“Such a kind heart, princess. Now I know why people step all over you. Just promise me one thing: never ever allow anyone to do that ever again. Hold your head high because you are better than all of them.”
“I promise. But you have to promise me something in return...”
“Anything, princess,” Hector replied.
Cassia smiled at the endearment.
She reached over to her left wrist and unclasped her diamond and sapphire-studded gold watch. It was supposed to be her “something old and blue” for her wedding. But right now, it looked as if it was some silly superstition. Her wedding was a sham and she needed no good-luck charm in this part of her life. Besides, it would be better suited for Hector’s purpose.
“Go and fulfill your dreams, and I still want to be present in that grand opening!” Cassia said with a tender smile as she reached forward and placed the watch in Hector’s stunned fingers.
“No! I can’t possibly accept this.”
“You are the first person who’s been kind to me in Greece. I have more where that came from and I know that you’ll put the money to good use. Think of this as a loan from me. And when you’re already making it big in the restaurant industry, you can always pay me back. And I won’t take no for an answer.”
“This is too much... I thank you for this gift. I vow that I will work harder and reach my dreams. And when the time comes that I’m making it big, I’ll buy you a treasure trove filled with these,” he promised.
“I’ll hold you to that promise.”
“Last chance for freedom, princess...come with me,” Hector said as he offered his hand once more.
It was tempting - oh, so tempting to just take his hand, forget everything and start a new life. But just like before, the other side of her won and Cassia shook her head.
“I really have to do this.”
“I understand. Well...see you in America!” Hector shouted over the roar of the motorcycle’s engine.
With a last salute towards Cassia, he sped off into the driveway and then into the city.
Cassia watched him go with heaviness in her heart.
When he was gone, she steeled herself and prepared to come back to her sham of a wedding. She would do this for Nikos’ family. She would make her grandfather pay for all the times that he manipulated people’s lives.
First Costas would pay...and then she’d be free.
CHAPTER 6 - NIGHTMARE
“Mama...I’m here,” Sebastian whispered as he laid flowers above his mother’s grave. Today was her death anniversary and it was one of the days in the year that he hated the most. She would not be dead if not for Stavros Demakis. This was all his fault.
“I will be away for a while. I’ve decided to move on, ma. I cannot stay this way. I want another kind of life. The one we deserve. If only you were here now, I would have bought you everything your heart desired...”
Tears stung his eyes but he dashed them back with his hand.
“But I will just settle for revenge on the people who did this to us. I will stop at nothing until we get what is our due. Because of that, I would have to leave. But I promise you, mama...I will never forget you. You’re forever in my heart.”
November 15, 2003 (A few hours earlier)
Antoniou Winery
The Island of Santorini, Greece
Nikos Demakis flung open the doors of his suite and stared out into the open ocean.
The breeze blew cold air towards his face and he closed his eyes in bliss. He arched his back and tilted his head towards the sun to feel the early morning warmth on his skin. Afterwards, he stretched and opened his eyes to watch the seagulls flying around and marvelled at the freedom they had.
They could go anywhere they wanted to be and more importantly, they could pair with whichever seagull they wanted to be with.
Unlike him.
Nikos closed his eyes once more and sighed.
This was a beautiful morning. The signs were all pointing to this being a beautiful day. But not for him.
Why?
Because it was his wedding day.
Nikos snorted at the irony. Weddings were supposed to be fun things. It was when grooms looked forward to seeing their brides in that white dress as they walked down the aisle. It was the time that men were supposed to be nervous about starting a new life together with the woman they loved.
But that was not the case for him.
He did not want this wedding and he would have given anything just to escape his current situation. But giving away everything so that he wouldn’t have to marry would really leave him with nothing. Not only would he lose all he had, he would also lose his grandfather’s beloved company.
And there was no other way but to get this marriage over with.
Nikos heaved a great sigh at his inescapable reality.
