⚠️⚠️It's not my own nerrative story ⚠️⚠️

A woman, dressed in prim and proper business attire suddenly came barging through the door. As the heavy mahogany double doors slammed against the walls, everyone who was in the room swung their gazes to rest on the lady who walked in with confidence in her steps. She is Evangeline Young. She has round glasses propped on the bridge of her nose and her hair is pulled up into a neat looking bun. The overall look she sported was like a strict, no-nonsense businesswoman. And she was exactly that.

"Evangeline, what are you doing here?" Samuel Young asked as he rose from his seat at the head of a long table. He is currently in the midst of having a meeting with the board of directors in his classy office. His eyes narrowed with surprise.

"What do you mean by that, Grandfather? I am the CEO of this company and you're asking me what I am doing here?" Evangeline fired off questions as she had a disbelieving and confused expression on her face.

"Eva, leave this place. I will talk to you once we're home." The old man waved his hand in a dismissive gesture as he sat back into his chair.

Eva's eyes widened as she stood there stubbornly and asked, "Grandfather, I am utterly confused. I demand an explanation right here, right now on why you're doing this." She clenched her fists as she felt angered. 'How could he ask me to leave? I am the CEO for goodness' sake!' Eva raged on in her mind. “Evangeline!" Samuel lost his cool and shouted at her. "From today onwards, you will step down from your position as this company's CEO. The board of directors has already chosen the one who will be replacing you and she's going to take over as soon as possible."

Eva was stunned into silence for a while.

"What did you say? You're stripping me of my position? Why?" Eva demanded in disbelief as she slowly walked over to where her grandfather was seated. 'This doesn't make any sense. I am the CEO of XY Corporation. I am the one who made this company soar to its current heights! So why?' Eva could not fathom why her grandfather was suddenly telling her this out of the blue!

"Eva, go home. I will talk to you –" Samuel replied with a sigh, not answering her questions.

"No!" Eva burst out in anger, her fingers were clenched so hard they were digging so deeply into her palms. "I demand an explanation right now grandfather! Tell me… what the hell is happening? Tell –"

"Because you are not my legitimate granddaughter!! That is why!" Samuel's voice thundered as he rose from his seat again.

Eva froze in shock. 'What? I'm not a legitimate member of the Young Family? Is grandfather joking with me?'

She shook her head in denial. "Grandfather, what are you saying? How could you say that –"

"The DNA test just came out yesterday." Samuel cut Eva off. "You are not related to us by blood. I don't know how it happened, but the investigation is still ongoing."

"No, that can't be… you're lying. There must be a mistake." Eva kept shaking her head. Denial hitting her hard as her body began to tremble.

"I will show you the DNA test results later. I did the test more than once. There is no mistake, Eva. Now leave this place and wait for me at home." The old man said firmly and turned around, effectively dismissing her.

Eva's knuckles turned white. Her hands were trembling as she slowly clenched them into fists. Eva gritted her teeth and looked at her grandfather again.

She bit her lower lip to stop her lips from trembling before opening her mouth to speak. "So? Because I am not related to you by blood, you're saying that I'm no longer qualified to be the company's CEO?"

The old man averted his gaze, causing Eva to laugh out like a villainess. "Hahaha."

"Eva, don't worry. You will still work as one of the directors. You will assist your sister –" Samuel quickly said, in the hopes of placating her.

"Oh. So, my dear younger sister is the one who will be replacing me?" She barked out in laughter again.

"Eva, y –" Before Samuel could continue his sentence, Eva raised her hand like a boss, stopping the old man from speaking any further. Something dangerous blazed in her eyes as she looked straight at him.

"Forget it grand… oh, Mr. Young." A bittersweet and painful smile curved on her face. Then her eyes became menacing as she stared at the old man once again. "Listen Mr. Chairman… Without me, XY Corporation will crumble down into pieces. Mark. My. Words." Eva declared and with her head held high, she swished out of the room like a queen, closing the door behind her with a bang.

...

At a clinic, Eva sat in a chair staring at her DNA results. Her hands could not stop trembling. Her lips curved up bitterly as her eyes watered.

