Shadow of the Day (Wolf Moon Sequel)

Chapter 67: Goodbye

Lila POV

The funeral hall, already small, had tons of empty chairs and unoccupied spaces, which made the cold space feel even more hollow. The visiting hours were as short as we could make them as there wouldn't be anyone to come by; the only people who came were our friends. No one had come to say goodbye to Joe, but everyone had come to support Ivy through this time. Joe may have been her biological father, but everyone who had come to show her love and support was her real family, and she had so much of it now. Even Roxanne and Leah, who weren't especially friendly, had come along, had accepted Ivy into the fold with little question.

Since Joe had killed himself and his life story had been nothing but tragic, the case was open and shut and so there was nothing left to do but say goodbye and put him to rest. With no other family but Ivy, or any friends, the funeral hall was only our few familiar faces. Even Grandma had flown up for the funeral and was staying a few days with us. 

It felt almost wrong for us all to be coming together and talking, the atmosphere too calm for what was supposed to be a sad event. No matter how many times we all checked on Ivy, she genuinely seemed fine. A far cry from the broken girl crying by her father's lifeless body on the cold ground.

It had taken a few days for Dad to get things organized on Ivy's behalf, which fortunately left us with quite a bit of time to ourselves. Ivy and I took walks outside, trying to acclimate her to being around people and different smells by passing store parking lots, restaurants, gas stations and the like. Even spending some time in the forest with Wyatt, sometime as the three of us and sometimes just the two of them while I helped Matt, trying to guide her on scenting trails and hunting and testing her new abilities, controlling them. 

I wasn't sure if her lack of outward grieving was simply buried beneath all these distractions of her new life and abilities and information, or if she really was alright, had accepted that Joe was gone and her mourning period had only been as short as the time she had known him. 

Even after their one-on-one's, Wyatt's updates always came with no mention of Joe or noticing anything off about Ivy. She was stressed yes, worried of course, but most of it seemed directly linked to all things vampire. 

Joe's body lay at the front of the room, resting in his open coffin. His skin had that odd texture of the preserved dead, more like a wax figure than a real person, and though there was a dead body in the room it was surprisingly easy to forget about. Like a lamp or some sort of piece of furniture, something quiet and obviously there but faded away into the background even as we milled about and spoke in hushed tones. 

"How's she doing?" I asked Dad, joining him at the front of the room. Ivy had started the day by sitting in that front row, staring at Joe as if waiting for him to sit up and explain himself, with her little black dress and cardigan, blonde hair worn loose in waves around her face. Once everyone had started to trickle in, she came back to life, getting up and talking like this was a regular day and not a funeral. She went around, introducing Grandma to the vamps as they hadn't met yet, and my friends caught up with her since the last time she had been in town. 

The funeral director, who came to periodically check in on us, was doing his best to mask his confusion but I was sure this was very much not how most funerals went. Not a single tear had been shed by anyone and it had already been an hour.

"I wish I knew," Dad said, looping his arm through mine. "She seems to be doing well, too well, given the circumstances. I'm just not sure if that's a bad thing or not."

"Me neither." 

It would be so much more dangerous if she were to lose control now, with her strength and speed and desire for blood, that keeping an eye on her was more crucial than ever before.