CONTENT WARNINGS: Is there ever going to be a Divided chapter with no content warnings? Unlikely. Discussion of trauma, gore and murder as usual, a pretty nasty discussion with an abusive father.
Not long after Dan had the swordfight the previous night...
Daniel
Lord Volpe has been yelling both to himself and at me for a while. It's going straight into one ear and right through another. The image keeps repeating in my mind, as if I'm still seeing it in front of me- the image of blood spurting from Micah's neck. The way he dropped to the floor immediately. The way the shadow walked forward and revealed itself as my partner's father. I found myself in the shoes of what must have been thousands of people over the years in that moment. It was intimidating enough staring at some evidently human. I can't imagine how much worse it was knowing your fate belonged in a vampire's hands.
"One of my best men- dead! And you did nothing! Nothing at all! Micah was a witchfinder like no other, and now he's gone because you didn't step in to assist your mentor!"
Without realising it, I almost lunge at him.
"What was I supposed to do? I didn't see him coming until it was too late to do anything about Micah!"
Volpe stares at me like he wants to kill me where I stand. I can't stop shaking, and I can't stop thinking about what happened back there. What Eli's going to think of me. Whether or not Oskar will come back for me. Whether or not he'll spare me next time.
Between Oskar and Volpe- who would be more merciful, I wonder? Oskar seems to swing between merciful and merciless like the pendulum of a clock.
"You know, Daniel, Micah always had a soft spot for you. Said to me you were almost like a younger brother to him. He was the closest a witchfinder could get to having a heart, and your inaction has rendered such a unique man nonexistent," he says, almost lapsing into something close to emotion as he speaks. "I promise you, nobody else in this field will ever be like him."
Volpe slumps down onto the sofa, gazing through me in deep thought, almost in mourning.
"I know Micah was covering for you, Daniel," he says. "I didn't question him because I respected him, and I respected that he'd eventually get you to bring in results, even if not straight away- but I can promise you that the next person I bring in as your mentor will not be so kind as Micah was. You'd best grow a backbone- and fast."
Volpe was right. No other witchfinder would have Micah's relative lenience. Soon enough, I won't have any choice but to kill a witch. I want to scream, but I can't do any such thing in Volpe's presence.
"So, what can you tell me about the assailant?"
At first, I say nothing. If I tell him what happened, Eli would be heartbroken, and Oskar would be furious- but if I said nothing, Volpe would likely punish me in some other manner. My family's lives are on the line, and as much as I want to stay in Eli and Oskar's good books, I've already lost that opportunity. My family are more important- and, on top of that, Oskar's recklessness got my only way out of witchfinding killed. If I lie to Volpe, I may never see Father or Josiah again.
"His name is Oskar Nivelheim, Volpe. Lives here in Finchwick. He's an ex-soldier."
His eyes bulge at me for a moment before narrowing to their usual glare.
"Interesting," he says, in a sly tone. "I hadn't heard anything of him in a while. Part of me assumed that he was dead, but I suppose I should've known better. Seems nothing can kill him even as a human. Though I do wonder...no-one who crosses Nivelheim lives to tell the tale. What reason did he have for sparing you and not Micah?"
"I don't really know," I say, hoping Volpe doesn't expect me to expand on that. "We fought a little, though. I managed to slash him across the face and then he didn't bother to try and take me down after that."
"Well, well, this changes everything, doesn't it?" he replies, with a
chortle. "Here I was thinking you had no backbone, and yet you fought
with one of the most formidable foes a witchfinder could end up against-
and survived- and landed a hit on him. Not many witchfinders can say
they've done that. Either you're much more apt than I thought, or he's
faltering. Either of those work for me."
That's the first time I've heard anything close to positivity in Volpe's voice.
"Still, I don't know why he spared you and no-one else."
I manage to conjure up a lie this time. "The worst of the threat was eliminated- that's what he said to me. Maybe it was because I was young? I'm not entirely sure myself."
"Well, that said, perhaps me hiring younger men is working quite well. Say, Daniel, how capable do you think you are of killing him? Perhaps if he went easy on you this time, maybe he'll go easy on you next-"
"I'm not. I only just managed to escape with my life. He told me if he caught me witchfinding again he'd kill me on the spot."
