Eve has had a shit day. It was her birthday. She hated birthdays—just another day, another reminder that she was getting older.
Her husband has gone missing. He signed himself out of the mental hospital and has likely gone back to Poland. Niko has been avoiding Eve like the plague. Eve loved Niko, and she wanted to make it work. It just seemed like her time with him became ordinary and mundane. That was until Villanelle gave him some suggestions when she sought him out in Oxford. He returned from that trip, and Eve had never had better sex with Niko, but that was the last time either of them had sex as they separated shortly after that.
Then there was Villanelle, the woman who she has been mutually obsessed with, the woman she kissed, then headbutted. But she kissed her nonetheless. Villanelle was the only person who had remembered her birthday. She had sent Eve a specialty cake that was a double-decker bus, used to remind Eve of the magical first kiss that they shared just days prior. The night before, Villanelle broke into Eve’s apartment, leaving a rather creepy stuffed bear wearing a pink tutu in her bed. Eve leaned back and was taken aback when Villanelle’s voice came from Eve’s bed. Eve didn’t know whether to be turned on or scared. She tore her sheets off, finding the bear. She ripped the bear apart until she came upon the voice recorder in the shape of a heart in which the irony was not lost on Eve. She replayed the heart over and over again, just to heart the message. Just to hear Villanelle’s sultry voice saying, “Admit it, Eve, You wish I was here” And god damn it, she was right.
Eve had gotten two text messages at the same time. She looked at her phone.
Niko: Eve, We need to talk
Villanelle: I found my family, and I can’t face them alone. Please come with me.
Eve had a choice to make. Would she go with her head, the more logical decision would be to go with Niko, her husband, the stable choice, to go back to her husband and work out their issues leaving. Going back to her old life. Or would she go with her heart and go with Villanelle. The woman who literally given her heart to Eve.
Eve looked at her phone and then back at Jamie.
“Eve, it looks like you have seen a ghost.”
Eve knows what her decision was going to be. There was no turning back now.
“I have to go.”
“What?!, Eve!”
“Choices, It's all about choices.” She says as she grabs her jacket and purse. She throws it over her shoulder and continues to smile as she headed out the door with clarity that she hadn’t had in a very long time.
Eve: I’m on my way.
Eve had gotten off the train. The ride really wasn’t too terrible. She had been on worse modes of transportation, but she knew at the end of the day it was going to be worth it.
Eve: I just got here. I can’t wait to see you.
The old beat-up pick-up truck pulled up to the train station. Eve walked up to the truck. She threw her bag into the back of the pick-up truck, and then she got into the passager seat. She looked at the driver, and she smiled. The eyes that looked back at her were one that was filled with hope.
“It’s good to see you.” A smile forms on Eve’s face.
“Me too.” The voice replies.
Eve stares at the face staring back at hers. God has she missed this face. Eve licks her lips as she is about to go in for a kiss, and the head turns, causing Eve to kiss the cheek.
“Not here, not now.”
Eve sits back in her seat, she puts her seatbelt on, crosses her arms, and stares out the window. “Are you seriously pouting, Eve?”
Eve looks over and hands cup her face. “Is this what you wanted?” Lips came crashing down on Eve’s. Gently and first, but only became hungrier. The driver’s seat belt became unbuckled, and the driver climbed on top of Eve. As the face pulled back, pieces of blonde hair came out of the blonde bun, and hazel eyes stared back at Eve. Eve pushed the blonde hair back behind her ear. The blonde dismounted Eve and sat back in her seat, put the truck in drive, and took down the dusty dirt road.
“Well, that was one hell of a kiss.”
“It would have been way better had you been patient, but no instead, you pouted.”
“I promise to make it up to you.”
“I’m going to hold you to that, Eve.” The blonde smiles as she looks over at Eve.
“So tell me, how did this all come about.”
“Remember when we were in Rome?”
“Don’t remind me I have scars that prove I was there.”
“Really, who started this little twisted sister affair,” Villanelle says as she lifts her shirt up, showing off her scar Eve gave her.
“Ok, I get it anyways, Rome go ahead.”
