Day off

Yolie:
The rest of the book seems to be blank, but it certainly isn’t. Every day a new chapter appears, which disappears as soon as I have read it.
—Any news? - Alex asks.
Today is Thursday evening and we are in the dining room, it is time for dinner. Alex drinks from his goblet as usual and Patrick stands guard at the door, steady and silent as a statue. I asked Yulia to make me a salad and fried chicken, I've decided to stop wasting food.
—The first chapter was a warning against the immortals and their harmful intentions against my well-being. Yoleandra gave me a few useful advises. She also prophesied that I will meet who ran me over very soon. - I report, with the greatest seriousness of which I’m capable.
Alex and Patrick look at each other. They do that a lot lately. They're probably plotting against me. I take a sip of water and continue.
—The other ten chapters have been a kind of remembrance on the part of the Sorceress, she has a lot of nostalgia about her upbringing being free in her small village, the teachings of her mother who knew the "natural arts" of using different herbs to cure many ailments.
That reminded me a lot of Aya.
-—Yoleandra refers that from a very young age she showed aptitude and talent for the use of "magiks", this is how she calls the channeling of the nature’s energy for human purposes.
—How interesting - whispers Alex intrigued.
I fork a piece of chicken, put it in my mouth and chew. These days a silent and forced truce has been established between us.
He doesn't try to seduce me all the time and I stay on the reading mission for as long as possible.
— Is that all? - He asks.
—No.- I take another sip of water and continue.- At the age of eighteen, Yoleandra lost her mother, it was a very sad chapter, the girl did everything she could to save her; she almost died herself trying.
—Some time later, she saw a star fall from the sky near her village and, driven by curiosity, she arrived at the place. There she found a blood stone, a tear-shaped one, humble hut and was greeted by the horrible sight of her town being ravaged. The houses were burning, the men were massacred and the women raped in the middle of the street, children and young people were taken prisoner... in short, a dreadful scene.
—She flew into a rage of course and raised a storm. Thanks to thar, a handful of villagers and herself managed to escape. She settled in a cave on top of a mountain and from there offered her services as a healer to the neighboring cities.
— The rest is filler. Her thoughts about this or that, her lovers and their peculiarities, things like that which are beside the point.
—Do you think you have advanced enough? Will you finish reading the Grimoire soon?
—I've no way of judging which part of the book I'm going for. Chapters appear and disappear as they please. I do what I can.
—I have not said otherwise, and as a sign of how much I appreciate your effort next Sunday I will let you have some rest. I asked Patrick to accompany you since you don't want me to do so. He will take you to the other side of the island. I hope you don't come back too late.

He smiles hoping that I will do the same in response. Instead of smiling I yawn and go to my room.
000
It may not be Athens, but the fishing village at the northern side of the island of Spiros is quite lively. In the open-air market the islanders sell a large number of products, most of them are homemade or handmade.
When I discovered the little bookstore, I almost expired with happiness. I was looking at the copies for sale for more than half an hour. Patrick was grumbling and bored- looking behind me, but I ignored him. I still had some pocket money left and I settled on the first three books of the Harry Potter saga. Thank God that the bookstore sells many copies in English, apparently its main clientele are tourists who pass on very frequent tours of these Greek islands.
In the center of the city there are several clothes stores and a boutique which sales other feminine and beauty accessories. I’ve entered a shop and I’ve bought a new toothbrush and also large quantities of an essential item for every woman once a month ... ahem. Unfortunately I have no idea how long I'm going to stay here in Greece. It´s better to be prepared.
— Don't you wish to buy yourself some clothes? - Patrick asks dismissively. - Or maybe a new pair of shoes?
Curiously, today I have put on the only dress he packed at my house in Cuba, I'm also wearing my always reliable shoes.
—What for? Where would I go that would require dressing in the latest fashion trend? - I whisper head down.
—To have dinner with Kyrios Alex, perhaps?
—In the dining room of the Villa night after night? I don't think so.
—What if ... he wanted to take you to dinner somewhere in Athens?
I look at him suspiciously.
—Is this all hypothetical or has he told you something?
—He didn't give me precise orders, but he did give me this.- says, pulling out a card from one of his pockets.- My Lord made it clear that he expected you to squander a sum equivalent to twenty thousand dollars as soon as you had the nearest store in front of you.
I threatened to stick a knife in his bloodsucking heart, didn't I? Right now I have a terrible desire to twist the handle of said object once embedded in his chest. But looking at it from another point of view ... twenty thousand dollars for someone so excessively rich must seem like a few cents, please, the man keeps gold statues and chests full of jewels inside his house.
It's not good to contradict His Royal Majesty, after all he has every right to command and I shall meet his expectations.
A sinister expression takes over my face.

