‘Sweetheart! Can you help me with packing the fruits?’ A woman called out for her husband. She was in her early thirties and fully pregnant. Wearing a white tunic and a pink sweater, she was preparing to go out. It was winter.

‘Coming dear!’ the man called out. He rushed to his pregnant wife’s side. He helped her pack fruits and incense sticks. They were visiting the temple to pray for his wife’s and unborn child’s health. They were excited because in two months they will be parents to an angel.

‘Come on, everything is set. Let us hurry and be back before sun sets.’ The wife told the husband.

It was the tradition to offer prayers to the lord in the temple that once belonged to their family or as per his grandmother, the husband thought. His grandmother told him that they were royals and descendants of a king. He never truly believed that. But since his wife had asked him to take her to the temple, he complied.

‘It’s unusually warm today’ The lady said. They rode in silence to the temple. It was a king’s palace once. People offered prayers to god and lit lamps here now. They climbed the stairs slowly and offered fruits and incense sticks and prayed for healthy delivery of the baby.

After the prayer, they were taking a stroll around the beautiful gardens around the temple when a woman called out to them. She was wearing a bright red pant suit with bright red lipstick on her pale and beautiful face. She was sitting on a bench on the garden by herself.

‘Hello! Dear ones’ she said. Enjoying the rare sunny day in winter? She asked. She had a lovely warm smile.

‘Yes, it is a beautiful day’ the man replied.

‘Why don’t you sit here for a minute? You seem to be tired’ She said looking at the pregnant lady. Indeed, the lady was feeling tired and wanted to sit. She sat on the bench and looked at the woman in red clothes.

‘You seem to have waited for this baby from a long time’ the woman in red said. The couple nodded in unison with a smile. They had waited for this baby.

‘Your child has the god’s blessings’ she continued. ‘And the mark of death’.

The couple’s face froze. Their smile vanished instantly. They looked at the mysterious woman for more details. But the lady continued to smile.

‘Do not worry dear ones’ She said. Your child will have a long and healthy life. I shall pray the god for the same’. She took out an old wooden box from the bag she had been carrying. She gave it to the couple.

‘Keep this. And when the time comes, give it to your child’ she said. Looking at the confused looks of the couple, she added, ‘think of it as an amulet’.

The couple took the box and thanked her. She handed them a bag of greens and said to the pregnant lady, ‘eat this, it will nourish you’.

They thanked the mysterious lady once again. The lady smiled at them and walked away. Bewildered and as if released from a spell, they looked around to see if anyone else saw the red woman. It appeared as if it was only them who saw her.