Raka woke up and immediately looked for Laras. He searched every room, then checked around the house. No sign of her. He even asked the neighbors, but no one had seen his wife.
By late night, Laras still hadn't come home. Raka called her close friends — none of them knew where she was. He stayed awake all night waiting for her, only dozing off for a few minutes before the dawn prayer woke him.
"Ya Allah, please protect my wife. Bring her back home safely," he prayed earnestly.
Raka folded his prayer mat and went to the kitchen to make coffee. His eyes were still heavy from lack of sleep.
He boiled water, poured it into a mug with instant coffee, and stirred. Then he carried the hot cup to the living room and sat down, waiting.
Only then did he remember that Laras had gone shopping the day before. He walked to the dining table where her shopping bag still sat. Inside were blocks of tempeh, tofu, and bunches of spinach. When he opened the fridge to store them, his eyes widened.
The fridge was completely full of food.
When did she buy all this?
Why so much?
Are we having guests?
Too many questions swirled in his head. He decided to take the day off work to look for her. As he sipped his coffee, the morning street outside was already busy with people and vehicles.
Raka had no idea where to start searching. He went back inside to grab his jacket, planning to visit the local kyai for help with the jinn that had been bothering Laras.
"Assalamu'alaikum!"
Two women's voices came from behind the locked door — one of them clearly his wife's. Raka, who was in the bathroom, quickly finished and rushed to the front. He turned the key and opened the door.
"Wa'alaikumsalam," he answered, his face instantly brightening when he saw Laras.
"Darling, where have you been? Are you okay?"
He pulled her into a tight hug as she kissed the back of his hand.
"I'm sorry, honey," Laras sobbed against his chest.
"Come in."
Still holding Laras, Raka invited their guest inside. Once the three of them were seated in the living room, the handmaiden disguised as Tami began to speak.
"Hi, I'm Tami — Laras's junior high school friend. I'm so sorry. Yesterday I ran into her at the market and asked her to come with me without letting her say goodbye first. We dropped off her groceries, then left again. She said you were sleeping soundly and she didn't want to wake you."
"Why are you only coming back now?" Raka asked.
Laras looked nervous, but Tami answered smoothly.
"After my birthday celebration, while we were waiting for the driver to take us home, Laras helped me open gifts. Suddenly she fainted. I wanted to call you but I didn't have your number. I'm really sorry."
"It's okay. My wife hasn't been feeling well lately. Thank you for bringing her home."
Laras kept her head down, tightly holding Raka's hand. At that exact moment, Zahir appeared — invisible to Raka — standing right beside them. He smiled at the handmaiden, pleased with her performance.
But the moment he saw Laras and Raka holding hands, Zahir's eyes turned red with jealousy and his teeth clenched.
Raka felt the hair on his neck stand up. That same musk scent again. Who is this Tami really?
Laras suddenly felt a hand forcefully separate hers from Raka's. She looked to her side and saw Zahir standing there, glaring.
"Don't hold his hand in front of me," Zahir whispered angrily.
Laras gave a small smile in response.
"Well, I should get going," Tami said, standing up.
"Thank you again for bringing my wife home," Raka replied, also rising. Laras stood with him.
They walked Tami to the gate. Zahir followed close behind, staring at Laras with burning jealousy.
Thank God, my husband doesn't know you're here, Laras thought.
That thought made Zahir's eyes flash with anger.
"You won't keep making me jealous like this," he whispered hotly in her ear. "I'll make sure you live in my world forever."
"No!" Laras cried out without thinking.
"What's wrong, darling?" Raka asked, startled.
"N-nothing… I mean, Tami, please come visit again sometime," Laras quickly covered.
Zahir gave her a quick kiss on the cheek for being cheeky.
Raka rubbed the back of his neck. "Why do I keep getting goosebumps?"
Laras pretended not to hear him and watched Tami ride away on her motorcycle.
"Assalamu'alaikum," Tami called as she left.
"Wa'alaikumsalam," Raka and Laras replied together.
After Tami disappeared down the street, Zahir vanished too. But the strong smell of musk still hung thick in the air.
"Darling, do you smell musk?" Raka asked.
"No, honey," Laras lied, scanning the terrace and yard.
Even though she could clearly smell it, Zahir was nowhere to be seen.
