"You're talking about murder!" Marni exclaimed, her eyes wide with horror.

Rotti regarded her coolly from across the room, his arms folded over his chest, "Marni, Marni, why do you trouble yourself with these things? They are not your concern."

Marni's eyes flared with anger and she set her mouth in a line, fuming visibly as she regarded him, eyes seeming black in the harsh light of his office. Rotti crossed the distance between them and drew her into his arms, although she was rigid and did not yield to him as she normally would.

"Darling, don't be like this." He said in a soothing voice into her ear, "Why don't you go out tonight? We could have dinner after my meeting…?"

Marni twisted herself around to escape his grasp, but she found his hand was tightly around her upper arm. She sighed with frustration.

"Let go of me." She said quietly, her voice calm but tinged with a resentment he'd never heard her use before.

Rotti didn't release her, only began to caress her cheek with his free hand. She was straining to break free of his grip, but he held her easily. His fingers dug into her upper arm and she flinched.

"Organ repossession is not murder. Don't be so dramatic." He said, and there was a hard edge to his voice now, even as he crushed her against him to lay a gentle kiss on her elegant neck which was so beguilingly exposed with her hair up in its customary twists.

"Yes it is!" Marni exclaimed, as she jerked her arm, trying to break away, "Let go." She said again, but he was ignoring her and she felt hot tears prick at her eyes.

She had finally confronted him about the incriminating documents which Amber had unwittingly unearthed in his room. For weeks, she had avoided saying anything. But it had weighed on her mind. Although it had started as a casual conversation, it had built quickly to this.

His voice was low and dangerous now, "This proposition will be finalised in a matter of weeks and there is nothing you can do about it." He twisted her arm painfully, causing her to yelp in shock, "Why must you test me?! Don't I give you everything you want? Why do you make a big deal out of something like this? It is nothing to do with you."

He let go of her and she staggered backwards from him, looking at him with cold anger, clutching her now sore arm. She glowered at him and turned to walk haughtily out of the room.

"I love you, Marni." Rotti said, quietly, and she slowed her pace to glace back at him from the doorway, "You make me want to be a better man."

Marni eyed him coldly, ignoring the brief flash of remorse that showed on his face, "I fail to see the evidence of that." She said.

Now Rotti glowered at her, as she walked quickly out of his office. He was left standing there, fuming. They were to be married next week. Surely this would have blown over by then. Marni so rarely challenged him. It was one of the reasons he had chosen her; she was unassuming and easy going. And so very, very beautiful. He had never much believed in the idea of love, but Marni made him feel things he'd never felt before. Her smile was enough to lift his darkest moods. He felt a twinge of regret, as he sat down behind his desk, looking over the various documents stacked in neat piles there. Cancelling the bill he was lobbying was not an option, he knew. Marni would accept it in time, as would all of the citizens of the world. She would come to realize he was right, she always did.

Nathan returned home after the end of yet another tedious day. Sure, his work could be challenging and even intriguing at times, but lately his heart was not in it. He would still strive for perfection in his work, sure. But he rarely did overtime anymore, rarely went above and beyond the call of duty, as it were. Word spread quickly around Geneco, and so did the snide comments and remarks.

"Can you pass the surgical tongs please?" Nathan would ask in his clipped tones.

"Just one pair, or would you rather have two?"

Ha-ha-ha. And so on and so forth. All very cutting edge humour, undoubtedly. Nathan would simply smile tightly, making no response. Perhaps if he had laughed off the situation or made light of it, it wouldn't have been such a lingering source of amusement. But it was, because he couldn't laugh it off. His sour moods were not helped by the fact that he never heard from Marni these days. Things had certainly become awkward between them, and he'd wanted nothing to do with her at the time. But now he missed her. He missed her laugh, her jokes. He missed how she made him feel. Mostly, he just missed his friend.

He sat down at his kitchen bench, flicking through a magazine distractedly. He heard the intercom buzz, letting him know someone was at his door. He frowned, for he hadn't been expecting anyone. Brow creased in mild annoyance, he walked out to the front room and pressed the communicate button on the white intercom panel.

"Who is it?" He asked, depressing the button.

"Nathan? Can I come up?"

A breathless female voice that caused butterflies in Nathan's stomach, "….Marni?"

He stood there, indecisive for a moment, before pressing the button to unlock the front door. He heard the gate click and then clang shut, and he stood, expectantly, near the front door. He heard her knock on the door and he threw it open.

"What are you doing here?" He asked, with a tinge of coldness. He frowned, "For that matter, how do you know where I live?"

He noticed that Marni's clothes were rumpled, her hair coming down from its pins in long tresses. Her eyes were a little red, and there was no trace of makeup on her usually immaculately painted face.

