Maryanne and her
daughters woke up early to get a morning breakfast at Burgies. The car ride
there was mostly silent, just some awkward gospel music, which changed to the
rock tunes after the daughters had their way. Maryanne asked the ladies, "You
hungry?" Marietta replies, "Starving mom, thanks for taking us with you." Anne
Faith said, "You're a cool-cat mom!" Maryanne chuckles, then said, "It's my
pleasure, girls, just don't go wandering off..." They both reply, "Fine." After
a few more minutes pass, they arrive at Burgies, the local burger joint. They
go inside. Maryanne asks, "Do you ladies want a sausage biscuit?" Marietta
retorts, "I want pancakes!" Anne Faith adds, "I'll take a sausage biscuit, Mom,
how'd you know?" Maryanne just shrugs it off and opens the door for her
daughters. As they enter, they order, get their food, and have a seat. As they
are eating, Maryanne and the girls feel a cold chill in the wind. Anne Faith
responds immediately, "Whoa, what was that cold wind..." Marietta added, "I felt
it too, you feel that, Mom?"
Maryanne
muttered, "Something's off... Lord, please tell me he's not here—"
A disfigured
shadow slid across the wall before a tall, scarred figure emerged from the
bathroom.
"Shit. It's that
creeper, Dan," she hissed, folding a greasy napkin and fidgeting with her keys.
"Girls, let's make like a banana and—"
Dan dropped into
the booth beside them, a sly smile curling.
"I see the way
you look at me, Maryanne. You know I wouldn't just hand that ward-stone to
anyone. You're special. Like the moment a caterpillar breaks its cocoon and
takes its first breath as a butterfly."
He tapped the
table twice, then his thumbs fumbled into a crooked twiddle, slipping out of
rhythm.
Maryanne tries to
leave, but her instinct locks her in place. "Wait, girls, let's see where this
goes..." "So, Dan, what are you really after in this whole thing?"
Dan cracks his
knuckles first, then straightens his posture. "Alright, you know I'm after
Power, but you think I'm after it for the wrong reasons." "I told you before I
want to make sure The Crowned-Deep never hurts another person." "Especially
after what they did to my parents when I was 7 years old."
Maryanne said,
"What happened to you when you were 7, Dan?" She grips her cross lightly.
Dan said, "My
parents got involved with ritualistic sacrifice." "Long story short, the cops
found me in my house with my parents overdosed." The suicide notes script: To
the Crowned-Deep we give our souls, to mold into its role. "I didn't get what
it meant until after I ended up in the foster home." "And I was told about it
before I left." "Ever since then, I vowed to myself I'll either destroy The
Crowned-Deep for what it did to my parents or die trying."
Maryanne said,
"I'm so sorry, I never knew... How could I?" Anne added, "We're not your
therapist, Dan, we want to know why the hell you look at us like you want us
for dinner?" Marietta said, "Yes, can we trust you to not betray us in the
end?"
Maryanne grips
the ward-stone instinctively; the warmth feels like a truth within a lie.
Dan said, "You
can trust me, for now...." As he snaps his neck, he stares instinctively
hungry. Dan said, "Debts don't just vanish, Maryanne. I'm here to collect." "That
ward-stone I gave you prevents it from infesting your thoughts through force.
It also keeps you from merging with The Crowned-Deep if you ever get swallowed
up. You can thank me later. And don't worry, I won't judge you for what
happened back in that alley, but remember complicity is a sin too." Dan
vanishes as quickly as he appeared. Leaving a scent of burnt chocolate and a
two-word note on a napkin: "Resist, Me."