Dark Faïz ( Book 1 ) [ COMPLETED]

Chapters 2-6

We finished our walk on a crowded skating rink. Lucas and Baudoin rushed to it. That was when Lexy approached me.

— "In Venice, skating is a religion. It's not for nothing that this place has the reputation of being the world capital of roller skating," she explained to me.

— "We're between Marina Del Rey and Santa Monica," added Asarys, pointing to the Ferris wheel in the distance.

Indeed, as if it were a mirage, behind the mist of the waves I saw an amusement park, which gave the impression of floating on the water. The sun was coming down. I took a quick look at my watch. It was getting late. I borrowed Asarys's cell phone to call Lily to alert her that I was leaving the beach.

— "I'm going to stay with Baudoin and Lucas for a while," Lexy told us.

— "No problem. We'll call you tonight," Asarys said to let her know that she would like to know everything about the end of her friend's evening.

**

— "Is that where you live?"

Asarys opened her eyes wide, visibly dazzled by the large villa, like I was for the first time.

— "Don't worry, I'll show you around," I promised her.

— "And then you'll have to get me out of there by force!"

We burst out laughing.

— "I had a great day. Thank you, Asarys."

— "I'll see you tomorrow."

As I got out of the car, I saw Faïz leaving the villa and coming to meet me.

— "You better make a move, Zoe, or I'll take care of him!" Asarys threatened me.

From afar, she greeted Faïz and left immediately. I tried to guess his mood as I approached him, but tonight he seemed impenetrable.

— "I thought you'd come home sooner," he said.

— "I didn't notice the time pass with Lexy and Asarys."

I didn't want to mention the name of Baudoin and his friend, feeling that this was not the right time. He took off the jacket he was wearing and put it around my shoulders. I didn't realize until then that I had left my perfecto in Asarys's Bentley. Touched by this attention on his part, I wanted to throw my arms around his neck, but I held back. His suede jacket smelled like his cologne, which intoxicated me. I hugged him tightly so that his scent got into all the pores of my skin.

— "Thank you," I whispered.

Standing in front of him, I stared at him intently. Caught unawares, an unexplainable frustration crossed his eyes.

— "We should go home," he said softly.

Once my mind was in order, I started breathing again, completely disturbed by my irrational thoughts. We returned to the villa.

During dinner, I reassured Lily as best I could. I suspected she had been worried about me all day. When I told of my meeting with Lexy and Asarys, she breathed a sigh of relief. From the corner of my eye, I watched Faïz on the sly. Something seemed to bother him. I would have liked to see him smile even once during the meal, but that didn't happen. Miss Arlette cleared the table, which had emptied itself of all its people. Charles had gone to his office, Victoria had already gone to her room, while I finished watching the news in the living room, curious to know if they were going to talk about this mysterious hero again, the famous Black Shadow. Suddenly, Lily's pleading murmurs outside the front door, trying to convince Faïz not to go to his appointment, caught my attention.

— "Not tonight, please, honey. He can't just ask that of you."

— "The others are too far away, and you know the situation is becoming urgent!"

— "When will all this end?"

The emotion in Lily's voice overwhelmed me.

— "It hasn't even started yet. I have to go now. Don't make things more complicated," he insisted.

I approached the front door. Faïz took his mother in his arms and hugged her affectionately. What secret could this family have been hiding? Under this warm atmosphere, I felt in each of them a hint of sadness, anxiety, and a bit of darkness. When Lily came back to the living room, she hid her wet eyes behind a wide smile, but the sorrowful features of her face betrayed her.

— "Lily, are you all right?" I asked, worried.

— "It's nothing," she tried to convince me.

— "I wish I could help you. If...I could get an explanation of what's going on."

She came closer to me. I felt she wanted to talk to me, but after a few seconds of hesitation and an inner fight, she pulled herself together.

— "Zoe, was there something you wanted to say to me? What was it about?"

This sudden change of subject disarmed me.

— "Uh... I would like to take a job on campus."

— "Why?" she replied, frowning. "It's going to be too much with your classes. Let us help you financially. We can afford it."

— "I know, but I'm very independent by nature. I need to fly on my own."

Lily looked pleasantly surprised. She then nodded and added,

— "I understand, but if you ever feel that it's too hard to keep up with both, you stop immediately. We're here for you, no matter what."

— "Okay," I reassured her. "However, I will not have the same hours as Faïz or Victoria. I'll take the bus for the trips when necessary."

— "No," objected Lily, "you'll take my car. Do you have your license?"

— "Yes, only since this summer, but I assure you I don't need it."

— "I prefer that you take it," insisted Lily. "Taking the bus in the evening is not recommended here. I prefer to know you are safe."

— "Okay, well, thank you."

I took her in my arms. I wanted to comfort her so much. What was happening? I didn't know.