Chapter 13

Mothers

Roughly an hour after she had drifted off to sleep, the sound of what had to be two stones striking each other in quick succession turned out to be just loud enough to slowly but surely pull Cora out of her slumber. A soft groan could be heard from behind her closed mouth as she opened her mildly stinging eyes, only to briefly blink in an attempt to brush off whatever sleepiness was left. She hadn't bothered to take off her jacket earlier to use it as a makeshift blanket, since wearing it provided her with enough warmth to comfortably fall asleep with. No cramps in her neck, back or anywhere else could be felt this time, possibly because she had found a position that was most likely to cause her muscles very little, if any, pain throughout the night. Before she could think of what, or rather who, could possibly be making that noise, the stones were struck against each other one last time before it was replaced by a new sound; crackling that increased in volume, as if the flames that created this sound were finding their way through whatever they were setting alight. Naturally, it didn't take long at all for a warm, growing glow to form and reach inside the van as well, coating everything within its reach in a soothing, gentle shade of orange. Even from behind the window, Cora could feel a bit of the warmth it brought along with it. Needless to say, the rookie ghost huntress was fully awake by now, curious of where that glow was coming from.

She didn't need to look for long to figure this out, because when she turned her head to look through the window, she saw that a campfire had been created at some point while she had been napping, only a few feet away from the van. Thick, broken twigs and a small pile of dried grass had been used to fuel the flames while a circle of rocks kept them from spilling over. It was safe to assume that none other than Darby was the one who started it, since he was the only person (aside from Cora) present in this proximity and was sitting close to the flames, occasionally poking the smoldering wood with a long stick to stir up the fire and increase the size of the bright flames. Tiny embers that glowed bright red escaped from the narrow gaps between the twigs with a loud pop before disappearing in the night sky. Apparently, the night had been cold enough for him to put on his black jacket before he had decided to do something about it and set up a campfire, but even though the temperature around him had increased thanks to the flames, he still chose to keep it on, which did strike Cora as a bit odd, if you'd ask her. Thanks to the glow that by now had spread far enough to shine a light upon their closest surroundings, it was easy for Cora to figure out where her traveling companion had decided to park the van for tonight.

Judging from the very, very faint sound of cars rushing by that echoed through the air on a road that had been left behind a while ago, Cora guessed that he must have spotted an off-road path that led them away from the main road at some point during the ride and decided to follow it, leaving the main road far behind in the rearview mirror, but it did in turn lead them to a place that seemed absolutely perfect to visit for a whole lot of reasons, be it during the daytime or nighttime. A soothing walk, hoping to catch that perfect shot of the local wildlife, a refreshing dive into the lake, set up a tent and tell a myriad of ghost stories around a campfire in an attempt to scare the living daylights out of your friends while munching on roasted marshmallows and sipping on some beer; all of these reasons came to mind when Cora laid eyes upon the many pine trees surrounding them. It appeared that Darby had figured that there would hardly be any risk of accidently sparking an inferno with his campfire by starting it in the middle of the path that had guided whoever knew this place in the woods existed to the huge lake that could be spotted in the nearby distance, surrounded by rows of pine trees on the shores. Wow… if these woods can look this serene and beautiful at nighttime, Cora couldn't help but look forward on what a peaceful and lovely experience it would be to wake up here in the morning.

