Chapter Six

Irene

After dinner, Irene and Joanna walked back to their cabin.

“The people here are very nice, don’t you think?” Irene said.

“Yes, they are,” Joanna smiled a little. “I haven’t had the chance to tell you something.”

“What do you want to tell me?” Irene asked.

“The reason that this community is so closed off is because these people are in the mafia,” Joanna told her.

“This afternoon, while you were on your hike, a guy named Zachary was at the door. He told me everything about the people here. Apparently, they have destined lovers, kind of like soulmates. They help provide stability because their lives are so intense. They have an almost unbreakable connection.”

Joanna looked a bit nervous, a bit agitated as well.

“Wow, that’s…that’s…” Irene held still at the door of their cabin. She didn’t know what to say.

“Yeah,” Joanna responded while she unlocked the door and walked in. “It was a bit of a shock for me, too, when he told me this. You know what is even a bigger shock?”

“No, I don’t.”

Joanna shut the door, and they threw their coats over the back of the nearest chair. “I have a destined lover.”

Irene froze, then looked at Joanna with big eyes, in shock. “What?”

“The man that picked us up this morning at the station,” Joanna told her as she sat down on a sofa near a big window. Her eyes were set on the floor. “Ethan, he is my destined. I saw him just before dinner.

“He is genuinely nice, very handsome, tall, muscular. I am very attracted to him. He really wants to start a relationship with me, he wants to pledge himself to me, but he understands that it is too fast for me.

“Their relationships develop much faster than people in the regular world. Once they find their destined, they stay together for the rest of life. He told me that’s why he has a hard time not being able to do what his instincts tell him to do.

“So, because of their training, they have this intense perception, almost like a sixth sense. It’s almost like it tells them what to do.”

Irene was quiet. She slowly sat herself on the couch that was nearest to her. With her elbows on her knees, she buried her head in her hands. Her mind seemed to turn, the thoughts tumbling over each other. It was a lot to digest.

After a while, she lifted her head back up and looked at Joanna.

“So, if I understand this correctly”— Irene tried to understand—“you have a soulmate who wants to be with you, like in an arranged marriage where you don’t know each other, only you’re not married?”

“Something like that,” Joanna said with a slight smile. “Strange, huh?”

“I don’t know what I would do in your place,” Irene admitted.

“When I held his hand earlier…where we touched, it seemed to tingle. I got a knot in my stomach and my throat went dry. I even got aroused in a way I’ve never experienced before,” Joanna told Irene.

“My body already seems to know that he is my destined. But I don’t know what I should do. I don’t know if I want to stay here. It’s only mafia family members here after all.”

“I don’t think you’re in danger here. These mafia members don’t seem to be hostile. They are actually really nice.”

“That is not what I mean. They are genuinely nice, but I don’t know if I want to throw myself into a relationship with someone I hardly know. If I move here, Ethan will expect me to be his destined.

“What if he expects me to do the pledging thing immediately—I don’t know if I can do that. It all goes way too fast.”

Irene yawned. “You can talk to Ethan about it. That you want to move here, but that you are not looking for a relationship. Or you can tell him you want to try, but you want to take it slow.

“If he really is your destined, he will wait for you until you’re ready for him.” Irene yawned again.

“You have a little time to think about it. Hell, you even have all night to sleep on it. I don’t know about you, but I am pretty tired.”

They both decided to go to bed early. After all, it had been quite an eventful day.

The next morning, Irene started her day with a delicious cup of coffee in the cabin’s tiny kitchen. She hadn’t slept so well in a long time. Also, the coffee here was good.

She checked the fridge to see if there was anything to make breakfast. When she opened it, she noticed that it was loaded with all kinds of things. When she checked the cupboards, she saw that they were very well taken care of.

She had expected something, but not so much. She took some things to make breakfast and sat down at the little breakfast bar in the kitchen to eat. When she was done, she strolled into the living area.

Halfway to the couch, she heard a knock on the door.

When she opened it, she saw Ethan in front of her.

“Good morning, Irene, it is, right?”

“Yes, it is. Good morning,” she said. “Would you like to come in?”

“I am actually looking for Joanna. Is she around?”

“She is still asleep, but come in, you can wait for her, if you like.” Irene stepped aside and opened the door further so he could come in.

He hesitated, but when he saw her friendly smile, he finally decided to come in anyway.

Irene walked in front of him to the living room. She decided to get the big elephant out of the room and turned around to face him. “So, you and Joanna, huh?” she said.

“Yeah, I don’t want to bother you with these things, but I can’t really do anything about it. She and I, we’re connected. Especially now that I have seen her, it initiated things…feelings.”

He looked down uncomfortably, a little bit nervous.

Irene walked into the kitchen and turned on the coffee maker. The coffee was ready quickly, and she handed Ethan the warm cup of coffee and sat down on the armrest of one of the sofas.

She gestured to him to sit down as well.

“Thanks.” He smiled.

“Is this thing between you and Joanna normal for you? Is this how it always goes?” Irene was curious; she wanted to know more.

“For us it is,” Ethan said, sitting down on the other sofa. “When destined lovers find each other, they complete their bond almost immediately.

“If we wait too long, our instincts will go crazy and may take over in the end to get their way. It is pure instinct, I suppose.”

“What about love? Does destined mean you love each other?”

“Yes. Their instincts love each other immediately. The rational side does too, but as love grows over time, their bond will grow even tighter.”

“So it is not just physical, it is also emotional, then?”

“Of course it is,” Ethan answered. “If a destined does not respond to their counterpart, the other can get extremely sick, very weak. They can even die from grief.

“We can prevent this by officially rejecting each other, but it has to come from both sides.”

Irene was surprised by what she learned from Ethan. “Sorry I ask so many questions, I just want the best for my friend.” She smiled lightly, a little shy. “And I am a bit curious too, I guess.”

He smiled back at her. “No problem. I think it is normal to want to know about something you have never heard of in your life.”

He paused a moment before he continued speaking. The thing he really wanted to ask Irene made him a bit anxious. “Do you think Joanna will accept me as her destined?”

“I don’t know.” She looked at him compassionately. “It is a lot to process for her now—give her some time. At least she is not against the idea of having a destined lover.

“I hope you figure this out together. She deserves to be happy, but you deserve that too. I feel like you are a nice guy, and the way you handle this situation shows how much you care for her already.”

“Thanks.” He smiled at her again and placed his empty cup on the coffee table. Then he got a text and stood up to leave.

“The boss needs me to help him with some things. I will come back later to talk to Joanna. I really need to talk to her before you leave.”

“I will let her know you were here,” Irene said. She followed Ethan to the front door.

Before he opened it, he turned around. “You know, you can’t have a better soulmate than a family member,” he said. “They are much more loyal to their partners than even the most loyal outsiders are.

“I really hope you’ll find your destined too, Irene, even if you’re not one of us.” His eyes were sincere.

Irene blushed a little. “How do you know I’m not with someone?”

“I can sense these things. I’ve been trained to read people.” He smiled and stepped outside. “Bye, Irene. In case I don’t see you before you leave, travel safely. I hope I will see you again soon.” He gave her a hug.

“Bye, Ethan.” She smiled when he walked to his car and took off.