Gift For A Demon

Her New Home

They have completely left the countryside and have made their way into urban civilization. House after house go by and more stores and shops than she can count. Eventually the buildings start to get larger and taller, surrounded by bright lights of every color. Real skyscrapers line the city streets. The fancy car drives through each long shadow cast by the giant buildings.

One building in particular stands out. It has to be the tallest building in the city with amazing steel architecture. Beams of black and lights of red stacked around large glass windows, forming an amazing tower with a colossal modern steeple at the top. Eve can’t help but look out with her mouth hanging open and her nose nearly pressed against the glass of the car window.

“Impressive, isn’t it?” Sophia giggles. “That building belongs to my boss and your new master. He is the single most influential person in the entire city, that’s including all of the other districts as well. I suppose that makes you quite the important little housemaid. Don’t fail us.”

The woman laughs, but still a chill travels up Eve’s spine and makes her shiver. Her new master must be one powerful demon.. Surely he has absorbed the essence of a hundred witches to be so successful.. Her hand subconsciously goes to her throat as if that would protect her from any sort of harm. As far as she knows there is nothing about her that gives away her being a witch. She must only guard her secret well.

Sophia finds the simpleness of the human girl entertaining. There is nothing special about the girl in any way and if she can serve Grant for her, then this may be the best gift she has ever given him. The corners of her bright red lips curl up into a smile as they drive out of the city towards Grant’s luxurious estate.

The car begins to wind down a narrow black top road that is lined by a row of evergreen trees on each side. At two large iron gates the vehicle slows and comes to a stop. The driver rolls his window down and proceeds to enter a code on the keypad. One beep and a green light signals the correct password. The two large iron gates squeak open so the car can pass through. This is it, this must mean they are getting close to the house.

Eve’s gut twists and turns as she tries to casually look out the window for the first glimpse of her new home. Up ahead she can see that the two rows of trees are beginning to thin. All of the sudden the largest, most beautiful mansion she has ever laid eyes on finally comes into view. She gasps and presses her hand against the window to get a better look. It’s magnificent, like two eras in time meeting together.

The front of the enormous mansion is set beyond an exquisite fountain that is placed in the center of a circular driveway. The dark gray stone steps that lead up to the house are lined with lights and fancy stone planters with well maintained shrubbery. Money was clearly not an issue when constructing this home. The front of the house consists of ebony stone pillars, dark wooden planked walls, and glass windows larger than Eve’s entire cabin. Around the side to the back, the mansion is strategically surrounded by closely growing trees. It has an open, yet secluded feeling. Even at this time of the day there is fog settled amongst the trees.

The driver gets out and opens the back door to the limo. He offers his hand to Sophia and she steps out onto the driveway with such elegance and grace. Eve couldn’t care less that he didn’t extent his hand to her, she is used to such treatment and is also completely distracted by the sheer magnificence of the stately manor. Her head tilts back as she examines every inch of the building until the sound of her name breaks her out of her trance.

Sophia is standing in front of her, waiting on the bottom step. Her body and voice cool, but Eve can already sense a change in her. When they reach the two giant glass doors to enter the house, Eve looks through them and is in awe at the giant glass chandelier that is hanging on the other side. Being distracted, she is extremely surprised by the elderly bald man that appears out of nowhere to open the door.

“This is Denison. He doesn’t speak and has served the Master for several years.” Sophia says without addressing him directly. “Leave him be, he has his own duties and attends to them with professional excellence. I hope to see the same dedication from you as well.”

The old man in the black and white suit closes the door behind them and then vanishes into thin air. Eve raises her eyebrows and then looks back to Sophia. When she does, she jumps back startled to see the same man standing by the woman’s side. Sophia casually hands him her hat, sunglasses, and black shawl before he disappears once again. He is clearly a paranormal, which means so far she is the only human in the house.

Eve can’t help but stare at Sophia’s long fiery red hair. She has never seen such a thing in all her days in her little town, nor from any of the paranormals there. The curvy woman in front of her flicks her hair over her shoulder and glances back at Eve with a smile on her plump red lips.

“Follow me, girl. There is much to see and even more to learn.” Her high heeled footsteps click on the dark gray marble floor as she leads the way.

