"I don't care what happens between you two, he is still your father and even more importantly your boss. You need to show him the respect he deserves. I taught you better than that." It felt like I was back at the academy. Pavel might as well have been my old hag of a principal, Kirova, attempting to punish me for calling my old AP Calculus teacher, Stan, a dick. Again. And just like back then, I couldn't care less about what I did "wrong". Stan and my father were actually a lot alike. I was top in Stan's class, yet he loved to single me out for anything and everything. Both two pompous assholes that no one could never do anything right for. And I wasn't about to crawl on my knees for anyone.

"So, I'm just supposed to sit there and let him talk shit to me? Let him act like I haven't been doing all the work that he's too weak to do himself. I know you heard everything he said, you're just going to ignore that?" Tears started to well up in my eyes as I thought back to his harsh words.

"You already allowed yourself to be compromised once, and ever since then I've sensed a hesitation in you. A reluctance. You've grown weak."

"He had the nerve to say that...t-that what happened in Russia 5 yeas ago was my fault." I pulled my knees up to my chest as if it would somehow protect me. Out of all the things he said, that cut me deepest. He didn't know the full story of what happened to me during my wonderful stay at Galina's estate, but what happened to women in her "care" wasn't exactly a mystery. And it was his idea to send me into the belly of the beast in the first place.

I'd always thought even though I worked for him, above all, he'd still be my father. He'd still see me as a priority, not an asset. Obviously that was a foolish hope.

"That's not what I'm saying, Rose. In no way do I condone what your father said, it was cruel and utterly disrespectful. But, no matter what you can't let him or anyone else unravel you. Your father has his issues, and that's my problem to help fix. You only have to focus on Rose. What I saw in there wasn't the Rose Hathaway I helped raise. The Rose Hathaway I raised is stronger than that. Nothing in this world could break her." Pavel had become more of a father to me than Abe could hope to be, and it was because of times like these. He did what fathers were supposed to do; protect you, support you, guide you. I was more than lucky to have him.

I smiled and pulled him in for a hug. He wasn't usually a touchy person, but he made exceptions for me. Nearly all my troubles were washed away there in his comforting hold.

"I'm always here for you, Rose. You're just as much my family as Abe's. Remember that."

"Thank you, Pavel. Really. I can't tell you how much I appreciate everything you've ever done for me." He pulled back and smiled his rare, full silver smile.

"Somebody had to help keep you in line." I laughed. A deep, belly laugh that brought pain to my abs. A while was an understatement for how long it'd been since I had one of those, especially in this house. It almost made me forget that come next week, I'd be making the worst possible choice I could and my life would be changing for the worse.

Just then, the predicament I was in really started to sink in. If I went through with killing Nathan, I'd have the fattest target on my back imaginable. Sure, I'd already accumulated a couple bounties on my head from over the years, but this would be greater than all of those combined. I might as well run around with a giant sign that says, "Hey, everyone, I'm worth a ton of money! Come kill me!". The Old Man gets to hide safely out here, and I'd be damned if I moved back in, and I have to live on the run for the rest of my life. Totally fair.

But, the blame wasn't all his. Majority, without a doubt, but not all. When I was sixteen, my dad finally told me what really happened to my mother and what kind of "work" he was into. That was the moment I decided that I would spend the rest of my life avenging my mom, and killing anyone who ever dared to threaten my family again. After that, Abe started teaching me the ins and outs of his operation and how to run it if anything was to happen to him. On my seventeenth birthday that following year, he started teaching me how to kill and Pavel took me out in the field. I was young, so being paid to take out scum bags plus training to handle guns twice my size was badass to me. I felt like a guardian of the night ridding the world of evil demons that were taking the lives of innocent people and feeding on them. Which is hilarious to me now, because I know better. There's no difference between me and the people I kill. We've all got blood on our hands in one form or another. I just don't take pride in it anymore.

"Pavel...you think this'll ever be over?" He gave me a sad smile. Deep down I knew the answer, but I was childishly hoping for something. Anything.

"For you, Rose, I truly hope so." He took my hand in his and gave it a tight squeeze. It offered some comfort, but not much reassurance.

"I'll let you get some rest. We have a lot to go over in the morning." He kissed me on the forehead and rose to leave. Before closing the door he turned back once again, "Despite how he acts, your father does love you. More than you know." I held back a snort out of respect. Instead I gave him a tight smile and nodded.

