10 Paranormal Stories Read online

  10 Paranormal Stories

  Lamees Alhassar

  Copyright © 2017 Lamees Alhassar

  All rights reserved. ISBN: 1542483182

  ISBN-13: 978-1542483186

  DEDICATION

  To all my fans. Thank you.

  CONTENTS Grant Me This Wish 1 The Old Woman's Paintings 35 Carol's Wish 65 The Lonely Children 95 The Gift Of A Broken Mirror 127 The Candy Store 167 The Circle of Friends 223 The Messenger 255 Anna's Deliverance 285 The Assignment 313

  Grant Me This Wish

  CHAPTER 1 From where he was seated in the restaurant, he could see almost everyone. As people came in and left, he watched them all closely.

  He knew what he was searching for. He was not bothered by the passage of time. He was very patient as he waited.

  For a moment, he caught himself smiling.

  Waiting, he thought to himself.

  Waiting was nothing for him. After all, time was of no significance for the kind of tasks and duties that he had been assigned to undertake.

  He lifted the cup to his lips once again and drank its contents.

  He suddenly frowned and held the cup away. He looked inside at its liquid contents. His tea had gotten cold again.

  He placed the cup down on the saucer and glanced around briefly. There were few people seated all around. He could also see two or three waitresses moving about with trays.

  No one was paying any particular attention to him.

  Nodding to himself, he looked at the cup of cold tea. He deliberately touched the ceramic handle with his left hand. As he held onto the cup, he stared into it.

  At first, there did not seem to be any effect.

  But he knew what he wanted.

  He continued to hold onto the cup until the unmistakable wisps of steam began to rise from the surface of the liquid. The cup of tea was now hot, heated by his touch.

  He smiled as he lifted the cup to his lips again and began to sip its warm contents.

  As he did, he noticed that one of the waitresses was looking at him from across the counter.

  What could she be watching? he wondered.

  He turned to glance around. He could not see anyone close by. He looked back at her and his gaze caught hers. She was still watching him closely.

  He was not one to feel awkward.

  He raised his hand and waved at her with a smile on his face.

  As if she had been waiting for his signal, she picked up a tray and walked over to him.

  “Hello, sir,” she said.

  “Hi,” he replied.

  “I see that you are still drinking the same cup of tea that you ordered since you came here a while ago,” she said.

  “Am I?” he asked. He peered into the cup of tea and nodded. “Yes, I guess I am.”

  She placed the tray down on his table. There was a jug and a plate on it. “Well, your tea should be cold by now. Why not let me replace it for you?”

  “Cold?” he asked.

  She nodded. “Yes. Your tea should be cold by now.”

  He shook his head. “No, not really. It is all right for me.”

  “All right? It couldn’t still be warm, sir.”

  “How can you be so sure?”

  “But of course I am sure, sir. You arrived here close to an hour ago. A cup of tea cannot remain hot for an hour.”

  He held onto his cup and smiled. “Please don’t bother, miss. My tea is fine by me.”

  Suddenly, she reached out and touched the cup. Almost immediately she pulled her hand away. There was a bewildered look on her face as she stared back at him. “That is impossible!” she stuttered.

  Pretending not to understand, he looked at her closely. “What is impossible?”

  She pointed at his cup. “Your tea.”

  “My tea? Is anything wrong with it?”

  “How can it still be hot after so long?”

  He looked at his cup again. “Well, I told you that it was fine by me, didn’t I? Now you are asking me how come it is still hot?”

  She nodded.

  He smiled. “Well, maybe you should ask the tea yourself.”

  She stared at him, dumbfounded. She pointed at the tray. “Maybe you’d like something to eat?”

  “Something to eat? What do you have there?”

  “It is just a slice of vanilla cake, and then there is more tea for you in the jug.”

  “I see. But I did not order any slice of cake.”

  She nodded. “I know. It is just a complimentary snack for our customers today.”

  He nodded. “Thank you, Maureen.”

  She blinked. “How do you know my name?”

  “I heard one of your colleagues call your name a while ago,” he lied.

  She frowned. “You did?”

  He nodded. “Yes, I did, Maureen. And when I did, I said to myself, what a pretty name that is. Maureen.”

  She smiled. “Is it?”

  “Yes. But not as pretty as the person who owns the name.”

  He could see her blushing. “Pretty?” she asked.

  “Very pretty.”

  “Thank you, sir.”

  “Don’t thank me, Maureen. You should be thanking yourself for remaining this pretty in spite of all the difficulties you have been going through.”

  She blinked again and looked closely at him. “Difficulties?”

  “Yes, Maureen. You are facing some difficulties right now, aren’t you?”

  Maureen looked around, as if gauging to see if there was anyone watching them. Satisfied that there was no particular attention on them, she sat down opposite to him. She clenched her fists on the table and looked at him again. “You said difficulties. How do you know?”

  He smiled and took another sip of his tea. “My dear Maureen. It would amaze you the kind of things I know. All I have to do is look at you and I can easily tell.”

  “You can tell?”

