Page 39 of Semblance

“Yes,” Shadow replied, his voice full of conviction. “He deserved far worse than he received. Julia was innocent. Julia was a ray of light in a grey, overcast sky. Julia was the first person outside my family to care about me.”

“I’m sorry Shadow,” I said. “Sometimes it’s hard to dig up the past. You don’t have to finish the story if you don’t want to.”

Shadow shook his head. “It took a long time for me to get over Julia’s death, but knowing that John Taluzzi was captured and dealt with helped me through the grieving process. I’m thankful that the demons that haunt me now don’t include Julia’s restless spirit. Sometimes, only death can make things right.”

“It’s sad that you think like that,” I said, disagreeing with Shadow’s skewed sense of justice. It had always been my belief that no single person could make the decision to end a person’s life, no matter how much they deserved to die. Law and order just didn’t work that way.

“The legal system has failed too many times,” Shadow said, swirling a single drop of whiskey inside the empty glass before setting it down on the table. There was a brief pause while he collected his thoughts. “When Abraham was told that his daughter’s killer was caught and chained like an animal, he finally decided to leave his house for the first time in over six months. I still have the newspaper clippings with photos taken of him stepping outside. His hair and beard, once a chestnut brown, was now grey and brittle. He looked frail.

“I’ll never know what happened that day in the abandoned factory. I do remember my father coming home and telling my motherthat it was finally over. It is every father’s right to avenge the murder of their child, and he was glad to give that precious gift to Abraham.”

“Abraham killed that man, didn’t he?” I asked, despite knowing the answer already. I just couldn’t picture that sweet old man harming anyone. However I could sympathize with the rage he must have felt towards Julia’s killer.

Shadow ignored my question and continued on with his story.

“With Julia’s death finally avenged, it was inevitable that the lingering question about the Midnight Society’s leadership would resurface. When my father met with Abraham to discuss reopening the elections, Abraham responded by withdrawing his right to the Society’s throne. He told my father that with Julia and his wife’s death, the Constantine line was coming to an end. From that point on, the Tremaine’s would have complete leadership over the organization and that Abraham would stand by my father’s side as his trusted advisor, his loyal friend, and as his brother. We were the only family he had now.”

I was flabbergasted as I took in the entire story.

“I guess that explains the bond between Abraham and yourself,” I said.

“He’s family to me,” Shadow replied. “It’s just unfortunate that it took the death of Julia to unite the Constantine’s and the Tremaine’s so closely together.”

“You were five at the time. How do you remember all the details?” I asked.

“I found the case file when I was nine and read every word in it and studied every picture. It’s impossible to keep secrets buried within the organization. Someonealwayshas a file of secrets to share.” Shadow rose from his chair, picking up his empty glass. “You look like you can use another drink,” Shadow said. “How about we have one more and then we head out for dinner. We have reservations at one of the most exclusive restaurants in the entire city, the Black Swan. Everyone’s talking about it.”

“It’s not on the tip of my tongue,” I stated.

“Anyone who pays six figures in taxes is talking about it,” Shadow corrected himself as he walked over to the bar. He waved Collin over and placed his order.

As we waited for our drinks, Shadow turned to me and whispered into my ear, his gentle breath sending shivers throughout my body. I felt myself go wet as I breathed in his scent.

“Everything I told you about Abraham, keep it to yourself. Though everyone knows about his past, we’ve kept it long buried. The old man seems happy now, though you can still see that from time-to-time he feels the hurt all over again.”

I nodded, “Of course.”

Collin returned and handed me vodka with two limes.

“You remembered,” I smiled at Shadow.

“Some things I can never forget,” he stated. Though his voice was calm and playful, he looked at me with dark, haunted eyes.

I knew he wasn’t referring to my drink.

#

Chapter Twelve

The drive to the Black Swan was made in silence, but not the awkward kind where I usually struggled to think of things to say. It was a comfortable silence where I sat back in the luxurious leather seats of Shadow’s silver Aston Martin DB9 and enjoyed the fiery sounds of Miles Davis’s trumpet resonating from the car’s crystal clear speakers.

I still couldn’t get Shadow’s tale out of my mind. It made me see Abraham in a different light--a loving father who lost his only daughter.

I suddenly had the urge to find the old man and give him a giant hug, but that would violate the promise I just made to Shadow.

Instead I closed my eyes and freed my mind from all negative thoughts.

It was a perfect night.

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