#isabelle chapmann

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                                           ISABELLE CHAPMANN

THIRTY. SOCIAL COLUMN WRITER @ THE LA TIMES.

TRIGGER WARNING: THEMES OF DEATH AND MURDER.

On the other side of her merciless pen, lies a curious heart and an overactive mind, jumping from rumor to rumor, her imagination is filled with all the things she has yet to figure out like a puzzle piece, where everyone plays a part in her wicked games, every celebrity and public figure is a mystery yet to be solved.  Often called the Nancy Drew of Hollywood, Isabelle Chapmann is the most known name amongst gossip and social column writers. Unraveling scandals and mysteries alike, she is known for having exposed many celebrities and socialites in what she calls her 'very own people-watching column'.

Daughter to a ruthless businessman and a French socialite, the Chapmann name is to be feared. Known lawyers, businessmen and writers, Isabelle was a mini-Jane Austen in the making as a child, writing about the high society with such precise words and sharp views that it was hard, even for herself, not to analyze her own family. She often went off on her own rants about the Manhattan life, seeing the segregation between her kind and other people as nothing but ruthless. Isabelle wanted justice to be delivered on a silver plate, and so if she could do nothing about it, she could at the very least, write about it.

The pen is not always mightier than the sword, and sometimes, the sword -- or the gun -- wins. It was a hot summer night in July when Isabelle was only twelve and brilliant and young. Accompanied by her father, sitting by the window in their penthouse on the Upper East Side, they were reading and reciting one of her short poems when a bullet shot through his chest, straight through his heart. She witnessed everything: the blood, the horror, the screams. And she'd never write about it, she promised herself, not until she found out whoever had commanded her father's killing. Isabelle remembers running and running and running, until her mother's arms protected her and the police chimed in through the front door only to find the body of the most important pioneering petrol companies on the floor.

Isabelle knew the cruelty of words then.  The weight of the headlines on the newspapers, falling upon her shoulders, killing her straight from the inside out. "Chapmann businessman executed in cold blood," it said, and she read the words out loud. So she would remember to never let anyone kill her into silence. Into madness.

She pursued a degree in Journalism, graduating on top of her class, as a honor student. But no matter how high her achievements were or how high she aimed, it never seemed to be good enough. A taste of perfection was the same taste to that of emptiness, for her hollow ribcage had nothing but a pounding heart that demanded answers for her father's execution.  She hadn't dug deep into it, not until she moved to LA to pursue a career writing about the social scene of Hollywood, however, she came across several clues that indicated that her father had a link to the mobsters in California.

Isabelle found something much uglier, much grittier and dirtier and bloodier than just the petty people and their gossip from the Upper East Side. Whispers of the Polish-Russian mobsters were all over town, and although most were simply rumors, Isabelle couldn't help her curiosity: could they have anything to do with her father's murder? If so, her settling down in LA hadn't just been one big coincidence, but something much bigger awaited her ahead...

The world of LA was glimmering and plastic. Everything was made out of something breakable: people, objects, movie sets and most importantly, rumours. They were easy to break down, figure out, put together... She was a clever girl, and it didn't take Isabelle long to become equal to those she claimed to hate with such passion. Isabelle's thirst for vengeance came off as bitterness, as big articles revealing equally big scandals written in her column, on her blog... Everywhere. Suddenly everyone knew of the girl who had everything to say and nothing to lose -- she was taking over Hollywood by storm.

But her breakthrough came when she stepped into the world of Inferno. She was too witty to go to any other club whatsoever, and she had heard whispers of what went down underground... Between four walls. Of course, Isabelle didn't buy it that easily, she wasn't naive, or easily fooled by any means, but there was no denying the Pruszkowski siblings didn't smell as good as they looked. Except one of them caught Isabella's particular attention: Rebekah.

