Evil Duke, Please Be Gentle!

Leo took a deep breath as he knocked on the window again. He knew that she was not sleeping, he could feel it! But she had clocked all the windows and he could not use the front door.

They still have to wait for a few days to be sure that everything was sorted out.

He had knowingly not attended the tea event as they both knew he would be the one to be blamed for everything if he would be present there.

But to think that the man continued to shout at her even when she promised him that she would try her best to give him justice was commendable.

How could a man be such a scum? He wondered how she had spent 18 years of her life with such a trash man!

He felt bad for her and wanted to take in her arms and assure her that he was here for her no matter what, he would never leave her.

But!

"Evangeline! I know that you can hear me. Please open the window." he whispered softly with a voice filled with pain but no reply came that was making him crazy.

"Damn! If that is what you want!" he muttered in a frustrated voice as he took out a handkerchief from his pocket and wrapped it around his palms.

Giving a last look to think that she would open it, he punched the glass that shattered instantly.

He had thought that she would come running towards the window but only silence mocked him.

The room was darker than the night and he felt no sign of her when he entered. He knew that the sound would have attracted knights and soon a few would knock the door to make sure that was okay and he did not have much time left.

"Evangeline!" he looked around as his eyes adjusted to the darkness but as he had thought, she was not in the room.

How cruel was he to leave her alone after spending the night with her. She must have been feeling bad already and now that scumbag had hurted her.

He ran a hand in his hair as he sat on his bed thinking where she might go at this late.

If she would have gone out of the palace or in the garden then his knights would have already informed them as she was still in the guard of the knights.

Father had made sure that a few maids and knights followed her no matter where she went to make sure that she would not run away again.

Then where could she be? Just when he was considering going and asking Eli and Eve if they have any idea, his eyes widened and he jumped out of the window.

Running like ghosts were chasing him, he went where they had met for the first time after she entered the palace.

He had noticed that she had gone there a few times when she was feeling lonesome. He looked at the lift of the clock tower but it was still on the ground.

Could it be that he was mistaken? Still taking the lift, he went up only to find her feet dangling out of the window where she had fallen before and if not for him, she would have died then and there.,

The thought of losing her hit him hard and he felt a pang on his chest as if someone had tried to take his breath away.

He did not call her afraid that she would panic. The boundary was so small and her thin figure was looking extremely frail while sitting there that he felt on edge.

Sweat started to form on his nape as he took slow and silent steps towards her and only left the breath he did not know he was holding when he wrapped his hands around her cold waist.

"Evangeline, you are cold. What are you doing here in the middle of the night. Get down!" He had thought that she would scoff or jerk him away or complain that he was not thinking about her but it felt like she had not felt his presence or heard her.

She was so damn silent as if she was not there and he was talking to air that pained him.

"Evan! Are you listening to me?" He called her again as he pulled her towards him so that he could see her face and her feet would be on the ground again.

Her body was lighter as if she had no life left and when he looked into her eyes, they were blank.

There was no tear or hurt as if she could not feel it at all and he wished if only she would have been crying.

"Evan!" He hugged her as he did not know what to say to her.

Edward had not only tried to slap her but even cursed her. Calling her names and telling her no one needed her was why her family had abandoned her.

He had gone to the length of telling her that she was a curse and because of her, her birth mother got ill and died soon.

And because of her only, her adopted mother was not able to give birth to any child. She was nothing but a curse that would swallow the happiness of everyone.

He was so mad that he had gone to the prison and gave him a few punches until he threw blood and turned conscious but that was not enough to calm him.

If it had not been that Evan did not come out of her room, he would have beaten the man whole night. But even when he had found her now, she was so silent that her silence was piercing his heart.

"Evan! Talk to me, please!" he pleaded as his hands wrapped around her tightly and he pulled her further into his embrace as if he was trying to give her the warmth of his heart.

"He was right, I am a curse!"