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Chapter Text

The moment the Captain said that he had wanted him gone Ace felt a weight grip his chest that wouldn't let go. After his mom chased after his dad he was left standing alone. Ace wasn't one to cry, no he argued with his dad many times in the past, but this time it was different.

This time, his dad had kicked him out of his home. Ace didn't know what to do, what to say, or where to go. It took him a half a minute to snap out of his thoughts before leaving the spot he stood in and heading to Ryan's car. He sped to his house in hopes to get in and get out before his parents could make it home.

That task felt easier than it should have. He grabbed as much as he could and piled it in the front seat. He left his parents house the way he had found it. He left his house keys on the table so that they would know he had already come and gone. He gave the place one last look, his lip quivering in attempt to hold back tears, before reluctantly going to see Nick and George.

His two friends were welcoming. They told him to take all the time that he needed but he didn't want to over stay his welcome. He promised them that he would get a second job and get a place of his own. George sadly tried to reassure him it was fine but Ace wouldn't listen.

After Asher had been arrested, Ace had assumed that Bertram was done with him. He had planned the meet up at his mother's work place purposely and Ace was annoyed with himself for not listening to Mr. D sooner. Carson had told him to get his dad, to go to the police, but he was too stubborn. He wanted to figure it out himself.

When he had ran into his parents at the police station and informed him someone had thrown a brick into his window Ace knew that wasn't the case after all. Carson told him he needed to find Bertram in order to clear his name. Ace tried talking to Amanda about it but she shut him down after telling him that her dad is all that her and Gil have. Ace bit his inner jaw in order to hide his frustration. How could she not tell him when his innocence was at stake?

"Even if I did know I wouldn't tell you." Her eyes were sad but her face showed no emotion.

She left him sitting there. Ace knew that deep down their relationship was over. He couldn't trust her anymore. She was willing to sacrifice his freedom for her dad's and Ace knew that whatever they had wasn't deep enough to warrant an excuse for that. He watches her walk away and his face falls...so much for not being completely alone.

For now, Ace had to get to work. He always tried to not miss when he was scheduled to be there and he knew that George understood his absence. However, that wasn't going to keep him from going in and fulfilling his duties as the best dishwasher The Claw, or even Horseshoe Bay, had ever seen. He took pride in his work.

He kept to himself once he arrived at The Claw. He ignored the stares coming from Bess. He wouldn't ever admit it but he was relieved when she had to run which left him and George manning the restaurant. Once closing time came, he volunteered to finish closing the place.

Ace didn't have anywhere to be. He didn't want to rush to crash on his friends couch nor did he want to interrupt their private life anymore than necessary. He finished the remaining dishes, he mopped the floors, wiped down the tables, and cleaned the kitchen. He hung up his apron, turned out the lights, and locked the door as he exited the building.

The parking lot was empty aside from Florence. She's the only thing he's got to resemble a home and he wondered how Bess had lived in a van for so long. He sits behind the wheel and thinks where it all went wrong. He blames himself mostly, he shouldn't have ever went digging, and he never meant for his mom to find out either.

"Guess it's just you and me." His words light up the dark as his breath fogs up the surrounding space.

He turns the key and Florence comes to life. He reaches for his seat belt when two hands come around from behind him. The ends of a rope are held tightly in each one and the owner pulls back bringing Ace's head crashing into the headrest. The rope is pulled tightly against his neck and he struggles to pry the braided restraint away from his skin.

"You tried to turn my daughter against me?" The voice belongs to Bertram Bobbsey.

Fear seeps it's way into Ace's stomach. The more he struggles the worst it gets. He feels the rope threads digging into his flesh but he doesn't give up trying to free himself. He's finally able to get a finger wiggled through and then his entire hand. He yanks down on the rope causing Bertram to loosen his grip.

A fist comes down on the side of his head and Ace tries to open his door but the blows keep coming. He manages to grab the handle and he falls to the ground. Ace tries to get up quickly but his vision is splotchy and Bertram is fast. He's there in an instant sending his boot into Ace's stomach.

"I told you that you'd regret not helping me."

Bertram grabs Ace by the hair and forces him to his feet. He unintentionally sways and Bertram doesn't hold back. He sends Ace's head into the roof of the car and he collapses to the ground. Ace's forehead has a gash that is freely bleeding and his eyes are fluttering. He's trying to fight off the heaviness that seems to be spreading over his body but the darkness in his vision keeps growing until his eyes flutter closed.

Ace hears groaning and he tries to open his eyes to see who is making all that noise. He lifts his head and groans again realizing that it's him who is causing all the ruckus. He gathers the energy to open his eyes and he is met with darkness. He feels something over his eyes, his eyelashes feel the resistance when he tries to blink, and it dawns on him that he must be blindfolded.

Instinctively, he attempts to reach up and pull it off. Ace is met with surprise when his arms don't budge. His wrists are bound to the arms of the chair, his feet to the legs, and he can feel a similar sensation wrapping around his upper arms and torso. He tries to think back to what happened and then it all comes back to him, Bertram.

"Help!" His call is drowned out by the gag that is in his mouth.

Ace notices how dry his mouth is and then he notices the aches traveling through his upper half. His head is relentless with the throbbing and he notices the cold. For the first time since regaining consciousness Ace feels himself shivering.

"Oh good, you're awake!" Ace's head moves in the direction of Bertram's voice.

His captor removes the blindfold and looks into Ace's blue eyes. "You know, I can see how Amanda fell for you."

He takes the knife in his hand and runs it across Ace's forearm. He clings his eyes shut and tries to hold back the pain that's vocalizing in his throat. Once the blade is removed he opens his eyes and looks down at his right arm. Ace sees blood pouring from the cut.

"You could've helped me, Ace. Could've stayed with Amanda. Could've saved your own life." Bertram crouches in front of him. "Once I'm finished with you I'm going to find that mom of yours and I'm going to make your dad watch as I slit her throat." Ace tries to lunge at him but his held by his restrains.

Bertram's laugh twists his gut in nausea. The man stands and sends a fist into Ace's mouth causing his bottom lip to split on impact. He sends another fist into Ace's stomach and then one across his right cheek.

