Chapter 17

With a heavy sigh, Camila got out of bed as the morning light spilled into her bedroom, painting everything in a warm, golden glow. She paused at her door and turned to look for any signs of movement from her daughter, who had slept in her bed the whole night.

After Luz and Philip had a screaming match, Camila had pulled Luz into the sanctuary of her bedroom the moment Philip became unresponsive. But even there, her daughter hadn't calmed down from her rage, which had turned into trembling and gasping for air, her body wracked with a panic attack. Camila had quickly led her to her bed and had held onto her, stroking her hair and murmuring words of comfort.

Luz had let out a sad apology, crying into her chest and gripping her mother's shirt. "Por favor, entiéndame, mama, I don't want to lose you too," Luz had choked out while hot tears trailed down her tender cheeks. "I don't want to lose anyone ever again."

Tears had instantly gathered in Camila's eyes when she thought of Manny, her late husband, and she started to understand the deeper reason why Luz didn't want Philip staying at their house.

Her arms had tightened around her daughter, and she had whispered to her that she wouldn't let anything bad happen to anyone in that house as long as she was breathing. Luz had continued to sob in her embrace, and after a while, her breathing had evened out, and she had drifted off to sleep.

Camila had gently laid her daughter down on the bed, tucking her in with a soft blanket. It was then that she had heard a commotion downstairs before it had traveled outside of the house. She had quickly made her way to the window to find Philip striding away into the forest.

She had watched him go and had thought for a second to stop him, but one look at her daughter resting peacefully in her bed made her decide it was probably better for Philip to be out of the picture for now.

Camila shook her head to get out of her thoughts and made her way downstairs to the living room to find Hunter sitting on the couch, with Philip nowhere in sight.

"Oh, good morning, mijo," she said, offering the boy a smile. Hunter turned his head towards her, with dark circles greyer than usual under his eyes, evidence that he had not slept well, or at all.

"Good morning, Camila," Hunter muttered.

"I guess Philip hasn't come back yet?" she dared to ask.

"No, he hasn't," Hunter said, looking down at his lap, disappointed and worried at the same time, which made Camila's heart break. Of course, the boy was worried for Philip, but sadly, the man didn't care about him at all.

"I'm going to make us some banana pancakes," Camila said to the boy, trying to cheer him up. "Something different today."

"I can help you if you want," the boy offered as he got up.

"Oh, no, it's okay, mijo," Camila said to him gently, but the desperate look in the boy's eyes made her give in slightly. She assumed he wanted something to do to get his mind off Philip. "Could you help me set up the table instead?"

Hunter's shoulders relaxed, and he nodded. In no time, both were in the kitchen, with Camila making pancake batter, and Hunter finishing up putting plates and utensils for everyone on the table.

"How's Luz…?" Hunter hesitantly asked her as he sat down on one of the chairs.

Camila was busy pouring batter onto a frying pan before she answered. "She's resting right now, but honestly, I don't know what to do. I knew she didn't agree with having Philip in the house, but I didn't think she was stressing out so much from it…" She looked down at the pan, feeling a bit of shame. "I should have noticed how bad she was handling things."

"You shouldn't feel so guilty," Willow said as she entered the kitchen with Amity and Vee.

"Yeah, you do so much for us," Amity said. "As her girlfriend, I should have also paid more attention. I knew she was upset, but I didn't think it was that bad."

"I think once we finish breakfast, we should probably talk to her as a group," Willow suggested. "To make sure she's doing okay and to let her know we're there for her."

"And finally decide what we should do with Belos, since we don't have that oath on our side," Vee added.

Hunter looked down at the table at the mention of his 'uncle,' and he couldn't help but feel nauseous at the thought of the discussion they would have about him since he had a feeling it wasn't going to go well for the man. Once again, Hunter mentally yelled at himself for caring about the man instead of hating him.

"Yeah, that's a good idea," Camila smiled at Willow. She was so glad Luz had such wonderful friends who were thinking about her well-being.

