Chapter 5

• I didn't wait the whole 24 hours, but made my decision before the shift started and informed my new boss immediately.
• Selena - I agree. What happens next?
• Marcus - That's good to hear. What about your house? Keep it or get rid of it? Can you manage to pack your belongings today? How many suitcases do you need?
• Selena - It's not much that I'm taking with me, also yes - I can do it today. House can be sold. Furniture can go. Luggage will be manageable. 3-4 suitcases and one item of special luggage. Customs documents and proof of ownership are available. Should not cause any problems.
• Marcus - Special luggage? That makes me really curious. We have special status, nobody will check it. So please don't smuggle a bomb on board ;)
• Selena - Too bad... I'll leave them at home then.
• Marcus - HAHAHAHA, I can see we're going to get on well. Marcus here by the way. Save my number.
• Marcus - Pick up tonight 6pm at your home.
• Selena - I got it.
• I looked around the house and the realization, that all of this would be gone, came crashing down on me. I packed my suitcases and took all my clothes and shoes with me. I checked the weather in Romania and it was cold and wet, not so different from London at the moment. Make-up, pictures of my family. My CD and book collection of course. I looked for my personal documents. Passport, birth certificate, driving license. Simply everything. Even the documents relating to my closed suitcase.
• I wrote an email to my employer, that I was cancelling my contract immediately and then visited my family's grave one last time. I laid flowers for my grandparents and parents. There was nothing more for me to do... I didn't have any friends I could inform. A person, who can't open up, is not someone you want to spend time with. I was standing in front of my house at 6 p.m. on the dot, with my suitcases packed. A black limousine pulled up and stopped right next to me. Marcus's grinning face appeared and he jumped onto the pavement to join me.
• "Selena! Glad everything worked out."
• "Yes, it was easier than you might have thought."
• Behind the limousine, a car from an estate firm pulled up. A tall, blonde Barbie doll got out. Plastic smile included.
• "Miss Darvis, I'm Hillary. The Sternberg brothers have commissioned me to find a buyer for their dream property."
• "Fantastic... then these is probably for you."
• I handed her my keys and the grin grew even bigger.
• "You won't regret it. I already know ideal buyers for the property. This location is also simply amazing. You will be satisfied."
• "Certainly... thank you very much."
• "Shall I help you with your luggage?"
• Marcus had already grabbed two of my suitcases before I had even process the question. I put my special parcel in the trunk myself and said goodbye to my home with one last look.
• "That will be fine. Saying goodbye is never easy."
• I smiled at Marcus before he held the door open for me. As soon as I got into the car, I immediately looked into Dragan's eyes, followed by the annoyed expression on Kynells face. Dragan had a newspaper in his hand, which he folded and put aside. Marcus came to my right and the journey started.
• "I'm delighted, that you've decided in favour of the offer. We will do everything we can to make sure you don't regret it."
• I took the envelope out of my handbag and handed it to Dragan.
• "Everything signed."
• "Perfect, thank you very much."
• "Am I really the only one, who thinks the idea is crap?"
• "Kynell!"
• "I'm serious, Marcus. There's something wrong with her. You tell her you're a vampire and that I'm a werewolf and she doesn't even flinch."
• "Never judge a person by their looks alone. If you could hear her heart like we can, you'd know that yesterday she was seconds away from a heart attack because of us."
• I looked at Marcus. The first piece of information.
• "You can feel people's heartbeats without touching them?"
• "Ah, that's right. This should all be new to you. Our senses are disproportionately good. For example, I can smell from here that an Indian restaurant is cooking rotten meat three streets away... the ability is both a curse and a blessing. But over time, we've learnt to put our sense of smell to sleep."
• I nodded at him. I'd been wondering since yesterday, what it meant that they were vampires. Apart from the literary aberrations, I asked myself a lot of questions that only time will answer.
• "You still have a lot to learn and we understand that it's all new to you. We have planned for the fact that it won't be easy to adapt to everything. But we're here for you if you have any questions."
