Chapter 12

She could barely meet our gaze as we walked over and sat down with her on the patio next to her. 

"Micah," Beck said gently, "we just want you to open up. We are here for you, and you can feel safe with us."

"We’re not sure what you’re about to say, but look—" I added. "Even though I haven’t known you as long as Beck has, Micah, I still want to understand what’s happening in your life. We both do."

Still avoiding our eyes, she stared down at the grass for a moment—probably collecting her thoughts—then took a deep breath and sighed.

"First off," she began, "I overheard some of what you and Beck were talking about before I passed out, so… It's safe to say I can tell you the whole story now."

"To start with... I’m a Waymaker."

Beck and I looked at each other, wide-eyed, then turned back to Micah, stunned.

"I was chasing this demon alone for a while," she continued, "and it came back to bite me. I got possessed."

"I didn’t know that could happen to Waymakers," Beck said in surprise.

"I didn’t either—at least not until it happened. It’s terrifying to realize how vulnerable we still are, even with our gifts."

At this point, I'm not sure how to proceed. Micah had been opening up to us, but still could not look at us."

I spoke up. "Then tell me the truth: Was it you behind the murder and the attack on that first girl in the park?" 

"No. Thankfully, that happened while I was trying to catch the demon. I failed my mission... and she got me instead."

She looked disgusted. "It sickens me to know that thing that hurt those people is inside me."

"I’m sorry for sealing the demon in you," I said. "My guardian and I tried everything we could to save you."

"It's quite all right. I know there wasn’t much else you could do," she replied. "My guardian lost her job because she wasn’t there when I needed her most. She was dismissed."

She paused for a second. Then I asked, "So, what should we do from here?"

"Well," I said, "we did promise to help you train—to control this monster inside you."

Beck smiled. "We’d be more than happy to help. Now that everything’s out in the open, how are you feeling, by the way?" 

"I'm doing much better than expected. Just a few scratches and bruises. Nothing serious." 

"So, will you be up for the task of going to school tomorrow? Or are you going to take another day off? Beck asked.

"I think I can handle it. I need something else to focus on besides this whole situation."

"I respect that," I said. We all do. I’ll talk to my guardian, Baby, and see about getting you into training soon. Do you have any questions for us in the meantime?"  I told Micah. 

"Actually, I have a couple. Who was the first Waymaker between the two of you? And why didn’t you tell me sooner?" She taunted.

Seeing as she was dismissed, I wonder if your guardian gave you any information. I was the first Waymaker. " I said. "Beck only became a trainee because of me."

"Oh really? How did that happen?" It was good to see Micah sounding slightly more spirited, a bit like herself.

"Do you remember that rumor going around school—that I got attacked by a pack of boars?"

"Yeah… vaguely. That was a while ago, I believe." 

"Well, it wasn’t really a pack of boars. It was a soulless creature that looked like one. It came after Beck, and I saved her. I’d barely started using my powers. My ability woke up too early, so all I could do at first was protect. But the day I saved Beck… it awoke my weapon."

"So, Beck, you only recently became a Waymaker in training?" Micah asked.

"That’s right," Beck said. "I chose to join the same day I learned about Kaysi."

"And you, Micah?" I asked. "How long have you been a Waymaker?"

"I have been in this business for over a year now."

"Oh right, I forgot you're older than us—even though we’re in the same grade."

"Yeah, my birthday falls on an odd time of year, so I had to start school a year later."

"Okay, that makes sense. Is there anything else you want to ask?" I asked her.

"Yeah—Kaysi, you said something about your powers waking up early. What did you mean by that?"

"A few years ago, when I was a little girl, I was attacked by what I think was a hunter—and a pack of demon dogs. My family always had the Seer gift, but none of them were Waymakers. Honestly… they don’t even know I am one."

"You know we’re allowed to talk about it if we know someone else is aware of Waymakers, right? Anyways, we usually have a sixth sense about these things. I felt something off about you, but couldn’t place it until now."

"I’m sorry I didn’t notice you guys sooner," Micah said. "Maybe we could’ve prevented all this. Maybe I could’ve helped."

"Oh, don't beat yourself up. It was out of your hands. I kind of walked into it. Due to my stubbornness, I am partly to blame for my guardian's dismissal." "This time around, I have to make changes. I have learned from my mistakes and don't want to feel like I did before when that thing was controlling me." 

"Well, Micah," Beck joked, grinning, "even if you go down the wrong path, I’ll be there to smack you back onto the right one."

That made all of us laugh.

"All right, well, it's been a long couple of days. We're about to head home and get some rest, so you should do the same." I said to Micah as I stood up from the table. 

"Yeah, I’m definitely sleepy," Micah said. "But since I owe you one, how about we meet up tomorrow and actually walk to school together?"

"I’d like that," I smiled. "Let’s make it a habit—have each other’s backs in case something goes down."

As we turned to leave, Micah suddenly pulled us both into a hug. I’m not really the hugging type, but I wrapped my arms around her anyway. When she stepped back, tears welled up in her eyes.

"I’m sorry," she said. "I needed that more than you did. But thank you… Really."

"I don’t know about Kaysi," she added with a smirk—clearly catching on to my stiffness—" but one thing’s certain: You can hug us anytime. Kaysi’s just a little shy with personal affection. But don’t let that fool you—she’s one of the most caring people I’ve met. I mean, technically, she saved both of us now! I just got to help this time."

The next morning, we kept our promise. We all met up at Micah’s house—it was closer to school—and walked the rest of the way together. Thankfully, she was still wearing the cross necklace we’d given her. I had utterly forgotten to explain what it actually did—probably from all the stress and lack of sleep.

"Hey, Micah," I said before we reached school, "that cross you’re wearing… It's meant to help conceal the demon inside you. I know we told you we sealed it in you, but I didn't explain precisely how." 

"Oh wow, I’m glad you told me. I almost took it off yesterday before my shower, but something told me not to."

When we arrived at school, it was the first day of the spring semester. "Hard to believe we had a blizzard just last week and now spring's practically here. Time’s moving way too fast lately," I said aloud as we entered the building.

To our surprise—and relief—Micah ended up in the same class as Beck and me: Classroom 107 with Ms. Guardian. Yeah, that was actually her last name. Fascinating last name, isn't it?

Our new teacher stood tall with dark skin, brown, wavy, fluffy hair, and sharp, dog-like eyes. We chose seats in the back of the classroom—just in case.

"I think this teacher's name is bizarre, don't you think?" Beck whispered.

"Becky, you must be a mind reader. I was thinking the same thing!" 

Just then, our teacher slowly started to walk over to us. Did she hear us talking about her? Did she think we were making fun of her? Were we about to get in trouble on our first day? 

But instead, she started handing out folders.

"I like to start in the back of the class and work my way forward," she announced.

Inside each folder was a basic form to fill out to help her get to know the other students in the class, but the three of us noticed something extra: a sticky note that none of the other students had.

It read:
"This is your guardian, Baby. As you can see, I’ve changed my appearance to blend in as your temporary substitute teacher. I wanted to keep a closer eye on you and be available in case of emergencies. Since there are now three of you, I want to speak with you after class."