Ma'oz 's POV
"Dear heavens and hell! How do I get this human to see the truth?! I am up to my neck in silliness. Surely, she knows that Demons cannot lie."
"My word…you give your opinion quite frankly." The human stared at me, her eyes round like saucers. Her face pale as snow as blood leaves its unblemished skin. She is obviously afraid but if she doesn't believe that I am a Demon King, then why is she afraid?
Wait…" You can hear me?! How?" I have only been speaking in my mind. How is she hearing it?
"You are speaking, loud and clear. I would have to be deaf not to hear you." The human answered boldly.
"I wonder…" I picked up her hand to inspect the ring of Solomon, to speak to its inner spirit. Interrupting my concentration, she quickly snatched her hand back and questioned me. "What do you think you're doing?"
"Look at my mouth. Are my lips moving?" I demanded.
"Oh!" Her lips formed a circle as she stared at my lips.
"I am speaking in my mind. What you hear, are my thoughts, not my voice. Also, I am merely trying to take a look at the ring." I pointed to Intaglio gold ring on her left index finger.
"Why?" She looked at it curiously.
"Because it is my father's ring." I explained
"So, you are a Lewis."
"No. I have nothing to do with this human family of yours."
"Then…when do you claim this ring as yours? Don't tell me…you believe this ring is yours, so you are here to steal it?" She held her right hand over the ring, clutching it to her heart. Like am amplifier, I could hear her steady heartbeat, her resolve to keep the ring.
With a sigh, I rose from the bed and bowed. "Let me formally introduce myself. Vasileios Tlatilpa Remigius-Ardehi-Tapachula. But I am more commonly known as Ma'oz. A pet name my mother used which has also been the name I have answered to for the past 1000 years. My father, the late Vasileios Sur Ehecatl Adelmund Remigius-Ardehi-Tapachula made that Intaglio gold ring on your finger. A device that combined both magic and science to bring down the barriers between our worlds. The spirit and human realms. So, anyone who wears this ring will be able to see its true owner. Since my father has passed away, it now rightfully belongs to me."
There was a long awkward silence that hung in the air. Like a bad stench that won't go away, I could feel her thought gluing itself to every surface. Her questions and her spirit like fire. They were ablaze with wonder and curiousity. It attracted me like a moth of flame.
"Are you some kind of genie? Or am I just going mad?" She half asked myself, half questioned me.
"Oh, I am far more powerful than a genie."
"Show me proof then."
"I don't do parlour tricks. I am a king. Not a jester!" I was insulted by the very notion.
"Then please leave my room. It is highly improper for you to be in my husband's room." She got up with renewed determination and marched towards the door.
***
Journee's POV:
I…hear his voice. It's different from before though. Before I passed out, I remember his voice being low and husky. The kind of voice that sends a pleasant thrill through my spine. Could I have been mistaken? Oh…whatever!
Demon King, my foot! Just who does he think he is speaking to? Do I look like a child to him? And the names he gave me, so made up. I rose from my bed and marched to the door. He must be a trained Ventriloquist. Ah! He must be one of the entertainers for my wedding.
"I won't tell you again. Please leave." I said firmly, expecting him to comply. Instead, I am met an amusement glint in his black eyes.
"And what if I refuse?" This time, his lips moved, and his voice is once more husky instead of the gentle and calm one I have been hearing before.
"Then I'll scream." I said confidently.
"Go ahead then. Scream. Let's see what happens." He challenged.
"Mam, is everything alright?" Rosette queried as she walked past, looking in curiously. Relieved, I finally have company, I was sure I could enlist her help in getting this man, this Ma'oz as he calls himself, out of my room.
"Rosette, could you kindly escort this gentleman out? He seems to have lost his way." I gestured towards Ma'oz. Rosette entered and looked around. "Mam?"
Can she not see him? He is sitting right in the middle of the room! Clear as day, smiling at us with that devilish smile!
She checked the windows, behind the curtains, within every single cupboard large enough to hide in, including under the bed.
"I don't think he could have escaped from the windows, mam. Its just too high for anyone to climb. I'll ask Robert to check the grounds immediately." Rosette hand my hands in a protective manner and promptly left.
Shocked beyond imagination, I stood there, gapping at her, still holding the door open. "She…can't see you."
"That is my proof. What say you, human?"
Closing the door, I turned to face the demon. Fear rose up my throat, along with bile.
"Don't be afraid. I won't bite. There is a law that prevents demons from hurting human beings. And as long as you wear that ring, you are provided with every protection."
Daring to move closer, I sat on the armchair furthest from the demon. "Why are you here? Is it because I took your ring?" I had started to have an affection for the ring. It made me feel safe and gave me courage to face the trials of my life. I am hesitant to return it, but I am sure there is a price to pay if I were to ask for the ring.
