Book Five, Chapter 86: Familiar Fratricide
The forest shifted again, the shapes of the trees melting into something both unfamiliar and known.
The air was full of energy, heavy with memories that weren’t mine—or weren’t fully mine. I stopped running, my massive chest heaving, and the wolf growled low in confusion. The world around me wasn’t the woods anymore. It was... something else.
I dug my claws into the dirt and put all my attention into what was before me.
A payphone stood just ahead, glowing faintly in the moonlight like a beacon. Beside it stood me. Or the slightly younger man I used to be, years older than the one hiding on the stairs. My younger self clutched the receiver tightly, his breath misting in the cold air as he spoke into the phone.
Strange. I almost remembered this as if it really happened, but this was all fiction.
“Christian?” Younger Me asked, his voice hesitant, hopeful. “It’s me.”
The voice on the other end was warm, welcoming, too perfect to be real. “It’s good to hear from you, Antoine. I wasn’t sure you’d call.”
Younger Me shuffled nervously, glancing over his shoulder like he expected someone to be watching. “I didn’t know if... you’d want me to after all these years.”
Christian laughed softly, the sound smooth as silk. “Of course I do. You’re my brother. I’ve missed you. Come out to the cabin on the lake I told you about. We can talk in person.”