Rebekah was a charm. What's not to love? Still, all of her instincts were to run from the club, even though she couldn't help but be drawn towards it even more. Like a contradiction, Isabelle enjoyed Rebekah's humor, but didn't go as far as to trust her too much. Until they became close friends. This fact was as astonishing to the public as it was to her: Isabelle was not an easy company, nor was she easy to be friends with. She'd always much rather be alone than socialize with those whom she deemed unworthy of her company, but the Pruszkowski name she had sworn not to come across was now plastered all over her: Rebekah was her friend... and now that she's missing, a moral conflict rises: she can either make herself a good headline out of her merciless pen and equally merciless stories, or respect the family's wishes not to touch upon the subject, at least not so ruthlessly.

However, she's been searching.. And whoever searches is bound to find something, whether she likes it or not. Answers to her father's murder still remain unknown, and with her only friend missing, she's got death written all over her. A target's on her back, and the only weapon she has resides in her own hands: her angry, hollow, hungry penmanship skills. She doesn't trust the Pruszkowski brothers will find Rebekah anytime soon -- and she's afraid they don't really want to. Whoever had it out for her father, also had it out for Rebekah. The web of lies and deceit can only be unveiled by none other than Hollywood's very own Nancy Drew.

                                          CONNECTIONS

ALEKSANDER PRUSZKOWSKI: Rebekah spoke well of him -- almost too well -- but Isabelle always felt as if his cheshire cat smile and his secretive nature made him more of a weapon than a trusted ally. She has an article on him drafted, but she’s too afraid that publishing it will lead to a serious backlash in her career. After all, she has been careless for far too long... And maybe befriending Rebekah was a mistake. Aleksander seems to be the personification of that mistake. She doesn’t know what’s the Pruszkowski twins deal is, but she intends to find out at all costs, especially considering Rebekah was a friend. 

VALENTINA MACHADO: Valentina has been desperately trying to get under Hollywood’s good graces, but Isabelle sees through her ingenious temper and her fiery personality. She has stumbled upon the Brazilian pageant contest winner a couple times, and she might have one or two thoughts to jot down on her social column that may make or break Valentina’s career. Too bad Isabelle has found herself attracted to Valentina’s charm once or twice... 

ILYANA STOYANOVA: The socialite has been a quiet public figure ever since she came into the spotlight. She seems to handle it well -- the rumors, everything. Except there is something about her perfectionist persona that captures Isabelle’s attention. Like when you look too close and risk losing the bigger picture, Isabelle’s been looking out for the details that give away if Ilyana is or isn’t worthy of the attention. Little does Isabelle know Ilyana is acting as a liaison for the Polish-Russian mobsters that have commanded her father’s killing.

DAMIAN ISAIAH: The LA mayor fell under Isabelle’s good graces for being a trusted family friend, but not for long. She’s been keeping up with the news so far, and they don’t seem good. She foresees a major breakthrough coming up, and he’ll have to pick sides: it’s either being adored or being feared. It seems that he wants to choose both until now. Damian needs a little guiding hand, and the breaking gossip on her latest articles might just be the push he needs to choose the right thing.

FACECLAIM: LILY COLLINS (NEGOTIABLE)

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There are few people whom I really love, and still fewer of whom I think well. The more I see of the world, the more am I dissatisfied with it; and every day confirms my belief of the inconsistency of all human characters, and of the little dependence that can be placed on the appearance of merit or sense. -- JANE AUSTEN.

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                                 ALEKSANDER PRUSZKOWSKI

THIRTY SEVEN. CEO @ PRUSZKOWSKI CORP.

trigger warning: themes of death and murder.

From the womb, Aleksander was the smaller twin -- frail, quiet. His mother worried that he wouldn't be born at all, and his father disregarded him as weak from the moment Aleksander could talk: a little later than Dominik, who would later on become the family favorite. Aleksander never held a grudge against his older twin, simply because anyone who could read the slightest bit about people could foretell that Nik was born to be king. Alek, on the other side, served as his right hand. And for a while he was content with it.

Since his childhood years, back in Warsaw, Poland, he has always been seen as the quieter counterpart to his twin Dominik, whose strong and infamous presence always made itself well-known. Yet the reality is that there is a fiery resilience in Aleksander, who stands in the shadow of Dominik, almost defined by it. Almost, only. He's still his very own fervor, burning and burning -- people are just blind to the glow.