Heavy eyelids make it hard to take in his surroundings. He notices that he's in a wooden box and assumes it's a shed. He hears the faint sound of boots on gravel and then a bright light fills the small space. Men and women with guns flock inside and apprehend Bertram. Ace blinks slowly trying to regain his awareness but it's not enough.

He feels a gentle tapping on the left side of his face. The hand is warm and familiar. He opens his eyes and sees the Captain kneeling before him. He's cutting the rope off of his wrists and Ace doesn't feel the gag in his mouth anymore.

"You came." He croaks just as his dad looks up at him.

Ace's eyes are closing again but the tapping starts up just as before. He forces his eyes open to see his dad sign for him to stay awake. Ace doesn't want to disappoint his dad again but he can't help how heavy his eyes feel. He can't help how heavy his head feels.

The tapping is there again and Ace blinks his eyes open. He doesn't know how they keep getting closed. Ace looks over and sees the Captain draping his left arm over his shoulder in preparation to help him stand.

"Where are we going?" He half asks half signs.

"To a gurney." Thom signs in return and then hauls his son to his feet.

Ace stumbles but his dad keeps him steady. They don't have to go far before his dad is giving him to the arriving paramedics. The moment he's on the gurney his eyes are closing again. Despite the attempts to keep him awake he can't do it anymore.

The next time his eyes open he's surrounded by a soft light. He recognizes the walls from his last stay in the hospital. The one when he was in a coma and his friends had to bring him back. He shifts a little in the bed and feels a weight on his left hand. He looks over to see the Captain's hand clinging to his.

His movement caused his dad to stir awake. Thom quickly realizes that Ace is awake too. He sits upright in his seat and looks at him.

"You came for me." Ace signs with his right hand which proves to be difficult from all the things attached to his arm. "Thank you."

He wonders if he's done something wrong when his dad's brow furrows. "You're my son, I'll always come for you."

"I messed up." Ace responds sadly. He holds back the tremble that tries to take over his bottom lip. "I should be dead right now and I never would have gotten the chance to say I'm sorry. I don't mean to be a disappointment to you."

The Captain squeezes Ace's hand in his. "You're not a disappointment." He signs. "I don't know what I'd do if I lost you."

Ace isn't used to his dad being open about his feelings. His lip starts trembling and the tears start falling. "I love you dad."

"I love you too." Ace hears the words and looks over at his father. His face is gentle and Ace can't help the breakdown that follows.

He's surprised when his dad wraps him in a hug. He doesn't remember the last time they shared an embrace. The safety he feels while being held by the Captain, his father, is a feeling be never wants to forget.

Chapter Text

Horseshoe Bay hosts a handful of festivals that have been around for generations. It boasts itself on the pride of its food, Inns, and supernatural history such as the Women in White or All Hollows Tide. Nancy and her friends have experienced a lot of the lore first hand.
However, the supernatural isn't always the worst threat that they face. Sometimes, it's people who are more cruel than a ghost or entity ever could be.

Take Josh Dodd for example.

He killed Tiffany Hudson, but Ryan had been the real target. When Nancy had confronted Josh about it he tried to kill her too. She thought that the live wire had taken his life but he disappeared sometime between her running out of the building and the police showing up.

Then Owen died.

Josh had returned, under assumption that he had ever left, and when Owen didn't trade Nancy to save his own life he paid the ultimate price. To say Nancy was devastated was an understatement. She considered letting Josh fall, after everything he has done the thought was provoking, but she couldn't bring herself to let go. Then Ace showed up and helped her pull Josh back over the edge.

Ace.

He was always there when Nancy needed him. Hacking, investigating, solving mysteries and crimes. George, Nick, and Bess helped too but there was something calming about Ace that made Nancy feel warm inside. She'd never admit it but she enjoyed having the blonde tag along. She adored his mysterious ways and backwards responses.

Enter Daniel West.

He's the type of guy who will do whatever it takes to get what he wants. When her phone rang, she looked at it to see who it was, and Nancy was quick to answer when she saw it was Ace. She expected to hear his gentle voice on the other end but it never came. Instead, it was Daniel West ensuring safe delivery of the names list into his hands. He had taken Ace as insurance.

Nancy couldn't lose Ace.

The moment her eyes fell onto him dangling over a ledge her heart plummeted to her stomach. The drop was several stories in the air and Nancy knew that if Daniel wanted to he could let go of the one thing that was keeping Ace alive. When they tried to reason with West, he let go of the rope before catching it again, and Ace fell forward. Nancy knew then and there that reasoning wasn't worth it. She gave the names to Grant who traded the list to Daniel who let fully go of the rope and Ace began to fall.

Grant caught the rope and they both caught Ace. He's brave to look death in the face and not falter. Nancy knows that he had to be afraid, like when they faced the Algaeca, but he doesn't show it. He never does. Nancy wraps him in a big hug and reassures him everything will be ok.

Everything isn't ok though.

Ace doesn't hide the rope burn left behind by his bindings. He knows that it wouldn't do any good, working at The Claw washing dishes, and being a bus boy, wouldn't keep that a secret for long. However, he keeps the bruises that scatter his ribs on the down low. He doesn't want anyone to worry. All is going well until Nancy catches him wincing.

"Ace?"

She approaches him and he hides the pain on his face. He sets the dishes down into the sink and acts like nothing had happened. It's awkward and he can already tell that Nancy is on to him.

"You ok?" Concern laced her voice.

"Why wouldn't I be?" Ace forces a small smile and hopes its enough to convince her that he's fine. This is Nancy though and he knows better than that.

She gives him a piqued look suspicion before walking away. New customers had arrived and it was up to her to wait on them. She greets them with a smile and seats them in a booth. Nancy takes their orders and goes to fill their drinks. They're The Claw's final customers before closing.

Nancy kept a discreet eye on her favorite bus boy. She notices how he favors one side compared to the other and how he sucks in a breath before lifting anything that requires effort. Nancy catches his jaw clenching when he moves the wrong way or when he has to bend over to pick up a fork he dropped. She knows something is wrong with Ace and it's all because of Daniel West.

After the doors are locked and the building is clear Nancy baits Ace into proving he's not fine. She goes to the kitchen and grabs a tub so she can clean up the remaining dishes. Ace is already preoccupied trying to clean everything else but she knows he's adamant on cleaning up dishes.