That's when Cora noticed something about Darby. Since his back wasn't turned towards her, she could see that he was holding what appeared to be a photograph; he hadn't looked away from it for one moment, his sight completely fixated on whatever image it displayed. Unknowingly to her, the van's glove compartment had been home to that same photograph this whole time, and Darby had managed to quietly retrieve it while she had been sleeping. The rookie ghost huntress had to slightly shift her body in order to get a closer look, but she could clearly see it. No, she couldn't see what exactly her traveling companion had been staring at for what could be ages by now, but she could still see something else. Something that instantly sparked not only some curiosity, but genuine pity as well. The light of the bonfire may have been gentle, but it was bright enough to reveal the look in Darby's eyes, and it had something so… saddening. Whatever he was looking at clearly made him feel sad, but he was unable to look away from it. As Cora continued to stare at him, the sense of pity grew stronger and stronger. Sure, she may have known Darby only for a short while, but still, she didn't expect him to look so saddened over something, especially after hearing that whole lecture about not letting your emotions tear you down and try to move on, be it during the job or regular life. But still… Darby appeared to allow some emotion after all. What could possibly make him feel this way? Would he trust her enough to tell her? The first thought that crossed Cora's mind was to hop out of the van and ask him, but quickly dismissed this idea when she promptly remembered the last time when she had tried this. Darby had made it perfectly clear to her that he wanted to be left alone back then and it was likely that she would unintentionally raise his ire again if she did this once more, but as of tonight, she was no longer afraid of raising her voice and retort if she needed to. But maybe this could all be prevented if she would approach him the right way… Her pity and curiosity weren't the only factors that made it all too tempting for Cora to go outside, since there was no point in trying to deny this; there was hardly anything else in the world that were more inviting that a warm bonfire on a summer night, and maybe, just maybe, this tranquil setting could help Darby not to immediately get defensive and let his walls down, even for a little bit.

The rookie ghost huntress then decided to take her chances. Her fingers found the door handle and she carefully opened the door. Some creaking was heard when she did this, but apparently it hadn't been loud enough to alert Darby, which in turn only showed how lost in thoughts he appeared to be. Now that Cora was outside, she could finally feel the full warmth of the campfire, and needless to say, it was delightful. But as soon as she made her first step towards her traveling companion, the crunch of pine needles and earth instantly made Darby snap out of his thoughts, turning his head into Cora's direction. As soon as he saw her approaching, he quickly tucked the photograph away in the pocket of his jacket. Despite seeing this, Cora still decided to sit down next to him regardless, curling her mouth into a playful smirk.

'I know that the nights can be freaking hot during summertime, but… you really have a hard time falling asleep, don't you?'

'Nothing new to me. You could say that I'm kinda used to it.' Darby replied, thankfully reciprocating the playful approach with a small smirk of his own. Nothing indicated that she wasn't allowed to sit down next to him and enjoy the bonfire, so that's exactly what Cora did. Making sure there were still some appropriate inches between them, she plopped down and opened her hands, warming her palms from a safe distance for a few seconds. By now, the wood that was used to fuel the flames were popping non-stop, sending numerous embers twirling to the sky. Honestly, all that was missing right now was a bag full of marshmallows and a six-pack of cold beer.

'So…' Darby suddenly asked. 'How does it feel to go back to your normal life tomorrow?'

Oh damn. The sudden realization struck Cora like a lightning bolt, causing her eyes to widen and sit up straight. Tomorrow, at some point, they were bound (or doomed, which seemed more of a fitting term to her) to finally arrive in Autumnfield, where she would try to spend as little time as possible before she would find a new place for her own. Anyone would feel relieved to get to their destination after such a long road trip, but unfortunately, Cora Jade wasn't one of these people, knowing exactly what would be in store for her there. Hell, she would most likely already get a taste of it before she would even get there, because she would have to let her mom know that she would be arriving on that day. And given there hadn't been any chance to get in contact with her today, Cora could definitely count on starting her day with her mother relentlessly chewing her up through the phone tomorrow. And she was going to have to endure a whole lot more of that during her (hopefully) temporary stay… as much as she absolutely hated it.

'I don't have much choice, right?' Cora said, her voice noticeably softened. She didn't, she really didn't; it was either this or the streets, and she then assumed that the last thing on Darby's mind was her permanently sticking around with him. Didn't she also promise him that he would be rid of her as soon as they would get there? So no, she didn't have a fucking choice. Realizing that Darby might get suspicious from this response, she quickly attempted to change the subject, not just for the sake of it, but also because she was genuinely curious about this.

'If you don't mind me asking, Darby… what is your plan when you get to Autumnfield? You told me that you were heading there when we first met, I remember you saying that you had plenty of work cut out for you over there. By now I can figure out that it has something to do with ghosts, no doubt. But… where exactly? Maybe I might have heard of the place where you need to be.'

Ah, so she remembered. Well, seeing how much he had involved her in his work by now and made her realize that ghosts aren't simply figures in horror stories and are indeed very, very real and capable of hurting the living, Darby didn't see any harm in telling her the truth. And besides, she didn't have to be part of this job, not after he had dropped her off at her mom's place.