As Camila continued preparing the pancakes, Gus joined them in the kitchen, silently taking a seat. Everyone agreed they would let Luz sleep in while they ate breakfast. While Amity and Willow poured milk or orange juice for everyone, their palisman roamed around the kitchen, relieved to finally have some time out of their hiding spots now that Philip was gone. Gus kept a gentle hand on his palisman's head as he side-glanced at Hunter, who was gazing at his plate, trying not to draw attention to himself.

After Belos left, Hunter had stayed up all night, waiting for him to come back home, but he never did. He hoped Philip was digging up more holes safely. Hunter wanted to go check on the man, but he didn't want to leave the house vulnerable to potential danger while everyone slept.

Flapjack poked his head out from under Hunter's collar before landing on the table and tilting his head up at the boy with a worried look in his eye. The boy gave his partner a small smile before petting his head with a finger. Well, the silver lining to the whole situation was that Flapjack didn't have to hide at the moment.

Little Luz sat in the waiting room of the hospital, her small frame barely filling the chair she was perched upon. The fluorescent lights buzzed above her as the clock on the wall ticked away the minutes. She anxiously watched the hands move. They were supposed to see her father an hour ago, but her mother had told her they had to wait because her dad was still sleeping. But Luz could see the red-rimmed, glossy eyes her mother was trying to hide, and she knew something was wrong.

Little Luz had been in and out of the hospital corridors for a while now, and she had seen others crying in the hallways at times, which made her feel slightly sick and worried too. She had watched her father grow thinner and paler with each passing day. She may be young, but she wasn't naive. Still, she tried her best to hide the fear that was growing in her chest as time continued to pass by.

Suddenly, a nurse approached them, and Luz's mother got up to talk to her. Luz's heart raced as she watched her mother and the nurse talk in hushed voices. Then her mother covered her mouth with her hand, stepped back, and tears began rolling down her cheeks.

Little Luz felt her throat clench as she stared her mother slowly fall apart.

"No... no... please, Manny... Oh Dios..." her mother's muffled sobs filled the room, and Luz's terror intensified. Without a second thought, little Luz sprang from her seat and ran in the direction of her father's room, ignoring her mother's calls. She ran as fast as she could, her mind racing. Her daddy needed her, and she had to be by his side right now, to hold his hand, to tell him everything was going to be okay. Ignoring the nurses who tried to stop her, she pushed past them and burst into the room where her father used to stay.

But this time, there was no one in the room, not even the bed was there. "Dad?" Luz let out, her wide eyes glancing around the vacant room. A nurse came into the room right away.

"Where's my dad?" Luz demanded right away as she turned to look up at the nurse. The nurse hesitated, unsure how to respond. She knew the little girl since she had seen her visit the man who was assigned to the room. She didn't want to be the one to break the news to her, so she knelt down to her, giving her a soft smile.

"Your father has been moved to another room," she finally said, hoping to buy some time until the girl's mother came into the room.

"What room?" Luz's voice became desperate. "Take me to him!"

"Let's go find your mother first," the nurse said quietly.

"No, I want to see my dad!" Little Luz stepped away from the nurse, her eyes shaking as they glazed with unshed tears. "Please take me to see my dad! He needs me!"

"Mija," Little Luz glanced at her mother stepping into the room, tears still flowing down her face.

"Mami, where's dad?" Little Luz asked her mom right away.

Her mom looked away for a moment, wiping her eyes, even though the tears wouldn't stop coming out. She then went over to her daughter, went down to her knees, and grabbed her daughter's shoulders softly.

"Luz…" her mother said quietly, searching for the right words to deliver the devastating news to her young daughter while also shielding her from unnecessary pain. "Luz, mija, there's something I need to tell you," she said softly, barely above a whisper.

Little Luz shook her head rapidly, covering her ears with her tiny hands.

"Your dad, he's not…" her mother began, but little Luz kept shaking her head with increasing desperation.

"Take me to my dad, mami," Little Luz begged with a whimper. "Please, he needs me!"

Her mother pulled her daughter into a tight hug. "Oh Luz…" she choked as she began to cry again. "I'm so sorry, mija, I'm so sorry."

Luz struggled in her mom's embrace, tears finally making their way to her eyes as she yelled, "This isn't funny! I know dad is messing with us! I know he's pulling one of his pranks again!"

Camila held on to her daughter tighter, her face buried in the little girl's hair.

