seven souls seven sins - Chapter 62: Chapter 62

Natasha's pov:
His ruffled up black hair looks rougher than the last time I remember. Back then it was buzzed every other day. I switch my attention back onto Charles as he nears closer. Charles looks fairly older since the last time I saw a picture of him. His grey hairs are sprouting, and his wrinkles are increasing. He walks over here with an easily detectable faux smile.
I can smell a bitch a mile away.
Vincent tightens the grasp on his glass as they approach us. I straighten my posture when Damien appears into my field of vision. If he sees that I'm weak, then I am weak. "Well if it isn't the infamous Natasha Clark- Ooh I mean Morales. My apologies." Charles corrects himself. We all knew that that wasn't a mistake.
"I'm sure that you're aware of the merger." That bastard looks me in the eye.
"Indeed I am." I reply with a straight face. He knows who I am. He knows I'm the British Donna. He knows I used to date his son. He knows how this merger affects me directly. I feel Damien's piercing gaze staring at me. "Your dress looks gorgeous my dear." Charles tries to make conversation.
"Thanks." I nonchalantly respond.
"Well your brother and I need to have a word so why don't you and Damien go dance, I heard Swan Lake is starting soon." Charles places my hand into Damien's. My heart rate increases at the sudden contact. I haven't been this close with him in a year. His earthy cologne infiltrates my system.
Vincent senses the tension between us but he gives me a reassuring nod.
I don't think he knows that Charles is playing him. "Let's get a move on, Ms.Clark." Damien breathes into my ear. A shiver winds up my back at his recognisable voice. "Take your time Princess." Vincent assures me, whilst giving Damien a death stare. "Son, go take the young lady dancing would ya?" Charles's L.A accent shines through.
"Of course Pops." Damien drags me away from Vincent.
Goosebumps travel up my arm at his immediate strength and power in his voice. I hear Swan Lake starting in the background and Damien and I begin dancing together in the middle of the ballroom. We start by circling each other, the deafening silence is heightening the tenseness of the situation.
"What are you doing here?" I ask when we get up close.
"Don't ask questions you already know the answer to." His hot breath on my face makes me retreat. Once I stay silent he opens his wide mouth again. "Moving back to Brazil was a risky move. I'm almost positive that Vincent is unaware that the British Donna lives in his house." Damien twirls me around, in sync with the other dancers surrounding us.
"He doesn't, and will not. It's too soon." I reveal my plans in front of him.
"Ah so when is the right time? This merger is happening whether you like it or not, and there's nothing you can do to stop it." He snaps back, as he bows down to me. "I know that you two are going to target us. Although Vincent is unaware of the situation, you sure are. You know exactly what you're doing." I fake a smile for the nearby photographer.
"My dad has been pulling these strings for a while now, you're just going to have to wait and see for our master plan to play out." He brings me closer, closing the gap between our bodies.
He tightens the grip on my wrist. "You got locked up for a year, stop trying to act all hard." I break off from him, continuing the dance as I don't want to cause a scene. I can't believe I loved this poor excuse of a man. Damien opens his mouth again and reels me in. "Maybe I've changed, maybe I haven't. But I know that you still yearn for my di-"
I kick his foot, stepping on it and applying pressure.
"Break a leg." I pat him on his back and walk off mid-dance. "I think I just did." He clutches his shin in agony as I walk off with a semi-smile. I find Chase in the corner, examining the room from afar. "Oh hey, where were you?" He questions and holds my back. "I was forced into a dance with Damien." I scoff.
"Ouch. I never liked that guy you know?" He mentions.
"What have you heard?" I'm intrigued by his response. "He got locked up by some chick back in London. You haven't heard anything about that, have you?" He gulps down the rest of his champagne. "Nope not a thing." I bite one finger nail off before excusing myself to the restroom.
I was that chick back in London.
As I exit the over-crowded ballroom, I make my way towards the bathroom. I turn the corner and travel down a quiet corridor to the women's restroom. I enter and immediately rush to the mirror. I take a good look at myself, this is who I am. There's no hint of my identity of the girl in the mirror.
She's different.
