A Bride Worth Billions (11 page)

The loud buzzing of the alarm had woke Leila from what seemed like a nightmare. Looking around, the soft yellowish light from the early morning sun had filled her tiny room. She smiled. This was exactly the decision breaker for her when she was looking for her own place after getting the job at Blue Bottle cafe a year ago. It only had one window but it was huge and it gave her an overlooking view of the several street blocks around her apartment. And she loved waking up in mornings greeted by the morning sun.

She stretched her body for a few seconds before lying flat on her bed. For some odd reason she felt a little sore and tired, the same feeling she usually got when jogging for more than an hour. But she hadn’t even jogged yet. Her brows furrowed as she tried to recall what had happened last night, but nothing came. She shrugged it off and went on with her morning rituals.

The cafe was unbelievable packed today. All the tables are filled and the line had already piled up. She eased her way through the crowd and into the counter. An unfamiliar face was at the cash register, punching in the orders and greeting the customers with a happy smile on her face, which was so unlike her forced smile. She sighed feeling a lot more tired than she had felt when waking up this morning.

“Leila!” Kara waved frantically at her with a bit of worry on her face.

As soon as she was inside their small storage room, Kara held her shoulders and shook it lightly.

“What’s going on? You had me so worried.”

The worry and anxiety on Kara’s face made her panic. For one, Kara wasn’t one who took things too seriously since she would often shrug and laugh on her troubles saying stress would only give her wrinkles. And two, she had no idea what her friend was talking about.

“Don’t look so damn lost and answer me!” She said with hysteria.

“But I am lost. Why are you being so cranky?”

Yeah. Why was her friend acting a bit odd. And coincidentally, she was feeling a bit odd too.

“Who wouldn’t be? First a random guy just rushed through the back door with an unconscious you in his arms. Second, you went MIA for five days. Third, the manager was fired and the cafe is under new management. And lastly, you, who seemed to be connected to all of this, is looking genuinely surprised.” She fanned herself with her hand looking frustrated.

“So, where were you?” Kara asked again.

“I don’t understand, Ker.” Leila shook her head in frustration. The throbbing of her head had started and was becoming bothersome as she try to process the information in her mind.

Kara said she was gone for five days.
Five days? But how?
Again, she tried to remember what happened last night but all she could think of was the nightmare she had about a huge dog attacking her. She tried harder to recall how she spent her night but it only worsen her headache.

She was here yesterday, and just like any ordinary day, she had lamented on how her days in the cafe had become tiresome. And she remembered Kara giving her a few minutes off the counter because she was slacking off. That’s when she went out through the back door and started getting dizzy.

“You don’t look well Leila. Are you okay?”

Yes, she wasn’t feeling any better. The headache was giving her difficulty in focusing on whatever Kara was saying. She was drifting somewhere, somehow, like a strong pull was weakening her, which was the same feeling she had with that one good looking but mysterious customer.

“You high on something?” There was a hint of irritation on Kara’s voice.

“What? No! It’s just.. I don’t remember being away for five days from work. In fact, all I know is I was here yesterday and had to take a few minutes off the counter because my head was hurting.”

“Oh no. I didn’t think you were this far into drugs and stuff.”

“Will you stop saying that? No one is a druggie here, okay? Not you and definitely not me.” Drug related topics get on her nerves like a mosquito bite.

“Fine. But you owe me an explanation. Over lunch. Your treat.”

“Ah! Aren’t we a pep talker?”

“It’s a deal and I don’t take no for an answer.”

Both of them returned to the working area and worked in their own working station. The day went well as far as the cash register was concerned, however, Leila started feeling dizzy again. She had to stop wiping the table when the now familiar pull of an invisible force had her feet a little wobbly again.

She leaned on the table for support as she looked outside through the glass walls. It was already dark outside, the windows on the office buildings across the street had one by one grew dark since the working hours had ended. The sight outside and the thought of going home to her comfortable bed lessened her dizziness.

Looking around, the shop was tidy and clean, and now the time for her to lock up and head back to her apartment. She had gathered her things and went for the door when it swung open and a man in a business suit went in.

“Please come back tomorrow. We’re closed.”

Leila backed away a little after she realized who the man was, and there’s that familiar pull again. The headache was gone but she was still light-headed. Her hands went cold while thinking of the possibilities of being alone with a stranger and the grave consequences from any action she would take.

“Leila.” He whispered her name.

The moment she heard his voice, gruff but sensual, she felt weak and tired. Her thoughts had become clouded she could no longer comprehend what was happening and what was about to happen. She just stood there and gazed at him, helpless and entranced.

“I mean you no harm. Listen to what I have to say.”

His eyes glittered as it reflected the street lights. He moved closer while Leila stood motionless at the edge of the counter. There was a part within her that was screaming to her to run away but it was just a small part, not enough to keep her up and on guard.

“My name is Vincent. And I’m here to help you.” He walked closer towards her and he could easily see how far the spell had affected her. She needed help, fast.

