Jon decided to get up and search. Her pregnancy made it hard to do some things like lie down and look under the bed, but she managed. At least until one point where a suspicious shadow made her unscrew a lightbulb with a pillowcase and DeMorrell walked into the room--he must have been fairly silent, for the first thing she heard was him opening the door, at which point it was too late.
"You really shouldn't do that, Jon," he said. "I didn't hide anything in there, and you run the risk of burning the linens." Jon tried to produce a look of innocence. "Oh, don't look at me like that. I'm no fool. Your situation obviously disturbs you and you search for a means of escape. You shouldn't try such activity, it's bad for your health right now."
Jon backed away from the lamp and sat down on the side of the bed, while carefully watched by DeMorrell. "You're concerned about me, but you're not concerned enough to end this."
"There's no way I can end this," he said. "I wished you would become my wife. That wish can't be changed. If I were to let you go now there would be some freak accident that brought you back here and put you in a situation where you would anyway. Assuming the magic didn't just compel you."
"Can you at least tell me what's going on? You'll be king of the world, and I'm going to be mother to a god? You said that and then you never spoke of it. I take it this isn't the 'creates the universe and teaches peace and forgiveness' kind of god. In fact, I don't see how you'd want to have a god around anyway, unless you think that gods do what you tell them to."
"If you must know, I need to find a certain artifact first. I expected to have it by the birth, but things are slow since it seems like the stone's magic won't work to find it. Perhaps I could slow down the pregnancy and keep you pregnant until I do."
"No... no! This length of time is bad enough." Though in truth, Jon had mixed feelings since she was in no condition to have sex with DeMorrell as long as she stayed pregnant. "I feel sick or tired a lot, my breasts feel sore, I can barely get around, and I've got your baby inside me!"
"Hmm," said DeMorrell. "You do seem to have a negative attitude. Not quite what you were saying before. Well, I have an offer for you."
"An offer I can't really refuse?"
"It depends on how you look at it, my dear. I want you to be comfortable. If having my baby is traumatic for you, I can wish that it's not. All I have to do is wish that you want to have my children and raise them together with me. For their sake, whether you love me or not."
"I remember what you did to make me pregnant. Get me overwhelmed with lust so I submitted willingly, except it really wasn't."
"Jonnie, I'm not going to make any other wishes to force you to submit to this wish. And I wouldn't carry this to a ridiculous extreme--you'd just be like a normal mother when the subject is our children, that's all. I won't turn you into a warped exaggeration. But whether you do or don't, it won't change what I expect of you. You can have my children and like it, or have my children and not like it. The decision's up to you."
"Uhh..." Jon thought fast. She got the glimmering of an idea. It was crazy, but it just might work. "I have an offer for you too."
"How can you make me an offer?"
"I suppose if you accept it I might be more willing to agree to your offer, but you're right. I don't have much to trade. But listen, please?"
"Go ahead. Tell me your offer."
"You've been doing this weird thing about pretending you're concerned about me when we both know you're not. Calling me dear, acting like you're helping me. trying to be chivalrous while keeping me from escaping. I think you might even half believe you love me. Or maybe you just love the idea that Grandpa's grandson is yours. So here's my offer. You make a wish that you really are in love with me."
"Why would I do that?"
"No reason. But if you're rationalizing to yourself that you do love me, it's going to be a lot harder to do that if you reject this wish. Or to rationalize it to me, unless you wipe my mind. We'll always know that you don't love me."
This was tricky because Jon only knew so much about DeMorrell. Evil people could act "nice" and "concerned" when that is just a way of exercising power--that they are so in control of the situation that they can do whatever they want. If so, DeMorrell wouldn't care. But on the other hand, he did let "Nora" go and reverse what damage he could after learning that Nora didn't betray him of her own free will. That shows he has some kind of weird code. If so, he might be trying to rationalize his criminal acts and that might lead him to agree to make that wish.
Of course, even if he agrees, some people can be possessive towards their loved ones, especially their wives. Loving Jon is no guarantee that he'd let Jon go, but at least it's a start. But what would his answer be? And what would Jon's answer be to DeMorrell's "offer", for that matter?