Volpe looks away, twiddling his thumbs.
"That's a shame. No other man has gotten anywhere near him with a sword, and I'm sure neither of us would want Micah to die in vain, would we?"
"Volpe, he'll slaughter me. Trust me, I'm as angry at him as you are, but I'm not capable of it."
I can't stop thinking about Eli, and it's almost bringing me to tears. I can't see him again- not after this. I know Oskar told me to tell him, but I can't bear to think about breaking his heart like that.
"Well, it's your choice, Daniel. Either Oskar kills you, or I do."
Gideon
"I want you to tell me everything about this man, Daniel. Every single thing you can remember about him."
Now I didn't only have Volpe to be concerned about- someone had tried to do harm to my son without knowing just what his father was capable of. I spent years as a remorseless, pragmatic killer, and if danger comes to my children, I'll be glad to go back to that. I may be a man of relative piece nowadays, but when needed, I'll gladly swap the fishing rod for a sword.
He won't talk to me. It angers me, but I am trying to understand the shock he's probably in. He still has Micah's blood sprayed across his shirt. He won't look me in the eyes.
"Daniel, please, tell me. I need to know, o-"
"Oskar Nivelheim. Thirty-six years of age. Long brown hair. Usually seen in old-fashioned clothing. Ex-vampire. Lives on Cobblebottom street in Finchwick in Henford, not far from the inn." He trails off into a monotone. "He wasn't after me, he was after Micah. He's...He's Eli's father."
"I see..."
Daniel continues on about Oskar. I'd heard the name plenty of times over the years- stories of the man from Windenburg who slayed witchfinders the way an exterminator kills rats, with ease and with just as much pleasure. Rumours of vampirism. Formidable with a sword, they say, and completely untouched by anyone with a sword-
"I was angry. Attacked him. Cut his face, then he let me go."
- almost anyone.
It didn't matter to me. I can already see it. Oskar is a man that believes he has no equal, that everyone is afraid of him. I don't care for his achievements, his battle prowess or his pride. He ruined my son's chances of escaping Volpe's clutches, and then threatened him. That's enough for me. I'll find him, and then I'll kill him.
"Father...Please, don't kill him. Eli would be devast-"
"I don't care what Eli will think," I retort. "Eli isn't my son. You are. And until I can find a way to deal with Volpe, I can deal with this Oskar in the meantime. I don't care how intimidating he is- nobody scares me, Daniel."
"But-"
"But nothing! I'm not going to let anyone get away with threatening my boys. You're my son, and I should have protected you better already...I made a promise to your mother that I intend to keep. Anyone that gets between me and my children dies. That's final."
Oskar
Eli has been off with me the entire time today. He hasn't spoken to me at all, and I don't know what's going on with him. He's been like it since he came home from being out with...I don't like to think about it, that Eli is in love with someone who's betraying everything Eli stands for. Still, that has to wait. I can't tell him that on top of what I'm about to tell him.
"Eli, we need to discuss something."
Silence. He doesn't even look me in the eyes.
"Eli, this is important-"
"What's important is the fact that you do absolutely nothing around here anymore!"
It tears through my chest like a knife. He's never raised his voice at me before, ever.
"I'm doing almost all of the commission work and you're doing next to nothing! I'm fed up and I'm exhausted. I can't do everything by myself all of the time!"
I do everything I can to keep my rage buried. I don't want to yell at my own son. He's right. I haven't done as much work as I should, but I've been so tired of everything that I haven't had much motivation or physical energy. I don't think he's in any mindset to take that as an acceptable answer, but I'll try.
"Eli, I've had a lot going on recently-"
"Oh, you've had a lot going on, have you? I've been dealing all of the clients and their impatience and their awkwardness, and on top of that, I've now got Dan's father trying to jump down my throat!"
Wait- Daniel's father?
"What are you talking about? What did his father do?!"
Eli looks away from me, with something resembling guilt across his face. "I don't want to talk about-"
"Nobody who does harm to my family gets away with it, verbal or physical. Tell me everything."
Eli takes a deep breath before responding.