He has a real great way of showing it.

I would've been lying if I said I wasn't looking forward to a good nights sleep. I was way more exhausted than I wanted to admit, and it was finally catching up with me. It felt a little weird sleeping in my old room, but more so it was nostalgic. Never in a million years did I think I'd be back here in this room, but here I was. And of course it was left untouched, so it was like I never left. My heart swelled at the picture still sitting in its usual spot on my nightstand. I remembered that day like it was yesterday. Abe was gone on one of his many trips to check out a new supplier, so it was just my mom and I for the day. She took me out on the beach for a picnic. We had a basket, blanket and everything. After eating we took a walk along the water, built sandcastles, and she even braided my hair. But, the best part of that day was when she convinced Pavel to fly us out to Cappadocia for a horse riding tour. It was one of the very few times we got to leave the house and explore farther than our huge backyard. Cappadocia is a big change compared to where we live by the ocean. There's canyons, valleys and homes carved from them, and tall rock formations that looked like mountains to me then. It was truly gorgeous.

The picture was taken on our last stop on the trail; the Goreme Open Air Museum. We walked among century old rock-cut churches with stunning wall paintings. We were standing by one of the paintings, my mother was explaining what it was about to me and started to tickle me. We ended up turning around in the midst of my squirming and laughing, then Pavel caught the picture. We looked so carefree and happy. Abe of course wasn't happy when he found out about our sudden escapade, so it was our first and our last. That was one of the best days of my life, one my favorite with her.

I did all my nightlies and climbed into bed. Wasn't nearly as comfortable as my perfectly tailor-made one at home, but it'd have to do. Vahşi took her usual spot by my side, offering a familiar coziness with her warmth and low purring. I closed my eyes and hoped for the best.

—Δ—

"Rose...prensesim, wake up we have a lot to go over. Your breakfast is going to get cold and I'm not dealing with a hungry, crabby Rose. So, get up and eat." (My princess). It took me a second to come completely to my senses, but I was awake enough to hear that god awful pet name he used to call me when I was a child. Back then it was cute, but now it was just insulting and cringey. He left before I had a chance to rip him a new one for calling me that, but that was all soon forgotten the second I caught whiff of what he brought me to eat. It's been a while, but you can't mistake sucuklu yumurta. Spicy Turkish sausage and eggs, my mother used to make it every morning. The pungent seasonings and frying sausage filled the entire house. I was too young to handle the spice then, but now I ache for it. Any lingering fatigue I had was long gone after I took that first bite. I couldn't stop the moan that escaped my lips.

Thank God Pavel left or this might've been awkward.

I couldn't remember the last time I had a good, traditional meal. It was most likely since mom died, the Old Man was awful in the kitchen. It almost made me miss home, miss being here. Almost.

I finished my meal with gusto and quickly hopped in the shower. Despite the disaster that was yesterday, I was actually starting to feel...comfortable. I needed to get out of here and back to New York asap. Unfortunately, that meant the sooner I spoke with my father the better. If there is one thing he and I have in common, it's our unwavering ability to hold a grunge. Especially against people that try to get the best of or blatantly disrespect us. I pretty much checked both off that list yesterday, so I was positive he wasn't going to take that lying down. This was going to be a very eventful day.

You could imagine my surprise when I entered our main parlor room and only Pavel was seated. Maybe I was wrong.

"Are we waiting or..." Part of me was hoping the answer was yes. If he wasn't here now that could only mean he was looking to drag this out, which I was not at all in the mood for. The sooner we hugged and made up, completely figure of speech, the sooner we could get down to business, and the sooner I could head for the hills.

"No. I'm afraid something came up with your father, he's having a meeting in his study. He might be joining later." I should've felt a weight lifting off my chest, but instead I felt the opposite. My father and I's relationship had been ripping at the seams since the day my mom was killed. Now, it was practically hanging by a thread. As much as I hated to admit it...I still needed my dad. I always told myself when I got older I'd run away and then he'd be out of sight, out of mind. But, even I couldn't deny that I wished things could go back to how they were. Even without her here.

"Oh. Well, no point in wasting time. So, I'm all ears." I took a seat on the couch and propped my feet up. Something told me this was going to take a while.

