Page 99 of Spiritwarrior

He went into the bedroom, opened the drawer, and found a yellow envelope. Opening the envelope, he pulled out some legal papers and an unopened letter. He held it, then went outside after peeking through the window to see if Sophie was gone. Not wanting to invade her privacy, he left it unopened; it wasn’t his place to read the letter before she did. He walked to the family cemetery and stood near his great-great-uncle’s grave.

“Marty, father of Sophie. Come to me.”

Using a voice he had never used around Sophie, he waited for the spirit he had summoned.

Nothing happened. Marty thought to refuse him. He wouldn’t be denied.

“Marty, father of Sophie. I command you to come to me,” he called, using a harsher tone of voice.

Marty appeared in front of him. Jody gave him time to assimilate he was no longer in Hell.

“I want answers.”

Marty stopped looking around the cemetery to focus on him. His face was contorted in fear. “Why am I here?”

“I want answers.”

“I don’t have to tell you a fucking thing!”

Jody casually stepped forward, unafraid of the dead spirit. “I don’t want to hurt you, but I will.”

“You can’t hurt me any more than that bastard who runs Hell.”

“Believe me, I can, and I will. Don’t test me.”

Marty gave in. “What do you want to know?”

“Why did you leave the diner to Sophie?”

The spirit became terror stricken. “Leave Sophie alone.”

Taken aback at Marty’s protective instinct when he mentioned Sophie, Jody felt as if his legs had been swept out from under him. “I was under the assumption you hated Sophie.”

“I love my daughter. Stay away from her!” Marty yelled at him.

“Calm yourself,” Jody told him. “I’m trying to protect her, too. I need to know who from.”

“Why should you care?”

“A lot’s happened since you met your end, old man. I love Sophie, and I’m trying to protect her.”

Marty stared at him closer. “You’re one of the Colemans. I remember seeing you with them when they came to town.”

“That’s correct. I’m Jody. Now tell me what I need to know.”

Marty seemed indecisive; his face set stubbornly.

“Ginny is my sister. She is the only one in this town who gave a damn about you. If you cared enough to get to know the rest of the Colemans, you’d know I’d only want to protect your daughter.”

His face twisted in remorse.

“Ginny was the only good thing in my life, other than my daughter,” Marty revealed. “I left Sophie the restaurant because it was the only thing I could. I lost all my money on the horses. The restaurant was the only thing I had to give.”

Jody steeled himself not to feel sorry for him.

“If you loved her so much, then why did you leave the clock out in the open to be seen?”

“I didn’t know I was going to die before they came back for the clock.”

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