C7 Scum!

It's one thing to say something and another to do it.

Ever since Natalia retreated to their bedroom after dinner, she had been fretting. Mavros would be there any time now; he had gone to see Gideon off.

'You can do this, Natalia. You got this. All you have to do is tell him the truth. There's absolutely nothing to be tensed about.' She tried to reassure herself.

But the next moment, she squirmed, "Oh God, why is this so hard?!" She slumped on the bed, kicking her feet in the air.

Just then, she heard strong, purposeful strides approaching their bedroom door. "He's here already?"

She abruptly lifted herself off the bed and sat up, her heart pounding like crazy.

Her eyes were glued to the door. The knob shifted, and Natalia would bet that her heart flew away.

Only for it to open, and it was just Grandpa Dimitri.

Her once-accelerating heartbeat went back to normal, and she felt a bit relieved, heaving a deep sigh.

But wait, where is he? At this point, being relieved wasn't helping much. Would he just come over so that she could get this over with, once and for all??

"Grandpa ?" She uttered incoherently.

"Are you alright, dear? I have been knocking for a while but got no response. I was beginning to think no one was in the bedroom, until I decided to check just to be sure."

'I must have been so lost in thought.'

"Oh, I see..." she gave out a sigh, scratching her hair.

"I was kind of kind of lost in my thoughts. Is Mavros back?" She asked eagerly, wanting to know what had been keeping him for so long.

"Ahhh!" He hit his head, chiding himself. "That was what brought me here."

She stood up from her bed, her eyes fixed on Grandpa Dimitri, and asked, "Is everything alright?"

Dimitri threw up his hands in an exasperated gesture. "Almost. You see, dear, your husband just flew out of Greece a few hours ago?"

"What??" Her eyes widened in surprise. "But he was just here some hours ago. What is going on? He wouldn't have left, just like that."

'What an irony! As his wife, I'm the last one to know about this. If not anything else, I should be the one conveying the information to the others, not the other way around. But it is what it is.'

"He had an emergency. It was so urgent that he wouldn't even return home; he just left from there."

He continued, after she finished expressing her surprise.

"But his passport..." she reasoned, her mind still a bit cloudy with shock. "Gideon had seen to that." He chimed in.

"And the emergency, did he say what it was all about?"

"Mavros is currently undergoing some business crisis at the moment. You know, he had left his business to the board of directors for weeks in preparation for your wedding."

Sensing her distress on hearing this, he stepped in closer to give her a warm pat on the back.

"It's nothing for you to get so worked out about; everything will be alright. It's part of business—risks, emergencies, contingencies, and so on.

Nothing he can't pull through." He said these while continuously patting her back in a steady beat.

"Okay." She calmed a bit. "And he said you'll be joining him in America tomorrow evening."

The calmness she had just relished evaporated into thin air. "Tomorrow evening??" Her eyes gawked in stupor, taking a step back to digest the information.

Dimitri's hand hovered in the air at her abrupt withdrawal. "Is it too far? I know being separated this way can be hard, especially for newlyweds. Don't be too worried; before you close and open your eyes, it will be evening, and you'll be with him again."

Well, that was the last thing she heard before she drowned in her turmoil.

'But that's the problem! I'll be with him again, alone this time. I'm not even prepared for this. I haven't told him what I...'

She groaned internally.. 'Why is everything so chaotic? This month has been kind of hectic for me. I just want my slow-paced, predictable life back.'

"Hey, are you there?" Grandpa Dimitri asked, concern etched on his face. She guessed he must have kept talking while she was lost in her musings.

"Huh?" she responded, snapping back to reality.

"Guess you must be tired from today's event. I'll leave you to rest. Good night," he said, his voice gentle.

"Good night," she replied, her voice barely above a whisper. The door closed, leaving her with nothing but her disarrayed broodings.

She felt like she was drowning in a sea of uncertainty, with no lifeline in sight.

*******

Tuesday, 8:36pm in America.

"Welcome to America, Mrs. Natalia Konstantis! We're glad to have you here." A middle-aged woman in uniform greeted Natalia with a bouquet of flowers at the terminal as she stepped off the private jet.

Natalia's mind lingered on the word "Konstantis"—it was the first time she'd been addressed with that name, and she wasn't sure if she liked it or not. Probably the latter. Everything was starting to sink in.

She forced a bright smile and accepted the bouquet. "Thank you."

The woman ushered her into a waiting Lamborghini, and Natalia settled into the luxurious leather interior.

The luxury was growing on her surprisingly fast, much like how she had grown accustomed to the harsh realities of prison life.

She was quite flexible in acclimating to both extremes.

What a peculiar skill she had. She mused with a wry smile, 'I should add this to my CV: Expertise in polar opposites. Proficient in both luxury and hardship, able to navigate champagne toasts and bread-and-water diets. Can thrive in any environment, from penthouse to prison cell.'