“Well, I had mentioned that all my family was dead, and he said most of them were dead. When I was younger, I was placed in an orphanage by my mother, and she said she would pick me up shortly, she never had come back” Eve placed her hand on Villanelles “I was told that my family all died in a fire.”
“Oh V,”
“Well, Konstantin did digging, and he found out that my mother was alive, she remarried, my little brother is alive. Apparently, I have a half brother and a stepbrother too.”
“Do you want to go up there now?”
“Not yet, I think we should go to the Air BnB and then the store and get food.”
“Sure, whatever you want, I’m here for you,” Eve says as she squeezes Villanelle’s hand.
They stop at the Air BnB and check-in they are met with a nice lady Olga, she informs the woman the rules of the house and what is expected of them, etc. Then they depart. They head for the local supermarket. They are had picked up the essentials like food, water, and other items. They were at the check out line, and Villanelle was talking to the boy in front of them. He heard Eve and Villanelle talking in English and asked them if they knew Elton John’s music. Eve stood back and listened to the interaction between Villanelle and the little boy. It was the first time she had ever saw the young woman interact with a child, and it impressed her the softness she took with him. Had she been an outsider, she never knew that Villanelle would have been a dangerous assassin. The boy went up to pay for his item, and Villanelle had told the clerk that she would buy what he was purchasing. A kind gesture to the boy who looked like he didn’t have a lot of money. He thanked Villanelle and Eve and went on his way. When the boy left, Eve rejoined Villanelle. Eve looked at Villanelle and smiled at her.
“What” Villanelle squawked.
“Nothing. It's just cute.” Eve said with a smile.
“I have a soft spot for kids. I like the little shits before they become big shits. Look at Irina.”
Eve and Villanelle finish checking out, and Villanelle thanks the clerk, and they load up the car. They get to the Air BnB, and they offload the groceries. Eve decides she wants to take a shower. It had been a long day, and tomorrow they would be meeting Villanelle’s family. Villanelle locks up the house and goes up to the bathroom. She knocks on the door, and she can still hear the shower running. She cracks the door and sees Eve in the shower still. She closes the door and goes into the bedroom. She lays down in bed and starts to play with her cuticles. One of her only nervous ticks that she has developed in recent years. It seems to come out only when she is unduly anxious. Eve had come out of the bathroom with a t-shirt and shorts and a towel in her hair. She towel-dried her hair and then had laid in the bed on her side, looking over at Villanelle.
“Penny for your thoughts?
“I am thinking how lucky I am to have such a beautiful woman lying in my bed and how I am showing such self-control by not pouncing on her right this minute.”
“As flattered as I am by that statement, you can now tell me the truth.”
“You know me so well already, Eve,” Villanelle says as she turns on her side, looking at Eve. “I guess I’m just nervous. I haven’t seen them in a long time, and I don’t remember the circumstances of my childhood. I remember my father being kind and gentle, loving, and then there was my mother. I don’t feel like she ever really loved me. She was the one that took me to the orphanage and said she would be right back, and I never heard from her or saw her again. Was I really that bad as a child?”
“Shh Villanelle, I think we will find out all the answers you are seeking starting tomorrow.”
Villanelle looked over at the woman. They had been through so much together already. Most people would have hightailed it long ago, but Eve keeps coming back. In Villanelle’s greatest time of need, she called Eve, and Eve came running no questions asked. As she looked at Eve, Eve looked back at her. Eve had seen a lot of the different looks that Villanelle had given her, but this one she had never seen before. Villanelle turns and faces Eve. She reaches for Eve’s cheek and runs her thumb up and down Eve’s jawline. She kisses her forehead, then Villanelle pressed her forehead against Eve’s. Villanelle then kissed Eve’s cheek, then finally pulled Eve in for a deep, longing kiss. Eve took her hands and pulled Villanelle’s face towards hers and then wrapped her hands around Villanelle’s neck, pulling Villianelle onto her. Villanelle pulled back, raising an eyebrow at Eve.
“Are you sure, Eve?”
“Never been more sure of anything in my life, Villanelle,” Eve replied.
