Masks and Motives

Lisa couldn’t find the words when he asked.

Ivan stood up, letting the book in his hand drop to the floor as he stepped toward her. "You heard it, right?" he asked, voice low.

"Heard what? I didn’t hear a thing," Lisa replied too fast, her face reddening.

“Little bunny is lying,” he frowned, now towering over her smaller frame. “Then why did you trash my coat?”

“I thought you didn’t need it anymore,” she muttered quickly, avoid his gaze. “And I didn’t hear a thing.”

Ivan crouched slightly, smirking. “You heard moans, didn’t you? Slutty ones.”

Lisa’s face flushed deeper. She slapped her hands over her ears. “I didn’t hear anything—nothing!”

“But your face says otherwise.” Ivan tilted his head. “I wasn’t there. I saw you leaving my chamber. You heard it, didn’t you? One of the bitches was probably playing with herself.”

Lisa looked up, shocked. She’d misunderstood, but still, he was Ivan—the shameless playboy.

“How did you even enter my room? I locked it when I left.”

Ivan gave a lazy grin. “That’s so simple, bunny. You underestimate me.”

Silence stretched between them.

Lisa sat down, crossing her arms. “Why don’t you go help her out? She’s probably still waiting, desperately.”

Ivan didn't answer immediately.

Instead, he moved closer and plopped beside her on the bed, letting his eyes roam around the room.

It was pink. Overwhelmingly so. BTS posters, BLACKPINK stickers, plushies, glittery makeup — the whole setup screamed soft girl energy.

He leaned back lazily, but his voice came out quieter than usual.

“Why would I bother with her,” he said, “when the cutest thing in this entire house is already pouting beside me?”

Lisa blinked.

Her heart did something stupid.

She turned away quickly, face heating. “P-playboy,” she muttered.

Ivan smirked. “Guilty.

“Aren’t you bored of being trapped in this estate? Let’s have some fun. Partying. Dancing. Something wild.” His eyes gleamed with mischief.

*

The rain still drizzled quietly as Kieran tended to Avery’s wounds. He worked in silence, not missing a single bruise, as though he already knew where every injury was.

He handed her painkillers, gently pressing them into her palm.

As he dabbed at the wound on her cheek, their faces grew close—too close. His breath fanned against her skin, warm and distracting.

Avery stared at him, barely able to look away. Even in the dark, he looked criminally handsome. The sharp jawline, the cold but focused eyes. Annoying. So annoyingly attractive.

His mother must’ve been a goddess.

“Do you want to kiss me that badly?” Kieran said suddenly, eyes still locked on her wound, voice low and deadly calm.

Avery scoffed. “Kiss you? Please. You’re not even that handsome.”

She pushed him away, trying to stand—but her sore body refused to cooperate.

“Stand up yourself,” Kieran said, packing up his first aid box. “You wouldn’t want someone ugly to help you, right?”

He left without another word, and she struggled up after several tries, muttering curses under her breath with every painful movement.

*

Kieran’s soft expression vanished the moment he entered his private chamber. His face returned to its usual blank slate—cold, unreadable.

He felt a presence.

He flicked on the light.

Lilia.

She stood in the center of the room, lips curled, wearing a silk robe barely clinging to her frame.

Not surprised, Kieran simply stared. She’d either bribed the guards or erased the security footage—like always.

“I cleaned up well today,” she said, her voice sultry. “I’m sure you’ve changed your mind, baby Kieran. Sergei could walk in any time. You should be scared… and obedient.”

She dropped the robe, standing shamelessly exposed.

Kieran didn’t even blink.

She stepped closer, reaching for his hoodie.

In one movement, his hand shot out—gripping her throat. Not gently.

“You really think I’d touch you again?” His voice was ice. “That was the old me. Innocent. Stupid. You disgust me.”

She gasped, struggling. But her lips twisted into a dark smile. “I want you, Kieran. I’ll go to any length. Your mother—she’s still alive, you know. Somewhere. Pretty thing, getting... handled.”

He stiffened.

“Sergei said she gets passed around—five different men—”

He punched her. Hard. Her words snapped off like glass.

Then again.

She laughed through the blood, and the sound rang like sirens in his head.

~ “Where are you taking my momma to?” A tiny Kieran had once cried, gripping his mother’s bloodied arm as she was dragged away. “Please don’t hurt my son,” his mother begged—beaten, broken. Lilia had crouched beside him then, her smile wicked. “He looks just like her,” she’d whispered. “It’s you and us now, baby Kieran.” ~

Now, as Lilia lunged again to kiss him forcefully—his nightmare made flesh—a black cat leapt from the shadows.

It scratched, clawed, tore into her. Lilia screamed.

The room echoed with her pain, her laughter drowned.

*

Meanwhile, Avery was on her way to her new chamber when she heard faint whimpers echoing down a dim hallway. She approached carefully.