"What're you doing?"

"I'm just going to go get the remaining dishes. Thought you could use a hand." Nancy responds with a slight smile.

Ace grabs the tub and tries to take it from her. "No, it's ok. I've got it."

"Are you sure? It's no big deal." She tugs on the dish tub harder than she meant to and Ace's face lights up with pain.

The gasp catches her off guard and she watches as he wraps an arm around his side. He braces himself with a hand on the metal table in the center of the kitchen and leans over. Ace is breathing deep inhales through his nose and out of it too.

"You are not fine."

He peeks up at her. The hat he wears holds his hair down which makes his eyes more noticeable. The expression on his face is pitiful and Nancy feels bad for causing this reaction.

"What happened?" She asks firmly.

Ace hesitates. "Daniel West has a very persuasive fist and foot."

Nancy's eyes widen and begin to burn. They burn with hatred for Daniel, they burn with heartache for Ace, and they burn with frustration. Why hadn't he told her before now? She sits the tub down and walks up to him.

"Show me."

Ace is standing up straight again. He still leans for support but he's not breathing heavily now. His eyes peer down at her. They're full of stubbornness and hesitance.

"Please."

He let's out a huff and the takes off his apron. He lifts his hoodie and shows off the deep purple and yellow hues that spread across his skin. There's a big patch in the center if his torso on his side. Nancy's eyes begin to tear and she carefully places her fingertips on the spot.

"Ace," her voice is breathy, "why didn't you tell me?"

"I didn't want anyone to worry." His voice is small, almost like he's embarrassed, and that makes Nancy's heart hurt more.

"You need a hospital."

Ace shrugs and then winces. "The hospital isn't going to do anything other than give me pain killers. What's the point of worrying my mom?"

Nancy removes her touch and Ace let's his shirt and hoodie drop back down. She wipes the tear that slips and meets his gaze. Without hesitating she reaches out and grabs his hand. She pulls him towards the dining area ignoring the gasps and protest. She pulls out a chair and tells him to sit before disappearing to the freezer.

She returns with two bags of peas and a bag of carrots. Ace looks at her and starts shaking his head no but that doesn't stop her. Nancy reaches her hands up his shirt and strategically places the frozen vegetables by memory.

"That's cold." Ace tenses and then sucks in a breath from the pain.

"You are going to sit here and hold these against your bruises. If you try to get up I will call Captain Thom. Got it?" Nancy was stern and clearly spoken.

Ace looked at her pouting. "That's really not necessary-"

"Stay." She cut him off and then retreated to finish up in the kitchen.

Nancy kept a watchful eye on him as he sat there. She noticed as he began to relax and his body became less stiff. It had only been two days since Daniel West had made his appearance. Nancy had struggled sleeping those nights and by the looks of it so had Ace. He rested his head on his arm, his eyes were closed, and his breathing was soft.

Nancy smiled.

Chapter Text

Ace was working late. It's not that he had to, he wasn't even on the clock, but his mom was out of town again. The Captain and him seemed to argue a lot more during his mother's absences. Ace didn't want to return to the war zone before he knew his dad would be asleep so he stayed after to go over inventory and count supply stock. This is how he kept peace amongst him and his dad.

Bess was the first one to leave that night. She was exhausted, after all they had a busy past few days, and she was eager to shower and get to bed. George and Nick left him and Nancy there sometime after ten, they had been yawning for the last several minutes they were there, and Nancy began yawning too.

"You don't have to stay." Ace mentioned casually as he dried off the remaining forks and spoons.

"I want to help," Nancy yawned again, "you avoid whatever it is you're avoiding."

"Whenever my mom leaves town my dad and I can't stop fighting. What's the point of going home when I can't bother him here." Puts the forks and spoons away then starts drying the knives.

"At least let me keep you company." She smiles. "I know a thing or two about avoiding parents."

They work together in silence. Ace appreciates the company even though it isn't necessary. He's not used to having friends yet. Always being the loner type, Ace doesn't know how to start a conversation. He's always had things that he's wanted to say but he says them at the wrong time or says something awkward instead.

"Thanks for being here." He keeps the smile small. "I'm just going to finish up the last few dishes and then I'll be on my way if you want to go home and get some sleep."

"Are you sure?" She asks with yet another yawn which in turn causes Ace to yawn as well.

"Yeah." He replies almost too fast. "I won't be too much longer and you look tired."

Nancy smirks, "that obvious?"

"Your bags have bags."

"I don't have bags!" Naturally she rubs underneath her eyes. "But you're right. I'll see you tomorrow?"

"Of course." Ace continues what he's doing and she goes for her coat. She waves before she leaves and he waves back.

Roughly ten minutes pass before he's drying the last plate. He removes the towel draped over his shoulder, tosses it into the washer, starts the wash cycle, then retreats to wash his hands. He turns the lights off in the kitchen and makes his way into the main area of The Claw. Ace takes a seat at the bar, opens his laptop, and starts plucking away at the keys when his phone vibrates in his pocket.

He pulls it out to check it when the back door of The Claw jingles, it catches his attention, after all that door should have been locked. He looks up to see a random man had come through the door and was standing there. A scowl was etched into the lines on his face and his size made the hallway seem small. He was tall and burly, dressed like a mountain man, and wore bear hide as a jacket.

"Can I help you?" Ace asked innocently.

The man stared at him, his eyes fierce with rage, and his knuckles white from clenching his fists. He stepped further into the building, closing distance between himself and Ace, the scowl not lessening. Ace backs up a little, his gut telling him he needs to get space between them, and to be on the alert. Something isn't right with this guy.

"We're closed but if there's something you need I can maybe get it for you." His phone is still in his hand, the message his dad had sent open but unread, and he grips it tightly unaware that he had pressed the video call button.

The man picks up a chair and chucks it across the restaurant. Ace looks at him in surprise and begins retreating backwards towards the kitchen. He doesn't get very far when the guy throws another chair, this time at him, and is knocked to the floor by the impact. His phone skitters away from him, not noticing that his dad is on the other end, and scurries to his feet as fast as he can.