A while was an understatement. I can't tell you how long we discussed the plan for intercepting Nathan, but it had certainly been a few hours. We went over where he was coming from, where he was going, who was going to be with him, what shipment he'd be bringing in, how much it was worth, my entry points, exit points, total number of targets, and all possible delays. If that sounds like a lot to you, imagine how I felt sitting through the extended version.

The plan itself was simple. We got a tip-off that Nathan was on his way to a deal with Aaron Drozdov at one of his private hotels in Vegas, and he'd be arriving there next week with two escorts. They were meeting at 3PM, top floor of the hotel in Drozdov's penthouse suit. Aaron would be giving him $500,000 to seal his contract with Galina, and then Nathan would be on his way back to Russia. In and out easy. My objective was to get there before both Nathan and Aaron without alerting anyone, and hide on the penthouse floor until they arrived. As far as when I would kill him I had two options. I could either break up their transaction and kill both of them, or wait until after it was done and get Nathan on his way out. I was leaning toward the latter. Aaron Drozdov isn't exactly heavily known on the illegal crime scene, but he was just as bad. He's a wealthy businessman that manages his own hotels and a few casinos along the Las Vegas strip. But, he found guilty pleasure in the commercial sex trade.

Remember those guys trying to buy Liam Neeson's daughter and all those other girls in Taken? Aaron would've been one of them. He has a habit of purchasing girls for pleasure and whatever else, selling them again when he gets tired of them, and then purchasing more to replace them. As far as I was concerned he was just as bad, if not worse, as any drug dealer, murderer or thief. A lot of people would be much better off without him.

Really all I had to do was not get caught, not like that'd be a challenge for me. Even if I was to be seen, I could easily manipulate my way out. Thanks to my curvy figure, and desert goddess looks flirting my way out of anything was one of my specialties. Though I hated resorting to that, it felt like a cheap tactic. I had too much skill and training to run around acting like a femme fatale. But, if I absolutely had to do it I would. On the upside, it does at least save me energy and bullets.

"Sounds simple enough. He better be paying me triple the usual for this." When I said it I wasn't really serious, but the more I thought about it the more plausible it became. I was seriously risking my ass with this, the least he could do was reward me a little extra.

"Speaking of that, I may as well tell you now that your father plans on sending you away after this is done." I attempted to raise a brow, and failed.

Send away sounds an awful lot like get rid of.

"He's going to get you a new passport, ID, you will in fact be given extra pay along with your usual, and he's giving you his old vacation cottage in Paris to stay in. You will be free to explore Paris as long as you have your ID, stay within the city, and don't blow your cover. But, with all the tourist traffic there that shouldn't be a problem." I was at a loss for words. This was actually very generous of him...

"What's the catch?" As good as it sounded, there's no way I was just going to accept that he suddenly wanted to send me on a well deserved vacation. Especially now that we weren't exactly on the best of terms. I can't remember the last time we were.

Pavel sighed, "He just wants you to be safe. For once, take things as they are. You wanted a break, right? This is it, be happy." As usual, he was right. Even if there was some secret agenda behind this, and I still believed there might be, I might as well enjoy it while I can. Hell, I might even be able to squeeze however much funding I need out of him for this little trip. But, there was still one thing I didn't know.

"How long is this vacation supposed to last exactly?" He looked away, refusing to meet my eyes. And there it was. This wasn't a vacation, it was a relocation.

"No."

"Rose, think about it for a second. You know what a risk this is. Galina will have everyone at her disposal out to kill you, and who's to say they won't find you in New York? You've been there long enough, people go around asking questions and someone is bound to point you out. This is the best thing, a clean slate." I snorted.

"Best for who? It took me long enough finally finding a place that I could call home, and believe it or not I have people that I don't want to lose. And, I've already fucked myself on that enough. I'm not just going to abandon my life. Galina can send the national guard if she wants, let those assholes try and take me down."

"Annesi gibi inatçı." (Stubborn as her mother). He groaned under his breath, rubbing his temples. I actually took that as a compliment.

"Three weeks. We can discuss the finer details later, but you can't argue your way out of that. So, I suggest you brush up on your French."

"Je préfère brosser mon pied dans le cul de quelqu'un." (I would rather brush my foot in someone's ass).