"No, mi amor, your daddy, he's… he's gone," her mom finally said, her voice heavy with sadness. "He's gone, mija…"

"No, he's not!" Little Luz cried, still struggling to break free. "He promised he wouldn't leave us. He promised he would get better," she choked as her body began to shake with grief and pain, and she felt like she couldn't catch her breath. "Please, please let me see him, mami, please…"

"I can't, mija," her mother said quietly. "I can't…"

Little Luz felt her world crashing down around her. Her little heart felt like it was breaking into a million pieces as she tried to process what was happening at that moment. Tears streamed down her face, and her sobs seemed to come from deep within her chest as she kept begging her mother to take her to her dad.

She had seen her dad the day before, after he had told her he had left her a present in the trunk of the car inside a box. How could he be gone when he was alive not so long ago? There was no way her dad was gone.

She desperately wanted to feel her dad's warm embrace, hear his kind voice, and have them all back at home, laughing and smiling on the couch. But her mother just continued to hold her, whispering words of comfort that did nothing to ease the pain in her heart.

As little Luz mentally screamed for her dad to come into the room with a grin and tell them they fell for another of his pranks, he never showed up. Little Luz never got to feel her father's warm embrace ever again.

Luz brushed away the few tears that made their way out of her eyes as she was laying on the side of her mother's bed, while she tried to push away the memory she wished had never happened. Losing her father was the worst thing she had ever experienced, and even now, it made her heart clench painfully, making her want to scream in anger at the world for taking him away from her. She knew he was gone, and that he was never going to come back, no matter what she did... There was nothing she could do to see him again...

Life had taken her father from her… and now it seemed it was trying to take others she loved from her as well.

Adrenaline slammed into her as she remembered her argument with Belos the night before. She jumped out of bed and dashed downstairs, and in no time was in the living room, only to find it empty.

"Luz?" Amity stepped into the living room with a look of confusion, followed by everyone else emerging from the kitchen with concerned expressions as they heard her run. "What's wrong?"

"Where's Belos?" Luz asked urgently, her eyes wide and frantic, struggling to catch her breath with a hand on her chest.

"He's not here," Amity said. "He left the house yesterday and hasn't come back."

Luz's eyebrows furrowed at the news, suspicious of what Belos was up to. Why would he leave the house? She assumed he was looking for Titan's blood, which shouldn't surprise her given his obsession with returning to the Boiling Isles to complete his terrible mission.

Once Camila saw Luz calm down, she got her to join them at the dining table to have something to eat. Everyone was almost done with their breakfast when Luz sat down with them. Well, Hunter barely touched his serving and was mostly just staring at his pancakes with a faraway look, which Camila did take notice of and worried her.

"Pancakes are delicious as always, Camila," Gus complimented Luz's mother before taking out another bite of his pancakes that were smothered in maple syrup.

"I wish I had chocolate chips to have mixed with the pancakes," Camila said. "They taste so much better with chocolate."

"What about ketchup?" Amity asked, which made Camila's face scrunch up and her nose wrinkle.

"I don't recommend that," she said with a small amusement.

Luz let out a long sigh at the way everyone was doing their best to act like there was nothing they should be worried about, as if what happened between her and Belos was just a dream. But she couldn't pretend like nothing was wrong. Not while Eda and King needed her to save them, not while her friends' families were in danger as well…

She felt like everyone was trying so hard to look strong. They did their best to hide their worries and fears, probably to not worry her and her mother, but she couldn't stand her friends lie to themselves like that. She couldn't stand that they had to share the same house as well with a man that had basically taken almost everything from them. With a man that wanted them dead…

And while Belos wasn't at the house, she decided to take a certain action to protect her family and friends.

She pushed her plate away from her and glanced up at everyone. "We can't let Belos come back into the house," she began to say, her voice low and serious. The room fell silent as everyone stopped what they were doing, and all eyes turned to her.

They knew the conversation was going to be brought up, but they honestly wanted to have it after breakfast. Though, they imagined talking about it now was probably better to just get it over with early in the day.

Gus spoke up, his voice hesitant. "But we can't just leave him out there. There are dangerous people that are targeting him."

