by Marni Mann
Before the reading Emma and I had with Moonlight prior to the accident, I hadn’t believed in psychics, either. But since her reading, I’d come to believe that she had the ability to tell someone what their future held. I knew she was able.
She had told me mine.
Your heart is going to be empty, Charlie. Those words, her words, had repeated in my head for the last five years. She knew Emma didn’t have a future…which meant she would also know about my father’s future, and mine. Maybe she’d be able to tell if he was handing the information to the right person, if what we were doing would truly bring an end to the mansion, and what was in store for him—for us—if we did. Even if there was more death awaiting me on the other side of the truth, I still wanted it to happen. And that’s exactly what I told the Doctor.
Moonlight’s house hadn’t changed at all. The shingles were still painted lavender; the large hawk still lived on top of her chimney. My toes stepped over the mosaic on her walkway before we moved up the stairs to her front porch. Just before my fingers knocked on her wooden door, it opened. I yanked my fist away.
“Charlie,” Moonlight said. “What a…surprise. To see you here again, that is.”
Something told me she wasn’t surprised at all that I was here. The Doctor was, though. His doubt was on full display, on his face, in his posture…in the way he sighed as we paused outside her door.
“I need your help—we need your help.”
“I know,” she said, confirming what I had thought. She looked at the Doctor. “Same blood, same flesh as Miss Charlie.”
“May we come in?” I asked.
She moved to the side. “Please.”
***
Moonlight rose calmly from the table and moved over to me. Her hands rubbed my shoulders with a motherly touch as I left the chair.
“I knew your heart would heal one day, Charlie. I’m glad to know that it did…and to see that it did.”
I smiled at her.
“It’s always darkest before the dawn.” Her fingers released me and danced through the air until they landed on the Doctor. “And now that you’ve found yours…”
They were the exact words tattooed on Cameron’s chest. I wasn’t surprised—nothing about Moonlight surprised me at that point. And though my father had found me, it didn’t mean the darkness was gone. It wasn’t even close.
The Doctor nodded, and we stepped together into the hallway. I didn’t cling to him, holding his body up like I had with Emma on our way out of Moonlight’s house; he clung to me instead. Our future had been spoken honestly just moments ago; we moved at our own pace, knowing what waited before us now. Or maybe it was because my legs wouldn’t let us move any faster.
Roberto opened the door to the backseat. I needed some fresh air, so I asked him to please give us a few moments alone. The Doctor stood in front of me, waiting to sit down, but I wouldn’t let him. I leaned against the door, letting the solidness support me so I wouldn’t fall.
“Do you still want to do this?” I asked.
I couldn’t do this without him…but I also knew what it meant now. What it would lead to.
“Charlie, you know how I feel about psychics—”
“And you know how I feel about them.” I tried to still my trembling voice. “I’ve told you what happened with Emma. I believe Moonlight’s words will come true again.”
He rubbed my hand. “Yes. I still want to carry out our plan.”
My eyes drifted over his face. I was so proud of him. He’d be giving up so much; we both would. I could handle it, though. Moonlight had confirmed that he was doing it because of me. Her reading had also revealed the consequences of what we were doing to stop the mansion. She knew the people who would be affected—the Hunts included. Lives would be compromised…and lost.
Until we could be certain the whole thing had been taken care of, I wouldn’t resurface. But this time, I knew my dawn would be with me when I did.
I took a step closer to the man who had been my doctor at the mansion, whose veins held the same blood, who was willing to sacrifice his own life in order to spare mine. I took another step, and I thought of my first reading with Moonlight, all those years ago: Charlie, when you feel that flutter, join the hearts as one.
I lifted my arms and wrapped them around his neck. When he hugged me back, I felt warmth and protection radiating from him. He was shielding me, the same way Emma had. Then his lips pressed into the top of my head and his arms tightened, and I felt something new: my father’s love. We stood on the sidewalk in front of Moonlight’s lavender house, holding each other up.
I tightened my grip around him and buried my face in his chest. I took in his scent: the fabric softener on his clothes, the freshness of the soap on his skin. I closed my eyes. I had a future, and a plan to make it all work out. And it was all because of my father—his strength, his sacrifice, and his love.
“Thank you,” I told him. “You pulled me out of the shadows.”
He smiled. “Seems fair. You did the same for me.”
Then I took a deep breath, and I connected our hearts as one.