Chapter 3 The sign

Alex quickly withdrew her hand, her worry doubling as she took another concerned look at the man. His face was pale, and the veins in his neck stood out prominently. "I just wanted to feel your temperature. Is that so bad? I haven't seen you act up this way during the day."

Pedro gulped painfully before he slowly opened his eyes, revealing dark green irises that seemed to hold centuries of pain.

"Where's my medication?" he asked as he adjusted himself in the chair. The pain was gone. Except for the slight hotness which came from the wound, his body was calm again, and it baffled him.

What just happened?

"Oh, it's right here," Alex said as she opened one of her drawers beside Pedro and brought out a small bottle filled with tablets.

She looked at Pedro and saw him lost in thought, his strong jaw clenched in concentration. In moments like these, when he wasn't actively trying to intimidate her, she could see traces of the man he used to be before the curse, the man that'd saved and given her a new life.

"What just happened?" She couldn't hold back her curiosity anymore, her heart racing beneath her silk blouse.

"I don't know." Pedro gritted his teeth, the muscles in his jaw working. "If you had been more useful, I wouldn't have to go through this shit." His fingers drummed against the armrest, each tap a quiet threat.

"You're going through a curse, Pedro, and it can't be broken by just some medicine from a witch." Alex's voice was steady despite her inner trembling.

"Then why are you alive?" Pedro roared, glaring daggers at the useless witch doctor.

"Apparently, the medicines I provide to you help to subside the pains somehow. Isn't it the reason why you're still keeping me alive?" Alex smirked, though her fingers nervously played with the hem of her coat. She could only challenge the great and formidable Pedro this way because she knew how important she was to him. At least until Pedro found that special one who could heal him.

"Thank your stars for that," Pedro huffed.

"Can you send your men to come get the medicine next time? Your presence is quite intimidating, and I don't know why you keep doing this to me. Haven't I been loyal to you?" Her brown curls bounced as she shook her head pleadingly.

"Someone needs to keep you in check in case you forget who owns you," Pedro smirked, his perfectly tailored suit shifting as he leaned forward, reminding her of a predator about to strike.

Alex just sighed with a pout but remained silent, shrinking back in her chair. The leather creaked beneath her as she shifted uncomfortably. She knew there was no need in trying to convince the devil to do good.

"Here's the medication," Alex said, handing Pedro the bottle, the pills rattling inside like tiny dice.

Pedro took the bottle, gritting his teeth with anger and obvious frustration. "For how long will I depend on medicine that doesn't even solve the main problem? I need to get rid of this pain, damn it!"

Alex sighed, her breath stirring a loose curl near her face. She knew she had said what she was about to say right then a hundred times for the past five years to the stubborn man before her. But she would say it again until he listened.

"We can only accomplish that if you can take one of the virgin girls we have been selecting and give them love. You're just too scary for anyone to fall in love with. Not to talk of praying for you." Her voice grew softer with each word, like someone trying not to startle a dangerous animal.

"What do you mean?" Pedro barked, his cologne suddenly seeming more overwhelming in the small office.

There we go again, the same reply each time. Alex sighed inwardly, her fingers unconsciously touching the golden cross pendant at her throat.

"What I mean is that you should be able to give love in order to receive one. That's probably what your wife meant when she cursed you." Alex shrugged, immediately regretting the casual gesture.

She bit her glossed lip when she saw Pedro's look darken, his green eyes turning almost black with rage. Had she gone overboard with the last words?

Well, she soon found out the answer to that question because in the next second, she was grabbed by the neck and slammed against the wall. The impact knocked her stethoscope to the floor with a clatter.

"You have no idea what that snitching bitch thought." Pedro spat coldly as he felt uncontrollable anger surge through him. She wriggled and struggled to breathe with her hand placed above the strong one on her neck. Her hands were practically useless against the iron grip on her throat, her nails scratching helplessly at his wrist.

"I-I'm sorry, Pedro," Alex stammered, feeling her airflow being restricted dangerously. The edges of her vision began to darken.

Pedro quickly let go as a thought crossed his mind; he was doing it again, letting the curse influence him. He bit his teeth silently, guilt coloring his expressionless face as he moved away from her.

"Cough... cough... cough..." Alex felt her eyes roll into her head as she coughed repeatedly with tears streaming down her eyes, smearing her mascara.

"So what are you going to do? Will you keep rejecting them?" Alex managed to ask, not ready to let the man off easily this time. "You will just fall into an agonizing death."

No matter how badly he treated her, to Alex, Pedro was her lifesaver, her Messiah, and nothing would make her more alive than seeing him happy again.

"It's none of your business, Alex. Just make yourself available while I still need you." His voice was ice cold, a clear contrast to the fire burning in his chest.

Pedro buttoned back his shirt, leaving just one open as he took the bottle and headed for the door.

'That devil,' Alex muttered to herself as she tried to lean off the wall, her legs shaky beneath her. She glared at Pedro who had opened the door to leave, one hand absently rubbing her bruised throat.

"Oh," Pedro suddenly paused, closing the door back before turning to face Alex.

"What now?" Alex felt her heart fall, thinking that Pedro had overheard her little rant. She pressed herself back against the wall, her white coat blending with the pale paint.

Pedro flashed her a killing smile before walking back to the chair he had been sitting on, his movements fluid and predatory.

There goes his bribery gesture, Alex shook her head in resignation; she just couldn't stay mad at him.

"A lady bumped into me on my way to your office." His voice softened slightly as he recalled those dazzling blue eyes and the strange sensation of peace they had brought.

"Umm... What happened?" Alex quickly adjusted herself as she picked up the stethoscope and rushed over to one of the chairs in front of her desk. It looked as if she was the one who needed to consult a doctor.

"I can't really remember how she looks," he said, his expression distant. "She had ocean-blue eyes, and the brief contact from her felt refreshing, like I had momentarily been dipped into ice. The pain was shut down briefly. It was something I never felt before, and my whole body calmed for some beautifully unknown reason."

"That is a sign." Alex gasped, not believing what she had just heard. She leaned forward eagerly, her fear momentarily forgotten. "Did you allow her to go? I think she's the one we have been looking for."

"How's that possible? The pain skyrocketed before I got to your office. Doesn't that mean that she could be dangerous for my health?" Pedro felt lost, running a hand through his dark hair in frustration.

Alex was consumed with so much happiness, as if she was the one who needed the solution to her problem, that she kept shaking her head, her curls bouncing with the movement.

"But you've never felt this way with anyone before, virgin or not, Pedro," Alex pointed out. "You have to find her. It's all part of the sign. She's exactly what we have been searching for."

"I don't need your instructions on what to do." Pedro suddenly said as he stood up, his chair scraping against the floor. "I have already given out the order to look for her before getting here."

"Just make sure to get someone to look for her!!!" Alex shouted behind him, her voice still hoarse from his earlier attack.

'Will it hurt you to just let your ego down for once?' Alex sighed as she watched the man exit her office. She slumped back in her chair, touching her tender throat, and wondered if the mysterious blue-eyed woman might finally be the one to break the curse, that is, if she survived Pedro's intensity long enough to try.

As Pedro got far from the office, he dialed a number to give out an instruction before heading out of the hospital.