There is a nothingness that permeates him, a beautiful mess of conflicting desires, a numb heart. He's a walking contradiction, one might say.  Whereas Nik knows exactly where his loyalties lie and where he stands, Aleksander has always been the more thoughtful, cautious one. Back in Poland, he was the glue that held his father and mother together, quietly but surely reaffirming their love for one another. When Nik would get into street fights as a teenager, it was Aleksander who calmed him down and tended to his wounds... It was Aleksander who first cried when his father was executed in cold blooded murder, and it was also Aleksander who held his two younger sisters when they, too, missed the patriarch of the family. Without Alek, the family might have been slightly different: without a heart, without unity.

He remembers the first day when they moved into the US. Los Angeles, specifically. The land of the damned and the beautiful, the life of crime his father secretly led... and how it would all come down to Nik taking over. Aleksander's introspective nature was often underestimated, cast in the shadows of his extroverted brother, but Alek captivated people slowly, with his heartfelt ways and his gentle eyes that hid a dark imagination. Much like Nik, he had been born for the life of crime, they just hadn't seen it yet: still waters run deep.

If Nik was the head, Alek was the heart. When Nik took over in an abrupt change of scenario in the Pruszkow mob, Alek was not surprised. He took on the role of his brother's trusted advisor, founding Pruszkowski Corp in 2004 as the first Polish banking corporation to rule the market. He was smart, resilient, and could read people well. Unlike Nik, he wasn't impulsive, but he still had a charcoal heart, and those who stood in his way had their lives completely ended or ruined in some way or another.

Aleksander was conflicted by power, yet he was still drawn to it -- as a Pruszkowski, all of them were. But Aleksander had a particularly hard time accepting himself. He saw his strengths and weaknesses, but he could not help but wish he had been born to be a ruler like his brother. Something didn't feel quite right, from his the way he hid his sexuality from the public, to his intuitive nature that warned him something was deeply wrong... Something didn't fit. And it was inside of him, eating up at his own heart: the fact that the impending doom of death was on its way.

Then Rebekah went missing. And his mother died -- it was a nightmare. Rebekah had always been his favorite, the one he confided in -- and now his secrets were laid out for all the public to see, plastered across magazines and newspapers.. 'Aleksander Pruszkowski is on the verge of falling apart', 'Pruszkowski businessman is on the brink of self-destruction'. Of course, his siblings were all too busy to notice, because Aleksander hid it well, he always did, but he was, in fact, hopeless. Beneath the cool facade of the quiet brother hid a broken, selfish and dark man.

He was the only one who seemingly cared, the only one who stood amidst the chaos, gulping it down like the drinks of whiskey that followed after. Between the corruption and money-laundering scandals of Pruszkowski Corp, Aleksander was dealt the worst hand... Whilst Anika was running her own magazine and Dominik stood in the spotlight, it was Alek who was given the mission to fix whatever had been broken.

And they say that when war comes, you better not be in the middle of it... You better know where your loyalties lie.

He doesn't.

So when he overheard the rumors of the Russians breaking the alliance between them, he wasn't furious like Nik would be. He wasn't even surprised -- he had seen it coming for years, but Nik always disregarded Alek's ability to foretell things.  Aleksander has been receiving anonymous letters threatening to expose all of his secrets -- from his homosexuality to the corruption scandals that happen in his corporation -- if he doesn't help the Russian mafia take over. Now it's a matter of life and death, how it all seems to come together against him.. In his worst days he can't help but think Rebekah was indeed taken by the Russians, whilst in his mild hours he thinks she just took off because dealing with the family business suddenly became too much.

Who knows? Maybe he will take off too, from all of this madness... But his loyalty to his brother weighs down on him far too much for him to betray the Pruszkowski name. He cannot bring himself to do it, but at the same time, there are lonely nights in which he spends wondering what would truly happen if he did backstab -- literally -- his brother. Would it be so bad to be seen as king, after all? Has he not been standing in the shadows and the ashes of those he loves for far too long?

