The Reverence of One: Book Three of the Shadow Series (12 page)

Taking a mental note,
Thad turned off the car and watched as Cliff faded from view.
As h
e stepped
out onto the
curb,
his eyes squinted against a bright crosscut of light that made its way through the buildings and onto the street. He stepped into the street, looked for oncoming traffic, and then made his way to the entrance of the apartment building. A sudden rush of familiarity came over him as he looked up to the sign, realizing that this was the exact spot from his vision. He paused for a moment, scanning the entrance of the building, when he felt a push from behind. Spinning around to see no one behind him, he realized that Cliff was urging him to proceed.

“I’m going,” he replied, resuming his path to the entry doors.

As he gripped the handle, he felt the familiar wash of a vision entering his mind. For an instant, the scene before him changed to that of a stand of trees. Gone was the musty, cigarette butt laden
entry way in which he stood. He could smell the freshness of the forest and could feel the damp air wrap around him like a blanket. A burst of movement in his peripheral
vision
caught his eye, and he quickly turned to see a young man
standing in the trees
who was
staring into an open area that lay just ahead
him
. Beyond the tree line he could see a
cabin-type
house with a large porch coming off the back of it. He glanced back to the young man, who was facing away from him, and noticed a full head of
dark brown
hair that was disheveled and wavy.

As quickly as the vision began, the
filthy, smudge laden
glass door occupied Thad’s sight once more,
while
his hand still gripped the tarnished brass handle. A gritty voice from behind him echoed in the entry way.

“You wanna get out of the way?”

Thad spun to see a greasy haired middle aged man in a white t-shirt staring at him.

“Well?” asked the man as he lifted his palms.

“Sorry,” replied Thad as he stepped aside. “My apologies.”

The man stepped past him and into the apartment building. Thad shook his head, trying to clear the dust of an altered reality that a vision always left him with, and then stepped into the building.

The tiled
floor crackled beneath his feet.
E
ach
square
seem
ed
to be missing a piece on at least one corner. Though the sun shined brightly outside, he couldn’t help but feel as though he’d walked into a cave. The only lighting in the lobby was provided by fluorescents that were covered by yellow tinted plastic, giving off a dull amber light that fell dauntingly upon the room. Several people were sitting on benches that were adjacent to the door, and Thad did his best to keep from making eye contact
with them
as he searched for the elevator. Across the room and to his right, he found the door and, upon approaching it, could see an out
-
of
-
order sign hanging by one corner with some duct tape. As he turned around, he inadvertently made eye contact with an old woman that had just entered the building. Instantly aware of her gaze, he walked towards her, eyes to the floor, until he reached the stair case
n
ear the entrance.

The carpet lining the stairs looked like something out of an old theatre; diamonds of gold and green laying atop a blanket of dull, dark red. Thad reached out for the railing, but pulled back when he noticed the layer of dust and sticky liquid that adorned its surface. As the first floor pas
sed
, he continued to be appalled at the state of disrepair that the building was in. Large holes seemed to appear in the walls every couple of feet, some of them so high he struggled for an explanation of how they could possibly have gotten there.

Finally reaching the third floor, the door to apartment number thirty-two was staring him in the face. Its surface matched the rest of the building, beaten and battered from years of hard use. He stepped cautiously to the door, suddenly envisioning a person answering from the other side with a bullet to his midsection. “Knock it off, Thad,” he whispered to himself. “You’ve seen too damn many movies.” Raising a fist and knocking on the door, he waited for an answer, but none came. He knocked once more, with a little more force, and when there was again no answer, he began to contemplate the fact that she might not be home; not something that they’d counted on.
Just as he was about to knock again, he heard the sound of glass clinking within the apartment, as if someone knocked over a bottle on a table.

“Nicole?” shouted Thad through the door. “I know you’re in there, Nicole. Please, let me in?”

Thad placed his ear to the door, but could hear nothing except the sound of his adrenaline surged blood coursing through his body.

“Look, I know that you don’t want anything to do with me, but this is a life and death matter. Ms. Paxton, your life is in danger.”

With his ear still pressed to the door, he could hear light footsteps making their way towards him. The silence reappeared and Thad assumed that she was standing directly on the other side, staring through the peep hole. He backed away from the door.

“Nicole, I know this is going to sound strange,” said Thad as he glanced up and down the empty hallway, “but Cliff is with me.”

Suddenly Nicole’s muffled voice resonated from behind the closed door.

“That’s not possible,” she said. “Cliff is dead.”

Thad’s head rolled back on his shoulders as he muttered to himself. “Jesus, grandpa, how the hell am I supposed to explain this.” Turning his attention back to the door, he replied. “Like I said, I know it sounds strange, but you knew my grandfather
,
you knew of his gifts. Is it really so hard to believe that he wouldn’t be here with me now?” His question was met with a resounding silence. “I’m telling you, Nicole, unless you come with me…
.
”
H
e paused for a moment, seriously considering the severity of the words he was about to speak. “You have to come with me or you are going to die.”

He heard the doorknob turn and watched as the door slowly cracked open, stopping when the security chain became taut. Nicole’s pale face peered through the crack
, her hair blanketing her shoulder.

“Why can’t you just leave me alone?” she asked.

Astounded by her question, especially after telling her that her life was in jeopardy, he let out a grunt in frustration.