'There's this place on the outskirts of that town called the Cedar Hills Motel.' the blonde ghost hunter said while he poked the long branch into the smoldering wood. 'That spot is known to be teeming with ghost activity for many years, but as of late, shit has been getting real over there. And I mean some serious shit, Cora. People, especially travelers, walk in there and they never come out, and before you know it, their faces are all over the news after their bodies are discovered. If there's not one Mindless painting the walls of Cedar Hills with their blood, there will be two, or three, fuck, maybe more. I wouldn't be surprised if the ghosts of these travelers join in as well and become Mindless too. Someone's got to put an end to all of that and I'm going to take that job. It's not the first time I have cleansed out a place with that many Mindless and it sure as hell won't be my last. But someone's gotta do it.'

'Wait, Cedar Hills?' Cora couldn't help but blink her eyes in surprise. 'That place had been haunted all along? I mean, I knew it was pretty rundown over the past couple of years, but haunted? Damn… that one actually hits close to home.'

'Well, now you know, sis.' her traveling companion replied with a small smirk.

'But honestly, Darby… I'm curious about something.'

'About what?'

'Why… Why did you choose for this life in the first place? Driving all over the country, putting your own life at risk almost every night… Why? Why did you choose for all of this?'

It was completely quiet between the blonde ghost hunter and his traveling companion for a few seconds, aside from the crackling coming from the fire. Cora could see the hesitation on Darby's face, and mentally, she already prepared herself to get shouted at, or him stomping off into the darkness in an attempt to clear his head since there was nothing in their proximity that he could use as a ramp for his skateboard. But none of that happened. Something inside Darby was telling him that none of it was her business, the last thing he needed was her to pity him like he was some sad, abused, lonely puppy, but then again, despite having known her for only a few days, he felt like she had the right to know. And hell, maybe… maybe telling her about his main reason of why he chose the life of a ghost hunter would ease the pain, even for a small bit, but at the very least it would make it more bearable. He could trust her with this, right? Just like she had trusted him several times during this trip… Darby slowly breathed in through his nose and glanced down at his feet, his clasped hands resting on his knees.

'Let's not lie about, shall we? The world sucks, it really does fucking suck. I can think of probably a million reasons right now of why the big guy upstairs can look at us, realize his mistake and erase us from existence. You've seen it yourself, no? You have experienced it too. Abusive piece of shit boyfriends, men killing their wives for the sake of some mistress, people dying from their addiction in a park... But still… as fucked up as this world can get… I also do believe that there are good people out there. People who are worth protecting.'

Now that all doubt had been thrown out of the window, Darby thought that it was time to expose the most vulnerable part of his very being and reached his hand inside the pocket of his jacket, retrieving the photograph that he had been staring for minutes on end during this night. Cora could now finally see what exactly had saddened him earlier… and even though this everlasting memory seemed nothing short of adorable, she definitely knew there must be some sad story behind this. A little boy with short blonde hair and the happiest pair of blue eyes she had ever seen on a toddler was sitting at a white, plastic, round table, unable to keep his eyes off the chocolate cake that had been presented in front of him, adorned with five small, colorful candles that had been lit up before this picture was taken. A woman who appeared to be in her early twenties had to slightly bend her knees in order to be on the same level as the boy, and dear God… it was almost stunning of how much she resembled Darby. The same eyes, the shape of her nose, hell, even the color of her shoulder-length hair. She too had a happy expression on her face, smiling from ear to ear at the camera. The wall behind them was entirely made of aged, brown wood.

'Holy crap…' Cora whispered while pointing at Heather Allin. 'That woman… is she your mother?'

