Death to All Monsters by Theophilus Monroe

Author:Theophilus Monroe [Theophilus Monroe]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Theophilus Monroe
Published: 2024-08-17T00:00:00+00:00

10. Daddy Issues

I hoped once we got out of that dusty hotel and were in a more comfortable environment the tension between Silas and the rest of us would ease. If we were going to put his plan into action—bottom line—we had to get past our issues. We had to trust each other.

But the tense silence as we settled into the living room in Wheatley’s farmhouse was as oppressive as the stifling Nebraska heat. I stood with my arms folded, an uneasy spectator to the icy standoff between Wheatley and her father. Silas and I had issues—but they were small fries compared to the history between those two.

“I never expected to come back.” Silas was on Wheatley’s couch, his elbows on his knees, his head resting in his hands. “I thought I’d die trying to save your mother. But when I learned of the cancer...I knew I had to do something. If I’m going to die, it’s going to be saving her. Not from a goddamn disease.”

Wheatley tilted her head. “So let me get this straight. You have a plan to lead us into hell, and you don’t plan on coming home.”

“I didn’t say—“

“Yeah, you did!” Wheatley insisted. “If you’re going to die—you’d rather die on this damned mission than from cancer. Well, I can put two-and-two together, Dad. That means you don’t care to survive this mission.”

Silas met her gaze steadily. “I plan to save your mother. And Sebastian’s wife. If I do that, I’ll die in peace. There will be no reason to come back and wither away...to die weak...”

I couldn’t stay silent any longer. “That’s not weakness,” I interjected. “Say we save your wife and Angi. We come home and you get to die surrounded by loved ones. That’s a hell of a lot better than dying in the pit.”

Wheatley nodded emphatically. “Exactly!”

Silas chuckled under his breath. “Well, if I die in hell, it’ll be a short trip into the afterlife.”

“That’s not funny!” Wheatley insisted.

But Silas remained resolute. “It’s my death, my choice.”

“Fuck you, Dad,” Wheatley spat, her fists clenched at her sides.

I sighed internally, feeling the weight of their fractured relationship. As much as I understood Silas’ determination, the anguish in Wheatley’s eyes tore at me. She had already lost so much. To finally have her father back, only for him to choose to die on this mission? It seemed unbearably cruel.

Silas just laughed, a dry, rasping sound that echoed in the tense silence of the room. He glanced at me, a wry twist to his lips. “My daughter’s a firecracker, ain’t she?”

I winced, meeting his gaze with a hard stare. “No, she’s right. Fuck you, dude. I’m glad you’re here, that you’re going to help, but that woman—your daughter—just found out her father is alive. You can’t drop bombs like, we’re going to hell, and you’re going to leave me there, and expect her to be cool with it.”

Wheatley waved her hand through the air, a gesture of frustration and resignation. “Don’t bother, Sebastian. My father’s a stubborn son of a bitch.

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