The Sign

Pedro Delgado walked into the office of his doctor friend with measured steps, his Italian leather shoes silent against the polished floor. The sterile hospital smell mixed with the faint scent of lavender air freshener did nothing to calm his growing irritation. He brought out his phone and dialed a number, his expression darkening with anger as he heard her annoying voice.

"I give you 30 seconds to walk down to your office, or else you will regret being alive," he threatened before ending the call.

He walked over to the chair behind her desk and sat down.

As he waited, his mind wandered to the woman who had collided with him earlier. She had been a vision of contradictions – delicate yet strong, her body fitting against his for that brief moment like a missing puzzle piece. Her striking ocean-blue eyes had widened in surprise, framed by long lashes, and that unusual hair – red fading into gold – had caught the fluorescent lights like a sunset. Even now, he could recall how soft she had felt against his chest, her subtle floral perfume lingering in his senses.

"Argh..." A low pain-filled groan escaped his mouth as he unbuttoned his black shirt further until a round fire-like wound that looked like a tattoo on his chest was visible. The memory of her touch seemed to make the mark pulse with renewed intensity.

That was the souvenir his late wife, Helene, had left him before dying – an unending pain and torment.

Pedro's eyes fluttered closed as he tried to control the pain. The pain was always more unbearable at night and manageable during the day, but he couldn't understand why it was suddenly acting up at that moment – like something had stimulated it. The pain was scorching, making him breathless and uncomfortable. He leaned his back against the chair, mouth slightly parted and eyes closed as he felt the pain travel to every corner of his body.

This was truly hell on earth!

"I'm here!!!" Dr. Alex announced as she practically ran into the room, her white coat flaring behind her like wings. Her curly brown hair, usually perfectly styled, had come loose from its clip, falling in waves past her shoulders. The red silk blouse beneath her coat was slightly rumpled, and her white pencil skirt showed wrinkles from her sprint up the stairs. She leaned forward, placing her hands on her knees as she caught her breath, her chest heaving up and down.

Her brown eyes, usually warm and professional, held a hint of fear as they darted around the room, assessing Pedro's mood. She had learned long ago that keeping the mafia boss waiting was never wise, regardless of their friendship.

"If you're going to keep coming to my office, can you please inform me on time or book an appointment so I won't have to constantly outrun my shadow this way?" Alex asked as she slowly raised her head. But to her surprise, the man she was talking to wasn't looking good at all. He was literally breathing hard with sweat coating his forehead, his usual commanding presence diminished by obvious pain.

"What is wrong, Pedro?" Her voice was instantly laced with concern as she rounded the mahogany desk to go closer to the aching man. The click of her heels against the tile floor echoed in the tense silence.

"DO NOT TOUCH ME!" Pedro commanded even without opening his eyes, his deep voice reverberating off the walls. The doctor froze, her manicured hand halfway to his face, trembling slightly in the space between them.

Alex quickly withdrew her hand, her worry doubling as she took another concerned look at the man. His olive skin had taken on an ashen pallor, 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. The image of the blue-eyed woman flashed through his mind again – how she had gasped when their eyes met, the way her full lips had parted in surprise, the strange cooling sensation that had spread through him at her touch. "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. Her hand shook slightly as she held it out, the silver bangles on her wrist jingling softly.

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.

"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 so 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. The afternoon sun streaming through the window cast shadows across her face, highlighting the worry lines around her eyes.

"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 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. The veins in his neck pulsed visibly under his tanned skin. "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 a virgin." 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?

"You have no idea what that snitching bitch thought." Pedro spat coldly as he felt uncontrollable anger surge through him. And before Alex could react, she was grabbed by the neck and slammed against the wall. The impact knocked her stethoscope to the floor with a clatter. 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 perfectly manicured 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 only let go when she violently hit his hand which was strangling her throat, indicating that she was almost at the gate of the otherworld.

"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 despite her raw throat. "You will just fall into an agonizing death."

"It's none of your business, Alex. Just make yourself available while I still need you." His voice was ice cold, a stark 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. The movement sent another waft of his expensive cologne through the room, mixing with the lingering scent of fear.

'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. The hinges squeaked ominously in the silence.

"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 smiled before walking back to the chair he had been sitting on, his movements fluid and predatory. The leather chair groaned under his weight.

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

"Umm... What happened?" Alex quickly adjusted herself as she rushed over to one of the chairs in front of her desk. It looked as if she was the one who needed to consult the doctor. Her hands trembled as she smoothed her wrinkled skirt.

"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.

"You have to find her, Pedro. 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."

After saying this, he opened the door and left the room, his footsteps echoing down the corridor.

"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 – 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.