Friend or Foe?

The young man took the mask off his face and looked at the woman with a puzzled look, "Elena, are you feeling all right? You're kind of pale."

Elena covered her eyes with her hand and took a deep breath to calm down, "Yes, I'm fine. Just give me a minute." She herself was surprised at such a strange reaction of her body. She knew the man standing in front of her perfectly well and besides, he was a close friend of hers so why did her body, for no reason at all, tremble with horror at the mere touch of him? Hmm, most likely, the stress was due to the preparation for the exhibition, which she wanted to hold at the best level.

Elena gathered her thoughts in order and looked at the man with a smile, "You seemed to be saying that you could not come? Have your plans changed, Armand?"

Armand narrowed his eyes and gave the woman a stunning smile, "Hmm, you could say so." He took her hand, and hugged her waist with his other hand and pulled her close, "What about a little dance, my lady?"

"Um, okay," Elena agreed confusedly, as Armand had already taken a step to the side in time with the music, and she had no choice but to follow his movements. But didn't he have to ask her if she wanted to dance or not at first and only then embark on all kinds of pas? Well, if this is Armand, then that's okay, right?

Elena raised her eyes and looked at the young man, who was looking at the guests around them with interest, something in his eyes seemed unusual to her. He noticed her gaze, and a faint smile appeared at his face, "What is it? Do you want to say something?"

"Oh, no, just thinking. Never mind," the girl answered, but something inside her did not allow her to completely relax, some strange feeling that she herself could not recognize was pressing on her from the minute the man approached her.

Today, he looked somehow particularly too imperious, something she had not noticed in him before, as if, together with his costume, he had put on a mask of absolute sovereignty. Undoubtedly, Armand was a very attractive man, his blond hair and sky-blue eyes could fascinate as soon as any woman accidentally saw them. But, to the great regret of all his random fans, his heart was adamant and closed from any attempts to break inside. His heart and his soul entirely belonged to one woman, the one who left this world forever, leaving him to wander alone for many decades.

And while many people dreamed of immortality and eternal life, his cherished desire was death, which would give him hope that he would be able to see his beloved one again, on the other side of the universe, but fate had its own plans on this matter. His immortality, which would have seemed a great gift to many, was the hardest burden for him that he could not get rid of, whatever he did.

Maybe that's why, in his eyes there was always this light shade of sadness, which made almost everyone reach out to him, to embrace and warm his broken heart. But today, Elena did not see this sadness in his eyes, on the contrary, today he was like a king returning from exile, who with undisguised superiority looked at his subjects, who had once betrayed him.

"Hmm, does it seem to me or are you a bit different today? You know, even your voice seemed very strange to me at first, like it was the voice of another person," Elena asked and began to observe the reaction of her friend.

Armand raised an eyebrow in surprise, "Another person? Wow, how interesting," the man narrowed his eyes, playful sparks flashed in his pupils, Elena felt his palm on the waist of the girl pressed closer to her body, goosebumps running down her back. He leaned toward her and added in a voice half a tone lower, "You are always so observant; you are paying attention to so many little details." He straightened up, his slight chuckle caused an incomprehensible tension in Elena's body, "Don't worry, I just ate a lot of ice cream yesterday. Apparently, I have a sore throat or something", Armand winked and tried to give the apparent lie as the truth with no hesitation.

Elena frowned, "Are you serious? Do you think I will believe in this nonsense? A person who cannot die is unlikely to suffer from a sore throat after a couple of ice creams. Moreover, you don't like sweets, do you?"

Elena remembered Armand's face perfectly well, when Sean, after half an hour of persistent blandishment, managed to make him eat a piece of cake that Corey made. Sean was a little less than three years old, and the kid made such pitiful eyes when Armand refused his treats, that the man's heart could not stand it, and he eventually agreed and ate the cake. Daniel laughed to tears when Armand ate the ill-fated dessert spoon after spoon with such a look on his face as if it were the most inhuman torture possible, while Sean was sitting beside him and clapping his hands joyfully.

Armand closed his eyes and sighed heavily when he opened them, Elena again saw that kind and sad look that was always in his eyes. "I'm sorry, you're right, I lied. Ice cream has nothing to do with it, just I am not myself today."

"Why? Did something happen?" She asked with concern in her voice.

Armand paused for a moment as if wondering whether to say everything as it is and then answered in almost a whisper, "Today is the anniversary of Polina's death."

"Sorry, I didn't know," Elena replied quietly. She felt guilty because of her questions and unreasonable doubt made him think of sad things.

She was afraid to even imagine what would have happened to her if David had left her life forever. And Armand had not only to bury Polina with his own hands but also to live with this feeling of loss for many decades, without being able to even follow his beloved into the realm of the dead.

How insensitive was his father, who dared to do this with his own child? It was a war, and Elena and David were of no more value to them than experimental rats, but to experiment with their own son, their flesh and blood? It didn't fit in her head. The project "Eternity", in which Polina and Marcus were used as test subjects, was successful for the brothers, but the girl's body could not bear the load, she fell into a coma and died. At least, this is what Armand told, but for some reason, it seemed to Elena that he decided to keep part of the story with him, and she didn't ask him about it anymore.

"You know, you have become so much like your mother. In your eyes there are the same fire burns when I look at you now, I clearly see Amelia. It brings back memories," Armand exhaled thoughtfully, took a strand of her hair that fell on her face, and tucked it behind the girl's ear. The tips of his fingers touched her cheek and he looked intently at Elena, in whose eyes he saw his reflection. They were as deep and charming as the eyes of Amelia.

