Cursed Tales of the Heart

“Okay, everybody, get together now!" yelled out the assistant while bringing the birthday cake to the conference room.

"1, 2, 3, Happy Birthday to you! Happy Birthday to you! Happy Birthday to Mr. Watkins! Happy Birthday to you!” (Colleges applauded and cheered)

“Now make a wish!” Yelled Mrs. Brinkly.

The CEO of Watkin Enterprise, Mr. Watkins, turns 35 today. Born of a wealthy family, he made his name stand out among many of the Watkins line. His ethics, skills, and determination created a lane that would put Wall Street to shame. With a net worth barely an arms reach from trillions, he’s the most desired man amongst men and women who seek him to gain knowledge, wealth, partnerships, and more. 

“Mr. Watkins, a woman at the front desk claims that she has a special present for you and is persistent that you receive it!” Said the secretary privately to Mr. Watkins after making her way past the cluster of cheerful colleges eager to celebrate the occasion. 

“Did you get her name?” He asked.

“No, but she insists that she hands you this gift personally and refuses to allow security to check it. It’s wrapped in purple with a red bow and although she walked through the medal detectors with it I believe….” He touched her shoulder, causing her body to tense, and gestured for her to calm down.

“I’ll be down there momentarily. Have her wait in the lobby.” He told her calmly, hoping to ease her anxiety. 

She nodded, then headed back through the lively colleges to her desk on the first floor of Watkins Tower. Coming all the way to the 35th floor was necessary for her, seeing as Mr. Watkins' fortune attracts enemies known and unknown. Many attempts had been made on his life from as young as 6 years of age. Whether due to the trusted security around him or the blessings of some unknown entity, Mr. Watkins lived to be the wealthy, yet humble, man that he is today. 

“Do you plan on taking this party after hours at the Gatsby Hotel this year Mr. Watkins?” Asked his company chief Mr. Singleton

“You know it, and as always, everyone is invited!” Mr. Watkins raised a glass in celebration and everyone cheered once again.

...................................................................................................................................................

It was half past 9pm before the crowd simmered down to Mr. Watkins and his 2 closest friends, Mr. Carl Robert and Mr. Jessie Dalton. The gentleman made their way to the elevator while reminiscing about the good old days back at the mansion when they were responsible for nothing more than breathing and spending their parent's money. Sure, they had school, scholars, and tutors that shaped them for the thrones they sit upon today, but nothing like the responsibilities of millions of lives, workers, stocks, investments, and the list goes on. You may count it unfortunate that neither of the men married, but count it more fortunate that no estranged children came from the women they bedded, without the intention of marriage. Especially for Mr. Watkins, who had a sexual appetite that could never be satisfied by one woman.

“Mr. Watkins! Mr. Watkins! Over here!” The secretary called out when she saw him and his friends exit the elevator.

Trying not to seem obvious, she tilted her head and body towards the lobby, while also directing her eyes in the same direction. Mr. Watkins smiled but understood the gesture and diverted his attention to the lobby which was now dark due to the office being closed to the public. Only employees lingered and left around this hour. 

In the far corner of the lobby, a figure sat alone in a chair buried in shadows. He couldn't look away as an ominous chill crept up his spine when the figure stood. The person's eyes were not yet visible, but he felt as if they were locked with his. Carl and Jessie, curious themselves, stood beside him while also staring in the direction of the figure now walking towards them. The tip of a pointed shoe was the first to peer slowly from the shadows, followed by the sound of a heel hitting the tile path to the entrance that separated it from the carpeted lobby. A woman’s dark black hair shone under the fluorescent lights. Her powdered face made her appear pale with rosy pink cheeks and eyes as green as jade. Standing at about 5’5 and wearing a purple dress, that hugged her small but curvy figure, identical to the color of the box in her hands.

“You kept me waiting for quite a while to give you this Mr. Watkins.” Her voice carried more age than she appeared.

“Do I know you?” He asked her as if to ask himself as well.

“You will know me soon enough.” She said with a malevolent smirk and handed him the box. Without another word or explanation, she turned and left them standing there with more questions than answers.

“I’d throw that in the nearest trash if I were you boss,” Carl said while still looking toward the entrance.

“I’m curious to see what’s inside. After all, she waited for quite a while to give it to you.” Said Jessie while staring at the box.

“Fellas please." Mr. Watkins snapped out of a trance and faced his friends.

"She seemed harmless so, I'm not going worry too much about this. I'll take it home, freshen up, and see you guys at Gatsby. Drive safe now.” He said before waving them off, not giving them a chance to call his bluff as he made his way to the parked car outside. His driver greeted him with his door open and closed it so that they may be on their way.

The 35-minute ride home felt longer than usual for Mr. Watkins who stared aimlessly at the present next to him. It wasn’t his anxiousness of what was inside that bothered him the most, but the familiarity he felt the moment the woman carrying it came into view. He’d never seen her before tonight. Still, he felt as if he’d known her well once before.

"We've arrived Mr. Watkins. Should I await your leave for the festivities?" asked his driver while holding open his door.

"Thank you, but I'll call when I'm ready. Go relax until then." Mr. Watkins responded. The driver nodded in response.

Once inside his home, another gift was placed on the amethyst island centered in his kitchen. He placed the purple box next to it to take a closer look. As he pulled out the bottle that was clearly sticking out of the gift bag, probably a gift from one of his younger brothers, a note fell from it. It read; “Dink and enjoy this day as if it was your last.” A bottle worth well over a million dollars was fitting for such peculiar words. They pondered on his mind as he poured a glass and headed upstairs to prepare. He was the guest of honor after all.