• Dragan looked at me penetratingly. He acted as if he had read my mind. But I suppose you get to know people better, when you've lived longer than others. I fell silent and looked out of the window. There were too many questions buzzing around in my head to ask a specific one right now, and I couldn't remember the answer afterwards. Too much is going on in the moment. So I don’t say a word and look out the window.
• The car stopped half an hour later and Marcus jumped out. It was drizzling a little and a cold wind was blowing towards me. We were standing right in front of an airplane... maybe a private jet? I would think so. I watched as my suitcases were loaded and then I was asked to board. A stewardess dressed in a baby blue dress assigned me a chair by the window, which looked more like an armchair. Marcus sat down directly opposite me.
• Kynell and Dragan were sitting on the other side. It took less than 10 minutes for the plane to take off.
• "We fly for about 3 hours. But once we've landed, we'll need another 3-4 hours by car, depending on the weather. So if you want to get some sleep, now would be your chance."
• I smiled, but I had already prepared myself inwardly to persevere, no matter how long it took. Showing my new employer how I have nightmares wouldn't be a good start. The stewardess handed out drinks and I choose for me a coffee.
• "If you like, I have something for you to read here."
• Marcus handed me a stack of folders. I took the top one and opened it. I saw the face of a black African with tattoos in the face.
• "What's that?"
• "Patient data, if you like. An initial overview of those you'll be looking after. Maybe you can sift through some of it before we arrive."
• "That is indeed very helpful."
• I leafed through the folder. The first contained the guards and security personnel, as well as a group of well-trained ex-soldiers. The information was simple and clear. I just skimmed the pages.
• I opened the second folder. Maids, cooks, a German butler. The first creatures were there too. Two dwarves, a nymph and a couple of water goblins. While I was leafing through the folders, I sensed that someone was watching me. I looked up and Marcus' eyes were fixed on me.
• "How do you do that?"
• Dragan and Kynell, both preoccupied with themselves so far, turned to us.
• "How does she do what?"
• "He means my quick reading. Left over from my studies. I taught myself. Combined with a photographic memory, I was able to study three specialism at the same time."
• "You're telling me, that you've already gone through a folder completely."
• "Two folders. I've just finished this one."
• I put the second folder to one side and took the last one.
• "You must know that you can learn it. Speed reading is a matter of training your brain, so it can be learnt. So just in case you don't have enough time to read a book."
• A laugh came out of Marcus's mouth while Dragan turned back to his window. I was no longer interesting. The third folder only contained the 'special ones' in my new home. I was just on the page of a werewolf with a rather shaggy appearance, even in human form, when Kynell approached me.
• "How come you're not scared? Those are monsters. You're sitting here in an airplane with three of them. I could easily break your neck."
• I put the folder aside and looked at Kynell. His eyes glittered darkly. He was really angry that I'd taken the job.
• "First: I will definitely fight back. I probably wouldn't be able to avoid my fate, but I promise to be annoying and exhausting until my last breath and second: it's pretty black and white thinking to assume, that the fact that you guys are different is supposed to scare me. I spent a year in pathology. Sometimes 12 hours per shift with so many bodies in autopsy. From old to young people, but also the pretty ones and children. I cut them open and tried to find out what happened to them and believe me, there are monsters out there that I'm scared of. I'm more scared of them right now, than sitting here with 3 people who have told me they need my skills. And besides Kynell, you know nothing about me apart from a CV. Who knows, maybe I'm not that different from you."
• "I doubt that."
• "Mmmh, you've got plenty of time to find out."
• He turned away, sulking. Marcus laughed cheerfully and just celebrated the whole situation. I could feel Dragan's eyes on me, but I wasn't ready to look at him at the moment, so I closed my eyes and tugged my glove tighter to make sure it didn't expose a bit of my skin. They didn't know me and I didn't know them. The time for personal judgment has not yet arrived. Kynell had to accept that too.