The scent of her cologne added to the hint of darkness in her being as she bent closer in her seat to shake your hand.
"Pleasure to meet you." She smiled.
"Oh, the pleasure is all mine."
As if on reflex, her smile disappeared, with no trace of softness in her eyes anymore. Quickly but gracefully, she returned to her position and locked her arms together, her sharp chin regaining the angularity and chiselled look once she had stopped smiling.
"Now that that's done," Dharma spoke, "let's discuss the subject of why you didn't steal the phone."
"Like I said, it's not like he will hand it over to me." You replied.
"It's almost like you're trying to help him out, are you sure we should trust you, darling?"
"Tch!" you clicked your tongue. "Tell me a better way. If he finds out that I'm helping you, Passione won't waste time getting rid of me."
"Should we fail, that is," Dharma commented. "Well, I agree, the best way is to not alert him. If only there was a way..."
Shoving out a metallic box from his coat pocket, he pulled out a cigarette and then placed it between his lips. His eyes remained glued to yours as the plastic-bodied lighter clicked and lit up.
"Quite cheap for a man like you," you chuckled out.
"They didn't have the ones I wanted. I even forgot to bring my lighter." He puffed out a thick cloud of ashy smoke.
"So I'm assuming I'll have to make sure your identity and intention stay protected."
"Precisely, but how do you do that?"
"We don't. It doesn't matter, does it?"
You turned your head in the woman's direction who had spoken the words. Doriane licked her lips and continued to speak slowly, "If we end up proving to you that Vinegar Doppio indeed is the killer of your brother, you get to kill him. We let you leave safely, in the guise that we captured the two of you and the boy happened to lose his life. Our identity as the traitors remain, and you continue to investigate under Passione. How does that sound to you, Y/n L/n?"
"Wait wait wait wait wait! Did you just ask me to kill him?" You interjected. "I thought we said the boy stays safe, Dharma!"
"We won't get anywhere if he remains unharmed," Dharma answered puffing out the cloud of smoke. "And I promised to keep you safe, not him. If you co-operate."
You hummed hesitantly. "Agreed, but how do you prove that he's the killer?"
"You leave that to me."
The dark-haired woman pushed a curled lock of her hair behind her ear, looking at you.
Out of thin air, two iridescent beetles materialised into existence on her palm, leaving you agape. They shone like well-polished metal, and although one could tell they certainly were bugs, they were still unusual in appearance; their antennae did not exist, their exoskeleton appeared to be embedded with tiny jewels, and you were almost sure if you had to look at them in the dark, they would sparkle like gemstones. They were attractive nonetheless.
"Don't be afraid, they won't hurt you."
Doriane's voice startled you as she warmly whispered too close to your ear.
Stand, of course, you thought.
"W-What... Is that...?" You cried out, trying to keep your revelation to yourself. No one was to know that you were aware of stands. However, there was a problem with your pretension. From what Doppio had taught you about stands, some were visible to normal human beings, while some weren't. If the two bugs were a stand of the latter kind, then your secret must have been out already.
"Adrienne and Adrianne. My two pets. Explaining this would take me a while, but in short, they're what we call stands. They're magical, you know."
You continued to stare at the two little insects, trying to fathom as to why in the world would someone name their bugs so grand. The highest someone could go with bizarrely naming their pet critter would be ROGER or something like that, from what you knew of that one childhood crackhead friend in school.
"I see you're interested. You're lucky you can see them."
Your heart skipped for a moment and you almost choked. "What do you mean?"
Doriane put her satin-gloved hand forward for you to take and then gently pulled you up on your feet. She placed her free palm on your back to push you closer to herself as she spoke, "Most stands cannot be seen by normal people but only other stand users. Stands like mine, however, are visible to people who do not have a stand."
You turned your head to her direction and her breath brushed against your lips softly. "Other stand users?"
"Yes," she pushed a thin lock of hair behind your ear, only for it to slip back onto your cheek. Her eyes trailed along the length of your jaw as she spoke, "Our friend Damiano is one too."
"That is none of her business, Doriane!" Dharma snapped. "You should actually be telling her what our plan is."
Shifting her attention back to her 'pets', Doriane picked up one of the bugs and held it towards you. "Adrienne here will help you. She's easy to work with."
Oh, it's a girl, you mentally whispered.
"I just need her to get to his room," she mumbled.