Eve awoke the next morning naked and underneath Villanelle. It was a night that she would never forget. When she thought of her first time with Villanelle, she thought it would be different. She thought it would be rough and animalistic. Eve had no doubt that it could and likely would be in the future. But last night was different. Last night was something she had never felt in all her years. It was emotional and pure, loving. They had made love. Eve turned her head and looked over at the blonde. When she did, she was met with hazel eyes and a smile
“Morning, Eve,” Villanelle said as she went in for a kiss.
“Morning, V.”
They spent the morning in bed, continuing their activities from last night. Eve finally extracts herself from the sheets.
“If I don’t get up, we will just be in bed all week, which I am definitely not complaining about. But I am not going to be the excuse you give yourself for not meeting your family. So come join me in the shower. And then we can go to meet them.” Eve says as she bends down, grabbing Villanelle’s hand and pulls her into a kiss while retrieving the woman from the bed, leading her to the shower.
They drive up to the old farmhouse. A dog chases the pick-up truck from the edge of the property to the entrance of the gate. The truck is put in park, and Villanelle keeps swallowing what Eve can only imagine is because she is trying to keep the vomit down. Eve grabs Villanelle’s hand and looks at her.
“V, look at me.” The younger woman does so. “No matter what happens this weekend. No matter if your family is the greatest family or the scum of the earth, I will be with you every step of the way.” V smiles at Eve and then leans over and gives her a quick peck.
Villanelle pulls the door handle and is greeted by the same dog that was chasing them down the fence. Villanelle and Eve met in front of the truck and joined hands.
“You can do this, V, we will do it together,” Eve says as she gives V a wink.
They walk up to the door they knock, and the door opened to a disheveled woman. The woman stood there, staring at Villanelle.
“Hello, I am looking for Tatiana,” said Villanelle.
The woman continued to stare at Villanelle and Eve.
“Oksana?” the woman spoke.
When the words came out of her mouth, Villanelle’s head looked towards the ground. It was as if Eve was looking in the past right into Villanelle’s childhood, and so much was being explained in this one moment.
“Oksana, is that you?” the woman asked.
“Yes.” Replied Villanelle.
The woman immediately brought Villanelle in for a tight embrace.
“Oh, Oksana! They told me you were dead! Who is this.”
“This is my girlfriend, Eve.”
“Hello, please come in.”
She escorts Eve and Villanelle to the couch, and she sits in the chair opposite them. The woman sits side by side, legs touching Villanelle, grasping on to Eve’s hand for dear life.
“Pyotr, Bor’ka, come here at once!” Tatiana bellows.
A twenty-year-old and the boy from the store walked in.
“Hey, you!” The boy says to Villanelle. “What are you doing here?”
Villanelle sits there, shocked.
“Pyotr, Bor’ka, this is your sister Oksana.”
“You told me Oksana was dead, Mom,” Pyotr said.
“Don’t worry, I was told you guys were dead too,” Oksana replied back.
Pyotr squatted in front of Villanelle, and she leaned back. He gave her a hug. Villanelle’s eyes bugged out of her head towards Eve. Eve smiled and gave her hand a squeeze causing Villanelle to ease into the hug.
“I’m glad you're not dead, Oksana,” Pyotr says
“Did you know you were my sister in the supermarket?” Bor’ka asked
“Nope, no clue,” Villanelle responded.
“Ok”
Over the next couple of days, the woman got to know Villanelle’s brothers better. Eve got to see what life with Villanelle would be like outside of the Twelve. Villanelle loved reconnecting with her brothers. Eve knew that Villanelle longed to belong to a family. But it seemed the closer that Villanelle came to her brothers, the more distant and the colder her mother would become towards not only Villanelle but her brothers as well. Eve had decided to stay at the Air BnB one day as to give Villanelle some alone time with her brothers. When Villanelle came back, Eve had asked her about her day. Villanelle was telling her about how she went out into the barn to look for Pyotr and found him beating a couch with a bat, saying that it was better if he did that than beating people. Then Villanelle said that she and the family had played this game called Mafia and it was fun and then they broke into a dance which the song Crocodile Rock played.