The man is there towering over him, he grabs a fist full of Ace's shirt, and sends a fist into his stomach. He doubles over, the air knocked out of him, and tries to free himself from the guy's grasp. His grip doesn't budge, his attempts to get loose is rewarded with another fist in his stomach, and him being thrown into a nearby table. Ace crashes into it, it does more damage to him that he does to it, and his right side explodes in pain on contact which causes an involuntary yelp to escape him.

He's tangled in the chairs and tries to get to his feet as the man approaches him again. "What do you want?" Ace huffed.

He doesn't know why this guy is attacking him. Ace tried to recall a time he may have met him in the past but nothing came to mind. The man steps forward again, leans down, and hauls him to his feet. He sends his left hand backwards across Ace's face, busting his bottom lip, and flinging him into the bar. His head smacks the wooden surface hard and he falls to the floor dazed. Ace tries to sit up, but he falls backwards again instead, his head lolling briefly side to side.

He closes his eyes to try and stop the fuzzy spinning that plagues his vision. He blinks them open again and the man is in his face which causes him to flinch. A creepy smile is spread across the guy's face revealing unkept teeth that looked and smelled to be rotting. Ace fights the urge to gag, his assailant gets out of his face, and sends a boot into his side.

Heat blasts his vision, Ace hollers out, wrapping his arm around his right side. A big hand finds itself gripping around his neck and guides him to his feet before his back is slammed into a nearby wall. The man tightens his grip the more Ace fights him and his face starts to turn red from lack of oxygen.

"Drop him." Ace recognized the voice. He hadn't heard the front door jingle, hadn't noticed his dad enter the restaurant, and his heart sank when the man looked in his direction. "Drop him!" Captain Thom had anger in his voice this time and his gun was aimed at his son's attacker.

The man hesitated, squeezing harder to get as much satisfaction as he could, and then forced Ace's head into the wall with a thud. When he let go, Ace dropped to the floor like a rag doll, and the man charged towards Thom. Three shots rang out and the burly man crashed into the floor face first. Thom waited a few seconds before crouching down and checking for a pulse but didn't find one.

He didn't waste anymore time and rushed over to his son who lay on the floor motionless. Thom could see his chest rising and falling. He knelt down, taking in the already forming bruises, and the split in his lip. He acknowledged the deep cut on Ace's forehead and went to grab a towel to stop the bleeding. Back up was on the way.

He returned quickly and pressed the cloth on the gash with force which caused a groan to erupt from Ace. His eyes tried to flutter open but closed again. The dark markings of a hand shaped bruise had already begun to form on his neck and that made Thom sick to his stomach. He saw the lights of cop cars flicker in the darkness outside and he heard the ambulance pull up. A minute later two deputies burst through the door.

They cleared the building and assessed the body. They let the paramedics in and then pulled Thom away to get his statement. Thom had them pull the camera feed to corroborate his story and because he wanted to see exactly what had gone down himself. That was his son who was attacked and he wanted to know every detail.

The paramedics had Ace awake and alert by the time Thom was able to return to them. They were urging him to go to the hospital but he was refusing. Kept saying he was fine and that he just wanted to go home. Thom hid the smile that wanted to form. It took him back to when Ace was a kid and would be refusing to take medicine his mom would offer him while being sick or ignoring her suggestions to rest.

"You should go get checked." Thom signed when Ace looked at him.

His eyes looked exhausted and like he needed rest. "I'm fine."

"What's the worst that could happen?"

"They're going to jab me with needles and make me stay there for hours. I just want to go home." Ace responded.

Thom looked at the paramedics and told them that it was ok, that they could go. They reassured them both that if anything changed that they would come back, they exited The Claw right after. Thom held out a hand offering to help his son off the floor and Ace accepted it. His body hurt, his head throbbed, and his side was screaming at him.

The moment he was on his feet the room started spinning. "Are you ok?" His dad signed but Ace couldn't concentrate.

He tried to get to a table to stabilize himself but stumbled. Thom was there in an instant to steady him, worry growing heavy in his expression, and he made eye contact with his son. "I'm not ok."

Thom watches as his son's eyes roll into the back of his head and he collapses into him. Thom gently lowers him to the ground and has the lingering officers go get the paramedics before they can leave. They're bringing their equipment and a gurney through the doorway in a hurry. They make sure he's breathing, check his vitals, and load him in the bus then take off for the hospital. Thom tailed the ambulance the entirety of the drive.

Thom sat with his son, who slept peacefully in the bed, and he watched as his chest would rise and fall. He stared at the stitches they had put in his head and he sometimes couldn't pull his eyes off the harsh handprint around his neck. Thom tried to rest, but every time he closed his eyes, he would see the man choking his kid. That caused him to jolt awake again. Thom decided that until his mind could be at ease he would continue to watch over Ace.

It was around 3:30 in the morning when Ace began to stir. He sucked in a sharp inhale and tried to sit up. He was slightly panicked and began searching the room before his eyes fell on his dad. He leaned back, resting his head on the uncomfortable pillow, his chest still heaving a bit.

"What happened?" He asked, his voice parched.

"You fainted." Thom replied. "You've got a concussion, a cracked rib, and stitches."

Ace's hand found the stitches and he didn't have to feel around to know that his side hurt. "What happened to the guy?"

"He's dead."

Ace laid there taking in what he was told. "I don't know why he was so angry. I was waiting to throw the towels in the dryer before leaving and then he showed up." Ace said sadly, confused.

"You didn't do anything." Thom answered. "I watched the footage and he attacked you unprovoked. I'm just glad I got there before anything worse could happen."

"How did you know I was in trouble?" Ace asked, exhaustion evident in his eyes.

"You video called me." Thom answered and smiled sadly. "I know it wasn't on purpose, I know you were avoiding coming home."

Ace frowns. "I'm sorry. I didn't want to fight again."

"I understand." Thom signs. "You should get some rest."

"I'm not even tired." Ace tried to argue but his eyes are closing again. "I just want to go home."

Ace's eyes are closing again and he drifts back to sleep. Thom can't help but see the little boy who would crawl in his lap and ask for bed time stories. He wonders when things had gotten so tense between them. He knows his accident and loss of hearing was a huge part of it. As Ace grew older, and Thom became more shut off from the world, the arguments became more frequent.

