CATHERINE SPICE

Six

Damian, the name floated around in Cathy's mind the whole night. "Pfft, what a name for a mafia don, Damian, who named him?" she thought.

Cathy groaned slightly irritated by the sound of the grandfather clock that echoed throughout the mansion. " I swear when I find that clock.." she grumbled. "you will leave it right where you found it". The sound of his voice nearly sent Catherine flying out of her bed. He extended his hand palm facing upward. " My report. I suppose you filed my taxes as I asked you to?" he said.

She sighed and pushed herself out of bed. She fought the urge to throw the file in his face as she walked back to him. "thanks", he smiled call Dimitri and tell him to expect me by two-thirty today. Oh, and you will not be accompanying me today. I want you to stay here and draw up a new household budget for each department. I need to cut costs where I can ." Cathy glared at him. The past week had been beyond frustrating for her. She handled his finances and had access to his business clients and contacts yet, he was clean. "what do I call you when you are out and about?" she asked.

" you like to think of me like a snake," he said. "De Luca or Viper? Are those your only pseudonyms?" she responded. He smirked and moved closer, "and in private? What will you call me?". "We weren't exactly formally introduced you know. " She took a step back. Before she could move any further he grabbed her by her lower back making sure to lock in her dominant hand. She gasped.

Using his fountain pen he scribbled something on her chest right below her collarbone, making sure to never take his eyes off hers. As soon as he was done he released his grip and moved toward the door. "don't forget your tasks, I'll call you later" he said. Catherine stood still for a while before she decided it was time to get ready for the day. Standing there beside her bed she was partly shocked and partially disgusted in herself. Her heart was still pounding, she wasn't sure if she was scared or slightly turned on.

There were a few times when she had been assigned fieldwork that required her to get 'close' to her targets. Her dating life in and out of the agency wasn't exactly the most exciting since her job had her gone for months on end. It was safe to say she had been in close contact with a lot of men but none made her feel so conflicted. After having managed to ignore her emotional conflict she moved to the bathroom. Allessandro was scribbled across her chest. 'What a common name, well at least now I know his nationality'- she thought. 'Damian' the name still bothered her. "If his name is Alessandro then who is Damian?"

The staff curtsied when they saw her, all except Xael and the head chef. They merely nodded in her direction and went about their business. They did not even try to hide their sour looks. All the other staff avoided her and got busy. "breakfast will be served in the dining hall madam," said Xael sternly. Cathy sat down on one of the bar stools. "just make me a sandwich, I'll have it right here", she said to the chef who frowned before reluctantly following her instruction.

The kitchen was well ventilated and equipped with sleek electric appliances. The cameras were well positioned and somewhat hidden probably to make the staff feel less overwhelmed. Cathy walked around slowly inspecting the place. The food in the cold room and pantry were neatly packed and labelled. The pantry itself was made of glass. "seems more like a hotel than a home" said Cathy under her breath. 'er hem' coughed the chef. "Breakfast is served," he almost grumbled. Xael disappeared for a few moments and later returned with what looked like a receipt book and gently placed it next to Cathy. She eyed him before opening it. It was a four-month record of household expenses, neatly categorised according to each department. Castillo had thirty-five household staff, security included.

Cathy didn't intend to ever learn their names. It was bad enough that she had to keep the books for his art agency. She was even more frustrated at herself. Every time she was around him her body would go on autopilot. She felt fear and anger but she couldn't express it. He looked so gentle but his eyes weighed heavy on her. His gaze bothered her, 'i need to get as much intel as I can, now that I'm here, she thought. Raising her head to face Xeal she asked, "What can we cut out?". He furrowed his brows like a child who had a cookie taken away from him but couldn't understand why. "the Castillo's need to uphold a certain standard of living," he answered. "What the fuck?" Cathy mouthed. Xael carried himself like an old-time butler, the kind you only saw in historical movies. 'the money must have screwed with his head' she thought.

'If I knew organised crime paid this much, I would've gone rouge long ago,' she thought and shrugged. "Xael, make a list of all the things you can cut down from each department. After that ask each department to hand a new budget for the month," she instructed. Xael nodded and left. "Thanks, chef, good job," she said. The whole kitchen went silent for a moment. "It is pleasure to cook for you, " she replied in a thick Jamaican accent. Everyone slowly got back to work. ' What was that for? Why this weird atmosphere?'

Before she could make it out of the room Cathy felt her hips being squeezed together. "Nesta!" exclaimed the girl. The air grew thin and the kitchen slowly spun around her. "Nesta!" The voice echoed in her head. Pictures of a toddler running around the lawn, teddy bear in hand came to her mind. Someone crouched on the ground with arms open wide waiting for the toddler. "Nesta!" the voice grew faint but still echoed in her ears. More pictures of a girl flooded her mind. As if she was watching someone's childhood. "Aurielle?" exhaled Catherine before the whites in her eyes turned upward and she crumbled onto the floor.