“It would have been better of you had been there with me. Bor’ka is making a pie, and apparently, there is a dung throwing contest which I have every intention of winning.”Villanelle said. “Will you at least come to the festival with me then I need to show off my sexy girlfriend. Plus, I hear it is the to-do thing to do in Pinner.”
“You had me at dung throwing!” Eve says.
“Oh, really, dung throwing.” Villanelle and Eve laugh. Villanelle grabs Eve by the hips, and she pushes her backward to the bed.
The next morning they wake up, Eve was lying on top of Villanelle's chest.
“Let’s go have to breakfast,” Oksana says.
“They get dressed and go and eat when they were there. Pyotr and Bor’ka were there, so they joined them. Eve looked at the threesome and thought this is what a family looks like. There was laughter and familiarity. She had never seen so many smiles and laughter come out of Villanelle than when she was with her brothers. Suddenly the darkness crept on to the table. Tatiana showed up, and the smiles ceased to be on anyone's face anymore.
“Why wasn’t I invited to this get-together.” She demanded.
“It just happened, we were coming for breakfast, just Oksana and I and then walked into the boys, so we just decided to sit,” Eve said.
The other three sat there in silence, looking down at their plates. Eve couldn’t understand why they weren’t doing anything. Tatiana glanced over at Eve, ignoring what she just said.
“What are you trying to stir up Oksana?”
“Nothing Mama just was trying to eat breakfast.”
Tatiana left in a hurry, and the boys followed.
“What was that,” Eve said, “I have never seen you like that.”
Villanelle looks up at Eve with a smile. “Its done and over with now let’s focus on the fun of the day.”
The festival changed the mood of all involved. There was food and games. Eve stood on the sidelines and watched as Villanelle tossed a giant disc of you guessed it Cow dung well across the field in which she won first place for winning a fan.
“I will always be your biggest fan,” Eve said to Villanelle as Villanelle loaded her prize in the back of the truck before kissing V.
“You are so corny, Eve, but I love it.”
She put her hand around her girlfriend. As they walked over to the tent where Bor’ka’s pie was being judged. He was being judged against the elite of the town when it came to baking as all of these women were at least five times as old as Bor’ka. Bor’ka didn’t win, but he was proud of himself. Villanelle was shocked when Tatiana came up to Bor’ka and consoled him on the stage, whispering in his ear and giving him a hug. Something that Villanelle never got in her childhood. After darkness took over, is when the real party started. The music started to flow, and the dancing started. Villanelle and Eve were mid-dance when Villanelle stopped and walked off the dance floor, Eve followed, and they sat next to Bor’ka One on each side of him.
“What’s wrong?” Villanelle asked the boy.
“Did I embarrass you today? I shouldn’t have entered the stupid competition.”
“Embarrass me? No, why would you say that?” Villanelle asked.
“After the competition, Mom, she told me that I should be ashamed of myself and that I embarrassed the family.”
“Don’t be silly, Bork, you didn’t embarrass the family. I think it took a lot of guts to do what you did.”
“Mom came up to me after the competition and said I was stupid, and I embarrassed her and….” He couldn’t finish his sentence; instead, he started hitting his head with his hand.
Eve and Villanelle look at each other with their eyes wide open.
Eve rubs V’s back while V pulls Bor’ka close.
As Eve looked at V, she saw those eyes, and she knew what was needed to be done.
Eve and Villanelle had gone home early. They needed to think of a plan of getting rid of Tatiana for good. They worked together to make up the plan. Villanelle would drink vodka while she put hemlock in her mother’s tea. Effects would be quick enough that she wouldn’t suffer too long, but long enough that she could have a conversation with her. Tatiana had been hurting her three children for far too long. Villanelle could take the pain and abuse if it was just her, but over the past week, she had seen that it hadn’t been just her. Her brothers had been affected too. For far too long she She needed to break the cycle. Her mother may have had the townspeople thinking that she was a saint, but she wasn’t. She was the devil in disguise.
Villanelle went to her mother's house and sat and waited for her mother to return home from the bar. Villanelle stood at the kitchen counter. Like clockwork, her mother arrived home.
“What are you doing here, Oksana?” Tatiana said with hatred in her voice.