"Prudent." (Careful). Our meeting finally drew to a close, and we both went our separate ways. I still wasn't happy about potentially being forcefully uprooted, but it would be nice to get away from everything. Pretend I live a nice, normal, peaceful life for once.

But, I still couldn't shake the feeling that something was coming. And I wasn't sure I was ready for it.

A Week Later

"You're perfectly on schedule, Rose. You have approximately twenty minutes to get into position before Aaron and Nathan arrive." Pavel radioed into my ear. Getting into Aaron's hotel was surprisingly much easier than I was expecting. Especially for the day he was meeting with a well known criminal on illegal business. Lucky for me, he had some very incompetent security. I'd gone through the entire hotel already and barely broken a sweat.

"You've taken care of the cameras, right? What he lacks in security, he certainly makes up for in surveillance." He had at least a dozen cameras on every floor.

"I've been doing this since before you were born, küçük kız." (Little girl). I suppressed an eye roll since he wasn't there to witness it. Usually Pavel accompanied me on nearly all my jobs, but this one we had to minimize all possible errors. If someone spotted a strange black SUV parked nearby, it'd be over. So, instead he was a couple miles away in the city keeping an eye out and taking care of all surveillance.

The hotel had a very simple plan, so each floor was exactly the same; the layout was square, there were two elevators on each floor at opposite sides, emergency staircase doors, a corner for security, and a bunch of rooms. I had the security rounding schedule, so I knew who would be on each floor at what time. And there weren't that many on duty anyway. Assuming it's because not many of his staff are aware of their boss' sketchy, disgusting hobbies.

The penthouse floor was the only difference. The entire floor was like an apartment with a hallway around the perimeter for security to patrol. We got every floor plan except this one, for some reason he wanted to keep it private. So, when I got inside I'd be on my own as far as finding somewhere to wait until it was time.

"Excuse me! Thank God I found someone, I could've sworn Aaron text me and asked me to drop by but I'm starting to think I got my days mixed up. You wouldn't be able to help me, would you? I hate that I came all this way for nothing." I came up on the two guards and put on my damsel in distress routine fluttering my eyelashes, pouting my glossed lips, and leaning close on one of their arms. He melted at my touch immediately, and the other had his eyes on my well rounded lower half. It took all the strength I had not to break his nose. Not before it was time anyway. I was silently praying he wouldn't notice the silhouette of my guns. Corsets can't conceal everything.

"Well, we wouldn't want that. Mr. Drozdov won't be in for a few minutes, but we'd be happy to keep you company until then." He suggested wiggling his eyebrows. I think I threw up in my mouth. This had gone on long enough. I had my hand positioned on his wrist already, so that made my job easy. I grabbed his wrist and twisted it behind his back, pushing him forward until he fell on his knee. Before he could recuperate I snapped it in two and knee'd him in the face, effectively knocking him unconscious. His friend finally snapped out of his shock over a woman my size taking down his friend in less than a minute, and lunges at me. I quickly sidestepped, elbowing him in the ribs.

"You little bitch." He hissed. I smirked, cracking my knuckles.

"I get that a lot." He lunges at me again, predicting my sidestep like I planned, and moved to get me in a chokehold. I easily ducked under his arm and got a lock on his elbow, bending him over. I threw my knee into his ribs until I heard a satisfactory crack. And then another. And another. When I was sure he out of commission, I knocked him out for good measure. Now, to get them out of sight. I dragged both of the bodies into nearby storage closets and locked the doors. It was time for their break, so it wouldn't tip anything off if they were gone. Checking my watch, I had five minutes until they got there.

Shit.

Looking around his penthouse, I'd be lying if I said I wasn't impressed. It was a very nice space with multiple balconies, a huge bar, spacious living room area, an indoor pool and a TV in a size I didn't even know they made. Money may not buy happiness, but I'd much rather cry alone drinking Château on my 1,000 thread count sheets than in an apartment on a HomeGoods couch drinking wine I picked up from Trader Joe's. The only bad thing about it was there weren't many places for concealment, it was too open.

"Rose, they're coming up the elevator now." Well, fuck me. I had three options; one of the many balconies, the bar, or dive in the pool and hope I can hold my breath long enough. I went with door number one. The balconies were open, but there were curtains so I had cover. I made it out the door just before they walked in.

"So, gentlemen, can I get you any drinks?" I'd never met Aaron in person, but from hearing his voice I could tell how much of an arrogant prick he was. It wasn't exactly a monologue, but I heard it all in his tone.

