Author's note: Thank you for the lovely feedback on chapter one. Hope you like this one too! xo

10th October 2013

Ireland waited until Robbie, her partner-in-crime on most outings, did her job. The flashing light of the house's alarm blinked twice more before stopping entirely and going dark. Robbie's savant power was to control technology so whilst Ireland went into the house, Robbie would keep the alarm from ringing and stop all the phones in this vicinity from working just in case anybody tried to call the police.

Ireland waited a few more seconds just to make sure the alarm really was off, before she easily picked the lock and slid silently into the house. She wore all black and her hair was tied back out of her face, the usual gear for sneaking around. She had been breaking into houses since she was thirteen and had been taught everything she knew by her father. This was a piece of cake for her.

She went slowly up the stairs, testing each step with a gentle push of her hand for any creaks before she stepped on it so that she didn't alert any of the family that she was there. The first bedroom was a baby's room, the second a teenager's. She left them alone; she may be one of the bad guys but she had a rule to never kill innocents. In most circumstances, anyway. She wouldn't hurt these children but their father on the other hand... Well, he was the one who had borrowed a large sum of money from Oliver Hawk so he could pay a hit-man to kill someone for him. Oliver didn't care what they used the money for, as long as they gave it back to him with a little added interest. This man was two weeks late on his payment. Probably thought that he could get away with it too, the sad git.

When she stepped into the parents' room, her face twisted into a grimace of disgust. The man's wife had bleach blonde hair and far too much fake tan on, curled up on her side facing away from her husband as if the mere thought of being near him in sleep turned her off. Her partner was an overweight, bearded man who had one hairy leg sticking out from under the covers and was snoring loudly. How on Earth was she ever attracted to that repulsive thing? Ireland thought to herself.

She quickly walked around to the man's side of the bed and put her hand over his mouth. His breath was hot on her hand and she wanted to pull away and scrub at her skin to get it clean again, but this was the easiest way to wake him up quietly so she stubbornly kept her hand there. It took a little over a minute for the lack of air to wake him up. His eyes were panicked as he looked at the girl leaning over him and he started to struggle a little.

"Stop," she thought to him telepathically. She'd already read over his file and knew that he was a savant. "Stop otherwise I will kill your wife and children." Scared of her threats, he stopped struggling but his body remained stiff from fear. "I have a message from Oliver Hawk: you owe him money, Wayne. A lot of money."

"But it's more than I borrowed off him!" Wayne thought back to her, his mental voice trembling. "I can't get that kind of money, it's impossible. I'm sorry. Just please don't hurt my family. If you give me a little more time I might be able to sort something out. Please, I'm begging you."

Ireland smiled. She'd heard it all before and if she was in a good mood, she sometimes did give them extra time; but they never came through. They were all such disappointments. "You had two extra weeks because my father was so kind. I'm not like him; I don't give out second chances anymore. Don't want to be let down endlessly, you see. Getting sick of it. But don't worry Wayne, I'm not going to hurt your family."

Her free hand slid into a pocket and pulled a syringe out. She didn't know exactly what was in it: they had a number of different serums – some to kill, some to knock out, some with other purposes entirely – and they were all created by some genius scientist in their group. He never revealed what chemicals he put in the serums but nobody cared much; they worked and that was all that mattered.

"I'm going to hurt you," she continued her thought conversation with him. "My father was lenient but you didn't come through in the end. You were told there would be consequences if you didn't pay your debt." With that, she plunged the syringe into Wayne's neck and injected the yellow-ish stuff into him.

It wasn't like some killing chemicals: it didn't make him have a fit and foam at the mouth. No, this one was much simpler. His body froze entirely and his skin started to go cold under Ireland's hand. The whites of his eyes went heavily bloodshot, the life seeping out of them as he stared up at her in horror. When they finally went lifeless, his body grew limp and Ireland stepped away from him, putting the empty syringe back into her pocket. She quickly went back down the stairs, hand sliding along the bannister.

If anybody figured out that Wayne hadn't simply died in his sleep and was in fact murdered, they wouldn't be able to pick up any of her fingerprints anyhow. She was wearing thick leather gloves that didn't leave any fingerprints.

The front door was closed softly behind her and she ran across the road in the darkness, ducking behind a wall where Robbie was waiting for her with Richard. Richard was Robbie's brother and had the power of putting people into a deep enough sleep that not even an earthquake would wake them up, and he didn't even need to touch them or see them to do it. He just needed to be in close enough range to get into their mind; even if they had strong shields, he could do his job well. He looked nothing like his sister and had dark hair and green eyes.

"How'd it go?" Robbie asked as Ireland joined them.

"He begged for more time," she chuckled, shaking her head. "Idiots. They just don't get it, do they? He's dead and nobody saw me. Smooth operation."

