“So, Daddy huh?” I stood in the door way to his office, leaning on the frame, my arms crossed. Anders must have been sitting here pulling his hair out. He looked up at me with red puffy eyes, hatred that I haven’t seen in years slipping through.

  “Shut up.” He snapped. He's stressed out, but my confrontation is comical. He knows I don’t care, and that I’m just giving him a hard time.

  “Anyone else got kids we don’t know about?” I threw my arms in the air and then took a seat in front of him. “I’d bust out the cigars and whiskey but I fear I’m a few years too late for that.”

  “Go away Chase.” He growled, but he was trying to hold back laughter.

  “I mean, were you gonna hide her for eighteen years too? Why did we all have girls? Do you think there is something in the water here? Better keep an eye on those kids of yours.” I grinned with my teeth and looked ridiculous enough to break Anders. He slammed his head into his desk and started to laugh.

  “She’ll be ok.” I said quietly. He looked up, the papers from his desk stuck to his forehead. I snickered.

  “Thanks for your support. Auria’s magic took me by surprise, but I’m glad she was able to do something. I don’t know what I’d do if I lost either of them.” He confided.

  “Who knew? Didn’t think you had it in you to be a family man.” I told him.

  “It’s not…we aren’t a family.” His mirth was gone instantly. He just kept shaking his head, like the idea was poisonous, something to be rid of.

  “You have a child, with a woman you love. That’s a family.” I told him.

  “No, she’s got Lilith. They raise Auria together. I couldn’t tie Sera to me. She’s lived so long. She’s had lots of lovers, and will have more after I’m gone. We can’t be a family. It just won’t…no.” He ran his hands through his greying hair, and pulled a few strands out from the roots.

  “So, it’s an extended family.” I raised my eyebrow, trying to make my point.

  “No.” This time it was final, so I dropped it.

  “I still haven’t told Kalysta.” I figured he had a better time dealing with everyone else’s issues rather than his own, so I brought up my own estranged daughter.

  “Probably for the best right now. Between everything that happened last summer and the drama the kids are going through on their own, it wouldn’t be wise to dump that on her plate.” He told me. I’m floored. How does he know so much about their lives? Do they confide in him like a camp counsellor?

  “What kind of drama? They’re here to fight evil and spend the oodles of money they get from the Order.” I shook my head, but I knew what a group of young adults could get up to here.

  Anders gave me a long, solid stare. He must have thought I was oblivious to the chaos I created when I joined the Cathedral all those years ago. Sadly, I knew too well what could happen.

  “Well actually, apparently on the trip, Erik and Amelia had an incident. Erik has since distanced himself from the others as he makes amends. I only found out because he told me.” Anders said, leaning back heavily in his chair.

  "What kind of incident?" I eyed him carefully, his body language becoming lax, like it did when he was blowing something off or lying.

  "Apparently Erik had a lapse in judgement and almost took advantage of a very drunk Amelia. He scared her pretty bad." Anders confided.

  That little shit. Someone was getting an ass-whooping next training session. I knew there was too much of Magnus in that boy.

  “Looks like there is more Magnus in him then you originally thought.” I said with disdain. Magnus had never been my favorite person, but he was a damn good fighter; like a huge violent wind-up toy. Get him pissed and watch him go. But he was absolutely a pathetic, misogynistic prick. Anders nodded slowly, looking off behind me in thought.

  “I'll have to go to the Manor." He said absently, almost under his breath. My eyes narrow.

  "The where?" He snaps his head back to look at me directly, like he had forgotten I was in the room.

  "Umm...nowhere." Anders flapped his hand dismissively.

  "Do you mean the Manor, as in the secret location that the Non-Human Protection Service uses to hide monster children and other runaways from the Order? You wouldn't happen to mean that Manor, would you?" I stared at him, knowingly. He looked shocked at first, and then remembers that information has always been something that was easy for me to get ahold of.

  "I can only imagine what horrors have attacked the place. It’s full of kids and despite all Lilith’s bravado, she’s going to need help.” Anders said, standing suddenly, planting his knuckles on the desk.

