girl on fire

In the time he’d known her, Luca had observed Nina Ambrose to be exceedingly beautiful, gregarious, and astute; and she played each angle expertly and to her advantage. Not to mention her unshakeable loyalty towards those in her inner fold. Having centered himself within her scope, Luca could feel her incising, puzzling, dissecting, prying for the next thread conspicuous enough to pull. Try as she might, Luca was confident that she wouldn’t find anything worth any further inquisition, but that didn’t translate into an itching to spend more time than was necessary around her. What was it that she hoped to find beneath his facade once she’d unraveled it, he wondered? Theirs was a delicate dance, one where a single misstep could result in one of them being rent apart for the whole of Montreal’s polite society to see.

The made man mirrored her smile, nodding appreciatively. “Grazie mille.” Inked fingers steered the nearest full plate toward himself, spread the silk napkin across his lap. It smelled heavenly, and featured an over-easy egg on toasted brioche. Beneath the knife, the bubble of yolk opened and bled into the bed beneath. “Our time is too valuable to waste, so I’d hazard to say our conversations aren’t meaningful.” Luca’s eyes flicked between the woman pointing an accusatory cookie in his direction and the pool of runny yolk he was dabbing at. He popped the bite into his mouth and emitted a delighted hum of approval. Loathe as he was to admit it, the finer scene was beginning to grow on him. “But, if you insist on knowing, I, like you, am here because certain people need help maintaining an image. It’s a little less sexy and a little more sinister than the lifestyle you emanate for the public consumption, sure, but without instilling some fear in the competition, maintaining a public image is…” Pointless. The thought trailed. Luca shrugged. “I stay because our people need all the help they can get.“ It wasn’t untrue. Like being drawn to a drop of blood in an ocean, Luca had a way of sensing opportunity in others’ desperation. He could see his path clearly. “Enough about me. How do you fit into all of this?” He asked, carving off another piece. “You and the Kings have always been close, I take it?”

Image. She supposed that was a plausible answer, though why Luca would think that he was responsible for the Ivories’ image was beyond Nina. “The public is never meant to see everything, I don’t care what line of work you’re in.” This was true in both Nina’s personal and professional lives, and people in both would have some opinions to voice should they find out about the other. “It’s an art, really. Showing people what they need to see rather than throwing things to the wall to see if they stick.”

Nina scoffed. “Our people.” How quickly Luca had managed to ingratiate himself with the higher-ups of the Ivory Syndicate. She has slipped into her role rather easily due to the fact that she was born with that particular silver spoon between her ever-smirking lips, but she’d still had to convince Zephyr and the others that she wasn’t completely useless. Milena’s fondness for Nina had garnered her a fair amount of privilege, but appointment could not rest solely on favoritism or inheritance. “Are we your people, Luca? From where I’m sitting, you seem to be the type who mostly cares about himself.” An inquisitive brow rose, though the statement was amusing coming from her. Perhaps it was Zephyr taking to him; Nina couldn’t deny the similarities between the two, from general attitude and demeanor to their chosen professions.

But she wouldn’t badger him; that wouldn’t win her any battles. Pompous men (and women, for that matter) didn’t like to be harassed. The cookie met her plate again, discarded in favor of conversing about her favorite topic - herself. “Sure. Emilia’s five months older than me, we were practically raised as sisters.” Almost, but not quite; Nina could pretend to be a King all she wanted, but that didn’t make her one. It was a fact she’d rather not dwell on. “Private schools, private yachts, private parties. It was all very Gossip Girl. But we’re clearly not the same. Emilia got the brains.” She was half-joking there - Emilia held down the fort with book smarts, while Nina’s leaned mostly toward social. They balanced each other out perfectly. “You can just ask me about her, you know,” Nina commented pointedly, busying her hands with folding a napkin on the table before meeting his glance again. “I’d have to be blind not see how interested you are in Emilia.”

