The Medium Kid

Chapter 69

When Koda returned home that evening, his father was sitting in the kitchen, staring blankly into a mug full of coffee that had gone cold. "Hey," Koda said, and Morlen's eyes barely registered his appearance.

"Hey."

Koda put his bag down near the door and looked in the fridge. "Has your hangover gone?" he asked, finding only a tub of out of date hummus and squishy cucumber.

"Yeah."

Koda turned. His father used to speak to him like that when their relationship didn't exist. They had both grown much closer in the past few months. Koda didn't want things to go back to how they were. "Have you been in all day?"

"No." Morlen's eyes followed Koda as he sat opposite him at the table. "I went to see Connor."

Koda smiled, trying not to look too pleased. He was glad that his father chose to visit someone rather than sulking all day on his own. "Is Connor okay?"

Morlen connected his fingers and gently chewed his bottom lip. He had a lot to say to his son, but part of him hoped Koda would spend another night with Alfie, so he didn't have to tell him right away. "Koda..." Morlen paused and looked back down into his coffee cup. "You know how every sidekick needs a medium, and yours is Alfie?"

Koda nodded.

"Well, Connor obviously needed a medium and..." Morlen sighed heavily and connected their eyes to catch his reaction. "I'm Connor's medium."

Koda didn't react, not at first. "What?" he asked, assuming he had zoned out and forgot to listen.

"I'm Connor's medium... I think. Well, he told me that I am, but I don't feel ghosts and stuff. I don't know. I once did when I was young." Morlen rubbed his forehead as he tried to explain.

"You're- you felt ghosts?"

"When I was young, I did, but the people who raised me thought I was lying, so I stopped." Morlen left out the graphic details. He couldn't deal with more sympathy thrown his way.

"Your parents didn't believe you?"

"My adoptive parents."

"You were adopted?" Koda asked with raised brows. "Why did you never tell me that?"

"There's a lot I haven't told you." Morlen rubbed a hand down his face. His heart was beating harder. He was nervous about revealing his past to Koda, especially when it would eventually link back to Nikki Pecan.

"How long have you known Connor?" Koda asked.

Morlen told him what Connor had told him, stressing the fact that Connor didn't tell him for twenty years and kept it all to himself because he knew Morlen wouldn't believe him.

By the end of the explanation, Koda's mouth hung open. "You're a medium?"

"I think so. I don't know. I can't feel anything right now."

"But Connor will help you find your... your spiritual side?" Koda asked, almost expecting his father to start laughing, but Morlen's face was set in stone. He was serious.

"Yes."

They stared at each other, wondering if their lives would get any stranger. For Koda, the weirdness was about to peak.

"There's also something else I have to tell you." The nerves spiked in Morlen's chest, and his lungs tightened. "That art teacher, who we now know as the Grim Reaper..." Morlen cleared his throat. He couldn't believe what he was about to say. "Yeah, uh, she told me that she's my mother."