Chapter 1

"How do I look?"

"Like you always do, gorgeous with a touch of madness," Gramps teased me.

"Come on, Gramps," I said, faking a frown. She cracked up, laughing so hard and coughing in between laughter. She cleaned off her mouth with a piece of cloth, and I nearly screamed at the sight of blood stains.

"Gramps, we should go see a doctor once I'm back," I said to her. She smiled.

"I'm fine, darling; besides, you look perfect, my beautiful granddaughter," she said, holding my cheeks and tugging at them gently. She planted a kiss on my forehead.

"I will be back before you know it," I screamed out. I grabbed my coat and dashed out the door. It was a beautiful morning, and I was rushing out for an interview. I have been out of work for 3 weeks now. I gave my last employer quite an earful before quitting that awful job. He was a hell of a terrible employer.

I got to the bus station a little earlier; I wanted to get to the interview earlier than other applicants; I needed this job now more than ever; we have been living off the peanut gramps has been making from her little restaurant at the corner of the street. But business has been quiet these days, and we are neck deep in debt. If only I could just land this job, then everything else would fall into place.

"Are you here for the interview?" I asked a lady sitting next to me. She gave me the quit-talking-to-me look before she turned away.

"Oh, sure," I stammered.

I was still in disbelief at the number of people applying for the barista job. I guess I wasn't the only one out of work lately. I began to imagine the possibility of getting this job.

"Amber flint!" I heard a lady call.

"Yes!" I quickly replied, raising my hand a little above my head and picking up my bag. I made my way towards her. She looked at me thoroughly before gesturing for me to come over.

A few steps into the room, I heard a dog barking. I instantly heard a switch in my head flip. I felt a itching sensation, and the next second I was gasping for air.

"Miss Flint, are you okay?"

"Miss Flint," I heard a lady's voice, but I was too far gone to respond. I fell on the coffee maker in the corner of the room, and we landed on the floor, breaking the machine.

I quickly ran out of the room frantically, holding my head as I ran out of the building.

I had this seizure every once in a while; it's been over a year since the last seizure. I started 10 years ago. I had thought I was free from it but it chose today of all days to show up.

I walked home dejectedly like a living zombie, with clothes drenched in coffee. I left for home the minute I regained myself; I was too embarrassed to go back inside.

"Not after what happened," I murmured. I couldn't stop blaming myself for going crazy at the interview. If only it waited for just a second.

I was lost in my own thoughts when my phone rang.

"Hello, is this Amber Flint?"

"Yes," I replied.

After a few seconds on the phone, I realized I had more problems to deal with than I could count; we are already neck deep in debt, and adding the coffee machine to it would kill me. I was almost in tears when the line went dead.

How we would cope this week without a job would be a miracle. I remembered Grandma was due for another visit to the doctor, and I felt really sad. We have been postponing her visit to the doctor, and she has been getting worse.

I walked by a fashion store, and my eyes caught the poster on the wall that "salesperson needed". I quickly came back to life, pulled open the door, and dashed right in to meet no one at the counter. The blue coat I had wanted to buy for Gramps with my first salary caught my eye. Her old coats were a little old and worn out; I could imagine how warm and happy she would have been in that coat.

I promised her I was going to take care of her, but how am I supposed to do that when my ass is jobless?

"No teary eyes, not today," I chided myself, quickly cleaning off the tears forming in my eyes. I was still staring at the coat when something caught my attention: he was standing across the other side of the street. Why he caught my attention and why I was still staring at this strangely odd fellow was a little beyond me; he was 6 feet tall or so, towering over some lady on the ground who was, from all indications, begging him for something.

I noticed two other guys flanking him by both sides; they were quite tall but not as tall as the odd fellow. I wondered what the lady could have done to make these men come after her.

"They definitely couldn't be Alpha's men; I haven't seen their faces anywhere in town." We have always known Alpha's men to be havoc wreckers each time they come to town, but these men seem new to town. I could have raised an alarm, but in this small town, everyone minds their business. You don't really want to be caught up in someone else's shit.

