Paying the Piper

Twenty-Three, Part 2: The Fickleness of Fate

Henry had tried to explain it all as quickly as he could, as if by speaking it faster, it wouldn't be as terrible. Snapshots of their conversation ricocheted through his mind.

"I don't know what the demon wants with Ryland. I don't know how Ryland living a normal life would be of use to the demon at all. But I made sure my children weren't going to be abducted by this entity in the woods. And that's when he assured me that he didn't physically want anyone. I would raise the child normally. He would just be a little extra 'blessed.'

"With all this weighing on my mind, I went to Sarah and I confessed everything. She was rightly furious and skeptical. But she was insistent on one thing: she and Quentin needed to get out of the Potomah Regional Forest. She was heading back to Leech Lake to be with her grandparents and extended family, but she didn't get very far. Her car crashed while leaving the road that goes through the Potomah. She was killed instantly, but Quentin was unharmed in the back seat. Whether the demon had a hand in that accident, I can't know for sure, but I would bet my fortune on it.

"After Ryland was born, the luck and fortune just started pouring in. It seemed not only he, but I, too, was blessed. I traded in some cryptocurrency and made some good money. An old acquaintance called me up out of the blue to offer me a new position that I then received. Suddenly I was climbing the ladder and making double, then triple what I had been before. Quentin was still healthier than anyone could explain or expect. And Ryland seemed to be good at anything he tried. Everything came effortlessly to him.

"I want to flee this area before Ryland is eighteen because I don't know if his turning eighteen and a legal adult will change matters. If he won't be 'mine' anymore and fulfill the demon's requirement. We could lose all our wealth and good luck that has come about because of Ryland fulfilling whatever twisted need the demon wanted him for."

But no one knew what Ryland was being used for. It seemed like nothing. But Henry had made the mistake of thinking the demon wouldn't come for what they owed him the first time around, so he was taking no chances this time.

Quentin stared straight ahead. Did that mean that on Ryland's birthday, his own health would suddenly crash, and he'd be having grand mal seizures and writhing on the floor until he died in a puddle of saliva and piss? Or was a gift, once given, not tied back to any stipulations? Henry hadn't been able to guarantee a thing. And they couldn't exactly call up the demon to ask him for the fine print of his deals.

"Now that this is all in the open, I can sincerely apologize. I'm sorry. I'm sorry for my mistakes and for then not being around. I know it sounds stupid, but...it's been hard to be around my children whom I failed. It was easier to support you from afar and make the money you needed for a comfortable life. But I know it doesn't make up for the lack of paternal care."

Which reminded him...he sat up. He needed to call Marietta, the closest person to a mother he knew.

But before that, he needed to talk to his brother.

Ryland hadn't responded the rest of the conversation with Henry. After their dad had finished spewing out all the explanations and apologies and everything else he could manage, Ryland had gotten up soundlessly from the table and left. He had taken his car keys and not responded when Henry asked where he was going. Quentin would've left with him, but he hadn't been quick enough to catch up.

He wracked his brain, trying to think of where Ryland would go if he needed a place to feel safe or a good think. After they agreed to stay out of the Potomah—which Ryland wouldn't've had to drive to anyway, since it started in their backyard—he didn't really know anywhere else.

But he had to try.

Quentin looked for his phone, realizing that he had left it upstairs with everything that had happened this morning. He returned to his room, mentally trying to block the image of Henry sitting at the empty table, head in his hands. He had no intention of feeling any sympathy for his father.

"Maybe Rhia will have an idea on where we can find Ryland...plus she should just be told all this stuff." Quentin checked around the room, locating his phone by his computer. Even as he reached it, it began to ring.

As he picked it up, he saw a number of missed calls from the same number and several text messages as well. Before he had a chance to read them, he answered the call.

"Hello?"

"Quentin! Is Hannah with you or with Ryland?"

"Huh? No. Why would she be here?"

Rhia was rambling. "I thought she had gotten home last night during the bonfire fiasco with Ellie and Ryland and the cookie. Her door was shut, and I knocked, but she didn't answer. I figured she just needed some time and didn't want to talk. But now it's past time she would have slept in, so I went in there to confront her, and she's not here. It doesn't look like she slept in her bed last night!"

Quentin knew it didn't pay to tell Rhia to take a breath or calm down. He just kept hearing a line from last night ringing in his ears: Portals keep opening that aren't supposed to be opening.

"Rhia? Call up Faye." He swallowed. "We may have to go into the Potomah woods."

****

Author's note: Hope you like the short chapter. I didn't have as much to add to it as I originally thought!

Image credit: https://pixabay.com/photos/man-young-teen-reeds-grass-field-8004816/