Nina;

Where: La Glace - underground ice bar When: 11pm, Vendredi

Pop quiz! On a Friday night was Julian:

a) Being a good man and donating his time to the homeless

b) Just getting done with praying at church

c) Blowing through a baggie of snow at an ice bar with the intention of getting out of his mind

The answer wasn’t exactly surprising. One day the habit was going to catch up to him, but wrapped in his jacket and sipping on a dark & stormy, it seemed that day wasn’t today. Business was slow at the ports for a Friday, with the Harbour Master signing a few papers here and there until his time to leave rang. He’d spent the majority of his time at his desk, mind running through a billion scenarios with the Vittori and the Vargas. Would his potential skip go smoothly, or was he going to lose a limb? What if the emerald empire wasn’t all it was cracked up to be? What if Henri gave him up to SPVM? There were far too many questions and too few answers for him to have a normal evening. Sitting at the bar, he didn’t pay much mind to the woman who appeared beside him until he saw her face. Nina Ambrose. The Pistris once had business with her family, but it had died with Michael. “If it isn’t the Instagram darling of Montreal…” 

@ambrosenina​

Breaking out a winter coat in the beginning of the summer made for a strange outfit; if she wore too little underneath, she would be freezing inside the bar...but if she wore too much underneath, Nina would emerge from the underground haunt glistening, and not in an attractive way. She’d managed what she thought to be a happy medium, made sure Emilia did the same, and dragged her friend out for a night on the town. The place seemed to be a hit with the McGill crowd, and so Nina left Emilia with a group of other grad students so she could procure a refill. “Another vodka tonic,” she ordered when she sidled up to the bar, sliding off leather gloves to tap her fingers against the counter. It was only then that a voice from beside her made her turn to take in her surroundings.

Julian Pistris was an asshole, but nobody had to be told that. It emanated from him like an expensive cologne. He pushed people’s buttons with ease, everything he did was for his own glory...in that sense, the two weren’t so different. He did seem to have a penchant for blood in quite a literal sense, however, which Nina had yet to acquire. But at least he wasn’t what Nina abhorred most of all - boring.  A smirk bloomed on her lips. “Julian...how did you manage to crawl up from the ninth circle of hell?”

a scoff left Kane’s lips, spit lining the bottom of his lip as his tongue soon replaced the moisture. He couldn’t be sure of Nina’s motivations. Conversation was easy. Was there a point to that? The man felt so tightly wound by circumstance that he wasn’t sure he could deal with picking apart the petite woman before him. He didn’t care for purpose. He wanted peace. He wanted to sleep. His throat tensed as he forced a reply out.    ❛     Who knew you’d retain such sweetness?     ❜    Kane said.     ❛     I never knew my dad. Never found a point of needing one for a while, but my ma did find one man to keep her tender.      ❜

Nobody who truly knew Nina could ever describe her as sweet. She had moments where kindness shone through, but she was more determined than anything else. Which reminded her that this wasn’t some nice older man with a baby walking beside her, this was the Vargas consigliere with a baby walking beside her. And he had been rude to Emilia. So why was she continuing with pleasantries and sharing childhood information? Nina’s brows drew together and she stopped in her tracks, fixing her gaze on him again. “Emilia is my closest friend. We’re practically sisters. So just remember that if you get in her face again, you’ll be sorry.” The baby’s wide eyes slid her way and Nina did her best not to feel uncomfortable while an infant watched her threaten her father. “She’s the sweet one. So I’m sure you can imagine how well I play the opposite.”

  Vivian didn’t particularly enjoy frequenting the diner that was across the street from her place of work, but desperate times called for desperate measures — and right now, she needed coffee. The woman had been up all night after a bender with some of her colleagues and, though she was able to catch some sleep in the early morning, she had to be up and productive for the rest of the day. It was less than professional, but she had done much more on much less sleep in the past, so this was nothing.

  Sitting in the back of the diner where no one could see how haggard she looked, Vivian looked up as Nina spoke. She raised her eyebrows behind her sunglasses, taking a sip of her second cup of coffee, allowing her manicured hands to hold onto the ceramic mug with ease.

  “Depends on the secret. Is it worth my time?” A small, easily concealed smile grew on Vivian’s face as she watched Nina, enjoying the easy banter the two had.

“Yes. I’m hardly boring, Vivian.” It was only a matter of time before Nina bragged to someone. Emilia had yet to learn the full details of Nina’s plan because Nina had not quite gauged how the other girl would take it, and she wouldn’t be able to bear if Emilia became disappointed in her. This also wasn’t something she could shout from the rooftops either, considering she was supposed to be sneaky. Then again, Nina had spent her entire life being sneaky, showing people what she wanted them to see and hiding what they could never find out.