"So?" Luz shook her head, her eyes hardening. "Why should we care if he's in trouble? He's killed people, and it's only a matter of time before he kills us."

Gus fell silent, his palisman looking up at him with concern. "What if he can change...?" he finally asked, the very question that has been plaguing his mind for a while, which made everyone glance at the boy with mix expressions. Hunter had a hopeful look in his eyes while Luz's darkened.

She felt Belos had really manipulated Gus the most at that moment, taking advantage of his kindness. It angered her how much Belos would stoop so low to mess with people at her age and younger.

"He's had 400 years to change his mind," she said firmly. "He's had every opportunity to feel remorse for what he's done, but he's chosen not to. If the Collector hadn't stopped him in time, Belos would have wiped out everyone in the Boiling Isles. And he would have simply come back to Earth and not once felt bothered by the thousands of people he had killed."

"Luz has a point there…" Amity said calmly, which made Gus look down at his lap. Luz also saw Hunter's expression become pained at her words, which made her feel bad. She didn't want to hurt Hunter in any way, but...

"Look, guys, I'm sorry for… being difficult ..." Luz's voice softened, trying not to be so aggressive towards her friends. It wasn't their fault that Belos had found a way to manipulate them into caring about him. She understood so well how one could fall for the man's tricks, since she had been played so well by him in the past. "It's just that... I don't want..." She looked down at the table as she remembered the last time she had seen her dad, lying in a coffin, eyes closed, motionless. "I don't want Belos hurting any of you..."

"Luz, we understand you're worried for us," Gus said. "But..."

"No, you don't understand." Luz's hands turned into fists on her lap as the memory that had freshly played in her mind earlier crawled back into her head. The same pain, when she remembered her father, clawed at her heart. She shut her eyes tightly, trying to keep her emotions in control. "You don't understand that I can't..." she struggled to say, which got Amity to quickly place a hand gently on one of her clenched fists.

"Can't what, Luz?" Amity asked with concern.

"No, mi amor, your daddy, he's... he's gone..." Her mother's words from the memory replayed in her head, reminding Luz how powerless she was to help her dad, but now there was a lot she could do to protect those she loved. After all, she wasn't a little girl anymore, and the pain of losing her father was one she would not want to endure again anytime soon...

Luz looked up at her girlfriend, with eyes glazed. "I can't lose you guys either," she said quietly. "I lost my dad, and that was the most painful moment in my life. Losing any of you guys as well would be too much for me to handle..."

Amity watched her girlfriend with a heavy heart, remembering when Luz had told her about her dad's passing on the Boiling Isles.

At that moment, she and her friends could see where Luz was coming from, why she was so anxious and scared, especially since Belos was capable of killing them and had already shown the urge to do so. Everyone in the room, except for Luz and Camila, had never experienced the loss of a loved one, particularly a family member, and the thought of it was too overwhelming for them. They had heard others say that losing someone they loved would leave a permanent mark on their hearts.

Luz's friends had learned about her dad's passing from Camila and felt deep sympathy for their friend. They knew that Luz had been affected by the loss, but they didn't realize that Luz was afraid of losing them too.

Hunter felt bad for Luz but… if his "uncle" died, it would probably devastate him as well. He stayed silent, ignoring how heavy his heart felt thinking about losing his 'uncle'.

No one said anything to Luz as she glanced at everyone, her eyes still not shedding a tear since she was holding them back.

"I'm sorry again that I've been so difficult," she said quietly. "I'm just trying to protect you guys... You guys are my family, and I can't lose you guys..."

Hunter looked up with surprise when Luz called him her family. "So, please, I need you guys to understand that we can't have him around," Luz pressed on. "We don't need him anymore."

"Well, we kind of do," Gus whispered. "Not all the materials from the list he gave us to make the portal exist in the human world. We would need to find substitutes, and Philip will probably know what we can use instead."

"I think we can figure that out without him," Luz replied.

"Yeah, I think we can," Amity agreed with a smile to her girlfriend.

Gus didn't say anything this time, knowing that he wouldn't be able to change Luz's mind anytime soon. She was so stubborn… just like Philip…

"People like him don't change," Luz continued, especially to Gus, holding Amity's hand tightly. "They don't want to change. They think of themselves above everyone else and don't care who they hurt as long as they think they are right."