                                            CONNECTIONS

DOMINIK PRUSZKOWSKI: He has always been the loyal dog to Nik’s madness. He has followed him everywhere, anywhere he went. When Nik’s life gets tough, he knows he can count on Aleksander. But what about the other way around? Dominik has never proven to care, always driven by his own ulterior motives, using his brother as his pawn in his very own game of chess. Aleksander might bite the Russian’s bait, if he sees his brother isn’t truly fit for the throne.

ANIKA PRUSZKOWSKA: Anika, alongside Rebekah, were the apple of Aleksander’s eyes. He cherished them the most when they were born, being the first person who took them into arms after his own mother. After the death of their dearly beloved mother, he intends to protect what’s left of his family above all else, although it’ll be hard with the Russian’s upcoming betrayal. They won’t see it coming, but he will... And he intends to keep his family together whatever it takes. 

DMITRI NIKOLAYEV: Dmitri is the head of the Russian operations. Although Aleksander knows his brother is the real Polish king, it’s Alek who speaks for them, making sure the Polish stand their ground. Fluent in Russian from an early age, he has a brilliant mind and he knows Dmitri trusts him, which is why he’s so torn on betraying his brother after all: what truly lies behind Dmitri’s intentions? And why is it so inviting to backstab his own twin?

ISABELLE CHAPMANN: Isabelle’s self-righteous mask might fall if Aleksander manages to catch her true intentions in time. He knows she’s been keeping up with his scandals and corruption rumors, and he also knows she’s the one who makes or breaks celebrities and public figures’ lives. His life is at stake in her hands, for she might just decide that he isn’t worthy enough of her merciful pen. 

FACECLAIM: JAMIE DORNAN (NONNEGOTIABLE)

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                                     ANIKA PRUSZKOWSKA

THIRTY. GLAMM MAGAZINE EDITOR-IN-CHIEF. POLISH.

If there is something she fondly remembers and holds closely to her heart, it's Barbie dolls. The perfection, the beauty, the endless potential. All the shimmery clothes and the plastic. She keeps them on a shelf, carefully, on their respective shiny plastic boxes. Sometimes Anika thinks she's still the same six year old girl attending child pageants and carrying her Barbie doll everywhere she went, grieving the loss of a father she barely met, following her brothers around like a lost puppy.

Not much has changed. Not much at all. Now, she's the editor-in-chief of a glamorous magazine for the elite, but she's still the same girl competing against other beauty pageant queens and playing mirror-mirror on the wall. The mirror never answers it, but Anika knows she's the fairest of them all -- she just wishes her sister was there to see it too. But it all takes us back to late 90's to early 00's, when Anika would find herself playing hide and seek with Rebekah. It always felt like Rebekah was much better than her at hiding (including secrets), which infuriated Anika, who had always wanted to be the best at everything she tried: ballet, ice skating, modeling, existing. Although Anika loved her sister dearly, it was a shame she lived in the shadows of her fair, beautiful, kind and princess-like sister.

She never really held it against her mother. Or her siblings. Who couldn't love Rebekah? Even Anika hated herself for loving her sister a little too much. She only blamed herself for standing in the shadows of Bekah. So when her sister disappeared, she basked in the spotlight, playing the role of the perfect sister better than she thought she would.  She found some solace in the thought of Rebekah's suffering in the hands of Dominik being gone, but even the comfort she had in her newfound glory came with a little guilt. Wasn't she to blame, for not having taken care of her older sister? Wasn't she to blame at all?

In Anika's world of plastic dolls and lipstick, there's nothing worse than being second best. Her mother raised her in beauty pageant contests, in the world of adored queens, Miss Universe contests and men to be conquered. It's no surprise she envied Rebekah a little, who felt no need to prove her own worth through other people's eyes. But Anika... Anika was a different deal. She was greedy and wanted to thrive -- no, more than that. She wanted to live under the glory of being an immortal beauty queen. In the world of LA, she cursed every girl under the sun simply for existing, doing everything in her power to be the best, the most beautiful, the most adored. She crossed every line. Every boundary.