Alex:
It's six in the afternoon and I'm nervous already. Walking to and fro about to punch a hole in the carpet. Maybe I shouldn't have let her go. Perhaps I should have insisted on accompanying her, but she has been so reserved and serious these last few days... I have asked her to give me reports on her progress with the damn book from time to time, because since she turned the first page of it, I have not been able to read the entirety of her thoughts. It's so frustrating!
I was too used to hearing her little voice in my head and knowing exactly what she was feeling. Now she looks at me with undisguised disdain, she doesn’t dare speaking to me in a disrespectful manner, because she knows it’s counterproductive.
Truth is ... I miss her.
The closer my goal is, the further away she goes and the worst of all is that this is precisely part of the process. Her body is present but her mind has already began the journey.
I take the cell phone to call Patrick. They've been gone long enough. I hear the car approaching the Villa and recognize the Saab on which they left this morning. I'm in my office, so I regain my position behind the desk and wait.
I smile, looking forward to something for the first time in days. Very soon she will walk through that door and will show me the dozens and dozens of clothes, handbags and shoes she has bought. I should have told Patrick to advise her on acquiring jewelry. Diamonds, maybe?
The door opens silently and Patrick enters. My stomach falls to the ground. Despite my act of generosity, the witch still doesn't want to see me unless it's inevitable.
—Did she do the shopping, Patrick? -I grunt.
—Yes, my Lord.
—Is she happy?
—Hugely, my Lord.

For the first time in millennia my lower lip trembles. What is this acidic feeling in the pit my stomach? The conversations about fashion and shopping expeditions of my former lovers always bored me to death. Even the excessive ambition of the vast majority of them was plain to me. Why have I now been so ... happy, on the verge of being assaulted by the litany of a woman admiring the very expensive things she bought with my money?
—Did she go over the budget? – I don’t know I’m so frustrated.
—No, sir.
—Did you help her take the purchases up to her room?
—No sir. She has taken them herself.
I snort.
—So she didn't buy the expected amount of things.—On the contrary, my Lord. With the budget you allowed, she bought much more than we expected. - Patrick's voice breaks into laughter. I suspect something is going on here.
—Tell me already. What mischief has she done now? Did she emptied the entire boutique? Were all the shoes from the stores brought to the Villa? Did she buy all the perfumes? - I mutter.
Patrick shakes his head.
—My Lord, you know your guest is very unusual. A toothbrush and three books on the adventures of a boy wizard, which are apparently very popular amongst humans, were the only items she brought to the Villa. Nothing more.
—So, what has she done with the rest of the money?
—At first she thought of spending it all on books, but quickly dismissed the idea. We meet Yulia's niece in the library. The girl works part-time at the village orphanage.
—I don't like the direction this is taking.
Patrick smiles.
— In the end, she made me look for an ATM and extract the nineteen thousand and so many euros. Here.
He extends some documents and leaves them on the desk.
—The first one is a receipt, evidence that the sum of money was received by the administration of the Santa Eduviges orphanage, the second is thank-you letter signed by all the orphans of said institution. They thank you for your enormous act of kindness. You are, as from today, their main benefactor.
I close my eyes into slits, furiously.
—My Lord, I already told you and you also know this... Your gest is very peculiar.

