon at the slums alley, that's his father's salon.
* Heard he shares a room with his father, eew!
* How is he attending this school then? How is he and his sister attending this school with that poor background!
* Wanna hear something more tragic? His mum is a maid!
* F+ck!
Ixora didn't say a thing before going to the walls.
She began ripping off the posters one by one.
Nadine rushed into the crowd, and her eyes widened too when she saw it, so she joined Ixora to start ripping them off.
Romeo just stood there, watching and wondering who did this.
Bethel joined the crowd too, and she faced everyone when she saw what's going on.
"Yes! We're poor! Our father barbs for a living, so what? We didn't steal and as for how we're able to attend this school, make researches and if you're able to get it, I'll gladly get punched in the face...losers!" She shouted.
She kicked the air before joining the Ixora and Nadine to rip the posters.
"Make way for me!" An authoritative voice yelled suddenly, and students made the way for Tina to come forward.
When she saw Romeo, she recoiled, but when she saw the posters, her neck nearly bursted with fury.
"Who did this?" She questioned, but the students just smirked at her controller self.
"Yes he's a barber's son, die if you're not comfortable with it, bunch of sick peeps, and I better not get my hands on whoever did this, I'll kill you" she muttered, then she joined the girls in the ripping too.
"Wow. Girls like you, bro. Having a handsome face is like a golden ticket these days" a guy from mathematics major said beside Romeo.
Romeo has seen him in class a lot, and if there's any noticeable thing about him, it's the fact that he's the next brilliant mathematician after Romeo.
His name is Clover.
Romeo ignored him and kept his eyes on the girls ripping the posters.
There's Bethel, Nadine, Tina, and Ixora, but he's only seeing Ixora.
No one else.
Before he knew it, he smiled.
-
From the Off Limits staircase, Konstantin stood, leaning on the rails.
His eyes are on the scaredy cat... Nadine.
He looks predatory as he watched her rip Romeo's posters off, till someone came to stand beside him.
It's Anfisa.
"Is she gonna become the princess to the Barinov family riches in the future?" She said.
"Why are you in Cali, Fisa?" Konstantin faced her.
"To bring you back to Russia, and I'm not returning till you agree. You know how she is, Konstant, it'd be disastrous if she comes to Cali herself" she replied.
"I don't give a shit, Fisa. She controls everything in the family including father. After the shit with Warren happened three years ago, she was the one who ordered father to cancel my card for a year and she never worried about how I lived, but now she wants me back in her palm? Buy a dog and go give it to her, I'm not one" he replied stiffly, walking off.
Anfisa went silent till he went outta sight, then she faced the hallway where Nadine is still busy ripping posters with the girls.
"She's the girl from the snack store, intriguing" she muttered.
--
[Amphitheater]
Monty was skeptical as she opened the door, but at the same time, she's unshaken.
If this is a trap, the worse that'd happen would be acid on her face or maybe a gun to her head, but scratch the two, she's Monty Blair anyways, and she can take on anyone at all.
She left the door ajar as she devoured more space, walking to the front of the hall.
This hall is used by theatre arts and musical arts students, but at the same time, it's a bullying rendezvous for Bronx, the wound master.
She suddenly stopped.
Wait...how come she didn't think of this before?
She stole Bronx's stash, so he must have had his revenge by uprooting her father and burning him to ashes.
Her lashes flicked when she felt a presence behind herself, and she quickly turned to see the criminal standing there.
Bronx.
"You got my message" he smiled.
Monty kept quiet.
"I know who burnt your father's remains, but maybe if you pay some dollars, I'll take pity and tell" he smiled, the wounds on his face swollen and red.
"You did it" Monty muttered.
"Me?" Bronx touched his or chest, keeping a blank face for some seconds before laughing.
"Took you long enough to figure it out. I watched you cry on your father's ashes that night, and needless to say...I enjoyed it" he whispered, cackling afterwards.
Monty didn't allow the cackle to reach the base of his stomach before punching him dastardly in the face.
Bronx didn't wait for another second before punching her back, both bleeding from the brows.
Monty pulled out a gun, and as if Bronx has been waiting for that move, he pulled out a gun too.
They both aimed for each other's hearts.
"Cool, let's kill each other, and meet in hell" Bronx said.
By the upper floor of the amphitheater, Ashton stood like a statue, watching the show with arched brows.
--
[Biology Major]
The 8am class is still going on, and it's only halfway through the lecture when Ixora got a text on her phone.
The buzz made her check her messages, and when she saw a text from W, she patiently read it.
W: Come to the Off Limits Nest, and bring the jersey I gave you.
Her eyes widened.
She already threw that away so how is she gonna...
She was thinking he already forgot, but she obviously underestimated Lucifer.
F+ck!
She stood suddenly.
"Xoxo" Nadine said beside her, and the professor in front gave her a questioning look.
"I'll be right back" she said, rushing out of the class.
--
In the wide hallway, female students are currently running mad, rushing in the same direction while gushing among themselves...
"Have you seen him? Yes so finee!!"
"He's always wearing his leather jackets and jean pants, so I didn't know how hot he'd look in corporate wears till now!"
"He needs to keep wearing corporate, what the f+ck is that hotness!"
"Warren Creed please!!"
The lustful mutterings of girls filled the hall like celestial chants as Romeo walked past, and he was wishing in his mind to just crush them.
He saw Warren climbing the Off Limits staircase, though he only saw his backside, and he smirked hatefully.
His morning class didn't hold, so he's currently on his way to Ixora's class.
He's gonna wait outside till she's done with her class so he'd go get snacks with her at the cafeteria.
But then, he suddenly saw her.
He saw Ixora, going towards the Off Limits staircase too.
What's she going there to do?
"Ixora!!" He called loudly, but she didn't hear, so he quickened his steps, rushing after her in the filled hall.
--
Ixora was lucky to meet Warren on top of the stairs.
She was sweating warmly as she quickly climbed with him, pulling him back by his veiny arm.
His merciless eyes clashed with hers, and she quickly let go of his arm before speaking.
"The jersey isn't available...but I can get you the exact same and customize it if you wish" she said.
Warren's long brows cinched.
He hasn't given her a reply when he saw a shadow below the stairs, lurking around.
His brain works several times faster than a normal human's, so even if it's just a shadow, he knows who that is.
"Say something" Ixora spoke again, and his eyes went back to her.
"Open your mouth" he said.
Ixora rested her body on the rails.
"Why?" She questioned.
"Open. Your. Damn. Mouth" his voice deepened, and Ixora's eyes followed the soft bobbing of his Adam's apple.
She felt her palms sweating.
Her mouth opened slowly, and Warren smirked at the shadow below the stairs before resting his big palms on the rail top behind her.
Ixora's life got expelled out of her body when Warren inserted his tongue into her open mouth, and before she could gasp...
He imprisoned her full lips in his cruel, heated mouth.
TBC.
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