“Emilia and I spent some time in Colombia last summer,” she began quietly, just in case anybody unsavory snuck up on them. “And I met a guy, of course. We hit it off, saw each other a lot, had a great time...and then I came home and figured I’d never see him again.” That wasn’t anything out of the ordinary for a young woman like her - Nina had met and slept with plenty of men she would never see again. That was half the fun. “So imagine my surprise when I see him again at the vineyard.” She paused for a few seconds for dramatic effect, as was her way. “Rodrigo Vargas, the Vargas underboss.”

Nina never really did this for as long as they knew each other. Brie assumed this was more what a conversation between her and Em looked like. While it still existed in a realm of vagueness and ambiguity, the woman welcomed her friends step towards being more open.  Brie leaned forward in the chair she was settled in, listening intently to Nina’s words. “You want more power.” It wasn’t a question. Brie knew. 

She existed at the bottom of ranks, but the Ivory’s gave her something she never had - power. The woman was satisfied with the little taste of it she had, feeling it gave her use and defense against the world of shit that had been throw at her prior. Nina, on the other hand, was a natural born leader, someone who probably craved as much power as they could hold. “Useful is different than purpose.” Her eyes flickered back and forth as she took in Nina.

“Find what makes you valuable. Find what you add to it.” Perhaps Brie shouldn’t of been encouraging this. “Then no one can question you.”

It was possible that Nina had just spoken ore to Brie at once in the past two minutes than she had since she met the other woman. She was rather confident when speaking about superficial things, but getting nervous or serious sent her babbling. Nina didn’t like feeling exposed, but if she had just admitted insecurities of her own free will, that meant things really were bothering her. “Sorry I just rambled on like that,” she murmured, shaking her head. “I don’t feel like I can talk to Em about this yet, you know?” Besides, she needed an unbiased opinion.

“Yes.” All Nina wanted, in every facet of her life, was more power. She was the queen of the preschool playground, the middle school lacrosse team, the high school hallways, all of Manhattan’s social events where young women were present. She didn’t feel that as a part of the Syndicate and for some reason, she was willing to work for it. “That’s a good point,” Nina conceded, taking Brie’s words into consideration. Useful was different than purposeful. “That makes sense. That’s simple.” She cracked a smile then, amused by her own seriousness. “You ever think of becoming a shrink?”

a wheeze of a chuckle left him. Christ, when was the last time he had a laugh? He couldn’t think of the last time as the intensity of the last few days climbed to a climax. It was either laugh or cry, and Kane would rather slit his throat than cry in front of an enemy. So, they waltzed. He took a step closer, slowly walking in tune with her again. There was no point of standing and speaking nor did they need to be caught speaking like this.   ❛     I lurk. And how else am I supposed to get diapers? It’s a shame I didn’t realize how expensive they fucking are. How soon do you potty train them?     ❜

Everybody she knew was surprising her these days, why would another Vargas man be any different? This was certainly a more pleasant interaction than she’d expected, although he had been quite pleasant with her in the midst of her grief induced rampage through South America. Nina couldn’t help but think that Rodrigo was lucky to have somebody like Kane in his corner. Her brows shot up at the question and she scoffed. “Why are you asking me? Do I look like I know how to take care of a kid?” She was a kid, or at least that’s what it felt like sometimes. “My dad raised me, you know,” she offered, though she couldn’t put a finger on why. “Girls need their dads.”

nina felt safe. She brought out this innocent stature that she capitalized on. People could trust big eyes and a darling smile. Kane knew better despite how unsettling it felt to be at ease around her. It was a trap for sure. Marie dangled her short fat legs at Kane’s side as bubbles formed from her lips once the stranger was out of view.    ❛     Ah, I don’t have full custody if that reassures you. Though amuse me, what makes a man like me seem strange for domesticity?    ❜   Kane pressed, teasing mostly. He shifted the baby to his other hip as the girl gripped against the collar of his shirt and tugged as quickly as her tiny hands could manage. The man maintained a plain expression throughout. After all, he’s been through worse than a defiant infant.    ❛     Is your life as true as it is on social media, hm?    ❜

He caught her in a bit of a conundrum; logic would suggest than a man involved in less than savory activities would be a horrible caregiver, but Nina knew that wasn’t the case. Her own father was her biggest champion, and she saw how Anthony and Marco doted on Emilia. Doing bad things didn’t necessarily make a person bad. Her nose scrunched slightly; Nina didn’t like being proven wrong, even if it was only in her own head. “You just look silly with a diaper bag,” she responded instead of revealing the inner workings of her mind. Nina recognized the importance of worming her way into this man’s good graces. “Do you follow me?” A small smile returned and Nina chuckled. “Mostly. But there is an art to showing people what you want them to see.” 