You held out your hand and 'Adrienne' crawled onto your palm while Doriane looked at you with a sinister hint in her eyes. "And what after that?" You asked bluntly.
Doriane pushed your palm away, helping you stretch your arm out. The bug took off and flew out of the room through the little cleft between the door and the floor.
"You'll find out in a while," she whispered and stepped away from you, holding her other bug in her hand.
Doriane's heels clicked against the shiny floor of the room, while Dharma occasionally puffed out the smoke of his cheap cigarette. For a few minutes, there was nothing but silence, with the only sounds being that of her shoes and his exhales. You chose to sit there, quiet and observant, sharply eyeing every move the two made. Sure, two could help better than one, but pulling out your stand now could mean failing everything you had come to so far.
"There's the boy."
Doriane turned around from where she had been strutting aimlessly and walked in the direction of where the rest of you were sitting. She made herself comfortable in one of the couches, then put her palm out, revealing the second bug that was sitting there motionlessly.
"My stand comprises of two individuals. Adrienne has the ability to invade any non-living object through and through," she spoke boldly while the second bug in her hand gradually started expanding. "Adrianne takes it away from here."
You watched the bug twist and turn, and transform into a little block, then noticed it materialize details on itself. It didn't take you too long to realise that what it was turning into.
Doriane's stand had turned into a phone.
The phone that belonged to Doppio.
"You understand," Doriane said, amused, while you nonchalantly sat there, mentally praying that Doppio had listened to your request and changed the phone. "One invades the object, the other replicates. And now," she picked it up as she spoke, "we can see everything that's inside."
Your heart felt tonnes heavier, bloodrush banged against the walls of your vessels so hard you could feel it within your head drumming. Doriane's painted red nails glimmered as she pressed her fingers on the keypad of the cellphone clone, swiftly shifting from option to option, checking for any possible clues that could lead to the Boss. Although the air conditioner had been on for quite long, the atmosphere of the room turned humid, warm and heavier, making it a little difficult for you to breathe. No, it was your body. You thanked the lords for not letting the sweat show on your face as you felt a single drop trickle down your neck to your back. How long had it been since she and Dharma had been encroaching on Vinegar Doppio's private property? Was it even the same phone to begin with? Had he at all heeded to your instructions?
Sigh!
Doriane breathed out exhausted and placed the phone on top of the desk. "Not a single text message, no calls, no contacts, just a sim card. Does he have a pager? Or anything else?"
"Nothing that I've seen," you replied, inner self relieved so far on her failure. Maybe he had listened to your advice after all. "So what now?"
"What now?" Dharma responded. "We wait." He stood up from his seat and proceeded to walk off towards the door, followed by Doriane, who you had not spotted moving. Stealthy, you thought.
"Get dressed, darling," Dharma spoke before disappearing behind the door. "We're going to have ourselves a beautiful evening."
You smugly smiled at his back, while Doriane half-lidded stared at you, before clicking the door shut behind her. Once again, silence had surrounded you. You turned your head towards the desk; the clone cell phone was gone. Of course, you thought, they wouldn't let you in on everything. You thought about calling Doppio and telling him but realised that the two would find out easily, hence dropping the thought away. Taking steps in the direction of the wardrobe where you had kept your clothes, you let your mind wander over two questions.
What should you wear for the evening?
How was all this going to turn out?
~~~
The hallway where Vinegar Doppio waited was drop-dead silent. He nervously checked for any off creases on his light purple dress shirt, then blowing away the few dust specks he spotted on his fabric. He pensively sighed, shifting his weight from one foot to the other, then at once quickly gathering himself evenly on legs as he heard the sound of the doorknob turn.
You walked out of the room in a milky purple, with a misty smell of lavender following you. You looked in front and there was Doppio, standing with his eyes somewhere down your waist. You coughed to bring his attention to your face.
"Ahem!"
He was quick to shift his gaze to your face and sheepishly smile at you.
"What were you looking at?" You cheekily smiled at him, while turning around and locking the door of your room.
"I was... Looking at the lavender flowers on your belt. They're pretty. Purple looks great on you by the way."
You chuckled. "You pull it off much better than any woman, honestly. This dress just made me think about your sweater, so, I just picked it. I don't know, it's good I guess." You finished yourself, fidgeting with the hem of the skirt of the dress that reached just below your knee.
"And, we're twinning."
"Are we?" You asked with a mischievous smile on your face. "I should have assumed that you were going to wear purple again. I am going to admit though, you rock it pretty hard!"
