My marriage ended when I caught my wife screwing around. The details aren't important. You've probably heard the same story a hundred times. Counseling wasn't necessary since neither of us wanted to stay together any longer and the divorce was granted quickly.
I walked into the pawnshop and as I put my wedding ring on the counter I wondered how many other guys had done the exact same thing. "How much for the ring?" I asked.
"Forty bucks."
It seemed low but I was prepared to take whatever he offered. For fourteen years it meant something, now it was trash. "It's yours now," I said. While I was waiting to be paid, something in the corner of the jewelry display caught my eye. It was a simple black band with a silver pentagram etched into it. As I pointed to it, I asked, "Will forty bucks be enough for that ring?"
"Sure, it's been in the case for over a year. The only problem is that the metal it's made of can't be resized. If it doesn't fit, I can't help you."
The ring was small but it was perfect as a pinky ring so I bought it.
It was an unusual piece of jewelry so I asked, "Does the ring come with a story?"
"Are you a cop?"
"No. Why do you ask?"
"In my business, sometimes I buy items that don't belong to the seller, if you get my meaning."
I nodded my head. I knew exactly what he meant.
"So, tell me about the ring."
"An acquaintance of mine works in a funeral home. He took the ring off an old lady before she was lowered into the ground."
When I left the pawnshop, I made a note never to be buried with anything valuable.
As I walked to my car, I heard someone say, "It doesn't belong to you."
I looked around but I didn't see anyone.
"It doesn't belong to you," the voice in my head repeated.
My first thought was that I should probably cut back on my drinking.
"You have my ring and I want it back."
My next thought was that I was going insane.
"No, Danny, you're not going insane" the voice continued.
I froze. Whatever was happening wasn't normal. I tried to stay calm as I asked the mysterious voice in my head, "Who are you?"
"The woman whose ring was stolen," she replied.
"Do you have a name?"
"Of course, I do. What a stupid question."
"I'm sorry. I'm a little nervous right now. I'm not used to talking to dead people."
"My name is Maria Slovak and before my death I was a member of the royal family in Austria. I was a duchess.
"But you're dead, how can you talk to me?"
"Let's just say that the ring that you bought has certain powers, powers that could be abused. That's why I gave instructions to have it buried with me."
"What sort of powers?"
"Even I can't be sure of all of its powers. All I know is that the ring has been in my family for over a thousand years. It was found by a little girl who grew up to be queen. What I can tell you is that the power that's most troubling to me is its ability to grant wishes."
"You mean, I can wish for something and the ring will grant it?"
"Yes, if you knew how to unlock its power."
"But you're not going to tell me how to do that, are you?"
"No, but you might accidentally discover it so I'll make a deal with you. While I still have some control over the ring, I will allow five wishes to be granted right now if you agree to three conditions. First, you can never tell anyone about the ring. Second, after the last wish is granted, you bury the ring near my grave in St. Luke's cemetery. And third, you never dig it up. If you agree to these conditions and fail to live up to your end of the deal, the ring will be turned against you. I really wouldn't advise that. In fact, my advice would be to bury that ring now and forget you ever saw it."