That little voice in Leila’s mind had been screaming to her to run away but she couldn’t move. As he moved a little closer, she felt weaker and more tired, barely standing up. Her eyelids were dropping, getting too drowsy by the minute. Then, she collapsed in his arms.

Her skin felt the softness of the satin silk wrapped around her while the delicate breeze of the morning air brushed away her sleepiness. Leila stirred a bit to look for a better position since she plan on sleeping some more, but a low humming of an instrument she couldn’t figure out in her light slumber was keeping her alert and her eyes opened in an instant.

She came in contact with a closed wooden door which looked heavy judging from the large hinges that kept it attached to the wall. On her right was a couch, two single cushioned seater and a glass table. There was a glass of water on top of it. On the other side was a huge built in closet and a dresser with an almost life-size mirror. Then there’s this door which she guessed was for the bathroom.

But this wasn’t her room.
Definitely not!
She didn’t have that much luxury on her small apartment located in one of the less populated and productive blocks in San Francisco. Her place is full of people just like her, living everyday on whatever they had left from yesterday’s budget, which was meant to last until the next payout.

Leila jumped out of the bed, worry and confusion started to sink in. She had so many questions on her mind, but she needed to get out of the place before anyone else finds her. Seeing that there was no one on the other side of the door, she walked tiptoed on a long stretch of marbled floor before taking a hesitant turn. It leads her to a huge hall which had nothing but big stained glass windows, the ones she usually see in horror films.
A vampire’s lair?
The question popped in her head. But, she didn’t believe in the supernatural world, however the idea horrified her.

Footsteps echoed through the hall and Leila dreaded the idea of what will become of her if she was found out. She quickly searched the room and luckily found a regular sized exit door discreetly placed behind on one of the gigantic ornaments at the back of the hall. When the knob turned she pushed the door with all her might but she need not to since it swang open the moment her hands touched it. The excess force she had put on the door made her dive outside and landed on a hard-toned muscled chest. Strong arms held her close to prevent her fall and she held her breath when she saw who it was. His blue eyes, ever so enticing and captivating were starring at her with concern while his arms tightened a bit to keep her secure in his hold.

Leila felt the invisible pull again making her wobbly and dizzy, the same feeling she always had whenever he was around.
No!
He may be a vampire, the same vampire ready to suck on her blood.
Om my God!
She used what was left of her strength and pushed against his chest as hard as she could. Surprisingly, he let her go without her giving her a hard time.

Once on her own feet, she staggered and nearly fell but he caught her again. His touch made her ill to a point her vision was blurry and she started seeing black spots.
Oh no!
She was slipping to oblivion again, just like what happened last night.
Last night?
Yes, this man was with her on the cafe before she lost consciousness.

“Let go! Let me go!” She wriggled her arms to free herself.

But he didn’t let go. Instead he scooped her up and went inside the mansion through a different door. Leila wanted to break free from his firm hold but she was getting weaker the more she struggled, and now her head was throbbing pretty bad.

“Relax Leila. You’ll drain yourself more if you struggle.” He whispered softly.

And she did. She needed to regain her strength if she wanted to escape. Closing her eyes, she leaned on his shoulders and listened to the fast beating of his heart.
He has a heartbeat?
It means his alive. A sigh of relief came out knowing he was not vampire but a human with a beating heart. But this knowledge didn’t grant her safety.

He gently placed her down on the soft bed, the same one she had awoken from. After a few minutes, Leila opened her eyes and saw two other people inside the room aside from them. One was a man about the same age as Vincent, with a dark brown hair and light blue eyes. He was of similar built but Vincent looked bigger. The other was a woman with long reddish curls and light blue eyes. She wore a tight leathery jumpsuit, a red lipstick and a beautiful smile.

“She’s getting weak.” Vincent turned to them.

“The Mistress is preparing the detoxification spell for her. It should be ready within the day.” The woman answered.

“Hi Leila. I’m Therese. This is Kyle, my brother and you probably know Vincent.” She winked with a flirtatious smile.

Her light aura was contagious and Leila smiled back. She tried to sit up but f she was far too weak to move, she collapsed back on the bed.

“Easy now. You don’t want to totally drain yourself that way.” Vincent helped her settle back.

“What’s going on? Why am I here? Who are you.. Why do you know me?” She finally had the right thoughts together.

“Last night, I said you are under a spell, something that shouldn’t be brought upon you. Damn it!”

Vincent clenched his fists so hard his knuckles turned white. A different glint had appeared on his eyes and made him look dangerous and frightening. Leila’s eyes grew wide when she saw two of his lower teeth grew in what looked like fangs.
Oh no!

“Vincent! Not here, not while Leila is here.” Kyle tapped his shoulder’s to calm him down.

He relaxed and his features looked normal again. He looked at her and Leila held up her breath.
A werewolf? No way!
She gave one frightened look before she dozed off.