And just like that, the sexual euphoria that left her mind in a pleasantly hazy state disappeared. Maybe other women would appreciate his kindness, but Louise did not. In fact, she found it downright boring and frankly unattractive - but because she needed him still, she masked her impatience with a smile, saying reassuringly, “Of course, mon amour. Why must you always ask that?” She meant the words to sound teasingly chiding, but instead they came out a little too brittle.
Aurélien’s gaze narrowed.
Merde! This was another thing she hated about him, too. He just saw too much, more so than any of her previous benefactors.
“You’ve been very moody lately.”
She nodded, knowing better than to deny his words. Only an idiot would think that a pile of lies could hide the truth, and she had not survived this long by being one.
“Would you like to tell me the reason for it?”
After a moment, she said softly, “When I’m ready.” She then lay on her side, turning her back on him deliberately, knowing that his fear of rejection and deep-rooted insecurities would keep the young billionaire heir from reaching out to her.
And he didn’t.
Closing her eyes, Louise pretended to sleep while she tirelessly went over her plans, fine-tuning the details and making sure every contingency was in place.
Even back when he was still a fourteen-year-old kid and she had been meeting him for the first time as his tutor, Aurélien Sauvage had been too damn perceptive. He had known right away of her sexual fascination of him, and he had even been close to guessing just what attracted her to him. Thankfully, she was no one’s fool when it came to men. One look at her monstrously virile student, and she knew that he was nothing but an ordinary poor rich little boy under his inhuman façade. And poor rich little boys she had lots of experience handling. Over the years, she had been methodical, maybe even diabolical, as she slowly and gradually weaved her spell around him. Other people no doubt believed sex was her greatest weapon, but those people knew nothing. What she gave Aurélien and all the other boys before him was the illusion of her love.
It was the most powerful thing on earth, and Louise understood this very well because there was no one she loved more than herself.
On the other side of the bed, she felt Aurélien sit up and as she willed her breathing to return to normal, she heard the younger man say quietly, “I know you’re not asleep.”
Merde.
“I know you know.” Louise made sure her words were but a trembling whisper. “But I told you – I can’t make myself tell you anything yet.” She inhaled deeply, loudly, wanting to sound emotionally exhausted. “Just give me space, okay?”
There was a moment of silence and then Aurélien said heavily, “As you wish.”
She kept her eyes closed as she heard him get up and walk away.
The door closed behind him, its sound like a symbolic and ominous ending to the chapter of her life that she had shared with the French heir.
If she didn’t make a move soon, it would only be a matter of time before Aurélien put one and one together –
Louise swallowed hard.
She hated this feeling of terror building up inside of her, but she welcomed it all the same, knowing that fear would keep her on her toes.
Bull, wolf, lion – Aurélien Sauvage literally had the blood of some of the world’s most dangerous predators running through his veins, and to forget that was suicide. She had watched videos of stupid prey that had underestimated their bigger and more powerful foes. They had ended up eaten or mangled to death, and Louise had no desire to share a similar fate.
She would be stealthy and ruthless. She would strike him where and when he least expected it, and she would make absolutely sure Aurélien stood no chance against her, even if she had to destroy his soul in the process.
THE PEOPLE OF THE ISLAND woke early to beautiful skies the next day. It was a good omen, the locals thought, especially as today was the feast of St. Marianne, the patron saint of outcasts and the woman their island was named after.
Banners were hung on the walls, tables were set up, and the scent of freshly baked pastries and the rich aroma of stew began to filter out to the narrow cobblestoned streets between the locals’ small, charming cottages. There was lots of singing and dancing, peppered with laughter and the constant flow of chatter.
But a piercing scream brought an end to all of these.
Plates crashed to the ground, the dancing coming to a standstill as the musicians abruptly ceased playing their instruments. They looked at each other, unable to believe that what they had heard could be real. This island had been safe for the almost two decades it had been their home. That sound – one of pure terror – did not belong here.
But then they heard it again.
And this time, it came with a name.
Aurélien!
The adult men were the first to run. Dropping everything they were doing, they ran towards where the sun was coming from, hearts beating hard at what they would find. To save their young master was the topmost thought in their minds, but when they reached the main road, their footsteps halted and their faces turned white.
They were too late.
Blood was everywhere, pools of it, splatters of it - everywhere they looked there was blood, and the smell of it was so bad it began to make a few of them gag. The sheer amount of bloodshed was horrifying, but as the islanders moved farther down the road, they realized it was only the beginning.
Dead bodies slowly came into view. Some of them were decapitated. Many were mangled. A few were slashed to pieces. One, two, five, seven...when the body count stopped at thirteen, some of the islanders crossed themselves while others involuntarily took a step back, distancing themselves from the carnage in hopes it would help them forget.
But it would not.
BACK IN THE MANSION, Louise was shaking and crying as she tried to tell the billionaire’s staff what had just gone down when the two of them had been on their way to the Sauvage family’s private beach.
“S-so many,” she sobbed out. “They came...he told me to run...” And she had been so thankful Aurélien had done so because then it gave her the excuse to leave the murder scene.
When the island’s head of security asked her urgently if she could give any other information about their assailants, Louise deliberately started to babble incoherently. She wanted it to appear that she was in a rush to tell them everything when in fact she had two million reasons to do the opposite.
Outside the mansion, there was a sudden eruption of yelling, and Louise’s head snapped towards the door. What the—-
BAM!
A powerful shove had the entrance doors flying off their hinges, followed by a furious blur of movement—-
Oh my God, was that Aurélien loping towards her on all fours?
A powerful gust of wind stung Louise’s eyes, forcing her to blink. When her gaze cleared, she found herself staring straight into a pair of glowing red eyes.
Falling off the couch with a scream, Louise backed away, hysterical and terrified. He was alive! He was alive! How could he have survived?
“Louise.” The way Aurélien growled her name heightened her terror – he knew! One of the men must have talked, and now he was going to kill Louise for betraying him.