Revenant (The Midnight Society #3)

by Logan Patricks

  “Aria, stop hitting my brother.” Calisto’s voice was authoritative, yet filled with affection at the same time. It was a mother’s voice.

  “Daddy’s going to die because of Uncle Shadow!” she exclaimed.

  “Well, yes. Of course,” Calisto said. “That’s just common sense, like how the sky is blue. Now come inside and wash up. It’s dinner time.”

  Aria turned around, looked at me and then scowled before running into Calisto’s arms for comfort.

  “Don’t mind her,” Lincoln said. “She’s just a child. She doesn’t understand yet.”

  “I don’t even understand,” I said.

  Lincoln laughed. “There are some things in life that are impossible to understand and impossible to quantify. Your selfish human nature is one of those things.”

  I watched as Lincoln followed his daughter into the house and rejoined his family, leaving me outside in the cold alone.

  I stared at the tombstones once more. There was truth in his words. I had seen so much death in so little time. Perhaps that was just the beginning.

  The cold punched through my skin and seeped into my veins. I decided to go inside to see what was for dinner.

  The dining room table was set neatly with white china plates and polished silver cutlery. Lincoln, the man of the house, sat at one end of the table while I was placed at the other end. Calisto and little Aria sat opposite each other in the center.

  “I’m starving honey,” Lincoln said.

  “That’s great. I think I’ve really outdone myself this time with this dinner.”

  She gestured towards the large, silver domed cloche that covered the serving plate. “Shadow, would you like to do the honors?”

  I eyed her suspiciously. “I suppose,” I said as I rose from my seat and reached for the ornamental handle on the cloche. The silver felt like ice against the palm of my hands.

  Why was everything so damned cold here?

  “Bon appetite,” Calisto added as I lifted open the cover. Resting at the center of the serving plate was a single .33 caliber chamber revolver.

  “What the hell is this?” I asked.

  My twisted sister smiled at me. “It’s the only way out,” she replied.

  Little Aria covered her eyes and started to scream.

  “And now you’ve gone and frightened Aria,” Calisto added.

  I looked at Lincoln hopelessly. “What’s the meaning of this, Linc?”

  He shrugged. “You gotta ask the boss,” he replied. “I tend to stay out of these things. You know that saying, happy wife, happy life? What makes the wife happy is if I sit down and shut the fuck up.”

  Calisto laughed. “I trained my husband well. As for you, Shadow, this is the point where you’ll need to make a decision. You need to decide whether you want to stay here with us—your family—or if you want to get out of here and rejoin those people who you think are your friends. You’re new fucking Midnight Society.” She licked her lips. “They’re not your friends, Shadow. They’re imposters, all of them. They’re not family.”

  That was when little Aria stopped screaming. “We’re your family though, isn’t that right, Uncle Shadow?”

  “You guys aren’t my family?” I said it more as a question than a statement. I was unsure of myself. My mind felt like a dixie fried jumbled mess of nonsense that seemed impossible to sort out.

  “I want to leave this place,” I stated with my head, as opposed to my heart. “This place just isn’t right.”

  Being in this house with my sister, my best friend, and my niece did seem right. It felt like home.

  But I couldn’t stay. I knew that much was true.

  “If you want to go, you can go,” Calisto said. “However, the only way out is by the way of the gun. You need to shoot me in front of my family. I’m the part of your mind that no longer has place here.”

  “You heard the woman,” Lincoln nodded. “Kill her. However you’ll be scarring my precious little girl for life.”

  “Mommy, I don’t want you to die,” Aria pleaded. “Uncle Shadow, why are you doing this? She’s your sister and my mommy. Don’t kill her!”

  I was at a loss for words.

  None of this was real. Just what the fuck had Calisto put in my head? An imaginary family?

  “I put nothing in your head, brother. It’s been there all along. This is what you ultimately want.” She knew exactly what I was thinking.

  Of course she did. She was like a cancer that was growing inside of me.

