Flight of Life (Essence Series #1) (26 page)

“
I don’t have any siblings
so I have no idea,” Calloway said.

Easton grabbed the sheet from the
ground and read it again. “If your father died, the deed would be
changed to your name. And if not, then it would be repossessed by
the state. Since this building is abandoned and
untouched—”

“
What are you saying?”
Calloway asked. “You think my father is still alive?”

Easton stepped away from Calloway. The
hurt was evident in his eyes along with the anger in his frame. A
cascade of emotions was running through him and Easton wasn’t sure
how he would behave—she’d never seen him so upset. “Maybe,” she
whispered. “It’s possible.”

Calloway shook his head. “No, it
isn’t,” he said. “He’s dead—I know he is.”

“
Then why is this building
still here?” Breccan asked. “Someone must be making payments on it.
Your father wasn’t rich.”

“
HE’S DEAD!” Calloway
grabbed the nearby desk and threw it across the room. He didn’t
look at his friends for a moment as he stared at the broken chair
and the scattered papers on the floor. His body was shaking from
the roaring emotions inside him. “He wouldn’t leave me,” he
whispered. “He wouldn’t do that.”

Easton and Breccan said nothing and
continued to stare at him. Finally, Easton moved toward him and
then wrapped her arms around him, hugging him to her chest. “It’s
going to be okay, Calloway.”

Calloway returned her embrace and
buried his face in her neck. He felt Breccan’s hand on his shoulder
as he patted him on the back. They stood together in silence while
Calloway felt his heartbeat return to a normal pace.

“
I’m sorry,” Easton
whispered.

Calloway hugged her tighter and felt
his tears fall. “Do you think he’s really alive?” he
whispered.

Easton was quiet for a moment. “He
could be,” she said. “The building is still registered to him—I
can’t think of a better explanation. And the fact that he never had
an open casket or left you anything in his will seems
suspicious.”

Calloway pulled away and stepped back.
He wiped his tears away on his sweater. “Why?”

She knew what he meant. “I don’t know,
Calloway,” she said. “I have no idea.”

Breccan wrapped his arm around his
cousin’s shoulder. “He probably had a good reason,” he said. “Your
father wouldn’t abandon you unless he had to.”

Calloway wasn’t sure what to think. If
his father was really alive he couldn’t think of any reason that
would justify his abandonment. Did his father not love him? Did he
not want him? His father was very distant with him in the last year
of his life. Perhaps he wanted nothing to do with him.

Breccan shifted his weight. “Maybe he’s
working with the Hara-Kirs?” he asked.

Easton shook her head. “They don’t work
with humans. They just take their essence and kill
them.”

“
Then why did he have
those gifts?” Breccan asked. “How else do you explain
that?”

“
He was trying to save the
Life,” Calloway whispered. “Maybe he’s in hiding because he was
caught.”

Breccan shook his head. “Then he would
join the White Wing or some other organization.”

Calloway stared at him. “You assume
everyone is evil and voluntarily chooses to hurt others,” he said.
“Not everyone is like that—especially my father.”

“
I’m not assuming
anything,” Breccan snapped. “But it’s a possibility—I’m just trying
to prepare you for it.”

“
Well don’t,” Calloway
snapped. “My father would never do that.”

“
That’s enough,” Easton
said as she stood between them. “I don’t know what this information
means,” she said gently. “Anything is possible at this point. Sven
could have been compromised while he was protecting the Life and
that was the only way he could protect Calloway—by faking his
death. I find it unlikely that Sven was working with the Hara-Kirs
because they don’t collaborate with humans and he wouldn’t have
protected Calloway to begin with—he would have killed him if he was
that evil.” She looked at Calloway and grabbed his hand. “But
nothing is certain—this is all speculation. There is so much we
don’t know about the Hara-Kirs and what happened to your father.
Don’t be angry with Breccan—he’s just trying to help.”

