Clawing Free
Page 23
At that, it pumped its massive wings, blowing Lissy’s hair back with several large gusts. Its shimmering body glowed above them as it soared high into the sky, straight at the moon. And then, as if the two had become one, Lissy lost sight of the Mireu and saw only the moon hanging amid a clear night’s sky. It was over. At least . . . that battle was over.
Long after the Mireu had disappeared, Neil and Lissy stood and walked to the cliff’s edge to survey the fallout of the Imugis’ incredible wrath. But, to their shock, all the Imugis were gone.
As Neil stared out at the docile lake, Lissy realized that she felt completely normal—better than normal. Usually something—her head, her legs, her back—ached or throbbed. But she felt utterly whole. As the shock of it all began to wane, she asked, “How are we still alive?”
Neil chuckled. “I . . .” He trailed off, unable to put to words everything they’d just seen. “That was—”
“Magnificent.” Then after another long silence, Lissy asked, “What did the Mireu say to you?”
“That I should never stop loving you. That it’s one of the things I’m purposed for.”
November 22, 2019
Lissy and Neil watched from a few feet away as Yunjin placed a rose on David’s gravestone. Upon hearing Lissy mention she was going to the cemetery to lament her father and sister, Yunjin and Todd had asked if it would be a bother for them to tag along and visit David. To Lissy’s surprise, she liked the idea. Although it had taken one of the most incredible experiences she would probably ever live through to bring it to her attention, she was beginning to grasp that she wasn’t alone. The Sheridans were there for her, Albert and Rose were there for her, and Neil . . . Neil had always been there for her, despite her pushing him away for so long.
It was for about four weeks straight the two of them were grilled daily by what was left of the Mitchum PD and two special detectives from Denver before they’d been ruled out as suspects in the deaths of the five police officers. But in the end, they all came to the same conclusion: there wasn’t enough evidence to indicate that either Lissy or Neil had committed the murders at Diamond Lake. The case was considered ongoing, seemingly pointing to some kind of mammoth animal that was yet to have been discovered. Lissy had told them as much of the truth as she felt she could, as did Neil. They claimed that something big had attacked them at the lake, killed Jack and Logan, and then attempted to attack Lissy but was somehow scared off. When asked what the animal looked like, the two said only that it was storming incredibly hard, making it impossible to tell. While it was clear that none of the men actually believed the story, there wasn’t much they could do to contradict it. Clearly Lissy wasn’t capable of ripping several grown men in half, hurling them deep into the forest, or crushing the sheriff’s truck with her bare hands.
The attack on the town had been chalked up to an intense fluke of a storm that had come on suddenly and left equally as suddenly—as sometimes had happened in Mitchum over the years. While it could have been much worse, Lissy was devastated to find out that two of the town’s population had died in the attack. The official cause of death relayed in Lee’s follow-up article was that each had been gashed open at the torso by some type of flying debris during the storm. It seemed to Lissy that the attack was nothing more than the Imugi throwing a tantrum with the intent of luring Lissy, a human purposed for its demise, out of perceived hiding.
While the townspeople spoke in hushed tones about that night for a while—namely Lawrence Redlin—eventually they all got back to their lives, as they had with Mia years before. Lissy realized that it wasn’t out of selfishness they chose to move on so quickly; it was out of fear. Because, with each person they saw die, a light shone brighter on their own mortality. Fear is what made people keep quiet and act as if nothing had happened, like the world was normal and there wasn’t anything to worry about. They were afraid that if they looked too closely, or lived too loudly, or did anything to stick out, their number might be pulled next. But Lissy now knew that burying her head in the sand wasn’t the answer. There would be terrors in life, and she would confront them—standing tall in the face of the monster that threatened her.
She’d never talked to Yunjin about that night. Somehow, Neil’s aunt just seemed to know what happened—if not specifically, in essence. Their relationship had grown stronger though. As she and Neil grew closer, so did she and his family. Lissy, Neil, and the Sheridans were a family of broken pieces joined together to form a whole. And Lissy liked it. She liked the sense of belonging that she hadn’t felt for years—hadn’t allowed herself to feel. She finally felt at home in her own life for the first time since Mia died. Even her job at the restaurant had taken on a new sense of joy as she no longer felt afraid to approach the patrons; she even enjoyed it. When questioned about her newfound boldness by Rose, Lissy simply told her that she’d finally found the right meal for her ailments. To which Rose responded by saying whatever had cured those shakes deserved a spot on the menu.
Wiping tears from her eyes, Yunjin turned and walked to where they stood, Todd at her side. They smiled slightly and nodded to Lissy. Looking to Neil, she gave a half smile. He nodded and patted the small of her back, encouraging her forward. As she began walking toward the graves of her father and sister, Neil and his family slowly meandered in the opposite direction, giving her the space they knew she needed.
Staring at the two stones side by side, she remembered a time when it had been too much for her to even visit the lone grave of her father, let alone her father and the best friend she’d ever had. As a tear spilled from her eye, she recalled how the Imugi had almost convinced her that she’d be better off succumbing to fear instead of fighting for her life—that the fulfillment of the rest of her days wasn’t worth the struggle. She thought about how her father’s words had given her the strength she’d needed to stand up—to fight. And she knew neither of them would ever be truly gone. Because her father had taught Mia, who’d taught Lissy, who would teach anyone who cared to listen, that they will be afraid, but that doesn’t mean they are defeated.
“Turns out we were right, sis, love is so worth it.” Lissy lifted her left hand toward the headstones, the engagement ring on her finger throwing colors in every direction as sunlight passed through its many facets. “It would’ve looked better on you. But I’ll keep an eye on it until I see you again.” She smiled, remembering the Mireu’s assurance that she would be with her sister again. “I love you guys,” she said. “I always will.”
She turned to walk away but paused mid-step. “Oh, and Dad,” she said, turning back, “you can let go now.”
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About the Author
Josh Roberts is an up-and-coming author whose first novel, Clawing Free, was written from his home in Columbus, Ohio, where he lives with his wife and children. When he's not writing, Josh is reading, watching movies, playing with his kids, or building one website or another.
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For more information about Josh, what he's working on, or what he's reading, visit his website at www.joshmroberts.com or find him on social media:
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