Vow of Hell by Clara Elroy

Ariadne

“Bitch, what the hell was that?” Daphne cornered me the second she got the chance. My eyes flicked to Irena who was sitting next to her, sipping her chai tea latte and looking at us through narrowed eyes. “First you break the news of an engagement out of nowhere. Let me tell you, I was offended that you didn't tell me anything, and especially when your fiancé is Saint freaking Astor. Then you dodge my calls for weeks. I mean, I get why you would be busy with such a hunk. The way he kissed you on that dance floor was so, ugh." I kept my laugh to myself when Daphne's eyes rolled to the back of her head. "My man was one step away from hoovering your soul up. That little boy you were with before him could never. What the hell even happened to that guy?” She looked at me expectedly, removing her blue scarf and picking up her coffee cup.

I squirmed in my seat, willing Nyx and Erebus to finish their puppuccinos faster, so we could leave. I wasn’t planning on meeting them. We bumped into each other at Starbucks near my old apartment after getting the dogs a treat, and Daphne forced me to sit down so we could catch up. At least I got Mom’s dress from my trunk and gave it to Irena so she could drop it off for me.

She had a lot of thoughts about that kiss, as did I. A whole lotta feelings too that I kept under wraps when Saint disappeared as soon as we got home. I had no right to ask where, but I had a pretty good idea.

“Oh, we broke up a while ago.”

Irena choked on her sip, and another notification lit up my phone screen, making my stomach churn with nerves. I patted Nyx’s back, holding on to their leashes tighter as they ate their treats.

“A while ago, as in three weeks ago?” My own sister threw me under the bus.

“Three weeks?” Daphne’s eyes widened, grasping on to new gossip. “Damn, girl you move fast. When did you meet Saint again? You’ve never been the biggest believer of love at first sight.”

“Well, you can’t really believe in something you’ve never felt. My opinions changed after I bumped into Saint again.” I started believing in hate at first sight… fine, and a little bit of lust too.

Another ping and my leg started bouncing nervously under the table when they heard it too.

“Your fiancé is a little possessive,” Irena said, no snark in her tone. Although she wanted to sound nonchalant, I could tell she was genuinely concerned about me. “That’s like the third time he’s texted you, in a five-minute interval.”

Oh, how I wished it was my fiancé, but he didn’t give a shit whether I lived or died. Saint spent crazy hours at Falco, certainly longer than he needed to, and I didn’t know if it was because he wanted to avoid seeing me or ensuring a smooth merger took a lot out of him.

Dad was handling our side of things though, and I didn’t see him slaving away over a computer. But how would I know? I chose to stay out of it and work on my own thing. I didn’t need anyone saying I got where I was because of my family or because I was fucking the boss.

Working as a lead designer for Falco and Fleur was a dream many creatives such as myself had, and I was sure the time would come eventually, but I wanted to prove myself first. I wouldn’t take any hand-outs. My online store was launching in February, and I was dreading it as much as I was excited.

To commemorate Irena’s words, my phone pinged yet again.

“He’s catching up because I was supposed to take the dogs to the vet, but it’s been a while since I left,” I rushed to explain.

I should be concerned with how easily lies came to me. I was drowning in them as of late. Erebus helped me out with half a bark, resting his paw on my lap once he was done, and I smiled apologetically at Irena and Daphne who eyed me with suspicion.

“Look, I really have to go guys, but I’ll see you next week for Thanksgiving,” I said as I gathered my crossbody bag, buttoning up my faux fur coat. “Will you be there, Daphne? Giagia is flying out early to be there for my wedding, December first.”

“Family reunion? You know I wouldn’t miss a Karanikolaou versus Fleur showdown for the world,” she said with a wicked smile.

Both Irena and I cringed. It was fun watching them bicker on the outside. Their insults were very creative, but after years of enduring them, the whole situation got stale quick.

With a hug and a kiss on Irena’s cheek that she wiped off as soon as she got the chance, I left, heading to the beach close to my old apartment.

I didn’t know what Harry wanted from me, nor did I want to find out, but he had been blowing up my phone with texts the past few days. At first, they were insulting, which proved how much a hurt ego could change men, and when that didn’t work out, he laid it on thick, apologizing profoundly, and saying he was drunk when he sent those texts.

Not to mention he wouldn’t stop calling me from unknown numbers when I blocked him.

So I caved and took him up on his offer to meet and hash things out. I chose a public location, shooting down his proposal for his apartment, and asked Saint if I could take the dogs out for a walk. I didn’t think Harry would harm me, but I felt safer with Nyx and Erebus around.

* * *

I arrived at the beach twenty minutes late.

It was unusually sunny for a November day, rays kissing the shore as ocean waves slammed against the packed sand. Panting and sweating underneath my all-black outfit, I spotted Harry seated on a bench, wearing gray sweatpants, a North Face jacket, sunglasses, and a ball cap.