My concentration went back to the strange fellow. His dark hair was barely grazing his shoulders, and the more I stared, the more something pulled me from within. Forgetting my misery

Believe me when I say I am no novice to the field of men, but there was something about this strange fellow I couldn't quite put my finger to. His glistering gray eyes were unmistaken; he wasn't handsome in a cute way, but he seemed a little dangerous and wild. His face suddenly lit up in a smug as he dug his hands into the girl's throat, lifting her off the ground.

I shuddered in fear as I watched him. I could see his lips move a little, and before I knew it, his once glistering gray eyes turned something pitch dark. That sh*t scared the hell out of me as I froze on the spot.

"I must be seeing things now," I scolded myself. It wasn't possible for someone's eye color to change.

He released his hands, and she slumped to the ground, lifeless and unable to move. I nearly screamed, but I warned myself against it.

"Can I help you with something?" a woman in her fifties asked, scaring me even more. I had forgotten I was actually in the store, so I quickly moved back.

"Are you okay?" she asked, but I quickly pulled open the glass door and hurriedly left without a word, looking from side to side as I hurried off in fear. I couldn't believe I just witnessed that shit; my whole body was filled with goose bumps as I hurried away, praying they didn't notice I was watching all along.

I glanced back to see the strange fellow from a distance walking towards me, but I didn't see the men he was with earlier. I increased my pace, afraid they might have seen me. I quickly made a turn, sprinting ahead before he caught up with me. I turned to see him still walking behind, looking from side to side. I quickly dashed into the bus at the bus station while praying the driver left before he caught up.

I quickly bent my head the minute I saw him at the bus station, looking around as if he had lost something. I peeped out the glass, and I could swear our eyes met, but I bent down immediately. While praying he didn't see me.

I let out a sigh when the sound of the engine came alive and we drove off. I raised my head and looked back to see him staring at the bus as we drove farther away.

I got to the Gramps restaurant, looking dejected and overwhelmed by a feeling of sadness. The realization that I had failed yet another interview hit me pretty hard. But what hurt more was that the trauma was back.

I walked to the door to see her serving a customer. I contemplated what to tell her, and when I couldn't come up with anything, I decided to sneak in when she was not looking.

"A glass of water, please," a customer ordered.

"Coming!" 

I saw an opening, and I sneaked in. I was about to sneak up the stairs when I heard her call my name. I stopped in my tracks and turned around to see her staring at me. She came close, and before I could say a word, she smacked me in the back.

"Ouch!" I screamed

"Are you okay?" Gramps asked, surprised at my scream.

"I don't think so," I replied, still wondering why my back hurts so much. I quickly went up the stairs to take a look at my back.

"Oh my God, what happened to you?" I heard Gramps voice, and I turned to see her standing at the door holding a tray of food.

"I'm fine, Gramps," I replied, pulling down my clothes.

"No, you are not Amber Flint." She dropped the tray on the table and grabbed my hands, and we both sat down on the bed.

"What happened, child?" She asked with worry written all over her face. I had to tell her what really happened at the interview, about my trauma, and finally tell her I had sustained the wound when I fell on the coffee maker.

"Gramps, I'm sorry I couldn't get the job." I bent my head in shame.

"Don't be silly, child," she chuckled, gently touching my cheeks. I couldn't stop the tears as they freely flowed.

"I just wanted you to be proud of me," I murmured amidst tears.

"Hush now, Amber; I have always been so proud of you." She gathered me in her arms, and I emptied my eyes on her shoulder.

I was done eating the food Gramps made for me. I picked up the tray to take it downstairs. The images of the strange guy standing at the roadside while staring at the bus flashed in my head, making me have goosebumps.

"Snap it out."

I came downstairs and dropped the tray in the kitchen. I was about to go back upstairs when a pink cloth lying on the floor caught my attention. I stopped immediately, walked towards it, praying it wasn't what I was thinking, and just when I got close enough, I screamed pretty hard.