The Reverence of One: Book Three of the Shadow Series (37 page)

“My dad is here,” replied Test, his face glowing proudly.

Taking a sip, Jenz lowered her cup to her chin as she spoke. “Yes, I know. He introduced himself to me last night.”

“Really?” asked Test, slightly
irritated
. “Why didn’t you say anything?”

“To be honest, I wasn’t sure how you’d take it,” she replied as she placed her cup on the table. “You’ve already got a lot on your plate. I didn’t
know if bringing up past tragedies was the best thing.”

“So you know about my dad? How he died?”

“No,” she answered. “But it doesn’t take a great mind to see that he died far before his time.” She paused and studied his face for any adverse reaction, but the grin slowly reappeared the longer the silence went on. “He’s very proud of you, you know?”

“Really?” asked Test. “What did he say?”

Jenz let out a short huff. “He didn’t say anything really, but you can see it in the way he watches you. When I was on the other side, he couldn’t take his eyes off of you. As amazing as he may be to you, I believe you are equally as amazing to him.”

It was a complicated mixture of
feeling
s
to
—after
all this time—a lifetime—to meet his father. His time for reflection was short lived as Prim shouted from the couch.

“Jenz
,
you’d better see this.”

The tone of his voice sent chills up Test’s spine and as the two stood from the kitchen table, they exchanged terrified looks. They walked into the room as Lauren sat upright on the couch, trying to clear the fog of sleep from her mind. Prim stared at the television while pointing at it.

The image o
n the screen
showed a
man in a light gray suit
with a maroon tie. He appeared to be in his late twenties
; his short light brown hair perfectly combed and his face clean shaven. He stood in the middle of a large room with arms outstretched
, his palms blazing with blue and red energy,
and to each side a group of
small
children stuck to each other as if they’d been glued. At the man’s feet lay a body—a thin, pale skinned woman with jet black hair that lightened slightly at the roots.

“No,” muttered Test
as
a lump
the size of a softball developed
in his throat.
“This can’t be happening.”

Knowing it was Isaac, he stared at the screen in awe at the person he saw. Isaac was nothing as he’d pictured him. He’d always envisioned an older man, bald with a goatee or some other sort of facial hair, not the young start-up businessman that he was seeing.

“Where is he?” asked Jenz with her eyes fixed on the screen.

“Thad was correct. They are at a place called Union Station,” replied Prim in a monotone voice. Feeling Test’s core energy begin to escalate, Prim stood and gripped Test’s right arm. “Control it.”

The two of them stared tensely at each other as Test nodded in understanding. Prim could feel Test’s energy stabilize, and
though
it didn’t increase, it didn’t decrease either.

“I’m afraid the time has come,” spoke Jenz as she stepped in front of the television. With the other three Shadows now standing before her
,
s
he addressed them as a General would address his soldiers. “We’d hoped it wouldn’t come to this, but it has. Each of us has our own strengths.” She focused on Test. “Each of us has our own weaknes
s. Find it within yourselves not to be blinded by emotion. It is the curse of our kind, but not one that can’t be overcome. It must be for us to succeed.” She paused dramatically. “To live.”

His breathing had become
labored and
deep as Test stood with muscles tensed and adrenaline coursing through his veins. “When do we go?”
he growled.

Though inside her heart was racing with fear, Jenz continued to portray the strong, confident leader that she knew was needed. “Immediately,” she replied. Turning from him, she called to the back of the room. “Cliff, would you come forward please?” She held out her hand, releasing a series of weak pulses, just enough for the old man to come through.

“We are ready,” said Cliff as his shadowy form hovered before Jenz. He turned to Test, and with great emotion in his voice, spoke to the one he called son. “This is your time, son. Don’t hold back—show ‘em what you got.”

Addressing the Shadows once more, Jenz arched her back as she folded her arms across her chest. “This building will be sealed off, so we will have to enter while in the spirit realm.” She scanned each of their faces, expecting some kind of argument, but received affirmative nods instead. “Everyone is to follow Prim’s lead. None of us have been to this location before. Prim will be able to follow Isaac’s energy as if it were a beacon. F
rom there, we will determine our
point of entry.” She paused again to clear her throat, her nerves beginning to take their toll. “Are there any questions?” Her question was received with blank, assertive stares that signified their readiness. “Very well then.
”

In unison, they all ignited their energy, filling the room with a hot, white, blinding light as they phased to the spirit realm. The moment they’d all feared was now at hand.

****

Stuck in the
Atlanta
Airport
with an eight hour layover, Thad sat on a barstool with a cold beer in hand. For the life of him, he couldn’t understand how
Atlanta
was part of a flight from
Oregon
to
Missouri
. As he worked on his third beer
, h
e s
ilently
cursed Jenz for being a tightwad
and not getting him a better flight.

Tipping back the fresh mug that the bar tender had just placed in front of him, his eye caught the television
that hung
on the wall behind the bar just as the frosty glass touched his lips. He instantly recognized the location.
Displayed was the great hall of Union Station that he’d recently seen in a vision.
He watched as the man he’d been told was named Isaac stood with Nicole lying at his feet. Suddenly he knew that his eight hour layover was no accident. Overcome with a feeling of helplessness
and despair
, he gripped
the
mug with both hands and did the only thing that he could; something he hadn’t done for years—he prayed.