Thom is pulled from his thoughts when he notices the small shivers that occasionally cause Ace's body to tremble. He finds a blanket to cover him up and he does sp discreetly. He scoots his chair closer to the bed and rests his hand on Ace's arm. Thom closes his eyes and this time he's able to fall asleep without seeing the man who had assaulted his kid.

Chapter Text

Ace didn't have bad memories of going fishing with his dad. In fact, there was only one time he slipped in fish sludge, but that was enough to make him reluctant to go out again. Anytime he thought about fishing he would smell the watery slime that got in his nose, hair, and had drenched his clothes. No matter how hard he tried not to, every time he was reminded of that particular smell, he would gag. So when his dad suggested that he join him for fishing that night, Ace really didn't want to go.

He didn't want to chance falling in sludge again. Ace wanted the first time to be the last time. He also really didn't want his dad prying in his personal life. Every time he would join his dad on a fishing excursion, Thom would find a way to get him to talk, but Ace really didn't need anyone checking up on him. Especially about the failed attempt at a relationship, that never actually was a relationship, with the plucky redhead of his friend group, Nancy.

Yet, thanks to that plucky redhead, he was roped in to go fishing anyway. During the body swap, Nancy had told his dad that he would be there. Even though Ace knew that wasn't the worst outcome of said body swap he was still hesitant on being stuck on a boat for hours with his dad. That was until Nancy told him that in the end it's the memories that last. He was still hesitant to go but figured what was the worst that could happen?

Ace was naive to think that bringing a jar onto the boat with a supernatural curse trapped inside of it was a good idea. To be fair, it wasn't his idea to bring it. Nancy had volunteered him to drop it off in the ocean while fishing with his dad.

When Thom got up to go look for the cookies, Ace took his chance to drop the jar overboard. As the jar sank into the dark abyss of salt water, and as his dad leaned over searching for cookies, a powerful wave rocked the boat. Ace was knocked across the boat. He hit his head on the wall that was across from him but regained his composure quickly. Thom looked at him concerned when a more powerful wave hit the boat sending Thom overboard, the Captain's Quarter's erupting in flames, and Ace sprawled out on his back.

Ace got to his feet and looked for his dad in the water. He spotted him treading water ten feet from the boat. He looked around for the life ring. When he found it it chucked it out into the water as far as he could hoping that his dad would see it. Before he could jump in the water to help, an explosion rocked the boat.

The Captain's Quarter blew splinters of fiberglass and wood in every direction. The force flung Ace backwards, stumbling towards the backside of the boat. Debris collided with his head and his body with enough force to send him overboard. He lost consciousness the moment the debris smacked into his head and the cold sea water wasn't enough to wake him up.

He began to descend below the dark surface of the water. Thom had witnessed the whole thing happen and was quick to react. He swam as fast as his arms would take him and dove down just in time to grab Ace before he could sink any further.

He pulled Ace to his chest and clung onto him tightly. Ace's head rested limply on his dad's shoulder and Thom gave up trying to wake him. He used his energy wisely. He positioned them so that he was on his back with his son propped up against him. He took turns using his arms to hold Ace and paddle towards the docks.

Thom didn't know how they were going to get out of the water. He refused to let go of Ace and he knew he didn't have the capability of hoisting his son out of the water. The docks were too high up, it would be a stretch for him to reach it himself, and so he looked for another option.

He wasn't finding any. He kept treading water as best he could but ultimately knew he had to do something when Ace began coughing up water. Thom usually never spoke but in emergencies he got over his self consciousness. "Ace?"

Ace didn't respond. He was trying to gain his bearings, the world spun, and his body felt heavy. He tried to pull away from his dad but Thom clung to him more tightly. "I can do it." Ace panted as he looked up at his dad. "We have to get out of the water." Thom was hesitant to let go but he ultimately knew he had to trust his son.

He let go and they both treaded water. The expression on Ace's face told Thom that he was in pain and that concerned him. "Can you pull yourself up?" Thom asked and Ace nodded.

"Yeah, I think so." Ace responded confidently. The two of them reached for the dock and gripped the wood tightly. Thom pulled himself up and heard Ace yelp as he fell back into the water. Thom peered over the side and saw Ace struggling. "I can't do it." He panted as he tried to stay above the surface of the water.

"Hold on." Thom signed and then disappeared.

Ace let himself float on his back to conserve energy. The water swayed his body effortlessly and he struggled to not let the motion lull him to sleep. "I shouldn't have brought the jar." He mumbled sleepily.

His eyes would drift closed and then he would open them again. The more they drifted the heavier they became. He was vaguely aware of hurried footsteps moving his away down the dock. He heard someone jump in the water, the ripples swaying his body less gently, and then arms wrapped around him.

"Grab onto the board." Thom instructed. Ace didn't fight him and did as he was told. His dad had found a life board and came back for him. Not that Ace thought his dad would let him drown, he figured he was getting help, but this was help enough.

Thom paddled them to the shoreline. The current helped them along. Thom had to drag the half conscious Ace out of the water and onto the beach. "Thanks." Ace huffed, slowly gaining energy. His body still felt heavy but he knew it was from being in the pull of the ocean.

'What happened out there?" Thom signed. Ace didn't want to lie to him but he knew it was for the best he didn't tell him the truth.

"I don't know." He signed back, the feeling of guilt sitting in the pit of his stomach.

"I'm glad you're ok." His dad helped him sit up and then sat back down beside him. "Nothing like being caked with sand."

"I'll take sand over fish slime any day.”

Chapter Text

"Dad, you have to believe me!" Ace pleaded. "A piece of Charity is trapped inside of you and a supernatural being is going to rip your heart out to get it." He motions to the soul splitter. "If we use that we can extract her soul."

"This is crazy!" Thom argued. "Complete nonsense!" Ace knew he had a right to be frustrated. It wasn't too long ago that none of them would have believed that something like this was possible.

"Dad, please." Ace begged. "We have no choice but for you to trust us. I can't let you die." His puppy-like sad eyes peered into his father's. "Let me save you."

Rebecca squeezed Thom's arm. "We have to let him try." She signed as she spoke. "Our son is convinced that this is real and I'd rather be safe than live the rest of my life regretting it if you died."

Thom stared at them for a moment. "Ok. I'll let you extract Charity's soul but then what?"

"We get rid of it." Ace hated lying to his father but he had no choice. "And you'll be safe."

