Shape of the Sun

Devil Incarnate

Content Warning: This text contains sensitive content involving violence, abuse, coercion, and sexual assault. It does not aim to glorify or promote these acts but may depict them within the context of the story. Reader discretion is strongly advised.

Ah. It felt so good. It was all worth it. All the stress over cleaning his tracks had been worth it.

And all for what? It was for this, Prithvi thought as he shot out pound notes in quick succession at the scantily-clad woman dancing in front of him, even as his free hand grabbed the neck of the one next to him and forcefully kissed her. Unlike her dancing comrade, this woman looked like she didn't want to be here, unshed tears in her eyes, every single jerk of her body signaling fear. But Prithvi did not care, at least not now. Usually, he'd play Romeo with these girls, sneering at the stupid way they fell for his empty promises and built sandcastles in the air, but this one in his grip was very upsetting. She had been the wife, well former wife, of an ex-crony, actually a dead one, had come to him for protection against her husband who had died in a pitiful state, dead drunk and terrified why his woman was in the arms of his boss. Prithvi had shot him, a bullet to the brain, because he thought that she was a really pretty one. He didn't even mind wooing her and making her his mistress.

Unfortunately, her attitude changed after she had confirmed that her husband was dead. Perhaps she had taken Prithvi's attentiveness for some form of infatuation, which wasn't even such a big deal. He was ready to play the part, but what did it mean that after days of sending her expensive gifts, which he was sure her sewer husband could never give her, she was acting reluctant?

It really baffled him, the shamelessness of it all. Even thieves had some honor, but this robbery was on another scale. She ate all the best things and spent all his money, and yet, she refused his invitation, inviting him to come over instead? Did she think he was playing Jack and Rose here? Prithvi didn't believe she could be so stupid, and had decided to play along and head over to her room, thinking she was just playing hard to get.

But the situation he met when he got there stunned him. She was still fully clothed, a bag stuffed full of cash beside her on the bed, and she had told him to let her go, that she was tired of the life he lived and that they were from two different worlds. She had to go and take care of her children now that they had no father. And yes, he had seen them when he killed her husband, which was true. Prithvi had never thought he'd see such unkempt, scrawny-looking children. They were pitiful, but that was not his concern.

But he was wrong. He was also pitiful.

Because there was no way that Prithvi could explain that a woman wanted to eat from him and walk away after wiping her mouth, shaking her hands straight in his face, as if to say they were not oily. It was either he looked like a complete idiot or she was too stupid. It had to be the latter, and it pissed the shit out of him. In her eyes, the handsome, kind face quickly sunk, changing to one that looked terrifying, and she backed away. But it was futile.

Prithvi had slapped her hard across the face, so that she fell on the bed, and knelt, towering over her, a hand squeezing her neck, and the other ripping her skirt, not caring that the door was open and his guards could look in, not caring that she was thrashing her arms around, crying atop her lungs and begging her to let her go. He didn't let her go, and even after, he had ordered the maids to get her into a revealing dress, so that he could have another go. It seemed she still had some use value, so he decided not to finish her off.

But this was pushing it, the way she was resisting in his arms. He pulled away and looked at her trembling figure, disgust in his eyes. In the end, it was still a lowlife, too stupid to know good things. Prithvi enclosed her neck with a hand, his eyes full of threat, as if to tell her to behave or he'd just flip. Her pretty face and the memory from earlier made him quite reluctant to kill her, at least now.