  He nodded again. “Yes, Maureen. I can tell that you wish to leave this environment and go to college. Unfortunately, you do not have enough money to do so. That is why you work double shifts every day, trying to save up. But it is taking a toll on your health.”

  Maureen gasped. She covered her mouth with one hand and tried to control herself.

  “Am I right?” he asked.

  She nodded fervently. “Yes, yes. My gosh. How did you do that?”

  He waved his hand. “They say that when you know your problem, it is already half solved. Do you really want to know how I know all this or do you want to get your problem solved?”

  She bit her lip. “I am curious. I mean, first it is your tea still being hot after such a long time. And now you seem to know so much about me. But still, I want to know how I can solve my financial problems as well.”

  He nodded and took a sip of his tea. “How typical of human beings.”

  She looked at him with confusion on her face. “Typical?”

  “Of course, Maureen. Humans are always known to want and desire everything. You never seem to have the willpower to focus on what is relevant.”

  “Relevant?”

  “Yes, Maureen. Someone goes to the doctor and gets a bad diagnosis. But rather than focus on what treatments are required to heal them, they are as interested in knowing everything they can about the ailment, as well as getting cured.”

  “Is that wrong?”

  He looked at her and smiled. “Well, it is not really. But then when time is not on your side, what do you really need all that information for?”

  She was confused again. “Time?”

  He smiled. “Yes, Maureen. For some people, time might not be a luxury. And while they continue to ask irrelevant questions, time just continues to slip away, wasted on what would not br
ing them succor.”

  “Is that a bad thing? I mean, to make enquiries about the things that are bothering someone?”

  He took another sip of his tea. “Just like I said earlier, Maureen. It all depends on you. So tell me, are you going to waste your time asking the irrelevant questions or are you going to seek a solution? You know that if you want to make it to college this session, your fees must be paid by the end of this week.”

  She frowned again. “How do you know that? Are you working with a college or university?”

  “I told you before, Maureen. I know so many things.”

  Maureen sat back in her seat and took a closer look at the man seated in front of her. He was dressed in a wide-brimmed hat, a short-sleeved shirt, a pair of trousers and a pair of shoes. Everything he was wearing was black in colour. “Sir, who are you?”

  The man dropped his cup in his saucer. “I see that you choose to waste your time, Maureen. Is that what you should be concerned about right now?”

  She nodded. “I can spare the time. Tell me who you are.”

  “Well, how do I say it? Let us just say that I am a visitor to these parts. I go around trying to see who is wise enough to make use of an opportunity that would cause their wishes to be granted.”

  “Wishes?”

  He nodded. “Yes, wishes.”

  “You grant wishes? Are you serious?”

  He nodded again. “Yes. I am serious.”

  Maureen smiled. “This must be a joke. Who does such a thing in this world of ours?”

  “It would surprise you to know that there are others like me. But then, it depends on what you choose to believe.”

  She looked closely at him again. “You mean you can grant me some wishes?”

  He shook his head and raised two fingers. “Not some, Maureen. Only two. Two wishes are all I can grant to you.”

  “Only two? But two is not enough. I am sure that everyone has millions of wishes they want to see come to pass.”

  He nodded. “You see what I was saying earlier on? Humans can be very unfocused. Tell me, what is there in this world that is more pressing to an average human being beyond one or maybe two things?”

  Maureen shook her head. “That is not true. We all have numerous wishes.”

  “Is that so? Then tell me what they could be, Maureen. Use yourself as an example.”

  “Me? Well, you rightly identified one of them. Indeed, I do want to go to college. But at the same time, I don’t want to go to college and get stuck in student loans and debts. Of course, I’d like to have some spare pocket money to afford stuff. Surely, I would want to be able to date a hot guy. And then I’d like to travel to so many places. And let us not forget my parents. I would want to send them money from time to time.”

  The man nodded. “All those are just fantasies, Maureen. Do you know that just one wish could get all those other needs of yours solved?”

  “Just one? Well, which one? Because I must have counted at least five or six different wishes right there.”

  “If you had enough money on you, then most of those problems of yours would be gone.”

  “Money? Are you serious?”

  He nodded. “You’ll be able to afford college. You’ll also get to avoid taking any student loans. Then you can afford stuff, send money to your parents, and even date hot guys.”

  “Date hot guys?”

  He nodded. “Yes, Maureen. Trust me when I say that hot guys are attracted to rich girls. They will come for you once you have the money. All you would need to do is choose whom to date.”

  Maureen rubbed her chin. “You seem to be right about that, sir.”

  “I am right about what I am saying, Maureen. And that is why I say two wishes is more than enough for anyone to solve their problems. But what I keep seeing is that people just ask for irrelevant things, without thinking things through carefully.”

  “So what are you saying, mister?”

  “I am going to grant you two wishes right now, Maureen. But you need to think through them very carefully.”

  CHAPTER 2 Maureen glanced around briefly. “I cannot believe that I am doing this.”

  “I don’t need you to believe in my abilities, Maureen. I only need you to make up your mind about what you want to ask for.”