Camila listened to her daughter's words before the words from her coworker replayed in her head.

"Honestly, if I were your friend, I would be extremely careful having her kid around her uncle," Jimmy had said in a serious tone, making Camila look up. "Just like I said, some people can change, but others can't. People who have hatred towards others because they are different can be very dangerous. Especially those who refuse to admit they are wrong..."

Her colleague had spoken of the possibility of change in people, but only if they truly wanted to. But it seemed like Philip had no interest in changing. He saw the kids as nothing more than "vile" creatures and treated Hunter like a disposable item. He warned her to be careful, that some people could never change. Those who held onto their hatred and refused to admit they were wrong were the most dangerous. The fact that Philip had killed his brother showed how far he was willing to go to hold onto his beliefs. He claimed that he had sacrificed his brother to save humanity. The lengths he went to hold onto his beliefs were proof enough that maybe Philip was the one too far gone to change.

"I think we should vote on whether to keep Belos out of the house or bring him back here," Willow suggested after a moment of silence. "It's only fair we make this decision together."

"Well, I'm voting to keep him out," Vee said with determination to keep her new family safe.

"I think I will too," Willow said, though, she couldn't help but feel her chest clench when she saw Hunter look away from her, with a sad look in his eyes.

"I vote to keep him out," Amity said, feeling she had to be on her girlfriend's side, especially after seeing how badly Luz was affected by her growing worry of losing them.

"I of course want him as far from us as possible," Luz said, her tone strong.

Gus bit his lower lip and glanced at Hunter, who was looking down again, holding Flapjack tightly against his stomach. Luz understood why Hunter wasn't saying a word and did her best not to judge him.

"It's okay if you want to bring him back," Luz said, being understanding about Hunter. She couldn't blame the boy for his loyalty towards Belos now. The way he broke down the other day after Philip's mistreatment made her realize there were things she would probably never understand about the relationship between Philip and Hunter since she had loving parents.

"Well, my vote is to bring him back, but I guess it doesn't matter anyway," Gus said. "Since the majority already voted against bringing him back."

"Then, I guess it's decided," Camila said, ignoring the fact she wasn't sure on which side she would have voted. The memory of Philip sitting there in the bathtub, cradling his left arm against his chest, was printed in her mind. But seeing her daughter breaking down due to fear of Philip killing anyone in the room also gripped her heart. For now, she had to ignore her caring side she had for the man. She had to be realistic right now. The man posed a threat to the kids. Even if she tried to stop Philip from hurting them, there was possibly no way for her to protect them since he was far too powerful compared to her. If anything terrible happened to any of the kids, she would never forgive herself.

She had a duty as a mother, as the adult of the house, to protect the children as best as she could.

She heard a chair move against the floor. She turned to see Gus getting up and walking away. The memory of Gus sitting next to Philip, as the boy showed him the internet and the way Philip looked at the laptop with curiosity and listened to what the boy was saying instead of offending him, crawled back into her mind. And it made her ask herself… Was Philip truly too far gone to change…?

It was evening when Vee opened the door to let Masha into the house. Both had stayed up in the girls' room after the entire argument between Luz and Philip the day before. Later that night, Vee and Masha had finally left the bedroom and were told by the others that Philip had left the house. After Vee introduced Masha to all her friends, they had apologized to them for causing them problems, but everyone assured them they had nothing to apologize for. They were told that they had done nothing wrong.

"So, that's the journal?" Vee asked, noticing the paperback book that Masha was holding in one hand. Before they left the day before, Gus had asked them if they could bring it since they had mentioned it during their discussion with Philip. Masha agreed they would do so the following day.

"Yep," Masha said with a smile before both teens walked down to the basement where Gus was lying on the couch and Hunter seemed to be sleeping soundly on the floor, a blanket completely covering him. Flapjack was settled on top of where Hunter's head would be, watching Masha curiously.

"Hiya, Gus," Masha said with a lazy smile, going over to Gus and hovering the book over his head.

Guy's eyes lit up with excitement as Masha handed him the book.

"Awesome, thanks Masha," the boy said as he sat up.

"It's the least I can do after the chaos I caused yesterday," they said.