Emilia and Nina. Nina and Emilia. They had always come as a packaged pair, only a few months separating the girls. She couldn’t recall any important memory, any defining moment that didn’t include her best friend. From their first day in school to the last met gala they attended, every step they’d taken forward was done together. Without the other girl, Emilia’s nose would always be in a book, the world passing her by without a second thought. She’d played everything so safe, comfortable in a routine, and seeking no trouble at all… 

That shell started to break with every adventure Nina took her on, encouragement growing into self-confidence and a strength that she needed to survive. It was okay to dream bigger, it was okay to care for yourself and know that you matter. It was okay to take a risk- because Nina would be there to help her back up. “We will… I know it’s going to take some time, but I’m all in, I don’t want to lose you. Ever.” The words were with said with a fierce conviction, hand in hand. If Nina had never been apart of her life, everyone would surely still be walking all over Emilia King. 

 “God Nina, I really missed you.” She pulled the other girl into a hug. They were better than the mistakes they made, she was sure of it. In time, the wounds would heal while they tried to get back to that place they knew so well. Emilia would never stop putting working towards it, not when Nina Ambrose meant the world to her. For their family’s sake. For Milena. And most importantly for each other… spring would come again. 

❛     as you know, people have lives outside of their positions. Though, I know we can’t say the same for you.     ❜     Kane let a smirk blossom over his lips, easier to screw his mouth into a smile than a scowl. He didn’t dislike Nina. In fact, he admired the way she walked through life with little dissonance. She was carefree and stupid. He could envy wanting to pummel through the obstacles in his life rather than just calculating. And yet, he stood, brain winding through screws as she popped off at him. Did she know anything about Ava? Did the Ivory retaliate against him for gaining rank? He wasn’t sure if he could trust the petite girl before him.

She liked Rodrigo. Their tongues danced a game that he was far too smart to play. There shouldn’t be a reason she would know about Ava. She didn’t know about Marie. He adjusted his daughter on his hip and lifted the small hand that tugged against his shirt. Her fingers curled against his fingers as drool dribbled from her lip.  ❛     Where are your manners anyhow? Hm? Marie, this is Nina. She’s a lovely girl.     ❜    Marie only gurgled in response, turning her head briskly in the other direction to murmur ‘Ma, ma, ma.’  

“Outside of their position.” Nina snorted, shaking her head slightly. “What is this, Buckingham Palace? I have a personal life. You’ve seen it.” Kane was smart, that she knew. He had been as welcoming a host as there ever was, though if Nina had been paying more attention, perhaps she would have picked up on ulterior motives or a bit of scoffing at the stupidity of her youth. Then again, she rarely saw what she didn’t want to see. 

He was studying her now, all whilst keeping a firm hold of the little girl on his hip. She was adorable, but Nina had never known what exactly to do with children. The good thing about a baby, she supposed, was that babies couldn’t talk back. Nina offered the child what she willed to be a warm smile, but clearly Marie had other things on her mind than paying attention to a stranger. A girl after her own heart. “Am I? A lovely girl? That’s nice of you.” She was having a much more pleasant interaction than Emilia had described having at the vineyard. “So this is your other life, then. Seems a bit domestic for a man like you.”

Brie would of loved to give the other woman some good advice, about how a night out wouldn’t fix anything. Seeing as the woman retreated to vices herself anytime she didn’t want to deal with anything, it would of been hypocritical. A good time is what Brie craved when things began to drag her down, but at the end of the day those things she was running from continued to follow her. The last question felt a bit off topic. Of course she didn’t mind, though it drew some concern from the woman. There had to be a reason why Nina was asking her this.