Bess directed the Captain to lay somewhere comfortable and then placed the Soul Splitter on his chest. "It won't hurt, I promise." She smiled apologetically. She knew how much Ace never wanted his parents to find out about the supernatural.

Rebecca held Thom's hand until she had to let go. She sat beside him out of the way of Bess and watched in disbelief at what followed. The crystal placed within the Splitter began to glow and then the souls were split in two. "What now?"

"Now we have to get rid of the soul." Bess explained. She glanced at Ace mournfully and then proceeded to take the piece she knew belonged to Charity. "Are you sure about this?" She stood in front of Ace and longed to hear him change his mind. They weren't platanchors for nothing.

"Never been more sure." His confidence was filled with fear but he was still persistent. Bess gave him one last pleading look before smashing the crystal hard onto the floor and stepping back to make sure Charity's soul found its new host. "That wasn't so bad." Ace murmured as he balanced himself on the wall.

Bess quickly put Thom's soul back into his body and he jolted awake. "What happened?" He signed to the audience that surrounded him.

Bess was the first one to explain. "We didn't know what would happen if we destroyed Charity's soul." She began. "Much to my dismay, Ace volunteered to hold the soul until we can figure out what to do with it."

His parents looked at him. "What were you thinking?" His dad signed angrily. "Clearly, you weren't."

"You didn't believe in the supernatural a few minutes ago." Ace argued. "I couldn't sit back and let the Copperhead rip your heart out of your chest."

"And now we're supposed to watch yours get ripped out?" His mom asked. The horror of realization began to grow on her face.

"You don't have to worry about that." Temperance said from behind Bess causing her to startle. "The Copperhead won't be stealing anymore hearts, the Copperhead is dead." The smile she wore made Ace's skin crawl.

"Temperance." Ace identified her for his parents. "What are you doing here?"

She laughed like the question had humor in it. "I've come to collect the last piece of my daughter's soul."

"You're too late. It's gone." Bess tried to lie but Temperance couldn't be fooled so easily.

"Bess, I was born at night, but it wasn't last night. The fact that you think I'm so naive as to think that you destroyed Charity's soul is far beneath you. You know better than that. You know that I know better than that. I can sense it." Her eyes trail from Thom over to Ace. "You're more foolish than I thought."

"Don't you touch him!" Rebecca's demand is met with a devious smile.

"Rebecca, your son chose this." Temperance walks towards Ace and stops just to the right of him. "He's mine now." She puffs a handful of dust into his face which causes Ace to start coughing and fall to the floor. Whatever the powder was rendered him unconscious. Temperance then leans down and strokes the strands of hair out of his face while holding a dagger against his throat. "I wouldn't chance it." She digs in just enough for blood to trickle from under the point. She gives Thom an eerie smile. "I hope it was worth it." She says some words under her breath and disappears taking Ace with her.

"Where did they go?!" Rebecca asked frantically, grabbing her chest. "Where did she take my son?" Tears began to fall down her cheeks and Bess wasn't far behind her.

"She took him to the Liminal Space." Bess answered.

"Liminal Space?" Confusion etched across Thom's features.

"Ace has been there before. He nearly used up all his energy trying to communicate with Nancy." Bess told them. "Something tells me he won't be communicating now but not to worry. I think I can find him, I'll just need a little time."

"Why do I feel like that is the one thing we don't have?" Thom signed and Bess knew he was right.

"I'll call Nancy. I have an idea." Bess reassured them the best that she could and stepped away to make the call.

—

Ace woke up feeling groggy. His limbs felt heavy as if he were drugged and his mouth was dry as if the desert had been placed inside of it. He tried to move his arms but found that Temperance had bound them above his head in what appeared to be some medieval looking shackles. He tugged on his binds with no use, he wasn't breaking out of steel, but that didn't keep him from trying.

Temperance appeared in front of him after he fought with his restraints to force a cup of water to his mouth. "You're going to want your strength, drink." He fought her as long as he could before she forced his jaw open and dumped the water in any way. He coughed on the water that tried to go down his windpipe.

"Why are you doing this?" He asked, his voice hoarse from the harsh coughing fit a moment ago.

"Because I can." Temperance responded dryly. "Because this was always supposed to happen. Ace, I'm a wonderful fortune teller, a forecaster if you will. Your friends are going to try to save you but it's too late. Charity's soul will be mine." She pulls the dagger from before out of her cloak and pricks her finger with the tip of it until it bleeds. "Your courage is inspiring but I'm afraid it won't save you in the end. In order for me to extract her soul without the Soul Splitter you have to be dying." She frowns.

"Are you going to poison me with extinct flowers and beetles?" The sarcasm was thick in his voice.

"If only you were worth that much effort." She speaks, pity lacing her voice. Temperance pulls the dagger from her finger and plunges it into his stomach. His eyes grow wide and he gasps with the sudden jolt of a sharp pain. "If only you hadn't been so stupid. Since the day we first met I've found myself longing to swim in the depth of those blue eyes. It's a shame really." She rips the blade out of his skin and sheaths it somewhere beneath her cloak. She then vanishes in order to prepare for the ritual to obtain the last piece of Charity's soul.

—

Bess and Thom met Nancy, George, and Nick at the Claw two hours after Ace had been taken. Rebecca stayed behind to calm her nerves by losing herself in the kitchen by baking containers of cookies. "What's the plan?" George was the first to break the silence.

"The plan is that we are going to send one of us into the Liminal Space." Bess answers not so confidently.

"That's your plan?!" George wasn't yelling but the frustration was evident.

"If you would let me finish." Bess interrupted. "We already know the chant that Temperance used to get Ace and Hannah out the first time. If we can find where she is keeping him we can send someone in to get him and then we can pull him out."

"How are we going to find him?" Nick questioned. "Temperance could have him anywhere."

"No, Bess is right." Nancy defended. "Temperance might be 200 years old but she likes efficiency. There's a part of Icarus Hall that had holding cells, kind of like a dungeon, and she will need Ace close to get to Charity's Soul. I bet she's holding him in one of those chambers."

"How sure are you?" Thom inquired. "This is my son we are talking about."