"So, this must have been the actual reason why I was treated like a robot since I was young… and my parents and family are so cold to me." She muttered to herself. Recalling her memories, Eva remembered her time with her grandmother. Back then, she had already felt that her parents were deliberately ignoring her and were always cold to her.

"Grandma, do mom and dad hate me? They never come to visit me and they never come to my school, too, even if my teachers ask them to." Eva remembered asking her grandmother this when she was younger.

Her grandmother had replied, "They are training you, Eva, so you can survive the harsh world you will one day face when you grow up."

"So, their cold treatment is a part of my training to become the one who will run the family's business?" She remembered herself trying to understand what her grandmother was telling her.

"Yes. They just don't want to pamper you because they don't want you to grow up a spoiled weakling." Her grandmother had explained and she remembered herself fully believing that explanation.

Ending her recollection of the past, Eva smirked as she crumpled the paper in her hand. 'I am so stupid in believing you. They must have known from the start that I was not their legitimate daughter, right? That's why they never showed even an ounce of care nor love towards me. They just kept me and raised me because they knew I would be a great asset to them. And now that I've become independent and brought the company to its peak, they see me as a threat and therefore it's the right time for them to dismiss me? They are casting me out now after they are done using me?' Eva smiled bitterly as she reasoned things out within herself.

After leaving the clinic, Eva found herself driving fast. She was trying to call someone but no one was answering her call. Her lips were still trembling but she kept her face cool. When she arrived in front of a luxurious apartment, she rushed up to the highest floor as quickly as she could.

Once the elevator dinged, signaling her arrival at her destination, she rushed out and ran to the unit at the end of the hallway. She only had one thing on her mind at that moment, and that was to see and speak with Julian, her fiancé.

She tapped in the password for Julian's apartment and entered. But the moment she quietly closed the door and turned around, she froze at the sight of a pair of red high heels at the entrance to the hallway.

Nervously, she silently walked inside. Her heart was thumping hard as she approached the door of Julian's room. Taking a sharp and deep breath, Eva then pushed it open.

Her eyes widened at the sight of two naked people on the bed, f*****g ferociously like animals in heat.

Eva stood there frozen, and then her phone slipped from her hand due to shock, causing Julian to whirl around. He cursed at the sight of Eva standing at the door. The woman also looked up with wide eyes, and at the sight of her, Eva's face paled as if she had seen a ghost; unable to believe that the woman her fiancé was f*****g was none other than her younger sister, Jessa Young.

Julian had been Eva's college sweetheart and current fiancé. He had been such a nice man to her. They have been in a relationship for years but he never tried to make a move on her. Eva had always thought he was just being considerate and that they were both just too busy to pay attention to their romance. He had told her he didn't mind the lack of intimacy between them and that he was ready to wait until their wedding. But now, here he was…

"What the f*ck, Eva?! What are you doing here? Barging into my house like this?" Julian roared out in irritation. Eva did not speak, she could not. She only stared at the woman who was supposed to be her sister, sitting on the bed.

"Eva, get out or do you want me to drag you out?" Julian shouted at Eva and stood, not caring if he was naked. He strode forward and was about to grab hold of her arm, but Eva stepped back, avoiding his grasp like it was the plague. Her gaze as sharp as the deadliest sword.

Julian dropped his hand but leaned in and whispered. "We're over Eva. I heard the news. You are not a legitimate Young. You're nothing but a nameless bumpkin right now, and yet you dare to come here? Are you thinking of coming to seek shelter in my place? Listen, I was only engaged to you because we thought you're the Young's legitimate daughter." He smirked at her mockingly as he pulled back. Eva could see the scorn in his eyes.

"Our shitty engagement is already over so don't you ever show that ugly face of yours in front of me ever again. I've been sick of it for many years now!" Julian continued to berate Eva.

