"Two weeks Mr. Stone, that's all I can give to you," said Mr. Aman as he fixed Daniel with his professional gaze. "I am managing to give you another chance, do not disappoint me."

"Certainly not," Daniel assured him. Despite being in Mr. Aman's presents was the last thing he wanted to do, he didn't have any choice as he stood in his house right in front of him because he had ringed him a day before to tell him about the changes he would make to his book. Mr. Aman was more than happy to receive such news, heck he even arrived at his home unexpectedly at 8am in his wrinkled suit pants and a coffee spilled shirt which told him he'd been in a hurry to meet his money-making machine. That man! No money he dumps, yes money he's right there in a snap of the fingers.

"Do have a nice day Mr. Aman," he gave him a false smile.

"You too," he in turn gave him a light pat on the back before strolling to his Burgundy looking car, a Camry Daniel presumed, and entered the driver's side, leaving a circle of smoke as he drove away.

Daniel sighed, rubbing his face with his hands. He was in deep trouble he knew that, Zyca was asleep, he hoped, in her bedroom still as a dead bird.

That day was just like yesterday, when he heard the agonizing scream from the bathroom that night. His old friends had just piled into Mike's van because seemingly he was the only one sober. As soon as they left, the scream followed almost immediately. He was scared out of his wits when he arrived at the scene, a smell so terrible made him recoil, covering his nose with a fist, he hadn't smelt something so terrible. And the two headed spider! How terrible that was. Tiny goose bumps trickled his skin as he remembered attacking it with a long pipe he saw on the floor, beating it mercilessly in fear until it shrunk, fleeing through the hole on the wall.

Walking back toward the house he wondered when Zyca would wake up. It's been four months. A shilling sound filled the air, vibrating the pants he wore a teeny tiny bit. Taking the phone from his pocket he answered.

"Hello?"

"Danny," said Sarah on the other side.

He rolled his eyes. "Step mother."

"That's not the way to talk to your step mother."

"What do you want?" He kicked a stone out of the way.

"Well I..."

"I'm not going on another date Sarah," he said immediately.

Sarah sucked in air through her mouth. "I'm hurt son. Very, very hurt. I don't call you every time I want to set you up."

"Yes, you do. So, how's dad," he changed the subject.

"He's fine. Enjoying the vacation an all."

"Good, he needs it. "

"Yes. That's why he's going to stay a little longer. I'll be coming home next week. The business has been put on hold long enough." Oh no. He knew what that meant, trouble.

"Can't you work there? Many business people work from home nowadays," he tried to convince her. Sarah took care of Father's business, running and managing the transactions in the store which he so much declined being a part of. "I'm sure the president works from home too."

"Don't be silly," she huffed. "Dear, I have to go now – Hon get out the water!" she yelled to someone, possibly his dad.

"But..." Before a second protest the line went dead. How was he going to keep her from butting into his business when she arrives? A chain mail maybe, it was strong enough to keep her on a leash.

"DANIEL!" A loud cry took him away from his thoughts.

He could not believe his eyes. "Zyca," he whispered. She was waving her hands, running to him in the speed of light. She was going to crash into him, he didn't move and he didn't mind. He was too happy to see her awake that his lips spread into a full-blown smile. Much to his surprise she caught herself immediately just before a hair could touch his body.

"You need to see this. C'mon," she said quickly grabbing a hold of her hands, he pushed his body on hers wrapping his arms around her petite frame.

"I thought you were dead. You had me scared Zyca, worried sick." He genuinely said. Paying no heed to the quickened heart beat which followed, he rubbed her back without any concealed thinking. "Are you okay?"

Zyca smacked her lips. "I'm okay," she nodded.

"Are you sure?"

"Positive - quick I have something to show you."

Daniel followed Zyca back to the house, down the stairs, to several turns into the greenhouse he'd long forgotten. She knelt beside a hand dug hole where the tree he and his mother grew used to stay. How did she find it?

"How did you find this place?" he swapped a dried branch off his face. "It was my mother's."

Gently, her swatted beside her, at once he fell backwards. "Good heavens gracious are those bones?"

"Found them here along with this," she dug in her pocket and raise a glittering rock up in his face. "The crystal."

"But it's..."

"Chipped I know."

Unavoidably his gaze settled back on the bones. "Who is this then?"

A second passed. "My father," she whispered.

"Wait. Hold on, how did you – how did you know all these."

Zyca cleared her throat. "My sister."

"Impossible."

"Thought so too. Unfortunately, I couldn't find out why."

"What do we do about this," he pointed to the bones. "Calling the police is not something I want to do right now."

"I really don't know what to do. There's so many unanswered questions."

Daniel's thought trailed to the elastic band she had been given before she arrived. Surely, she'd forgotten all about it. "We could ask through the communication band."

Her eyes squinted as she inclined her head. "Band? What band."

"The one the Aster's gave to you."

A look of realization came across her face as she remembered. "I'd totally forgotten about that," she clapped her hands together. "Thank you, thank you. We can ask them for advice." Zyca's face nearly split into her face.

Inescapably his gaze settled on her mouth, he placed his thumb on the side of her lips. His heart tugged a little when he recalled how he was using the girl for his own career. Just how long would he continue the act?