"Your employee file." Marni said, looking at the carpet.

Nathan sighed, and stepped to the side, ushering her to come in. Oh, this was a bad, bad idea, but she looked so sad that it made his chest hurt. She shrugged off her black, fuzzy coat and hung it on the rack near the led her through to the lounge, where she sat, looking nervous, on his brown suede couch, casting furtive looks around.

"This is very…modern, isn't it." She said, "I wouldn't have imagined you living in a place like this."

Nathan stood before her, shifting his weight from one foot to the other, "It's close to work." He said, simply.

Marni nodded, "It's…nice."

Nathan smirked slightly, "No it isn't. It's soulless." He shrugged, "I'm saving for a house."

Marni nodded, looking down at her hands. She seemed so small and sad.

"Marni, what happened?"

"Have you heard of Bill 98-463?" She asked, looking up at him, while twisting her hands in her lap.

He'd never seen her look so apprehensive.

Nathan shrugged, "No, should I have?"

Marni looked down at her hands, miserably, "Oh Nathan, Rotti's going to do something terrible." She started to cry.

Nathan felt such a pang of grief for her. He sat down next to her, putting his arm around her shoulders.

"Hey…" He said softly, "What's so terrible?"

Marni looked at him, brown eyes shining with tears, and explained about the bill Rotti was trying to pass, to legalise organ repossessions.

"Anyone who defaults on their payments, will be-" Marni broke off and her lower lip trembled, gazing at Nathan with a desperation, "They'll be killed, their financed organs will be… cut out."

Nathan felt a cold chill in his stomach. Rotti wanted complete power, it seemed. Who would dare default on their payments if this bill were passed? And if they did, Geneco would get their property back, to reuse? He felt sick at the thought and rubbed Marni's back consolingly.

"We're getting married next week." She said with a far off expression on her face. She looked up at Nathan, "I'm so sorry to bother you with this. I just needed a friend. Mag is on tour and I-"

"It's okay." Nathan said, softly, noting that she smelt like coconut and vanilla today.

Marni drew back from him, "I must look a mess." She said, wiping her eyes with a grim smile.

Nathan's gaze was soft, "No."

Marni looked at him sharply, as he carefully averted his eyes from her, "Nathan, I don't know what to do. I thought Rotti really loved me but this…"

"He'd have to be a very stupid man not to love you." Nathan said, sharply.

They were both very aware of each other, the warmth of their bodies together on the small couch. Nathan got up hurriedly, but Marni grabbed his arm. She clutched at him, not moving or speaking. His pale green eyes regarded her.

Finally she spoke after what seemed an eternity to him, "Do you mean…?" She stared at him, eyes burning, apparently unable to finish the question.

Nathan looked at her helplessly. She looked so lovely right now, bare faced and wearing a simple white shift dress with intricate lace details on the sleeves together with simple ballet flats. He pulled away from her, turning to leave the room.

"Do you want dinner?" He asked, hurriedly trying to change the subject, "I was going to throw together some pasta, so…"

"I love you, too." Marni said softly.

Nathan's insides seemed to turn to liquid and a heat rose over his face. He slowly turned back around to look at her. She stood up and walked to him, looking nervous.

"Okay?" She asked, her eyes wide and imploring as she ran a small hand over his soft shirt and felt the warmth of his firm chest beneath it.

Nathan touched her cheek, brushing hair back from her pretty face. Her skin was pale and smooth and he traced a line down her cheek to her neck with his thumb. He tried to think of things such as his job, his boss, and the fact that Marni was his boss's fiancée. But he found he could only think of how beautiful she was.

"Okay." He said, hoarsely.

He kissed her, hesitantly. Her soft lips pressed against his. He felt her hands go around his neck and he pulled her against him. She made a soft noise of surprise, as he clutched her tightly. He drew back from her and looked at her face, a blush across the tops of his cheeks. She ran a hand through his tousled dark hair, then brought her hand to rest on his neck, graceful fingers clutching gently at him.

"I'm sorry for what happened, you know, that night.." she said, softly.

Nathan shook his head, still clutching her to him as if she might disappear if he didn't, "It doesn't matter."

"I missed you." Marni said, smiling sadly.

Nathan kissed her again, now pulling her down the hallway and into his bedroom, strong arms around her, lips hardly leaving hers. It had been too long already, dammit. He'd pined for this woman, tried to ignore her, even tried to dislike her. But he couldn't dislike her. She was warm and kind and full of a joy that bubbled from her and surrounded her, sweeping him up with it.

They got to the doorway of his room and he pushed her down on his neatly made bed. She looked up at him, smiling in a way that was innocent and beguiling at the same time. He felt such a lust for her, seeming to thrum throughout his entire body like electricity, although the blood was starting to rush in one particular direction. He groaned against her, desperately. It was too late now. He didn't care about Rotti or about his job anymore. And, she loved him. She loved him!