I had multiple reasons for not wanting to be spotted, but it didn’t make sense as to why he had gone for an incognito look. My heart pumped in my chest as I got closer, and it happened often when he was around.

Something about Harry made me uncomfortable. He was prone to a quick temper and could be very pushy. I always made excuses for him though. I also wasn’t the easiest person to get along with, but that wasn’t the case with my people. I would go to war for the people I loved, not at war with them whenever we disagreed.

Harry turned around when my footsteps drew nearer. The smile painted on his face faltered when he saw the huge Dobermans that were walking regally on my either side.

“Ariadne,” he shot up, ready to give me a hug, but Nyx and Erebus stopped him short with a few low growls. “When did you get dogs?” He removed his glasses, crouching to pat them first, and retreated when their tails swung up their bodies alert.

Okay… so maybe they didn’t like male strangers.

I tugged on their leash, and they sat by my feet as I rounded the bench, a healthy distance away from Harry.

“Quite aggressive,” Harry started, sinking down to the grain-filled bench again and eyeing the dogs wearily. “You should look into having them trained. I have a buddy that can help you ou—”

“They’re already trained, and they’re Saint’s.” I cut him off, scratching behind Nyx's ears.

My ring finger gleamed in the sunlight, and when I looked back at Harry, his lips were downturned looking at the sapphire engagement ring. “Right… Saint’s.”

If he hadn’t texted me all the nasty things he did, I would’ve felt bad. Some people took longer to move on than others, even if they were the ones that instigated a breakup.

“Are you going to tell me why you’ve been blowing up my phone for the past several days?” I cut straight to the chase.

“I lost my job.” Harry’s voice prickled with an edge when he completely bypassed my question.

“Well, if you expected a promotion, I don’t think driving to your boss’s house and screaming at him in the middle of the night was the right way to go about it.”

“So you know.”

He played with the zipper of his jacket, his head downcast. I expected sick satisfaction to hit me from seeing him at his lowest, but I couldn’t rejoice in his ruin. Even though he called me every curse word in the book, there was a part of me that remembered my friend Harry.

The nice and kind one before he did a one-eighty.

Then again, people had multiple faces. One for their friends, family, love interests. You never knew who someone was when they were alone.

“Of course, I know. Ares and Saint are best friends. I would find out eventually.”

“Saint, Saint, Saint.” He threw his hands in the air abruptly, and I stiffened, transmitting my energy through the leash and alerting the dogs. “Him again. First taking my girl, and then my job. I’m so fucking tired of people speaking about him like he’s some sort of God.”

“Harry…” My voice came out as a whisper, and I cleared my throat. “You broke up with me. No one took me away. You set me free.”

“And it only took you about a week to spread your wings and fly.” Spittle flew from his mouth, causing anger to brew inside of me.

“Did you expect me to pine after you? Remain single for the rest of my life because some boy dumped me,” I scoffed, my voice incredulous.

“I didn’t dump you, Ariadne. I was simply giving you some space to think over things. Our relationship was progressing too slow to be considered normal. Is it because of him? Were you cheating on me with him?” Harry removed his sunglasses, poking the air with empty accusations.

A flicker of guilt simmered beneath my skin, even though I never did.

I wanted to. It was all I could think about at Siren’s Grill. Saint’s voice, rough hands, filthy mouth, they were all I could think about. Now I could add his kissing skills to the list of things my mind kept playing on replay.

“I never cheated on you!” My lips tingled as I replied, and not because of the North Atlantic ice-cold wind.

“Then what is it?” he asked, exasperated. “Why did you decide to get married? Can’t you see that he proposed just so he can get between your legs sooner?”

If only you knew that Saint Astor has no intention of getting between my legs.

A bitter sentence filled my head, and it was true. That particular monster would never get inside my bed, but he loved filling up the empty space in my head like a parasite.

Remembering how Saint stood up for me, though, my sense of self-worth accentuated, and I realized I didn't owe Harry anything. Especially when his vocabulary was pulling short.

Lifting a cool brow up, I made a show of fixing my bag so I could get up. “I won’t allow you to talk about me or my fiancé that way.”

“Fine-fine…” Harry threw his hands up in surrender. “Just sit down, we can work something out. I didn’t mean what I said, Ariadne. Sex is not a dealbreaker for me. I’m willing to wait some more time.”

“Harry, this… you, me. It’s over. I moved on, and so should you. I’m sorry things didn’t work out, but it’s for the best.”

“Oh, yes, I’m sure you feel extremely sorry all cooped up in your mansion.”

“I’m not the reason you lost your jo—” I cut my angry sentence off, not sure why I even bothered. Fixing myself up for real this time, I stood up, and the dogs followed suit. “You know what? Have a good life, Harry. I wish you all the peace and love in the world.”

His eyes flashed with panic, and before I could make it another step, he trapped my arm in his hand. “Where are you going?”