  “And you want me to arrive at a decision right here and now?”

  He nodded and pointed behind her. “Can you see those two people over there?”

  Maureen turned. She scanned through the restaurant and saw a man and a woman seated at a table close to the window. “You mean that couple by the window?”

  “Yes. I need to go and grant the woman a wish or two, Maureen.”

  She turned to face him. “You want to grant her a wish? But she hasn’t even spoken to you. How do you know that she has a wish to make?”

  The man smiled back at her. “You keep forgetting what I have been repeating all this time, Maureen. You can never quite imagine the amount of things that I already know.”

  Maureen glanced back at the couple at the table. “What kind of wish could she want? She does not look like someone in need of a wish.”

  “That is what you think. But I know better.”

  She turned to look at him. “You know better? Is there something else that I cannot see?”

  He nodded. “Yes, Maureen. There are so many things that you cannot see that are happening to that couple. For instance, that man with her is about to break her heart. He is tired of the relationship and does not want to continue seeing her anymore. Once he makes the announcement, she is going to be so distraught and saddened. But the man will really not care. He will just abandon her there on her seat and leave.”

  Maureen gasped. “No, that is terrible! How can he do such a thing?”

  “How can’t he do such a thing? Men can be callous sometimes, you know?”

  Maureen glanced back at the couple. “But since you already know what he wants to do, can’t you stop it from happening?”

  “What do you expect me to do? He is already going to get his wish granted to him.”

  Maureen turned to look at him. “

  His wish? I don’t understand.”

  He nodded. “Yes. His wish is to leave her for good. And it is going to be granted to him. He will get to dump her.”

  “But what about the woman?”

  “That is where I come in. I am going to walk over and grant her any two wishes she wants.”

  Before Maureen could utter another word, the man raised his hand to his lips, silencing her. He then pointed at the couple. Maureen turned to see that the woman was sobbing and holding onto the man’s sleeve.

  The man struggled to get himself loose and pointed at the woman sternly. Maureen could feel her heart ache as she watched the unfolding scene that was happening in the restaurant. A relationship was being forcefully ended and she was observing the whole incident like an episode in a soap opera on television.

  They both watched as the woman stood up to plead with the man. But it was obvious that his mind was already made up. He pushed her away and pointed his finger at her again. He then turned and began to quickly walk out of the restaurant.

  Maureen felt a hand on her shoulder. Alarmed, she turned to look at the man in black by her side. “This is where I come in.”

  “What? Where are you going?” she asked as he stood up.

  He sighed. “Maureen? Have you not been following all that I have been saying? I have to grant her a wish or two right away.”

  Maureen also stood up. “Okay. But what do I do?”

  He regarded her for a while. “Well, come to think of it, I did not anticipate adding you to this task. Anyway, maybe you can bring some of your nice vanilla cupcakes to serve her.”

  “Vanilla cupcakes? Do you think she would like those?”

  He nodded. “Yes. That, and a cup of coffee. Dark hot coffee with no sugar.”

  “Are you sure?”

  “Maureen, just do as I have said. Then maybe you w
ill start to believe me and my abilities.”

  Maureen nodded and picked up her tray. As she hurried towards the kitchen, the man in black walked towards the woman, who was sobbing.

  “I once heard that it is not a good thing for a woman to sob alone in public,” the man said when he got close to her.

  The woman dabbed her eyes with a white handkerchief and looked up at him. He could see the tears that were still streaming down from her eyes.

  “Who are you?” she asked, still dabbing her eyes.

  “Someone who is concerned about you,” the man replied, and took a seat directly opposite to hers.

  At first she refused to say anything, and only continued to wipe her tears. The man in black looked towards the kitchen and saw Maureen hurrying out with a tray. He turned his attention back to the sobbing woman. “You seem to be really distraught,” he said.

  The woman nodded and sniffed. “Yes. You could say so. Today is really not a good day for me.”

  “I know, Vanessa. A day in which Mark decides to dump you cannot be a good day for you,” the man said, just as Maureen arrived at the table with the tray.

  The woman suddenly froze and looked straight at the man seated across her table. “I am sorry. Do I know you?”

  The man shook his head. “No, Vanessa. You don’t know me at all. But I know much about you. And I know that today is your worst day ever. Believe me, I can feel your pain and distress over Mark’s unexpected decision. But it is not the end of the world. I see that the waitress has brought your favourite already.”

  Vanessa looked up at Maureen, who was standing close to them with the tray. “My favourite?”

  Maureen nodded. “Dark hot coffee with no sugar, along with vanilla cupcakes.”

  Vanessa glanced from Maureen to the man. “Wait. Is this some kind of prank or what? How did you know it was my favourite?”

  Maureen pointed to the man. “It was he who asked me to get it for you.”

  Vanessa turned to him. “You did? How did you know?”

  He smiled. “Relax, Vanessa. Just like I have been telling Maureen, there are so many things that I know. It would take a lifetime to explain all this to you. Just take your coffee and cupcakes and try to relax a bit, okay?”

  Vanessa regarded the man once again before she nodded to Maureen.