"Was it you who helped my mom get me to an orphanage? Why don't you want to tell me about her? No matter how hard I try, I can't remember anything, as if my memory is blocking something," Elena asked vexedly.

"I'll tell you some other time."

"I have heard this from you for the past four years. Sean will go to school faster than you reveal me the secret of your acquaintance," Elena grumbled in response.

"By the way, where is Sean? I would like to say hello to him," Armand ran his eyes through the hall, the little prince's silhouette was nowhere to be seen.

"Hmm, if he's not in the room, then most likely he and Ashley are playing hide and seek in one of the rooms."

"Ashley? Is this girl here too?" Armand raised his eyebrows in surprise; his face suddenly became more serious. He stopped and removed his hand from the waist of the woman, "Thank you for the dance, dear, but I need to check something." The man leaned over and kissed Elena on the cheek, "I hope to see you again soon, E-le-na," he whispered her name next to the ear of the girl, each syllable, like a spell, bound her movements. Armand turned around, put a mask on his face and headed towards the exit.

Elena shook her head, her subconscious mind insisted that something was wrong, but the brain did not understand what it was. The woman threw off unformed thoughts and went looking for David.

. . .

When David saw Elena dancing with some man, a wave of jealousy covered him, but he decided to hold it back and leave it at that. He knew that sometimes he was an excessive proprietor in relation to his wife, but he could not help it. If it were possible, he would prefer to chain her to himself, so that she was in his field of vision at any time of the day, only then he would feel complete confidence. And the piece that they have had for the last five years could only be a lull before a great storm, the consequences of which he could not even imagine. As long as that man is alive, his heart will always be in suspense.

David turned to Jason, "Any news on our case?"

Jason shook his head and sighed with annoyance, "No, absolutely nothing. I have got the best specialists involved, but it is not yet possible to track him. We do not have a single clue where your Marcus may be hiding."

David rubbed his temples, almost five years had passed since they were trying to track down Marcus and learn at least something about his intentions, but after those events in Tibet, he no longer appeared as if he had never existed. If it were not for Armand's confirmation that his twin brother is alive, David would have thought that Rick had been mistaken when he mentioned Marcus' name before his death.

"What is the situation in Congress?"

"It's quiet for now, but some congressmen began to behave suspiciously. Also, the black market has been activated recently, it seems that they are preparing for something, but we have not yet managed to figure out what it might be," Jason explained the situation, being the head of a special department for combating terrorism and criminal activity, he did everything in his power so as not to miss a single detail that could take them onto the trail of the enemy, but even his resources did not bring any results.

"Got it, well, if anything comes up, keep me in the loop," David added and patted Jason on the shoulder.

"You may not even ask about it, when my close people are involved in the case, I will do everything to protect them. Oh, by the way, here is your wife. Hi, El! And we almost lost you," in a blink of an eye, Barton switched from a business-like look to his usual tomfoolery.

"I was in the hall, didn't you see me?" The girl was surprised, although there were many guests, but not enough to get lost in the crowd.

"Ahaha, you should have seen David's face when he lost sight of you for just a minute! I thought one more second, and he would gather all the security guards and send them to look for you!" Jason laughed. No matter how serious and outstanding businessman David was, any word or wave of his wife's hand, and he was ready to do anything and anytime.

"What's fun all about?" A man's voice asked behind them and the friends turned around. "Oh, Armand! I thought you wouldn't honor us with your presence today," Jason reached out and squeezed his hand.

"Initially I did not plan it, but then I decided to come," the man answered and ran his hand through his hair just in the meantime.

"Tsk, that's why all the women in our department go crazy as soon as you show up. Damn, I was always confident in my look, but next to you and the Andersons, I sometimes feel like a frump. This is unfair!" Jason rolled his eyes, the grief of the whole world reflected on his face. Elena patted him on the head sympathetically.

"Elena, you are simply charming today. Poor David must have been mad all night with jealousy," Armand laughed and pushed David in the side. The latter poked at a friend but said nothing in response. It was obvious to everyone present that the guest was right.

"And when did you manage to change? You had a dark blue jacket, right?" Elena asked. When Armand heard the question, he looked up with an uncomprehending look on the face.

"What do you mean? What other blue jacket?" He asked, assuming he did not understand the question.

"When we just danced, you had a different color jacket," Elena replied. An awkward situation hung in the air, Armand and Elena looked at each other, as if an important puzzle piece had been lost in their conversation, and the logic was disturbed.

The man scratched his head, 'What kind of dance is she talking about?'

"Um, Elena, maybe you got it wrong? I just came, and as soon as I entered the hall, I immediately went to you."

"Wha-what?"

Elena felt how the ground had gone from under her feet, all the sensations that she had not previously understood, immediately acquired a meaning. The man she just danced with was not Armand. It was…

"Oh Lord..." the girl whispered, her hands instantly turned cold. She felt the burning fire on her body where he touched her. Elena's body was shaking, her face went pale.

"Elena?! What happened? Are you feeling ill?" David picked up his wife when she nearly fell.

The woman began to scroll the conversation with the uninvited guest in her head, and a terrible thought came to her. She grabbed David by the hand and asked with horror and dismay in her eyes,

"David, where is Sean?!"