"Look, Drozdov, we're here on business. Frankly, I have better things to do so hand over the money and you can get back to sitting on your ass." Listening to Marlen, honestly it seemed like I was doing Galina a favor. He was one step away from becoming a loose canon. He's a liability and from what I'd heard loses more money than he's worth.

"What's the hurry? I, at least, like to know who I'm getting in bed with. Literally and figuratively. Have a drink."

"Fine, you got any whiskey?" I groaned internally. Sitting on this balcony all day while these two had tea time was not part of the plan.

"Actually, we should really hurry and get back. Galina—"

"Galina isn't here! This is my deal, I'm in charge! And I say we have time for a drink."

Sounded like Galina needed to start giving out more hugs and appreciation cards. If these were the type of people she had working for her, her empire was bound to crumble right out from under her.

"So anyway, Nathan, tell me a bit about the product I'm investing in." The smirk in his words was unmistakable.

"Well, you know we get all our girls top of the line. Perfect shape, no disabilities or mental issues, of puberty age, and always compliant. You pretty much have the pick of the litter. You want Asian, African-American, Caucasian, Indian, big boobs, nice ass, blonde, red head, skinny, curvy, big boned, it doesn't matter. Whatever you want, we can supply it. You know, if you're into it, we even have some a little younger than recommended if you know what I mean. I hear they're particularly—" I saw red. Next thing I knew I was standing in front of two dead bodies, Nathan with a bullet in his thigh, and Aaron crouching behind his couch.

"What the hell is going on?!" Aaron screeched in shock. I was trying my best to keep it professional, but I was shaking with anger.

"How dare you? I'm not about to stand here and give you some big righteous speech, 'cause it won't mean shit. But, there's a special place in Hell for wastes of life like you. And I'm more than happy to send you there." Marlen laughed. A dead, emotionless laugh of an empty man. A man that welcomed death.

"You think this'll change anything? I'll only be replaced. You can't save anyone, you barely saved yourself. Or did you forget, Mazur? You think you're different now that a few years have passed? You're still that same, pathetic girl. You're just lucky you got out before I could get a few rounds in with you myself. I would've given you something to remember." I took several deep breaths to stop myself from emptying both my clips in his face. Or smashing it against the kitchen counter until there was nothing left but broken bone and mangled flesh. But, the worst part of it was that I knew there was truth to his words. Killing Marlen wouldn't change a damn thing. It probably wouldn't even save the girls he was planning to sell to Aaron. They'd only be sold to a different person at a different time. Them and countless girls like them. Like me. All this time, all these people I'd killed and what had it helped? What good was I doing?

"Look, whatever this is between you and Nathan I have nothing to do with it. I won't say a word about anything I've seen I swear." Aaron's shaky voice pleaded from behind the couch.

"Oh don't worry. You'll both be leaving real soon."

"You're no better than us just because your trade is different. There's just as much blood on your hands as mine. You really want to save the world from demons and evils that lurk in the night? Pull that trigger on yourself." I narrowed my eyes. Who was he to lecture me on right and wrong? Sure, I kill people. But he tore them apart. The people I killed weren't innocent in the slightest, and who's to say the girls they abducted were? But no matter what they might've done in their lives, they didn't deserve what happened to them. I wouldn't wish a fate like that on my worst enemy. I barely heard Aaron's pitiful cries and pleads for his life over my own thoughts.

"Rose, time is running short. Do the job, and get out of there." Pavel's voice in my ear brought me back to steadiness. This was just a job. No different than any of the countless others I'd done. Get in, and get out. That's all I had to do.

"See you in Hell." Were the last words Marlen chose. Before anything else could be said, I put a bullet between his eyes and Aaron's who I was surprised hadn't tried to make a run for it. Not that he would have gotten anywhere.

"It's done." I whispered to no one in particular. I thought I'd feel alleviated from all the stress and doubt I'd been feeling this past week when it was done, but I felt fifty pounds heavier. There was still that looming feeling like something dreadful was about to happen. I couldn't put my finger on it, but my gut was practically screaming that everything was about to go to shit.

And it was right.

I smelled him before anything else. That aftershave was a scent I knew all too well, it was overpowering and permeated the entire room. The clicking of a gun cocking followed soon after.