She's wearing thick makeup, a synched corset and high heels. This isn't the same girl from two months ago, she's lost. I run my hands through my curls, perfecting them before I'm ready to leave. I step back and admire my red dress. As much as I adore this gown, it isn't me.
I'm supposed to be wearing purple.
The purple symbolises the colours of the Union Jack, red, white and blue. Although the Americans have the same colour combination, they chose white to represent freedom. That detail is very much prevalent in Damien's case. I pick up my feet and step out of the room.
As I walk down the eerily quiet hall, a presence pushes me against the wall.
The tall, dark figure places his two hands either side of me, trapping me between him and the wall. Once my nostrils get wind of the familiar earthy cologne, I instantly recognise who this is. "Damien." I state, knowing that I haven't muttered his name out loud since last year.
"You didn't really think that you could get rid of me that easily sweetheart, did you?" He points out, me getting wind of his breath laced with alcohol.
"It was worth a shot." I respond, unable to make eye contact with the man who once hurt me and my heart. "You look better than how I left you." He tilts my chin up. My eyes meeting his light blue ones, the ones I used to constantly compliment. "I think I can fix this." He leans in but I come to my senses and push him off.
He stumbles back and I watch as flames cloud his vision.
"C'mere you little shit." He grunts and throws my body against the wall. I stumble down to the ground and watch as he walks over towards me. I'm too vulnerable to do anything in heels. Usually, I'd be more feisty and put up a fight but I can't with him. After my past, he's taught me that my best isn't good enough.
No matter how much I train, or how hard I work, he's always stronger than me.
Damien crouches down to my level as I begin to get back up. "You think you're unharmed Natasha, but you don't even know half of it." He kicks my stomach and I yelp in pain. "Fuck off." I groan and begin to stand back up. "Ah, so there's the girl that I missed." He turns back around to face me and opens his arms.
"Remember when we were in bed and instead of saying 'Fuck off' you said 'Fuck me'. Those were the good times." He relishes the moment but I let my palm meet his face.
He winces but shrugs it off, straightening his posture so he towers over me. I cower at his presence. "You little son of a b-" He starts but is interrupted by a familiar voice. "Am I interrupting something here?" Blanca, the Portuguese woman from earlier steps infront of him, separating us in the process. She senses the tension between us and speaks to Damien.
"I'm sure Vincent Morales wouldn't like the looks of this." She eyes him up and down before ushering me away from the corridor.
"Thank you." I show my gratitude. "Anytime Amor. You're a young kid but please inform your older brothers about this. I know about the merger and this doesn't seem healthy by the looks of it." She empathises with a solution. "Damien and I share a past together, it ended messy so this is just us trying to mend things before the merger." I plaster a fake 'I'm good' facade on my face.
She gives me a knowing look but I dismiss it.
"You know, I admire your perseverance to make this merger work but you need to inform your brothers. This could be a huge factor towards their decision." She tries to persuade me. "I'll tell them soon, but just not tonight. It's not as important." I shrug it off. We enter the ballroom just as Vincent taps onto the mic.
"Ladies and Gentleman, may I please ask for your attention." He begins, a crowd gathering beneath him.
He stands on a stage with the Morales Dragon Crest all over the background. The rest of my brothers walk up to the podium, standing directly behind Vincent. "First of all, I would like to thank you for your generous donations tonight. As of right now we've received over 5.6 million Brazilian Real which calculates to around 1.9 million euros and 2 million American dollars. A round of applause please." He announces as everyone bursts into applaud.
Now that was a lot of money.
"As usual, the money will be donated per check to UNICEF as they help the needy, thanks to your funds." Vincent declares, followed by another round of cheers. "Moving onto more mafia related news, we have decided to merge with the Americans." He announces to the crowd.
"I understand the confusion but this is all a safety precaution for Natasha, who has returned home." He added and everyone turns to face little old me at the back of the room.
Everyone claps and cheers for me but I just awkwardly smile and wait for Vincent to change the subject. "Onto other related topics, the Japanese are merging with the South Koreans, the Russians and the UAE are merging, and yet again, the British decide to not show up." Everyone laughs at Vincent's rude joke.
He is going to be in for a treat next year, he'll just have to wait and see.