Just to be the best.

It worked -- for awhile. Until she was a little too old to model again and people got sick of her. LA moved fast, faster than she could imagine... and Anika didn't forget it. Nor did she forgive it. Thanks to Dominik's connections, she landed herself a job in one of LA's most famous magazines: GLAMM. Known for its ruthless commentary on celebrities' sense of fashion, the tabloids and the gossip, as well as dictating whoever was in and whoever was out. Anika found power, but it came at a price. Although she was deeply feared by the LA public and no longer adored by the crowds, she now had a say in whoever was or wasn't relevant in the world of Hollywood. Like her very own dictatorship, Anika made LA her ground.

And she was brutal, damn how she was.

If she couldn't be the fairest, or the coolest, or the kindest, then no one would be it. If she couldn't win beauty pageant contests anymore, then no one else could. Holding a grudge against the pretty young things that lined up to replace her in ads and photoshoots alike, her grip tightened on the magazine. Her behavior more tempestuous, cunning and rotten as each edition was published. Her critics thrived, for she was one of the best magazine editors there had ever been -- at only twenty seven. But she was also the most hated by celebrities and socialites alike.

So now poses the question: which is worse, being feared or being hated? With Rebekah's missing, there's a chance at redemption and suddenly the public loves her again... even if she dearly misses her sister, she can't deny the glory and the power that come with it. Every interview, every story, everyone wants a piece of Anika Pruszkowski. For the first time, she's seen as more than the beauty and the rage she harnesses... for the first time, she is seen as the name behind a legendary magazine, a girl whose story is one of tragedy, of loss and grieving. And she is grieving.

As all of the suspicions lay upon the Russians, Anika hopes to bask in her missing sister's glory forever. It feels wrong -- but so right. Who is she to deny the love and adoration that comes with being pitied? Who is she to deny the attention she has been craving for so long? One thing is certain: sometimes she wishes Rebekah would never be found. It's a sin of pride and greed, but it's a wishful thought just the same. Maybe this is her time to shine. Maybe tragedy strikes for good this time around... and maybe, just maybe, this is what her sister would've wanted after all: Anika's happiness.

                                            CONNECTIONS

DOMINIK PRUSZKOWSKI: Her oldest brother. Technically, Aleksander is also her oldest brother, but Dominik had to be the older twin by two seconds. It enrages Anika he has so much power -- and she wants nothing to do with him, although sometimes being his youngest sister comes in handy, they play the part of the perfect family for the media, but inside the privacy of their home she knows Nik is up to something. And she’ll find out whatever is it he has planned out.

ALEKSANDER PRUSZKOWSKI: The glue that keeps the family together. She holds a special fondness for him in her heart, but also a couple grudges for him following the footsteps of Dominik. Why couldn’t he stand by her side for once? Why can’t he choose himself instead of others? It’s time for Alek to be selfish -- and she needs to show him how. If only he could see past Dominik’s mad surface, he’d see that there’s nothing left there for anyone to love or protect... but it still seems that Alek will follow his brother until the depths of Hell. And the mere thought of it scares her.

VALENTINA MACHADO: Frenemyship, it’s what it’s all about. Everybody needs a friend -- it shouldn’t be someone to compete against. But it seems that Valentina’s role has become similar to that of Rebekah’s: comparison. Although Anika loves her dearly, she knows Valentina is a pretty young thing designed to replace her soon. And as the saying goes... keep your friends close, and your enemies closer. 

ISABELLE CHAPMANN: The social column writer surely had a word or two about Anika’s temper -- they were not pretty. She’s hell-bent on destroying the girl who keeps staining her reputation article after article, and now that Isabelle’s found her way into Inferno, Anika will make sure she never messes with her or her siblings ever again. Part of her just wants to blame someone for her grief and her wrath, which shall fall upon Isabelle in the ugliest of ways.

FACECLAIM: SHELLEY HENNIG (NEGOTIABLE)

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                                                AMBIKA PATEL

THIRTY SEVEN. MANAGER AT INFERNO. PRUSZKOW ASSOCIATE.

