Fall of Hope (Book 1): Real Heroes Don't Wear Capes (44 page)

“
Dislocated?”
He opens his mouth to hear the clicking again. “Well, that's
great. Just great.”

“
Sarcasm?”

Bobby
removes the tissue again from his nose and drops it down the toilet.

“
It
works better if you're upside down—it helps to prevent the
blood flow.”

“
Thanks
for your wisdom. I could have done with it days ago, but whatever.”

“
I
told you that you had things to do before you could come with me,
didn't I? Now they are done.”

Anger
sizzles behind Bobby's narrowing eyes as he glares at the hidden face
of the man who could be a figment of his imagination.

“
Are
you saying what I think you're saying?”

“
And
what would that be, Bobby?”

“
That
my mum was all part of this? You were just waiting for my dad to come
into my room—that's what you're saying, isn't it?”

“
Calm
down, Bobby.”

“
Or
what?”

“
Look
what happened last time you lost your mind. You didn't come off
well.”

“
No?
Well, maybe I don't care anymore!”

“
It's
not a fight I am willing to have, but if you force it, you will not
win, I assure you.”

“
Good,
maybe I don't want to win!”

Bobby
pushes against Gage's solid chest, but the act moves him none.
Beneath the hood, his features remain stoic.

“
It's
not just about you anymore—this is bigger than you and I. You
must remain alive because the world depends on it. All worlds depend
on it.”

“
I'm
sick of this!” Bobby growls as he forces both hands onto the
hoodie again. “I'm sick of you, sick of your damn war and sick
of this damn life. How's about that? I'm done with everything!”

Again,
Gage is not fazed. Instead, he moves back into the towel rack, to
save Bobby from himself more than anything.

“
I'm
sorry about your mother, Bobby. I wish I could still feel that kind
of love too, but it is of little importance now.”

“
You're
wrong! It is important—it's important to me! She was my mother,
and you took her away!”

“
I
did no such thing. Now, are you going to make her proud, or are you
going to give up and live like the coward you believe yourself to
be?”

Bobby
drops to the floor and folds his legs with a huff. He allows his
fingertips to trace over the darker shapes, patterns and figures he
has been seeing since he was a child.

Since
Benji's death.

“
It
was my fault.”

“
What's
that?” Gage drops to his hunches and stares at Bobby from
across the room.

Bobby
does not stop to consider whether the guy is humouring him, or if he
genuinely cares. It could be somewhere between the two because he
realises Bobby needs to acknowledge it for himself. Maybe he knows
this already, but he doesn't say anything if he does.

“
My
brother died because of me.”

Gage
stares at the boy with his head bowed and his curls a mess atop his
head. The front falls over his bloodied eyebrow as he follows the
markings on the floor.

“
I
was a disciple in the school's Easter play, so I had to wear this
long, white robe. I didn't realise the other kids cut it short
because I was too busy trying to remember my lines and calm my
nerves. I was so scared my hands were shaking. I hated getting up in
front of people to talk because I always went bright red and
stuttered. I kept thinking about all those eyes watching me and I
almost threw up.

“
Anyway,
I had the costume on and didn't realise everyone else was already
laughing at me back stage. They cut it so it came above my knees
instead of the floor, and I had to wear this wig with it that made me
look like a girl.

“
When
it was my turn to step out on stage, I almost tripped up with my
pumps on the shiny surface. Everyone glared at me and burst out
laughing, even the grown-ups. I got so embarrassed I almost walked
off. I would have if it wasn't for Mrs Walker scowling at me from
behind the opposite curtain. She was rolling her hand as though to
say 'get on with it'. When it came to me reading my line, someone
shouted something obscene from the crowd, and they all started
roaring with laughter again.

“
There
was nothing Mrs Walker could do then. I ran off stage and down into
the mocking faces. My dad was too busy laughing with the rest of them
and my mum was distraught because she blamed herself. She said she'd
come backstage and help me get ready, but my dad said I was big
enough to look after myself.

“
When
I got outside, Benji was shouting for me to come back. He said to
just ignore them because they weren't worth getting upset over. I see
that now, but at the time I was so angry and embarrassed that I kept
running.”