'Julian, you bastard!!' She screamed out in her mind. Eva could feel her eyes burning but she bravely held back her tears. 'No. Don't you dare cry Eva! I am not going to shed any tears in front of this asshole. Never. I would rather die than do that.' She had already been hit with one piece of bad news after another. Being given another one such as this is nothing, she told herself. 'I am strong. Nothing is going to beat me down. Just watch me!' She growled in her mind, steeling herself and adjusting her emotions before lifting her downcast eyes to look at the two scums who were before her.

Clenching her fist tight, Eva opened her mouth and spoke. Her eyes burning with an intensity that made Julian unable to tear his eyes away.

"Oh… is that so?" She smirked as she glanced at the girl on his bed. Though her smirk looked similar to the ones she usually gives, Julian felt a chill as he looked at it. Somehow, it was different yet the same.

"Listen to me, Julian, and listen well. One day, I will make sure that you, too, will die from utter regret. I promise you that. Just you wait…" Eva declared. And before Julian could react, the door had already slammed shut with a loud bang right before his face.

After leaving the two—her ex-fiancé and so-called sister—back at the apartment with as much dignity and composure as she could, she ran to her car the moment she stepped out of the elevator. Her fists were balled tightly at her sides as she strode over to her car. After sliding herself behind the wheel, she leaned her head back and closed her eyes.

After her breathing returned to normal, she revved the engine and stepped on the accelerator, sending her car speeding out of the place that she never wanted to step into ever again.

Eva sped up her car once she hit the highway. Biting her trembling lips, her fingers gripped the wheel so hard that her knuckles turned white. Despite her best efforts, the heinous scenes of her fiancé f**king another woman kept replaying in her head.

'Why? Why did you do this? Why must you betray me too?' Eva screamed this out within the confines of her own mind.

Then her grandfather's disgusted face flashed in her mind next, as she remembered how he had looked at her. Those eyes… so condemning and cold. She shuddered a little just thinking about it.

"How could you have cast me away so easily like this? Didn't I do everything a good granddaughter should have done despite all the cold treatment you have shown me all this while?"

She gritted her teeth as another memory flashed in her mind. It was a picture of herself when she was young and already being neglected while she watched her parents shower her sister with so much love. She remembered her young self being ignored as she held her perfect score test papers, intending to show them to her parents. But what she ended up with was watching her parents hug and gift toys to her little sister while ignoring her, who was standing to the side.

'Why did everything turn out this way? How could all of them do this to me? Can anyone tell me? Why?!' Her mind was screaming and hoping for a release…someway or somehow.

She jammed both her feet on the breaks. Her car screeched to a halt in front of a bar along the highway called 'Devils' Den'.

Eva desperately drew in deep breaths. Her breathing was short and labored, the lack of oxygen reaching her brain causing her vision to swim dangerously before her. She knew she had to calm down. She needed to calm down!

After regulating her breathing and getting herself under control, Eva then stepped out and entered the bar. It was a normal bar that many people visit, so the place was quite packed.

Leaning against the counter, Eva decided to get something stronger than her normal Pina Colada or Blue Hawaiian. She then proceeded to order a Long Island Iced Tea—with a request for it to be extra strong—and then began to drink silently. She winced at the taste of the alcohol as it burned a fiery trail down her throat. However, she relished the sharpness and sting that the drink brought her.

The bartender eyed her as she sipped on her drink. "Seems that this is your first time drinking strong alcohol, eh, miss? Would you prefer to order something milder that most ladies drink instead? I can whip it up for you quickly." The bartender offered kindly.

Eva smiled wryly at the bartender's offer. "No, thanks. I'm alright. This drink is fine. Anyway, I am here to get drunk to my heart's content for the first time in my life tonight!" Eva laughed bitterly as she thought how ironic her life was. Thinking of how her life has turned out so far, she snorted in mockery at her current situation, and gulped her drink down in one go.

After a while, she signaled the bartender to hit her with another glass of the same drink. Staring at her new glass of drink, Eva shook her head and smirked. Her eyes now looked a little unfocused.

Eva was starting to get really drunk. And she started having an engaging conversation with her glass.

She pointed emphatically at the innocent glass sitting before her. "Now look at you. You have worked so hard and for years. You have never experienced these kinds of things…" She glanced a little enviously at the ladies recklessly dancing on the dance floor like they had no problems whatsoever in their lives.

