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Trouble. That’s what Belladonna was in. She was in trouble. She almost got caught… that wasn’t good. Nothing like that has ever happened. She was supposed to be tricky, slippery even, yet tonight a young police intern caught her fingerprint on the knife.
Thankfully, she was around to keep him quiet with that same blade.
She always stuck around for a few minutes after a murder she committed. Out of sight, of course, but it was always fun to watch the police twist themselves into pretzels just to find a tiny clue.
But they never did.
And they never would.
Well… until tonight.
It was a close call. And after she hid the body of the young intern, she snuck away back to her apartment.
Her heart was racing, and she was keenly aware of a sound or even a red and blue light. What if she left other mistakes? What if she was sloppier than she thought she was?
She couldn’t risk that…
Especially now that she had a daughter.
Twigg was her name. The girl picked it out herself. She had the girl for eight years, ever since she was six.
Was being a mom tough? Yes! Absolutely! But Twigg made it all the better.
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She soon arrived at her apartment, sneaking in through the fire escape just in case the police followed her somehow. She doubted it, but still better to be safe than sorry.
Belladonna flicked on the light switch in the kitchen. It was a very small apartment to be sure. Dusty, dingy, and some of the ceilings paint was peeling off. But it was New York, what could you expect? Belladonna would’ve gotten something cheaper, since this place was pretty expensive, but she wanted Twigg to grow up in an at least decent place. And it seemed like Twigg didn’t complain about it either.
Speaking of Twigg, where was she? She should’ve been home by now. Belladonna was about to call out to her before she heard giggling coming from Twigg’s room. Ah.
Her boyfriend’s over.
She blinked slowly before setting away the knife she was carrying and walking over to Twiggs door. She wrapped on the hard white wood and almost immediately the giggling stopped. The sound of footsteps could be heard from the other side before the door peeked open. It was Twigg. She had a big, awkward smile on her face and her hair looked a mess.
“Ma! Hey… Whatcha uhm… whatcha doing here?” Twigg muttered
“Oh! Nothing! Just, y’know, living in my own home” Belladonna responded with an irritated smile on her face
Twigg sighed and stood up to her full height.
“No, Ma, I meant what’re you doing back this early? Doesn’t your shift end at 5?”
“Yeah, but the boss let me off early due to… an accident happening at the casino”
Belladonna glanced down to see Twiggs little boyfriend staring at her awkwardly from behind Twigg. His hair too looked a mess, and his clothes were very wrinkled. Belladonna scowled before she flashed him a smile full of her sharp teeth, causing him to shudder and back up.
“So.” Belladonna raised her head again to look at her daughter. “Are you hungry? I have Mac and cheese in the fridge.”
“Mac and cheese sounds lovely Ma. I’ll go heat it up” Twigg responded before she sauntered past her mother and into the kitchen.
Right as Twigg turned the corner, Belladonnas smile dropped and she turned her head to Mason.
“The hell are you doin’ here, boy?” She hissed, bending down to face his level. The guy was scared shitless, but he held his ground.
“Just, ahem, spending time with your daughter ma’am.” He replied, his voice confident but his face scrunched up.
“Uh-huh, well you should scatter off, little one.” She glared at him and got in his face. “You’re not welcome here.”
“Really? Cus your daughter makes me feel very welcome, ma’am” He spoke with a small smirk on his face
The stinger on Belladonna shook and her wings buzzed a bit. Her face wrinkled into a furious glare.
“Watch your tongue boy. You have no power here, at least not in my presence.” She spat back
“… Oh but I do, ma’am. What’s going to happen the day your daughter finds out you’re a wanted criminal. Maybe I should just tell her now?”
Belladonnas blood ran cold. Dammit. This boy has known for a while what she does behind closed doors, and the only reason he’s kept quiet is for the safety of his own life.
“You wouldn’t dare.” She threatened in a low voice.
“I’m not scared of you ma’am.” He threatened back
Belladonna smirked and tilted her body, making sure the blade that was tucked in her pocket was now visible to him.
“You should be little one… you should be…”
Just then, Twigg turned the corner with three plates of Mac and cheese in hand. Her one eye was sparkling in pride for her cooking skills, even though it was a premade meal.
“All done!” She smiled, handing the plates to everyone. Belladonna put her lower set of hands on her hips and gave Twigg a gentle grin.
“That smells amazing, darling.”
She spoke, taking a bite of the Mac and cheese. As she was eating, she noticed a rather large bruise on Twiggs left shoulder. She froze and gently grabbed Twigg by the arm.
“Honey? What’s this?”
Belladonnas wings twitched in anger and she slowly turned her head to Twiggs boyfriend . Did… he do this? She swore to god that if he did she’d make sure he didn’t have hands left to do that agai-
“It’s nothing Ma… some people from school just attacked me on the way home.” Twigg said, cutting off Belladonnas thoughts. Twigg flinched and tried to pull her arm away from Belladonnas grasp. Belladonnas face darkened and she sucked in a sharp breath.
“Oh really? What were- I mean are their names?”
Belladonna asked, glaring Twigg in the eye.
“Uhm… I dunno… I think it was Kristen and Lola…?”
Twigg mumbled, finally being able to pull from her mothers grasp. Belladonnas fingers twitched and she glared off into the distance.
“Alright, I’ll make sure the school does something about them. I don’t tolerate that shit in my household.”
Belladonna spoke comfortingly, gently ruffling Twiggs hair. Twigg gave her a weak smile and nodded.
“Thanks Ma.”
Although Belladonna was smiling, she felt rage pouring through her veins, and it took a lot not to punch the nearest wall.
”It’s not a problem honey, now I’m going to finish up this Mac and cheese, and I’m gonna head to bed. I’m a little tired from the Casino. Make sure to be in bed by at least 11:30, mkay?”
Belladonna smiled, kissing Twigg on the cheek. Mason stared up at Belladonna silently. He knew what was about to happen… but he kept his mouth shut…
“Okay, night night Ma’”
Twigg replied, hugging her mom for a few seconds before releasing and walking back into the bedroom with Mason. Mason was stiff in fear, and he felt his heartbeat speed up.
Belladonna ignored him, he wasn’t her target tonight. She almost swiftly walked towards the fire escape, placing the plate of Mac and Cheese on the counter. Was it wasting? Yeah, but Belladonna was too enraged to care.
She jumped out of the window, onto the fire escape, before she dragged out her knife from her pocket.
Those girls had something coming, and it certainly wasn’t pleasant.
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The next night, Belladonna returned to the apartment after a long day of work. Twigg was on the couch staring down at her homework with a frustrated face. Belladonna noticed how the scar was healing, and she smiled lightly.
“Hey hon, how was school?”
She asked, setting down her work bag and walking over to where Twigg was sitting.
”Good, the girls I talked about yesterday didn’t come to school today. Strange. Did you have something to do with that?”
Twigg asked, looking up from her work and into the eyes of her mom.
“I told you I’d have the school do something about them”
Belladonna responded, falling back onto the couch with a smirk before she lit a cigarette.
Twigg gasped with a smile and gave her mom a cheeky look.
”Ma! What’d you do to make sure they didn’t come to school today?”
“Oh y’know, pulled a couple strings, did a little bit of yelling. You’re mom can be very persuasive.”
Belladonna smirked before she blew a puff of smoke out her mouth. Twigg sighed and nudged her mom in the shoulder.
”Thanks Ma”
She smiled before she felt her mothers arms wrap around her in a comforting hug.
“It’s not a problem, my dear. I promise that I’ll never let anything hurt you, ever.”
”Really? You promise?”
”I promise”