The Third Parent

by Elias Witherow

  Leaving Tommy, I walked us into the bedroom across the hall from Mason’s room. Without bothering to turn on the the light, I lay Liz down on the bed. She bit her lip, and even in the darkness, I saw what horrible pain she was in. I felt a heaviness settle around my shoulders as a thought swam into my stunned mind.

  This is your fault.

  I went to the door and closed it, leaving it open just a crack in case Mason began to cry.

  And what the hell are you going to do if he does? What do you know about kids?

  I ran a hand over my exhausted face and went back to the bed. I crawled in next to Liz. Immediately, she rolled on her side and placed her head on my chest. I wrapped an arm around her, feeling like the devil. What had I brought into this poor woman’s life?

  “Jack,” she whispered after some time, her voice strained, “what the hell is going on?”

  Silence expanded in the air above our heads, and then I said, “I wish I knew, Liz.”

  Her breath hitched in her chest as she shifted closer into me. “What is he? What does he want?”

  I placed my lips in her hair and a comforting hand on her back. “He wants to teach us how to be good people. He wants to raise Mason with us.”

  “But why? Where did he come from?”

  “I don’t know…but I think I know who to ask.”

  “Please don’t leave me,” Liz whispered. “Whatever happens, please don’t leave me here with him.”

  I said nothing, knowing I had no control over what I would be allowed to do. I empathized with Liz so completely that I felt my heart breaking. At one point I had been exactly where she was now. Confused, terrified, and feeling very, very alone.

  “Just do what he says for now,” I said quietly, the room dark and still. “And whatever you do, don’t call the police. Don’t try to escape. Don’t tell anyone about what’s going on here. If you do, I can’t protect you.”

  Liz was silent for a moment, then sadly: “He’s going to kill me isn’t he?”

  I stroked her arm. “Not if I can help it. Stay patient and stay complacent.”

  Liz turned her tear streaked face up to mine. “What are you going to do, Jack?”

  I dropped my voice low, terribly low: “I’m going to kill that motherfucker.”

  From the kitchen, I heard a low, haunting chuckle.

  “Hehehehe…”

  Chapter 9

  I didn’t sleep much that night. At some point I think I dozed off, the stress and mental exhaustion finally overwhelming me. I remember waking just before dawn to see Tommy staring at me through the crack in the door, his eyes illuminating the sliver of darkness. When our eyes met, he smiled and faded back into the black. I didn’t fall back asleep. Instead, I stayed in bed, staring at the ceiling and holding Liz. Thankfully she was still out, breathing heavily against my chest. It was a strange feeling. She was familiar to me and yet different. The passage of time had faded the ease of our relationship, brief as it had been. Even though we had been in this very position many times, it felt intrusive now, like I didn’t have the right to hold her.

  She needs you right now, I thought, listening for signs of Tommy in the house. She just needs you to be here with her.

  But did she really? She had raised Mason by herself for three years, worked a job, and seemed to be doing quite well for herself, all things considered. What the hell did I bring to the table? I had done nothing but cause trouble for her since our reunion. How could I screw up her life so completely in such a short time?

  That’s just what you do.

  I closed my eyes. I was tired, dreadfully so, but I knew the world of dreams had departed for the night. Liz stirred against me and I smiled sadly down at her sleeping face. I wanted to protect her from the hell I knew was coming.

  She doesn’t need protection. She needs me to fix my mistakes. She needs me to grow up and deal with Tommy. Because I know what happens now…I’ve already been through it once and I’m not going through another five years of it.

  I needed to find a way to kill Tommy Taffy once and for all.

  As the sun peeked through the windows, I gently slid Liz from my arms onto a pillow and crept out of the room. The house was quiet, as was the countryside beyond the walls. I padded down the hallway and into the kitchen, feeling a headache coming on. I needed a cigarette.

  I froze as I entered the kitchen, heart fluttering.

  Tommy sat at the table, smiling. “Good morning, Jack. Did you sleep well?”