"Dan's father spotted us out in the woods on a walk, then started hassling me over the fact that he thought I was using Dan, and that Dan was using me for money, and that I'd just end up screwing him over, bringing up my father- you know. I wanted to slap him, but I walked away for Dan's sake."
"And what do you know about Daniel's father, Eli?""He doesn't resemble Daniel that much. Black hair instead of brown. Wears glasses. Flecks of grey in his beard. Sounds like he's from the south of Henford. He lives in Willow Creek. Gideon, his name is...and he's an ex-witchfinder."
The sudden burst of rage burns in my chest. Like father, like son, I see. So I was right in my prediction- it wasn't entirely Daniel's fault, after all- he's likely trying to emulate his father. Ex-witchfinder was enough of a reason for me to go after Gideon on top of him harassing my son. If it weren't for him brainwashing his own son, then perhaps Volpe would have never taken an interest in him. I'm not taking any risks- anyone who's ever killed a witch is a threat to my family, and threats to my family don't often stay alive for long.
Eli's voice sounds like it's on the edge of tears. "I'm sorry, Oskar. I shouldn't have taken all of that out on you-"
"I have to tell you something, Eli. It can't wait any longer."
He gazes at me with eyes like a puppy's. It's taking everything to bring myself to tell him without making myself emotional.
"Is this to do with you being sick?"
Before I could break every bone in Gideon's body, and before I could break the news to him about his partner's lies- I had to break my own son's heart in the worst way possible.
Eli
The moment that word comes out of his mouth, everything else he says becomes unintelligible sound to me.
Incurable.
Even after all of these years, nothing can help him. My father is the only reason I got away from Samuel. He's the only reason I have anything that I have today.
Samuel is still alive. Oskar is dying. It shouldn't be that way.
"No- Oskar, you can't be- Wait! But what about- you went to see Owen, didn't you?"
"I hate to say it, Eli, but Owen did everything he could, and he found nothing that could help. He worked all day and night and contacted everyone he could. Your brother did an excellent job of trying to clean up after Samuel. I just wish he didn't have to. I wish the both of you didn't have to."
"It didn't work, did it? Samuel's cure?"
He doesn't say anything to that. I had a feeling.
I already feel like the world is falling to pieces. I thought Owen would have fixed it. That Samuel's cure would have worked. That medicine had made enough leaps and bounds in Oskar's lifetime to have been able to save him in the modern day.
What am I supposed to do without Oskar? Not just me, but my sister? My niece? There's an apologetic softness in his expression that I've never seen before. Even when he's being friendly, there's always a hardened edge to him, but at this moment, he's vulnerable as a kitten.
I gave him such a hard time for not helping me out, and it wasn't even his fault.
"I can't believe- I'm so sorry, Oskar, I'm such a terrible-"
"You've done nothing wrong, Eli," he replies, in an uncharacteristically soft and solemn voice. "You've been busy, and I haven't been much help. You're going through a lot right-"
"But you're the one who's dying, not me. I shouldn't have yelled at you like that, I- I'm such a-"
I fall to pieces. I can't even talk to him at this point. All I can do is bawl like a child. And even after the shitty way I treated him, he still tries to comfort me. I feel like the worst son on Earth.
I don't deserve a father like Oskar.
"It doesn't need to be a competition of who feels worse, Eli. I'm sorry I haven't been helping you as much. I'll try to do more to help you with our work from now on, okay?"
"I don't want a dying man's help," I tell him, though I doubt he can make out my words through my childish blubbering. "You should be resting."
"It's still in its infancy, Eli," he says to me, with his hands on my arms. "I don't know how much time we have, but we still have time, and that's what matters."
I can't bear to be here right now. Telling Oskar I want a moment to speak with Owen, I leave and head straight for my old home. For a moment, I just want to be with my brother, and I want to tell Samuel exactly how I feel about him.
* * *
Owen is in the kitchen when I enter. He turns to look at me, and sighs to himself.
"You knew! You knew all this time and you said nothing!"
The way he puts his hands together and lowers his eyebrows, I think he's been preparing a reply to that question for a while.