He entered his room once more and glanced at the wrapped parcels placed in his table. All of those were gifts from his friends and he knew that they all contained the finest, most expensive wines and alcoholic beverages in the world. Suddenly he was transported to a few days back when his friends held his bachelor party for him.
“For your wedding, my friend.”
One of his male friends laughed as he handed over a wrapped parcel.
“What is this?” he asked teasingly.
“The finest Ouzo in all of Greece. I give you this, my friend because I think you need some liquid courage to marry Cassia Andrade,” his friend said and the entire group laughed, including him.
“I think I do. Thanks for this,” he replied while he still chuckled.
The rest of the group whipped out their own presents which consisted of different bottles of the finest wines. He raised an eyebrow in inquiry which just made their group laugh harder.
“And this is to make it through every single day after the marriage. I suggest you use Dylan’s Ouzo for the wedding night,” another one jested with a wink, and that comment brought on another round of laughter.
But the one that laughed the hardest was him. And it was at the expense of his own bride-to-be.
Nikos walked over to the table and unwrapped said Ouzo. He wanted to have maybe just one shot to calm his nerves today. His friends warned him that the Ouzo was simply lethal but he was confident in his ability and his tolerance for alcohol since he had been drinking for years already. He even considered himself a connoisseur of the finest wines.
Nikos uncorked the bottle and read the label. He let it sit on the table for a few minutes to expose it to air as he tried to find a glass from the mini-bar in his suite. He sat on the stool in front of the marble countertop of the mini-bar and began to drink. The liquor was cool on his tongue and yet burned a path down his throat.
For the second time that day, Nikos found himself laughing at his current situation. Here he was, supposed to be wed a few hours from now and he was drinking just to be able to go through with it. He definitely did not want to be drunk but he just wanted the kind of buzz to make him not care about anything anymore.
With that, he poured himself another glass.
He even grabbed some lemon from the refrigerator to act as his chaser and wash away the bitter taste in his mouth. He downed another glass and then another before he found the will to stop himself.
Nikos knew his tolerance level and the amount he just consumed would definitely give him the buzz he wanted, yet was still far enough from being flat-out drunk. He stood up and then immediately felt that something was wrong.
His head was spinning and he had to brace his body on the side of the counter to avoid falling down. The room around him continued to spin and Nikos lost his balance. His hand immediately went to his head as he started feeling faint.
He frowned and then pulled himself up to a standing position. He reached for the bottle of Ouzo which was still about two thirds full. He sniffed it and his body became taut with rage as he realized what happened.
Damn those bastards for spiking my drink!
That was his last thought before the world did another spin and he crashed to the floor, taking the bottle of liquor with him as he lost consciousness.
A few hours later...
“Shit, Nikos!”
“Wake up, goddammit!”
“Nikos!”
Nikos reluctantly opened his eyes and lifted his head. However, his brain felt as though it was laden with lead. He groaned and then closed his eyes and flung his arm across his face to block out the light.
However, his agony was doubled when the owner of the persistent voice started to shake him.
“Damn it, Nikos! It’s your wedding! You should not be like this!” Antonio lectured as he ran his fingers through his hair in frustration.
He loosened his bowtie and released the buttons on his cuffs so he could move more freely and help his friend. While he did this, he also cursed fluently in Spanish.
He hauled Nikos to his feet and dragged him towards the bed, muttering curses as he tried to figure out what to do. He checked his watch and knew that the groom was definitely going to be late for his own wedding.
Antonio sighed in frustration and then walked outside of the room to call for Nikos’ bodyguards. Three of them entered the room and he quickly started barking out orders.
“Strip him and then get him to the bathroom. Bathe the alcohol off him,” he instructed. The bodyguards look baffled but they quickly hid their expressions when they saw the state that Nikos was currently in. They set to work and Antonio helped them carry Nikos to the bathroom. Then, he stepped out for he was also afraid to ruin his own tux for the wedding.