Phoenix's Secret

Chapter 1

Wrapped in Yves arms, I had never felt so safe. We were sitting in our hotel room, content to just rest for a while. With all the wedding preparations, we hadn't had much time to just enjoy each other's company recently.

"I'd better go. Don't want to be late to Tarryn's hen do."

Yves chuckled mischievously. " As long as it doesn't end up like Diamond's."

I pushed him playfully, but the memory of losing my soulfinder link was still sore. He seemed to notice my distress.

"Sorry, that was a stupid thing to say. Kiss and make up?" He leant in expectantly. I copied him, coming closer until there was only a few centimetres between us... and then pulling away, teasing him.

He groaned dramatically and flopped down on the bed. I laughed, leaning down to give him a peck on the lips. Suddenly his arms grabbed me, pulling onto him, and we ending up in a laughing heap on the bed.

"Okay, now I've really got to go. See u later!" With immense effort I walked out of the room. I was only leaving for a few hours, but it still felt hard to leave my soulfinder behind.

You're overreacting, I told myself. Yves  will still be here when you get back.
But something inside me seemed to be saying that wasn't true.

                                   *                                   

Tarryn's party was amazing. Someone must have told her about what happened in Venice, because it was as far from crumbling down estates as you could imagine. She'd hired out a small restaurant for the party, and we spent the night dancing and having fun.

It was quite a small party, as most of Tarryn's family and friends hadn't yet arrived from South Africa, just me Tarryn's sister Francie, a handful of her closest friends, all the Benedict's soulfinders, Angel, Misty and Summer. They all looked beautiful in their dresses, but Tarryn definitely stole the show in a thigh-length navy dress and just a hint of eye makeup to bring out her eyes. I couldn't even imagine what she would look like on the big day.

After what seemed like the blink of an eye, the party began to draw to a close. Francie and Tarryn's friends were the first to leave for their hotel, setting of a chain reaction. Soon only me and Summer were left, waiting for a taxi while Tarryn locked up.

A sudden thought occurred to me. "Summer, when you saw the Seer..." I trailed off, not sure how to phrase my question.

Summer looked shocked that I'd brought up the subject. "What about him?"

"It's just that, in the Community, his power was the only reason that most of us stayed there, the loyalty bug he'd planted in our heads. I mean, I'm sure there were other reasons but- " I took a deep breath." What I'm trying to say is... do you think he's still that powerful? Will those bugs still be working?"

Summer thought for a moment before answering." He still had his power, I could feel it, but not the way you described it. He was weaker, a lot weaker, and after all this time, I'm almost certain all those bugs would have faded away by now. But I'm really not the person to ask, I'm sure Victor would know more than me. Why don't you ask him?"

Good question. Why hadn't I asked Victor? He would have been the obvious choice for something like this.

"You're right. I'll ask him. But, for the moment, would you mind not telling anyone?"

Summer agreed, but uneasily, and I was glad when Tarryn returned before she could ask me why. To be honest, I didn't know why. It was just a gut instinct. And in all my years of stealing, I'd learnt to trust gut instincts.