  I shook my head. “No. You’re a fucking murderer. You need to be stopped,” I stated.

  “If that’s what you believe, shoot me then. Only then can you wake up.”

  I took the gun and held it in my hands.

  “Come on, what are you waiting for? Do it.”

  Even in my mind, my sister was twisted as ever.

  “You can’t go any further down the rabbit hole than this, Shadow,” she continued. “Shoot me.”

  “But mommy, I want you to live,” Aria pleaded.

  “Now, now, Aria. We know that just can’t happen. Wherever Shadow goes, death will always follow,” Lincoln said.

  This was all wrong. None of this made any sense to me. Something wasn’t right.

  Calisto sighed. “So you’re not going to shoot me then? If not, sit down and I’ll serve us our real supper.”

  I looked long and hard at my sister and then at the gun in my hands. This was the choice she had given me.

  “Who are you?” I demanded.

  She seemed puzzled. “I’m your sister,” Calisto replied. “You suddenly lose your mind, Shadow?”

  “Yes, I have,” I replied. “I believe you when you say you’re Calisto—you’re a piece of her that’s left behind, rotting away inside my head.”

  She laughed. “You make it seem so unpleasant. Stop yapping and fucking shoot me then.”

  I shook my head. “No, that’s not the way out, either. You’ve been lying to me for years. If you’re Calisto, then what you’re telling me is a lie. What happens if I shoot you?”

  “You get to leave,” she replied. “Now do it you pussy.”

  I shook my head once more. “I’ve learned not to trust your lies. Who are you really? What happens if I shoot you?”

  Calisto frowned. “Smart boy,” she finally said as she pinched a flap of skin underneath her chin, and began peeling back the layers.

  The person she turned into was me.

  A clone. A doppleganger. Me.

  “Are you surprised?” he asked.

  I didn’t respond.

  “You shouldn’t be. There’s a bond between twins, you know. In reality, Calisto and I—you—function as a single organism. Your lives will forever be intertwined together. One can’t live without the other because you are both one and the same entity, divided into two.”

  “You’re wrong,” I said. “I’m nothing like Calisto. The only thing we share is a last name.”

  “You shared a placenta once as well. You shared a womb,” my doppelganger pointed out. “You shared life together.”

  “We came into this world separate,” I stated. “We evolved into different people, and somehow, Calisto became the sick twisted monster she was.”

  “And what did you become?”

  I thought about it for a moment. “I became alone.”

  My mirror image started laughing at me. “Oh, that’s rich,” he said.

  I didn’t find it very funny. My patience was wearing thin. “Tell me how to get out of here.”

  That was when little Aria began to speak. However it wasn’t with the voice of a child. She sounded like Calisto.

  “There’s no point in keeping up this charade any longer,” little Aria said. “Come on then, take that gun and shoot me.”

  I shook my head. “You’re sick, Calisto. Only you would think of having me shoot a little girl as a means of escape.”

  “Consider it character building,” little Aria said.

  “How do I
build character from shooting little girls in the face?”

  She shrugged. “I’m sure it does in some way. Now, are you going to do this or what? We’ve already established that you’re not as dumb as I thought. You win. Now get the fuck out of here.”

  I raised the gun and pointed it at the little girl’s head.

  “Squeeze the trigger,” she whispered.

  I shook my head in disgust. I had to remind myself that none of this was real. These were just illusions that Calisto had planted deep inside my head.

  “If it’s easier, you can also strangle me to death?” little Aria said. “There’s also a set of knives over there on the kitchen counter you could use. Whatever method works best for you when it comes to killing innocent five-year old girls.”

  “You’re not innocent,” I stated. She wasn’t a real child, but a product of my self-consciousness.

  “And neither are you. Now get your hands dirty and get the fuck out of here.”

  I closed my eyes, took a deep breath, and pulled the trigger.

  Chapter Twenty-Nine

  Lincoln

  “You alright there, buddy?” I asked.