Where did he go? she wondered silently.
This time, Zahir didn't answer her thoughts.
Laras was still searching for any sign of him when Raka gently took her hand again.
Raka gently took her hand. "Let's go inside. There's something I need to ask you, darling."
"Sure," Laras answered, still holding his left hand.
The moment they stepped into the living room, Laras quickly made an excuse.
"Honey, wait a minute. I need to change first. This dress is so stuffy."
"Okay, I'll wait and watch some TV."
Laras hurried to the bedroom. She looked around for a place to hide the golden chest. Besides their own room, there was one spare guest room.
She slipped into the guest room, crouched down, and waved her hand under the bed. In an instant, the golden chest appeared right in front of her.
"Wow, the handmaiden was right," she whispered, impressed.
She quickly covered the chest with a small rug, then stepped out and closed the door. After that, she went to their bedroom to change out of the elegant gown.
Even so, the strong smell of musk still filled her nose.
"Zahir?"
No answer.
"Zahir? You said I could call your name whenever I want."
Still no response. Laras gave up and changed into her house clothes, tossing the gown into the laundry basket. Only then did she return to the living room.
"Come here, darling," Raka called, sitting up from the sofa.
Laras sat beside him, but suddenly her stomach cramped. She realized she hadn't eaten anything since the soto stall yesterday.
"Honey, how long was I actually gone?"
"You were unconscious that long?" Raka asked worriedly, touching her forehead.
"I don't know. When I woke up they gave me something to drink, then brought me home," Laras lied smoothly.
"You left just before Maghrib and came back at seven in the morning. That's about twelve hours."
"Wow, that long…"
"Does anything hurt?"
"Not really. I'm just… really hungry," she said, holding her stomach.
"You sit here. I'll make some instant noodles."
"Thank you, honey."
Raka went to the kitchen, took eggs from the fridge, and cooked two portions. He hadn't eaten since yesterday either — only coffee that morning. He boiled eggs on one stove and water for noodles and tea on the other.
A few minutes later, two bowls of noodles, two boiled eggs, and two glasses of warm tea were ready on a tray. He carried it to the living room with a smile.
Laras looked surprised when he set the tray down.
"Honey, you even made eggs?"
"You're the one who went shopping. Where did you get the money for all this? The fridge is packed. How much did that cost?"
Raka sat beside her as he asked. Laras tried to stay calm, even though she herself had no idea what was inside the fridge.
"Honey, promise you won't get mad. Tami bought it all."
"It's okay, darling. I was just worried you'd gone into debt. My salary isn't enough to cover that, and groceries are expensive these days. That's what I wanted to ask you about."
"No need to worry. I'd never borrow money without asking you first."
"Alhamdulillah. I know you're a good wife," Raka said softly.
Laras peeled the eggs while listening to him, then placed one in each bowl. They enjoyed their simple breakfast together.
"Assalamu'alaikum!" a voice called from outside.
"Wa'alaikumsalam," they both replied.
Raka went to the door while Laras quickly gathered the bowls and glasses onto the tray and carried them to the kitchen.
When Raka opened the door, he saw a man dressed entirely in black, soaked from head to toe, carrying a large, heavy-looking plastic bag. Only his eyes were visible — the rest of his face was covered by a balaclava.
"Who are you looking for, sir?"
"I was asked by Ms. Tami to deliver this," the man said, handing over the heavy black bag.
Raka took it and was shocked when he looked inside.
"Please come in, sir."
"My clothes are wet. I'll just wait here."
"Wait a moment, sir. Tami is my wife's friend."
Raka set the heavy bag on the floor — his arms were already aching.
"Darling, come here for a second!" he called.
"Yes, honey," Laras answered, walking over.
The moment she saw the man in black, Laras recognized those sharp, familiar eyes immediately.
"Darling, look at this! What exactly did Tami tell you?"
"She didn't say anything. Why, honey?"
When Laras peeked into the bag, she was even more shocked than Raka.
"So much… and all so fresh. It smells so strongly of the sea. Are you sure this is from Tami?" she asked, looking straight into the man's sharp eyes.
She smiled, as if silently asking for confirmation.
"Thank you so much, sir. This is way too much. Please tell Tami I love her even more now. She really is my soulmate."