"Ladies and gentlemen, good evening. I am delighted to welcome you tonight to Saint Regis Palace. I am Cesar Simeon, for those who don't know me."
"Who is that again?" Katy grumbled beside me.
"Shut up, Grandma," barked Andy, annoyed. "He's the vice director of Trac-Word."
While Andy and Katy were fighting, I kept listening to the man's speech.
"We are glad you've joined us this year to share this moment of conviviality. You are employees of one of the world's largest companies. No matter what position you hold, your work is an extra stone you put into this building. You contribute, both directly and indirectly, to the reputation of this industry. It is not your job to thank Trac-World, it is Trac-World who thanks you tonight. You add value to the name of this multinational company, and you can be proud of it. I am so proud of you and what you accomplish every day."
Applause resounded in the hall. The vice director paused before continuing.
"I hope that each of you has found your place in this great family. Present here are Oscar Heath, CEO of Trac-World, and our future President, Faïz Mattew, who, as many of you know, will take up his new position in August of this year. It is a great privilege for us to have you with us this evening, Mr. Mattew."
All eyes turned to Faïz, sitting at that moment beside Oscar. The applause resumed and Faïz remained unruffled. He seemed humbled and thanked the vice director with a nod.
"How charming that young man is," Andy's grandmother commented, talking about Faïz.
"Don't touch, Katy. Zoe is his partner tonight," exclaimed Chloe.
"I'm just a friend," I said.
"You have a good catch," Katy whispered in my ear.
I tried not raise my eyes to heaven, noting that Chloe was having a lot of fun deliberately making me uncomfortable. I squinted and I appeared to be angry with her, but I finally burst out laughing, too.
"You would get along with my three other friends. You are the same," I affirmed, referring to Asarys, Lexy, and David.
I quickly regained my seriousness to focus again on the speech.
"It is important to add that the links created with all of you over the years are not cold, only cordial. These are links with real deep feelings and expressed with the heart. Our founding father, Mr. Harry Mattew, has always believed in human beings and in the power he had to overcome the difficulties he faced. I can tell you today that he would be proud to see you all wearing the Trac-World colors. Ladies and gentlemen, I wish you all a very good evening."
Everyone stood up, cheering for Mr. Simeon's speech
"I'm going to get some dessert sets," Andy decreed as he got up from the table.
"Thank you," replied Chloe, you are adorable.
The track in the middle was gradually filling up with people of all generations. The evening was already well advanced at Saint Regis. Many guests had finished their meals.
"Ouch," Chloe tensed.
"What is going on?" I asked, immediately worried.
"Don't look back. Mr. Mattew is coming this way!"
Feeling my heart pound in my chest, I suddenly became nervous.
"You see, he pleases you! Come on, relax. It looks like you forgot to breathe," she mocked.
"I'm completely relaxed," I lied, cheeks crimson, it just doesn't show.
"Good evening, ladies. Are you having a good time tonight?"
I could recognize this voice among thousands of others. He was now very close to me, a few centimeters away. So close that I could smell his cologne.
"Excellent, thank you," replied Katy with bright eyes.
"I am delighted, Mrs. Braxton."
"Katy, please call me Katy."
Suddenly a thunder of applause resounded with screams. It took me a long time to realize that Lady Gaga, a star of a whole generation, was on the stage in the flesh. I couldn't believe my eyes.
"God, is it really her?" I asked, dazed.
"Yes!" cried Chloe, excited, applauding with all her might.