Marni snuggled up to Nathan, wrapping both her arms and legs around him. He lay on his back, an arm around her, idly trailing his fingers up and down her side, making her flesh prickle with pleasure. A soft grey sheet was pulled up over them, the central heating making the temperature comfortable and cozy, despite the bitter chill outside. Marni murmured softly against Nathan, nuzzling his warm chest with her cheek.

"Oh no." She said, with fear in her voice.

Nathan looked down at her sharply, his hand stopping its gentle movements.

"I'm hungry." Giggled Marni, "But I don't want to have to move."

Nathan relaxed, a smile coming to his face. He squeezed her in his arms, ruffling her hair that fell in waves all around her face. She had never looked so beautiful, he thought.

Marni groaned with mock frustration, snuggling into him and breathing in the smell of his cologne. She closed her eyes and lay there, breathing him in deeply.

"Shall I make dinner?" Nathan asked gently, stroking her hair and sighing happily.

Marni clutched at him, "No!" She started to move against him, hands trailing over him possessively, "You're going to stay right here."

Nathan laughed, gazing at her with adoration.

"Yes. We will start a new life here on the bed." Marni said, with a smirk, "Forever and ever and ever."

"That's a long time." Nathan said, seriously.

Marni felt a pang of hunger and loosened her grip on Nathan, giving a loud sigh, "Okay. We will eat. And then straight back to bed."

Rotti was furious. He paced up and down his office, his hands clenched into fists at his side, swinging as he walked with an unmasked aggression back and forth. His face was contorted with fury.

"Find her! Do your god damn jobs!" He bellowed, causing his three female bodyguards standing by the doorway to flinch collectively.

"Sir, no one has heard from her." Said the lanky blonde bodyguard, as she crossed her arms across her chest.

Rotti slammed his fist on his desk, "What about Nathan Wallace? Ask him!"

The blonde shifted her stance, adjusting her short skirt self consciously, "He has not been to work all week."

Rotti looked up sharply, colour draining from his face, "What?"

He'd been so intent on his search for Marni, whom he had not heard from since their fight the previous Friday afternoon. Now it was Thursday. In two days they were to be married. All the preparations had been finalized, the church prepared, Marni's dress had arrived. Yet she had not appeared. He had expected her to come back days ago. And Nathan, who never took a sick day, was missing too.

"Yes sir, he didn't even call in." Piped up another of the bodyguards.

Rotti sat down heavily at his desk, "Leave me." He said, coldly.

His knuckles were white as he clenched his fists tightly, until he felt the skin break on his palms. The short, hard nails on his hand bit into the flesh. Shaking with rage, he turned to his computer. Nathan Wallace, the young man who showed so much promise. Was he a traitor?

Marni was sitting at Nathan's small dining table, wearing one of his shirts which hung on her like a dress. Her long legs were bare and stretched out in front of her under the table as she pored over the newspaper which lay open in front of her. She hummed softly, tracing a finger over the words and she skimmed articles. She heard a noise behind her and turned in her chair to look at Nathan who had emerged from bed, hair tousled and wearing long grey cotton pants. She looked at his chest and stomach appraisingly, small smile quirking her mouth. He was lean and well built with wide shoulders.

"Marni…" His voice seemed serious, and Marni looked at him expectantly, "Are you going to talk to him today?"

Marni's face paled, and she chewed on her lower lip apprehensively, looking at Nathan with fearful eyes.

"You can't avoid it, he deserves to know." Nathan said, and his voice had a hard edge to it, "You can't put this off."

Marni wrung her hands in front of her, dark eyes downcast, "I know…"

She was afraid to face Rotti. She did not deny that she was a coward, and would have much rather just stayed here forever than have to face him and call off the wedding. She feared not only for herself but for Nathan, too. He had accepted that his job was all but forfeit and had already begun to send out applications for a variety of positions. She felt bad for it, for he had loved being a surGEN. She had a slight glimmer of hope that maybe Rotti would understand, maybe Nathan could continue to work for him, maybe he would…She couldn't even let herself continue that line of thought, for it was ridiculous. He would what, give them his blessing? Rotti Largo was not a man to be tested, she knew this. Her hands were shaking as she realized she would have to confront him. She looked lost and miserable and felt Nathan's arms engulf her. He brushed back some of her hair and kissed her neck tenderly. Marni's face was blank, but she trembled still. She berated herself for getting involved with a man like Rotti, who had so seduced her, put her under his powerful spell. She reached out and entwined her hand with Nathan's.

"I'll go see him." She said, her voice shaking.