Royal Lycan Legacy: The Heir's Claim

Chapter 3

Ayla

I remember asking Kaye about the details, and she shrugged. "I don't exactly know the details, but my mom sent me this," she said as she handed me a black calling card with only a phone number in it, written in gold, elegant script.

"This is it?" I was completely dumbfounded.

"Well," she stalled. "She instructed me to dial the number, and they would provide a detailed explanation." But, of course, I didn't call. I have no intention of doing so. I'm going to Paris, you know. Just call the number."

"Huh. You make it sound so easy," I murmured.

"Don't overthink it. I heard they needed someone to do the job immediately. Call them. Call them now," she said before leaving.

For an hour, I stared at her back and the calling card, trying to figure out what to say to whoever answered the phone on the other end of the line.

Wouldn't they ask some screening questions or conduct an interview for the job? What exactly are the responsibilities of a housekeeper?

I was overthinking it.

I sighed and shoved the calling card in my back pocket before gulping the remaining coffee in my cup. I couldn't even afford a wristwatch for myself, let alone a car, so I had to walk a few blocks to get to the coffee shop and start my shift. I better start walking if I don't want to be late.

The hours I worked in the coffee shop took my mind off the calling card for a while. We were busier than usual for a Thursday night. Most of our customers are students and young professionals from nearby offices. The crowd only started to dwindle after nine, and by 10:30 pm, the last of the customers had left the shop. I started to sweep the floor, mop the floor, and clean the tables.

I was beat up and exhausted when the calling card slipped out of the back pocket of my jeans.

I stared at it for a bit and sighed. It had been long since the business hours ended, and it might be rude to call at this hour. But I figured I'd just try to see if the phone number was legit and call it anyway. If it rings, I'll call back first thing tomorrow morning.

With the little courage I mustered, I dialed the number on my phone. After two rings, I was about to put it down when a man answered and said, "Hello?"

"Hello?" I hesitantly answered back. "Is this the number for the house-sitting job?" I asked.

"Yes. Who am I speaking to?"

He didn't sound American.

"Ayla," I said. "Ayla Winterknight."

There was a bit of silence on the other end of the line before he spoke again. "Right. We will pick you up on Friday night. The journey might take some time, but you should be here in the morning. We'll text you the other details." Another pause, and he asked, "Oh, before I forget. Do you hold a passport?"

"I do," I replied, "but what do I need it for?" I asked, curiosity getting the better of me, but the line already clicked, telling me the man on the other line had already ended the call.

After that conversation, I had tons and a truckload of questions running through my head, but I knew for a fact that I wouldn't get answers from anyone else but from the man I spoke with over the phone.

I woke up the following morning with a text message from an unknown number on my phone.

Please be ready by or before 8 p.m. A black car will pick you up. Wait in the foyer of your dorm. Don't be late.

How on earth do they know where I live?

Whoever it was that I spoke with didn't ask anything else during the call last night.

Weird.

Suspicious.

It was weird and suspicious, but it was a job I really needed.

The rest of Friday went by in a blur. One thing led to another, and by the time it was 7:45 PM, I was already standing in the dorm entrance with my backpack and a small suitcase waiting for my ride.

I don't even know where I'd be working.

Panic ran through my veins as I realized I really didn't know anything about the job. I was about to run back inside when a black car pulled up in the driveway, and a man in a tuxedo came out.

"Ms. Ayla Winterknight, I presume?"

"Y-yes?"

"This way, madam," he said, gesturing towards the car, but before I took another step, I stopped.

"Where are you taking me?" I asked.

The man simply bowed his head, picked up my luggage, and stored it in the back of the car. He then opened the back seat door and gestured for me to sit. After that, he simply said, "Please use the seatbelt. Thank you."

After making sure I had my seatbelt on, he closed the door and headed to the driver's seat. Without another word, he drove the car and did not utter another word.

I was exhausted from the day, and so in a few minutes, I dozed off and fell asleep. There was nothing to see outside anyway. The last thing I saw was the dwindling city lights and the trees becoming denser, telling me we were definitely going upstate, somewhere remote enough that Kaye didn't even remember its name.

The next thing I knew, warm sunshine rays were hitting my face, effectively waking me up. Had it been ten hours since we left the city?

I looked around, and all I could see were trees and more trees of all shapes and sizes.

"We're almost there," the driver said as he took a turn from the road and entered an intersection, going towards the mountains.

I had lived in the city my whole life, and this was the first time I had ever stepped foot anywhere outside of the orphanage, the dorm room, and the campus.

The whole journey was making me nervous and fidgety, but at the same time, excited and overwhelmed. Although the possibility of k********g, murder, and a scam to harvest my internal organs and leave me dead crossed my mind, I firmly believed that this was not the case.

A hunch. A feeling.

I knew my whole life was about to change, but I couldn't shake that feeling from my gut.