Psycher Chronicles

Chapter 31

Opening The Box

(Phil Tulley)

This was not what she would have wanted.

Then again, he also knew that she would have wanted him to protect Misha as best as possible. The only way he felt that he could do so was to stay by her side.

Thus, the only option he had was to choose to go with Misha, even if it meant ultimately angering the ghost of his true love. Not that she was around to be able to complain anymore. That was what hurt the most, that deep dull ache that welled up inside.

What only served to make matters worse was how deep he had suddenly found himself. Drawn in by his granddaughter, who all but lured him here. No lure wasn’t the correct term, guided would probably be a more accurate description, though directed would also suffice.

Essentially, she knew what she was doing, and she struck when he was the most vulnerable to such statements. The fact that he found himself here was no question, as he knew if given the option between blissful ignorance or complete knowledge, he would, like Adam, choose knowledge over all other options.

In a way, one could say that this conclusion was almost biblical in nature, as everyone Phil could think of would jump at the chance to know, to truly know what happened. Even if she had asked later, and Phil wasn’t so emotionally attached, he knew, deep down in his heart, that he would make the same exact choice again. The fact that he wanted, no, that he needed to know.

That night, when they had gotten back from the hospital, it was just Misha and him. Andrea, his daughter, has gone back to the motel room with that Frank guy. Normally Phil would have hated such conditions, but it was good that she had someone to talk to at the time. Also, from what he could tell, Frank was a decent guy, as such he couldn’t really hold too much against his daughter for trying.

“So who did it?” Phil finally asked.

By now he had come to expect his granddaughter of a great many things. The fact that she knew what actually happened when the cops supposedly had no clear leads was not unbelievable. In fact, according to the cops it was a rando wound caused by glass fragments that caught and tore Julie’s neck and carotid artery. Despite no clear sign of where the glass came from, nor how Julie managed to cut open her neck after the vehicle had come to a complete stop.

No, the more Phil thought about it, the more he realized that his granddaughter was correct, that something was happening.

Finally, they sat at the dining room table and sat quietly, staring at each other.

Misha’s cold vibrant green eyes seemed to glow with their unearthly vigor.

Silence.

She sat there staring at Phil, waiting for him to finally break the cloud of secrecy that had somehow fallen on their house.

“So you say you know who did this?” Phil finally began.

“Yes,” Misha answered then after a pause continued, “now the only question is how much do you truly want to know?”

Pause.

Phil stood still, hearing the words and judging his granddaughter’s face. While she was normally considered to be emotionless and stoic beyond her years, Phil had found that he could read her. In fact, he was one of the few people alive who could come close to actually being close to figuring out what Misha was thinking at any given time, that or if he couldn’t figure out what she was thinking, then he could very easily figure out what she would do.

This time, he didn’t know what she was thinking, though he could extrapolate a few things on what she might do.

“Let me guess, if I don’t help you, you will go on doing what you need to do, without me?” Phil asked.

“Yes,” Misha answered, the word cold and echoing within the dining room.

At that Phil paused and mused to himself.

“So this is the proverbial Pandora’s box?” Phil mused mostly to himself.

A look of confusion crossed Misha’s face, but only for a moment as she seemed to contemplate the statement.

“You could say that, by opening this box you will find out about all the monsters that have already been unleashed upon the world. By just realizing the existence of the contents of the box, you will be subjected to knowing that monsters, true monsters exist within this world.” Misha answered.

If anyone else had made such bold claims, Phil would have scoffed at them, as this was close to some melodramatic poetry reading, at least that is what Phil would claim as his excuse to leave here now. Then again, he already knew she was right, as the girl before him could create fires, with her mind. Considering that effect, the idea of true monsters existing in the darkness didn’t seem too far of a stretch.

Chuckle.

“Let me guess, if you show me the contents of the box, we will also find the hope that is hidden at the bottom?” Phil asked, semi-delirious at this point, as his mind felt like it was near the breaking point.

Head shake.

Misha shook her head no, “I will not lie. The box has been opened for a long time, if there was hope at one point hidden within the box, it has likely been taken away or destroyed. No, if you find any hope within the box, it will be one that you create and strive for on your own. Your hope that you can prevent this from happening to someone else. Your hope that you can avenge your wife’s death. Your hope that things will be better, after this.”

Silence.

Phil didn’t know what to say to that. As always, the thing he loved and hated about his granddaughter was the fact that she didn’t yammer on incessantly. Instead, she gave an honest answer and then was quiet. Now the reason he hated this, was that it forced him to reflect inwardly on what was happening, on what he wanted to happen.

The fact that the girl before him was really his only remaining tether to this world was not lost on him. Afte Jules, there was just Misha, even he was not so lost at to miss this fact. The fact that it was clear she was ready to go out on her own, without him, to avenge Jules, well that also caused a minor battle of personal contempt to go off within him.

“To be clear, regardless of whether I choose to join you or not, you will still go about this course of action. But you will just do so alone and without me?” Phil asked, trying to buy time, but wanting to make sure he hadn’t missed Misha’s clues.

Nod.

“That is correct,” Misha answered, while nodding, the head movement was something she only did when she wanted to stress a point. The fact that she chose now to do such a gesture was not lost on Phil.

After a few moments of contemplation, Phil finally came to the conclusion that he needed to know one last thing before he continued.

