Feel the Music

Chapter Eight

Chapter Eight: A New Friend

Phoebe POV

I was in the middle of signing the first act, remembering every vibration the music caused. My hands flowing through the lyrics effortlessly, imagining the stage beneath my feet. Signing to the audience with all my heart. Sadly, I'd be signing for a horrid banshee from Hell.

I stopped signing abruptly.....I was scared. Scared as to why my parents weren't here yet. Were they caught leaving Ireland? Did their boat sink? Were they dead? All of the most horrible scenarios began to play out in my mind.

My parents drowning in the ocean, gasping for air as they sank deeper into the abyss. Them being locked in that awful place. The place we have tried to hard to save Sorcha from. The visions of my mother's cries and pleas for help. The image of a dark figure choking the life out of my parents as they tried to scream.

I shook my head to push the images from my mind. I squeezed my eyes shut, refusing to let any tears fall. I had to be strong, even if they were.....dead. I had to take care of Sorcha. And I knew I couldn't do it all alone. I loved taking care of her, but I can't always bring a child with me everywhere I went.

Suddenly, I felt someone gently stomp on the ground. My eyes flew open and I spun around to see Christine with a young man. The man had shoulder length hair and a clueless expression on his chiseled features.

"Christine," I fingerspelled her name and signed,"What are you doing here?"

"I brought my friend, Raoul," Christine fingerspelled his name. She looked at me, uncertain if she did it correctly,"How was that?"

"Perfect. Nice to meet you Raoul. My name is Phoebe Callahan. I'm the new sign language interpreter for the opera company," I stood up after introducing myself.

Raoul spoke slowly and clearly,"The pleasure is all mine."

I looked over to see my sister still sleeping soundly. It made me smile to see her resting well. It's been hard without Mother and Father around.

Christine waved her hand from the corner of my eye. I turned to her,"I actually wanted to see if you'd like to join us for dinner. Raoul is taking us to the cafe down the street."

"I can't unless someone is with Sorcha," I frowned at the thought of leaving her alone. I haven't for a single minute since we arrived in Paris.

"Meg probably wouldn't mind. Oh, please say you'll come," Christine pleaded.

"Fine, but only for an hour. And immediately back here. Understood?"

"Thank you so much!," Christine hugged me then pulled away,"Meet us outside in five minutes."

With that, Christine left with Raoul. I didn't like the idea of leaving Sorcha, but I needed some time away from the opera house. Otherwise, I think there'd be a murder involving Carlotta and a hammer. So I guess it was about time I left my sister for a little bit. But I still felt wrong about it.