I nervously squeezed the stranger's phone while listening to the waiting signal. Finally, someone took the call.
"Master?! Where are you?! Everyone's looking for your highness!" The man's voice feverishly shouted over the phone.
"Um… h-hello?" I muttered hesitantly.
"Who is this?" The person on the other side of the phone changed his tone, "How did you get Master's phone?" he asked harshly.
"Am I talking to… Leo?" I waited for the reply, but the silence made me realize it was a dumb question, "Your… friend, master or… whatever, had a car accident. I found him. He told me not to call an ambulance, and call you instead…" I explained nervously.
Leo became quiet for some time. I even checked if he didn't hang up the phone.
"H-hello?" I mumbled, impatient for any kind of response.
"I tracked the phone. Wait there. We will be there in 20 minutes tops," he stated coldly and ended the call.
I wanted to say something, but I merely opened my mouth and gasped when I heard the clicking sound of the phone hanging up.
"Seriously?! How about "please wait" or "thank you for calling me"?! Who does he think he is?!" I muttered, annoyed.
Then I looked at the car and an unconscious silver-haired guy. I sighed, then clenched my teeth. I found calling some "Leo" instead of getting an ambulance here completely insane. Besides, that guy in the car looked like he was already dead.
"What if this Leo gets here and blames me for his "master's" death?!" I wondered frantically.
In an instinctual reaction, I decided to at least get him out of the car and try performing cardiopulmonary resuscitation. No matter how the silver-haired opposed bringing him to the hospital, leaving him without not even trying to rescue him seemed inhuman.
I walked back towards the car and opened the door on the driver's side wide. Then I grabbed his arms and bit by bit tried to move him out of the car. I kept looking for any signs of a major injury, but his bleeding occurred solely around his nose and mouth. Then I also noticed blood under his fingernails.
"What the hell?! Is he sick or something?!" I wondered frantically while pulling out his unconscious body.
Finally, I managed to get him out of the car and lay him down on the ground on the side of the road. I took a closer look at his face. He was amazingly handsome. He truly looked like an angel. He wore a black, fitted suit and a dark grey shirt, which additionally made him irresistible. I couldn't understand myself, but somehow I found every detail about him amazingly alluring…
"Should I check if he doesn't have any injuries under that shirt…?" I wondered hesitantly while taking another deep breath.
Certainly, I slapped my own face for having weird thoughts towards an innocent victim of an accident. Then I clenched my fists, trying to tell myself to focus on switching my brain to rationality.
"I should definitely check his pulse again, and then perform CPR," I decided.
I reached out my trembling hand towards his neck. I didn't even know why I was nervous so much. Perhaps, it was because his aura was overwhelming even though he was lying on the ground unconscious. I touched the side of his neck, pressing the carotid artery. His skin was cold as if his body temperature was way below 36.6°C. Then I felt his pulse, but it was strange… It was unnaturally slow. As I counted, it was less than twenty beats per minute.
My mind was filled with all sorts of thoughts, "I shouldn't perform CPR merely because his heartbeat is slow, right? Even if his heart beats weakly, it is still a beating heart, right? What if he is hibernating or something? Should I warm him up, or is it his normal temperature? What the hell is he?!"
Suddenly, I saw some weird blue lines painting themselves across his veins and arteries on his neck. I followed my unrestrainable curiosity and unbuttoned his shirt. The blue lines were more visible on his chest, making every one of his blood vessels clearly visible. His condition obviously wasn't caused by an accident. It looked like some kind of disease. I only hoped that this Leo would be really able to help him…
I had no idea about his condition. His state could be contagious, but even though I felt illogically drawn towards him. I gently touched the skin on his perfectly muscled chest and ran my fingers across the blue line on his jugular towards his heart. I did it unconsciously. When I realized I was touching him, I quickly moved my hand away, giving myself a mental slap.
"Lilith, you really are a horny pervert!" I rebuked myself, unable to understand my own actions.