"All these normal things people usually enjoy." She added before she returned her gaze to her glass and continued scolding it. "Why? Because all you thought and cared about for your entire life up until now was that damned company, which you thought was going to be yours forever. You never had a normal childhood and teenage life... all because of your ridiculous dedication to earn as many degrees as possible, just so you could please and hope to impress your so-called family. And then you worked your ass off, giving your all. For what? Just to save the damn company, even went to the extent of sleeping in your office for countless nights, all alone. You never even had the time to pay attention to care for yourself, and now look at you… nobody values or cares about anything that you have done. Now your so-called family, that never actually considered you as their own, is even demoting you from your hard-earned position, so their beloved daughter can now take over. Even your fiancé threw you away as well. He must have likened you to some toy. Haha. What a dramatic life you have, Evangeline Yo…" She droned on in a drunken state, not realizing nor caring that she was looking so silly talking to a glass. Her smile faded, and she gulped down another mouthful of her drink again.

"That's right, you're not actually a Young. You are not even related to them by blood! They never even considered you as their real family. You were just a pawn for them all along. Keep that in mind from now on. Make them all pay for casting you away, and treating you like some slave they could easily cast away whenever they wanted… once they are done using you! Make them regret… all of them…" Eva shouted out in anger, slamming her fists on the counter.

"And how are you going to make them regret what they did to you?" A deep and mellow voice echoed.

Eva's head snapped to her right, and saw a man sitting next to her, looking so deliciously tempting in a black suit. He was not looking directly at her but kept staring at his own glass. She realized that even his side profile was breathtaking.

"Do you have enough money and power to bring them all down?" The man finally glanced over at her. And she was momentarily struck. His eyes were as dark as a moonless night, framed with enviable thick lashes, and his face… he was just too gorgeous to be real.

Eva shook her head, and instead of gaping at the gorgeous creature, she frowned at him.

"I… I…" she stammered, and all of a sudden, she jumped from her seat and suddenly grabbed onto the man's collar. "I don't have enough money or power right now, but I will definitely find a way to bring them all to their knees! I'll make them all beg!" She hissed, shaking with anger and frustration.

"I will do everything, anything… to make them all regret… even if I have to sell my soul to the devil!" She added with determination burning in her striking blue eyes.

The man smirked. He lifted his fingers and tucked some errant strands of her slightly mussed up hair behind her ear. "Be careful what you wish for, Miss. A certain devil here might really fulfill your wish and claim your soul in exchange."

"If that devil is really here, do introduce him to me, handsome. I would like to make a deal with him." Eva drawled out, smirking back at him.

The man chuckled shortly. His eyes gleamed wickedly as if he were looking at something very interesting. "How brave… but I guess it's because you're drunk right now. You might want to wait until you are more sober, miss." His smile faded even as his eyes sparkled intensely. "Because once I introduce him to you, there will be no turning back. It would be too late to regret."

But Eva insisted loudly, "I am not drunk! Where is he? Tell me. And don't worry… even if he asks me to go to hell with him, I'll gladly follow. As long as he can give me all that I want."

He only smiled. But then he stood in a swift move and towered over her.

Leaning over her face, he pinchedy her chin gently and tilted her face up to his before his deep and sexy voice echoed in her ears. "Alright, your wish is my command. I will gladly introduce you to him."

Eva's eyes blinked at the realization that she had woken up inside a large unfamiliar room.

After looking around and observing the furnishings of the room, she noted that everything was quite luxurious.

'Where am I? What's with this extravagant room? Am I dreaming?' These questions popped into her mind as she sat there on the bed, still unmoving. Then her head throbbed painfully. Her hand flew to her head. And then she remembered what happened. She recalled that she entered a bar and decided to get a strong alcoholic drink. And then she also remembered that there was also a man involved somehow, but she could not remember his face.

She could only remember herself putting her hand in his… wait…

Her eyes flew wide open.

