Monsters in the Closet
Prompt 034: Not Enough
Author's Ramblings: hopefully now we'll be moving into the whole resolution of this particular fic. Although I'm sure there are still a few more chapters to go the epilogue is already done. Thing is there's an idea running in my head and I can't seem to get it out of the way… Yet I have no idea how to get it out in ink (or on electronic ink anyway).
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Doris and her younger son were packing the things they would be needing for the next couple of days. Over the years they had learned to let go of the things they owned, but for the last two and half years they had been settling on the life they now considered their own. It was silly really, how they have had accepted this place as their new home… David had come to the conclusion of keeping this life, even if it was too dangerous; it was funny and serious how fear leads their lives.
"Mom?"
"Yes, love?" The younger Stutler appeared at her door, holding a basketball trophy; he seemed regretful of having to leave it behind, and it made Doris wonder if it was only her who was capable of letting go.
"How could Dad escape this time?"
Without an answer Doris just sat over her bed, and smiled at him, she padded the mattress beside herself prompting the child who wanted to be an adult to move towards her. "I have no idea child, but as long as we are together…"
"I don't want to move either."
Sometimes fear alone was not enough.
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The wolves had found their way into an abandoned building, they were not rare in New York, but the way it's insides were kept, clean and stocked with all supplies to spend an entire winter were weir. Dave made his way into the room, hounds keeping watch as he inspected the insides, and the eagle hiding at the top of the quiet building. Its weight made several showers of dust fall from the weakened ceiling, while the silence was broken by Dave's breathing and the soft echo of his shoes.
There was a collage of pictures on the far wall; pictures of himself as a baby, of Balthazar and Becky, of Tank and Veronica and Benet… A map with his address and big red X over it, even a picture of Balthazar with a circle and another X, this time in black, over it. Dave realized then two things: his father was out of reach, there was no way therapy and medicine might save him from this obsession, this insanity! And two; his father knew all and every one of their movements. He must have been planning this whole thing for weeks.
Dread pulled at Dave's soul and for a moment he just let the facts move randomly through the top of his head while he stood there, watching the many pictures of his mother and brother, himself, and his new family…
If Dave knew where they all were, if he'd found them without been found himself…
What else could he have planned?
Taking a step back, Dave heard something crushing; and looking down he saw piece of plastic under his pointy shoes. He pulled back, looked down…
Dr. Ian Roland, Internal Medicine, New York Downtown Hospital.
Oh God.
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Balthazar stepped into the dark hallways of his childhood memories. The child he was carrying had woken up during their short walk and was now walking between the tall wolf and Balthazar holding the taller self's hand. When they stood at the end of the hallways he halted and although he was urging Balthazar to go on he remained behind. Fear hid within the child, and it was big, but Balthazar knew it was for the best the child remained; sometime it took lots of courage to step into this corridor and along with fear, this child also held his innocence. Several more wolves stood before a door and while some were continuing to sniffle around, one sat watching Balthazar. It was Accalia, Boldolf's mate. Balthazar chuckled softly to himself; it was amazing how these wolves have created a whole clan within Balthazar's head!
"Master Blake."
"Ever the proper lady, Accalia, I've told you repeatedly to call me Balthazar."
"I rather keep formalities, sir." She stood, sniffling at the broken down wall. "It is here."
"What am I suppose to see here?"
Accalia turned to Balthazar, and if she were human she would have smiled. "I do not know. But you really want to see it to have had us searching for this."
Balthazar turned, his hand lifting to push at the door hiding behind the broken bricks. For a second he stared at the old door, while his heart was beating loudly for some odd reason against his chest it was actually starting to hurt; this was a particular emotion he hadn't felt in a long time. The broken façade of calm slowly broke from his face and the frown that replaced it was evident, his skin paled, he swallowed hard and felt his skin grow cold… Who would have thought that even within his mind he could feel like this?
The door was pushed and he faced something he would have rather not remember.
He found himself inside a small hut. There was a fire going on the far wall, it was burning and eating the place up slowly. His mother was on the floor, death, and under her a child… His precious little sister was dead. Balthazar, as a simple four year old child stood against the far wall; the door was on fire, there was no escape, there was no oxygen and his lungs were already burning. His blue eyes were set on his mother's lifeless ones, the blood pouring from under her…
Balthazar pulled himself out of the room, and fell to the hallway outside, the ever ending smell of smoke pushing against his skin brushing against the injury of a memory he thought healed long ago.
Apparently not even a thousand years were enough to heal such painful thing.
