Free 3 Ghosts of Our Fathers by Michael Richan Page A

us?”
Garth asked, still afraid Frank might reanimate and turn on them.
    “I don’t know,” Sean said. “Here,
help me get him back into bed.”
    The two boys maneuvered Frank’s
legs up onto the bed and positioned him normally. Frank’s body was limp, dead
weight. Occasionally Frank’s eyes would settle on one of them and give them a
disquieting moment, but they became bolder with each minute that passed.
    “What do we do now?” Garth asked,
staring at Frank who was lying still on the bed.
    “I guess we go to bed,” Sean said.
“Let’s see how he looks in the morning.”
     
    -
     
    Garth took another sip of coffee.
The waiter showed up to remove their dishes, and Steven and Daniel took the
moment to lean back in their chairs after having been on the edge of them for
the past several minutes.
    “The next day he was the same,”
Garth said. “Comatose. Just staring into space. Couldn’t move or do anything
other than open his eyes and breathe. Didn’t eat, went to the bathroom in the
bed. We explained it all to Davy and then decided we’d better tell Davy’s mom.
We told her that Frank had been in bed all day and couldn’t move, and we were
afraid something was wrong with him. Of course we didn’t tell her what we’d
done.
    “She didn’t relish the idea of
coming over to the house with us to check on him, since Frank was a terrible
neighbor, but she had seen the look of worry on our faces and decided she’d
better check it out. Once she saw him she called a doctor. The next thing you
know, Frank was in an asylum and Sean and I were sent off to live in a foster
home. It wasn’t great, but it was an awful lot better than living with Frank,
let me tell you.”
    Garth paused. He took a long sip
of coffee and then sighed, as though he’d just freed himself of a terrible
secret.
    “You already know Frank died in
the asylum years ago. Sean passed away from cancer. I never married, no kids of
my own, and now I’m here. But gentlemen, I’ve still got some fight left in me.
If Frank has found a way back, I’ll do whatever I can to help you fight that terrible
son of a bitch. I’m not as afraid of him now as I was back then.”
    Steven and Daniel looked at each
other. Daniel spoke first.
    “I think what you created was a
soul cage,” Daniel said. “It sounds to me like it was designed to last for
eighty years.”
    “But why come after me?” Steven
asked. “No offense Garth, but you’d think his target would be you.”
    “True,” Garth said. “I’ve not seen
Frank in the manner you describe. Maybe he’s been visiting me here and I’ve
slept through it. Or, maybe he’s targeting you because you have the gift, like
Davy had.”
    Steven looked up at Garth. He’d
not told Garth anything about his abilities.
    “Yes, Mr. Hall,” Garth said, “I
can tell. I could see it in Davy, the way he could communicate with the boy,
and I can see it in you. In fact, you look a lot like him.”
    Garth stared at Steven, pinching
his eyes a little. Then his eyes went wide, and he set his coffee mug down on
the table.
    “How daft of me,” Garth said. “Of
course.”
    “Of course?” Steven asked. “What?”
    “Davy,” Garth said. “And you. What
was your grandfather’s name, Steven?”
    “Blair on my mother’s side,”
Steven said, “and David on my father’s.”
    “Davy’s last name,” Garth said,
“was Hall. I believe it was your grandfather who helped us imprison Frank.”
    Everyone sat quietly around the
coffee table, letting this revelation sink in.
    “How would Frank know Davy was
involved?” Steven asked.
    “Depends on the soul cage,” Daniel
said. “Frank’s body was useless, but his soul could continue to observe things,
learn things.”
    “Did you ever discuss this with
David…Davy after it happened?” Steven asked Garth.
    “Oh yes,” Garth said. “Davy had
asked us for the details, and both Sean and I told him everything that had
played out. Davy was as delighted in