Page 79 of The Pakhan's Arranged Bride
“Did you finish the other one already?” he asks, smiling tightly as he glances at the last book I was reading.
In the ending of that book, the two lovers go separate ways. The woman’s betrayal was too much for the man to bear, and he was too broken to offer her love.
I can feel Benedikt’s eyes on me, but I don’t have the courage to look at him. I want to argue and tell himwecan still have a happy ending.
“Ulyana, what did Miron do to you to hurt you so badly that your thirst for revenge became this severe?”
His question sinks into me.
This severe.Severe enough to be a liar and a manipulator. Is that what he means?
I swallow hard.
“I never meant to hurt you, Benedikt. But I was obsessed with getting revenge on Miron.” Saying it is like a confession. Even to myself. I was obsessed. And I made selfish choices.
Benedikt says nothing, he just waits.
“Miron has always had an intense fascination with me. He made it clear from the moment he first saw me. And I madeit clear to him that I wasn’t interested. However, he refused to accept that.
“In the beginning I thought it was annoying, but harmless. But over time, became something that ruled my thoughts, made me fearful of being alone in a room with him, made me constantly on high alert in my own home.” I glance at Benedikt. He’s listening. I see no judgment on his face.
“Miron stalked me for years. He told me that when my brother was dead he would make me his wife, even if he had to break me down in order to do that. He was graphic when he told me the things he wanted to do to me. That, paired with his constant attempts to make moves on me—his hands always reaching for me, trying to get me alone, and me always making sure it never happened…”
A tear falls from my eye and rolls silently over my cheek. I brush it away with the back of my hand and let out a shaky breath.
“Nothing happened, but it wasn’t for his lack of trying. Nothing happened because I was constantly, anxiously on high alert and fighting to keep myself safe from him. I’ve been living in fear for years, Benedikt. Always looking over my shoulder no matter where I was or what I was doing.”
I can’t speak for a moment, lost in memories of how trapped I’ve felt for years.
Benedikt quietly clears his throat. “Nestor—what did he do?”
“Nestor had his own problems with Miron. I never told him about this. I knew if I told him he would tear Miron apart with his bare hands, and I couldn’t allow that. Not because of me. Nestor was already finding ways to destroy Miron, and I just had to be patient and wait it out.”
“Then Miron made an attempt to kill your family,” Benedikt says.
“He did, but he made it clear to me that I would be spared. He told me how my brother’s death would push him to power—and with Nestor out of the way he would force me to fulfill my duties to him. I told him he would have to lock me in a dungeon and torture me before I ever agreed to be his wife, and he smiled. He smiled and said he had the dungeon ready.”
A low, dangerous growl rumbles through Benedikt and I look up at him to see his jaw set firmly, the muscles over his face feathering as he clenches. He reaches up and runs his hand over his jaw, closing his eyes for a moment.
“Why didn’t you tell Nestor after Miron made an escape?” he asks, forcing himself to stay focused on gathering information.
“Because when Miron said those things to me, I swore that I would be the one to take his life. I swore that I would be the one to tear him limb from limb and destroy him. He’s taken so much from me, and I deserve to have my revenge,” I answer with shaking words, my voice small and tight. “My family will never be safe while he’s still alive.”
Now I’ve told him everything.
He’s the only person on the planet who knows my truth.
My body is rigid as I sit on the chair waiting for him to yell at me, to tell me I was stupid or selfish.
I lied to him.
I kept this from him.
I even kept it from my brother.
Benedikt moves suddenly, standing up and pacing up and down the library. He growls and throws his hand in the air. I flinch and he spins to face me, his eyes fuming with rage.
“I’ll fucking kill him myself,” he snarls.