A girl knelt in the corner, dirty and bruised. Her face, though bloodied, was still striking. Avery recognized her—one of the wives from the Velena boutique.

The girl looked up slowly, hope in her battered eyes. “Please, my lady… help me. They’re torturing me.”

Avery stood still, unsure.

Sergei had granted her power—more than any of the wives. Even more than the first.

She crouched slightly. “Try to stop looking so… wretched,” she said, but it came out colder than intended.

The girl blinked, confused.

“Fix yourself up. You’re not weak unless you choose to be. Don’t let them walk over you. That’s how they win.”

The girl hesitated. “They have guns. Power. I can’t fight that…”

Avery sighed. “I have power too. You can stand behind me. For now.”

“…What’s your name?”

“Malina,” the girl whispered.

Avery nodded and entered her chamber.

Not long after, Malina left—only to find Anya waiting.

“Did she fall for it?” Anya asked, her lips twisted in a cruel smile.

“She pitied me a little,” Malina replied. “The makeup worked.”

Anya laughed softly. “Good girl.”

*

A few days later…

Avery sat before her mirror, surrounded by maids who hovered like bees, not letting her lift a single finger.

If they could breathe for her, they would.

She gave a small smirk. Since that night, she hadn’t seen Kieran. But she had a plan.

He was the best—silent, deadly, unshakable. She still hadn’t told anyone, not even Lisa, about them.

Tonight, she was going to sneak into his isolated house.

She would look so good he wouldn’t be able to ignore her.

*

Meanwhile, Lisa was glowing.

Ivan had promised to take her out tonight—finally.

She was sorting dresses, checking her makeup, and humming when a knock came.

Avery barged in, flashing a mischievous smile.

“Boom,” she said, stepping inside. Her outfit was a bright, playful dress with soft makeup—deceptively casual but pretty enough to stun.

Lisa blinked. “Are you going on a date?”

“I should ask you that. You look like cotton candy.” Avery smirked, eyeing Lisa’s neatly arranged pink dresses and gloss-covered vanity.

“Shut up. You look hotter,” Lisa pouted. “Colorful dress. Soft glow. That’s a trap.”

“Nope. Not a date. I’m on a mission,” Avery replied dramatically.

Lisa eyed her. “Why don’t I believe that?”

“I’m serious!”

Lisa sat beside her. “ I’m going out with Ivan.”

Avery’s brow shot up. “Ivan?!”

Lisa blushed. “Just for fun…”

“Mm-hmm. Well, don’t fall too deep. I don’t want you crying back to me.”

Lisa frowned. “I’m not a baby.”

“You are.”

“I’m not!”

“You so are.”

They both laughed as a knock sounded on the door again.

It was Malina—her expression shy, uncertain.

Lisa and Avery exchanged glances.

*

After spending the morning with Lisa and Malina, she should’ve felt at ease. They’d shared smiles, laughter, even snacks. But no matter how light the moment felt, something about Malina still gnawed at her — too polished, too well-timed. Still, Avery pushed the suspicion aside. She had something else on her mind.

Or rather — someone.

Kieran.

And today, she wasn’t waiting to be seen. She would make him see her.

She slipped through the estate like she belonged there — because now, she kind of did. With the authority Sergei had given her, Avery had uncovered hidden maps, unused hallways, and a few forgotten passages that not even cameras bothered with anymore.

As she passed one corner, her eyes landed on a familiar, disturbing scene.

Lilia.

Bruised, clothes rumpled, clearly struggling to stand. And beside her, Anya, whispering with a twisted urgency, helping her walk.

Kieran’s handiwork.

Avery’s stomach turned. She didn’t know whether to be impressed or horrified. But she didn’t stop walking.

She pressed forward, climbed a sealed stairway, ducked through a rusted service door, and finally slipped through one of the secret entries into his private zone.

Inside, everything was quiet. Still.

Kieran sat on the couch, unmoving. As if he hadn’t noticed the creak of the floorboards. As if her presence didn’t matter.

But Avery knew better.

He always noticed.

“Phew.” She let out a breath, stepping fully into the room. “What a long walk.”

She didn’t wait for him to respond.

“Sorry for intruding,” she said casually, already walking over. “But I didn’t really have a choice.”

She sat on the same couch — on the edge of his silence — and leaned back like it was hers.

“Your place is kind of—”

“Get. Out.” Kieran’s voice cut sharp.

She blinked but didn’t move. “Na na,” she scoffed. “You can’t scare me with that growl.”

In a second, he was on her.

His hand gripped her throat. Tight. Controlled. Deadly.

She gasped slightly, but refused to flinch.

His eyes weren’t just angry — they were burning, like something inside was breaking.

“Can’t you just stay away?” he said through clenched teeth. “Why do you keep coming here?”

Avery coughed once, but met his gaze head-on.

“I can’t stay away,” she hissed.

Silence.

His grip didn’t tighten — but he didn’t let go either.

Something in him was unraveling.

Something she wasn’t afraid of anymore.