A sudden, sharp anger flared in Osita's chest, hot and difficult to contain. If not for the absolute necessity of their ruse, the need to ensure not a single leak disrupted the plan he would have roared in fury at the sky.
He hated this world for the choices it forced upon him and the impossible positions it put him in. Now, he was a ghost to his own blood, forced to hide from his children and his family when all he had ever truly desired was to be left in peace with them.
Taking a long, ragged breath to steady his racing heart, Osita stood up. As he rose, a shimmering door manifested out of the thin air before him, glowing faintly against the darkness of the borderlands.
He paused at the threshold, his back to his son. "Take care of yourself and your siblings," he said, his voice thick with a father's heavy command. "And keep a close eye on your sister, Nwadike. Before she pushes herself so hard she breaks."