It was only a matter of m
inutes
before the group stood on a large lawn with perfectly manicured grass in front of what was called Union Station. It was an impressive building made with intricate masonry. It appeared to be constructed in three sections, the center
of which was the tallest
portion adorned with three gigantic arched openings filled with glass. Off to each side, the rooftops dropped to nearly half the height of the center portion,
appearing almost as if two buildings had been attached as an afterthought. Within the exterior walls of each of the shorter portions were a series of rectangular windows spanning
five
along the width
and three tall. A large fountain bubbled in a round pool directly in front of the main portion
,
and had the driveway not been filled with emergency vehicles, one could almost envision stepping back
to another period in time
.

Test looked around him, the lines and blurriness of the barrier between worlds a back drop to
the
nearly two dozen figures that stood in their group.
He was aware of Alyssa standing by his side, and while he was grateful for her presence, he appreciated her distance even more. He was extremely focused, more so than he’d ever been in his life. More importantly, he was in control. Though he felt the gate within begging to be opened, he found it within himself to be its master instead of the other way around.

“He’s in the center of the main building,” said Prim forcefully.

Jenz studied the building for a moment before pointing to the right side of the shorter portion. “We will enter there.” She turned to the group
with a commanding presence
. “Remember that it is likely that Isaac has others with him. Lauren has shared with me that there are at least three other Reapers that she is aware of.” All eyes, even those of the spirits, stared back at her with a fierce impatience.
She stepped to Test, Prim, and Lauren who stood at the front of the group while addressing them
firmly
.
“
W
e must be aware at all times.
Use your gifts of defense as well as those of offense. Be sensitive to your surroundings, be aware of each other.” Taking a couple of steps back, she addressed the spirits. “Friends, your presence is truly a blessing, and our fate would be certain had you not chosen to fight alongside us. Remember what we’ve discussed and remember that in numbers, you have the ability to drain a Reaper of their energy. When the time comes for you to act, do it swiftly and mercilessly, for your opponent will show none. Our goal is to save lives, and in the process, eradicate the world of those Shadows who call themselves Reapers.” Addressing the Shadow
s once again, her voice took on
the soft elegance that all had come to recognize. “
Test, you will walk behind me. Prim and Lauren, you stand on either side of him.” She looked past them to the spirits. “Friends, the time has come, please take your positions.”

Test swallowed deeply as he watched several spirits pass him by to surround Jenz on all four sides. His line of sight was suddenly cut off by a tall figure stepping before him. It was his father. He looked to his left, and there stood Cliff. Standing to his right was his mother, Maggie, and behind him Alyssa rested a hand on his back.

Everyone remained silent. The intensity of the moment was almost overwhelming for Test, but instead of breaking down, he used it as fuel. He could feel the fire raging within him as never before and anxiously awaited Jenz’s first step.

As the last of the spirits took their places, Jenz turned toward the building and, without looking back, spoke tenderly. “
Though I’ve known all but one of you little more than a day, I consider you family and
love you all.”
Taking a step forward, she looked over her left shoulder to Prim, and with a steel look on her face, mouthed the words. “
Take care of them
.”

A sickening feeling entered Prim as she turned away.

****

They passed by the multitude of both local and military forces that had amassed in front of the building, the sight of which brought back harsh memories for Test. Far too often in a short span of time
he had
been surrounded by this scene, but instead of fearing it, he continued to use anything and everything as further fuel and motivation.

The group passed silently through the thick mason brick wall and into what appeared to be a storage room full of filing cabinets and boxes. As the four Shadows phased back to the world of the living, memories of the building in
Lincoln
came rushing to the forefront of Test’s mind. This room was much the same as the one he’d entered the night he’d rescued Cliff in the fallout shelter. In an effort to keep his mind from wandering too far, he remembered Jenz’s words and repeated them over and over in his head. “
Be aware…be aware…
.
”

With the renewed focus, he could feel the push of Isaac’s energy from his left. He silently wondered to himself how powerful the Reaper must be, releasing a steady stream of such massive amounts of energy
for such an extended period of time
. He stopped the line of thought nearly as quickly as it began. “
Don’t psych yourself out
,” he thought to himself. He searched for the other Reapers that he was certain were there, but could feel n
othing but the push of Isaac, and the intense pull of the spirits that filled the room. It hadn’t occurred to him that though the spirits shielded his presence from the Reapers, it also shielded theirs from him.
In
a breathy voice, he spoke quietly. “How are we supposed to be aware of the others when we can’t feel them?”

From his right, Prim answered. “We don’t.
Not at first anyway.
We have to go in blind. It’s the only way.”

Test raised an eyebrow and scowled at Prim. “It would’ve been nice if someone could have clued
me
in on that important piece of information.”

“Would it have mattered?” asked Prim with a tense scowl in return.

“Silence,” whispered Jenz from the front.

The group carefully maneuvered around the filing cabinets
with the Shadows walking single file and
each spirit taking great care not to leave their position in relation to their Shadow.
Jenz opened the door and led them out of the room into a large corridor. It was then that they could begin to hear the screams of children.