by Stefania Gil
God, please, protect Isabel and Francisco, he thought as his body lost its vitality. Juan Carlos’ long life his mother offered him so many years ago gradually faded away when, at last, he began to enjoy it.
“The good is short,” he remembered his father saying and smiled. Yes, it had been short-lived, but intense and he was thankful.
He let the pain produced by the bullet overcome him as everything faded to black.
***
Isabel ran to the city hospital.
“Good evening. I've just been informed Juan Carlos Requena is here.” The words tumbled from her.
The nurse behind the counter smiled kindly as she searched the screen for the information she'd just been given.
Isabel had not stopped crying, something bad had happened to Juan Carlos. She hoped she arrived in time to tell him how fortunate she was to have meet him. Also, to tell him one damn time that she loved him.
She regretted not having told him all this time even though she knew he had to know. She was a fool, to believe things were happening too fast between them and it was not normal for her to love him so quickly. She had been silent and never told him her true feelings.
That night made her understand how important it was to never stop saying, not even once, how she truly loved him because as fast as he had come into her life, so quickly he could be taken away.
“They are operating now, madam. The waiting room is at the end of that corridor. Please try to have patience because the patient was in critical condition and the operation could last a while.”
Isabel just nodded.
“The police officer who found him will come by later to take statements due to the gunshot wound he received.”
Isabel remembered the shadows attacking them that night.
Goosebumps formed at the thought of the people who could know something about Juan Carlos' immortality.
She reached for her cell phone, and dialed Carlota's number.
There was no answer.
Next, she called her brother-in-law's cell phone. He did not answer.
Johanna did not answer either.
She took a deep breath. The walls of this hostile place seemed be closing in on her, cutting off her air and making it hard for her to think clearly.
The hours became eternal. She didn’t know many times she circled the room, how many others used the coffee machine, or how many times she called her loved ones on the other side of the ocean.
She sat in one of the chairs trying to relax, at that moment, she noticed the doctor coming out of intensive care area directly into the corridor where the waiting room was.
The man came in with a kind smile.
“I'm Dr. Peña. Good Morning.” She shook his hand kindly. A lump lodged in her throat. “Are you a relative of Mr. Requena?”
She just nodded.
“The operation was a success. We had to extract part of the liver because it was affected by the bullet, fortunately it is an organ that regenerates and Mr. Requena will recover very soon.”
Isabel breathed a sigh of relief.
Why didn’t his immortality work? She still remembered the night her brother-in-law shot him in the head. He survived that and was up five minutes after being wounded.
How could his liver not endure it now?
“Why was he shot?”
“He was kidnapped from home, Doctor. We were sleeping when it all happened.”
“You have to understand an investigation will be opened for this situation.”
“That is what I expect. I want to find the swine who did this to Juan Carlos.”
The doctor pressed his lips together in a thin line.
“Thank you so much for saving him.”
“No. Thank whoever called the police giving the exact location he was left. Also thanks to that anonymous person, they were able to locate you. I think you should talk to the police soon. You could be in danger if you have them watching you as closely as they appear to be.”
Isabel’s heart began to race.
Who was watching them? And most importantly Why?
The doctor gave her a slight squeeze.
“When he wakes up, we'll let you in to see him.”
“Thank you.”
***
Juan Carlos woke up completely sore. The white light in the room blinded him.
A beep in the room was piercing his brain that also hurt.
Where was he?
He blinked a couple of times and saw a woman dressed in blue checking several machines around the bed he was occupying. He intended to move, but the woman told him not to.
“Please, you need to rest, you were lucky to get to the hospital in time. Now you have to follow the doctor's orders so you can be released as soon as possible.” She immediately informed his relative to come in.
He just nodded.
He began to remember.
Some men dressed in black barged into his house, separating him from Isabel and hurting him...
Damn! ... Isabel ... where was she?
The beep sounded louder.
A nurse quickly came into his room.
“Sir, you must calm down!”
“Where is she?”
At that moment, the door opened and Juan Carlos was instantly filled with relief.
His beloved was there, with him.
Isabel ran to him and took him by the hand.
She was crying uncontrollably. She looked just as beautiful, but it broke his heart in a thousand pieces to know he caused those tears.
He didn’t want to hurt her. Never.
“I’m sorry.”
She insistently kissed the back of his hands and forehead.
She wept with joy, knowing she didn’t lose him.
Tears sprang up in his eyes.
“It's going to take a lot of work to get rid of me. It seems my mother was right after all and I did find my true love because I almost died.”
She smiled at him with confusion in her eyes.
“My mother,” Juan continued, “whenever she told us about the immortality legend, told us an ancestor, took the same eternal life potion, after several centuries, he encountered a woman who apparently sent him straight to his grave. It was believed, according to legend, that immortality can be annulled only by true love.”
Isabel smiled at him with amusement. She couldn’t doubt what he said because she herself was proving to corroborate everything said about that legend.
“I don’t want to get rid of you because I love you, Juan. I love you. Immortal or not, I don’t care. I want to spend the rest of my life with you.”
He kissed her tenderly on the lips.
“And you, my beloved. I love you with all my being.” Juan Carlos noticed how she continued to look concerned.
“It's all over. I think they let me go because I was about to die in their car.”
“It's serious, Juan, and it's not over yet.”
He studied her with doubt. How was it not over?
He suddenly remembered hearing his brother’s name.
“I think they asked me about my brother.”
She put a hand to her mouth and began to cry, but this time with anguish.
“What is it, honey?”
“They alerted the police with your name and the location they left you. They gave them my phone number and address, so I knew where you were. This is not over Juan. What do they want?”
Juan deduced the answer, quickly.
He must recover as soon as possible and find his brother.
He had to find him before these men did.
To be continued...
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Stefania Gil
She was born in Caracas, Venezuela. She studied Graphic Design and after many slip ups, she discovered writing is her true vocation.
She is a self-published author of Romance and the subgenre Paranormal Romance.
She has been a collaborator of the digital magazine Guayoyo En Letras in the section to Qué see, read or listen.
She loves to read. Everything with a mystical and paranormal topic gets her attention immediately.
She is infinitely curious to know what is beyond what cannot be seen with the naked eye, and perhaps that is what has led her to take courses in Tarot, Wicca, High Magic and Reiki.
Currently, she lives in Malaga with her husband and daughter. From her study overlooking the sea, she continues to write to please her readers.
Carlota and Isabel are the heirs to the Alcalá Orange Grove, an old and very poor estate located on the outskirts of Valencia. Isabel intends to restore it after her sudden and painful break up with Luke.
Carlota is hauled to the estate by her husband who wants to leave New York behind and devote himself to the country life. In addition, he believes the different surrounding will help with Carlota writer’s block. The old ranch will be the perfect muse to help her write another Bestseller.
It is not far from reality because, one night, Carlota and Isabel find a sarcophagus in the bowels of the property.
Does the mysterious coffin have anything to do with the legends surrounding the estate? Is this secret capable of awakening Carlota's muse? Can it teaching Isabel the true meaning of love?
I invite you to enjoy a cup coffee and discover the secrets of this story...
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