His father was mysterious in life but
now he was even more evasive in death. If he was alive what was he
doing? There were answers that Calloway needed—he refused to be
ignorant a moment longer. Calloway took a deep breath then nodded.
“Are we going figure it out?”

“
Of course,” Easton said
as she squeezed his hand. “We’ll see this through.”

An Epic Moment

The next morning, Calloway walked
outside the house and sat in the passenger seat of Mr. Avey’s car.
Since he was taking the SAT’s, the most important test of his life,
he forced the thoughts of his father from his mind—it just made him
feel depressed. The idea that his father left him voluntarily,
whether it was to protect him or abandon him, made him feel
worthless and useless. His father could have left a note explaining
his disappearance or asked Aunt Grace to reveal the truth when
Calloway reached a certain age, but neither of those events
happened. Calloway’s father just left without a backward glance—he
didn’t care for him.

Mr. Avey’s voice shattered Calloway’s
thoughts. “Are you ready?” he asked. He pulled out of the driveway
and drove down the street to the intersection.

“
I think so,” he said. “I
can’t study anymore.”

“
You’ll do fine,
Calloway,” he said. “The hardest part is sitting through the
exam—it’s five hours long.”

“
What if I have to
pee?”

Mr. Avey laughed. “They
will give you breaks,” he said. “Use them wisely.” They past the
intersection and approached the university down the road. When he
reached the parking lot, Mr. Avey stopped the car and looked at
Calloway. “The best way to do well on a test is to believe that
you
will
do
well—have confidence.”

Calloway nodded. “Thanks.” Mr. Avey’s
help was priceless, and Calloway knew he wouldn’t be taking this
test if it weren’t for him. He pulled out his wallet and counted
the money. “Here’s the money for the formal and the application
fee.”

Mr. Avey took the dance payment but he
returned the money Calloway needed for his college admission. “Put
it to good use.” He smiled.

Calloway stared at him for a moment.
“You’ve already done so much for me,” he said. “I can’t accept
this.”

Mr. Avey sighed. “If someone opens a
door for you, you should walk through it.”

He stared at him blankly. “What?”
Calloway asked.

“
Nevermind,” he said.
“Keep it, Calloway. Take your date to a nice dinner.”

“
Are you sure?” Calloway
asked apprehensively.

“
I refuse your money,” he
said. “Now go take your exam. And good luck.”

Calloway watched him for a moment.
“Thank you.”

“
That’s better.” Mr. Avey
smiled. “Now go.”

He stepped out of the car and walked to
the university entrance. After he registered for the exam and
proved his identity, he took his assigned seat and started the
exam. The problems weren’t challenging for Calloway and he sped
through the test with ease. He was more anxious before the exam
than during it—he thought it was ironic. The hours passed by and
Calloway didn’t take a break—he was focused on his test. When he
finally finished his stomach growled loudly in hunger. The students
sitting next to him glanced at him—they also heard it. He felt his
cheeks redden in embarrassment and he rose from his seat quickly.
Calloway gave his completed exam to the proctor and walked outside.
Mr. Avey’s car was exactly where it had been earlier and he sat in
the passenger seat.

“
So?” Mr. Avey
asked.

“
It was easy.” Calloway
smiled.

“
Good,” he said. “That’s a
good sign.”

“
I hope so,” he said.
“Otherwise I’m just a good guesser.”

Mr. Avey smiled. “I sincerely hope
not.” He drove down the street and stopped in front of a restaurant
that served hamburgers and fries. The smell of the food filtered
into the car and made Calloway’s stomach rumble loudly. Mr. Avey
looked down at his stomach. “I’m assuming you’re
hungry?”

“
What gave me away?”
Calloway smiled.

“
Let’s eat,” Mr. Avey said
as he got out of the car. Calloway followed him inside and they sat
in a booth by the window while they ate their food. “Is your cousin
applying to college as well?” Mr. Avey asked as he ate his
fries.