I buttoned up his shirt again and additionally covered his chest with his jacket. I did it solely to prevent myself from doing something awkward again, but inside my mind, I used the excuse that I was doing it to keep the patient warm…
Suddenly, I saw some cars heading in our direction. One of them looked like a limousine, the other one was a larger van, and the third one looked like a car transporter. They were all black, and the car lights almost blinded me. The limousine stopped right beside the unconscious guy and me. Two other cars parked right behind it. Some men started walking out of those cars. They were all wearing black suits which made them resemble government security agents. It was hard to see their faces because of the cars' headlights. They moved in silence, completely ignoring my presence. A few of them immediately rushed towards the silver-haired man. The rest surrounded the whole street, securing the area around the accident. Those who went towards the silver-haired carried armored, aluminum briefcases. I wanted to see what they were about to do, but one of those men hurriedly walked towards me and blocked my view.
"Are you the one I talked to on the phone?" he asked coldly.
"I-I guess… You are Leo, right?" I smiled nervously.
The man stepped closer. His demeanor resembled a kind of ancient noble posture and gestures. His fair skin and perfectly combed dark-brown hair made him look even more sophisticated, yet his overpowering expression made me feel uncomfortable.
"My name is Leonard Gotha. I would appreciate it if you called me respectably," he hissed. "Do you mind introducing yourself, Miss?"
His arrogance made my temple vein twitch. I forcefully stretched my grimace into an awkward smile while doing my best to hold back my annoyance.
"My name is Lilith Fleming… Mr. Gotha," I squeezed out.
"Fleming… like Alexander Fleming?" he chuckled mockingly.
"Yes. Is there something wrong with my name?" I grunted.
"Not at all, Ms. … Fleming," he smirked, looking me up and down.
I became slightly flustered. No one had ever questioned any of my numerous identities and last names I made up over the years. How did he know that it was a fake name right away?! I figured that I should change the subject as soon as possible…
"Is… is he going to be ok?" I pointed at the silver-haired while leaning out from his right shoulder.
He hurriedly stepped to the right, blocking my view again.
"Master's condition will improve as soon as he gets his medicine," he claimed, clearly annoyed by my curiosity.
"What kind of medicine that would be?" I smirked, intentionally getting on his nerves.
"This is none of your concern, Ms. Fleming," he hissed.
"Well… it kind of is," I smirked, looking straight into his eyes. "His state wasn't caused by an accident, which means he is sick. If his state is caused by a contagious disease, then don't you think it would be best if I knew about it as well?"
"Oh, I assure you that Master's state is not easily transmittable," he chuckled.
"Really? Then what is it?" I had no intention of backing off.
Mr. Gotha sighed, "He was poisoned. Moreover, his phone was off. Thanks to you, we got here in time to save him," he stated dryly.
"That was the worst "thank you" I've ever heard," I muttered softly, irked.
"Don't worry. I'm certain that my Master would like to award you once he regains his consciousness. I'm sure that the money check will be more than satisfactory," he replied, obviously hearing my complaints.
"No need," I glared at him, "your master saved my life once. He may think of it as returning a favor."
"H-how did you meet Master before?!" he burst out fearfully, looking me up and down.
His sudden reaction made me flinch and step back, but then I saw him staring into my eyes, impatient to hear my answer. I took a deep breath.
"He came to the café that I worked, and then he showed up when I was in trouble and saved me from… my problem," I shrugged.
I noticed Mr. Gotha started glancing at the sides of my neck. His peculiar, spiteful stare made me feel as if he suspected me of doing something dirty, but I couldn't comprehend his reasons. Nonetheless, it made me uncontrollably cover my neck with my hands. When I did, he clicked his tongue.
"Anyway… we will take care of everything, so you may go your way, Ms. Fleming," he tossed nonchalantly, turned around, and walked towards the rest of the men gathered around the silver-haired guy.