  “I just need some water,” I mumbled, going to the cabinet to retrieve a glass.

  “It feels right, doesn’t it?” Tommy asked from behind me, “being here? Sleeping with the mother of your child?”

  I said nothing, instead filling the glass from the sink and tipping it to my mouth. I gasped as I drank, grateful for the relief.

  “Did you fuck her, Jack?” Tommy asked quietly, his voice coy and prying.

  I turned around to face him, setting the glass down, “Of course not. What kind of animal would I be if I tried to pull some shit like that?”

  Tommy grinned and spread his hands. “I was just curious…you made it very clear last night what a mess you are.”

  “I need to go get some things from my apartment,” I said, looking at the floor. “I mean, if you want me to stay here, then I’m going to need my things.”

  Tommy eyed me curiously. “Well aren’t you compliant this morning.”

  I looked up at him. “I’ve watched you die twice now. And yet here you sit. What choice do I have?”

  Tommy chuckled. “Very well, Jack. Go and get your things. I don’t think I have to remind you what happens if you try and pull anything stupid.”

  “I learned that lesson a long time ago,” I muttered.

  “Just don’t forget it,” Tommy said, standing, “or it won’t be you who has to pay.”

  I fished my keys out of my pocket. “If Liz wakes, please tell her I’ll be back this afternoon. She’s going to be scared.”

  Tommy came and stood in front of me, his face a shadow over mine. “She has nothing to fear. Not unless you do something rash. And don’t worry about Mason, either. I’ll take care of him while you’re gone. I understand that a father can’t be there for his child all the time.”

  I shrugged away from him, unease coiling in my stomach. I didn’t like the way he had been looking at me, his eyes pouring into mine like he was searching my thoughts. Right now, I couldn’t afford that. Not with what I planned to do.

  I went to the door but stopped as Tommy called to me.

  “Oh, and while you’re out, get some groceries. There isn’t much here and I want us to hunker down for a while. So we can all acclimate to one another.”

  “Sure, Tommy,” I said, emotionless.

  I opened the door and left, feeling his eyes on the back of my neck.

  As soon as I reached my car and departed, I pulled out my phone. My heart was racing and I could feel a mental clock ticking precious seconds away. I pulled up my father’s number and dialed it.

  I felt a surge of frustration as it went to voicemail. Keeping one hand on the wheel, I spoke urgently into the phone.

  “Dad, it’s me. I need your help,” I paused, the fields rolling past the window. “He’s back, Dad. He’s back and he’s got me again. I need you. Please. Call me. I don’t know if I can do this without you.”

  I hung up and then dialed Jason. Thankfully, he answered.

  “Jack? What’s up, buddy?”

  “Oh thank God,” I groaned, “Jason, something terrible has happened.”

  A pause. “What’s going on?”

  My voice was strained and painful, knowing what I was about to bring back into my friend’s life. “Jason, I need you to listen very carefully to me.”

  “Jeez, man, you’re scaring me…”

  I braced myself. “Tommy’s back.”

  Silence.

  “Jason, did you hear what I said? He’s back and he has Liz and Mason.”

&nbs
p; Jason’s voice was soft and horrified. “Oh no…”

  “Please,” I begged, “I need your help. I can’t do this again, not alone. You have to help me. I won’t let them suffer like we did. I won’t do it. I can’t.”

  “Jack…how…how the hell…damn it…Jack, what are we supposed to do though? What can we do? We both know what he’s capable of. We both know what he does…what he will do if we deny him. Shit….oh shit, man…”

  “I know,” I urged, “but I think something is different this time. I think I know someone who can help us.”

  “Who?!”

  “I don’t have time right now to explain,” I pressed, “but when the time comes, I think I’m going to need you to help me.”

  A pause.

  “Jason?”

  “I thought we were done with him,” Jason said distantly. “I thought we had moved on and were leaving all this behind.”

  “So did I. I’m so sorry for even asking this of you.”