Yolie:
I laugh out loud like a fool. I'd have given anything to have been a fly on the wall of his office and had seen Alex's face when his servant told him what I did with his money. I run the brush over my lustrous, obedient and new hair, sighing in pleasure.
The door swings open with a loud crash. My! It’s a miracle that it is still attached to the hinges!
—May I know why the hell you did that?!- Alex roars his eyes red-shot with anger.
Well...
—I could ask you the same question. - I retort moody.
—What?
—I could ask you why you want to treat me like one of your many whores. Don't give me your false generosity, that amount must be like pennies for someone as filthy rich as you. Where did you get the idea it would make me happy to spend that amount of money on a lot of things that, in the end, I don't need? - I lower my voice into a whisper, not even turning to look at him but gazing at his enraged profile through the mirror.
—So, you thought it was a better idea to spend it all on a bunch of filthy, bugger-liking kids who will be less than dust in a few decades?- He growls in exasperation.
I sigh. I too will be less than dust in a few decades and I suspect that even my memory won’t last that long in his mind. As soon as I find whatever is hidden in the Grimoire I will return to my country and he will turn his full attention on the next model with puffy lips and silicone breasts that catches his eye.
I sigh again. Definitely not worth it.
—You're right. - I turn to look at him. - In a few decades there won't be the smallest memory of any of them left, but today at least they were happy, they had a nice toy or they changed their worn out shoes. - My voice trembles and my eyes fill with tears, I stand up slowly, facing him.
— It's more, much more than what some of us had. But that's something you will never understand ... Self-centered and selfish idiot!

Alex:
The air around us seems electrical. Her hair flutters in a ghostly wind. Her last words were spoken by two different voices. Her eyes have an unearthly gleam.
She groans, wincing, touches her temples with both hands, collapses onto the bench from which she got up moments ago and shakes her head a couple of times, looking at me with a empty expression.
—Eh, what were we talking about? -she asks me, turning suddenly pale. - I got a headache all of a sudden and ... Oh yeah. As I was saying, that money was yours, but you said I could spend it on whatever I wanted, so... Is something wrong?
I'm perplexed. I knew the book would speed the change but I had no idea how fast things would go.

Yolie:
Alex looks at me like he has seen a ghost. I stroke my hair nervously and continue arguing with him…
—Alex, what makes you a monster isn’t that you drink blood or even the fact that you have lived longer than a human being should ... Your true evil lies in your way of thinking. In your contempt for others, in your deaf ears to people's suffering. Don’t you see it?
—Look, don't bother giving me more money. I already told you, I don't need it. My grandmother taught me that there's no better way to live than being independent. I have my salary and my job, when I return to Cuba they will be more than enough. Don't ever try treating me like I'm your lover again, we both know I'm not.
—What makes you think you're not, precious? Have you already forgotten when you came screaming with pleasure in my arms, when I drank your passion or when...?
I cut him off by feigning a sudden fit of coughing. His expression has completely changed. He isn’t angry anymore, on the contrary, he looks at me with that hungry look that I have tried to avoid for days.
—You're thirsty, right? Here, I won’t charge you the favor. - I say offering him my wrist.
—That is not what I want, precious. Don't play the silly,we both know you’re not. - he whispers in a low tone that makes my insides tremble.
—Alex, please stop it! - I huff, standing up and going straight to the closet. - I have no patience for your mood swings. Why don't you go and find the owner of all this, maybe she'll want to entertain you?

Opening the closet’s door wide open, I begin taking out the racks and racks of designer clothes, throwing the bags, and the dozen shoes on the floor, making a good bundle with everything. I put my hands on my hips and raised my eyebrows petulantly, waiting for his reaction.
He slowly approaches as if he has all the time in the world. He squats close to the clothings and turns a dress
mood swings. Why don't you go and find the owner of all this, maybe she'll want to entertain you?

Opening the closet’s door wide open, I begin taking out the racks and racks of designer clothes, throwing the bags, and the dozen shoes on the floor, making a good bundle with everything. I put my hands on my hips and raised my eyebrows petulantly, waiting for his reaction.
He slowly approaches as if he has all the time in the world. He squats close to the clothings and turns a dress tag between his long and white fingers. He lets out a curse in Greek and scowls looking at me.
— I'll kill Eleni. - He whispers biting his lower lip.
—Eleni. What does she have to do with all this?