The level of his insolence made me speechless. If my brain worked faster enough to react, I would have surely punched that smug face of his. I watched him go while angrily clenching my teeth. The men in the suits took the silver-haired guy's unconscious body to the back of the black van. They also carefully packed all the aluminum briefcases and brought them back to their cars. In the meantime, the crashed car was already loaded on the car transporter. I didn't even notice when it all had happened. It resembled some kind of top-secret mission. Realizing that brought chills to my spine. I just hoped that none of them would decide to get rid of the only living witness…
Yet, the reality was quite the opposite of what I expected. Everyone abruptly went back to their cars, ignoring me just as before. Mr. Gotha turned around briefly to nod his head, which I was probably supposed to read as "goodbye", and then they drove away leaving me in the middle of the dark and empty road!
It took me a while to realize my poor situation. Only when I was left alone, hearing nothing but the sound of crickets and owls calling from the nearby woods, my mind restarted, and my blood began to boil.
"Seriously?! You didn't even ask me if I wanted a ride home?!" I shouted angrily.
I wanted to kick something to release my rage. On the side of the road, I saw a piece of plastic left by them. The fact that they even left some trash behind them made me even more mad. I swung my foot, making the plastic fly. Only then did I notice it was a plastic bag. As I kicked it, some leftover drops of fluid fell out, staining my white sports shoe.
"Really?! This day couldn't be more unlucky!" I fumed, taking out a tissue from my pocket and wiping the shoe.
I couldn't see the stains clearly, so I pulled out my phone and turned on a flashlight. The tissue that I wiped the shoe with was all colored in red.
"Is this… blood?" I gulped.
After the rescue team had disappeared, leaving me in the dangerous middle of nowhere, I had to struggle to find my way back home myself. For the first time, I found it fortunate that life had never been easy on me, and I had survived much more difficult situations than this before. Certainly, if I were some fragile princess, I would sit on the ground and cry my eyes out while trembling in fear. Now my current situation made me more furious than desperate. I even thought that it would be kind of fortunate if I met some perverts or aggressive drunkards on my way back since I could take my anger off on them. Nevertheless, I still hoped to meet someone on the road who would be kind enough to give me a ride to a more civilized place, but judging on my luck that day, chances for that to happen were close to none. The road was dark and completely empty. I used my phone as a flashlight while walking back from where I ran, cursing my sense of empathy that was constantly getting me in
My new apartment was in a district called Sky Valley. It was a place filled with successful artists, well-paid freelancers, and contractual management specialists. There were a lot of young, talented individuals. Each of the people who lived there was unique, but they all had one thing in common: they were all devoted to their work, and they all minded their own businesses... Well, the majority of them at least. The day I moved in, someone knocked on my door. I was busy unpacking and initially ignored the knocking sound, hoping that whoever it was would give up and go away. Unfortunately, a minute later I heard the doorbell. I figured that it was the same person, and if he or she was still there, then perhaps there was a good reason for it. I opened the door and saw a brightly smiling, short woman with curly brown hair. "Hi! I'm Carla. Can I use your balcony?" she asked, nervously grinning. "Can you use my… what?" I glanced at her, feeling confused.