  “Don’t apologize. This isn’t your fault. Of course I’ll help you. Jack…I want to kill that bastard. I want to watch him die. The things he did to us…the things he put us through…” his voice was changing, growing violent, hateful. “I want to put a bullet through his eye and know that this time he won’t get back up. Where is he, Jack? Where the hell is he?”

  I told him he was at Liz’s house and gave him the address but then quickly added, “Don’t do anything stupid. Wait to hear from me.”

  “I want him dead.”

  “I know, so do I, but we both know he’ll come back unless we do something different.”

  Jason’s voice was laced with inpatient anger. “We were just kids, Jack. We didn’t know how to kill. Things are different now. We can fight back.”

  “And we will,” I stressed, “but we have to be smart about it.”

  “Sure.”

  “Jason…”

  “I get it, Jack.”

  “Ok,” I said, breathing a sigh of hesitant relief, “just…just wait until I call you, ok? I can’t promise when that’ll be, but just sit tight, all right?”

  “I don’t know how long I can wait, Jack…just knowing he’s out there…hurting more people…”

  “I’ll call you,” I said firmly.

  “Right.”

  I hung up, feeling things begin to settle in place. I hated myself for involving Jason, but I needed him. I also needed my father. I checked my phone and impatiently prayed he’d hurry up and call me back.

  I entered the city and pulled into a small grocery store. Groceries first, then my apartment. I hurried inside and began throwing things in a cart. As I did, I realized I needed to get Mason something to eat as well. What the hell did kids eat? He was three, did he need special food? Frustrated, I grabbed a couple jars of applesauce and animal crackers. It would have to do.

  Cigarettes. I needed cigarettes.

  I went to the checkout and began tossing things onto the conveyor, feeling anxious and impatient. I tapped my fingers against my leg as I watched the teenaged boy working the cash register slowly start to ring up my items. Behind him was a glass case full of cigarettes.

  I pointed to them. “Hey kid, can I get a couple packs please?”

  Without even looking up, he responded in a monotone voice. “Nope.”

  I felt irritation spike through me. “Why not?”

  He rang up the applesauce, “Don’t have the key, dude.”

  I gritted my teeth, “Well who does?”

  “The manager.”

  “Well can you call him over?”

  “He’s busy.”

  I felt a primal rage ignite through me. I slammed my hand down over his, stopping him from ringing up the next item. My voice was grated coals through burning fire.

  “Call. Him. Over.”

  The kid looked up at me. “Hey, man, you can’t do that. That’s assault.”

  I gripped his hand in mine, pulling his face inches from my snarling teeth. “I will fucking murder you where you stand if you don’t get me some goddamn, motherfucking cigarettes right fucking now. Do you understand, you little cunt?”

  The kid’s eyes went wide and he just stared at me in complete shock.

  I let him go. “Call him over. Now.”

  Swallowing hard, the kid fumbled with the phone and called the manager over. When he arrived, the kid kept his mouth shut and I was granted my cigarettes. I paid for everything and left, leaving the cashier in a state of terror.

  As soon as I got into the parking lot, I tore open a pack and hungrily lit a smoke. Nicotine flooded my system as I inhaled and the world felt slightly less dark. I loaded the bags into my car and peeled out of the lot, heading for my apartment. I smoked four cigarettes on the way over.

  When I arrived, I threw the car in park and rushed upstairs. I burst through the door and rushed into the bedroom where I began stuffing things into a duffel bag. Satisfied, I tossed it next to my bed and dropped to my hands and knees.

  The headphones.

  I reached under the bed and pulled out the box where I had stashed them in. I tore off the top and pulled them out, ramming them over my head. I pressed the speakers to my ears, voice a trembling plea.

  “Are you there? Rez?”

  I waited in silence, a trickle of sweat running down my face. My mouth tasted like ash and I was terribly thirsty. I closed my eyes and forced myself to breathe.

  “Rez?”

  A trickle of static entered my head and then the voice said, “I’m here, Jack.”

  “Oh thank Christ,” I whispered, “I need your help.”

