𝑅𝑒𝑙𝑒𝑎𝑠𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑃ℎ𝑜𝑒𝑛𝑖𝑥 ✔︎ || 𝐶𝑜𝑚𝑝𝑙𝑒𝑡𝑒𝑑

52

~ phoenix ~

It turns out I hadn't looked behind me yet because when I did, my cover nearly blew.

Polish Princesses shouldn't be even relatively awestruck by seeing palaces in mountains.

Nope. Because in Poland, we have those everywhere.

Pick up your jaw, Phoenix!

With a blank expression, I absorbed the sight of the golden light against the immaculate snow. Three storeys high, the building was out of a storybook, with turrets and lots and lots of glass. Then, out of new habit, my eyes scanned for potential escape routes. I couldn't quite trust these Belarusians yet.

I glanced behind me. Gianna had given up with her protests, her head hung low as she stared at her feet. Tabitha was less deceiving with her expression; the discomfort on it was clear.

"Aliena," I called.

Her light, dancing eyes met mine in the falling dusk.

"Is there a medic who could tend to Tabitha, please?" I requested, politely.

The woman's eyes narrowed suspiciously before nodding. She gestured for one of the men to come forward.

As the evening grew blacker, we were invited into the mansion. Immediately, a blanket of warmth surrounded us and I welcomed it, remembering now that I'd been shivering in only my bloody sweatshirt. In my peripheral vision, I noticed that Tabitha was being ushered away.

I made a move to follow but Aliena had grabbed my wrist.

"She'll be fine," she said, charmingly, "Despite our circumstances, you must believe that we Belarusians are fine hosts."

Reluctantly, I nodded. Gianna met my gaze with betrayal in hers but I looked away. What choice did I have?

The hallways of the palace were quite like the ones in the compound: deceiving. Perhaps they were designed so that only the master of the house could navigate their way and not outsiders. If that was the case, then I had to admit the architect was quite clever.

Eventually, we reached a dark room. As soon as I entered, I sighed. So this was what she meant by entertainment.

It turns out that the mansion was not empty but instead, was teeming with foreign men and women. Especially this room. Their cackles and unfamiliar dialogues created a clear divide between us and them. Aliena seemed to melt into the crowd, smiling and laughing as she passed.

I shifted uneasily on my feet when my eyes fell upon the four golden poles on a stage in each corner of the room. With no other choice, I followed. In seconds, we were swallowed by the strangers, surrounded and cornered.

Suddenly, there was a hand on my arm.

"What are we doing here?" Gianna hissed. Her expression mirrored mine - one that said we were in way over our heads.

I grabbed her hand and laced my fingers through. "I don't know, but trust me. We'll be out of here soon."

The pissed off brunette seemed to be consoled more by my touch than my words. She squeezed by hand but I didn't know if she was reassuring me or I was reassuring her.

I yelped. Out of nowhere, someone had grabbed my ass.

The perpetrator materialised from the sea of bodies and roughly pulled me into him. Instantly, Ilya's face appeared in my mind and a nauseating sensation followed. Fuck no, don't think about him! I didn't give a shit about that bastard... not anymore but I wasn't going to be harassed by a random asshole either.

I held onto the stranger's shirt, preparing my knee to ram into his family jewels but I was suddenly ripped into another set of arms. These were softer, smoother. It was Aliena.

"Hands off, Alaric," she laughed before her lips touched mine.

I blinked. Once. Twice. What the hell?

When I realised the Belarusian mafia queen was kissing me, I pulled away in shock.

Aliena laughed again, wiping my lips with her thumb and dragged me off to a booth in the corner. I looked back frantically.

"Where's Gianna?" I demanded.

The blonde smirked, pointing. "Your Italian friend is... preoccupied."

True to her words, Gia was indeed preoccupied, her lips attached to a stranger's. I narrowed my eyes. Of course; I mean, it was Gianna we were talking about.

A hand pulled me down into a cushioned seat.

She offered me a drink. I refused.

"Come on! It's not spiked, I promise."

To prove her point, Aliena took a sip of the sparkling amber liquid. My eyes were still narrowed but to hell with it. I grabbed it and swallowed. Instantly, my throat burned. I took another gulp.

In moments, my head felt less crowded and the music was no longer loud and deafening.

Something warm slid on my lap. Aliena straddled my hips, hands cradling my cheeks. Then, with her eyes intent on mine, she leaned in again. Her lips tasted of candy, sweet and sour. Something told me I should pull away but that something came with anger and sadness so I ignored that something and reciprocated. My numb fingers slid up her back, toying with the long, silky braid.

Gently, she pulled away and her mouth travelled down my jaw along my cheeks. I closed my eyes, remembering the feeling of someone else's lips. He sucked and nibbled on my earlobe and I threw my head back with a soft moan.

Ilya.

But when I opened my eyes, it was Aliena.

I sighed. Why was he so damn hard to get over?

Because you love him.

I shook my head to clear the thought. He hurt me. He hurt my friends.

He lied because that made it easier to tame me. He told me he loved me back. And he lied.

Spurred on by rage, I pulled her mouth back to mine. Her delicate fingers kneaded my breasts and the distraction felt good.

But it wasn't good enough.

I opened my eyes again and saw him. His face in the crowd, jaw slack open.

Too bad, the hallucination couldn't kiss me.

NOTE:
....Or is it a hallucination....?
Some of you are probably thrown off by this chapter... but I mean, everyone's a little fucked up, aren't they?
Whatever, it just came to me so I wrote it. It was kinda risky tbh cuz some of you might hate it.
Well I really hope not, xo, Rosavi