MATURE THEMES AHEAD.

THIS CHARACTER HAS A SECRET PLOT.

Bukowski said it, didn't he? He named the book after it: "love is a dog from hell," but he was wrong.

Life is a dog from hell, and Ambika Patel can prove it, clawing, digging her way out of graves faster than she can spell her own name. The forbidden fruit to an unfaithful marriage, even Ambika's birth felt a little like death. Her father, a cheating businessman, her mother, a fallen star to the Bollywood scene. Within a few weeks upon the knowledge she was pregnant, Ambika's mother was betrayed by her lover, who had promised her the world and instead left her with nothing but pretty little lies, leaving her for his rocky relationship with his wife. "I want no part in her life," he said -- and so it was done. He bought them two tickets to live in the US, passports and all: he provided them with all the means necessary to leave them out of his life, and Ambika's mother, as the lovestruck woman she was, followed his instructions obediently.

"Never look for me. Never tell her about me. Never, okay?" He muttered, handing her the little luggage she had. So she left, with a month year-old Ambika and fake passports that would lead them into freedom. Or so she thought.  

Life in Los Angeles wasn't nearly as glamorous as they pegged it to be in TV. Ambika's mother, Nasatya, knowing of what made herself desirable, began working in the sex industry as a means of survival. Although it was profitable, the clients were horrible, the competition was high and the drugs, cops and predators were everywhere. Nasatya crawled her way out of the business when Ambika was seven years old, sparing herself -- and her daughter -- the trouble of sleeping with strange men. But the memory of Ambika seeing her own mother as she welcomed another man into her bedroom would stay the same, it would remain on for years to come.

They managed to get out of LA's outskirts and move into a quiet suburban neighborhood, where the children would poke fun at Ambika's accent, her clothing, and her most importantly, her culture. They called her names, tugged at her hair and made her question her worth. Without a father and with a mother who worked two jobs to pay the rent, Ambika found that she was all by herself. And so, if she had no one to defend herself, then she would be it. She would become the very same person she needed.

With a ruthlessness that was unheard of for a girl her age, she grew up into a vampire without fangs, hungry and desperate, but most importantly, deceiving. Her façade of a motherly woman always managed to fool those into her wicked smile, and once you were trapped in her web, nothing could dig you out: Ambika was good at manipulating people, but most importantly, she was even better at fooling herself. She was willing to be the villain of the story, if only it gave her power and good wealth. She had been tired of starving, tired of being the underdog. So at twenty-four, when she entered the doors of Inferno, she knew it had to be it -- she knew it was it.

Confident, Ambika managed to delve into Inferno by becoming its most beautiful bartender. She was smart -- she had a precise knowledge of how men and women operated, how much red lipstick it took to seduce someone into doing whatever you desired and just how many late night hours it took for a tired man to give into your desires. She was cunning. And Dominik Pruszkowski certainly did not let it go unnoticed.

At thirty, she became Inferno's manager. It all had been thanks to her hard work, but also, thanks to her friendship with its owner. Whilst many questioned her real intentions with Dominik, it was hard to deny how much they had in common: from the unpredictable ways to the mannerisms, they had become trusted friends and allies along the way. She was thriving. Ambika made it to the sixth page, living under the glory of Inferno among gods and monsters, in her very own garden of evil, sharing the forbidden fruit with Dominik himself -- like a true best friend would.

Without looking back at the past, she built her empire from scratch. Inferno's reputation was her own, so she always made sure to dress impeccably, speak precisely and most importantly, read into people's deepest fears and desires. She had always been mistaken for a flower, yet little people knew she was the serpent under it. A true wolf in sheep's clothing, Ambika went as far as to distance herself entirely from her mother. Who could know of her mother's past? No one. Who could know about Ambika's previous life living in the outskirts of LA, with nothing to eat? No one, absolutely nobody.

So don't let her charming smile and pink attire fool you. Perhaps the sleek black hair and the quiet, passive gaze give away the wrong impression. She has demons in her dreamcatcher -- a selfish mad woman without nothing to lose, except for her Inferno and the power it brings her.