But the farewell with the old couple, who had taken her in, made her feel at home for the first time in her life,and showered her with nothing but affections, had left her inflexible, unable to cope with the separation.

Natalia fought back her tears, not wanting to draw attention to herself. Happiness, she knew, hardly a lasting emotion in her life.

She let out a deep sigh and leaned her head back, the weight of her thoughts pulling her down.

America was a beautiful city, but her current situation made it hard to appreciate its charms. Maybe some other time, when she was in a better mood, she would explore.

For now, she just closed her eyes and let the silence lull her into a fragile sleep.

A few minutes later, she opened them to find herself in a mansion's grounds that were eerily familiar yet somehow different.

The grandiose decor and resplendent furnishings were identical to the mansion she had visited a month ago, where her hopes had been crushed and her heart had been shattered.

The sense of déjà vu was overwhelming, as if she had stepped into a parallel universe, reliving a memory...

They pulled up to the entrance, and Natalia saw the eerie man who had visited her in prison standing at the doorstep.

He strode towards them with a brisk, welcoming smile. "Greetings, ma'am," he said, and Natalia nodded in response.

"I'm Jude, Mr. Konstantis' assistant and personal bodyguard." He extended his hand for a handshake, and Natalia returned the courtesy.

"He sent me to ensure you were well received into the house. Currently, no one is home. Mrs. Gemma, the housekeeper, had gone on leave at the master's departure, and due to his sudden return, she wasn't able to make it back in time. She will be back this weekend."

"That's not a problem. We...I can manage," Natalia said with a weak smile. She started to pick up her luggage, but Jude stopped her. "No, ma'am. I'll handle that."

He lifted the bags as if they weighed nothing and headed inside, with Natalia following.

The interior of the mansion was just a copy and paste of she that one—classy and expensive, like a billionaire's playground. She settled onto the sofa while Jude dropped the bags in the center of the living room.

When he finished, he made a polite bow. "Ria and I will head back to the office now," he said.

"Did he say what time he'd be back?" Natalia asked, curiously.

"With the current business crisis, the time is uncertain. But it should be around midnight or later. I'll take my leave now."

"Okay," Natalia breathed, exhaustion washing over her as she sank into the sofa, the silence caving in at his swift exit.

She tiredly dozed off, only to be jolted awake by her stomach's loud protests. She tried to snuggle deeper into the sofa's embrace, but the hunger pangs persisted, refusing to let her ignore them.

Giving up, she got out of the sofa and staggered to the kitchen after a few attempts at failing to locate it.

She fixed up a quick sandwich and an apple juice with what was available and made her way back to the living room.

Her eyes drifted to the clock, and she saw it was half past one. "How bad was the crisis?" she wondered.

She dug into her food, finishing it almost immediately due to her previous hunger.

Relishing the last bite, the door suddenly burst open. She turned her head, still chewing, to find her husband walking in, frazzled and pulling at his tie.

He didn't notice her at first, until she choked on the sandwich she was gobbling in an attempt to greet him.

He stopped in his tracks at the sound, peered at her, and frowned before proceeding to march upstairs.

Her eyes followed him weary. Everything was so awkward. She grunted, heading over to wash the dirty plates in the kitchen.

She yelled, almost dropping the washed plates onto the floor, if not for Mavros' quick reflexes. "When did you get here?" she asked, still recovering from being startled moments ago.

"What a reckless woman," he snorted, pushing her startled figure aside to put the plates away and make himself a cup of coffee.

He had changed into casual clothes, at least making him a little less standoffish.

He took his seat in the dining room, sipping his coffee while scrolling through his tablet to check the stock market.

Natalia stood there awkwardly, thinking of what to say to diffuse the atmosphere. "Emmh, how was work today? Did you sort out the business crisis??"

He glanced up at her and back at his screen. She winced in embarrassment. 'Trying to play the homey wife or the dutiful partner, huh?' She goaded herself.

He drained his last coffee and placed it on the table. Crossing his hands together, he leaned forward. "You had something to tell me the other night?"

She whipped her head at his words. That was quite unexpected. But then, what about him wasn't?

"Oh, about that, it's nothing." She let out a nervous laugh. "It's so trivial that I can't remember it anymore. When I do, I'll let you know."

He had a lot going on right now, and this wasn't the right time to do so.

"Mmmh." He nodded, shifting to take his leave back to his room. She followed him up the stairs, feeling like an afterthought since he hadn't said a word to her.

He stopped in front of his bedroom, finally acknowledging her presence with a curt look.

"What?"

"You haven't told me where I'm supposed to sleep."

He glared at her. "Not this room." They both stared at the door and back at each other.

"And the farther, the better," he spat, slamming the door shut with a force that made her flinch.

The sound echoed through the hallway, a harsh punctuation mark on their strained exchange.

She blinked rapidly, her eyes stinging from the abrupt dismissal. "Scum!" She spat venomously.