"I'm positive that is where she is keeping him." Nancy signs to the best of her abilities. "Regardless, we only get one chance at this. Icarus Hall is where I'd have him if I were a 200 year old occultist. It's close to all of my supplies and to a reliable prison. There's a tunnel that leads to them outside of the Hall and down a hill. It should be easy to access them."

"Alright, so it's settled. Icarus Hall." Bess doesn't say that with confidence either. "We'll need someone with a strong connection to Ace to go into the Liminal Space. The stronger the connection the less energy we'll have to use to pull them out."

"I'll go." Nancy volunteers.

"No, I should go." Thom responds. "He traded my life for his."

"Thom is right." Bess agrees with him. "He's our best bet of getting Ace back."

"So what's the plan?" George asks. "Temperance will know to look at The Claw if we pull this off. We need a safe space to bring them back."

"Icarus Hall isn't too far from the woods where we encountered the Wraith. We could send Thom to the Liminal Space near the Hall and meet up at the Hudson Lodge." Nick suggested the idea and nobody seemed to oppose it.

"I'm familiar with that Lodge." Thom adds. "I can get us there."

"Let's do this then." Nancy smirks.

They drop Thom off as close as they can to the Hall without raising suspicion. Bess sends him into the Liminal Space and he makes his way towards the area Nancy had directed him. Finding the tunnel was a challenge but he managed.

Thom snuck along quickly and quietly through the dark tunnel. The little bit of light that spilled through was barely enough for him to see where he was going before another faint light poured into the darkness. He followed it and knew he had to be heading in the right direction when a dungeon-esque area grew steadily. Soggy walls and moss ridden rock turned into stale air and chambers.

He crept along as stealthily as he could manage. He looked in every holding cell but came up empty handed until he entered a large opening. He saw Ace slouched against a stone pillar. He noticed the restraint holding his hands above his head and how pale he looked. Thom snuck up to where Ace was and his stomach dropped when his eyes fell on the giant wet blood stain that seeped through his shirt.

Thom tapped Ace on the cheek to try and wake him. After the fourth tap his eyes began to spring open. Ace flinched until he realized who it was. "Dad?" The tension left his body and he relaxed some. "What are you doing here?"

Thom held his finger to his lips to let Ace know to be quiet. He looked around for something to bust the rusted shackles off and hoped the rock he found would be enough to do it. It took effort but he was able to bust them open enough for Ace to free his hands. "We have a bit of a hike ahead of us. Think you're up to the challenge?" Thom asked and Ace tried to smile.

"What choice do I have?" He answered and then was painfully hauled to his feet.

Thom draped Ace's right arm around his shoulders and wrapped an arm around him so that he could embrace him closely. They made their way through the chamber and back out to the tunnel. Once they broke through the tunnel and into the woods the sun had begun to set leaving an eerie darkness to begin to settle in the woods. They headed in the direction that Thom knew the Lodge was in and he hoped they made it there before the Temperance lady knew that Ace was missing.

They were down the slope from the Lodge when Ace couldn't go any further. He was panting hard and beads of sweat coated his forehead. "I can't do it." He signed with blood coated fingers.

"We're almost there." Thom tried to reassure him but he had to admit that Ace didn't look good. "Just up the hill. You can do it."

Ace looked at him with droopy eyes. "I can try."

Thom took on more of Ace's weight as they made their way up the hill. They made it into the building where the others had been waiting before Ace collapsed to the floor. Thom rolled him on his back and put pressure on his stab wound and used more of his energy to tap Bess on the leg to let her know that they had made it. Bess and Nancy had George help them with the chant to bring them back. Their joy fades when they see Ace on the floor with his dad.

"What happened?!" Nancy drops to her knees instantly and supports Ace's head in her hands.

"She needed me half dead to pull Charity's soul from my body." Ace barely whispers and Nick relays what he said to Thom.

"Because she doesn't have a soul splitter." Bess gasps. "Oh God, Ace, I'm so sorry. I should have never let you put Charity's soul into your body."

"Bess, you couldn't have stopped me. I had to save my dad."

"How much blood has he lost?" George is kneeling next to Bess.

"Enough." Thom speaks his reply and they all look at him.

"I'll call an ambulance." Nick offers and is on the phone a second later.

"To keep him safe from Temperance we have to get Charity's soul out of him and destroy it." Nancy says as she still holds his head in her hands. "I don't care how we do it, we just have to, I refuse to lose anyone else."

"On it." George says and gets up to retrieve the Splitter. "Are we sure this won't kill him?"

"The Soul Splitter only removes a soul. It doesn't matter what state the body is in as long as it is alive." Bess tells her before she starts cranking the handle and Ace goes limp. She separates the souls and looks at Nancy. "What do you want me to do with it?"

"I'll host Charity's Soul." She doesn't think before responding. "She needs me alive so I'm the best bet." She gently places Ace's head on the floor and steps away from him. "Do it."

Bess breaks the crystal at Nancy's feet and watches as the soul transfers into her. "I hope you're right." Tears burn in her eyes but she holds them back.

"An ambulance will be here in a few minutes." Nick comes rushing back just as Bess puts Ace's soul back into his body. He inhales deeply and opens his eyes.

Nancy is supporting his head again and he looks up into her eyes. She smiles down at him, tears streaking her face. "What did you do?" He croaks.

"I'm trying to save your life." Nancy tells him and he smirks.

"It still baffles me why anyone would care so much." Ace whispers. "I was a dishwashing nobody and now I have people who care." His eyes close and his dad presses on the wound harder. One, to put more pressure. Two, because he hoped the pain would wake him up again, but it didn't.

"Ace?" Nancy shakes his shoulder. "Ace, please stay with me!" She begs and checks to make sure he's still breathing.

Two paramedics are being ushered in by George and Nick. They take over for Thom who can't take his eyes off his son. They get him on the gurney and load him into the bus. They offer to let his dad ride and he accepts. "We'll meet you at the hospital." Nick tells him and then they close the doors.

The waiting game has never been pleasant. Nancy sits next to Carson and Ryan with tear stained cheeks. Nick, Bess, and George sit on a row across from them staring blankly at the floor. Rebecca and Thom sit together, Rebecca holds tightly to Thom's hand, and Thom keeps checking his watch every five minutes. That was one of his tells that he was impatient and worried.

