Descent to Corruption

Sebastian

Growing up in this life I know I made it through luckier than the others. Marco Rossi was a tyrant, anyone around him for longer than a minute could tell you that. Hawke's parents were murdered before he was even in preschool, and Thomas Hawke is not your average loving grandfather either. So between the three families the fact that I have parents who are loving and normal (well as normal as you can get when you're actively part of the underworld), it seemed improbable.

Seeing my Dad all lovey dovey with my Mom as a kid grossed me out, but the older I got I couldn't help but appreciate what they have, and as I got even older I couldn't wait until I met a girl who made me crazy in that special way too.

The night I met Arabella Davies I knew I was done for, one look into those big baby blues and man, I was a goner.

The fact that Hawke knew her and thought he had some claim to her was laughable to me. The silent giant had never expressed interest in anyone for as long as I have known him, so I wrote him off quickly, but the way he looked at Arabella, as if she was his saving grace, that made me nervous.

All that being said, our current situation is not doing either of us any good. Arabella was somehow tied up with the Rossi family, and Hawke, the idiot, had been quick to assume she was sent in to somehow infiltrate the families.

Stepping out of his office, killing myself with every step I take away from the teary eyed and clearly frightened Arabella, I find Hawke pacing in the stairwell.

He pauses to shoot me a glare, "She say anymore?" He gets out in a clipped tone.

"Enough for me to know she's not some super secret spy as you were so quick to assume. What the hell is wrong with you?"

He pivots and gets in my face, "What the hell is wrong with me? I'm not the one who forgot the world we live in Kelly, you think it's really a coincidence she somehow knows all of us without us knowing about it?"

"If you took a second to pause and actually really look at her you'd realize she's nothing but scared, and its your fault she's sitting in your office crying now."

I see as my words have him faltering, but he doesn't waver for long. Shaking off any hesitation, he goes back to pacing.

"Hawke, she said the Rossi's kidnapped her, she is genuinely terrified of all of this, of us."

Sharply coming to a stop across from me he all but growls, "They did what?"

"She said they kidnapped her and held her at their place upstate. Hell, she promised to not say a word about any of it, she's scared and you going all mafia interrogator on her did not help. She was begging me to let her go home, like we're the ones now holding her against her will. You need to go back and fix this, then we need to figure out what the hell the Rossi's have done."

The more I speak, the paler he grows as it dawns on him how he so quickly jumped to a conclusion. Years of living this way, in this life, put him on the edge and the moment he suspected Arabella of working against us he snapped.

Of course I don't have hard evidence yet that Arabella really is all in the clear, but in all my years of experience I know you cannot fake fear like that, it was visceral and radiating from her in an all too real way.

He all but shoves me out of the way as he makes his way back towards his office. Storming past his assistant who stands to say something, Hawke enters his office with a rush.

I hurry after him, not wanting his speedy entrance to frighten her anymore than he already has today.

But the sight of an all too empty office greets us and I step out to catch what his assistant had been trying to tell us, "When I came back your office was empty sir."