Scratching The Surface

Chapter 24

The nearest hospital was thirty minutes away and seemed to be the most rundown of all. Nico had succeeded in getting Beryl out of the house, but she only went to make sure her granddaughter was okay. She blamed herself, whether if it was her fault or not.

Beryl and Thalia watched Katie in the waiting room so Jason and Piper could stay with Maddie, the doctors having taken her to a back room to stitch up. She was covered in glass, all over her arms and legs. A large chunk had embedded itself in her check, half in her eye. They didn't think she'd ever see again from that side.

When they finally came home with a sleeping Maddie and a furious Jason, Nico was nowhere in sight. They couldn't feel him, couldn't sense him, couldn't physically get to his bedroom. Jason was fine with that, but Piper wanted to talk to the younger boy. What had set him off?

Maddie's eye stayed bandaged for a month. A month of wishing and hoping that she'd be able to use it again someday. After the month was over, however, they took the bandages off. Maddie would have to get used to seeing only half of the world, get used to something horrible at such a young age. But she wasn't in much pain and she still had her other eye, so she seemed happy enough. But it killed her parents to see her that way.

Winter was approaching with a swirl of cold air and snow storms. The wind never let up, the fires never died down. They kept heat to the old house and provided light, but filled the building with an odd sense that they were stuck in the past. It flickered against the walls, created shadows in the thin light. They moved and danced around, they bounced from wall to wall. Nobody liked to be alone.

It was dark outside and the snow was coming down when Beryl finally came back to visit. Thalia refused to leave her mother's side this time, but the woman knew exactly what she needed to do. She was going to talk to Nico, even if the teenager hadn't shown himself to anyone in months. She needed to. Deep in her soul, she knew it was her that would have to.

Jason opened the door but didn't make a noise of opposition. He nodded once to her before gesturing her inside, giving a soft warning of where the girls were and not to bother them with it. They didn't need any more drama in their lifetimes.

Beryl promised she wouldn't go near them before descending the steps, her small heels clicking against the wooden stairs. A thud here, a thud there, noises began from the third floor. She kept going, however, knowing very well why Nico was nervous. He knew why she was there. They all did. It was time.

"Nico di Angelo," she got to the third floor and walked towards his room, Jason following behind as if he was there to guard her. "Come on, Nico, it's time. We both know so. You've finally seen why it isn't good that you're here."

The snow started to fall heavier, the wind screamed and howled.

"Nico," Jason spoke up, his hand resting on his mother's shoulder. "It's time. You'll get to see your mother and sister again. You'll go where Hazel and Frank went."

The wind was so loud it sounded as if it was indoors, as if it was passing through the very halls Nico had been wandering for centuries. Floorboards creaked, windowpanes rattled.

"Nico..." Beryl closed her eyes and gripped onto the Bible she had brought. "Come closer, Nico. I know you're watching, I know you're peaking around that corner. Come closer."

Closer, closer, the wind came closer. Their hair blew around and the cold leaked into their bones. Jason could finally sense Nico, feel his presence near them. He had come closer. His sadness and guilt were leaking into the hallway, leaking into the two humans that stood there.

"I hurt her..." Nico's voice chilled the air and stopped the wind in its tracks. "I'm sorry, I never meant to. I never meant to hurt anybody."

"The longer you stay here, the more people you'll hurt," Beryl replied. "You know this, Nico. You know this. The only way to help Maddie now is to move on."

Footsteps in the hall, boards creaking underneath. Spiders scattered from the area.

"I'm scared," Nico's voice came right over Jason's shoulder. "Scared I'll go to Hell."

"You won't know until you move on." Beryl turned to the sound of his voice. "Come on, come on. Time's still going on, full speed ahead."

A hand on Jason's shoulder, a pale boy and a pale soul. He stepped forward, looked into Jason's eyes, held centuries full of guilt and pain. "I'm sorry...about your little girl...tell them I said sorry."

Jason stared at him, stared into that wounded soul. "You're moving on?"

"I'm going to try."

"Good for you," Jason looked to his mother. "How do we do this?"

She gave him a sad smile. "It's all up to Nico now, Jason."