Page 12 of Deceiver (Soul Chasers #2)

Keagan

“ K eagan, wake up.”

I roll over in bed, aware of the voice calling my name, gently waking me. “Wake up, son.”

I open my eyes, blinking through the darkness, but then I see him. “Dad?”

“You can see me?”

“I can see you.” I look around for a second. “Where am I? What’s going on?”

“I wasn’t sure it would work to get you here alone, but it did.”

“Get me where?”

My dad appears before me, as clear as day, and we seem to be in a room that looks nothing like Wilder’s bedroom where I went to sleep. It’s dark and empty and very cold, sending a shiver down my spine.

“Where are we?”

My dad, strong and fit, smiles at me. “I don’t exactly know. I just know I can talk to you here. I can see you, son.”

The man in front of me doesn’t look much like I remember him, but I do see myself in his features. His hair is white now, his face etched with wrinkles, but it’s his eyes I remember the most, because they haven’t changed. They were always as dark as the night sky and as cold as a winter day.

“What do you want from me?” I ask.

“I want your help, son. I came back specifically to get your help.”

“What kind of help?”

“I’m on a mission, but some of it I just can’t do anymore.”

“Because you’re dead.”

My dad flinches when I say that, shaking his head. “No, I’m not dead. I’m just in a different place. They tried to put me in a… in a cage, but I figured a way around it so I could keep living.”

Living? “But, Dad, you’re not alive. You’re not really here. I can’t touch you or have lunch with you. You’re dead.”

“No.” His voice is stern. “Death isn’t what you think it is. It’s not some permanent state that you can never change. I’m talking to you now, aren’t I?”

“Well, yes, but you still can’t be here with me.”

“I’m in a different realm, but I’m still here. I’ll always be here.”

“Why now?” I ask, folding my arms across my chest. “You were never here for me before. Why are you here now?”

“I messed up,” he explains. “I was an absent father because I had my own demons to slay, and I’m sorry about that.

At first, it was your mom who kept me away from you, and she should have.

I wasn’t a good father. I had problems with alcohol and drugs and women—so many women.

She deserved better than me, but you’re the one good thing I did, and unfortunately, it took getting all the way to this point for me to see that. ”

His explanation causes my eyes to well up with tears. “I’ve always wondered why I wasn’t important enough to you.”

“The opposite is true, son. You were so important to me that I thought staying away was the right thing to do. I didn’t want my life to mess you up.”

“I guess I can understand that. So, what is this mission you’re talking about?”

He smiles, walking closer to me, but there seems to be some sort of block between us, like an invisible wall that keeps us separated. “I’m not prepared to tell you all of it today. First, I have to make sure you can handle it. It’s really important.”

“How will you find out if I can handle it if you don’t tell me what it is?”

“Time,” he says, glancing over his shoulder as though he can see something I can’t. “It will take time, but I’ll know when you’re ready. For now, I need you to do a couple of things.”

“Okay, what do you need?”

“First, I don’t want you to call those women back. They’re trying to banish me, and I don’t want to waste energy fighting them.”

His request sends a shiver down my spine, but I’m not sure why. “What else?”

“The man you’re with right now.”

“Wilder?”

“Whatever his name is, he wants to get rid of me too.”

“Um, yeah, he said it’s his job, and you’re not supposed to be here with the rest of us.”

“That’s a lie. There are people out there who want to prevent the spirit world from interacting with the human world, because they know how powerful we are and how strong we can be. He doesn’t want to lose his place in the food chain.”

“Food chain? That doesn’t really make sense. Wilder seems like a nice guy. He helped me tonight with this other spirit that was bothering me.”

“I know. Unfortunately, some spirits got through when you were talking alone with me. I tried to stop them, but I don’t have that power yet.”

“Do you know why that happens to me?”

“Why what happens?”

“Wilder and Talon, one of the women, said I attract spirits. Do you know why that would happen?”

“No, I don’t know. I could try to see if I can find out. Maybe someone on my side knows the answer.”

Nodding, I glance around. “I’m glad I can talk to you, but I don’t want to deal with a bunch of spirits attacking me. I’d like to make it stop.”

“Of course. Stick with me and I’ll keep you safe.”

“How? You’re on the other side.”

“You’re gonna have to learn to trust me. Keagan, I’m your father. I would never do anything to hurt you.”

“Okay.” I nod, even though what he’s saying doesn’t really make sense to me. “What now?”

