Dad holds out his hand. “I understand your anger, and I’m sorry.”
His smile is getting on my nerves. I swat away his hand, and his face goes a shade darker. “I really missed you, Dante. You and Susan.”
I push myself up and rub my head. “Sure you did.”
I can barely stop myself from burying my face in his shirt. I can’t believe my heart still longs for his arms around me. I’m not even sure if he’s a good guy. My anger is now partly aimed at myself, and it makes my head hurt more than it already did.
“I’m so sorry. I had to leave you.” Dad shakes his head. There’s pain in his eyes, sadness, even loneliness. “I had to protect you and Susan, not just for your sakes, but for that of the whole world.”
Slowly I breathe out. “I know.”
A glint of hope burns in his eyes. “You do?” His lips curl up a bit. “Of course you do. You found my notebook, didn’t you? Just like I knew you would.” He reaches out to me, and I let him. His hand touches my arm and the hairs on my skin stand up.
“You could’ve told me, Dad.” At the last word, my voice breaks. I sob and lower my head.
Cold arms wrap around me. I don’t move, even though I want to pull free. My desire to have Dad close to me again is finally stronger.
After what feels like several minutes, I rest my head on his shoulder and fold my arms around his back.
We enjoy each other and the silence between us for what seems like forever but is too short at the same time.
“I wanted to tell you,” he finally says softly. “I wanted to tell you everything. But you were so young, so optimistic and full of life. I couldn’t bring myself to tell you. The knowledge you now have would’ve taken your childhood away in the blink of an eye. And look at you now, you’re still so young but so strong at the same time, so grown-up. There are no words for me to express how proud I am.” He kisses my forehead forcefully. “My son.”
Tears burn in my eyes again, but I’m done crying, so I turn away from him and walk to the kitchen counter. “I know you don’t need to eat or drink, but… would you like some hot chocolate?”
“Sure.” He walks over to my seat at the table and sits down. “This used to be my chair.”
I put some milk in a pan and grab two mugs. “So what happened? The Shield told me you turned evil.”
He looks up from my drawings and sighs. “I did. I tried very hard to fight it, but my adversary was too strong. He slowly poisoned my mind.”
I stir the milk but keep my eyes on Dad. It’s still so hard to believe he’s really here. “And the Shield couldn’t see it?”
“No, he was invisible to them.”
“Couldn’t you use a spell on it then?”
“It was a very powerful being, Dante. It still is. And it’s not alone.”
It’s as if someone presses ice cubes against my arms and neck. “What do you mean? Is it still alive?”
Dad stares past me. “I’m not sure alive is the right word.” He scrutinizes me for a moment. “I don’t want to scare you, son, but this creature will cross your path too someday. Soon, I think.”
I turn back to the stove and add the chocolate to the milk. “You can tell me. I can handle it.”
He chuckles softly. “You’re right. It’s hard to see you as a sixteen-year-old instead of an eleven-year-old boy, but I can tell how much you’ve changed.”
I shrug. “Fighting demons and other creeps does that to you.”
“I suppose it does.”
When I pour the chocolate into the mugs and hand one to him, he finally nods. “Okay, I suppose it might give you an advantage knowing what you’re up against. Besides the Devil, I mean.”
Oh great, more enemies to fight.
The distant look in Dad’s eyes tells me he’s thinking back to the moment he started changing.
“When I first saw him, I thought he was some sort of angel here to take me to Heaven,” Dad says. “Then he stepped into the light, and I saw his evil grin and the bow and arrows on his back. I immediately knew I was dealing with something else, and I knew it had to be something strong if it could step into this house without trouble. I reached for my blade and held up a flame to keep him at a distance.” He shakes his head as if he still can’t believe what happened next. “It was no use. With one flick of his wrist, I was on de floor, grunting in pain. Power and anger surged through me, but I couldn’t use it. It was all trapped inside me, building up until I was screaming in agony. I was sure I wouldn’t survive. Until he kneeled down next to me and held my gaze. ‘You want power above all. Anger and greed will lead you into war. Your heart will blacken until you feel nothing but hate and desire.’”