Once the calm returned, she announced that she would interpret one of her most beautiful song, "One Million Reasons," on the piano. The song gave me chills every time I listened to it. Faïz's hand presented itself to invite me to dance. Chloe was wriggling in her chair, impatient for me to accept the invitation. It was the second time I took his hand to dance, hoping deep down inside that it would be different from the last time. He pulled me near the enchanting hologram, and I couldn't help but notice that the roles had changed. This time, he was the one who came as close as possible to me, brushing his hands against my bare back. Strangely enough, I felt no discomfort at that moment. I thought of nothing. Nothing mattered anymore, nothing existed anymore. Not even The Maestro, not even the prophecy, not even the Leviathans. At that moment, everyone took their place, where they should be. That was, in the midst of other urban myths and legends, or in the old tales. I just wanted them to let me be Zoe, eighteen years old and carefree. Lady Gaga's voice sang exactly how I felt. The acoustic version was simply fabulous, so penetrating, so true.
"I'm sorry for everything," Faïz whispered in my ear. "I never took into account how you felt. The idea of hurting you is intolerable to me, and yet I have done it over and over again."
The emotion in me was at its height. He suddenly seemed deeply vulnerable. I would have liked to comfort him, but no sound came out of my mouth at that moment, so much did his words surprise me. With his hand, he gently moved my face in front of his to better observe me. His gaze was filled with great tenderness. He then laid his forehead against mine as if to abdicate from a fight I had just won. That was it! We were finally there!
"I want to be the only confidant, the only spokesperson for your feelings, Zoe."
"What about tomorrow? Will you still feel the same?" I whispered, almost desperate.
Pain crossed his face. His whole body against me was tense.
"I don't know. To protect you, I would be able to muzzle everything I feel for you. Even if you are comparable to a beautiful dawn in my life, I am ready to live in the darkness so that nothing ever happens to you. If something happened to you, I could never forgive myself."
The wonderful feeling of his lips against my cheek dissipated all the bad moments I had experienced in recent months. My will to love him was stronger than anything. My words came out on their own.
"If it is our destiny, then nothing can prevent it. I've already opened my arms to you. Now you have to trust me and rely on me. Stop trying to fight yourself."
The song stopped, accompanied by thundering applause, leaving our words suspended in the void. He kissed me gently in the hollow of my neck. My eyes closed, savoring this sensual contact. My breathing accelerated without me being able to control it. Then his body moved even closer to mine until I could feel all the muscles of his torso through my clothing. His lips were a few millimeters from mine, about to kiss me, when a voice interrupted us at that moment.
"Faïz!" Virgil suddenly appeared at our side.
No, no! Why now? He seemed to hesitate for a moment when he saw us so close to each other.
"Oh, I think it's not a good time. I'll...I'll come back later," he apologized, obviously embarrassed.
Faïz, equally embarrassed, turned to me, not knowing what to do in view of this disturbing situation.
"No, it's okay," I said, trying to take as detached a tone as possible. "You two need to talk. I'll see you later."
"Are you sure?" Faïz insisted, distraught to have to let me go.
"Yes. I'm going to meet Chloe and Andy. We leave early tomorrow morning. I'd like to enjoy it a little."
I was hoping to have deceived him and I moved away, disappointed that I could not stay with him.
"I'll come to join you right after," he said with a look full of promises.
As I was about to return to my table, I heard someone hailing me from afar. As I turned around, I discovered James with his wife on his arm.
"Hi, Zoe. Wow, you're so different, I didn't recognize
you right away. This is my wife, Beith."
"Hello, Beith. I am delighted to meet you," I said.
In front of this particularly cold woman, with her lips exaggerated with makeup and bulging with botox, I tried to make an effort by showing a most enthusiastic smile to prevent the gloom from overwhelming me. Chloe was right. Beith seemed really special, at least at first sight.
"We're going to leave. Did you have a good evening?" James asked me.
"Excellent! The place is simply fantastic, and I really enjoyed the speech," I admitted sincerely.
"Perfect. In that case, I wish you a safe journey back to LA. We were delighted to meet you, Zoe."
"Thank you for everything, James, I'll send you the article as soon as it's finished."
I waved, hoping that Beith would hold back a few more seconds before jumping on me, then I went back to my table.
"If that woman had revolvers instead of eyes, you'd be dead by now, Zoe!" Chloe said to me when I sat down.
