Rock music is playing on Devada’s phone. The transgender woman looked at a name on the call screen. Mark Paulus-the cop who made her appointment with her was a constant nuisance. Rejecting was the right choice, instead of silencing her noisy cell phone, text message was chosen as an alternative.
“Don’t be afraid I won’t come. Soon you can pick me up! I’m currently getting ready.” Click send.
“Okay pretty girl. I hope you don’t mess with me.” A threatening sentence, Devada replied with a lopsided smile without intending to continue the conversation.
At nine o’clock in the evening, Joana had not yet come. She checked her cell phone, a text message came in three minutes ago. A foreign number who recognized herself as Teresia-Joana’s personal assistant told her that the Middle Eastern-looking doctor couldn’t come because she was undergoing major surgery. Great opportunity to play around for a bit! Devada immediately walked quite a distance from the house after replying to the message. Until finally, the car she had been waiting for slowly pulled over beside her.
“Have you been waiting long, Darling?” Mark Paulus asked as he opened the car door.
“Thank you! I just came,” Devada said as she fastened her seatbelt with a forced smile. Yes, forced! Anyone could guess the hidden intentions of people like Mark.
Arriving at a cafe located in Lago Sul, Mark Paulus booked a corner table in a location that was not crowded with visitors. Devada’s sharp eyes read an ominous premonition. She patiently followed the path Mark was making. Two servings of beef steak and ice tea were served after waiting for a while. Devada gulped, it was obvious that she had never eaten the brownish cooked meat as it was served. Her mouth mumbled a little, “It looks so delicious!”
“It’s really delicious, this is my favorite menu!” Mark Paul replied, apparently his hearing is functioning very well.
“Please eat it, my beautiful lady!” Devada nodded. The girl felt an addiction in every bite, until she didn’t realize the man in front of her was watching her with a smile.
“Mr. Mark, do you know Jessica Amora?” Devada said suddenly.
“Is she an owner of diamond business?”
“Yes.”
“She’s a poor woman. Nick Erhan has been in a mental hospital for a very long time. As of now, they have no news anymore.” Devada paled, she did not expect to hear such a crazy truth. Was that the reason Jess hated her all this time? However, isn’t that unreasonable? After all, she was just a child who didn’t understand anything. In fact, she didn’t even know who her father was.
“What happened?” asked Mark who noticed the change in Devada’s face.
“It doesn’t matter. Have you ever seen a woman who fainted around a cathedral?” Mark put down his fork and knife and looked at Devada.
“No. Who do you mean?”
“I don’t know. I only caught a glimpse of it when I was leaving in a hurry.” Mark frowned. For him, the girl’s story was just a diversion.
“You really care about the surrounding environment. The more interesting. Alright, do you want to try something else on the menu?” Mark asked when all the plates looked empty.
“No, I’m full!”
“Come on, let’s go to my house first!” Devada complied, wanting to see what the cop would do in his own house.
Along the way, the man’s eyes saw Devada’s body clad in a long-sleeved T-shirt combined with baggy jeans. Quite a polite appearance actually, but Mark may have been overcome by lust the first time he saw Devada wearing a revealing dress. The activity of stealing glances that can make time feel short. The four-wheeler has entered the courtyard of the classic-style house.
Mark turned on the light switch as he entered the house, then poured red wine into a medium-sized glass, and casually landed his butt on the long sofa where Devada was sitting. Like a newborn baby, Devada felt foreign to the thick colored, full-bodied fluid. However, when she saw Mark enjoying it so much, the girl’s interest rose. Mark laughed when Devada felt weird drinking it hesitatingly to the end.
“It turns out you’re a very innocent girl,” said Mark, his hands began to guerrilla on the shoulders of the innocent girl. The proximity of the faces allowed Devada to inhale the aroma of wine from the man’s mouth.
Devada’s body swayed. The viscous liquid really made her unable to get rid of the body of the man. In her helplessness, she suddenly remembers the man who abused her chastity and snatched her gender away. Unexpectedly, that piece of memory became ammunition. Devada desperately maintains consciousness, and tries to dodge.
“Where are you going, beautiful? Come on, let’s have some fun! I’m sure, you’ve never enjoyed the fun of dating.” Mark tried to get up, but the half lost consciousness made him collapse on his feet.
“Shut your rotten mouth, Mr. Mark! Apologize before you regret it!”
“Did you just threaten me?”
“You-”
Before Mark could continue what he wanted to say, something made his eyes widen. The man was holding his neck as if a big hand was strangling him, while Devada just stared at Mark, who was stricken with pain. For a while, Devada’s eyes flashed with anger, Mark Paulus’ soul had escaped from his body.
“My bad thoughts are fulfilled?” Not yet recovered from the shock, a whistling wind suddenly flowed in the ears.
“Para o senhor das trevas!” A repeated whisper made Devada closed her ears, a gust of wind shook all the light materials in the enclosed space.
“Para o senhor das trevas!” The whispers that suppressed her continuously, finally made Devada’s tongue say the same thing. Immediately, a plume of black smoke covered Mark’s body. Until the time is gone, the sweet man’s body turns blue. Devada, who still didn’t understand what had happened, ran away.
***
“Who am I?” Devada kept asking.
The incident kept bothering her. Killing without touching is an impossibility. Inching out of bed, she couldn’t close her eyes. Her slender legs swung toward an ornate mirror, digging out her own light brown irises. There, the search begins. About the strangeness that has happened so far, where those beautiful pair of eyes will turn purple every time she feels angry, or turn red every time she feels sick. And the absurd strength when she carried her mother while running, and the extremely potent swearing. Not only that, everything that has happened is still fresh in her mind.
Devada digs deeper into her reflection in the mirror. The same question kept on the lips. Black smoke began to appear. She didn’t know exactly where it had appeared, whether it was from the mirror or merely a reflection. The more curious, the more the black smoke. The same puff as she saw sheltered above Mark’s body, which seemed to suck the blood that was there.
Devada felt a strong heat, but she ignored it. She was still captivated by what was in the mirror. The black smoke moved to form a single entity, then turned into a terrifying dragon head. The girl almost fell to see the shape of the head that was equipped with rows of sharp teeth with a pair of fiery red eyes, then disappeared without giving any clues. Trapping herself into an even bigger question.
“That dragon, does it have anything to do with the woman in the boiling river village?” Devada sat on the edge of the bed, feeling stupid about what had happened.
“Argh!” Almost throwing a pillow, a sound, intimidated her soul which was cornered by frenzy. Bursting into the blankets, she thought about acting nonchalant. Don’t want fooled by the mysterious voice behind the bedroom door.