The blonde ghost hunter briefly nodded before he spoke again. 'She is the perfect example of such people. My mom's life was anything but rainbow and sunshine when she had me, but still, that didn't stop her from giving me all the love that she had. It was just the two of us, you know. My dad had long left the picture before I was even born. I have no idea of who he could possibly be or where he's at, but honestly, I couldn't give less than a shit about all of that. That fucker didn't even send me a damn birthday card. I didn't even give a damn back then, because all I needed was my mom. I knew I could count on her, no matter what. Like I said, her life was anything but great back then and it never really did change later on. My mom had to raise me all by myself. We lived in a trailer park somewhere in the middle of fucking nowhere in Washington that was full of addicts, prostitutes and ex-criminals. That's the place that I call my childhood home. We hardly ever had any money, but my mom made sure I kept a roof above my head and food in my stomach by working her ass off at the diner, day in and day out. And no matter how tired she was by the end of the day, no matter how stressed out she would get if a bill was stuffed in the mailbox… she could still show her love to me. Always. And I fucking loved her for it.'

'Did…' Oh God, Cora probably was going to absolutely hate the answer to this question. 'Did something happen to her?'

Once again, Darby fell quiet for a few seconds, but knowing that there was no turning back now, he decided to speak again.

'My mom was the kind of woman who wouldn't even hurt a fly. She was amazing. She didn't do anything wrong in her life to deserve what happened to her. I think I must have been around eight years old back then, but one night, when she was driving back home from work, some scumbag in the area thought it would be a good idea to drive while being absolutely shitfaced. She was almost home when he struck her with his pick-up. Killed her on impact while he got to live. I have been able to see ghosts for as long as I can remember, and I can still remember her ghost's face hovering above me while I was in bed to this day… telling me she wouldn't be coming home… needing to see me in order to move on, all while she was covered in blood and glass. That's the final memory I have from my mother. And to be fair… a part of me died along with her that night.'

In an instant, Cora could feel her stomach sinking to her feet like a stone being thrown into a lake, covering her mouth with her hand. Jesus Christ, this was… this was horrible, just horrible. Poor Darby…

'Damn, Darby… I… I'm so sorry to hear that, I really am. But… what happened to you afterwards? If you couldn't go live with to your dad, then where else could you have gone to?'

'As it turned out, I wasn't the only family my mom had left.' Darby briefly paused to poke the wood again. 'They send me to live with my maternal grandpa. His name was Norman. And guess what? Norman was one mean motherfucker. Hell, probably the meanest bastard I have ever met in my whole life. The smallest thing could set him off, be it my room being a mess, a bad grade at school or simply not washing the dishes after dinner. It was like he enjoyed being like this. He would use his fists from time to time, but it was almost always the belt that he used. That fucking belt. Bastard wouldn't even stop hitting me with it if the floor was splattered with blood. Never in my whole life had I called him 'Grandpa', only as 'sir' or 'Norman', but mostly, and always behind his back, I would refer to him as 'asshole'. That fucker scared the hell out of me as a kid. From time to time, he would remind me of how my mother should have never spread her legs like a whore, how she would still be alive if she had aborted me, how I would always be a loser, no matter what I did. Then that one night finally came… that night where he got what he deserved. I had to wait a long time, ten years probably, but it did finally happen. I don't remember what I exactly did to piss him off that time, but it had pissed him enough to pull out that belt again. I remember him whipping me with it like there was no tomorrow, when he suddenly stopped and started clutching his chest. That fucker died of a heart attack on the floor. For the first time in my life… I felt free. It was all over. No more beatings, no more pain. I really thought I was free when his body was carted out of the house. But even in death, my grandpa was not done with me yet. Because that night, I woke up to his ghost pulling me out of bed and striking me with that goddamn belt, saying that he was only going to move on when he was done whipping me to death. Now, I have been able to see ghosts for my whole life, but that night… I found out that I was capable of more than just that. My heart stopped and it all kicked in with full force; the powers that had been lingering inside of me all this time. At some point, I managed to grab that belt of his and give him a taste of his medicine, over and over again, until he vanished. I never saw his ghost again after that. That's when I figured that there must be more spirits like his out there, being a danger to the living and killing them if they get the chance. Living people who deserved to be protect against such evil, like my mom… so not long after that, I packed my shit, bought a van and began a new life. With my grandpa's money. Looking back on it, the only good thing about that bastard was his heritage.'

