Dark Faïz ( Book 1 ) [ COMPLETED]

Chapters 12-3

I pushed the gate of the villa, followed by Lexy and Asarys. Miss Arlette greeted me quickly. She seemed very busy and was going to a fair amount of trouble in the kitchen. Lily and Charles arrived from the terrace.

— "Hello, Zoe!" exclaimed Charles warmly as he saw me.

He took me in his arms. It was the first time he had done this, proof that they had missed me. Lily imitated him by staying a little longer.

— "Are you all right? Have you had time to have lunch since you arrived?" she worried immediately.

I then caught Asarys and Lexy's eyes, who begged me to say no. The poor things must have starved to death as much as I had. Since I'd landed this morning, we hadn't taken a minute to breathe.

— "Not really. We just had time to do the shopping. Everything is in the trunk," I told her.

— "I'm going to put them in my car and go to the mansion right away," Charles said.

Asarys handed him the keys to her Bentley while Lily invited us to eat outside.

— "Settle down by the small garden, girls. Trees provide plenty of shade and protect from the heat. Miss Arlette will bring you something to eat."

— "Thank you, Mrs. Mattew," my friends hastened to answer.

Before crossing the bay window, I called to Lily.

— "Where is Victoria, actually? Is she still meeting us directly at Julio and William's?"

— "William picked her up this morning to take her shopping. I didn't want her to see the last-minute preparations at my parents' house. He'll take her to the mansion when everyone arrives."

— "I'll get ready at Lexy's and then we'll go straight to their place."

— "Very well. Thanks for the shopping, Zoe. Ah, one last thing. How did it go to New York with Faïz?"

Lily squinted every time her lie detector was in place. But why did everyone keep asking me that question? No one had asked me anything about Trac-World again, nor even about my article that I had started to refine in the jet.

— "Faïz was charming, as usual."

I ran away before giving her time to ask me a second question, leaving her with a pout full of ambiguity. Indeed, she knew her son by heart, so the word "charming" could not be compatible with his character.

**

— "I had never set foot on the terrace before, not even in this garden." Lexy, in ecstasy, let herself fall into one of the chairs.

— "It's beautiful, this view with the pool. This villa is the stuff of dreams," added Asarys.

Miss Arlette immediately joined us with a plate full of sandwiches and Coca-Cola.

— "It feels good to sit down for a minute," I sighed, tired. "I could almost take a nap if we had a little time."

I took my phone out of my pocket. I had completely forgotten to answer William's message, so I took advantage of this moment of calm to send him an answer, indicating that I was happy to see him tonight.

**

The pools at Lexy's residence were crowded. With this heat, everyone would fight for every square inch of water.

— "The place is usually rather deserted," Lexy pointed out to us when we took the building elevator.

— "I just pray that this time the air conditioning at your home will work," Asarys begged, waving a flyer in front of her face.

When we entered her apartment, we welcomed the fresh air with open arms.

— "Thank God!" Asarys shouted as she closed her eyes.

— "Well, we don't have time to rest," I said, "we have to get ready in a hurry. I would like to point out that in two hours, Vic will be at the mansion and we have a little way to go."

— "We're each going to take showers. We really need them. I'll start with the first one!" Lexy decreed, heading immediately to her room.

— "It is not the guests who are usually kings?" exclaimed Asarys, grumbling.

— "You are not guests, but pests to me!" Lexy replied, screaming from the other room.

— "Never mind! I'll be the second. Sorry, Zoe."

I headed for my bag, where I had packed my things for tonight, and took them to Lexy's room to start getting ready. I heard the shower running and my friend singing Celine Dion. I raised my eyes to heaven.

— "Ray will be there tonight?" I asked Asarys, who had joined me with her own things.

— "Yeah, he wouldn't miss Vic's birthday for anything in the world. She's like his sister. Will it feel good to see Will again?"

— "A little," I confessed. "I dread the moment, actually. He is so different from Faïz. A part of me still cares about him."

— "Yes, the part of reason, you mean. Both are so different, with such beauty that one would think they are not from our world."

I repressed a smile in spite of myself. Asarys was right about William. His flawless physique made him inhuman.

— "The bathroom is available!" Lexy shouted from bathroom. "I'll finish dressing in the bedroom."

— "Well, I'm going next." Asarys got up with her things under her arm.

Lexy came out with her towel around her.