“Get your hands off me!” Nyx backed my order with a warning bark, and Harry pulled his lips back, his face almost resembling the dog’s sneer as he let me go.

“I’m not done yet.”

“Well, I am,” I said, my heart beating out of my chest at all the commotion.

Harry laughed as if he’d lost his marbles, rocking back on the bench and shaking his head. “I tried. I really tried being nice about this, but you leave me with no choice.”

“What are you talking about?” I snapped my fingers, so the Dobermans settled down again. They did, but their bodies stayed alert pressed against either of my legs, eyeing Harry like he was their enemy.

“Do you remember all those times you did come to my apartment, Ariadne? You’re one selfish bitch, getting and giving little in return.”

“You’re still not getting much in return. I don't know why we’re going around in circles here.”

“I filmed you.”

My reality collapsed, the world shifting beneath my feet when I digested his words. Everything hovered in the air when the first domino fell, motionless for a fraction of a second. I sucked in heavy breaths to make up for the lack of oxygen, but it only resulted in making me dizzier.

“What?”

My reaction got a smile out of him, straight white teeth gleaming in the light of someone else’s misery. “That one time you sucked me off, with your tits on display for everyone to see, I filmed it. My face is not in the shot but I made sure I got yours in 4K—”

There was no way. There was absolutely no way.

“Shut up,” I forced out. “This is pathetic, even for you. You’re lying. Stop lying.”

This couldn’t be happening to me. Things like this never happened in real life. They couldn’t.

“Oh, you think I’m lying?”

I watched wordlessly as he pulled out his phone and pressed on it, turning the screen my way. All I saw was black before a fuzzy video started buffering, and I filled the screen, kneeling on Harry’s marble floors, in a very compromising position.

Air fled from my lungs when I took in my naked chest, and my head bobbing back and forth on an intimate moment with my boyfriend, bile rushing up my throat at the ammunition that this unstable man had against me. I was a dead girl. My eyes were the size of the moon as I focused and refocused on the video, making sure I wasn’t in a nightmare. I even pinched myself to see if this was real.

Unfortunately, it was.

People were mingling by the water, kids screaming at the pier further south, and seagulls flying up ahead, reminding me of a world existing beyond my personal tragedy. I retracted my gaze when video me choked. My stomach lurched by the tape, and I stared at the sun, hoping the cruel rays would erase what my eyes had just watched.

But my mind couldn’t forget. I was on my knees before Harry, my assets on full display, bringing shame to my family and myself with a single click of my disguised villain’s sausage fingers.

My legs trembled, but I refused to sit down. Back down. I tried to see the light on the canvas that suddenly got ten shades darker.

“That’s against the law,” I parroted. “You can’t release that, or you’ll get in trouble.”

Harry shrugged as he pocketed his phone again, satisfied with himself. “I’m already in trouble. I lost my job, and I’m behind on my mortgage payments. If I don’t manage to find the money soon, I’ll be kicked out.”

There it was; the life jacket on my stormy sea. I grabbed onto it, my spirit fleeting, a cold robotic mentality kicking in to help me survive.

“So you want money? And then you’ll delete whatever video you have?”

“I want my job back too.”

“How am I supposed to do that? Ares is Saint’s friend. I’ve only talked to him once.”

Spreading his arms over the back of the bench, he crossed his legs. “Figure out a way to make it happen, princess. Suck his dick too. That should do the trick.”

For a second, I considered unleashing Nyx and Erebus on him. They hadn’t stopped growling since I’d stood up, feeling the shift in the air. I never in my life thought I’d ever consider murder. Find the sight of teeth tearing through skin almost orgasmic. A dark part of myself surfaced when pushed and blackmailed.

“Why don’t you find another job?” I spoke through the scary thoughts in my head.

There were witnesses everywhere, and it was the twenty-first century. The law favored men way more than it ever had women. How many times had I watched as women were sent to prison for killing their abusers, sometimes even receiving maximum sentences for taking their life into their own hands when there was nowhere to turn to?

Countless.

“I’ve tried, but no one will hire me. I have a record, and not many employers are willing to overlook that.”

“You have a record? I-I don’t fucking know you at all.” There was the second blow of the night, and I staggered back as Harry got to his feet, taking the dogs with me.

I wanted to light the smirk that spread over his face on fire.

“If you know what’s good for you, Ariadne, you won’t get to know me at all. Follow my instructions, wire me the money, and I’ll make sure your tapes never see the light of day. Of course, go to the police, and the whole world gets a taste of Ariadne Fleur.”

Tapes.

Plural.

Perhaps I was weak for the way I gave in so easily, for not ripping the phone from his hands and clawing his face right then and there, but I had the disadvantage of being locked in the body of a midget, and I didn’t want Nyx and Erebus to be put down for doing my bidding.

So I started with an offer, and then I’d plan.

“How much do you need?”