Chapter twenty-four

Layla

Mom needed surgery, long hours of it, we all stayed at the hospital overnight, myself, my brother Landon and even Victor, it was a pleasant surprise even though I already knew he had such a big and caring heart, he had immediately put the hospital tab on his account, meaning he was ready to pay for everything, I already felt indebted to him, but now, I feel wholly more so.

He was risking a lot as well even, considering he is a celeb, a well known and sought after celeb and he was in the open, before we were given a private place to use as our own waiting area, many people had been on their phones, taking pictures of him, making videos and tweeting and

uploading, I’m sure the internet must be full by now of the most prominent bachelor in New Mexico and the mysterious family he was with, who are they? Gold-diggers? Blackmailers? Or a charity case? Here is to hoping he is not in any kind of trouble, I thought, making headline suggestions about what would be up as a trend in my mind.

It helped to take my mind off things for a bit, but my mind eventually drifted back to the matter at hand, Mom is currently undergoing surgery after an attempt on her life, Dad was murdered in an almost similar manner too.

“Hey Layla, how are you holding up?” Victor came to me with two disposable cups of coffee in his hands, he stretched one to me and I took it gingerly whilst mumbling my thanks. I suddenly remembered how close it had been for him to catch me all witched up in our sitting room when I finished casting the spell that helped to save my mother’s life. I actually thought he had caught me, but then he didn’t seem to have.

“Thank you so much sir” I said remembering myself and my place, I was getting comfortable with the way he was treating me, being there for me, caring so deeply, it all made me forget I was still just a maid to him.

“I really can’t appreciate you enough sir” I said again and he waved me away as if that wasn’t what he was after, he had asked how I was doing after all, yet I was dishing him thanks.

“I just want to know how you’re doing ok, how you guys are holding up, I know it can’t be easy to actually experience this” he said as he glanced at my little brother too, Landon, who was pretending to be asleep immediately Victor had come in with the coffee.

“Well, sir, the truth is, I’m actually tired of this life, I don’t think I can take it anymore sir” I said on the verge of tears, “Just how much more does life wanna throw at me and my family, my dad died just two years ago and I haven’t gotten over it yet, I don’t even think I really can. Now my mum is…” I said crying at that point.

“Take it easy on yourself Layla. This is not the end of the world, I am confident that your mom will survive this” He said softly and reassuringly, I nodded then he added, “Why would anyone have your family in their crosshairs though? because this was clearly a bold and all out attempt on your mom’s life” he said and even I had no answer to that question.

“That is a question that I’d really love to get an answer to myself” I said with my face filled with tears. He stood up then took my hand and had me stand up and follow him to the adjoining balcony of the waiting area, we were all alone and it was quite some floors before reaching the ground.

“Sometimes, I feel like life has this meticulous plans for me to get screwed over in the worse possible way, we have nothing that anyone wants, so why try to kill us?” I asked rhetorically.

We stayed silent for a while and I watched him as he was bent over the balcony railing, seemingly thinking about many things at once, when he finally took in a deep breath and opened his mouth to talk, I felt he was going to talk about seeing me cast a spell and that he knows I’m a witch because I really couldn’t get over the fact that he must have seen me or at least seen something he probably couldn’t explain, instead though, he went in a direction that I couldn’t have thought of.

“Guess I have to tell you about one of my own life turning point story” he said surprising me, “Oh? What story is that?” I ask curiously and interested.

“It is about the one I had called love of my life, her name was Alana, and she was killed before my very eyes” he said and a drop of tear fell from his eyes, falling all the way down the five floors till it’ll get to the ground I suppose. Wow, she must have been really dear to him for him to shed tears for her, I jealousy wondered if he’d ever feel that way about me, deeply enough to shed tears.

“Oh my, I’m sorry to hear that, how did it happen? And did you know who killed her? Where you able to get justice for her?” I asked about to put myself into his story, but then he switched.

“You know what, Layla, I really shouldn’t make this here about me, you have more pressing things to worry about” he said “I shouldn’t bother you with such a tale at this point” he finished, well, I guess I shouldn’t be bothered about his problems because he’s just my boss after all, but he bothered about my problem, so he deserved one back, I saw that he had locked up though and wasn’t willing to talk anymore, what can I do except to give it a rest at that point even though I really wanted to know about what happened with the love of his life, Alana.

I wondered if it had anything to do with the secret room back at the mansion, now I was just grasping at straws because I really wanted to know about what he was about to say, but for now, as he had said, my mom should be my priority now, and she is, she really is at the top of my mind, but then, I was calm and reassured that she will definitely scale through, death is not an option anymore, the spell made sure of that, for now at least.

Now what Victor had asked took second on my mind, it really bothered me to realize that someone was indeed after my family. Dad was murdered, now Mom was almost murdered too and it seemed targeted, not just some random killings. Someone or some people are really after my family and I dreaded to think that they won’t rest till they wipe us all out in my family.

Now I need to start thinking of a way to get protection for both Mom and Landon, and not the everyday body guard, but rather something stronger, something supernatural.