  “Alright, I’ll come with you.” I stood too.

  “No.” There was that finality again in his voice. I narrowed my eyes, but he stared me down.

  “Why not?” I’m not sure I actually wanted to hear the answer, but I was still feeling confrontational.

  “I need you here. Someone has to watch the kids. I’ll go back with Sera, when she’s ready.” He said, but I was sure he was hiding something.

  “Who’s going where? I want to come?” Andrea popped her head around the corner, with Hector close on her heels. She hadn't changed much in the years since I left the Order. She hadn't gone grey yet, like the rest of us and she had bounced back from having two kids, with grace and poise I'd expect from someone like Andrea. She was a force of nature.

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  Since the mission in Greece went to shit, and I had been slipping on my control of Tyrfing, the cursed sword, Anders had called in the cavalry. Andrea and Hector had come back to help out with running the show around here. Hector had become the Librarian, taking it upon himself to begin teaching the kids theory and lore so they were more knowledgeable about what they’d be facing in the field. Andrea did a lot of the babysitting, between her own young daughter, and now Auria staying with us. She hated it. She had always been the first to the front of the fight, our teams scout. Now she was just tired and bored.

  “I’m going to help Sera and Lilith.” Anders repeated. Andrea spit at the mention of Lilith.

  “Not on the carpet!” Hector looked up from his tablet and shrieked. The man's dreadlocks were much longer than the last time I had seen him, but they had since gone grey. He wore a pair of frameless glasses that rested gently on his nose.

  Anders just stared at Andrea, then looked to Hector and back to me. He shook his head and looked like he wanted to cry. What had been a private conversation about some secret mission was suddenly under the microscope.

  “I’ll go with you. Where is Orion?” Andrea said matter-of-factly, turned around and yelled down the hall, first in Arabic, then in English “Orion, baby, Momma needs her bow back!”

  “I’m going alone. I need you all here.” Anders shouted over her suddenly. She crossed her muscular arms and pouted, cursing at Anders.

  She really had aged well. She decided to go a little lighter on the make-up nowadays, but she still kept in shape. Hector was a lucky man, if he could ever get his head out of his technology to notice.

  “I never get to go anywhere.” Andrea whined. I looked over her shoulder to Hector, who was so immersed in his work that he hadn't said much or noticed.

  “Could you watch Auria while I’m gone please?” Anders asked patiently. Andrea rolled her eyes.

  “Orion makes a fine friend, but if she needs anything, I don’t know how prepared he is to watch children for a long time.” He added.

  “Let him watch the kids.” Andrea pointed at Hector behind her.

  Anders looked at Hector, pointedly staring at him. We all did.

  He never looked up.

  “I don’t...think that’s safe.” I pointed out. Andrea spun around and whacked Hector, who looked up, panicked.

  “What?” He asked, as if his life’s work had been disturbed. We all just shook our heads at him, so he shrugged and went back to his tablet.

  “Watch the kids. I got it.” He said, turning around and starting to walk away, bumping into the wall as he went.

  “I’m always looking after someone. Especially him.” Andrea snorted. Anders nodded his head.

  “That doesn’t surprise me at all. I promise, you’ll get to put your skills to use Andrea. Just not this time.” He told her. Satisfied, she followed after Hector, yelling curses in Arabic.

  “I should go with you.” I tried again.

  “Chase, stop it.” He came around the desk and closed the door.

  “I don’t need you losing control and making things worse there. It’s probably already a catastrophe and there are innocent kids who don’t know you. Too many casualties if you slip.” He whispered.

  I would have liked to agree with him, to admit that I have no idea if I’d be effective in that situation. All I knew was that I could feel the bloodlust picking away inside me slowly. I needed to fight something.

  “Damn it Anders. I have more control then to kill a bunch of kids.” I tried to hold it back, but it slipped out.

  He stared at me with this sad, broken expression. I knew exactly where his mind had gone. I couldn't help but reminisce as well.