The two of you walked across the hallway, occasionally passing by other people, some couples, some singles, some work staff. The conversation may have been active, but the only thought in your mind was about the cell phone. How were you to warn Doppio? Sure you could write it down for him, but would it be okay to do so? What if Doriane or Dharma had something else up their sleeve?
The dining hall was filled, almost all tables crowded, every direction packed with humans. You lightly patted the gun on your thigh under the skirt, while feeling the gun underneath the bust of the dress tightly tied to you just by breathing.
The crowd may seem harmless, but there was no telling or predicting what Dharma had kept in store for you.
Thinking of the devil, you spotted him at one of the far end tables, alone.
So that's how we're doing it?
The two of you skirted past the tables and servers, being careful not to hit anyone or anything that could lead to a ruckus and unnecessary attention and embarrassment.
"I hope this goes fine," you mumbled.
"Good evening, Mr Doppio," Dharma greeted your friend with a dry expression. He walked over to you and almost began to pull out your seat, when he smirked and retracted his hands, then gesturing a nod at you before returning to his seat.
"I hope we weren't too late," you spoke as you adjusted your attire while sitting on your chair.
"Not at all," Dharma replied, then turning to Doppio. "I suppose you don't have any problem cooperating at least during dinner."
"Not if it means I can find my way to bust you people," he simply smiled heartily and replied, which caught both your attention and appreciation. He was unexpectedly calm tonight. Thinking back about how enraged he was that he had to cooperate with Dharma Pawer, he had turned out to be quite mature compared to before. Perhaps it was because he was in his homeland. Perhaps because he was finally under Passione's radar. Maybe there was something that made him feel safe and confident. Nevertheless, it was nice to see him so.
The dinner so far had been quite calm. Wine glasses had been clinked, except for Doppio, who had chosen to drink a non-alcoholic beverage just for namesake, the food tasted great, everything was on Dharma, and he was being quite hospitable - so far. Before you were about to mention the same, he began speaking - something you didn't want to hear, for the better.
"Your Boss," he said, gulping down the wine, "Do you think you can forget about him and join us, Vinegar?"
Doppio smiled at him calmly. "And betray Passione?" He chuckled. "You must be out of your mind."
"Perhaps. But why not, I have you cornered after all."
You turned towards Doppio who was looking at you, then you turned towards Dharma.
"I'm sure you are unaware, but I have proof that you killed Y/n's brother."
You kept a blank expression, trying to remain calm. What was about to come next out of Dharma's mouth, the guesses were worrying you. Any wrong move, and Doppio might end up making you lose all of it.
"Dharma!" You exasperated softly bit loud enough for him to hear you. "Can't we have our dinner peacefully at least?"
"Not really. Don't you want to take your revenge on him too, Y/n?"
Doppio looked at you, lips half parted, eyes widened in surprise. "Y/n? What is he saying?"
Although his voice was still peaceful, you could sense the worry in it. He was definitely worried about messing this up. Of course, there was the unconfirmed question of whether he was indeed the killer of your brother or not, but if he was, he was definitely scared that it was all over since now he knew that you were aware of it. What was worse, you couldn't shake away the act that you were betraying Passione and joining hands with the traitors. It was even believable - vengeance and hunger for power and position served as wonderful reasons for betrayal.
Dharma tossed the photograph across the table towards Doppio, who by now had lost the cool in his face and was visibly reddening at spots, a drop of sweat trickling down his forehead. He looked at the human in the picture, recognising the face. Gulping down the lump of fear in his mouth, he opened his mouth to speak to you.
"Y/n, d-do you believe this?" He stuttered.
You remained stoic and motionless. "The picture says it. Your jig is up."
"B-but... It wasn't me..."
"Try all you want, you know who this is." Dharma laughed.
"Y/n, I swear."
You couldn't help it. You had to keep the act. You mentally screamed at Doppio to get the fact that it was just pretension, in hopes that he would telepathically hear you somehow. All you could do best was to remain calm and expressionless, and keep denying him.
He breathed out, dropping deeper into his seat, looking dejected. For a while remained so, while you and Dharma proceeded to finish the remaining wine in your glass, surrounded by the quiet on your table but the bustle in the rest, which was stressful, to say the least.
Doppio stood up and looked at you in a defeated frown.
"I'll be back in a minute. Please excuse me."