"Hey, what happened wasn't your fault," Gus told her.

"So, why is that book famous?" Vee asked curiously as she and Masha sat beside Gus on the couch while he opened it.

"Well, it was written by Pastor Jonathan Ward who used to be like an apprentice for Samuel Hale, the Minister of Gravesfield back in the day," Masha began to explain. "Jonathan was devoted to 'cleansing' the town of witches. He even approved some of the executions, but then one day someone in town accused his wife of being a witch herself. It was at that moment that he changed his view on things since he claimed there was no way his wife was a witch. He said she was a devoted woman of God, which is the reason why he married her because they had a powerful drive to follow God's word. Anyway, he realized that people were being accused of being witches without actual physical evidence to back the accusations up and rebelled against the Minister who continued to push his agenda. Eventually, the people of Gravesfield believed in the pastor's words more since he had gone to a prestigious school and people deemed him as the more 'educated' one compared to the minister."

"I see…" Gus said as he began flipping through the pages where a light blue tag was sticking out from.

"I always thought it was strange how everyone just forgave Jonathan after he admitted he was wrong," Masha brought up. "After all, he had led 'witches' to their deaths as well."

"I think it's crazy how he only changed his mind because the whole thing almost led to his wife's death," Vee commented.

"Yeah, unfortunately that happens a lot," Masha said. "Many people only care about a situation when it happens in their own backyard." They looked at Gus before pointing at the blue tag. "I marked where Philip was brought up."

Without their knowledge, Hunter was listening in, especially when he heard his 'uncle's' name.

"But I recommend that you guys read the whole thing," Masha suggested. "It does a great job of showing you how things were back in the day during the whole 'kill the witches' era."

Gus found the first section that Masha had highlighted - it was in the middle of the book - before reading the passage out loud. "As I've already stated, I am filled with remorse and shame for allowing things to spiral out of control. It's especially troubling that some men saw witch hunting as a source of game instead of a duty to God. Looking back, one of my other regrets is allowing the young boy, Philip Wittebane, to be taken in by that madman. I also participated in his punishments to cleanse him, to make him pure, to help him become, as the Minister viewed him, our savior, and I'm deeply ashamed of my terrible actions. The boy had lost his only remaining family and was not yet a man when this happened. I sometimes wonder if the minister's decision to take him in was an act of mercy, given that everyone in town had come to believe he was a witch himself after his mother's suicide and his father's abandonment, or a damnation to his soul. Though, if the minister didn't take him in, he would have probably been imprisoned and then executed, since again, he was believed to be a witch by the townsfolk."

"Wait," Vee said when Gus was done reading the first portion of the passage that was marked by Masha. "They would kill kids too?"

"Oh yeah, children were not excluded in these witch hunts," Masha revealed, which made Gus and Vee look at them with disbelief. "The youngest child who was imprisoned after being accused as a witch was a four-year-old girl."

"A four-year-old girl?" Gus let out in shock and hoped so badly that Philip didn't end up killing a child at such a young age.

"Yeah, it's messed up," Masha said. "I think when I read about the children who were taken into custody and killed, those were the sadder events for me in the whole dark time of Gravesfield."

"Keep reading," Vee encouraged Gus, who found the spot where he had stopped and began to read again.

"The people in town had grown to fear Philip. Everyone had kept their distance from him, not even a lady had dared to engage with him, even though the Minister held power over others. I had brought up to the Minister that we could choose young Mary, a quiet young lady for Philip, a woman of God, to keep him company, but the minister had dismissed my idea. He had said Philip had no time to waste in such things since he had insisted Philip had to go to the magical world and kill his brother and the witch to save our souls."

"I'm really starting to hate this minister," Vee grumbled.

"It's clear that Philip was brainwashed into believing that he had to carry out this mission to save everyone," Masha said, which confirmed their thoughts by the way Philip had frantically spouted out how he had to save their souls by killing witches the day before. "He was just a kid when he was taken in by the minister. He was vulnerable and the minister took advantage of that."

Vee said nothing at that time, as she could see why Philip had his mind set on the mission so much. Why he was so obsessed. The mission was particularly what Philip was trained to live for, it seemed.

