The Golden Bond

Chapter 34

The sun in Rome began to gain strength and thanks to the southern position of the city, spring had started to turn into summer. She didn't mind the heat though, she had got used to it long ago. Despite the ever increasing temperatures, she didn't wear her hair in a bun, like the majority of Italian women. She let the beauty of her shiny hair show. Her thick raven curls lay softly on her shoulders. Her fine olive skin was in sharp contrast to a close-fitting white blouse. She was wearing a tight mini skirt with braces which gave her style a dominant touch. She was standing on stilettos, her pitch black feline eyes, framed with thick eyeliner, staring at the screen on her tablet. Everything about her was remarkable. Her full sensual lips, feminine curves resembling Venus and, of course, her undeniable charisma which could be sensed for miles around. She looked like a classical goddess and was truly beautiful. Although her twenties had long gone, she could easily eclipse any sweet teenager. She was able to make any man feel like a shy little boy, including cheeky big headed ones like Adam.

"Buongiorno, Gran Maestro," he said as he walked into the room after having knocked quickly on the door. He didn't manage to hide his uneasiness even with a strong shield.

Valentina looked at him steadily for a moment and then looked down at her tablet again.

"You're late," she said dryly.

"I'm sorry... the traffic," Adam replied guiltily. He was aware of the fact nothing he could say would appease her.

There was no equality in this dance. She was a predator and he was just a frightened little bird. They were beyond compare. Legends spread about Valentina. It was said she used to be a Lux charismagician a long time ago but lost her place in the Lux Club because of her child. She didn't have any children now though, so it was hard to tell whether it was at all true. She was a powerful woman and many elderly men from the Masters' Council respected her. She was frightening and at the same time terrifyingly attractive. She would lure victims into her net like a beautifully portrayed spider and then eat them. With Valentina, no mistakes could be made. If you made a mistake, you were dead. The only way you could survive would be if she died first.

She silently beckoned Adam to sit down in the armchair in the corner of the room whilst still staring at the flat screen. "Today we're finishing the last beta tests, tomorrow we're launching the system for real," she said proudly. She was, of course, talking about the data centre.

Adam had only found out about the data centre himself when he discovered that the Lux charismagicians were searching for something big. Even his own Masters' Council had very limited information of it because Valentina was in sole charge of everything. When Adam had, completely by accident, discovered that the Lux Club had sent an agent to Rome to explore the situation, he put two and two together and informed her directly. The dreaded Valentina. They managed to capture Victor thanks in part to Adam's information. Valentina would have had Victor killed straight away, but Adam managed to stop her– he himself had no idea how. He only mentioned that a rescue team were preparing to come and locate Victor. Adam didn't pay any attention to it any more because he decided to use the situation to his favour, a little bit behind Valentina's back that is, which very few people would dare to do.

She had no idea how great his motivation was. When journalists crowded around the phoney spa three days ago, she'd raged like she had rabies. Adam had a really hard time trying to calm her down and not getting shot right there and then. The information that the Lux Club actually wanted to destroy her masterpiece was the only thing that made her sit down in an armchair and listen to him. Slowly but surely, Adam was gaining her respect. A street crowded with people was enough to discourage Lux charismagicians and on that day, Adam was to explain to Valentina that that publicity was part of his personal revenge. Valentina wasn't very patient. Adam was firmly testing her patience, he told her too that the girl he'd framed the murder on might have something extraordinary about her. Valentina became alert and although she wouldn't openly admit it, she couldn't wait for the moment when Adam would lay his cards on the table. In her endlessly deep eyes there was a desire for something extraordinary, something that could provide her with even more power than she already had.

Adam removed his shield. Valentina brought a chair and sat down immediately opposite him. The young Umbra charismagician closed his eyes and tilted his head slightly towards her. Valentina raised her beautifully shaped hands to his temples and placed her fingers upon them carefully. After a short while, images from Adam's mind began to flicker in front of her eyes. She saw Adam standing in the hotel lobby opposite Sofia, unsuccessfully giving her commands. Then she saw his visit to Sofia at the police station where he went just to prove his theory. The girl had the Gift. She was totally resistant to any influence from him.

Valentina's eyes gleamed like those of a child seeing a Christmas tree for the first time. Her aura literally lit up. She was about to take her hands off Adam's temples but he stopped her with one precisely aimed touch. He held her hand in his and quietly whispered a few words which aroused her curiosity. "I still have the cherry on top of the cake for you, madam." His eyes were still closed and after Valentina put her other hand back onto his temple, began to play another film. This time, it was the scene from the shop which he himself had seen almost three months ago.

Sofia once again pricked her finger and William once again rescued her like a knight. That was by far not the most important thing though. Valentina jerked visibly when she saw William and the golden bond which lead from his heart to Sofia's.

A waterfall of dark hair, eyes of coal, she will get the Gift. To him the bond will tie her forever.

When Adam opened his eyes, he saw Valentina was sitting opposite him completely vacant.

She held her lips gently with her hand, as if she wanted to discreetly hide the astonishment that was reflected in her face. Adam had only known her for a short time but he'd never seen her having such an authentic emotion. Something from his memories must have struck her so hard that she'd completely forgotten about his presence in the room.

Adam couldn't know that Valentina had just began to comprehend a 33 year old prophecy. She understood a message which had changed the course of the history of her private life. She understood something she'd been trying to solve from the moment she'd stepped over the doorstep of her home at the Lux Club for the last time.

"Where exactly is the girl now?" she asked eagerly when her spirit came back to her body and the room.

"In the cell obviously, where you saw her," Adam said far too cheekily.

Valentina froze him with an icy look and he obediently returned to the manner of a frightened little bird.

"Do you want the exact address, madam?" he asked.

Valentina nodded. She was about to kick him out, saying she'd take care of the rest herself when Adam interrupted her. Questions were unacceptable. She didn't intend to explain anything to him. He still did as he pleased anyway.

"You must wait another few days. She's still hoping that White, the agent you saw in my memories, will come to get her, that he'll rescue her. She won't cooperate with you now. But I know," he said and made a theatrical pause, "that he won't break the rules of the Lux Club even though she's tied to him with the golden bond. He'll leave her there, I'm willing to bet everything I own on that."

Valentina looked at him puzzled for a moment.

Adam finished explaining the idea. "Wait until he's been to see her and reassured her that everything will be all right. I know he'll do it, I heard him negotiating with your rival Stefano. So after he's left – and he'll leave without her, trust me – she'll see that I was right. William will betray her and then she'll be ready to betray him."

Valentina understood quickly, and for the first time during the whole meeting, a smile appeared on her lips – gentle, cunning and concealing such a terrifying menace that even Lucifer himself wouldn't be ashamed of.

Adam agreed with her deeply, so for a moment they both just stood there in silence with diabolical grins on their faces. Her younger male clone was being born and Valentina saw his potential. Adam would be useful to her. They had the same way of thinking. Quick, precise and deadly.

"Good work, boy," she said and beckoned him to leave.

Adam smiled proudly, bowed his head slightly by way of a greeting and then disappeared out the door.