"It wasn't my place to tell you, Eli. Oskar is my patient- what is said between myself and him stays between us until he wishes to share it with others. That is the only reason I didn't tell you. I knew Oskar would tell you eventually."
He pauses for a moment, and looks down into the tiles. I hear a hesitation in his voice when he starts talking.
"Eli...I'm truly sorry. I did all I could."
"I-I shouldn't have been angry with you, Owen, I-"
"It's a lot to take in, Eli. You don't need to apologise," he replies, in a soft voice. To my surprise, he gives me a hug. I sometimes forget that, somewhere in there, Owen does have emotions.
"I'm sorry, Owen. I shouldn't have spoken to you like that. It wasn't your fault that Samuel's cure didn't work."
"About the cure, Eli- there's something I feel you need to know. I know you're already dealing with a lot, but I think you ought to be told."
It gets worse? How could it get any worse than finding out about this?
"I don't know if the cure would have worked or not. What Samuel had done was destroy his notes and his cure. He predicted that vampirism was more suspending humanity than overcoming it altogether. He suspected that either myself or you would try to save Oskar once we'd discovered what was happening."
If I were a more violent person, I'd go upstairs right now and show Samuel what I thought of that- but I can't do anything to hurt Samuel. Every time I think of the way he's hurt everyone, I immediately feel guilty for thinking such things about my 'father'. Oskar is right about guilt being a useless emotion.
It wasn't enough to let him slowly die from an illness. He had to destroy the only possible cure to it- and there was a chance it could have worked. In doing what he did, he hasn't only killed Oskar, but thousands of others who might have benefitted from it.
"I'm going to see Samuel."
"Eli-"
"Don't try to stop me. I'm only going to talk to him. Nothing more. If I had it in me, I would, but I don't."
Owen puts a hand on my shoulder, and sighs to himself again. "Samuel's fate isn't in your hands, Eli. It isn't in your nature- but he will get his true comeuppance. I promise you that."
On that note, I run up the stairs and barge straight into Samuel's room. He's reading a book, and tosses it to the floor in disgust when he sees me.
"What on Earth are you doing here? This isn't your home anymore."
The words come out of my mouth almost as if I have no control over them. I hate the fact that my voice shakes where I've been crying so much, but I don't care. I need to get this off my chest.
"I know what you did. You destroyed the only cure to Oskar's condition, and you've doomed thousands of people to certain death just because you had a problem with one person. You've never given a shit about anybody but yourself, and I have never said or thought this about anyone, let alone my own blood- but I hope something terrible happens to you. I hope the nightmares about Oskar tearing you to pieces keep you awake every night."
"How thoughtful," he replies. "This is precisely why I disowned you, Eli. You're just like every other boy your age- selfish, lazy, no respect for tradition. First you side with Oskar over your own blood, then you soil my bloodline with your proclivities, and now you're threatening my life?"
"Thousands of people are dead because of your selfishness! The fact that you think what I've done is worse than anything you've done says enough! Even after the constant outcry of the public against you, you still think you've done nothing wrong! And now Owen has to clean up after all the mess you've made!"
"My business was going strongly for years until your 'father', Katlego and my own sons had to go and ruin it! Moralities like yours have only ever held humanity back. Once I'm gone and once your brother's mortifying obsession with compassion colour the medicine industry, that's it. The human race is doomed to fail. The poor will survive, the weak will survive, and when everyone survives, well, then what? Overpopulation? Competition for resources? Mass starvation? When all the survivors aren't well enough to put in the work to keep their families and friends alive, then what kind of a life is that?"
I can't help but laugh at his ridiculous speech. "And you think sitting in your room being angry about all the people that held you accountable makes you strong, do you?"
"My faith in preserving the best of humanity is what made me strong, Eli. And to see both my sons fall to weakness the way you have- it sickens me. Now get out of my sight. And wipe the tears from your eyes. You're not a child anymore."
I've said what I wanted to say, so I take my leave. Deep down, I think Owen is right- it didn't end with Oskar's vicious assault on Annorin. Most of Henford hate his guts. Someone will come back to finish the job. For a long time, all I wished was for my father to live the rest of his life in misery. Now, I don't really care what happens to him.