She knows the Russians plan to strike soon against the Polish, yet that is a secret she has been keeping for herself. She's heard whispers of different people, confessions of sinners and saints alike... And she knows that they're coming. Information can always be used either for or against you, which is why she intends to backstab the Russians before they take Inferno from her hands. Ambika may warn Dominik if she deems it necessary, but for now she's biding her time, holding her own -- and other people's -- secrets closely, like a ticking time bomb waiting its time to explode.

                                           CONNECTIONS

DOMINIK PRUSZKOWSKI: He’s her best friend, in a wicked, doomed sense of the term. They both stand by each other, side by side, like they have been bound by blood. Although Ambika knows better than to keep secrets from the only man she trusts, she can’t help to. She still thinks there are things he keeps from her, vital things, things he should trust her with... but then again, who is she to judge? Ambika has her fair share of unsaid things herself.

YAHUI HE: Past lover. They both ended on bitter terms because her commitment to Inferno was much bigger to her commitment to him. Besides, she’s a free, uncaged woman. She was born to vow and love no man, and Ambika couldn’t let the façade slip. Not for him. Not for anyone else. She called it off over the phone, and he was offended that she would do such a thing. Now they cross paths often and there’s a hint of hostility from both sides.

ANAIS DELANNOY: She treads on dangerous waters by thinking she can fool Ambika into anything. Ambika’s caught up on Anais’ game, and she knows everything.. She’s the girl whose father was murdered before her eyes. And whilst Ambika is fatherless herself, she can’t afford to hold empathy for such a woman. Her loyalty to Inferno is more important than anything else. For now, she pretends she buys into Anais’ game, biding her time to unmask the monster beneath the girl.

ISABELLE CHAPMANN: Ambika notices the way Isabelle hangs around Inferno, looking for a story, looking for a tip. She doesn’t like it, but then again, who is she to deny a client? She’ll keep an eye out on the girl, especially if she ends up peeking behind the doors of the forsaken club and end up burning what Ambika considers to be sacred Polish ground. Inferno. She has made sure to send one or two anonymous threats to the nosy writer, but it seemed to have no effect over her. Isabelle’s been digging just the same.

FACECLAIM: DEEPIKA PADUKONE (NONNEGOTIABLE)

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                                              DAMIAN ISAIAH

FIFTY. LOS ANGELES’ MAYOR (2013--PRESENT). NEUTRAL.

MATURE THEMES AHEAD. 

WARNING FOR MENTAL ILLNESS, SUBSTANCE ABUSE.

He learned young that with enough of anything, you can grow numb. The taste of fear had long left his tongue by the age of ten, the sense of self-preservation became constant adrenaline to the point of obscurity. The foster system of LA had been cruel in his youth, even more so than it was now. From home to home he was passed, hand to hand grazing his face, his outstretched palms never being filled quite enough. Cruelty had been brought to his forefront with such ferocity that it was impossible to ignore and Damian had been forced to learn that even freedom still wasn’t fair.

Too many faces, too many names to count but time and time again he found kinship in those in which he shared a room with. Others who shared a doomed fate of neglect and desperation, a fate of failure and within all of those with whom he grew close he watched bitterness eat them away.  He watches as defeat tore through their veins and they continued a cycle of disappointment, of evil.

He handled it with a solemn silence. A child too helpless to even speak. Some homes would prefer the easily dismissed shell of a boy but the state found some truth in the matter, he needed to be helped. Help did not come in the way it needed to though. Diagnosis of bipolar, ADD, autism, depression: The list grew with every visit as did the amount of prescription pills he was to take. They were supposed to help and in a way, they did. All thoughts that threatened to break the heavily guarded walls of his already numb mind simply ceased to exist. There was no more struggle, no more cares. In more ways, than he thought possible, he was free.

The years all blended by in a myriad of messy memories. He finished school on the honor, took advantage of free college, found a broken down apartment he could afford with his bartending job. Time stopped existing until it didn't anymore. It was hard to forget that day, the day he met Jess. She made the world spin again and for the first time in nearly twelve years, he didn't want to be numb.