  “You killed Serena. And that was when you had more control. When the curse wasn’t as strong. You spent years feeding that curse, killing as a profession. You killed the Rabbi, who was under our protection. I can’t…” He sighed, rubbing his temples.

  “I get it.”

  “Do you? You’re a liability for me Chase. The only reason I haven’t turned you over to the Progenitors is because you’re my friend.” He snaps, and I knew I had opened the floodgates.

  “I really wish you’d stop rubbing that in my face. If you can’t have me here, just tell me and I’ll go. You sought me out. You told me the Progenitors didn’t want me roaming anymore unchecked. I have other places I could be. I have other things I could be doing and people I could be killing. That’s all I’m good at right?” I can’t stop it now. I can feel it all welling up inside, ready to bubble over." I admitted.

  “Chase…”

  “No, Anders. I told you the day it happened, to kill me. I told you time and time again. You may well be the only damn person who can. If I can’t stop it anymore, someone has to do something. How many more people have to die before this ends? Do I have to slaughter all your kids here? Your daughter?” I growl at him.

  The punch to my face snapped the bottom part of my jaw. The second one flattened my nose, but Tyrfing had already healed me by the time he withdrew his hand, my jaw snapping back into place, and my nose shifting.

  “Is that what you want? Do you want to die? Truly?” Anders shouted at me. He was still trying to hold back. I shook my head.

  “I’ve only said it a million times, Anders. If you have no use for me here, and you won’t deal with the problem, then let me go. Don’t keep me here like some prisoner.” I rubbed my face and I watched guilt wash over him. I felt it too.

  “You have Andrea and Hector here now. You’ve put in a request to transfer more Chosen here. Have Andrea train them. Or better yet, I’m sure Hector would be more than happy to do your book work, while you train them. Just let me go.” I told him.

  “No.” I could see the fear in his eyes.

  “One of these days, you’re going to regret that.” I told him, but he continued to shake his head.

  “Anders…listen to me...”

  “I’m done listening to you. I have to go check on Sera. Please, just...stay here.” He opened the door and ushered me out, then turned to face the door. He sighed heavily and locked it.

  “What aren’t you telling me, Chase?” He didn’t turn to look at me.

  So many things shot through my mind, but Tyrfing immediately puts up a mental block. I opened my mouth, just to test, and no words came out. I could hear it laughing in the back of my mind.

  “I wish I could tell you.”

  He just scoffed and walked by me, leaving me standing in the cold halls of the Cathedral once more. Alone, broken and nursing the illness of Tyrfing, biding its time before it ruins everything. Images of this place burning, of killing the Chosen, flashed through my head. I could feel the sensation of the blade run up my back. I could see Anders, and all the others, dead at my feet. I could feel the warmth of their blood.

  I made my decision then.

  When I could no longer hear Anders’s footsteps, I pulled my lockpicks from my pocket. Kneeling in front of his office, I slipped my picks into the lock and fiddled with the mechanisms. When it popped open, I knew I’d sealed my fate. He’ll know I came in here. But that’s what I want. I could have just popped under the door with my shadow magic.

  I closed the door quietly behind me and used the light on my phone to move around the office. I found his sealed cabinet and made quick work of that lock too. I flicked through files new and old, and found something pulled to the front, out of order.

  Griffin’s file was sitting pooled with the mission briefs and reports from the Greece mission. A pink sticky note on the front said ‘Damien? Demi-God? Still alive?’.

  Real subtle Anders. Good job.

  I browsed the file and gathered as much intel on Griffin as I could. I could feel my own anger boiling, while the sword mocked me. If Magnus was to be believed, it was Griffin’s fault Serena was dead. He was equally to blame as me. But I feel like that was just wishful thinking on my part. Eager to believe the ravings of a mad man, simply to settle something in myself.

  I snapped a few photos for the road, and stuffed the file back into the cabinet, but way into the back of drawer. I needed him to know.

  I would make things right, but I won't be a prisoner here or to the Order of Vigilance.

  I won't be a prisoner to myself.