“All right, say we are in this. You and I know there are monsters out there, we know monsters killed Jules and left her to die like a stuck pig on the side of the road. We know all this, and we even know that the police around here are too incompetent to stop them. What would we do to stop this? What would our role in this be?” Phil asked.

“Your role would be as a facilitator, and an alibi when needed.” Misha answered, making sure to give time for this information to settle in.

After a moment Phil nodded, whether this was a subconscious gesture of understanding, or an overt attempt to inform Misha that he was okay with this explanation, Phil didn’t know, as he was mostly lost in his own musings at this point.

“As for what we would do, the answer to that is quite simple. We would fix this problem like we do most problems.”

At that Phil found himself repeating the words, his lips moving in a way that was reminiscent of a fish trying to breathe on land. Seeing him lost in thought, Misha continued.

“We would destroy the problem at the root.”

With that Phil paused as he wondered “just how far down do these roots go?”

“Pretty far,” Misha answered in a tone that said she was underselling this point by a lot.

“And what exactly would we do to remove these problems, roots and all?”

At that Misha just paused, then finally demanded confirmation on the unspoken question. “Are you in?”

“Of course I’m in. They took Jules, and lord knows if I don’t do anything they will take you too. No, I am in. Now tell me, what do you need me to do?”

“First, we need to build a better hen house.” Misha answered.

“Hen house, what for?”

“To attract a wolf.”

***

(Rodger Lee)

He was being played. The worst part is, he knew it, and yet couldn’t seem to do anything to stop it. For some reason, call it luck, happenstance or sheer happenstance, every time Rodger turned around there she was, the new girl.

Each time he saw her, he could almost feel his pulse begin to race as baser instincts within him began to rise to the challenge before him.

For his part, Rodger was still getting used to the recent changes of becoming a werewolf. He had always been strong, but now he felt immeasurably powerful. He felt strength and power in equal parts that made him feel like he could conquer the world. This was why, or at least part of why his mind could not seem to handle the fact that the girl that he wanted had rejected him.

Then to make matters worse, not only had she rejected him, somehow easily managing to slip away from him despite him having found and blocked her in the hallway. He then had the misfortune of seeing her everywhere he went.

Shoes squeaking on a gym floor.

There was the unmistakable sound of tennis shoes scraping on a freshly polished gym floor that seemed to cause even more issues for Rodger, who was now dealing with heightened senses.

There in the court was the girls basketball team, clearly in the middle of a practice, as the coach was there directing them and yelling out actions to take.

As he watched the scrimmage, he saw the new girl seem to gracefully glide across the court. It was clear that she had practiced smooth transitions from standing still, to explosive movements. While it was clear that she wasn’t stronger than the other girls, she didn’t need to be, as her hands and feet seemed to make her glide about the floor.

“Hey man, stop gawking at my cousin, or you will be late for practice.” Jerome said, coming in and catching Rodger staring red handed at the girls.

With a shock Rodger wanted to protest, as he hadn’t been staring at the cousin, but at the girl who was guarding his cousin, the red head.

“No, I was watching her.”

“Oh the new girl,” Jerome said, then paused to stare at Rodger. Then after a second, he seemed to come to a conclusion, “you need to stay away from her man.”

Whistle.

“Good job, now take a break.” Coach Green yelled out to the team. With that the team began to break apart, each member getting their water bottles and drinking from them religiously.

“Why is she taken?” Rodger asked, while exclusivity was accepted by the Alphas, it wasn’t a hard and fast rule. This was something that had drawn Rodger to the lifestyle to begin with.

“Hah. No, she is definitely not taken.” Jerome answered with a scoff, but then continued. “That said, I think you want to avoid her if you can.”

Then as if she overhead the private conversation between the two, Misha looked up and locked eyes with both Jerome and Rodger, staring at each with a cold intensity for a few seconds, before turning her back on the two.

“See what I told you. You need to get yourself a good girl and not deal with that type of trash.” Jerome said.

With that Rodger paused, then he asked the question that had been on his mind all afternoon. “What happens if we make her one?”

“What like pack?” Jerome asked.

“Yeah.”

“No way man, she is not of the life.” Jerome answered.

“Not yet, but she could be.”

“Ha,” Jerome replied, “but seriously I would avoid her at all costs.”

“But I am allowed one right?” Rodger asked.

“You are talking about the pass for admission?” Jerome asked.

“Yeah.”

Jerome shook his head, “you can, but it will be a bad day if it doesn’t work out, if you know what I mean.”

“But I could use it on her?” Rodger asked.

“Yeah, I mean I guess, but it might be a waste.” Jerome replied, then pausing like an older brother he gave more. “You need to be really certain about the pass that you provide. As it is not just a matter of them, but the fact that you are offering up part of yourself as well in this process.” Jerome replied.

With that Rodger was about to say more, but Jerome cut him off.

“Come on, we are already late.” Jerome replied, tapping Rodger on the chest to get his attention before leaving the gym.

Rodger began moving towards the exit that led to the football field out back, but paused for a moment to take one last look at the new girl. As he did, he saw that she too had taken that exact moment to stare back at him. Their eyes met, and he saw a fiery resolve in those eyes that made him relish the idea of the hunt.

Yeah, I think she might be the one, Rodger thought to himself as he made for the exit.

Little did he know, he was responding exactly the way Misha had anticipated.