Shadow of Death (SOD)

Chapter 75: Play Along (2)

Chapter 75

Within a few minutes—forty minutes to be exact—the food was ready.

Glancing at the clock, Asher blinked as it began ticking forward as normally as possible.

He had also checked his phone the next second, only to see that the time was now;

[8:40 PM]

The date too was now;

[July 1st]

’Hmph.’

He didn’t question anything and simply moved on to his room to freshen up.

They had sweated a lot in the kitchen from the steam of the food and everything else.

So Asher wanted to freshen up while the others were delegated to call their parents down for dinner.

As soon as he walked into his room, Asher exhaled a shaky breath.

He stared down at his hands as they trembled slightly.

Luckily, his siblings hadn’t noticed the bite marks on his arms yet.

But he knew he wouldn’t be able to hide them from Jack’s observant eyes if he didn’t deal with this properly.

Looking towards his window, his brows knitted as he slowly approached it.

....

A few minutes later, Asher was in the bathroom.

He took out the notebook and quickly jotted some things down.

He paused for a moment, staring at what he had written before continuing.

After writing a few more things down, he hid the book away and finally took the shower he had promised himself.

’Written... Written... Written....’

The word repeated itself endlessly in his mind.

Asher finished showering and quickly wore a long-sleeved shirt that hid the bite marks on his arms before returning downstairs with a wide smile on his face.

His family were already gathered at the dining table.

The food had been dished out and everyone had their plates in front of them.

But there was still a visible tension lingering between his parents as Clara kept staring daggers at Jack from across the table.

Soon, Asher joined them.

Staring at his dished-out plate of food for a second, he simply shrugged before digging in.

The others ate slowly.

And so did their parents.

Jesse looked between her parents with an expectant smile on her face.

"So...? How’s the food?"

"Nice," Clara uttered coldly.

Jesse’s face immediately fell.

Jack sighed.

"Come on, Clara. You are angry at me, I know. But you shouldn’t punish the kids because of this. Come on; they worked their asses off to prepare this for us."

Clara dropped her spoon before shooting the man a glare.

"And my parents worked their asses off to be able to buy us this house as an anniversary gift. We gave birth to and raised our kids in this very house, and you are saying that we should sell it and move to another city? Just because you got a promotion?"

"But it’s a promotion, and it’s very important," Jack countered.

"Then you can go. Go alone and whenever you have a break, you can come back to your family. Must we all move with you?" Clara questioned, her eyes filled with daggers.

Asher kept glancing between his parents while silently eating his food.

".... Yes, we need to move together. Jayden has no luck finding a job in this city. But in Vespers, he does. Asher just finished high school and could gain admission in Vespers."

’Vespers....’ Asher repeated inwardly as his fingers trembled.

For some reason, the moment he heard the name, his skin began to crawl.

He forcefully swallowed the food in his mouth.

"...."

Clara glanced at Asher before looking back at Jack, who was also staring at the boy.

Asher didn’t notice either of their gazes as he was still trembling slightly.

His brows were furrowed as he tried to recall what it was about the city called Vespers that was causing his heart to palpitate so violently.

But the more he tried to remember, the more a persistent headache began assaulting his mind.

He wasn’t giving up.

Instead, he began actively pushing against the headache.

The spoon in his hand was clutched so tightly that he didn’t even realize when its pointed tip tore through his palm.

Blood slowly began trickling from the wound before droplets fell onto the dining table.

A wave of pain shot through his palm, and almost immediately, his memories cleared for a brief second.

His senses flared.

A strange aura he had never perceived before—or perhaps one he had known about before but had somehow been suppressed—washed over his senses.

His eyes widened as he slowly looked around the table.

At his family.

At the worried expressions on their faces.

"Sh-Sh-Shadows?" Asher whispered, his eyes widening with each passing second.

Jack paused.

His finger dragged slowly across the table as he lifted a brow.

"Shadows? What do you mean, Asher?"

"Son?" Clara reached out and gently touched the back of Asher’s hand, a motherly look of affection appearing on her face.

"What happened to you? I-I-I’M so sorry if our argument caused you to freak out."

The moment Asher heard her soothing voice, it was as if his entire body suddenly relaxed.

"....."

Asher blinked a few times as he scanned the faces of his family.

’I-I-I... what is going on? What am I doing at the dining table? Ugh.... Oh! We are eating?’

He looked around for a few more seconds.

His gaze scanned the room as though it was his first time being there.

’.... But why does it feel like I’m forgetting something importa— written...’

The word crashed through his mind against his will, causing him to lift a brow.

’Written....? What does that— reflection... written.... Reflection.... Written.... Simple thoughts....’

The words repeated themselves over and over in Asher’s mind until he became even more confused.

He could tell that he wasn’t actively thinking those thoughts himself.

It was as if they had been stored somewhere deep within his mind, waiting for him to access them.

"Asher?!"

Jayden’s booming voice was enough to jolt the boy out of his thoughts.

Asher shook for a moment, his hand suddenly yanking away from his mother’s.

He immediately winced in pain.

Turning his palm upward, he frowned.

’Huh? How-How did I get this injured? Wh-What hap— written...’

His eyes snapped open.

Then, he abruptly bolted upright and stared at his family.

"I-I-I want to....ugh...."

He placed one hand over his mouth while clutching his stomach with the other.

Without giving them any explanation whatsoever, he darted away from the dining table.

Clatter—!

His spoon fell from his hand and clattered loudly against the ground.

"....?!"

"Huh? What was that?" Jesse asked as she looked at the others.

"I think he has a stomach ache and wants to throw up," Jack added while tapping his finger against the table.

Clara sighed.

"Poor boy. This is the first time he is seeing his parents have such a heated argument. He must be spooked."

Jayden looked towards Jack.

"Should I go check up on him and make sure he is alright?"

Jack shook his head.

"He will be fine."

"I hope so," Clara uttered silently, a worried look still lingering on her face.