An Immortal's Favour

Jack- Domestic Unrest

*

After a final bite of fish, Mother wiped her hands on a small napkin. She spoke to me in a quiet voice and I would've missed what she'd said if I hadn't been listening so intently. "I suppose you've already noticed your father's not here." She poked at some kenkey on her plate with her finger, denting the sourdough dumpling as her eyes avoided my face.

"Yes. But you don't want to tell me where he is, do you?" I asserted, trying to keep my tone and accusations in check; if I was going to get anything out of her, I'd have to tread the subject with caution.

"That man...You don't know."

"You're right, I don't know. So please tell me. I deserve an answer," I all but begged.

Mother sighed, bringing up a hand to massage her forehead. Rain pounded harshly against the tall glass windows. Another storm. As the clouds passed over the sun, my surroundings became muted.

"He arrived here almost a week ago now," she began carefully. "But something was off about him. He was fine enough when he first came in, but as soon as we were alone his façade dropped, and something-something inside of him broke." Pausing, she placed both her hands firmly on top of her legs, over her black pencil skirt.

That didn't stop the shaking.

"What do you mean?"

"He started screaming 'It's my fault!' over and over, pulling at his hair like some deranged person. Then, he started mumbling about needing to find you, wanting to talk to you. But in his state? There's no way I would've allowed him."

Her words were making my breathing faster, shallower. Outside, everything greyed as the clouds blackened and rain continued to fall down in sheets, like the clouds themselves were unloading a week's worth of grief.

"I'd gotten a hold of him just after you'd been admitted to the hospital, but I didn't think he'd make it in time. When he arrived, the man was making no sense. None at all. I told him to wait things out, wait until he was calmer before he talked with you. It was only after cajoling and reassuring him for hours on end your father took my advice. At least, before he slipped away."

"Where is he?"

"I'm not sure; he hasn't contacted me in any way since leaving. But he forced me to tell him where you were going and might be on his way to Equino, hoping to meet you there."

"When did he leave?"

"About a day before our last phone call."

"Alright." I stood up on weak legs. "Thank you."

Pressing her hand against the cool marble of the kitchen island, Mother got up, too. "I think it's time for the both of us to get some rest," she said.

~

I sat at the old, oak desk in my bedroom, ignoring the sting of fatigue pricking my eyes around midnight, hours later.

Relentlessly, rain continued to fall beyond the walls of the room, but not as hard as it'd done before.

Questions flew, muddled, through my mind. I just couldn't piece anything together. Shaking my head, I climbed back into bed and tried to get some sleep.

But I could only snag three hours of decent shut-eye. It was about eight o'clock in the morning when I decided to finally give up and go downstairs for breakfast. I shuffled into the kitchen, seeking Mother and found her, back towards me as she cooked some eggs over the stove.

"Morning."

"Good morning, my dear." She lifted the pan and started dividing its contents between two plates.

"So. Eggs for breakfast?"

We ate quietly, neither of us sure of whether to delve back into yesterday's discussion. The minutes passed like hours, becoming so unbearable that Mother coughed and set her fork down.

"Will you be rejoining Immortal Gale soon?"

"No. But she understands."

"I see." Her head fell.

"Whatever's going on with Father, I'm going to find out. You can count on that."

Mother, uncertain, opened her mouth. She stopped herself before any proper words pushed past her lips. But, with renewed determination, she shook her head and linked her hand with mine.

"And you can count on me to help you."

*

Discussion: If you were in Jacob's shoes, how would you deal with the events described above?

Feel free to comment and vote if you enjoyed this chapter!