Head
in his hands, Bobby pulls the tissue loose and dunks them in the
toilet.

“
He
looked for me all night, so I found out later. I don't even know
where I was going, or where I ended up. I was just running and
running, and when my feet got tired, I walked. People were staring at
me in the street, but I didn't notice them pointing and sniggering as
I went by. The hurt I was feeling consumed me. When I made it home
later that night, there was a police car outside my house.”

Bobby
wipes his eyes with his palms and lets an audible sob slip free. “He
had an accident. My mum told me his car collided head-on with another
and he died at the scene.”

Gage
rises and stretches his body. “And that is relevant to you
now?”

“
It
was my fault, don't you see that? If I'd have gone back, then things
would have been different. That decision I made tore my world apart
and broke my parents. This is all my doing.”

“
It
was written.”

With
tears rolling down his cheeks, he glances up at Gage as though he has
received a knife to his gut. Hearing the words his brother spoke
brings an unwanted pressure inside his chest.

“
What
the hell does that mean?”

“
You
think your life just progresses the way it does out of luck and
choices?”

“
S
o
God writes it, then it happens and there's fuck all we can do to
change any of it?”

“
Yes,
but there is no 'God' like the religions here depict. It's funny when
you think about all the wars and hatred it has caused. Humanity are
so gulliable and susceptible to brainwashing.”

“
Believing
in God is having faith there is more to life and death and it teaches
people to love one another.”

“
People
die because their beliefs are not the same. All your religions teach
people to treat one another equal, yet none do. They're all
hypocrites.”

Bobby
considers this, then shrugs. He hasn't seen much to dispute Gage's
words, so he falls silent on the matter.

“
So
another magical creator picks a card from a hat and that's a whole
life sorted? Is your war not already won, or lost in your creator's
eyes then?”

“
It's
more complex than that Bobby.”

“
Yeah,
how'd you know?”

“
Because
it is so.”

“
Well,
I sure am happier with your vague explanation to why my life is
over.”

Gage
gets up and steps forward until his boots reach Bobby's toes.

“
You
have to decide now.”

“
Decide
what? To kill myself now, or live a little longer and suffer?”

“
If
you feel that way, perhaps you've already decided. But I wouldn't
take that route if I were you because the red cloaks are waiting for
that to happen.”

Gage
holds out his scarred hand to Bobby, but he refuses it.

“
Is
that what they are following me for?”

“
They
have their own duty. They are with those we must fight to restore
order, but they are leeches. They search for the weak in this world
and herd them like sheep into my world as soldiers for the cause. You
are of extreme value to them because you are an asset to us.”

Me
and asset to someone? Sure.

“
And
now you have two choices and must decide. Time is drawing short and I
have overstayed my welcome here.”

“
Funny,
I didn't think I had a say in my life,” Bobby says. He rips
another piece of tissue from the roll and wipes at his nose to
prevent it from running further down his face.

“
You
can stand up and fight. If you come with me, you'll see a place of
wonder and save lives. You'll meet new people who will become
lifelong friends.”

“
What's
the second choice
?”

“
You
stay
here and destroy yourself and everything your brother gave his life
for. Your mother, too.”

Bobby
considers those words before he reaches for the extended arm and
allows Gage to pull him to his feet.

“
And
how do I go with you?”

“
Is
that your decision?”

Bobby
stares at the ground where the blood from his nose has dried.
Droplets also mark the dirty, white toes of his knock-off
Converse
.

“
Tell
me what to do.”

CHAPTER
SIXTEEN

Tightening
his grasp on the handle, he presses down and watches as the door
creaks inwards. Bobby holds his breath to allow the grief to collapse
every hope in the world. It seems like only yesterday he was opening
this door to a thrilling sight, but that won't happen again. Once the
door creaks to a stop, that overwhelming knowledge is only confirmed.

The
stench of dust clings to everything within sight. It even penetrates
his sinuses despite the blockage of his nostrils. Maybe he is
imagining it, but he can feel the thickness wrapping around his
flesh.