  Only seconds ago, Shadow had woken up from his trance with an anguished look on his face. His first instinct was to stand, but his wrists were bound to the chair.

  “Shadow?” Aria asked. From the hesitation in her voice, I could tell she was worried whether it would be good Shadow or choke-the-shit out of everyone Shadow returning from whatever mind-meld journey he was on.

  “The kid…” he uttered. “Fucking made me shoot the kid.”

  Aria and I both shot each other a ‘look’—one of those looks that easily replaced the appropriate phrase ‘what the fuck.’

  “Shadow, are you alright?” Aria asked. She touched him gently on the forearm. I couldn’t help but feel envious seeing any physical contact between the two.

  Jealousy was such a tragic emotion. I tried to shrug it off.

  They were happy together. They belonged together.

  Shadow looked at the love of his life and any angst he felt seemingly dissipated.

  “Aria?” he asked.

  “I’m here, Shadow. Always,” she replied.

  “My head’s on fire. Christ, now that I’m awake, I’m remembering bits and pieces of what happened just before I blacked out.” He looked up at me. “Fuck, Lincoln. I almost killed you.”

  “Yes you did,” I said.

  “God, I’m so sorry. I lost control.”

  “Well, given the circumstances, I’ll let you off the hook…you asshole.”

  Shadow smiled. It was one of those smiles I thought I’d never see out of him again—a smile that was shared only amongst the greatest of friends. “I only wanted to give you a modest beating. Maybe crack a rib or two or rupture a spleen.”

  I shrugged. “I guess I deserved it.”

  Aria interrupted us. “This is incredibly awkward seeing as how I was the reason why the two of you were trading fisticuffs in the first place.”

  Abel injected himself into the chatter. “Shadow, how are you feeling?”

  “My head fucking hurts and I’m feeling quite thirsty. Aside from that…I think I’m good. Now, who the hell are you?”

  Abel laughed. “I was brought here by Leah Gamble, a colleague of mine.”

  “Leah’s here?” he asked.

  “Yes, Shadow. You called and I came.” She knelt down beside him—on the opposite side of where Aria was.

  “You two met?” Shadow asked as he turned to Aria, and then to Leah.

  “I had the pleasure,” Aria replied, coldly.

  “We spent some time together, while digging around in that noggin of yours,” Leah said.

  “Oh yeah? Did you end up finding anything?” Shadow asked.

  “Does Alice in Wonderland mean anything to you?” Abel said.

  Shadow thought about it for a moment and then nodded. “I was chasing Alice for a while in my dream, and then she became Calisto, who then became me, but really, Calisto was hiding in Aria.”

  Once more, the “what the fuck” face washed over us.

  Abel didn’t seem surprised at all by any of it. “Shadow, I think we’ve narrowed down your trigger. There’s a strong connection between your sudden change in personality and the story Alice in Wonderland.”

  Shadow frowned. “That doesn’t make much sense, does it?”

  “Triggers aren’t supposed to make sense,” Abel said. “The more random a trigger, the more effective it is.”

  “There is a copy of Alice in Wonderland on your bookshelf in your office here,” Aria pointed out. “I thought it seemed a little out of place.”

  “That was a gift from me,” Leah pointed out. “I knew it was one of Shadow’s favorite stories as a child. I thought I’d give him something nostalgic, something innocent from back when he was a kid.”

  “We should burn it,” Aria stated, without batting an eye.

  “We’re not burning anything,” Shadow stated while Abel began removing the straps around his wrists. “Am I clear of the triggers then? Did you exorcise whatever crap is floating around inside my head?”

  “Too some extent, yes. Once the triggers are recognized and the individual being brainwashed is self-aware, the effects of the trigger are significantly diminished,” he said. “That’s not to say you won’t revert back into a ‘bad guy’, but the probability is much less.”

  “Is it anything and everything associated with Alice in Wonderland that’ll transform him?” I asked. I turned to Shadow. “Cheshire Cat. Red Queen. Off with his head.”

  “What are you doing? Purposely trying to set him off?” Leah snapped.

