Empire of Deception (Harry Styles AU)

Chapter 8

Realization turns into fascination and within seconds I find myself completely entranced and interested by her every move.

Her dark eyes are focused, and it's not until she sits down that she finally looks at me. No expression. She turns towards her father and I am left to look at her side profile. Not exactly squished but nothing seems to protrude dramatically—like my own nose. Her cheekbones seem to be chiseled with some sort of makeup a few shades darker than her own skin color. I suddenly wonder if her structured face is all an illusion. I ponder about the skin that hides beneath the cosmetics.

Christopher fails to take a seat at the table. Instead, he lingers by the doorway, using the wall to lean against comfortably. Yet again I find myself comparing the two siblings, wondering how on Earth I hadn't made the connection before. I always forget that Christopher's mother and Alexander's wife is Asian. Perhaps it's because she is rarely ever seen, and because her son's outer appearance doesn't hold a lot of the oriental attributes. However, as I look between them, using the sister as reference, I am suddenly able to see the strains of Asian DNA in his physical features.

The hair. Darker than the night sky and straighter than dried spaghetti. Eyes. Slightly smaller but not almond slanted like his sisters; his pupil holds barely any color to them—they are simply black. His stature. He gets his height from his father but his thin and narrow frame from his mother. Him and his sister both share this trait, for she is significantly taller than Mia, but way thinner.

One look at the two of them and you can tell that they have both been raised by the same bloodthirsty father.

My eyes tear themselves away from Christopher and settle back onto his sister. I watch as she takes out a thin, aluminum laptop, which she opens and begins typing on shortly after. After a few sentences, she stops and looks up at her father, eagerly waiting for him to say something.

"Mr. Harry, nice of you to join us today," Alexander states with a polite nod.

"Pleasure is all mine, sir," I reply.

I hear Christopher scoff.

Alexander takes a seat, and his daughter reaches out her hand to offer him a sheet of paper. I assume it's his notes.

"Mr. Jarwin, I would just like to start off by saying that our team is coming together well. Mr. Harry included," Janice chirps with a nervous smile. "The people who have chosen to stay will be briefed on Monday about Project 28."

Alexander doesn't seem to be listening because he is too busy staring at me. I start to grow uncomfortable under burn of his stares.

"The feedback so far has been positive," Janice continues, clearing her throat slightly so she can catch his attention. "Most of the candidates are responding quickly."

"Perfect."

This is the first time that I hear her speak. Her voice isn't smooth or sweet as expected, but instead it's a little deeper than the average famale. I wouldn't describe it as husky or raspy... More so sincere and straightforward.

"When I've received word that our team has been briefed, I will send out the agenda that shows the different areas of work so the team can be divided accordingly. From there I shall send out their individual tasks and we can start on making this vision a reality," she prompts.

Alexander looks pleased. "Victoria will be the one organizing and handling most aspects of Project 21, including employee observations, legal work, and planning. She will answer and tend to anything related to Project 21, and I consider her supervisor over this entire project administration, including the folks over at Bolton."