In a reflex, I grab Dad’s hand. He looks up, startled, as if he really got lost in his past for a second.
“It’s not your fault,” I say. “You tried to fight it, didn’t you?”
He nods. “I did. And when he left, I tried to tell the Shield. But I couldn’t. Something inside me stopped me. And after a couple of weeks, I didn’t want to anymore. I was angry at everyone and everything. I couldn’t think straight anymore.”
“So what was it?” We both look up as Vicky’s head appears, with an almost invisible body under it. She doesn’t greet me but keeps her eyes on Dad. “What kind of creature did that to you?”
I squeeze Dad’s hand when he doesn’t answer. “This is your chance to tell us all the truth. You couldn’t do it then, but you can do it now.”
He swallows, his eyes never leaving Vicky’s face.
She crosses her arms. “Well?”
Finally, he blinks. “It was the White Horseman.”
I gasp. “You’re kidding.”
“No.” He shakes his head, still looking at Vicky. “He poisoned my heart and mind, and I couldn’t tell you about it. I couldn’t tell anyone.” He lowers his head and buries his face in his hands. Tears flood through his fingers. “I’m so sorry. I should’ve fought harder. I never wanted to hurt anyone.”
“But you did.” Taylar’s voice is cold as he appears next to Dad. “You did horrible things. You burned people!”
“I know!”
I can’t stand the sound of his broken voice. I don’t want to see him cry. So I stand up and wrap my arm around him.
“Stop attacking him,” I tell the ghosts. “He fought with everything he had.” I look down at my father. “Didn’t you?”
“Of course!” he exclaims. “But those poisonous feelings inside me were too strong. Deep inside, I knew, even at the end, that I was being used, influenced. I was like a puppet, and I couldn’t cut the strings, no matter how hard I tried to. I think this is why the other Horseman killed me in the end. They knew I would keep fighting, so they couldn’t use me for their ultimate plan to overthrow the good in this world.”
“Other Horseman?” I say, a chill creeping from my toes to my neck. “You’ve met the other three too?”
I feel him tensing under my grip. “You know about them?”
“Yes,” I say. “We trapped the Red Horseman in the Shadow World and made a deal with the Pale Horseman.”
“A deal?” The panic in Dad’s voice is palpable.
I wave his concerns away. “Don’t worry, it was a good deal.”
Vicky straightens her shoulders and walks up to us. Maël has also appeared and is watching us from her regular seat at the table, with just as much interest as concern.
Vicky lowers herself onto her chair and waits until Dad looks at her again.
“What happened with this other Horseman?” she asks.
Dad wipes his face before answering. “I never saw the White Horseman again, but one day I got a visit from his brother, the Black Rider. Weakened as I was already, I didn’t stand a chance against him. He took away my ability to eat, and that was that.”
Taylar frowns. “He starved you to death?”
“Yes.”
“And then what? How did you end up here
? Were you a ghost all this time?”
“I’m not sure where I went,” Dad confesses. “All I know is that I didn’t go to Hell or Heaven. I went somewhere dark and cold. I’ve been trapped there all this time, trying to get to Dante. I’ve heard their conversations, their plans, and I knew I needed to warn you all.”
Vicky nods. She knows he’s telling the truth. She can read it in his eyes.
“How did you finally escape?” Taylar asks.
“The Horsemen have been too busy preparing their big plans to keep a close eye on me lately. It’s a great risk coming here, but I had to take it.”
“And if they catch you?” I ask.
He shrugs. “They banish me to Hell? Who knows.”
Flashes of vile creatures torturing him fill my head. “What? No!”
A sad smile plays on his lips. “It’s worth the sacrifice, Dante. For you, for Susan…” He gestures at the others and then at the ceiling. “For everyone.”