“Well, I don’t think I ever knew this was right, per say.” Brie hummed softly, sipping her beer again. “It happened slowly - a job at Luxure, than an ask to bum some weed, which became selling a variety to clients, which lead to selling all the time. Then came an ask, a hit on a man who came to the club constantly. He was someone I watched overstep with the girls over and over. It made the hit easy, knowing he was trash.” The raven haired woman shrugged. “Slowly and all at once, it felt like I was apart of something, which I’ve never been.” Her gaze turned towards Nina. “Why do you ask?”

Whenever Nina showed an interest in people, she usually did her best to make sure that it didn’t come off as genuine. Others were merely an amusement to her, a means to an end, and it was easier to walk among them when they all adored her. Her image was carefully crafted, and it could be perceived as weak to care too much. Nina didn’t want to be weak. It was all a game, however, and it always had been. Now, she began to find herself truly interested more often than not, a fact that scared her. “I don’t know,” she responded instinctively, throwing the answer away as if it were no big deal. She finished off her drink and toyed with the tab of the can for a moment before she shook her head. “I’m trying to figure out where I go next. What I do next. I know that I’m lucky to have what I have, I know that my life is cushy compared to so many other people. I have a good career and I’m basically still a kid. I just...want more.”

The Ivory Syndicate had always been that more. She was fascinated as a teenager, fascinated when she finally make a step towards joining their ranks, fascinated now whenever she learned something new. Nina carefully ignored the damage that the organization did, looking through rose colored glasses at the strength it provided. Much like Emilia, Nina’s life would be completely different without it. “What I’m doing now is fine. I feel useful. But I want to do more, I just don’t know how I’ll get there.”

It was always strange to see somebody in a place they weren’t supposed to be. Teachers belonged in the classroom, not at the charity gala one was attending at her father’s request. Tennis coaches belonged on the court, not in the backseat of a town car with a high school student. The man Nina knew as Kane belonged in a club or on a yacht in Medellin, not in the city she now called home.

Emilia had warned her, of course, after the party. The pieces of the Vargas empire began to fall into place that night, and Nina wanted to kick herself for being so stupid. How hadn’t they figured this out before? Granted, neither young woman expected their newly minted enemy to start buying them drinks in a foreign country, but Nina still hated to be bested. She gained only a bit of comfort now as she caught sight of the man with a baby in his arms. “Alright, where did you get that kid? Is this a situation requiring the police?” 

The diner wasn’t a place that Nina often frequented (why would she when there were so many other more...picturesque places to have a meal), but it was just across the street from Ivory Films. For some reason, she always felt like she was inconveniencing Vivian when in her presence and she did not want to waste any of the older woman’s time. Nina rarely felt that was about anyone and was usually quite inconsiderate of other people’s time, but the capo was somebody whom Nina wanted to impress. It was a strange feeling.

And so she sat across from Vivian in a booth near the back of the diner, mostly obscured from view so that neither of them would be recognized. This was a private conversation, after all. Nina took a sip of the less-than-average coffee and set it back down on the table before pushing her plate forward a bit and leaning in. “Do you want to know a secret?”

Hearing her friend laugh felt warm in a way that much hadn’t for a while. Life’s like there’s tended to exist purely in a state of angst - death, blood, unknown, lies. A laugh, an honest laugh, didn’t always come when needed. Work ingrained itself into every part of their world, from personal relationships to spare time. Brie never clocked out. “Good to have her back - seems we have a lot of old faces popping up.” Alex had every ounce of Brie’s respect. A small part of her hoped to grip onto a fraction of the amount of power than Alex did. Brie allowed her lips to curl into a smile listening to the passion leave Nina’s mouth. “Now, besides all that, anything interesting going on in the exciting world of Nina?”

“It’s nice, isn’t it? People coming back?” One of Nina’s biggest fears had always been being abandoned, being left alone to fend for herself with nobody to lean on. She presented herself as a woman who had it all together, who didn’t need anyone, but that wasn’t true. Everybody needed someone.  “Ugh,” she sighed, eyes rolling yet again. “The exciting world of Nina has been boring.” That wasn’t completely true, of course, but she had been finding herself less occupied than usual lately. Perhaps that was because her mind was running a mile a minute and the rest of her couldn’t keep up. “I need a night out. A good time. Maybe then all the answers will pop right out. You think I could find the meaning of life in the bathroom at Le Rouge?” Nina chewed on her bottom lip for a moment. “Hey, tell me something. How did you get wrapped up in all of this, anyway? How did you know...that this was right?"