  I shrugged. “Hey, I figure we have the dream team of psychiatric ass kickers here. If Shadow reverts back to a big bad, we can shoot him up with more tranquilizers and dig around his brain again.”

  Shadow seemed unimpressed. “Thanks,” he said sarcastically.

  “To answer your question, Shadow, triggers are often a single phrase derived from a strong association to a memory. Childhood memories are often used in brain-washings since they’re rooted deeply in our hearts and memories. When the trigger was planted inside your head, the person definitely knew what they were doing.”

  “Well, if anyone knows my childhood, it’s Calisto,” Shadow sighed. “I guess the next logical thing to do is to try and figure out what the exact trigger phrase is.”

  “That seems as easy as finding a virgin at a Bon Jovi concert,” I said. “Well, it looks like it’s time I hit the books again.”

  “I’m a fast reader. I can give it a go as well,” Aria said, just before adding, “I’ll race you Lincoln.”

  “I never back down from a challenge,” I stated.

  Shadow rose from his seat and rubbed his wrists. “Aria, if you can get on that, it’d be much appreciated. The copy of the book is still on the shelf in the study. Meanwhile I’d like to speak to Lincoln…alone.”

  A silent hush fell across the room.

  “Are you two going to be okay in here by yourselves?” Aria finally asked.

  “We’ll just have to find out, won’t we,” he replied.

  Aria turned to Abel and raised her brow.

  “From what I’m seeing, Shadow is in full control of himself again. Nothing to worry about,” he said.

  On the contrary, I felt like I had plenty to worry about.

  “Are we good?” I flat out asked.

  Shadow shrugged. “As good as circumstances allow it to be,” he replied. “I don’t hate you, if that’s what you’re asking. I’m certainly not going to choke you in your sleep—even though you deserve it.”

  I did deserve it.

  “Why don’t you hate me? I put the moves on your woman. I broke the number one rule when it comes to the man laws—don’t reach into another man’s cookie jar.”

  “I think the number one rule is ‘don’t sleep with another friend’s family member’, which you also broke by the way. However putti
ng the moves on another person’s woman is a very close second; so close in fact that they might just be on even keel.”

  I sighed. “I get it. I fucked up—repeatedly.”

  “You’re like a Chihuahua in heat,” Shadow said.

  “Chihuahua? I’d see myself more as a Jack Russell or a golden retriever when it comes to man’s best friend.”

  “Or bitch.”

  “You sure you don’t hate me?” I asked again.

  Shadow took a seat in the arm chair, situated next to the large bay windows of the master bedroom.

  I decided to take a seat on the piano bench, and positioned it to face him.

  “Things will never be the same between us, Lincoln. As long as we have that understanding, then we’re good.”

  “So what’s left between us, then?” I asked.

  “Business.”

  That was fair.

  A part of me was hurt that Shadow was willing to cut off our friendship just like that, but I understood. There were some things in a life you could never recover from. What I did to Aria was definitely one of those things.

  “Tell me what the situation looks like right now,” Shadow said.

  “Not good,” I replied. “Cairo never returned from the rescue mission.”

  For a moment, Shadow’s face seemed overcome with anger and frustration, but he soon regained his composure.

  “No word at all?” he asked.

  “It’s been silent.”

  Shadow rose from his seat turned to face the window, taking in the view of the ocean.

  “We lost Reiko as well during the Nathan Tse’s raid on this place,” he said. “Fuck.”

  “If this place has been compromised, we need to move on,” Lincoln said.

  “I agree. Braydon mentioned he had several safe houses we can move to, ones that have since been abandoned by his MC.”

  “Can we trust him?” I asked.

  Shadow gave me a sarcastic smile. “Can I trust anybody?”

  I was about to say he could trust me but I quickly remembered I had lost that privilege already in New Orleans.

  “There is a silver lining in all this, however,” Shadow continued. “To the world, Aria and I are dead. Nathan Tse gave us that little parting gift.”