Soren didn’t relax until they were back inside his apartment.
He didn’t want to tell the others, but he was afraid the shade wouldn’t be finished with them. From what Terry had told him, they didn’t just fade away. They needed to find peace. He thought killing Richard would grant peace to Peter Strode, but perhaps he was wrong.
If the shade came back angry, they’d be in no condition to fight. All four of them were exhausted. They would just have to hope it was over.
When they got inside, Sara looked Alex up and down and then pulled him in for a long hug. Soren expected him to squirm or be embarrassed, but he hugged his mom back tightly.
“Is this just a mom and son thing, or can I join in?” Ken asked.
Sara nodded, tears running down her cheeks, and Ken grasped the two of them in a giant bear hug. To Soren, they looked like a big happy family. He stood staring at them, uncertain what to do. He felt like he’d intruded onto a private moment. He crossed through the living room and walked into the kitchen to fix himself a drink.
Sara appeared a moment later.
“You get a hug too,” she said.
She pulled him in before he could respond and for a moment, the past seven years were wiped away. He hugged her back tightly, afraid this moment would end too fast.
When she finally broke free, she held his face in her hands.
“We’re friends again, okay?” she asked. “I know that after the funeral, you needed some space, but... John wouldn’t have wanted you to live like this.”
“Like what?”
She cocked her head to the side and gave him a skeptical look.
“Alone and isolated,” Sara said.
“I just thought it was better if I left you alone,” Soren said.
“For me or for you?” she asked. “I don’t blame you for what happened to John. I know that doesn’t take the guilt away for…”
She paused.
“Look, we should talk again later,” she said. “My point is that John died, but you didn’t. Don’t become a shade yourself. Don’t hide in the shadows for the rest of your life, Soren.”
Soren nodded, but his face was grim. He gestured toward the living room, where Ken and Alex presumably still were.
“What are you going to do about the cop?” he asked.
She gave him an inscrutable look. He felt bad for asking. It wasn’t any of his business. And what was he suggesting? That she stay a nun for the rest of her life?
She didn’t answer, but hugged Soren again. He closed his eyes. Had he been a shade, he would have found peace in that moment.