A rich girl, cared for and wealthy since birth, Damian saw no parallels between the two of them and yet, they shared opinions. They both saw a malice and injustice world, bonding over this distaste with legal studies papers and news articles from the paper. It took almost no time at all for the two to fall in love, sharing a justified cynicism and claiming to do nothing but better. Soon the falsified mental illnesses he had been diagnosed with got cleared and with much effort, he gained a place at her family's dinner table. It took months of top grades and show of ambition that was often forced but eventually, even that stuck, found a place within his psyche.

Caring nature, intelligence, and a new found ambition crafted the politician he is today. Jess and her family pulled the string and his passion would push him forward. Damian flew through internships, positions, and promotions. By the age of 30, he was so integrated into the system that he nearly was the system. Things were going well, his life found a stable drum to beat to and peace filled his heart, even if only for a brief time.

It all came to a crashing halt the day Jess announced she was pregnant. Everyone else expected it, hoped for it even. Nothing but a heavy dread crept through Damiens' veins. This one agreement had been the heart and soul of their relationship. With their views, the way they knew the world to be, they both never wanted children. Jess though, seemed to have a change of heart. The previous months had existed in near constant argument over the concept and an even more constant was Damian's answer. No. But Jess clearly had enough, found a donor and chose to wait to deliver the news in hopes for a better reaction.  Two months later the two were legally divorced.

Things seemed to move in reverse at a rapid speed and suddenly he found himself in the same numbing state Jess had found him in. The drugs were street bought now though, heavier and more effective and still, it never felt like enough. Depression and cynicism found him once more and somehow in his haze he found himself elected as mayor. Clearly, his public appearances were being kept up and anything that was even close to a slip, Jess' family covered seamlessly, their investment in him still heavy though hardening.

Becoming mayor put him in the position to push his agendas, to fix the system that was so badly bent. Damian wasn't able to get far though before new issues arise, issues he didn't want to deal with. Gang issues had always seemed a minor thing, a thing for the law enforcement but the two that held down Los Angeles were growing too powerful and if Damian knew anything, it was that powerful men tended to collect people; people like him. The Polish and the Russians had both made offers one way or another and the more their feud grows the more insistent the two become. To choose a side would mean almost certain corruption of his goals and morals but he knows it's only a matter of time before he doesn't have a choice. He just hopes he can choose the side that will bring his city peace.

                                                CONNECTIONS

DOMINIK PRUSZKOWSKI: The man is a mad one. Damian fears the day when Dominik takes full control of Inferno and betrays the Russians himself -- he knows Dmitri is to be feared, but people underestimate the power of Dominik’s wrath as well. With the Russians coming at full speed to take what’s rightfully theirs, Dominik has been pushing Damian to pick a side... and it won’t be pretty when Damian succumbs to the pressure. Either Russian or Polish.

ISABELLE CHAPMANN: She’s a family friend -- a pretty young thing lost in Hollywood. Damian doesn’t want her to find out who killed her father. Partially because he’s at fault too. He saw it coming, and did nothing to stop it. He knows the Polish-Russian mobsters had something to do with it, and when she finally gets her vengeance against them, Damian won’t be sitting on his throne watching. He might just be in jail as well.

ROSA SERRANO: Something about Rosa reeks of corruption. The kind that Damian stays away from. He knows very well she rose to power by being a Pruszkow associate, but he’s not a snitch.. And besides, if he tells on her, she might just tell on him as well. It’s a dangerous game they play, one of cat and mice... Pretending not to know one another’s secret, pretending not to know one another.

EVANGELINE GOODWIN: He knows better than to be close to a TV news anchor, especially one that feeds on death and destruction. But Evangeline is a compassionate woman -- or so it seems -- and they’ve become good friends along the way. Business is business, and he doesn’t hold it against her when he pops up on the news... but so far they’ve managed to keep their careers apart from their friendship.

FACECLAIM: SHEMAR MOORE (NEGOTIABLE)