"So what did you need me here for?" Richard asked, frowning in confusion. Ireland usually only went on missions with Robbie but she had personally requested for Richard to join them today. However she hadn't had him use his power on Wayne's family. She had a feeling that it would be easy and she was right.

"That's not the only thing my dad asked me to do," she explained in a hushed tone. "He badly wants that information from our prisoners and he doesn't care which one it's from. He thinks he can get the eldest one to talk if he has a little motivation."

"And what motivation is that?" Robbie pressed.

"We're going to an apartment that's occupied by one of the Benedict's and his soulfinder. Richard, I need you to keep the Benedict asleep- be careful, he has a strong mind. Robbie and I will knock his soulfinder out and get her out of there. Easy peasy."

And it was.

Xav had been alone in the room for a few hours now and it was a nice break from the rough interrogation techniques Hawk had taught his men. Somehow he had managed to fall asleep, even in such an awkward position. He woke up when his body slumped forward painfully as a result of his wrists being released from the handcuffs. He was no longer chained up but with his body so exhausted and his arms limp at his side, he couldn't even find any effort to fight back and try to escape. Besides, even if he got out of this room he wouldn't be able to leave without Uriel. He wouldn't leave his brother behind; Uriel would never do that to him, he knew that for a fact.

He was lost in his pain, not able to focus on his surroundings until he was slapped out of it. Literally. Cheek numb, he looked up and prepared himself to glare at whichever man had come to abuse him this time. But it wasn't a man.

The girl took a step back so he could see her better. She was wearing black leggings and a black vest top that were tight to her body, revealing a natural, sexy curve to her figure and a slim waist, as well as the ample cleavage of breasts that would be considered large compared to the size of the rest of her body. Her long hair was in loose waves, brown with honey blonde highlights. She had a clear complexion and there was no denying that she was absolutely stunning. Round, amber eyes looked down at him and there was a coldness in her expression that gave Xav a shiver of fear down his spine.

Not wanting to show that he was scared of her, he forced a grim smile onto his face. It was the best he could do, what with all the swelling. "Let me guess," he said in a slow drawl. "You're Oliver Hawk's daughter, Ireland right?"

She bit her lip as she smiled down at him. "You're perceptive, Benedict. Congratulations," sarcasm oozed out of her voice.
"Are you here to beat me up too?" He retorted. "Because I've already told your dear old dad that I'm not going to say anything."

"Oh I know, he's filled me in. Your brother on the other hand... He's a different case entirely. We've done our research on you lot and we know just how to get him talking. My dad's eager to get this over with, so get up. We're going to your brother's room and he is going to tell us exactly what we need to know."

Xav ordinarily would have refused to do as Ireland said, simply just to be his usual stubborn self. But he wanted to see Uriel, to see what they had planned for him, so he put his shaking hands on the floor and tried to push himself up. But it was too much of a struggle, he was too weak and couldn't support his own weight. He looked up at Ireland who looked furious at him.

"I said: Get up!" She demanded to him telepathically, her mental voice a shout that almost sent a tremor through his mind. Her voice was mean and harsh, but that became just a minor thing in the background compared to what else he felt.

Xav's mind lit up as sparks flicked through it, his body trembling with new-found energy. His heart stopped beating for a second as the realization hit him like a freight train. Feeling it, feeling how utterly different she was to the others he'd spoken to that way, gave him a bout of sudden strength and he pushed himself up until he was stood on his trembling legs. He towered over Ireland, with her barely even reaching his shoulders, and he looked down at her smug face.

"Ireland, you're my soulfinder." It took him a lot of strength to use telepathy, especially when he was so weak, but it felt easier with her than it did with anybody else. Their link was so strong, pulsing with intensity, and he was so shocked at how amazing it felt that he didn't even think about the fact that he knew what type of girl she was and how she was the complete opposite of what he'd wanted in a soulfinder.

It was very rare for a girl to feel the light and the sudden explosion the first time she spoke to her soulfinder telepathically – it was usually just the boy that felt it; or, in same sex couples, it was usually just one of them that felt it – but despite that, Xav could tell that Ireland had felt it too. Her mouth dropped open into a 'O' shape, her eyes wide and horrified and amazed and flabbergasted all at the same time.

She was speechless. So was he. They simply stood there for a long moment, staring into each other's eyes silently, and Xav was struck with desperate hope that she would be so thrilled with this that she'd change, that she'd let him and his brother go, that she'd leave her father's side and go home with him. It would be simple and easy and they would be happy together.

He hoped that they'd fall in love and have their happily ever after, just like his parents always told him would happen.

A hint about the next chapter: Uriel gets tested. Will he break?