PROLOGUE

"I have a meeting in Zurich in five hours Viktor, it takes three maybe four hours to fly from Moscow to Zurich so I don't really have time for this." The raven haired woman said as she put her coat on, her tone wasn't stressed or harassed it was matter of fact - her usual tone.

"Natalia you forget I am your employer, you can't speak to me like that. So I suggest next to you get too comfortable up on your pedestal you remember who signs your cheques." The russian man bellowed as he slammed his hand on the table, trying to intimidate the woman standing before him.

"Viktor if you want to go ahead and find yourself a new lawyer by all means go ahead but I can guarantee you aren't going to find anyone with my skill and capability." She paused leaning against the chair with her files in hand, waiting to see if this was the moment she was to be let go by her boss.

Viktor looked at the small woman, he was trying to bluff her out but he knew she wouldn't cave in but he couldn't back down now, "If you think you are so special leave, leave and never come back but you know I have the power to ruin you." He took steps towards the woman, leaning over her as he puffed out his chest. Intimidating her should be easy Natalia was a mere five foot and no more than five-eight with her heels on whilst Viktor was the stereotype for russian, he was tall enough to be part of the skyline at a huge six-six.

"Oh Viktor- you forget it is me who has saved you on numerous occasions, not only you but your company, your family, your friends. Don't hire a fixer who knows how to work the rules so that you don't break any, don't hire someone who you can't dig shit up on and certainly do not exclusively hire the best god damn lawyer that money can buy only for you to have a temper tantrum every time she doesn't have time to pretend to listen to you trying to impress her with some bullshit story because she has to fly across the content to save your sons ass legally and corporately." Natalia was the type of woman who didn't need to shout, or try to intimidate someone because she knew she was the best and when you become the best it means you need to be ballsy so she wasn't going to be scared off by some old mans temper tantrum.

"You should learn to remember who the boss is around here, you are treading a fine line here. Make sure you don't cross it because as you said you are the best and I'd hate to see you ruined simply because you had to be reminded who was in charge." Viktor straightened up his suit and backed off of Natalia.

"She picked up her bag and headed for the grande oak door, just before shutting it she paused and said," Don't get too comfortable with that title Viktor, it's nothing more than status. A status that I got for you so next time you try to warn me about the line remember that. Oh and next time you try to scare munger me into anything try a little better because you aren't at all intimidating. I've seen bigger and badder men Viktor and even they don't scare me." With that she left the room and the building, having her driver take her to the airport.

The journey in the car to the airport was a regular one, when you exclusively become the lawyer for the Russian Chmekovsky family and business empire traveling becomes casual. Natalia arrived at the airport and was through security in no time, she was powerful and a regular- security hardly even noticed you at that point. She was seated on the private jet with her laptop out working away on paperwork for various different happenings.

She felt her phone begin to vibrate, picking it up she seen it was an incoming call from victor. She sighed inwardly and pressed accept knowing it must be pretty important for him to be calling her during her flight

"Viktor." She said sharply, just like she did all the time answering her calls.

"I'm having an issue. I have a series of big deals going down in New York and I'm getting the feeling they are going to do exactly that, go down." She could detect the stress in his voice

"What do you mean a series of big deals? You haven't told me anything about these deals, you haven't had me look over any contracts at all. Viktor what have you been keeping from me?" Natalia couldn't believe it, her dipshit of a boss was trying to close deals without her.

"It's a couple of big money deals I've been working on, they are in the states so I didn't bother you with them. I've got the best lawyer in the city working on them, I'm getting cold feet now, I've got a gut feeling that something isn't going to work out-"

"Send me everything you have on the cases. I want all files, emails even the call logs. If they've had a coffee while working on your cases I want to god damn know about it. Tell Irina to start sending it through and have her call your hot shot lawyer and let them know I'm flying over." She was furious, if you want something done right you need to do it yourself.

"You can't just up and leave, I have things that need to be done here. You don't call the shots I do." She could tell Viktor was pissed with how she had spoke to him.

"I have everything sorted in europe, Irina and the others can take care of the smaller issues, I can work from New York and still know what's going on. You pay me to be the best and that's what I am so let me do my job. Now if you excuse me I have work to be getting back to." She hung up and exhaled slowly, soothing herself. The man infuriated her. She had proven to him time and time again that she was capable of taking on all of his cases, she was exclusively his lawyer for a reason. He had hired her only a year out of harvard, she was a young graduate and she knew it was a risk to take but Natalia was confident within herself that she could pull it off. She graduated from Harvard at the age of twenty three, given Natalia had what doctors and surgeons could only describe as photographic memory she had easily surpassed school and university with ease and years ahead of her classmates.

Her first year out of Harvard was spent between helping out in pro-bono cases and working as an associate for a small law firm branch that mainly dealt with european business men, who were often dabbling in illegitimate business affairs. Natalia amazed her employers with her strong ability in the language department and her sharp eye and intelligence in letting these men get what they want but doing it all legally. She knew her stuff and knew how to make the law work for her. It didn't take her long to learn she had only originally been hired because she was small and pretty, men thought they could bully her and scare her but the reason she stayed hired was because she was tough and knew what she was doing.

