Natasha couldn't believe the crap that was coming out of this man's mouth.
Who did he think he was to dictate what she should do with her life? From the moment this man had stepped inside the room, he had been talking down to her as if she was some naughty child that needed to be disciplined.
Obviously, it was his son who ran over her. It was his son who violated the red light. It was his son who was in trouble. But, anyone looking from the outside would think that Natasha was the only one to blame for the accident.
Natasha felt her temper flaring. She was never one to meekly submit to others if they raised their voice. She would rather punch them in the face. That's how she rolled. To think that she should listen to this deriding talk after suffering from an accident was just ridiculous.
The moment this man had come inside the room calling himself Henry Ropier, the chairman of the infamous Ropier Group, in a domineering manner, Natasha knew that this talk wasn't going to go well. And so far, her intuition had been right.
What's worse was that the more she listened to this man talk, the worse her head begin to ache. It irritated her further and she was this close to snapping and cursing this man out.
If not for the serious look the doctor had sent her before leaving the room, she would have already thrown something at this man.
Just when she felt as if was about to snap, the room's door opened.
"Henry," an authoritative voice sounded from near the door causing the man to stop deriding her.
The man looked over and Natasha followed his gaze. An elegant woman stood near the door with a disapproving look on her face. She stared down the man before turning to her and giving her a gentle smile.
Rather than reassuring her, that smile only made Natasha more cautious. She knew about the Ropier Group. It was one of the biggest capitalist groups in the city. To shut up the Chairman of the Ropier Group with a single word and a look, this woman can't be a gentle soul.
"I will take over the discussion from here," the woman said softly but sternly.
The man looked as if he was about to object, but a single narrowing of her eyes put a stop to it. The man snorted and shot one last look at Natasha before vacating the room. Natasha watched the woman close the door and came over to sit beside her bed.
"Miss Natasha Lyons," the woman greeted her. "I am Marlene Ropier."
Natasha narrowed her eyes wondering what this woman was going to say.
While Henry Ropier was a bit rude and demeaning, he was clear in stating his goals. He made it clear that he wanted Natasha to not talk anything about the accident and disappear from the city for a while.
Was this woman here with the same objective?
"Miss Natasha, I apologize for my husband's boorish behavior. That is no way to behave to a lady…"
"I am no lady," Natasha replied firmly causing Marlene's eyebrows to shoot upwards.
"Indeed, it is clear," Marlene sniffed masking her surprise. "Regardless, I wish to tell you that we have no ill intentions toward you. Rather, the stressful circumstances of late have caused Henry to be rather short. I hope you can forgive him for his trespass."
Natasha didn't reply. It was clear from the woman's earlier actions that she didn't actually expect anything out of her. Rather, this woman was being superficial. It would be better to listen to what this woman said before actually opening her mouth.
"Miss Natasha," the woman continued confirming Natasha's doubts. "You work as a waitress in a bar, right?"
The woman casually changed the topic causing Natasha to narrow her eyebrows. The woman's demeanor displeased Natasha a bit. Her words, while being innocuous, had an underlying threat in them. Natasha never responded well to threats.
"Don't need to be so surprised. I merely perused your information before coming to meet with you. I find it easier to talk with people after knowing their background," the woman smiled thinly not taking Natasha's displeasure seriously.
"Born to Marie Wilson and Pierre Lyons on March 14, 1971. Father ran away early; your mother raised you until you were 12. After she died in an accident, you were sent to a foster home. You ran away from foster home at sixteen. Started working odd jobs to complete high school. Now you work as a part-time waitress in a bar Downtown," the woman recited Natasha's history with a small smile.
"You seem to know me pretty well," Natasha said slowly with narrowed eyes.
"Ah, that is the charm of money, sweetheart. As long as you have enough money, you can find out anything in this city," the woman smiled sharply. "By anything, I mean even your history with selling drugs and other such activities you did early in your life to support yourself after leaving your foster home. You may have cleaned up your past, but it is still there and for someone like me, it is easy to find out."
Natasha felt her heart chill hearing the woman's words.
"What do you want?" Natasha growled.
"No need to be angry sweetheart. I do actually admire your tenacity. Not many people clean up after getting dragged into such things. Your tenacity to live clean after entering that circle is indeed applaudable. I do respect you for that," the woman said shaking her head.
"But, we both know that I didn't come here to praise you," the woman tilted her head slightly and looked Natasha directly in her eyes. "No, you are too smart to think that. I am sure you are wondering what I am here for."
"You are here for the same reason your husband came for. You both want me to leave this city and keep my mouth shut," Natasha said gritting her teeth.
"Ah, it is good to speak with smart people. They understand you without any need to spell things clearly. You are right. I am here exactly for that. But, I won't make things difficult for you. I know it is hard for you to find a stable job. Abandoning it and moving to a new place is not an easy thing…"
Natasha didn't reply. The moment the woman spoke about her dark history, she knew that she had no other option.
"So, here's what I propose. You will move to a new place of your choosing and keep your mouth shut regarding this accident. In return, I will see that you are compensated for your troubles. And you don't need to worry about your medical bills either. What do you say, deal?"
Natasha nodded knowing she didn't have any other option.
"See, it wasn't that difficult, is it? I am glad we could come to an agreement. I will make sure you won't regret this deal. You don't need to worry about anything else. Dr. Xavier will take care of you very well," the woman patted Natasha's hands and smiled softly.
Natasha felt like punching her in the face, but could only smile awkwardly in return. The woman smiled as if she saw through Natasha's thoughts, but she didn't say anything. She got up and walked towards the door.
"Ah, one last thing, sweetheart," the woman stopped near the door and looked at Natasha. "If you think of reneging on this deal any time, you won't like the consequences. Trust me, Henry can, and will, ruin your life if he wants. I am the only thing stopping him from doing it."
"I am not stupid," Natasha growled.
"No, you are not," the woman nodded. "But, poor people like you are often greedy. So, keep this warning in mind, sweetheart. We won't have any problems as long as your lips stay sealed."
Natasha wanted to retort angrily. The indignation that rose in her wanted to lash out at this woman for disrespecting her, but she merely narrowed her eyes.
"I could say the same, Mrs. Ropier. I am a poor person. There is very little left for me to lose. I hope you people don't play any games," Natasha said looking away.
The woman narrowed her eyes but nodded in return and left the room.
*****
Outside Henry Ropier was pacing the hall impatiently. The moment he saw his wife coming, he looked over questioningly.
"It is done," Marlene Ropier said brusquely.
"Good," Henry Ropier grunted. "With this, half my headache is solved. I didn't think the board members would be this bold. They were even fanning the flames from behind. It is time I took care of them."
"Make sure you send a poignant message. I think it is time for Cousin Alex to take a vacation as well," Marlene smiled thinly.
"Alex was involved?" Henry Ropier narrowed his eyes.
"Don't worry about it. I will take care of them. This girl was the biggest wildcard. Now that she is under our thumb, I am going to let others know why you don't come after my son," Marlene said in a tone that would have chilled anyone to the core.
"Ha ha ha…" Henry Ropier was happy to hear such things on the other hand.
"But, don't think I am going to be lax on Pete. It is time he went to rehab. This time we were alert and it was easily solvable. Next time, it may not be so," Marlene said causing Henry's laugh to be cut short.
Marlene turned to look at the hospital room behind her. There was an indescribable emotion in her eyes.
"You are an interesting girl, Ms. Lyons. I am quite eager to see what you will make of your life," Marlene muttered softly to herself and started to walk away with her husband.
*****
A/N: Check out my other stories and let me know your thoughts...
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