“You need to resist.” He steps closer to me, and the air cools even more. “Resist anyone trying to send me away, not until my work is done. I was so close, I just needed a little more time.”

“Time for what?”

“My mission.” His voice starts to sound far away. “The mission is important, and you can help me finish it. It’s long overdue, but this is something we can do together.” He smiles, and I wonder if it’s the first time I’ve ever seen a genuine smile. “Father and son. You and me, kiddo.”

There’s a warning bell ringing in the back of my head that I do my best to ignore. He’s saying things I’ve always wanted to hear him say, calling me son, and including me in his life. Well, as best he can at this point.

“Okay, Dad. I guess I’ll wait to hear from you again.”

“And resist,” he repeats. “Don’t let them send me back.”

“I’ll do my best.”

“Just distract him.”

“Who?”

“The man you’re with.” He looks put out, exasperated. “Stay focused. Resist those women and resist the man you’re with. Distract him.”

“I’ll… I’ll distract him somehow.”

“Good. I trust you. I know you can do it. You’re my son, after all.”

As he stands before me, his body becomes translucent, like a shadow of himself. His brow creases and he looks around, frustrated.

“I’m running out of energy. I’ll have to try again after I regroup. I’ll see you soon, son.”

“Bye, Dad.”

He’s gone before I get the words out, and when I blink, I’m back in Wilder’s bed, tucked under the blankets.

I wasn’t anywhere else at all. That must’ve been a really bizarre dream, I guess.

Wilder is sound asleep beside me, with the blankets crumpled around him and pulled down just enough for me to admire his chest. He’s an incredibly good-looking man, and ordinarily I’d be trying to get his attention in a romantic way, but I’ve got bigger issues to tackle right now.

My dream comes back to me in flashes. Is that what my dad meant by distracting him?

Does he know Wilder is into men too? He didn’t exactly take it well when my grandma told him about my sexuality, but maybe he’s had time to get over it.

I guess if I could get Wilder interested in me, maybe I could drag this whole thing out a little bit longer and help my dad do whatever it is he’s trying to do before he gets sent back.

Is that the right thing to do? I could help my dad and hook up with a hot guy.

It doesn’t sound like such a bad plan, assuming Wilder has any interest in me at all.

So far, he seems super serious and stoic, focused on his job, but he’s also kind.

I can tell there’s a softer side in there somewhere.

Under different circumstances, we might even be something.

I blow out a breath and roll over on my side again, trying to force away the thoughts that dream put in my head. I’m probably making all this up. Or maybe I’m slowly going crazy, who knows? One thing I do know is I need to get some sleep. I’ll figure out the rest tomorrow.

The next time my eyes open, I feel warm and the room is brighter.

I blink my eyes open and find myself smashed up against Wilder, my body pressed into his and my arm draped over his waist. My dick is hard, which must be what woke me up, and even though I should be shocked and ashamed of myself, I take just another moment to relish the feeling of having another man close.

It’s been too dang long, but I’m being a creep.

I try to scoot back just a little bit, but Wilder shifts, holding my arm against his chest. I peer over his shoulder to see if he’s awake, but his eyes are closed, so it’s highly likely he doesn’t know what he’s doing. Maybe he’s having a really cool dream too.

I kind of want to get up and go to the bathroom, but I also kind of don’t want to leave the room without him. Call me scared, but after what happened last night, I really don’t think I want to be alone too much.

I try to shift again, delicately pulling my arm away from Wilder, but he mumbles something before turning over in my direction so that he’s facing me. His eyelids flutter and he slowly blinks, staring at me for a moment as though he doesn’t remember who I am.

“Good morning.”

Recognition spreads across his face. “Morning.” He scoots away abruptly. “Sorry.”

“It’s okay. I think we got a little tangled up last night while we were sleeping.”

“Yeah.”

When I glance down, I notice how the sheet is tented around his waist area, but that’s a common occurrence.

Waking up with a hard-on doesn’t mean anything at all, but I have to admit, it does boost my ego a little bit, especially when Wilder doesn’t make any attempt to hide it or put space between us.

“Did you sleep well?” he asks.

“Mostly, yeah. You?”

“The same as always. You must be hungry.”

“I’m just a coffee in the morning kind of guy.”

He nods. “Me too.”

Neither one of us makes any attempt to move, so I continue talking. “I’m sure you probably want to get up and have your space to yourself again.”

He doesn’t say anything, just watches me.

“I’m not gonna lie. I’m pretty freaked out to do anything by myself right now.”