"Just so you're aware, my men are everywhere," Dharma bitterly chuckled.
"I'm not running away," Doppio mumbled a reply before walking away towards the washrooms in the other direction.
You waited for him to get out of sight and then began speaking.
"What the fuck was that, Dharma? What are you doing?"
"We need to find out clues. I only prompted him so that we could do it quickly."
"And that involved making me look like a traitor?! How exactly is that going to help?"
Dharma sighed. "He'll panic. I'm telling you. He's a kid after all. You just wait."
"And spill out? What do you think he is? He may be young, Dharma, but he's earned his position in the mafia!"
"I didn't exactly say he'll spill it. He may do something, however. Even the slightest suspicious movement from his side, my people are keeping a watch."
"Dharma I swear to -"
Your voice was interrupted by the ringing of a phone. It wasn't yours. Before you could look for it, Dharma pulled out his cell phone from the pocket.
"Yes?" He answered the call.
~~~
"He's doing it," Doriane stood in her room beside the desk speaking loud and clear on the phone as she observed the copy of Doppio's phone light up, its buttons pressing on its own. "Not sure what he's doing, but he's doing something."
The screen appeared to be scrolling over various options randomly, with no trend, no intention - like a set of random key smashes. Doriane's eyes frowned upon this observation and she bent slight closer towards the phone laying on the desk.
"Any calls? Texts?" Dharma's static-filled voice echoed through the other end of the cell phone she had been holding to her ear.
"Nothing yet. In fact, he's nowhere near those. He's just... Scrolling aimlessly through the settings... Okay, now he's searching through his phonebook... Never mind it's empty... Lord what in the world is this brat doing?!"
"Calm, Doriane. Keep looking, I'm keeping you on call. Tell me anything suspicious."
At the dining, Dharma beamed a smirk at you. "I told you he'd do something."
Your heart sank for a moment. "What is he doing?"
"Well, for now, random key smashes it seems. But Doriane is keeping a watch on the clone cell phone. I'm sure he's panicking. It's been a while since he went. Should we check on him?" He finished with a childish playful giggle that you thought looked disgusting on him.
You found yourself getting worried, but even more so curious. What was he doing in the washroom for so long? Had he really lost his cool?
"You know if it all comes to you killing that kid, I'm not sure if I'll be creeped out or wildly turned on by the scene," he commented with a grin. "Doriane would love to see it even more. She's grown quite -"
Muffled voices that were loud enough for the two of you to hear from Dharma's phone echoed, grasping both of your attention. You exchanged surprised glances, then Dharma quickly placed the phone to his ear.
"Doriane?" He calmly asked. "Hello?"
"Are you alright?"
"What?"
"Hello?"
You watched him exclaim and frown in tension while he spoke, understanding nothing from the one sides input of the conversation.
"We're coming right now, hang on!" He finally spat out and hung up.
"What happened?" You asked him, clueless.
"Doriane's getting attacked... I think," he replied as he clumsily picked his cell phone and began rushing towards the exit. You grasped your little purse and followed him, skirting through the crowds and busy tables.
"Attacked by who?"
"I don't know," he breathed out as he ran, leading you. "She couldn't speak properly... Choking... Maybe bleeding too... I hope not."
"What about Doppio? He's still in the washroom!"
"I'm going to make a wild guess that it's probably him. And I think I'm correct. Bet on it."
You followed him through the empty hallway, passing by doors after doors when he finally took a halt and knocked at one of them.
"Doriane! Doriane, are you there? Open the door!" He slammed the door a couple of times, then breaking it open after a few tries. The door latch came off and fell to the floor and rolled towards Doriane, who was purpled out in the floor, choking and coughing, spitting out blood.
You and Dharma leapt towards her, attempting to hold her straight. "What happened?" he asked her, "Who hurt you?!"
She continued choking in agony, without replying, while grasping the cloned phone, that had been half broken and stabbing her bleeding palm. Her face continued to turn a darker tint of purple from the lack of breath.
"I think she's still getting attacked," You uttered behind Dharma, who paused for a moment on listening to you speak.
"You're correct, but how?"
You had an idea about it, but couldn't speak it out. Doppio must have used his stand, you thought. Did he figure out that his phone had been literally 'bugged'?
"Call your stand back, Doriane! Do it! Now!" Dharma exclaimed at her choking face.
"Now!"