Placing his watch on his right wrist, after cuffing his sleeves, his mind began to wander a long trail of what ifs about his family. 35 Generations of nothing but men, not accounting for the women they married, to have only sons. With his 5 Brothers and 3 uncles, the list goes on all the way back to a time even his family can't recall. He’d always wondered what it would be like if a daughter were born within their line and how different things would be for the family who gave birth to only sons. 

Time was of the essence and he couldn't keep his guest waiting much longer while he pondered on what ifs. Once he reached the bottom of his stairs, he grabbed his keys that were placed on the Greek statue facing the door. Then suddenly, he stops while looking at the island centered in his kitchen. The box was open. The lid was still wrapped and perfectly placed beside it. Clenching his keys, he made his way to the island and placed them on it next to the bottle gifted by his brother, then looked inside with caution. To his surprise, only a note was carefully placed inside. He read it aloud. 

“In my arms is where you first gave your word,

to grant your desires and later receive what you deserve. 

Given a chance to live with your heart full of lies, 

until the day comes when your true desires can no longer hidden. 

On his 35th year, generation of the 35th line,

he will exchange his life for yours and be mine,

as he and my consciousness will return back to this time.

The room then began to spin in circles as if he’d been drinking since dawn. Mr. Watkins tried to position himself against the island but lost his footing and collapsed to the floor. With a fist grabbing his chest, he still clung to his life as he felt it slipping through his fingers. In the tumble he'd knocked over the bottle, shattering it into many pieces, and watched his brothers’ note glide gracefully to the floor. Before he closed his eyes, he reached out once more as if to grab his life from thin air and bring it with him.

............................................................................................................................... 

“Wake up my pet. I’ve been waiting such a long time to play with you.” Lillian said while walking towards the bed drenched in sheer sheets over the railing surrounding it like a canopy. She too wore a sheer robe barely tied at her waist. It gracefully draped across her bare skin exposing her peeked nipples.

“Where am I? Am I still in my house? Am I still alive?” asked the man who was once Mr. Watkins in body, but now only in consciousness. He too was naked with only a blanket to cover half his torso and his manhood below. The room seemed old and rustic, nothing like his modern-day mansion. The windows were holes in walls that let in a breeze that smelled nothing of the polluted air in the city. His lungs expanded in gratitude, but his arms were bound.

"Don’t struggle just yet. I like to have a little fun before devouring my prey." Lilian said in a seducing manner.

"What is the meaning of this and why am I naked? Unchain me, woman!" He shouted while observing the nude skin barely covering him.

"That is not how you speak to me, as I am your woman and you are my lover." she snapped at him.

"Your lover? What is this nonsense you speak of?" his confusion was becoming of him. He couldn't rap his head around being in his kitchen clinging to his life and now naked in a woman's bed, while bonded, in a century he wasn't born in.

"Yes. Shall I spell it out for you?” she seemed annoyed but also mischievous.

"Explain this madness woman!” he had at that moment realized the change in dialect as well.

"Years ago, one of your bloodlines came to my home within these woods to steal my food, but instead, stole my heart. That man promised me a love of fairy tales and a daughter to carry my gifts. Daily, we would live amongst these walls, and by night, he'd leave me with a kiss that promised tomorrow. One lonely night I followed him, curious of what my lover did under the moon as I slept alone in the bed he’d just ravished me in. To my surprise, I came upon a home he knew well and watched him embrace a woman he knew even better. I watched from his window as he climbed into her bed and tasted her fruit as if it were his last. I then snuck in while they were in the heat of passion. As she was on top of him, barreling at the peak of her climax, I slit her throat. Spraying her blood over him like rain and said to him that for my heart a debt he must be paid"

(Rage crept slowly and nearly boiled her blood once again, but Lillian subsided it before it could boil over before continuing her tale.)

"He pleaded for his life and spit out lies as the corpse of his estranged woman fell to the floor with a thud. The man I knew under the sun was not the man I saw under that moon and I longed for his so. I took it upon myself to deceive him as he never did get a chance to release. As we interwound passionately in the pool of blood that was his estranged lovers, I dug my nails into his skin till it drew blood. While drunk in his erection, I recited the words you read from that box and he fell into a deep slumber. I was gone before he awoke, but the memory of me scorned him, so I waited patiently for one of his kin. One completely oblivious of the past and thriving in his future. Now, his debt is paid and he will be able to have a daughter within his bloodline while tonight we will conceive ours."

Silence followed the ending of her tale, as he was enchanted by her powers. Her words were but a narration to the visual created within his mind as if she shared her memory like a movie along with her emotions such as rage, pain, and even lust. 

"What if I refuse?" he said with doubt. He had a feeling that there was no room for options.

"You couldn’t if you wanted to." Lilian had returned to a seducing tone. Her eyes flashed a dazzling pink after blinking 3 times.

A warm sensation blended with his blood bringing him to an erection that would put a mountain to shame. Confused, but unable to resist, his body drew a sweat of heat that became unbearable. The woman at the end of the bed with dark back hair, rosy cheeks, and eyes the color of jade now seemed like a meal calling to him and he had been starved for over a thousand years.

"Release me woman." his voice was determined.

She slowly crawled over him and grabbed him by the throat, mounting herself where he stood his tallest while lying flat. A light groan of pleasure from both she and him changed the atmosphere, filling the room with desire.

"Oh, I'll let you release alright. We’re just getting started."