East of Eden Epilogue

3 May 2007

The air just before dawn was crisp, the last vestiges of chilly mornings still holding on despite the fact that the weather said it would be pushing 70 by the end of the day. Jackie and I were sitting on Alpha’s hood, smoking and staring out over Sharon from the top of West Hill, when we heard a car approach. We both turned and watched as the car parked and Bob and Charles got out. They both walked over and leaned against the car, looking toward the eastern horizon.

“I was afraid you’d be here,” Charles said.

“Why’s that?” I asked.

“Because if you’re here, now, then Rick is really gone.” There was a cold silence for a little while after that.

“We’re trying to find him,” Jackie finally said.

“Not in the woods, I suppose.”

“What are you getting at?” I asked.

“I want to know the truth.”

“Charles.”

“I mean it, John!” He pushed off from the car and stepped directly in front of me. “He was my best friend for as long as I can remember. I’ve been on too many stupid ghost hunts to be fooled by your stupid fucking story. What happened to Rick? Was he really taken?”

“Yes.”

“By who?”

I sighed. “That red spiral cult.”

He threw his arms in the air and stormed off, then turned around and stormed right back. “This is your fault, you know!”

“Charles, wait,” Bob said, reaching for him. Charles shoved his hands out of the way and jammed his finger in my face.

“You got him into all this shit, you got the attention of that fucking cult, you dragged him into whatever mess was going on out there in the woods, and now he’s gone and it’s all your fucking fault! Is he even alive?”

“As far as we know,” I said, softly.

“As far as you know. Great. That’s comforting.” He put his hands on his side and turned his back to me, fuming quietly for a minute or two. “How many others?”

“What?”

“How many others?” He spun around. “How many other people have been hurt by the shit you get involved in, huh? What happened to Lori, or Alice? Do you know anything about Mark’s mysterious car accident?”

“Charles, please,” Bob said, but he sounded less committed than he did the last time.

“I want to fucking know!”

“Lori was possessed,” I said. Bob stopped and turned to me. “The ghost wanted something from me and was trying to use Lori to get it. I don’t know what happened to Mark.”

“But it might have been related?”

“I don’t know.”

“You know what, fine. Don’t tell me. But don’t you fucking tell me anything else either, got it?” Charles demanded, then pointed at Jackie. “If you find Rick, you tell me. But other than that? I don’t want to see or hear from either of you ever again! I don’t want any more of this shit in my life!” He stormed off toward the other car, but Bob hesitated.

“How long have you known?” he asked, softly, after Charles was in the car.

“About Lori?”

“Yeah.”

“Not long enough, I’m afraid.”

He stood there for a moment, then nodded. “Right. Fuck off, Matteson.” With that, he walked to the car, and then they drove away.

“I don’t think it was your fault,” Jackie said, after they were gone.

“How could it not be?” I asked.

“That portal, it took a lot of effort to keep it open. It probably just closed because the Barzai wasn’t focused on it anymore.”

“Do you really believe that?”

“I don’t know.”

We didn’t say anything else after that. Just sat on the hood of Alpha, waiting for the sun to rise again.

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End of Volume Two

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