What were a mere few seconds felt like an eternity, as Doriane emitted an aura, that you pretended to not notice. Her bug-stand flew into the room, while the cloned cell phone returning to its original form, fused with it and then disappeared into thin air. Doriane's face took a little while but did return to a paler pinkish hue, as she tried to catch her breath, wiping her drool off her face.
"What happened?" Dharma asked once again, this time composed.
"He..... Found out..... About my..... Stand.... He broke.... the phone.... I tried to call back my stand.... But he wouldn't let go.... He's.... Strong... I hate to admit..."
Doriane's breathy words didn't make much sense, but it was enough to let all of you understand that it was a stand attack on a stand and the damage had been reflected on her body.
"I was.... Only able to bring it back.... 'Cause he fainted."
"Any clues that you found out?" Dharma ignored all of her explanations and began asking her.
"Let her catch up first," you snapped. Honestly, how disgusting could he be, you screamed at him mentally.
"He...... Didn't make a call...." Doriane exasperated, "But I heard a second voice...... I don't recognise it, but.... That kid was talking to him...... But he never called anyone!"
"He must have met someone. Did you see anyone?"
"Nothing! My stand doesn't have a strong vision, but there was no one in the washroom, that I am completely sure of. He was all alone, talking to someone... And you might laugh at me if I tell you this.... I think... I think he was.... Talking to himself..."
"Seriously?" You almost gagged out a laugh, suppressing it with a sigh. "We do that too, all the time, I think that's normal."
"No!" She snapped back, "it was not that... It was weird! Creepy! He was whining, crying even, going on about how he had been cornered and he was afraid."
"And you're saying he never made a call?" Dharma said.
"Never. He didn't! He simply pressed the keys randomly, then got his cell to ring on a fake call, and he talked to himself! That voice was probably his own! He's mocking us, Dharma! He knows! That fucking brat! I want him dead right now!"
Angered beyond her wits, Doriane stood up in fury, unaware of the repulsive appearance that had painted her entire being. She lashed out towards the door, fists clenched, jaw tightly shut while teething out curses. Right the next moment, you saw no sign of her. She had disappeared, just like that, within a single moment, out of your sight.
A long pause of silence followed; Dharma looked at you, eyebrows curled up in astonishment. "Where did she..."
Still on your knees, you crawled down the path towards the door, gradually lifting yourself up to your feet, Dharma following suit.
"Umm... Doriane?" You called out for her, but there was no reply.
You pulled the door in further, walking out of the room looking to the left, an empty corridor shrouded in darkness. Turning to your right, you proceeded to call out for the woman's name once again before stuttering to a halt, frozen and still. There, on the far end of the right hallway, lay Doriane's body, chopped away into two arms, two legs, and a whole torso that spasmed arrhythmically in pain, choking out the last of it's breath.
Dharma exhaled in horror standing behind you.
"Fuck."
~×~
_______________________________________
A/n: WHOOPS my baby sis accidentally published the incomplete chapter if y'all got an update haha! I took SOOOOO LONG to upload an update I'm so sorry! I've got one excuse - PTSD SUCKS! I'm okay now, I guess! Lol. Anyway, DUDE!!!! I've GOT SO MUCH TO BE HAPPY ABOUT RN-
* STONE OCEAN GOT ANNOUNCED!!!! YASSSS!!!!
*I REACHED NO.1 ON THE #PASSIONE AND THAT'S CRAZY!!!! Y'ALL ARE READING THIS???
*THE COMMENTS ON MY CHAPTERS ARE GETTING ME WORKED UP TO WRITE FASTER!!!! REALLY!!! THANK YOU SO MUCH!!! I DIDNT EXPECT ALL THIS!!!!
THE NEXT CHAPTER WONT TAKE TOO LONG, I PROMISE. I WANT TO GET THIS CHAPTER TO A NEAR PERFECT END (NOT SO SOON LOL) AND THEN QUICKLY START WITH MY "DIO" BOOK!!!! THE OUTLINE OF THE STORY, THE PLOT, THE CHARACTERS, ALL OF IT IS READY! Can't WAIT TO PUBLISH IT! AAAAAHHHH IM SPEAKING IN CAPS ITS LIKE IM SCREAMING YOU KNOW WHAT IM GONNA LEAVE IT THAT WAY MAYBE I HAD ONE TOO MANY ANTIDEPRESSANTS LOOOOL BYE SEE YOU ALL NEXT CHAPTER TAKE CARE!