Mafia's collateral

A softer side

>>Seraphina

Was it a dream?

I stared at the clean lounge of the apartment. There was no sign of blood or murder, or a body anywhere.

I honestly don't know which part of the night I fell asleep at

But

I looked back at the bedroom door. The doorknob was fixed too. And so perfectly at that that it got me questioning my sanity. Did I imagine everything that happened yesterday? Am I too stressed or something?

Eris walked out of the bedroom with a groggy look. Then stopped and looked around. She tilted her head

"What's wrong?" I asked her as I walked over to her

She frowned, "Um," I tamed her hair down with my hands, "Wasn't a bad man here?" She looked around the perfectly clean and organized apartment which was most likely confusing her.

Whenever dad came back and caused havoc, the aftermath was always there.

"Did you have a bad dream?" I caressed her hair and her eyes went wide but in realization and relief.

"That was a dream?" She let out a sigh of relief and a huge smile appeared on her face, "Whew!"

My heart melted and I felt awfully thankful.

"Yes," I pulled her into a hug, "You had a nightmare." I felt so much better, "That's all."

***

As I went about my routine tasks, meticulously cleaning the dimly lit club before the evening crowd arrived, a sense of unease lingered at the back of my mind. The memory of the violent confrontation from the previous night weighed heavily on me, casting a shadow over the mundane tasks that occupied my hands.

I had to come to work, I can't afford to have my pay reduced, so I wore a turtleneck to hide my injuries.

I was done mopping the floor when a fellow cleaner came to me, "Sera," He tapped my shoulder from behind scaring the shit out of me. I jumped as I turned around

"W-what?" I looked back at him in fear, which in turn caused him to get surprised too.

"Are you okay?" I made him confused too, "Why are you so jumpy?"

It was because of what happened just the night before, "Oh," I straightened myself up, "Sorry, my mind was elsewhere."

"Well," He didn't pursue the topic, "The boss is calling you in his office,"

Achill ran down my spine, and my heart skipped a beat.

Azef is calling me in this office?? "Why?" I asked but the other guy, Dustin, just shrugged, then he walked away.

Oh Gosh... What could he want from me? I did as he told me. I didn't leave my room till morning...

"He asked for you immediately," Dustin said to me as he kept walking away and my stomach churned.

I frowned but despite the fear gnawing at my insides, I knew I couldn't defy the command of my boss.

With trembling hands, I made my way to his office. The thought of facing Azef, knowing the truth of what he was capable of, filled me with a sense of dread.

I knocked on the door, "Come in," And received a reply immediately that made my heart skip a beat

Opening the door, I entered the dimly lit office, the air seemed to grow heavy with the weight of expectation. Azef's gaze bore into me, his eyes inscrutable as he regarded me with a mixture of curiosity and calculation.