Out of the amazing foyer they go as the tour of the house begins. It is quite overwhelming at first. The size of each room is breathtaking. Five of her cabins could easily fit into each one. After the shock of their size, is the amazement of their furnishings. Such lavish pieces adorn each room. To think she will be in charge of maintaining all of this was beginning to pressure her. Until, they walk into the kitchen. Eve’s eyes sparkle with delight at the very sight of the expensive room. It is far from what she is used to. She almost can’t wait to explore every cupboard and try out each modern appliance that she could have only dreamed of touching. It’s hard to leave it behind as Sophia beckons her to continue.

Next they walk past a long hallway that is decorated with an expensive red rug. The rug leads all the way to a large wooden door at the end of the hall.

“That is the Master’s office. Your key will open the door, but you are only permitted to go in once a week as long as the Master is not in there. Never bother him in his office!” The dark tone of her voice frightens Eve. “And I will warn you that the Master can be anywhere at any moment. You may be unfamiliar with demons, but he doesn’t need to travel in a car to get from place to place.”

Shimmering. Eve has heard of this. Only powerful demons can do such a thing. Not like the simple teleporting the bald man at the door was doing. When a demon shimmers he can travel great distances instantly. Eve’s eyes linger on the door as they walk away from it to continue their tour.

Three floors and two dozen rooms later brings them to another stop. The Master’s bedroom.

“The rules here are the same as the office. Never, ever enter this room if the Master is in there. You are instructed to clean it twice a week or more if one of us desires it of you. Understand?” Sophia questions.

“Yes, ma’am.”

“Very good. Here at the top of these stairs is your room.” She points at a narrow set of stairs at the end of the hall with a single door at the top of them.

Great. Thinks Eve. I went from living in a closet, to staying in an attic. When the door opens, her jaw drops. It isn’t an attic at all, but a spacious room furnished with a complete bedroom set. She nearly runs up to one of the floor to ceiling windows and looks out at the back terrace. This.. This is more than she could have ever dreamed of calling her own. Even if it doesn’t belong to her, it is hers by name. If simply having a window wasn’t good enough, she almost cries out loud when Sophia shows her the door to her very own bathroom. The tub is almost bigger than the entire washroom back at the cabin.

“Miss, this house is beyond amazing and I plan to treat it with the utmost respect and care that it deserves. I promise.” Eve is surprised at her own words. How could she be so excited to be bought and paid for as a housemaid?!

Sophia fills the room with her laughter and instructs for Eve to follow her back downstairs. She is explaining to Eve the Master’s unpredictable work schedule and eating habits when something unexpected happens.

An older woman dressed in a housemaid’s uniform comes flying around the corner and collides with Sophia. A filthy rag lands on Sophia’s shoulder and wets her expensive dress, while causing her to roughly land against a nearby wall.

Eve stops dead in her tracks with her hand over her mouth as she witnesses the scene in front of her.

“You i***t! You clumsy old fool!” Sophia shouts between clenched teeth, her beauty seeming to momentarily disappear. “I knew I should have gotten rid of you weeks ago! Now I can. You’re done! Get out right now or so help me.. You will regret it.”

“I’m so sorry, Miss. I..” She is cut short with a backhanded slap to the face.

“I said, GET OUT!” Sophia shouts.

The older housemaid whimpers and quickly glances at Eve before scurrying away from them. Sophia tries to recompose herself to the best of her abilities and makes a disgusted face at the wet mark on her dress. Still angry she turns to Eve.

“I can be kind or I can be cruel. It’s up to you, but I really don’t think it’s that hard to pay attention around here..” Sophia looks Eve dead in the eyes. “The rules are simple and they are NOT to be broken. Understand?”

“Yes, ma’am. Of course.”

“Ugh! That stupid old b***h!” Sophia’s hand moves up to her neck to wipe away droplets of dirty rag water. “This reminds me. You’re probably pretty dirty yourself, aren’t you?! I saw that little shack that you came from.”

What is this sudden change? The older housemaid is gone and Eve has done nothing wrong.. Yet, she feels as though she is being scolded.

“Go to your room and start the bath right this second!” She spins Eve around by her shoulders and pushes her in the direction of her room. “I’m going to change and then I’ll be up there to rid the filthiness from you!”

Eve is confused at the sudden change in attitude towards her, but she certainly didn’t hesitate to follow orders. She drew a bath as she was instructed and was surprised to see Sophia actually show up to wash her. More like scrub her. Eve’s skin was so raw by the time she was done that all she could do was crawl into her new bed and cry herself to sleep.