by Keya Jay
***
“Alright girls,” Aaron said as he led them through the tunnels of the battle field. “I want all of you together don’t leave one another. Sit as close as you can toward the top of the stadium bleachers,” he instructed.
Whisperers are always mysteriously going missing during Whisperer of Night battles.
Whisperer of Night is a tittle bestowed to the rightful recipient. Every year there’s a battle between Whisperers. It’s like a boxing match where in the end a champion is declared but this has a bit of a supernatural aspect to it, whereas boxing does not. Being the leader of this band of whisperers Aaron has the right to pass his tittle onto someone with worth. It’s kind of like a will of sorts but he doesn’t necessarily have to die in order to pass on the responsibility. He has a few wisps in mind but this battle will decide the ultimate fate of his tittle, and the fate of the bestowed.
Once Aaron was sure his girls were seated and safe at the tippy top of the bleachers he walked back through the tunnels toward the room the guys were currently being held in.
“Hey couch?” Eric Masterson—Richard’s son—called out to him.
“What is it Masterson,” Aaron called as he did a count to make sure no one got cold feet and everyone was accounted for.
“We need to know the order,” Eric reminded him.
“Right,” Aaron said as he dug in the inside pocket of his blazer. Aaron handed the paper to Eric and he got everyone into order.
“Hey where are Ferris and Rodgers?” Aaron asked referring to Ryder and Nathaniel.
“Haven’t seen them,” one of the boys said.
Crap! This wasn’t supposed to happen. Ryder was one of Aaron’s best competitors and so Aaron needed him out on the field he didn’t have half a mind for his family drama this time.
“Eric make sure you keep track of the score board, Coach Emery doesn’t like to play fair you know that. I’ll be back I need to talk to my daughter,” Aaron announced as he left the room and exited the stadium through the tunnels.
Aaron pulled out his phone and immediately called his wife.
“Hello,” she answered on the second ring.
“Ciana where’s Sidney?”
“Uh she went out with the boys today, said Nathan’s mother wanted to take them out to lunch,” she explained. Aaron could tell she wasn’t happy about it.
“Did she tell you where?” he asked.
“I think she said something about Rebecca wanting to do it over at her house,” she said as she huffed her disapproval.
“Alright honey,” he said getting ready to hang up.
“Aaron wait!” she said making him stop immediately.
“What is it Ciana?” he asked trying not to show his impatience. If she wanted to argue about this they would do it later.
“Rebecca just had a stroke Aaron the kids are hysterical I don’t think he’ll be able to take much more of this,” she said in a broken whisper.
Ryder’s mother Rebecca has a very bad heart disease, her heart doesn’t function correctly; it’s not entirely whole.
“I’m on my way over there as we speak,” he said as he reached his car and started it up.
“Aaron,” she said and he could hear the tears in her voice.
“She’ll be ok Ciana,” he said as he tightened his grip on the steering wheel. She had to be ok.
“I know,” she whispered. “But what about Ryder he won’t be,” she said.
It often surprised him how big that woman’s heart was—which doesn’t entirely seem right to say considering the state that poor woman is in but she’s done her best by her son.
“He’ll heal honey he’s strong and he’s been through this enough times to know she’ll be ok,” he assured as he pulled up in front of their house. “I have to go honey,” he told her as he shut the car off.
“Be careful,” she whispered before ending the call.
Ryder and his mother Rebecca have been living in this run down house for as long as Aaron could remember. There weren’t many run down houses in Coconut Grove but you knew one when you came across one. The beach was miles away from here, this area was mostly covered in moss and old tree stumps but this is where his daughter and her friends spent most of their time. They liked it here it was different from the rest of Coconut Grove and so them being drawn to this area was a given. Aaron never truly understood it but then again he’s grown up on the high road so to speak with a silver spoon in his mouth.
Aaron knocked slightly on the door afraid that if he knocked too hard the door would fall in on itself. He could hear muffled voices as he waited before someone opened the door.
“Daddy?” Sidney asked confused.
Sidney was always a daddy’s girl and he’d be surprised the day she stops being one.
“Hey baby girl you think you can let me in?” he asked as he peered over her shoulder in the house.
“Umm sure but…”
“I know,” he said silently. She met his eyes with a determined stare of her own.
“I’m not leaving him, or her. I know mom will be upset but I have to make sure he’s ok before I leave.” Aaron nodded his head fully understanding her reason.
“I know baby girl and I’m not here to ask you to leave,” he said and she hesitantly stepped aside so that he could enter.
Rebecca Ferris was lying on her back on the couch with a wash cloth hanging haphazardly against her forehead. When Ryder saw Aaron’s face a hundred questions plagued his features.
“Aaron?”
This boy never truly had any respect for him, or anyone for that matter. Aaron got tired of correcting him on the way he was to speak to him so he just let it go.
“What are you doing here?” he nearly growled.
Though his daughter was Ryder’s best friend he didn’t think the same of himself. Aaron was Ryder’s couch and that was all, so he didn’t like seeing him entangle himself in his family business and Aaron couldn’t agree more but Ryder needed to stop trying to do all of this by himself.
“I’m here to help you boy.”
“I don’t need your help, I’m fine I told that to your daughter and now I’mma tell it to you I don’t need help!” he said as he continued to kneel over his mother.
“You may not need help but she does,” he said motioning toward his mother. “Robby stop being mean he’s just trying to help,” Rebecca said weakly.
Ryder cringed at the name but didn’t correct his mother.
“You don’t need help mom your fine,” he insisted.
“If I’m so fine how come I can’t feel my own heart beat,” his mother joked but Ryder found none of it funny.
“I know why you came,” he said ignoring his mother. “I’m not doing that competition I’m not leaving so I can go battle some nameless wisps and earn a worthless tittle,” he said as he turned his full attention onto his mother as a way to shut Aaron out.
“Come on baby girl,” Aaron said as he held his hand out toward Sidney.
“I’m staying Daddy,” she said softly.
“No Sid. Go! I don’t need you,” Ryder yelled.
“Good, I’ll just continue to sit here while you just continue to not need me,” she said stubbornly.
Ryder could never truly tell Sidney no, there friendship was weird but Aaron knew Ryder was grateful for her. No matter how many times he pushed he never truly pushed too hard because he never truly wanted to lose her.
“Fine you just sit there like a couch potato but don’t speak I don’t want to hear you,” he said and Aaron could tell if he left Ryder would indeed be fine as long as Sidney stayed by his side.
“I’ll handle your mother,” Aaron told her as he walked toward the door.
Nathaniel stood there in the darkened corner. He didn’t talk, he just watched. He was another one of Sidney’s weird friends. He was usually why Aaron took those extra trips to the hospital when it concerned his daughter, but his daugh
ter’s a tough girl and Aaron knows those trips to the emergency room were just as much her fault as they were his. Surprisingly enough Ryder was the one who usually kept the two of them out of trouble.
“Sorry couch,” he said from that corner.
“It’s fine just make sure you stay out of trouble,” Aaron said as he left the house.
That was like telling a puppy not to pee on the carpet but Aaron knew it wouldn’t feel right unless he said it though they both knew he wouldn’t listen.