The Father's Return

Materialize

The bright light began to fade and four dark walls and shadows began to materialize around her, as they teleported far away from the Bus. She pounded her fists at his chest furiously.

“No! Stop! Take me back, take me ba-” Skye stopped short as she found herself standing in a very dark place; a single light hung from the ceiling and shone like a spot light down onto a desk in the middle of the room. A wooden chair sat before the table and the stranger pushed her over to it.

“Sit,” he demanded and she stared up at him, hatred in her eyes.

“No,” she replied sternly and gritted her teeth together in anger. He scowled down at her, his eyes turning an orange-red. He drew back his clenched fist in the air and was ready to punch her in the face, and she lifted her arms over her face ready to take on the brutal force of the stranger’s fist. She squeezed her eyes shut.

“Kory!” a voice shouted out from the dark. The large man hesitated, and looked into the dark. He couldn’t see the person that belonged to the voice, but he knew well enough that he’d better not hurt Skye. What they’d do to him doesn’t even bare thinking about.

“Leave us,” said the voice again from the shadows and a door from behind them opened, letting in natural light across the concrete floor. Skye felt like making a run for it, but there was no way she was getting past the stranger. He walked through with his head bowed low as he was too tall to walk under the door frame, and it closed behind him. She stood there in silence with only the small lamp hanging from the ceiling to light her surroundings, though not very well.

“Kory has an… anger management issue,” the voice began again and she heard the sound of a wooden chair being dragged along the floor. Out of the dark came a suited man with dark hair and a mischievous look in his eye, “but he won’t hurt you, unless he’s told to. His name means ‘unclear’ which makes a lot of sense as we still don’t know of his intentions.” Skye tried to focus on his face in the shadows; the voice was so familiar it haunted her deep down into her soul. She leaned a little closer under the spot light as he walked into full light. Skye stammered and stumbled backwards, her breathing fast and her heart banging rapidly against her bruised ribs.

“Hello Skye,” he smiled at her, as if he hadn’t got one harsh bone in his body.

“Ward?” She felt dizzy and sick. To be so close to the man she hated, the man who tried to kill her friends’, and watched her get shot and left to bleed to death just a few months before, made her whole body shake with anger and retaliation.

“I know this isn’t easy for you but I can explain, so if-” He barely finished his sentence when Skye ran round the desk up to him, and punched him straight in the chest. He stumbled backwards coughing; she went again for another knock at his face, but as she swung her fist forward, he grasped her wrist and twisted her arm around her back, and pushed her down against the desk. She fought to break free but his strength would not waver.

“So,” he continued, speaking abruptly into her ear, “if you wouldn’t mind taking a seat and listening to what I’ve got to say, you might change your mind about trying to beat the hell out of me.” His breath was warm on her neck and she flinched and tried to realise herself from his grasp. He only held on tighter and she finally huffed and replied angrily,

“Alright, okay! I’ll listen to what you have to say but I won’t promise you that I’ll believe anything that comes out of your mouth.” Ward nodded and lifted her from the desk, then forced her down by the shoulders onto the wooden chair. He then pulled up his own chair from behind him and they faced each other. They sat in silence for a while, Skye just staring at the light that made circles on the desk top, not daring to look once at his evocative face. After a long while of quietness and gazing, Ward pulled out a notebook and pen from the desk draw and placed them on the table top.

“Alright Skye, you’ve sat there in silence long enough. Time I asked you some questions right?” He didn’t get a response, just a slight tension in her jaw and crossed arms as he spoke aloud, breaking the silence.

“Now, do you know why you’re here?” he began, pen in his hand. She looked up at him and frowned.

“Does it look like I know why I’m here? Oh yeah, that freaky guy just happened to fill me in on the whole plan, the kidnapping and teleportation, made sure I knew all the procedures before we began,” she replied sarcastically, leaning back in her uncomfortable chair. Ward frowned confusedly at her.

“So – so he didn’t tell you why you were supposed to come here?” he asked leaning forward onto the desk, his brow furrowed. Skye felt uneasy and looked at his confused face. She shook her head.

“No, he didn’t. Why?” she asked and felt her heart begin to thump again. Maybe she hadn’t been kidnapped to be a prisoner, maybe she had been brought there for a specific purpose. Ward cleared his throat and placed his clasped hands on the desk in front of him. She was all ears now.

“Skye,” he began, a little hesitant and uneasy about passing on such heavy words. She waited impatiently and turned to face him.

“What is it?” she cried curiously, gripping the sides of her chair. He lifted his head and looked her in the eye.

“It’s… it’s about your father.”

She stopped breathing.