Maël slams her staff onto the floor, stands up and bows slowly. “I apologize for doubting you, master. And for doing nothing to help you.”
Taylar bows as well. “I’m sorry too.”
Then Vicky follows their example. “And me. Please forgive us.”
With tears in his eyes, Dad rises to his feet and beckons them to come close. He puts his hand on their shoulders, one by one. “My dear friends, there is no need to bow to me. I couldn’t have asked for a more loyal Shield than you. I am grateful for the time we had together. There’s no Shield braver than you.”
Maël straightens up and does something I’ve never seen her do before. She puts her arms around Dad’s neck and pulls him into a hug.
Everyone in the room watches in silence.
When they finally let go, Maël smiles. “It is good to see you again, master.”
“You too, Maël.” He moves on to Taylar and hugs him too. “And you.”
Then he stands still in front of Vicky and looks down at our entwined hands. “And my dear Vicky. I always knew you had a special role to fulfill. And not just in our battle.” He pulls us both close to him. “I’m happy you two found each other in these rough times.”
Then his forehead wrinkles as he gestures at the empty chairs. “Now tell me, where are D’Maeo and Jeep? And where is your mother?”
CHAPTER 6
Dad stares in the distance for quite some time after I’ve told him everything that has happened. Or rather, the short version of events, or I’d be sitting here for days.
“Don’t be sad,” I tell him eventually. “We’ve overcome so much already, so why wouldn’t we be able to get them all back? Besides,” I get up to make coffee, “D’Maeo and Jeep are strong and experienced, and Mom has Trevor to protect her.”
Finally, Dad smiles. “True.” He joins me at the kitchen counter and places a hand on my back. “I’m so proud of you. I wish I could stay here. It would be great to fight by your side. You’re stronger than I ever could’ve imagined.”
I snort. “I’m still a rookie. Without the Shield and Mona and Charlie and Gisella, I would’ve died ages ago.”
“And without you, we would have died,” Charlie’s voice says from behind us.
As soon as we turn around, my best friend narrows his eyes. “Mr. Banner?”
Dad steps forward with a big smile. “Charlie? Is that you? You’re so big!”
I look away when he wraps his arms around my best friend. Another reunion like this and my emotions will spin out of control. Dad is here with us, but he can’t stay. It’s just a matter of time before one of the Horsemen comes to collect him, and I’m not sure we’re up for that fight. Especially not if two riders come at the same time.
“Dad,” I say, flinching a little at the thought that this will probably be the last time I call him.
He turns with a smile. “Yes?”
“I’m sorry to interrupt, but I don’t think we have much time to chat. If there’s something you want to warn us about, you should do it now.”
His face clouds over. “You’re right. If the Horsemen find me gone, they’ll come to look for me here first. Time to tell you what I overheard.”
I lean closer, even though he sits down beside me.
“So far, you’ve lost only one soul, is that correct?”
We all nod in unison, and I blink away the image of Kale, the boxer, being dragged away.
“Good,” Dad says. “The more souls you save, the better our chances of winning. But there’s something you should know.”
With my eyes, I try to force him to continue. Instead, he sips his coffee with a content expression on his face. “Oh, how I’ve missed simple things like this.”
“What should we know?” I urge him.
He puts down his mug. “Right. After they lost the first two souls, I heard the Horsemen discussing tactics. You see, after their first attempts to take the souls of every circle, they can start over. It’s not as if the soul they have will expire or something. But it could take decades, even centuries to collect nine souls that way. Even Satan doesn’t have that kind of patience. Not anymore, that is. That’s why they have a back-up plan.”
Vicky and I exchange a quick panicked look across the table.
Dad mimics our expression. “There is a way to open the circles of Hell without having all of the souls. If they manage to make the chosen souls commit the sins of each circle, Lucifer can use that somehow to break through the circles.”
“What?” we say in unison.