And for Gus, it made him think that Philip probably had no social skills since people in town avoided him.

Gus continued reading from that same passage. "Philip had turned out to be cold and collected, nothing like the sensitive, scared child that wore his emotions on his sleeve. I had grown guilty that I had also engaged in ruining that innocent soul, just like I had encouraged the rest of the children to believe and hate on 'witches'. I had prayed to God for him to forgive me for ruining his children."

No one said anything while Gus turned the page. During this time, Hunter imagined his 'uncle's' calm and collected face back in the Boiling Isles. For a while, Hunter had looked up at how Belos always seemed in control of his emotions. But seeing him lose control of his emotions on Earth multiple times was a glimpse of the sensitive, scared boy that Jonathan described him as a child.

"Philip had become increasingly silent and observant as time went on," Gus read, making Hunter stop his thoughts and listen. "After his fifth execution of a young man, I could tell from his distant eyes that the screams of the dying did not reach his ears. It was as if he wasn't truly present among us. Now as I write this, I begin to fear that he had lost his soul, and if others lost theirs too, along with this nightmare."

Hunter recalled how his 'uncle' would act like turning witches into stone didn't bother him. He had simply watched while it happened, as if nothing had happened…

"I hope that he has found a better life after leaving us," Gus continued to read. "The minister had claimed that he had gone to that magical world Philip truly believed existed. But I had wondered if that was merely a fabrication so he could escape the terrible role bestowed upon him here. I do pray that he has found a better life to finally be happy."

Vee took in the words from the passage silently. She couldn't forget how Belos had kept her chained up in a cage and had others test on her for years, but for some reason, she couldn't help but imagine that he too had been stuck in a cage in Gravesfield and trained like some sort of animal to do someone else's bidding...

"I wonder now how Jonathan would react when he finds out everything Philip has done after leaving Gravesfield," Masha said.

"I hope he feels terrible." All three teens turned to Hunter, who was sitting up from where he had been lying the whole time while Flapjack jumped off to stand on the floor nearby. Hunter was glaring down at his lap. "Cause everything Belos did is also on him," he said coldly. "It's on that minister too. This Jonathan guy who just got forgiven, I bet he had a wonderful, a peaceful life later while the monster he created was hurting and killing innocent lives."

The others said nothing, watching the boy vent out his frustrations, his hands turning into shaky fists on his lap.

The boy remembered the first time Belos laid a hand on him. It happened weeks after he became the Golden guard at just 12 years old, and the boy had sneaked into his 'uncle's' invention room without permission one night. Hunter was reading through some documents that his 'uncle' had written up about his staff when Belos found him there.

"Hunter, how many times have I told you that you cannot be in this room without my permission?" Belos asked him coldly as he approached the boy who quickly placed the stacks of paper on the ground next to him.

"Sorry, uncle, I just really wanted to know how my staff works," the boy began to explain himself.

His uncle stared at him with his blue cold eyes before saying, "Get out."

"But, uncle, I really want to make things like you do," Hunter said.

"Hunter..." Belos' voice became low, and his eyes began to glow a dangerous blue.

"Why can't you that I want to be like you," Hunter said now with some frustration. "Give me a chance to prove myse-"

Before Hunter could finish his sentence, Belos' cursed hand shot out without warning, slicing through the air and tearing a chunk of flesh from the boy's ear. Hunter stood frozen in shock for a moment before the searing pain set in, causing him to wince and clutch at his bleeding ear. Belos towered over him, his eyes ablaze with unfamiliar rage. Hunter looked up at him with a mixture of fear and confusion.

"Leave," Belos snarled, his jaw clenched tightly as if he was doing his best to control himself.

Hunter scrambled to his feet, casting one last glance at his uncle before darting out of the room, his ear throbbing with pain.

The boy shook his head out of the memory.

When the boy had read about domestic abuse online, he wasn't sure how to feel about the few times Belos had physically hurt him. Physical pain was something the boy had grown used to after undergoing so much training to become a Golden Guard. And he had believed he deserved getting hit by Belos for making him angry. Later, the boy did grow angry at his 'uncle' for the scars that were visible for others to see. But now, that anger was also directed at Jonathan and the minister - they were at fault, indirectly, for how Belos turned out, for making him into a dangerous, violent man.

