My smile widens even more when I see my 'target''s gaze roam down my body before it goes back up to meet mine.

"I think I've already seen you?" His eyes travel down to the line of my jaw, sending a chill down my spine with a burning memory.

Flashes of that dreadful day come back to me, and weirdly it only fuels the fire inside my stomach, arising strength and anger as everything that has happened since that day is echoing with each loud beat of my broken heart.

I extend my hand, trying to hide its shakings. "Elena."

"Yeah, you're Alex's chick, right?" He narrows his black eyes at me.

Seeing his wicked smirk, it's clear he is testing me, playing a devious game, but I don't back up; I can't.

"Was," I correct him, holding his gaze.

He lifts up an eyebrow, a sparkle appearing in his rotten eyes, so I lean closer. "Now, I want a real bad boy."

"Aw, honey, I might be too bad for you." He smirks, his fingers brushing the line of my jaw.

It freezes me inside, but I can't let it show, so I think of Alex to warm me up.

"Try me." I smirk back, knowing my meaning behind it is far from what he imagines.

"With pleasure. Leo, by the way." He grabs my hand and kisses it with his cold lips, then his hands travel down my body unashamedly, taking their sweet time.

I've never felt so dirty and disgusted under a touch, and I'm thinking about showering with bleach every inch of skin he's touching after this.

"How about we take care of this shirt somewhere more private? I wanna see what's under," I suggest, sliding my hand down his shirt.

"Straight to the point? I like that!"

Yes, the faster this plan is done, the faster I can clean myself with bleach, but that, he doesn't know.

He takes my hand, and I applaud myself for succeeding this step, though I know the hardest and most risky is to come.

Focused on remembering and repeating the next steps of the plan in my head, I'm taken by surprise when Leo's lips attack mine roughly. My stomach turns upside-down, yet I quickly kiss him back, trying to focus on my ultimate purpose and not on the growing nausea in my stomach. Now, I'll also have to clean my mouth...

Kissing a pig or a snake would certainly be more pleasant. His lips are rough and selfish, and his tongue is invading my mouth as his hands are already griping my butt. My instinct is straining on all my muscles to move back, but I fight it, counting the long seconds in my head to not focus on all the shivers running over my skin – and those are definitely not shivers of pleasure.

He has an evil smirk plastered on his face when he pulls away, putting his chin up to glance around satisfied. We're in the center of the room; he clearly has done that on purpose to show everyone, and that only intensifies my nausea as I still have his alcoholic, sour taste on my lips.

"I wanna throw up," I whisper under my breath for only Josh to hear me, while Leo leads me away from the crowd, and I send a covert smile to Mitchie and Judy on the other side of the room.

"It's your plan, girl!" I hear him chuckle in my earpiece. "Now, be careful for the next steps," he advises me once more.

***

"You're sure you can handle the rest?" Josh asks me once we've finished the next step.

"Yeah, I think I've handled pretty well so far!" I smirk, a wave of pride astonishing me once again with everything I've done tonight: I've convinced Leo to go to his house to 'not be disturbed', and I've slipped discreetly a little something in his drink, 'little something' that Josh has got me 'I don't wanna know how' and that has made Leo doze off quickly. Though not quickly enough to spare me of some slimy kisses and bootlicking flirt that make me shiver with a new wave of acid coming up my throat, just thinking of it. I really need to clean my mouth after all of this!

"And it's better if he doesn't see you," I add, nodding towards Leo's asleep form.

"Okay, I'll wait outside anyway."

"Is he tied enough?" I eye the ropes around Leo's wrists and ankles, which are surely not as tight as the knots in my stomach. The plan isn't completed yet, and if I know my stomach won't untie, I hope it will be the same with the ones around Leo.

"Yeah, the fucker won't move an inch!"

I trust him. After all, he's one of the baddest bad boys, and the mischievous sparkle in his eyes makes it clear that he is used to plans like this.

"Here, to refresh his ideas!" He gives me a bottle of water and then checks his phone for the hundredth time. "Oh, the cops are already at the party!"

"Have they got away in time?" My stomach clenches even more for fear that Mitchie and Judy could be in trouble because of me. At this point, I think my stomach is just a tight ball of tangled nerves like a ball of wool mistreated by a cat.

"Yeah, they're with Cameron. They're fine! But you, just don't take too much time." He nods towards the left door where we can see some smoke coming through.

"Don't worry, I'm gonna make this bastard talk in no time."

"You sound as scary as Alex!" He laughs.

I grin, watching him leave by the front door. Thinking of Alex gives me some strength that I really need right now, and I snuggle a little tighter in his denim jacket. I gotta be as fearless and confident as him. But it's not that easy, now that I'm standing alone in this room, a pretty ordinary living room actually, with basic furniture: a worn-out sofa and a large flat-screen TV... ordinary – well, if it wasn't for the fire consuming everything in the next room and the unconscious gang leader tied up on a chair in front of me.

I take a deep breath. "Come on, I can do it," I repeat one last time, and I throw the water in the evil monster's face before the adrenaline in my veins comes down and I chicken out.

He groans in reply, emerging from his asleep state.

His eyes widen when he realizes he can't move, and when he looks up and sees me, they almost pop out of their sockets.

"W-What the fuck?!" His eyes are sending me daggers, yet this time they can't wound me.

It's exhilarating after everything he's made me endure.

"It's your little coward of boyfriend, Alex, who sent you?" he hisses.