'Oh my god!' she frantically checked herself, patting herself and taking stock of how she felt overall. She was still wearing her business suit and did not feel that her body was any different than usual. It was only her shoes and blazer that were not on her. After a quick scan, she saw the missing items neatly arranged on a chair beside the bed she was in. Her glasses were there too.

She let out a relieved sigh.

'Nothing should have happened to me, right? I don't feel anything amiss.' She checked herself over again. And then she buried her face in her palms. 'Did that man bring me here? Oh my god, Eva… what have you gotten yourself into!'

She finally rose from the bed, grabbed her shoes and jacket and wore her glasses.

Barefooted, she stepped out of the room.

'Oh… my… sweet lord… am I inside an ancient chateau? Where on earth am I?' Her eyes almost bugged out of their sockets as she looked around. The place was massive and lavishly furnished. Every single thing cost a considerable sum.

She rushed towards the grand staircase mumbling in her mind. 'Marble steps… bronze handrails, chandeliers, ballrooms… this is definitely a house built in the 1800s!'

When she reached the ground floor, she saw a gigantic fireplace with exquisite marble mantles and mirrored panels. 'Oh damn! There's even a wicked fireplace too! How did I end up in a place like this?'

She looked around, mouth hanging open. The spacious place was empty.

Eva rushed towards the massive double doors. But before she could touch the doorknob, a voice sounded out and almost jolted her out of her own skin.

"Escaping already, little kitten?" The voice was sinfully magnetic, and she felt inescapably drawn to it even before seeing the owner of that voice. Her skin prickled but not in an uncomfortable manner.

Eva whipped around and saw who that voice belonged to. It was the beautiful man she met at the bar! She suddenly remembered his face after looking at him now. He was wearing a dark robe and his hair was damp. A glass of wine was held languidly in his hand.

"You… where am I?" She demanded, while trying to hide the fact that her heart was thumping wildly in its cage.

"In hell." He smiled. A devilish smile.

"What?" Eva creased her brows, taken aback by his answer. 'Was he trying to be funny?'

He chuckled. "Did you not tell me that you wished to meet with the devil?" A devilishly sensual smile swept across those thin but sexy lips. She could feel her blood rushing to her head at the very strange attraction she felt at his smile. This man felt like trouble!

Eva glared at him aggressively. 'Is this man trying to play games with me…' Then in a flash, she suddenly remembered the things she had said to him in the club.

Eva face palmed. She could barely hold in the groan that was threatening to escape past her lips. 'Ugh… how embarrassing!' And she screwed her eyes shut.

He walked closer to her. And then his forefinger was suddenly pressing gently but firmly on the lines gathered between her brows.

"Easy there, pet –" his voice sounded out and Eva felt as though it was a velvet blanket being pulled over her sensitive skin. It gave her a weird sensation, causing her to shiver at the same time.

She caught his wrist and glared at him. "Don't call me that. I'm not your pet!"

He chuckled. "You are being too serious, pet. Loosen up a bit –" She flung his wrist aside and gave a very unladylike snort at him.

"I'm leaving. Thank you and sorry for the trouble I caused." Her words were curt, dismissive, and did not encourage further continuation for conversation.

She turned and faced the door when…

"Wait." He slammed his palm against the door right before her, making her heartbeat drum wild again. Then he bent and whispered in her ear. "If you think a simple thank you and sorry is enough for me… then I will forward you my apologies. Sorry to disappoint you, Little Kitten, but this devil won't be satisfied just by that alone. Especially, not after all the things that you did."

Eva swallowed. 'Huh? Wait… Things I did? What did I do?'

"It seems you've yet to remember what you did, huh? Fine, then. I guess I'll have to show you some evidence to convince you that I am not simply making things up." Eva shivered again at that mellow and sexy baritone that sounded just beside her ear.

"E-evidence?" Eva stammered. He had some kind of evidence against her?!

"Here's the evidence, pet."

Reluctantly, Eva turned around and saw him pulling on the ties that was keeping his robe closed.

Then with a sexy and mischievous smile on his face, he murmured, “Right here, Little Kitten."

His long tapering finger reached up and pointed at the two very obvious marks – one hickey and one bite mark- that were decorating his neck.