“
I think so,” Calloway
said.

“
Does he need help with
anything?”

Calloway chewed his hamburger then
swallowed it. He was so hungry that it was the best thing he’d ever
tasted—even better than Aunt Grace’s cooking. “He hasn’t said
anything.”

“
Well, if he needs
assistance my door is always open.”

“
I’ll tell him,” Calloway
said as he ate.

“
So are you nervous?” Mr.
Avey asked.

“
No,” he said. “I’m
frightened.”

Mr. Avey laughed. “Just don’t step on
her dress and you’ll be fine. And don’t forget the
corsage.”

“
What’s a
corsage?”

Mr. Avey stared at him for a moment
then shook his head. “We’ll buy one when he rent your suit,” he
said. “Is Breccan going with a date?”

“
Yes,” Calloway answered.
“He’s going with Easton Rivers.”

Mr. Avey nodded. “She’s smart—very
intelligent.”

“
Really?” Calloway
asked.

“
Yes,” he said. “You
didn’t notice?”

Calloway shrugged. “I guess
not.”

“
I used to be like you.”
Mr. Avey laughed. “I was oblivious to women and ignorant to their
ways, but you’ll figure it out eventually.”

“
Are you married?”
Calloway asked bluntly.

Mr. Avey wasn’t offended by the
question. “No.”

“
Do you have any
kids?”

“
No.”

Calloway nodded then finished his meal.
When they were both done, Calloway threw their trash away and they
returned to the car. Mr. Avey drove him to a men’s clothing store
and then to the floral shop to purchase a corsage.

“
Why do I need this?” he
asked as he looked at the flowers on the stems. They were wrapped
together in an elegant display, showing the winter colors of the
season. There were red and white flowers that that complemented the
green shoots.

“
It’s tradition,” Mr. Avey
said. “This one goes on her wrist. The ones that require pins are
always messy. This is the better way to go.” He stopped the car
when he reached the house. “Good luck,” he said. “It can’t be worse
than taking that exam.”

“
I hope you’re right,” he
said as he got out. “Thank you for everything. I’ll see you later.”
Calloway walked into the house and showered before he got ready.
Aunt Grace combed his hair for him and made it look presentable.
Calloway never did his hair—he let his hair do whatever it
wanted.

When Calloway dressed himself in his
suit and tie Aunt Grace started to cry. “You look so handsome,
Calloway,” she said as she hugged him. She held him tightly for a
moment. “So handsome,” she repeated. She turned to Breccan then
swept him in her arms. “My boy,” she said. “My boy.”

Calloway and Breccan both rolled their
eyes at the same time. Uncle Scott clapped them both on the
shoulder but didn’t comment on their appearance, which they were
both thankful for.

“
We have to take
pictures!” Aunt Grace said. “The neighbors let us borrow this
camera for the evening. Wasn’t that sweet of them?”

“
Yes, it was,” Uncle Scott
said.

“
Okay,” she said. “Now
stand next to each other.”

“
Our dates aren’t even
here yet,” Breccan complained.

“
I’m going to the
bathroom,” Calloway said as he sprinted into the restroom. He
stared at himself in the mirror while he heard his aunt take
pictures of his cousin on the outside of the door.

“
That’s enough,” he heard
his cousin say. “Mom, you’re blinding me!”

“
Just a few more,” she
said.

Calloway stared at himself in the
mirror and barely recognized his own features. His hair wasn’t
hanging in his eyes and his face was clean from his recent shower.
He usually got soiled or dirty on his bike ride to school. The
jacket made his shoulders look broad, and the trimming of the suit
highlighted his blond hair. It was the first time Calloway actually
liked his appearance—he wasn’t bad to look at. Since he normally
wore old clothes that were washed and faded they made him look poor
and unattractive, but now he looked eye-catching in his suit. For
the first time, he actually felt confident. Perhaps tonight would
the night where Calloway could put an end to Hawk’s vicious
insults.