"Hey, Comrade. Long time no see," I turned to see none other than Dimitri Belikov standing before me in all his western wannabe glory, "How long has it been? A year?" He clenched his jaw. Dimitri and I were nothing short of mortal enemies. Both of our main goals was solely to kill the other, and for six years we'd failed. We might as well be Sherlock and Moriarty. Only instead of a battle of wits, it was more like a battle of arms.

"You and I both know I'm not here for pleasantries, Mazur." He sneered through gritted teeth. I grinned. This couldn't have been more of a serious moment, but I loved to see him squirm. Belikov was like the Queen's guard when it came to showing emotion and I reveled in the rare times that I managed to get a rise out of him.

"Mazur? You wound me, Dimitri. After all these years I think we've gotten to a first name basis." His nostrils started to flare as he struggled to hold his composure. If Pavel were actually here I'm sure he'd scold me for acting like a child in the face of death.

"Rose? Rose, what's going on? I've been losing connection, are you alright?"

"Everything's fine, Pavel. Give me a second, I'll contact you on my way out. Promise." I disconnected my earpiece and dropped it on the ground. Whatever was to happen next, I didn't want him to hear it.

"Sure you don't want to say any last goodbyes?"

"Aww. I knew I'd crack that stone heart of yours one day, Belikov." He growled, a deep, guttural growl you'd hear from a wild animal, and charged forward pushing the barrel of his gun right against my temple. Any other sane person would've flinched, cried, begged and pleaded for their life, anything. Instead, I relaxed. You didn't live the life that I did fearing death. I'd come to terms with the fact that my life could end at any moment the second I made my final life decision at sixteen.

"I'm tired of playing these games with you. It's taken too long for this day to come. You are finally going to pay for your sins." Now, it was my turn to laugh. I understood exactly where Nathan was coming from now. Especially since Dimitri and I were literally no different at all. We had the same job, but different bosses. This was the pot calling the kettle black if I'd ever seen it.

"Sins? You wanna talk about sins? Let's take a minute to count up your bodies shall we? Or did you forget not only are we the same, we're even."

"We are not even. We will never be even. You took everything from me."

"If you really think this'll magically bring him back, fine. Pull the trigger. I'll be sure to tell him you said hi." Looking in his dark eyes I saw hesitation for the first time. We'd spent years trying to kill each other, he finally had the chance to end it all, and he was faltering. Dimitri Belikov was never one to falter. In fact, he was known for being able to kill without consequence. He felt nothing, he showed nothing. Yet here he was allowing whatever it was he was feeling to get in the way of his objective. I tried to see exactly what those feelings were, but his eyes were clouded. It was almost like he didn't know for himself. The thought crossed my mind to shoot him in the leg while he was distracted, but someone else thought of it first.

Bullets shot through the balcony windows, scattering across the walls and expensive furnishings. We both got down just in time, but not before being nicked. Thankfully, it was just a flesh wound, but it hurt no less. I scrambled to pick up my earpiece.

"Pavel! Pavel, I'm under heavy enemy fire. At least three shooters, I need eyes. What the fuck is going on?!" It probably wasn't the best idea to take my eyes off of Belikov, but he was just as fucked as I was right now. I doubted killing me was still the sole concern on his mind.

"I'm sorry, Rose, but I don't know. I only have eyes directly outside and inside the hotel. God damnit! I knew I should've went with you. Is there any way you can make it to the elevator?" Considering how many bullets were flying through there, I'd say definitely not. Not if I wanted to make it alive. There weren't that many options for that, and the only one I could think of was one I'd rather die before doing. Looking at Dimitri, I could tell he reached the same conclusion I had. And neither of us was happy about it. If we were going to survive this, we'd have to work together.

DUN, DUN, DUUUNNNN! There it is. The final meeting. I really hope this chapter didn't feel rushed, I didn't see the point in going through a week of nothing. The plan was already laid out and wait was all there was left to do. I hate filler chapters and that's what it felt like that would've been. But, on another note, it's super hard to drag out this relationship you have no idea how much I just want to throw those two together already. That wouldn't be a very good story though. Anyway, I hope you all enjoyed this chapter and I appreciate every one of you that takes the time to review it makes me feel so great X3. Swear I reread them almost every day.

Hope you all have a wonderful week, until next time! xoxo