"Are you kidding me? I really thought my last hour had arrived. Even the clown in 'It' has a mouth that is less scary than hers."
"You gave us a beautiful moment with Mr. Mattew," Katy confided to me, her eyes full of mischief. "I had the impression that I was back in my twenties."
She shrugged, closing her eyes, full of nostalgia. Beautiful memories had to come back to her.
"I admit, it was so romantic. It was as if you were connected," added Chloe, joining her hands together.
"Yes, for the duration of a song," I admitted with disappointment, whispering.
We continued the evening in a good mood. Katy seemed in great shape, despite two o'clock in the morning being displayed on my watch. She told us some anecdotes from the past, always with a touch of humor. When she was very young and in school, she'd had more severe mistresses than Andy, and her first date had completely failed.
"Grandma, are you nuts?" rebelled her grandson, listening to the story.
"Why are you taking this the wrong way, son? Look at the handsome young man you've become now. Sure, the haircut needs to be reviewed, but this—"
"Grandma! We're going home before all the family secrets are unpacked in public."
He stood up to indicate that it was time for them to leave. I thanked Katy for making me laugh so much tonight. I had enjoyed the wonderful moment with them. In life, we met people with whom we spent just a few hours. People like Katy, Chloe, Andy, or James. However, those few hours were precious. We never really know why, but they are, and it would be like that throughout our lives. We affirmed that we would see each other again, that we would stay in touch, knowing that there would be no next time, but we needed to promise ourselves out loud anyway, because it was always sad to say goodbye. Katy and Andy disappeared, leaving me alone with Chloe, who was preparing to leave, too, but she hesitated at the last moment.
"Run away, Chloe. Don't worry," I reassured her.
"I don't wish to leave you alone with your champagne glass."
Suddenly, I saw hope rise in her eyes again when she looked over my shoulder. It was then that I felt a hand resting on me. Faïz was there.
"Zoe, we have to leave."
As I turned around, I noticed that he had that serious look again that didn't say anything good. The discussion with Virgil had changed his mood. What had they been saying to each other all this time? Chloe also got up and gathered her things.
"I'll get my jacket," said Faïz. "Have a good evening, Chloe. Thank you for keeping Zoe company."
"Have fun back to Los Angeles, Mr. Mattew. I wish you a good weekend."
Faïz moved away. Chloe came up to me and surprised me by hugging me to say goodbye.
"I was happy to meet you. Keep up the good work, and good luck with your article."
"Thank you for everything."
She left in turn, leaving me alone at the table. Looking around me, I noticed that the room had emptied of almost all its guests. I contemplated one last time the rose, almost faded. Tonight, it had replaced the hourglass of time. I found that to be an authentic originality. Immersed in my thoughts, I hadn't heard Faïz come back. He placed his jacket on my shoulders.
"You seem to have loved that huge rose."
"Yes, I thought it was beautiful, with a touch of melancholy."
Time to leave, he grabbed my hand so naturally, without hesitating.
Before crossing the gates of Saint Regis, we had to greet some people we met on our way. I begged my sore feet to last several more minutes.
Outside, Adan was waiting for us. We went down the steps, covered with the red carpet, and got into the car. I took the opportunity to immediately remove my shoes in order to free my feet, which were hurting me.
"I always wonder why you women like to endure all this so much," Faïz laughed at me, observing the scene.
I repressed a sneer.
"One more macho remark and I assure you I'll use this stiletto heel as a weapon. Now you know what our pumps are for!"
Despite his affectionate gestures towards me, I sensed that something was bothering him.
"Tell me what's wrong?" I begged him.
He hesitated for a moment and finally decided to confide.
"Virgil is also a Leviathan. He lives in New York City and like me, he sometimes helps the police and the government in some affairs. He scoured quite a bit of his territory to find a trail on where the tombstone we're looking for might be. According to his many studies, he believes it's located in the Nevada Desert."
