He leaned against the counter and watched the small girl—young woman now, he supposed, though she was such a little thing—trying to hide her fear as she cross referenced the information in her files with that of the aged shop ledger. He was slightly impressed that she managed to suppress the terror enough to continue with her work, though it wouldn't take much to break her composure. Indeed, as he trailed his fingers over the nape of her neck, she closed her eyes and took a deep breath, shivering. He could feel the gooseflesh rising under his fingertips.

"I'm working," she said at last, in a tight tone.

"You've been at it for long enough, I think," he responded. "I'm about to officially close shop for the evening; it's time for us to talk."

He followed the hitching movement of her throat as Elena tried to maintain control over herself. "I should head home, actually. I have to report in tomorrow first thing, after all."

"No." Her head snapped up. "No, Elena. You will not be leaving quite yet. Not for some hours, I think. Your behavior these past ten months cannot pass unpunished. Changing your name back? Clever. And you moved your father."

Her jaw clenched. "I do not belong to you, Tom. Need I show you my bare forearm?"

Tom waved his wand, the sign on the door flipping over as it locked. Another few movements and it was warded securely. He knew Burke had already left for the evening, trusting the young man to handle the majority of their business. Once Tom had ensured a level of privacy, he summoned her wand to him and his free hand wound into the loose bun on the back of the girl's head, wrenching her back painfully. "Is that what you think?" he hissed into her ear, yew wood stroking down her corded throat. "That because I have been a kind master to you, allowing you to remain unmarked, I will allow your behavior to go uncorrected?"

"You—" her brows were tight together, pain clear in the lines of her face. "You hold nothing over me anymore, Tom. Our relationship is no longer—"

"Oh, no, pet. You forget I still know plenty of your secrets. You might not need to keep up the charade of being the perfect daughter, but you still keep quiet your little gift, don't you?"

She met his eyes in a show of strength Tom hadn't thought was in her. "I know your secrets too."

He laughed, hot breath harsh in her face. "Oh no, doll. You wouldn't dare come forward with that. You'd find yourself in trouble too, an accessory to my wrongdoing." He lowered his so he could run his nose against her cheek as he said, "If you were incarcerated, how would your dear daddy be taken care of?"

"I—"

"No." Tom released her, throwing her to the ground. "Stop trying to bluff, Elena. You're miserable at it." He considered, tapping his wand against his thigh. "You should have known your day of reckoning would come. No one disobeys Lord Voldemort. Not even you, pet. Crucio."

She managed one brutal scream before the pain overwhelmed even that ability, and she wheezed and whined through the agony. Her body was shaking, trembling, contorting into beautifully horrific shapes, limbs banging into the hard floor, cheek slapping so hard he could see her eyes roll back in her head through closed lids. It was lovely, the perfection of her torment not even ruined by the bitter scent now emanating the girl. Her expressive little hands were twisting, searching, and her nose started to bleed from knocking into her elbow. The blood only added to her appeal, though it stoked rather than soothed his fury.

After a long moment, he released the curse. Elena's broken sobs coughed out of her, her entire body seizing at each one. Tom paced forward to stand over her, sneering. "Pathetic. Look at you." He shook his head, pushing back errant curls as he straightened. "You could have avoided this."

Elena curled tighter into herself, uncaring of the mess the torture curse had caused.

"Do you have anything to say for yourself?" He knew she wouldn't be able to speak quite yet but taunting her brought a certain warmth to his chest. "No? I suppose I should clean you up, since you're incapable of even that, I'm sure. Scourgify." Another drop of blood slid from her nose, and as he pulled her arm from over her face he saw a little cut on her lip as well. Tom squatted down, stroking his thumb over the small wound. A smear of blood graced the pad of his digit. "Now, now, stop pouting. I'm sure you'll make up for your transgression in time."

He slid one arm under her head and pulled her up toward him. Her eyes were still squeezed shut, face still contorted. He licked his lips and lowered his face to hers, sucking on the wound at her lower lip, tongue darting out to taste her blood. The moan of pain from her elicited one of pleasure from him. As he deepened the kiss, tears started streaking over her face once more. Was there anything so delicious as a broken, sobbing woman? He was tempted to take her right there but pulled back with a groan. No, she may have broken the rules, but they were still immersed in the game.

"Oh, sweetheart." Tom drew her into his lap. "It will be alright. You'll need to be extra good to make up for your behavior, but in time everything will be as it was." It didn't comfort her of course, but it wasn't meant to. It was a warning. "I told you my Cruciatus was unlike anything you'd experienced before. I tried to avoid using it on you, but you forced my hand. I couldn't very well allow ten months of silence to pass with impunity, could I?" He placed another open-mouthed kiss on her lips to taste the copper of her blood again. "You'll be a good girl now, won't you?"

She choked on her own breath, coughing and spasming so hard in his lap that he had to steel himself. Eventually she calmed herself enough that she was able sputter out, "Please let me go. I won't—I won't tell anyone anything. I promise."

"I know you won't, sweetheart." He stroked his thumbs over her ribs soothingly. "Put I can't let you go. You're mine now. You understand that, don't you?" She started to sob again, and he hid his smile. "None of that, unless you're trying to start something. You know what your pain does to me." She stiffened abruptly in his lap, red eyes widening as color drained from her puffy face. Tom chuckled and tightened his hold on her. "Your punishment isn't over of course, but I can hardly torture you to madness. I expect you to owl me your address when you get home. If I have to find out on my own, I will be very displeased with you. Also, I'll be calling a meeting in the next few days and you will be in attendance. Antonin will be glad to see you. He asked after you once."

She remained limp in his arms even as he rubbed circles over her through her clothes, pressing the occasional kiss to her. She'd never reacted like other girls he seduced (at least at the beginning). They would melt and dig their hands into his hair and grope at him. It wasn't until he'd pushed past their narrow boundaries that they stopped wanting to touch him, and then they would fight or cringe or struggle. He quite liked having the freedom to stroke and caress his damaged toy at leisure. It would only get better once he'd completely broken her to his preferences.

He sighed and shifted her into a seated position on his lap. "We can continue this conversation later. I suspect you're worn out after such a hard day. Go home and take a hot bath, drink some tea, put yourself back together." Tom ran his fingers through the hair tangled limply around her face, lips twisted in a tender smile. He lapped at her broken skin one more time, then planted a soft kiss on her mouth. "I'll see you tomorrow, pet."