Punishments to make Belos pure, that's what Jonathan had wrote on his journal. Hunter didn't even know what that meant and honestly, he wanted to know more.

"Philip said the minister was a great leader, respected by all," Gus broke the silence as he turned to Masha, as he thought of how Hunter used to look up to Philip so much. Well, even now he kind of does. "But from the little bit we just read, he was a terrible man. I also noticed… the relationship he had with Philip seemed like…" he bit his lower lip before looking at Hunter. "It seemed like… a little bit like the relationship you and Belos have…"

Hunter looked away, at first mentally denying Gus' observation, but… the way Belos had kept him away from having any friends, and only to focus on their 'mission' was indeed similar to what the minister had done to Belos…

"History sometimes repeats themselves," Masha said, looking at Gus, looking at them with sympathy. "Sometimes, those who were abused by family members do the same to those that care for them."

"He needs to come back to this house," Hunter said in a serious tone, trying to have them stop comparing Belos to the minister. "We can't just turn him away, not while he is a danger to himself and others."

"But... everyone else voted to keep him out," Gus said, which made Masha confused.

"Voted?" they asked.

"The group decided to vote if we should let Philip come back to the house or keep him out," Gus said.

Masha stared at him as their eyebrows furrowed with confusion. "So... let me get this straight," they said a slow, measured tone. "The majority thought it was a good idea to let a religious extremist who is completely out of touch with modern ways of life and the people who inhabit this planet, and who also happens to lose control and transform into a deadly monster, be out in the streets... or to possibly let some group of people capture him and who knows do what they want with the power that is running through that body of his?"

The room fell deadly silent for a moment.

Vee rubbed the back of her neck uncomfortably after she processed Masha's words. "When you put it that way..."

"I'm going to find him," Hunter said in a serious tone as he got up. He had been worried about leaving his friends vulnerable to a potential attack from the people who had fought Belos, but he just couldn't let his 'uncle' out there anymore, not after listening to some of those journal entries.

He extended his hand, and Flapjack quickly turned into a staff so he could hold him.

Vee didn't argue and watched the boy walk upstairs.

"Hunter, wait," Gus said as he set the book on the couch. "I'll come with you." He ran after Hunter.

Masha and Vee were left in the basement alone. Vee picked up the journal, turning to the first page curiously.

"You're not going to stop them?" Masha asked her, making Vee blink at them with confusion. "You voted against him coming back, after all," Masha pointed out.

"How do you know that?" Vee asked, surprised they would know that.

Was Masha some sort of… mind reader…?

"I don't blame you if you don't want to be near him, especially since what his people put you through," Masha said. "It's just logical you would vote against him from coming back. So, why aren't you stopping them?"

They brought up a great question…

Why wasn't she running after them and keeping them from bringing back Belos?

The man was dangerous, just like Luz had said…

Vee sighed as she leaned back on the couch, looking up at the ceiling for a moment before she answered, "I honestly don't know..." she admitted, completely confused as to why she didn't argue with Hunter when he stated he was bringing that tyrant back.

Masha observed her for a moment. Then, they smiled and gently grabbed one of Vee's hands, which made Vee look at them with confusion.

"Don't worry, Vee," Masha said as they scooted closer to her, tightening their grip on her hand. "I'll make sure he doesn't hurt you anymore."

Vee found herself staring at Masha, feeling a blush creeping up her cheeks. Masha's words sounded so silly at first. Vee asked herself how Masha would be able to protect her from Belos since they had no powers. But there was something in the way Masha was looking at her, something in the warm, reassuring grip of their hand, that made Vee believe their words. This actually surprised her, since she technically had more physical strength than Masha as long as she had magic stored in her. But there was something about Masha's unwavering determination that made her feel safe.

Vee squeezed Masha's hand back and nodded with a smile, telling herself too that she would for sure do her best to protect her new mother and new sister, protect all her friends. Maybe, Vee wasn't so afraid of Belos like the others, since she could – which probably wasn't a good idea – drain the cursed magic of his if he lost control.

"Okay…" she said, mentally changing her vote to letting Philip come back to the house and hoping she wouldn't end up regretting it.