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Veronica drank her coffee content, while Becky hoped she could have at least a clue of Dave's whereabouts. "Sometimes they leave, just to prove a point. And all the while I think it's stupid." Said Veronica suddenly, able to read the signs of a friend in distress. "Men will be boys."
"I think you mean boys will be boys."
"No, I meant what I said."
The machine attached to Balthazar's middle finger suddenly chirped and whirled loudly, suddenly dying while from the speaker a screeching long beeping sound covered the room. Veronica and Becky turned in surprise from the very moment and noticed Balthazar was convulsing. Veronica dropped her coffee to the ground and reached for him, feeling the energy of a plasma bolt covering his skin, unable to escape because he had no rings on. Her hair stood on their end and she let out a gasp of surprise, and amazement. "Slow time out! He's too charged to have the nurses touch him!"
Becky stammered for a second and then realized she had no idea what Veronica was saying. She wasn't as powerful as Dave, heck not even as the Drake guy, but she could clear her mind faster than any of them; so she just did so and tried to do something to slow people down. A spell was casted, to show her mirror image appearing from another room and calling out for help and while outside the emergency cart (Or Code Green) was hurried down the hall and towards the room of that nice lady who was still in a coma, Veronica absorbed the magic Balthazar was emitting too quickly to be controlled. "Find me his rings!"
The apprentice struggled with the spell she was casting and hurried to the small closet, pulled out the bag of rings and threw them to Veronica, who quickly casted a shield around her husband and herself, and fished his casting ring from the bag, placed it around his finger… Lighting moved around them and burned the end of his paper robe, the hospital sheets and the line connecting to the machine burned up, the IV line boiled for a second and finally the sound of thunder echoed in the room, making the lights flash several times, and die.
Veronica killed the shield, leaned against the uncomfortable chair and Becky vacuumed the smell of smoke with a vacuum sphere; then broke her own spell and walked out of the room, desperate (or at least looking quite so). "Hey! He's over here!" And the emergency cart was pulled towards the room in a hurry. At the end of the hallways the elevator opened and the worried doctor hurried towards Becky.
"I had the nurses call me in case Mr. Blake might have some relapse; how is he?"
"See for yourself." And Becky ushered him in. The nurse was checking the IV lines, and while a male nurse was scratching the back of his head and staring at the burned down machine; Veronica was beside her husband, holding his hand while the doctor walked into the room. The man picked the file at the end of the bed, frowning and complaining that it was hot, what made Becky shot a glance towards Veronica, who remained quiet and at some sort of ease (however she managed that after such intake of magic and her husband's sudden convulsions was a mystery for Becky). The tall doctor and the nurse with the IV exchanged some murmurs that none of the sorceress could understand.
The nurse changed the IV, shaking her head and showing the bag to the doctor, and then walked out the door, followed by the helping nurse dragging the cart and then the male nurse pushing the burned down heartbeat machine.
"According to these readouts Mr. Blake is making a very quick recovery; we'll have to dig into this particular event. It is unnatural to read these particular high electric signals from a single body, probably from an electric eel but not a human being." He was murmuring softly while reading the file, what made Veronica slowly stand; Becky saw the purple ring cased within the silver of Veronica's casting ring glow and the older sorcerer smiled.
"Probably it was an electric failure."
"Yeah, probably it was and electric failure."
"As well as the readings."
"And these readings are all faulty."
"You should throw them out, they are worthless."
"In which case these are worthless; so I'll have the nurse replace it." And the doctor pulled the paper from the charts and handed them to Veronica. "Would you please give them to the nurse when she comes back?"
"Yes, of course. Thank you."
Veronica hid the papers inside her purse, quickly so, while Becky shook her head and picked up the small bag with Balthazar's rings and hid them. The doctor returned to his reading, as if nothing had happened and Veronica continued talking.
"Will he be ok?"
"I'm sure he will." He said smiling. "I have some antibiotics here for him; it will be good for his lungs and to speed up the healing." Becky turned and saw Dave running towards the room, he looked in and upon setting eyes on the doctor slammed his hands against the glass, making the girl frown. The doctor moved towards the IV and pulled out said needle, finding the little bulb to inject in…
"No!" Cried Dave, hurrying into the room while panting.
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Author's Ramblings: Thanks for reading and forgive another short chapter. If you haven't stepped into my profile please do and answer the poll I have going on. Review, there's cinco de Drinko celebration going on there... what means they have lots of nachos in red, yellow and green with all types of salsa available to you to munch on while you write. Thanks in advance and happy writing!