"I'll always be there whenever you need," he smiled. "You can trust me."

Zyca's stomach fluttered with excitement as they walked side by side. She still felt the tingling sensation at the side of her mouth from where Daniel's finger once laid." Where are we going?" he asked.

"I want to check my old clothes. I might have left it in its pockets."

Zyca was pleased she had someone could trust by her side for her new findings were something she knew she wouldn't be able to solve on her own. "You mentioned the greenhouse belonged to your mother?"

"Yes. She loved being around nature especially anything green."

Zyca laughed. "Master Kane would soar for the sky if he ever heard of that."

"So I was meaning to ask - after you solve this mystery, will you go back home, I mean will you go back to him?"

"I guess, possibly," she sighed. "We greens are bound to our masters until we are free." Zyca raised her hands dangling the cuffs.

Daniel stopped and turned, his stare intense. "What if I set you free with one of the wishes?"

"What?"

"You will be free to live your life the way you want it."

Zyca thought she would turn into mush from the intense heat which radiated from his stare. She saw he wasn't joking for his lips twitched none. "The higher ups would noticed a cuff isn't on."

"That's if you go back."

"What do you mean?" She searched his eyes for answers.

"You can stay in the human world – make it your home."

They stared at each other for what seemed like hours. A muscle flexed on her jaw as she studied his face. "The genie world is my home. I can't possibly leave everything."

"It's not like you have so much."

"Of course I do. I have my sister, Colt and..." She stopped searching for what to say next.

"And who?" He grabbed a long of her hands, rubbing them in-between his fingers. "I want you to stay Zyca. You can always bring your sister with you."

"That's impossible."

"Is it?" Zyca didn't know what the man was thinking.

"Why are you doing this to me? One minute you're this cold man the next you're..."

"Because I fancy you Zyca. Always have and always will."

Zyca smiled. In the moment where she should have pushed him away, yelled of the nonsense he spoke about she smiled, her insides turning soft. It indeed was a tempting offer. Staying in the human world meant freedom but could she leave Master Kane who helped her?

The two made their way through many corridors, walking in tense silence with the unanswered questions lingering in the air. Her brain was jammed, she had so many things to figure out; the bones, why Allet could communicate with her, where the other half of the crystal was and now her new master added to it but that was a different matter on its own.

As they reached the stairs leading to her room, Zyca hurried up ahead to him wanting to clear her mind of its current state. She opened the door not waiting for Daniel to get to her. Once inside, Zyca turned on the lights, and strode to the corner where the Wardrobe stood.

Turning, she watched Daniel enter, striding with his hands dug deep into his pocket. Oh what was she going to do now? It was then she needed Colt but she knew he would just laugh and say his usual, "Bull Zyca. That's bull."

Zyca shook her head, turning back to her task. She pried open the wardrobe doors, and stuck her head between the black and white maid dresses which smelt a little stale and old. Behind was her blue thin strapped dress and her old slipper she wore when she arrived. Zyca grabbed them and searched the pockets and linens for the elastic band to which she found lying deep within the silky comfort of the dresses left pocket.

Zyca grinned. "Yes!" she exclaimed. "I've found it."

"We can use it now to find the answers you're looking for," he said fanning her ears with his hot breath.

Zyca stepped away, putting space in between them for he had somehow gotten too close for her to bear. How could she not have noticed the pure, raw male come up close in her personal space? She cleared her throat, taking her attention back to the thin strip in her hand. How was she going to use it? She hadn't been told how to work it nor did it come with a manual of a sort.

"I don't know how to use it," she complained. "I never asked."

"Didn't the books you read tell you how to work such?"

Zyca scrunched her face in confusion. "How did you know I read books? I don't remember mentioning it."

A look crossed his features for a moment but it was long gone before she could tell what it was. "You did, remember?" He walked to her, standing beside her as she waited for his answer. "Maybe the Spiders poison walked its way into your system and made you forget."

"Hmm, possibly," she nodded. It was indeed possible for the poison to do crazy things to your system. "How did I not die by the way? Not that I want to die in the first place. It's just, how did I survive?"

"Like how the genie has magic to take care of their problems, the human world has people to take care of our every need." He smiled at her, his dimple pressed in from the pressure. "And doctors are one of them – trained personals to treat the sick. After you passed out, I brought you home and called the doctors to your aid." He edged closer to her. "You had me worried sick Zyca." He shook his head.

"You saved my life."

He snorted. "Anyone would."

"Thank you."

"Thank you too."

"For what?"

"For staying alive." Her heart lurched at his words. An average word she knew, but from him gave a different vibe. The bare vulnerability in his eyes stabbed her. He seemed lonely, like he would have been better dead if he'd lost her, like his mother perhaps? She wanted to hug him badly to tell him she wasn't going to go anywhere like he wanted her to but of course she couldn't do that for she hadn't made up her mind to stay. Shifting her weight, she asked wanting to change the subject. "So how are we going to work this thing?"

"You could try smacking it."

She slipped a cautious glance at him. Daniel turned and shrugged his wide shoulders. "Do you think it will work?"

"I don't know. There is another option though – I make a wish."

"That would mean us being down to one wish," she said worriedly."

"I can't think of any other way." Neither could she.

"Ok then. Let's do this."