"Do you think it's possible?"
"I don't know. He put me in doubt. Virgil was convincing. His research seems well-founded."
"Then it's rather good news, why do you seem worried?"
"The Leviathans have already covered every square inch of California, and they have never found anything. I have to assemble a team and talk to Inspector Barthey about it tomorrow. I'll go with them on Monday, after Victoria's birthday weekend. If what Virgil says is correct, then we will soon be rid of The Maestro."
"The Callis will tell us more. The answer is probably in the manuscript."
"Time is running out. The government—"
He changed his mind, as if he had said too much.
"The government what? For God's sake, Faïz, how can I help you if I only have half the information?"
Faïz sighed and looked away into the void before continuing.
"The government is planning to blow up the Dome. In this way, they hopes to destroy the evil."
A shiver of terror froze my blood.
"But...but how will they evacuate the entire population in such a short time? It's almost impossible."
Faïz stared at the ground. His silence gave me the answer.
"Oh, my God!" I exclaimed, horrified. "The lives of all those people don't count? And you're gonna let them do it?"
"Don't look at me like that! You think I'm not doing everything I can to save them? I managed to negotiate a short deadline. That's why I'm telling you the clock is ticking. I would give everything in the end, even my life, to save each and every one of them."
"How long?" I managed to articulate.
"Less than a year."
I turned to my window, completely stunned by the news. The passersby seemed so impassive, imbued with the effervescence of Manhattan's lights. I envied them. Deep down, just once, I wish I had felt that way.
"I promised myself that I would not say a word about this during our stay in New York. I wanted to avoid seeing you as you are now."
Faïz's disheartened air broke my heart, I took his hand and said, "We'll do the best we can, but whatever happens, we'll do it together."
We arrived in front of our hotel. It was our last night here. Adan helped me out of the car and then went to Faïz to listen to his instructions.
"Tomorrow we must be gone by 8:30 a.m.," he told him.
"Yes, Mr. Mattew."
The winter cold of the city made us hurry to get back inside of the Plaza. The hall, which was usually so live
ly, was practically deserted in view of the very late hour of the night. As we walked towards our suites, hand in hand, I tried to find a good excuse to invite Faïz to my room. We had gotten so close during these two days that I really wanted to spend the night with him, in his arms. I surprised myself with my thoughts. We arrived on our floor far too quickly. I decided to slow down in the empty corridor.
"This is our last night in New York. I was thinking we could continue it... Uh... In my suite? Maybe we have other things to talk about."
My embarrassed tone took him by surprise. He thought for a moment, a tortured expression on his face. The beats in my chest accelerated. I felt him hesitating. He stopped and looked at me.
"Zoe, you know… I would very much like to say yes. It's not that I don't have the desire, but... Maybe it would be better to wait for less dark circumstances?"
"I just want to be with you. Don't leave me alone, please. I need to feel that it's mutual, that it's true."
"It is," he whispered to me, taking my chin in his hand.
After a few seconds, standing in front of each other, he added,
"Let me get my stuff and I'll join you."
He took my hand in his and we continued together. Deep down, I was happier than ever. Then I froze. Faïz instinctively turned to the door of his room. Rachelle was waiting for us, sitting on the ground. I didn't know how long she'd been there. I had the impression that the ground was giving way under my feet. I was finally thinking the page had turned, but I was wrong. Faïz immediately let go of my hand. She stood up slowly and walked towards him, staggering in pain.
"It's only been a week since we broke up, and you're already parading yourself with her. As if these last few years never mattered!"
Her eyes filled with tears and her voice prevented her from shouting loudly. Faïz moved towards her to get between the two of us.
"Rachelle, please, we'll talk in my room. Don't make a scene here."
He forced himself to keep calm. She pushed him back with violence and came to position herself in front of me, pointing threateningly at me.
DARK FAÏZ Book 1: Every hero has his legend Page 24