“I thought we could sit here and have some tea talk about things.”
Oksana poured the boiling water into the teacups and gave one to her mother and one for herself. She then began to drink her cup, and so did her mother.
“You need to leave tomorrow. You are not a part of my family. You do not belong here.”
“What are you gonna do, mother? Take me to the orphanage? I'm not that trusting little girl anymore. You cant just carry me out of the house and drop off.” “You were no angel Oksana.”
“Don’t pretend you were a mother or a wife for that matter.”
“You will not bring your darkness into my house Oksana.”
“Let's be real, Mother, darkness has been in this house long before I was even born.”
“Did you know you never cried as a baby.”
“I cried”
“You ruined me, Oksana, You took everything from me, you took him from me, you could control him.”
“Are you talking about my dad?”
“Yes!, He saw the darkness within you, and it scared him”
“That’s not true.”
“He thought that you would do something to me, to us.”
“What happened to my father?”
“He could never forgive me after your death. He wouldn’t touch me. He said I repulsed him. After Bor’ka was born, I had no use for him anymore. So I killed him.”
Villanelle’s eyes widened. She stands up and grabs the cups and begins to wash them. She drys them and puts them away.
“I have killed a lot of people, until Eve, I was not a happy person.”
“I am not surprised,” Tatiana says cavalierly.
“ You know, I didn’t mind that you took me there, I didn’t mind that you never came back for me. What I mind….What I mind is that you won't admit what you are.”
“And what is that all-knowing, Oksana?”
“That I am my mother’s daughter.”
“Get out of my house.”
Oksana moves over by the door and opens it. She looks back at her mother and closes the door.
Eve waited for Villanelle to come home. Villanelle entered the house, and she took her clothes off and went to the shower immediately. She had to wash what just happened off her. Eve could hear the sobs that were coming from the shower. Eve knocked on the door and went into the bathroom. She saw Villanelle crouched on the shower floor. She entered the shower and picked up her girlfriend, and held her close.
“I’m sorry you had to do that, baby.
Villanelle pulled back. “I’m not crying cause she's dead, Eve. I am glad she is. Her reign of terror is over. She killed my father. She cant hurt my brothers anymore. People are safer now that she is dead. I'm crying because I can finally move on and release this anger that has been inside of me. And I have you to thank for giving me the courage to stop it all. Villanelle crashes her lips to Eve’s. She pulls Eve out of the shower, and they head to the bed. Villanelle pounces Eve like the predator she is.
“I’m going to show you how thankful I am, Eve. Be prepared to not be able to walk tomorrow.” She says, then gives Eve a love bite.
The next morning the women continued their activities. They were interrupted by a rapid knock. Villanelle grabs the sheet and pulls it away, leaving Eve naked on the bed.
“Villanelle!”
Villanelle opens the door before Eve could move and put clothes on. All Eve could do was grab a pillow and cover herself before the boys walked in.
“Sorry, we were just..”
“We know what you were doing. We could hear you guys down the street,” Pyotr said. “I just wanted to let you know that Mom died last night.” I had come home from working at the factory, and I found her in her chair, sleeping, but she was blue.”
Villanelle looks down, “What do they think happened.”
“She was a smoker and drinker. I’m sure it was a heart attack.”
“So what are you guys going to do then,” Villanelle asked.
“I don’t know, the house was in foreclosure, I don’t know what happens next.”
“Move to London with me. I can get a bigger place. You guys can have a steady living environment. I will be gone a lot for work, but Eve is always around, and I have plenty of money that I can support both of you. Bor’ka can be enrolled in the best schools. Plus, he’d be closer to Elton.”
“Oksana, we couldn’t put you out.”
“That is what family does.”
“Pyotr, I am not taking no for an answer. We all can give him the environment that he needs.”
“Are you sure.”
“I’m positive, plus I don’t want to lose brothers I just met.”
So go home back. We will shower and then come over and help you guys.
As the boys left. Villanelle crawled back into bed, smiling at Eve. “Shall we continue.” She says as she throws the sheet over their naked bodies.
“I am so glad I made this choice,” Eve said as Villanelle crashed down on her lips.