"No, he doesn't know I'm here. I did this alone." A rush of boldness and power seizes me like a burst of fire, and I open the left door to let a puff of smoke come to us.

I don't even take a look at the flames in the next room, keeping a mask with a fearless smirk and my eyes on his wide ones, where I swear I see shock and fear cross their blackness for a second.

"You bitch, I'm gonna make you regret this!" he seethes, wiggling on his chair.

What if the ties give way?! The ones in my stomach are secured, but these ones... what if Josh has underestimated Leo's strength? My heart is thumping faster with every rustle of the ropes and chair, and I'm watching them like they're holding my life. Well, they do; they're keeping my safety, and it's all relying on Josh and his tying talents.

But I can't let my fears or my internal prayers show. I'm too close to my goal.

"My men will turn up as soon as they see the smoke from my house!" Leo lifts his chin confidently, still managing to look down his nose at me from his seated and tied position.

"I think they will get held up by the police at the party," I reply with a mocking pout.

"Fucking whor–"

"If I were you, I wouldn't," I repeat his words from three months ago that still haunt me, and I also imitate his gesture, pointing a knife to his throat.

This makes him shut up. I don't know if it's out of surprise or out of fear, yet I take the opportunity to speak as the smell of smoke is starting to fill the room, and I don't even need to look to know that the time is going up in this smoke.

"Now, tell me where you've put Alex's belongings: his bike keys, the lists, everything." The bangs of my heart are deafening, but I'm impressed by how confident my voice still sounds.

Leo doesn't reply though; he just keeps smirking with defiance, and the thought of giving up crosses my mind, but with it, comes the implication that it would mean: it would mean giving up on Alex. That, my heart could never, and it arises inextinguishable flames inside my chest as I remember why I'm doing all of this and everything this monster has put Alex and me through.

"If you don't use this tongue, might as well cut it." I point the knife to his mouth.

He chuckles, his black eyes sparkling with evil contempt. "You wouldn't."

"Don't try me." I edge the knife closer, cutting the corner of his lips. "I might be too bad for you." I smirk almost madly, the fire of anger and pain that has kept growing for all these months is now consuming everything like the flames in the next room.

"Behind the fridge," he finally mutters between his teeth.

Clever, I've almost turned the house upside down but I'd never have thought of this spot.

"See? It's better when you cooperate!"

I quickly go there, seeing the time ticking and especially the blaze growing.

Luckily, I move the fridge easily. I'd like to believe it's because I'm finding an incredible strength, but I think it's mostly because the fridge is quite old and small. Anyway, I find everything in no time, everything except for the keys, the most important for Alex, so I hurry back in front of Leo.

"Where are the keys?" I demand between my gritted teeth.

"Untie me, and I'll give them to you."

"I'm not stupid!" I point back the knife to his throat. "Don't make me repeat myself."

"They're in the front pocket of my jeans." He gives me a wicked smirk, not bothered by the blood dripping from it, neither by the smoke invading the room.

I gulp, a sour taste that isn't from the smoke climbing up my throat. I guess I have no other choice anyway. I close my eyes for a second, visions of Alex appearing to me, and when I reopen them, I grip Leo's hair to prevent him from moving and slide my hand in his pocket. Thankfully, I find almost immediately the keys, without any other complication, just a shiver of disgust.

"The police will be there shortly. Don't try to denounce me. They wouldn't believe you anyway. I'm a good girl, remember?" I put my most innocent expression, though with everything, I don't think I have much innocence left in me. "And don't ever try to get back at Alex or anyone near us, or next time you won't be that lucky to be saved by the police." I look straight in his black rotten eyes, unafraid for once.

Then I release his hair, and I grab Alex's things to get out without a second glance, though Leo's cough as I pass the door lets me imagine easily the scene.

 As soon as I'm out of the house, I'm met by Josh's wide grin. "You did it!" He wraps his arms around me in a bear hug.

"I did it? I did it!" The realization suddenly hits me. Everything has gone so fast.

I've been so focused on the plan all this time that it's felt like a dream, an out-of-body experience, driven by adrenaline and my burning love for Alex. Now that it's slowly cooling off, I can finally breathe and take in everything. Replaying what has just happened tonight, I don't recognize myself, or maybe I've just been the more fearless myself, the 'badass' in me. My heart skips a beat, thinking of Alex. I hope he will be proud of me, as much as I am right now.

"Now, let's go to the car before the cops show up!" Josh leads me away.

"Are you sure they're gonna come?" I ask, biting my lip as I check the time once more.

It's crazy how everything has passed in a blur, and now it all appears so real. Waiting in the compartment of this old car, it feels more suffocating than minutes ago in the smoke, surely because for this last little step in the plan, I have nothing to do, except counting time, replaying everything I've just done, and watching more smoke escape the small house.

I know Leo is evil but that doesn't mean I want him to get hurt.

"Don't worry, they'll come."

As if Josh has made them appear, the sirens' wail resonates right away.

I hope you liked this chapter! Badass Elena is back in full force! Did you expect this from her? ;) Let me know in the comments and vote if you liked it! :)

And now, do you think Alex will realize she is strong enough to handle his bad boy life?

BTW, I realized two days ago that we don't have a shipping name for Alex and Elena, so thanks to your great suggestions, the choice remains now between Elexa or Alexena, if you want them back together, tell me the one you prefer? ;)

There are a few chapters left and I'm getting so emotional... This story is a crazy ride and I wanna thank you once again for following me in! But let's not be sad, it's not the end yet! Plus, my pen is already getting used for a new story... ;)