Dad nods gravely. “Unfortunately, I don’t know how.”
I throw my hands up in desperation. “So we’ve been saving these souls for nothing?”
“No, not for nothing,” Dad corrects me quickly. “Getting the souls is the fastest way to open the circles. But if they fail, they won’t give up. They’ll just go for plan B.”
I hide my face in my hands and shake my head. “And here I thought we were doing well.”
“You are!” Dad gets up and grabs my face with both hands when I look at him. “You are doing better than I’ve ever done, you all are. You’re the golden team, the ones that make it to the end. And I hope I will be there to witness it.”
I throw my arms around his neck and blink away new tears. I wish I could hold on to him forever, keep him here with me, and reunite him with Mom. But some things aren’t meant to be, and I should focus on the things we can realize. Having Dad here, even for a little while, is more than I could ever have hoped for.
I let go of him and wipe my eyes. “Thanks so much for coming, Dad.”
He lets out a sigh that could knock a child over. “I don’t want to leave you ever again, but I have no choice. Now that I’ve warned you, I should go back. You’re in enough danger as it is. You don’t need two Horsemen banging on your door.” He places his hand gently against my cheek. “Be careful, I want to see you again, preferably alive.” With a wink, he turns away from me. “If I can, I’ll visit again and hopefully contribute to the fight.”
He doesn’t say anything about Mom, which tells me he’s not worried. He knows I’ll get her back no matter what.
“You be careful too,” I say. “If you need help, send a message.”
I know it sounds much easier than it is, but I want him to know I’m there for him too.
“We might be able to free you now, master,” Maël says when Dad approaches her. “We have a spell to take us to Heaven. You will be safe there.”
Dad hugs her without a word. When he finally lets go, there are tears in his eyes again. “You have no idea what your words mean to me. And although it sounds tempting to finally find peace, I can’t do it. I believe there’s a reason why I haven’t moved on. Fate is not done with me yet. My role in this is not over, and I hope that means I can make a difference in the end.”
You already did, I want to say, but the words get stuck in my throat. It’s weird. Him being here, warning us, has given me more hope than any saved soul has s
o far.
For a second, he meets my eyes again. “Give Mom my love,” he says, and before I can respond, he vanishes.
Silence descends on the room, as none of us knows what to say. We’re all lost in thought anyway, going through every memory we have of Dad and trying to wrap our heads around the news that he brought us.
My emotions are all scrambled, my mind going back and forth between crying and smiling.
Now that Dad is gone, a lot of questions pop into my head. Things I wanted to ask him.
‘How often did you watch Mom and me?’
‘Did you know I was the chosen one?’
‘Were you able to watch us from your prison?’
I’m grateful when sparks light up the kitchen, and Mona appears. “I’m back!”
She frowns when she gets only weary smiles and mumbled greetings in response. “What’s going on here?”
I pull back the chair next to me. For a second, I can see Dad sitting in it again, and I smile. “We got some good and some bad news. You’d better sit down for this.”
CHAPTER 7
“So, what did you find out about Kasinda?” I ask the ghosts as soon as Mona is up to speed.
“Not much,” Vicky says with a sigh. “Only that she’s a powerful witch. She used to be kind, but she changed when she lost her daughter to a possession, just like Gisella said. Since then, she’s been trying to gather more power, but no one knows if she succeeded.”
I nod. “Okay, so we’ll prepare for the worst.”
Gisella dives into a bag she brought and holds up an antique-looking book. “We went by my house to pick up this book. It’s a cookbook, but it’s as old as the Book of a Thousand Deaths, from what I’ve heard. It’ll be easier to make this look like the real thing than a regular book.”
She puts it on the table with a grunt. It’s as big as the world atlas we had to buy for school and as thick as the fifth Harry Potter book. It must weigh a ton.
The Sixth Ghost: a supernatural urban fantasy action adventure (Cards of Death book 6) Page 4