At that moment, Darby couldn't stop chuckling about that statement, as if he had heard the funniest joke in the world some time ago and was still amused by remembering it. Cora hadn't interrupted him one time, listening to the horrendous abuse he had to endure throughout the majority of his childhood in nothing else but pure horror, sadness and disgust, but hearing him laughing it all off at the end of it… honestly, it just boggled her mind. How could anyone still be chuckling after telling something as horrible as this?

'Well, that's my sob story of a life.' Darby eventually said after the amusement wore off, but then he seemed to notice the look of disbelief on his companion's face. 'Oh, come on, Cora, lighten up a bit, will you? Hell, it's not like your childhood is any shittier than mine, or is it?'

'Yeah… about that…'

If he trusted her enough to share his absolutely heart-wrenching past with her, then she should trust him enough as well to tell hers, right? And besides, she had already told him all about Trevor and the absolute disaster of a relationship she had with him that ended in the worst way imaginable.

'I grew up with a dad until I was about thirteen years old or something. That's when he up and left. He didn't bother keeping in touch with me any longer.' she mumbled. 'As soon as the divorce was finalized, my mom picked up the shitty habit of marrying some new guy at least one time a year after divorcing from the other. Darby, living under the same roof with her was next to impossible. I have no clue on how my mom found them, but all of them were losers from the get-go. It didn't matter to her if they were alcoholics, cheaters, jobless, or just a pain in the neck to be around with, she would still somehow be enamored by these men and end up marrying them. Not once did she learn from her mistakes. Not once did the thought of trying to look for a man who was actually worth her time and spending her life with. She would always go after the absolute worst, and no matter what happened, even if her new hubby was clearly in the wrong, she would always side with him. It was like I had never mattered to her… she only cared about those losers. Come to think of it, I… I have never gotten along with my mom. Ever.'

'And it never has gotten any better, did it?' Darby suddenly asked. 'I could tell by how you acted whenever you mentioned you mom during this trip…'

So he had figured it all after all… maybe this was all for the better, she guessed. Cora shook her head. 'No, it hasn't. But she's the only family I got left. I've got nowhere else to go, I'm as good as broke, so what other choice do I have than staying with her? That's why I have to go to Autumnfield, Darby. Because I have nowhere else to go…'

'Really? You have nobody else to turn to?'

'No. I wish I had, but… no. I know my story is nowhere as near sad as yours, but let me tell you one thing, Darby… you're so lucky to have had a good mother.'

'You know…' One more, the blonde ghost hunter took a moment to stir up the flames a bit more by using the stick. 'My childhood wasn't all that godawful. I did find out as a kid that I'm pretty damn good at skateboarding.'

'Seriously?'

'Yeah, seriously. I mean, there's just something about it, Cora. Feeling that rush, trying to pull off every stunt there is out there, hell, even falling flat on your face and getting back up is fun about it. That's what actually helped me to get through all of it, you know? Being at the skatepark after school is where I didn't have to remember how shitty life at home was with my grandpa, I could be myself there and have fun. The skater scene is where I found myself, and even now, it's a part of me.'

'That is awesome!' Cora said, curling her mouth into a genuinely excited smile. 'I used to do that too as a kid, I loved it! Most girls would hang out with each other at the mall after school, but that never had been my thing. I would be perfectly happy at the park with my skateboard and try my hardest to become the next Tony Hawk. But as usual, my mom had to ruin everything, telling me to quit over and over again because skateboarding was a 'boy's thing' in her eyes… She just took the fun out of it. Oh man, it's been years since I've been skateboarding, now that I think of it. I'm pretty sure that I have gone rusty by now, I'm afraid...'

'You know what? How about this: if we get the chance for it tomorrow and we see a good spot, I could help you relearning it. Brushing off that rust, you know what I mean?'

Cora couldn't help but chuckle at this, but for a good reason. 'Sounds good to me! And hey… I think there's nothing wrong with feeling alive for a bit when you're dealing with death most of the time.'

No matter how old he would become, Darby would always feel like a part of his very being had perished with his mother on that one night where his life was changed for the worst… but, if he had to be entirely honest… he couldn't disagree with Cora.

A sudden rush of sheer cold that no bonfire in the world could possibly ever drive away with its warmth froze the air around them before a giant flurry of blackness producing a wet snarl crashed into him.