“Didn’t you hear what I said? You are going
to
…
.
”

“Die?” Nicole cut him off. “What if I’m okay with that?” Her voice was tense with anger. “What if I told you that dying would be a welcome change?”

Thad’s heart sunk in his chest. “But Ms. Paxton, that’s no way to talk.”

Nicole stared at him while biting her lip, her body now trembling as she spoke. “Why? You don’t know anything about me. If you did then you’d…
.
”

“Then I’d what?” barked Thad as he took a step to the door. “Say it was okay that you wanted your life to end? Bullshit!

“You say I don’t know anything about you, well you’re wrong. Let me tell you what I know. I know that you went through hell and back a year or so ago. I know that you fell for someone that sent your life into a downward spiral. I k
now that you resent Test.
” Thad watched as she flinched when he said Test’s name. “I know that you probably resent Cliff, too. I know that you feel like everyone you know has failed you. To be honest I can sympathize with you.”

Thad’s barrage was met with a stunned silence. Nicole’s face had grown long, and she glowered at him as a tear trickled down her cheek.

“Look, sweet
heart, please, just let me in. We don’t have much time.”

Nicole looked to the floor and then back to Thad.
She closed the door slightly, narrowing the crack through which she peered.
“Prove it,” she replied.

Thad wrinkled his nose, confused by her request. “Prove what?” he asked.

“Prove to me that Cliff is here.”

Thad dropped his chin to his chest. “I don’t know if I can
. Please just…
.
”

Before he could finish his sentence, the security chain fell from the door and dangle on the frame next to Nicole’s face. She stared at it with wide eyes.

“Cliff?” she asked.

As if in response to her calling, the chain flipped into the air and fell back to rest against the frame. Thad raised an eyebrow as Nicole looked to him. Without words, she released her
h
old on the door, and the two of them watched as it opened
by itself.

Thad passed by Nicole, noticing that her hands were trembling and that her already pale skin seemed to have lightened a shade more. The stench of stale beer, marijuana smoke, and incense assaulted his nose like a baseball bat to the
face
. He nonchalantly placed his index finger to his nose, but was quickly bummed by an invisible hand, signaling him to drop his arm.

Thad was appalled that anyone could live in the environment
where
he now stood. Beer bottles adorned the tops of every flat surface within the room. As he peered into the adjoining kitchen, he could see a pile of dirty dishes in the sink and, in the corner, a trash can which overflowed with
even
more beer bottles and fast food bags. Overcome with pity for the young girl, he gazed around the apartment until her whisper
ing
voice woke him from his trance.

“Cliff?” she asked softly.

Thad turned
to her. She was staring towards the wall opposite of where she stood. Thad turned his attention to the same wall, and could then see what she was focusing on.

In front of what was obviously a breaker box panel that was decorated with decals and stickers, a small dark shadow had formed. Thad watched as the young girl walked cautiously towards the shadow.

“Cliff, is that you?” she asked again.

Standing directly in front of the shadow, she reached out her hand, feeling the cold air that occupied the area. She turned timidly to Thad, her eyes begging him to confirm what she already knew to be true.

“It’s alright, sweet
heart,” spoke Thad with a gentle tone. “It’s him.”

She placed a hand over her mouth as her lips curled into a smile. “It was you—the other night—I thought I was
tripping
.” She reached out once more to the figure.

“That’s right. I was here
,
”
replied Cliff’s
spectral
voice.
“Nicole, Thad’s right, we don’t have much time. We have to get you out of here.” His voice drifted through the room almost as if it were a light breeze. “Your life is in danger,” he paused, “and so is his.”

Pursing her lips, she scowled uncomfortably. “By ‘his’, you mean Test?”

“Yes,” he replied simply.

Thad, watching the exchange from across the room, had been impatiently eyeing the clock on the wall between them. With a stillness having fallen over the room, he felt compelled to act.

Taking a few steps toward Nicole, he scratched the back of his head as he spoke. “Look, I know you probably don’t want anything to do with this Test kid. To be honest, I don’t really want anything to do with
any
of this. I’m risking my life by being here. The fact of the matter is that we need to leave—now.”

Nicole turned her tortured face to him and, after a moment, nodded her head in acceptance.

A slight grin appeared on Thad’s face as he let out a deep sigh of relief. “Good. Now, go pack a few things and we can get the hell out of here.”

As Nicole turned to go to her bedroom, she felt the coldness of Cliff’s ethereal touch on her arm.

“It’s gonna be alright, hon,” whispered the old man. “You’ll see.”

Without looking back, Nicole jerked her arm away and walked with heavy steps to her room.

“Well,” said Thad, looking to his grandfather’s shadow as he rolled his eyes. “That went well.”

“She’s coming,” replied Cliff. “That’s all that matters.”

Thad watched as what existed of Cliff’s form faded from view. The room had suddenly become increasingly uncomfortable, and he watched the second hand tick on the clock anxiously. After several minutes had passed, he couldn’t wait any
longer
.

He
stepped in
to the doorway of Nicole’s room, and found her sitting on the end of the bed. Behind her was a duffle bag stuffed so full that the zipper, though zipped shut, looked as though it could rip apart at any moment.

“Come on, we have to…
,
” he began, but stopped as he noticed the small trickle of blood running down her forearm. “Ah, you’ve got to be kidding me!” he shouted. “We don’t have time for this!”