  “I know you do. You shouldn’t have gone over there. That was a mistake. It’s going to make things much, much harder now.”

  “I couldn’t just leave them,” I argued, “Liz has nothing to do with this.”

  “She does now.”

  “Goddamn it, are you going to help me or chastise me!?” I yelled.

  “Of course I’m going to help you. Remember, years ago, when I told you that one day I would need you? Well…that day is almost here.”

  “That day is today,” I growled. “I’m sick and tired of standing by while Tommy does whatever he wants. We have to stop him and I think you know how.”

  “It’s not as simple as that, Jack.”

  “WHY NOT!?” I roared, “why won’t you just help me!?” I adjusted the headphones over my head, “Where are you? I want to meet you. We need to formulate a plan and I need some answers.”

  Static was followed by a series of low horns far off in the distance. “Jack…I’m afraid.”

  I blinked, stunned. “You’re…afraid!?”

  “I knew this time would eventually come, but now that the moment is upon me…I…I don’t even know where to start.”

  “You have to give me something,” I snarled. “Where are you!?

  “Let me ask you something. Do you believe the universe is infinite?”

  I shook my head. “What!? What does that have to do with anything?!”

  “It’s going to help you understand exactly what we’re dealing with.”

  I fumbled, dumbfounded, “Yeah…yeah sure, the universe is infinite, so what!?”

  A chirp of static as Rez sighed heavily, “No Jack…you’re wrong. There is an end to the cosmos. A…a surface, a plane that separates the universe from the realities beyond.”

  “What the fuck are you talking about?” I cried.

  Rez continued, “The expanse of space is massive and cold. Its dark fingers stretch further than your mind could possibly comprehend. But there is an end to it. And at that end, at the very corners of the universe, lies The Barrier.”

  “The Barrier?” I asked, incredulous.

  “Yes,” Rez continued, “it is a band, a ring, that encircles the walls of this existence. It is a dangerous thing full of metal and wire and wailing engines. It is as enormous as it is mysterious. I don’t know where it came from or what cosmic nightmare built it. But it divides the world you know from the pl
anes of existence not meant to be seen. It protects you and all of humanity from the horrors beyond. It separates this universe from those of greater darkness and evil.”

  “Rez…” I said, mind spinning, “I don’t understand…this…this Barrier…if our reality ends at its walls…what exactly is on the other side?

  Static buzzed in my ears and then was cleared by a distant whistle.

  “I dare not speak of that place,” Rez whispered,

  “I don’t understand,” I struggled.

  “And for your sake, I pray you never will,” Rez said quietly.

  I adjusted the headphones, trying my best to piece together the jigsaw of information. “Rez…how do you know all this? About this Barrier?”

  A long pause…and then:

  “Because that is where I came from.”

  My eyes went wide and I slumped against the bed. Impossible. None of this could be true, it just couldn’t. It was too fantastical, too insane. A barrier encircling the universe? A monstrous, pulsing creation of dark machinery? How? How could that possibly be true?”

  “Jack?”

  “What the hell are you?” I whispered.

  “There is no possible way I could describe to you the intricacies of my existence, Jack. It has taken me eons just to figure out how to communicate with you.”

  I sat up, sweat running down my face. “Try.”

  Rez exhaled heavily, a chatter of static in my ears, “Almost forever ago, I became aware of my existence. I don’t know how I came to be; I only know that I suddenly I gained a consciousness of some kind. As I awoke, I realized that I was pulling myself out of the mouth of some horrific machine. After freeing myself, I remember standing on the precipice of The Barrier and staring down into the vastness of space. And I fell in love with it. It enthralled me. The possibilities it held, the magic it must possess. I wanted to dive into it, fill myself with it, discover and experience everything it had to offer. And so I began to walk among the stars, searching for life. Searching for someone like me. I don’t know why I exist. Perhaps I am some anomaly birthed from The Barrier, a mistake or misfired pulse of life. Regardless, I rose from that dark, mechanical plane and found myself filled with curiosity.