Carla had outstanding cooking skills and an amazing imagination when it came to mixing flavors. She couldn't afford to rent a place for a restaurant, so she chose to start a catering company instead. She had rented premises in the building right next to our apartments and created a professional kitchen there. She intended to provide her cuisine at the most expansive events in the city. That could allow her to earn the money she needed to open her dream restaurant in New Argent City… in a few years. I supported that dream of hers with all my heart. Spending time with Carla was refreshing. She was always on the run. She constantly developed new dishes while I had become her lab mouse that had to taste whatever she came up with. She was a perfect distraction from my monotonic work, and a natural excuse to take a break. With her, I could pretend that I was living a normal life. Sometimes I even convincedmyself that I could stay in New Argent City forever… I had jus
The Diamond Crown Casino was in a 45-story building. The gambling games were placed on two floors, but they were merely a part of the entertainment the Diamond Crown Casino was providing. There was an enormous theatrical part of the building with five stages prepared to accommodate over ten thousand people in the audience seats. The rest of the building was taken by banquet halls, conference rooms, swimming pools, wellness and beauty salons, and, of course, the grand, luxurious hotel. Knowing that it was easy to imagine how much money was running through this place every day. The sum surely had a number of zeros that could make a head spin. Carla met me right outside the building. The casino's crew for the event took all of the dishes out of Carla's truck. She prepared every dish carefully in advance, putting it all on separate, ready-to-serve plates. All of her appetizers, finger sandwiches, and sweets simply needed to be unwrapped and taken by the waitresses. After
We all put down our trays, mostly still filled with food, on the big metal table standing in the kitchen area, and wondered if our work was over. Suddenly, we became surrounded by the casino workers. "Is the event now over? Do you want us to do anything else?" Carla asked someone who looked like the staff's manager. I could see that she was trying to stay composed, but at the same time, she kept clenching her fists just to prevent them from shaking. I stood right beside her, trying to help her keep calm, but I was trembling inside as well. The manager looked Carla up and down and smirked. "You all have done an amazing job. Now, we need you to go through the door on the other side of the room," he said casually. "And what is it behind that door?" Carla inquired nervously. "Your only way out," he stated, grinning. That smile of his was soaked in pretended courtesy. His eyes were cunning and cold, and those other casino employees
I felt uncomfortable. My arms hurt, and I could barely feel my fingertips. As I was slowly regaining my consciousness, I realized I was kneeling on some dusty floor with my hands chained high above my head and attached to some kind of vault. I had handcuffs that were severely hurting my wrists. I was unable to tell how long I had hung in such an unbearable position. I must have overstretched my arms several times while being unconscious because I could barely move them, but at the same time, I was completely unable to stand on my feet. I could only hang, hoping that my strength would return quickly… I was cold. I looked at myself and saw that my costume was gone. I was wearing a simple white dress with shoulder straps, and I was barefoot. The dress's fabric was light and airy, which made me shiver as if I was naked. When my vision became less blurry, I saw I was inside something that looked like a human-size round birdcage. The place where I was looked like a basemen
The rest of the evaluation proceeded in silence. All the caged girls were trembling in fear, and those whose blood was examined prayed that they would prove themselves worthy to be placed at this cruel auction. I kept clenching my teeth and fists. Anger overflowed from every cell in my body. "This isn't right! We are not some merchandise they can sell or throw away if something is below their expectations!" I fumed inside my head. I could smell the stink of blood slowly drying on the basement ground. It was nauseating and horrifying at the same time. I couldn't stop thinking of the girl's last words, and about her daughter who would grow up without her mother. The sound of her pleading voice rang inside my head. She was ill, but she wanted to live. She had chances to prolong her life. She deserved to live! What kind of monsters would do something like that?! Even the wolves I met had never been this calculated and cruel! I was full of rage on the insi
Instantly, the murmurs filled the audience hall. As the commotion increased, I could see the evil sparks in the eyes of those who were invited to the auction. Their gazes were filled with a horrifying desire to devour me. They made me uncontrollably shudder. The fear paralyzed me to the point I couldn't breathe, and I could barely hear the distorted sound of their laughter that sometimes overpowered the auctioneer's voice through the microphone. The numbers they bid on grew fast. I could hear the auctioneer calling for one million dollars, two million, three… Those bidders were standing up, fighting each other, and I kept wondering why. I used to read once about rich, old people giving themselves blood transfusions of younger ones just to prolong their lives. Was that what it was about? Seriously, I couldn't let myself think of anything else, although my mind kept wandering around with strange thoughts, ones I was unable to come to terms with… I learned about the exi