"As the night comes to a close, I would like to thank everyone for flying in tonight and may we all rejoice again next year." Vincent finishes and exits the stage along with his brothers. Once they spot me, they all immediately dart towards me. I turn around to find the mysterious Portuguese woman from earlier, but she disappeared already.
"Everyone's leaving, it's time to head out Tash." Xavier's hand rushes to my waist as he leads me outside.
"Wait a second, I just need to talk to someone real quick, then I'll meet you outside." I manage to slip away from him and the rest of my bio brothers. "We'll be waiting in the limo!" He shouts as I scurry away. I find my target and keep my eyes on him, waiting for majority of the guests to leave.
He looks in need of an English warning.
There's only a few people left, I walk up to him, isolating him against a wall. "My dear Natasha, what a pleasant surprise." He pats my back but I shrug his slimy hand off. I whip out the dagger from underneath my dress and hold it up to his stomach. I use my body to shield what I'm actually doing from the remaining crowd.
"Don't play dumb with me Charles." I threaten, spitting his name out with upmost disgust.
"I don't know what you're talking about little girl." He acts innocent. "Call off the fucking merger. I know you want to hang my mafia out to dry but I am not letting that happen under my watch." I press the sharp edge against his white suit. "Oh please, the second and third strongest mafias joining forces will tear you down." He spits in my face.
"I think you have it wrong, you two will tear each other into pieces before you even try going after me." I whisper into his filthy ear.
"I think you have it wrong. If I were you, I'd watch how you speak to me with that tone. Give it up Natasha, I have the upper hand, you don't." He pushes me away from him. "I'll give you till the end of this year, use your time wisely. Because after that, all hell will break loose." Charles warns, staring daggers into my eyes.
The tension in the room intensifies.
"I suggest you should run off to your beloved family, you don't want to keep them waiting." He turns me around and points me towards the door. I begin walking away but he calls my name. "Bring Seb and Flynn next time, I'm sure they'll enjoy the fun." Evil flickers between his eyes.
Why the fuck does he have to bring them in?
Fury builds within me but I'm forced to keep it down. Charles knows how to boil my blood, whilst Damien knows the power he holds over me. I hastily walk over towards the limo, hearing the soft clicks of my heels down the steps is my new favourite sound, after Nico's laugh of course.
I wish I could open up to him about this but I can't.
I do know that he's in some sort of gang because he literally killed a man for doing his job but an average gang and a mafia are two completely separate things. I hop into the limo with all my brother's eyes on me. "Why did you talk to Charles?" Vincent's concerned voice booms throughout the vehicle.
"He wanted to talk." I construct a lie.
I manage to only bite one nail while I bring out my phone. I feel Adrien's hot stare but I dismiss it. I open the Three Muskateers Group Chat to inform Seb and Flynn of tonight's events.
Nat: Hey guys it's over
Seb: Woah Nat what happened?
Flynn: Did u see him?
Nat: Yea.
Seb: Oh shit
Flynn: How did it go ml?
Nat: The start was alr but then when i danced with him he kept on ranting abt his master plan
Seb: He's prolly bluffing or smt
Flynn: Yea, he's tryna scare u
Nat: He seemed believable nd all but I cornered Charles at the end
Seb: Atta girl
Flynn: Gng was probs shaking in his boots
Nat: I wish, he said that after this year ends that all hell will break loose
Seb: Tf does that mean?
Flynn: Fr tho like wtf is ts
Nat: He's a riddler wanna be atp
Seb: Preachh
Flynn: Amen to that
Seb: But r u srsly alr bb?
Flynn: Yea we want u to be safe and sound
Nat: I am, kinda
Seb: Do u want us to come over?
Flynn: Yea we can be there in a good 10 mins
Nat: No it's fine. My bio brothers will prolly get mad anyways so don't bother. We can call when i get home instead
Seb: Sounds perfect cya bb
Flynn: Ttyl ml
Nat: See yous!
I switch off my phone and realise that Xander's sitting beside me. I unlock my phone and go onto Candy Crush. I hand his bored ass the phone and he kisses my forehead. "It's a long drive home, get some rest." He pats down his lap. I lie down, ignoring my state and shut my eyes.
A quick lie down won't hurt anyone.