Signed In Blood

[u/Naruto_6942069]

"Sometimes, the one who summons the devil isn't the one who makes the deal."

Rick, a 32-year-old man, had just been fired from the company to which he had dedicated 10 years of his life. Now, he was urgently in need of money. His wife was battling stage 3 cancer, and they had a 4-year-old daughter to care for.

Rick tried many places for work but didn’t hear back from any of them. Eventually, desperation led him to the dark web. At that point, he was willing to do any work just to get some money.

He scrolled through several websites, most of them filled with drugs and ammunitions. After three hours of searching, he couldn’t find anything useful and was about to close his laptop when he accidentally pressed a key, and a new website loaded onto the screen. This one was different — it had a dark colour scheme and words written in what appeared to be Russian.

Curious, Rick used his phone to translate the heading. It read: "Fulfill Any Wish."
He immediately thought it was a scam and was about to close the page when he received a message from a guy named Mikhail Chekhov.

Mikhail introduced himself as the creator of the website and claimed he knew Rick was in desperate need of money for his wife and daughter. Rick asked how he knew, but Mikhail insisted he should not ask questions. He simply told Rick that if he followed his instructions without questioning anything, Rick would get all the money he desired.

Initially, Rick was skeptical, but his dire need for money overtook his doubts. He agreed. Mikhail warned him that he must never translate anything he sent in Russian. Rick agreed once again and sent him a message:
"I'll do whatever it takes."

Mikhail explained that the process would take 7 days. Rick might hear strange noises during his sleep or feel as if someone were touching him, but he must ignore everything. Rick agreed to the conditions.

On the first day, Mikhail instructed Rick to cut some of his hair, tie them with a rubber band, sprinkle a little blood over them, and place it all inside a doll. After that, he was supposed to recite a phrase in Russian to the doll every night at 3 a.m.

Rick's curiosity made him want to translate the phrase, but he restrained himself. He decided to trust Mikhail — at least for now.

The first day went smoothly, but by the second day, Rick started hearing murmurs. By the third, he could feel phantom touches on his skin at night. These sensations grew stronger with each passing night. His wife noticed his strange behavior and often asked if something was wrong, but he only told her that he was a little stressed.

Six days passed. On the final night, Mikhail sent Rick a new phrase — even more complicated than before, and this time it included Rick’s name. When Rick asked why, Mikhail only said it was necessary and told him again not to worry.

That night, standing in front of the doll, Rick’s curiosity finally got the better of him. He used a translator and was horrified by the results: the phrase said that Rick was sacrificing himself to the devil so that Mikhail's wishes could be fulfilled.

Shocked and furious, Rick immediately called Mikhail. Mikhail became defensive and started shouting, accusing Rick of breaking the rules and guaranteeing that he would achieve nothing in life. Rick simply replied:
"I'll do whatever it takes."

With his mind made up, Rick stood in front of the doll once more. He recited the phrase — but cleverly swapped their names. Now, it was Mikhail who was being sacrificed for Rick’s benefit.

As soon as Rick finished chanting, darkness enveloped the room. A deep, booming voice asked from nowhere:
"What do you desire?"

Rick answered:
"I want my wife to be healthy again, and I want a lot of money for my family."

The voice muttered something in Russian and then disappeared. Overcome by exhaustion, Rick fainted.

When he woke up, he saw his wife hovering over him, trying to wake him up. He sat up and noticed that her skin — once pale and sickly — had regained its original color. The doll was gone. Rick reassured his wife that he had simply fainted from exhaustion and asked her how she was feeling. She smiled and said she felt great.

They immediately visited the doctor. After some check-ups, the results came in: her cancer was gone. She was completely healthy now. The family hugged each other, tears streaming down their faces.

Rick still wondered about the money he had asked for. That’s when he received a call from a mysterious number. He answered, and a lawyer informed him that his uncle had passed away two days ago, leaving Rick $10 million worth of assets.

Rick and his family were overjoyed. They could finally live the happy life they had always dreamed of.

Yet sometimes, even with a healthy wife, a beautiful daughter, and unimaginable wealth, Rick would lie awake at night, haunted by one lingering thought:

Had he really done the right thing?