During her first year out she met an older man who she knew she was connected with, they made one and other blossom- with this love interest Natalia found herself in the happiest state she had ever been in, after all the loss and suffering in her life she was happy and content. Both being complete workaholics they kept their relationship on the down-low and didn't involve anyone else. When they went for meals it was just them, no meeting one and others friends in bars for drinks or double dating. That suited Natalia as she didn't have many friends, she often found herself too wary to befriend many people. Sure enough though reality had to strike Natalia another hard blow and she had her heart broken as the love of her life left her for a former flame so when Natalia got the offer to become Viktor Chmekovsky's exclusive lawyer she jumped at the chance. This was something she needed, she would see the world, achieve so much and make enough money so she wouldn't need to worry.

It was four years later and she had managed to achieve all three but her employer was growing bolder, wanting to try riskier business deals. Natalia knew how to bend the law but she had spent too much time and effort in being a morally right person and building principles that meant something just for Viktor to ruin it all. She knew she didn't want to work for him forever and when she announced she would be leaving he wouldn't be happy so she couldn't get involve in anything illegal otherwise he would drag her name through the dirt.

Upon arriving in Zurich Natalia phoned Viktor and informed him that she was meeting his son and then going to clean up his mess and that she would start reading through all the information on the American cases tonight.

Sitting in the car she looked out the window and looked at the people that she passed, she often wondered what type of lawyer she would have ended up being if she hadn't taken the offer, would she have caved and become a dirty lawyer or would she have maybe even quit law all together - she was good with numbers and people maybe she would have started working at an accounts firm or become a translator. Regardless of what job she had she always wondered if she would be happier than what she was now. Sure having the money and power was great but she didn't have anyone to share her success with, not even a friend. She didn't even have her family as her siblings had cut contact when she left for Russia, they had felt betrayed by their sister believing she was leaving them all behind but she had only ever aimed high for them. Soon enough she stopped keeping tabs on them because it hurt more to see and unable to control rather than just not know.

That's what made Natalia such a good fixer-lawyer, she relished having control. It wasn't that she was power hungry because she didn't user her control to be powerful she simply liked control through her distrust with people. After coming across so many liars in her career she had reason enough not to trust people and the one time she did trust someone it was thrown back in her face. As hurtful as that lesson was it was one that she learned from and she learned from it well. It helped her become the lawyer she was today. She knew that just because someone seems casual and charming with you doesn't mean they are, she learned how to make someone feel like they could trust without needing to trust them. It taught her about the real world and how that at the end of the day in her career everything was just business and you could never take it personal.

The driver brought the car to a stop and she knew her time for reflection was over. She had to meet with the undeniably innocent and naive Maxim Chmekovsky and hopefully try and teach him that very lesson, for some reason she didn't think he would understand. Not all of us are cut out for the world of business and law and maybe Maxim was one of those people, he was too optimistic and intrinsically good in Natalia's eyes whereas Viktor seen him as the heir to his empire. Natalia would need to teach this boy the lesson soon before her caused another, bigger mess. It was a shame his father wouldn't accept his son for what he was instead of trying to make him something else, she pitied the young man that was about to enter the car.

"Natalia, long time no see." He greeted sliding in to sit next to her.

"In our case Maxim the longer I don't see you the better. It means you haven't made a mess." She said looking him dead in the eyes.

"You know Natalia I really believed this girl, she seemed so genuine. I thought she could have been the one but-" Natalia couldn't listen to anymore of this.

"But she wasn't. She played you just like they all do and you need to learn a little bit of distance from these girls. One day you are going to make a mess so god damn big that none of us can clean up that leaves you free from consequence, I'm telling you this for your own good. You need to learn that business is business. Never mix it with pleasure because it only gets messy from there. Learn to differ the boundaries of business and your personal life and you better do it quick Maxim. I mean it."

The young man simply nodded and stared at Natalia drinking in her appearance. He knew he wasn't cut out for this but he didn't know how to tell his father and plus he couldn't deny he didn't enjoy his encounters with the beauty seated beside him. He didn't know how she still seemed oblivious to his ever growing feelings towards her. He tried to drop hints but she just never picked them up. Even these girls he fell in and out of love with couldn't compare to Natalia.

The car pulled up at the grande building, turning too look at Maxim she could see the shame and embarrassment in his eyes, she had seen it many a time before. Still none the less she looked into his eyes and the nervous teenager he was the first day she had met him and for that she felt bad for dishing out tough love to him.

Natalia sighed outwards, "Don't worry Maxy I'll sort this. Just you stay quiet, if they ask you anything say 'no comment'." Calling him by his nickname gave him ease, so she hoped. She couldn't have him nervous and panicked going in, he might crack and ruin everything. He had to be like her: calm and collected at all times.