"No, the ring chooses its wearer. The first human it chose was King Solomon, and now you." He said flatly, but I couldn't help by gasp. "As in THE King Solomon of Israel?!"
"Yes, that King Solomon. I am pleased he is famous enough to still be remembered today."
"Well, he is half legend, half myth now. But the Bible speaks of him." I explained.
"Ah. The Bible. Christianity still exists. What about Islam, Hinduism, and such?" He showed genuine curiousity.
"They are still alive and practiced by many in the world today."
***
Ma'oz 's POV:
"Very well, we have had our small talk and introductions. You mentioned being trapped and being forced into things you would rather go away. So let me propose a solution."
That caught her attention fast. She looked up at me, body leaning towards me, her lips parted slightly in anticipation. "I can grant you a wish."
She blinked at me several times before taking a breath, "and what price will you exact?"
"Smart. I like you, human."
"My name is Journee." She said but I chose to ignore her.
"It is simple. For some reason, you bound me to you when we both visited Lubuk Tuna. So, I was forced to follow, and now we're here. If I can grant you your third wish, it is very possible that we can end this once and for all. I will be free to return to my original plans, and you with your life." Simple, direct to the point.
"Hold up. You followed me here all the way from Langkawi?! Aren't spirits supposed to stay within the boundary of their domain? How did you take journeying across the ocean? And, and what has this got to do with…" She has too many questions to ask within a single breath.
"I am the King of Demons. Vasileios Kara Angelos. I have no set domain. I travel freely and wherever I please. Just now I am not happy being chained to you like a mere pet." I spat the words I so despised.
"Kara Angelos…Black Angel?" She asked.
"So, your grasp of the ancient languages is quite good. Yes. All demons are known as the Fallen Angels. The Black Angels." I answered proudly
"What do I pay?" She asked again.
"Nothing. You make your third wish and set me free. That is all I want from you."
"Wait, what? Third you say. What were my first and second wishes?" I see she is clearly shocked.
"What do you think? When were the last times you said the words 'I wish'?" I am the King of Demons. Not some schoolmaster who repeats everything for my students.
Her thoughts riddled through at superspeed as she recalled each and every word, she had uttered both in speech and in her mind in the last 3 days.
***
Journee's POV:
I have made two wishes. This is a whole Aladdin scenario. How could I have known I had a powerful demon following me?
"The cold wind…that was you?" I realised that there was something strange back in Langkawi. I should have known.
"Yes. Those were fun. You are a little human with interesting ideas of life." He answered in a smooth buttery gentle voice. He was speaking in his mind again, instead of answering me using his voice.
"Shit! Did I waste my first wish on getting dry?" I am horrified beyond horrified. I am such an idiot!
"Calm yourself. I dried you up for fun. It amused me. You have to say the words 'I wish' before it is a wish."
"OMG!!!" Those were the next words that spilled out of my mouth. It is a lucky thing I am sitting, or my knees would have buckled and given way to gravity. In a voice hardly above a whisper, I continued to speak. "Did I cause Montgomery to be in a coma?"
"In a manner of speaking, yes. But don't beat yourself up. You didn't know how it would turn out. Magic is a fickle thing. Not even I could have predicted if he would have run away with some other woman, divorce you on account of unsatisfactory family background, or in this case get hit by an on-coming lorry."
How can he be so nonchalant about this? No… I have sinned. I have caused such great harm.
"I can hear your thoughts too, you know." He announced.
"What? Shit!" Now even my privacy has been robbed.
"All this can come to an end. Just make your wish. What will it be?"
"Give me a moment to think please. And if you could stay out of my mind, it would be good." I told Ma'oz.
"Very well, I will leave you alone. Just remember that when you have decided on your wish, you must start with 'I wish' then continue with whatever you want."
"I see. And this would mark the end of our bond? You will disappear?" I asked hopeful to solve all the problems in my life, once and for all.
"Yes. We do not need to see each other again. You can keep the ring. It will find its way back to me after your death." He announced and disappeared in a puff of smoke.
What do I wish for? I thought of all the problems that got me into this fix and wrote them down on a piece of paper.
1. My father's financial situation
2. This marriage
3. Montgomery and him being in coma.
I wanted to just wish for my father's financial situation improve drastically. Surely, he would pay the Lewis for the loan he took and welcome me back home. But then, my conscience tugged at my heart strings. I am the cause of Montgomery's suffering. I am the reason he is a coma now. There must be something I can do for him as well.
That is when the thought struck me. Confidently, I placed my hands together as if in prayer. "I wish that everything in my life and Montgomery's will right itself and all will be as it should be."
I felt no different. That should be it, I guess. All that remains is to wait and see how my wish pans out.
"AHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!" I heard a shrill scream coming from my window. Rushing to see the commotion, I couldn't believe my eyes. My heart pounded furiously in its cage, as I rubbed my eyes again.
"Montgomery?" I whispered.