"Family for Ace?" A man in scrubs appeared from the double doors of the E.R. He didn't expect all of them to stand but he knew Ace's parents from before. "Ace is stable. It was touch and go for a while but he's strong. I expect that he'll make a full recovery given the proper care and rest." He looked at everyone standing before him. "Ace is resting right now but the two of you can go back." He addressed Thom and Rebecca.

"Thank you." Rebecca turned to the others. "For being his friend." She offered them a smile and followed the Doctor through the doors.

The slew of them took their places on the uncomfortable chairs in the lobby. They refused to leave. They didn't want Temperance showing up and trying something else. They also knew that they wouldn't be able to rest easy knowing that Ace almost died.

Thom and Rebecca entered the room quietly. Rebecca started crying the moment she laid eyes on her son. She remembered back to the car accident that left him in a coma and a bad shoulder injury among a head injury and concussion. That couldn't be compared to now. Now, he lay in a hospital bed, skin as pale as the white sheet that lay over him. She hurried to his side and took his hand in hers.

Thom stood at the foot of the bed. He didn't know how to process everything that had happened. Ace, without thinking of the consequences, traded his life for him. When Thom didn't want to believe in something as ridiculous as the supernatural, his son had convinced him to trust him, and now because of that he was in the hospital hooked up to an IV and monitors.

"We could have lost him." Thom signed to his wife. "I don't know what I would have done if-" He couldn't finish the statement.

"We didn't lose him." Rebecca understood what he was saying though. "He would do anything to keep us safe from his world. The supernatural world."

"I should be the one protecting him. That's how it's supposed to work." Thom was frustrated.

"You protect each other." Rebecca looked at her husband and smiled sadly. "You butt heads because you're so much alike. He doesn't get his stubbornness from me."

Thom takes a seat next to her. "When did he get so grown?"

"I don't know." Rebecca signed and sighed. "But I know we'll protect him for as long as we can."

The two of them sat in silence watching as Ace rested. Thom found himself breathing in rhythm with him and sucked in a sigh. Rebecca had fallen asleep with her head resting on his hand in hers. Thom kept watch over them for the rest of the night.

Chapter Text

Danver Steven’s was the equivalent to an evening apple pick on a beautiful fall day. She was like the sky when it would slowly sink lower towards the horizon taking whatever warmth that hugged the earth with it, the drastic mixing of orange with blue as the sky would darken, creating the most breathtaking sunset you could ever imagine. Ace’s stomach would grumble when she would be near him or walking by; the aroma of sweet, cinnamon pumpkin drawing him in like his own personal spell had been cast upon him. Her personality was like a warm grandma turned young adult, always kind, always thoughtful, always asking if she could help the library goers if they needed help with something. He wanted nothing more than to have the courage to talk to her, for her velvet voice to enchant his ears while he admired the features of her round face and button nose, but he only ever watched.

That was until his mom felt the need to introduce them. Rebecca had caught onto him staring at Danver when she was busy doing library things such as shelving books, organizing the returns, helping the patrons, anything and everything that kept her from noticing the innocent eyes that watched her longingly. “Someone catch your attention?” His mom had asked, a mischievous yet motherly smile on her face. “Danver is such a sweet girl, in fact, you two would get along great!” She tugged on his arm despite his protest and not so discreetly dragged him across the open sitting area to the aisle where she had been putting away books. “Danver, this is my son, Ace.”

He could feel his cheeks burning red. Danver looked up at him, her gray eyes a sea of bliss that he wanted to dive into headfirst and swim in forever. “That’s me.” He said embarrassed and shyly.

“Nice to meet you, Ace.” Her toothy smile made him want to melt like an ice cream cone on a hot summer day, he felt his knees tremble a bit, and he thought he was going to melt then and there. “Rebecca has told me so much about you. Said you helped with the computers, I can admire a man who knows his way around technology, especially since I struggle with anything that isn’t basic knowledge.”

He couldn’t pull his eyes away from hers, that admiration for her beauty holding his brain hostage, and then a nudge from his mother forced words out of his mouth. “I like computers.” He answered awkwardly and his mom patted him on the back before she left him standing there, vulnerable. “I also watched a show that shook me one time and had my mom implement some things, but I wasn’t a part of that.”

“Huh, vague and mysterious.” She coo-ed. “I don’t have any special talents. Sometimes I get the urge to bake but that’s usually in the fall…which is now...but I haven’t found a reason to make anything yet.” She stopped her awkward ramble.

“Maybe I can show you around a computer sometime, you know, past the basics?” Ace offered, he wanted to keep the conversation going, but ultimately knew it would lead to the end.

She tucked her loose hair behind her ear, “That would be really nice, yeah.” She accepted his offer, he felt his heart leap in his chest, and smiled. “I should get back to putting these books away, but I’ll see you around?”

“Of course.” He leaned down and picked up a book that had fallen on the floor. He knew how the organization method worked, his mom had taught him when he was younger, and he placed it on the shelf. “I’ll see you around.” He turned and walked away, his palms sweaty from the interaction, but he couldn’t stop smiling either.

When he arrived at work that day, he still couldn’t keep from smiling. George told him that he was acting weird, but he shrugged her off, she tended to be grumpy anyway. Bess kept eyeballing him from across the restaurant, he knew that she got her snooping honestly, but he didn’t want to talk to her either. Platanchors or not, he liked that Danver didn’t have to know about this part of his life, and he would prefer it if his friends didn’t know about the normal side of his life, at least, not yet.
He had overheard Bess gossiping to Nancy, “Do you think he has a new girlfriend?”

“He would have told you, Bess.” Nancy encouraged her.

“What if he’s found new friends? I hadn’t ever considered him leaving the group before.” Bess mutters sadly as he brings the rag in her hands up to her chest. “I already lost the Marvins, I don’t want to lose Ace, too.”

“We’re not losing Ace.” Nancy tried to say it with confidence, but her facial expression failed her as she thought about all the time in the past that she had personally taken him for granted. “At least, I hope we don’t.”

Ace rolled his eyes as he dried the last dish and put it down in its place. He crept to the door of the backroom where the lockers were kept and peeked around the corner. “I’m not going anywhere.” He said casually. “However, I am exploring new possibilities that I want to keep to myself. So, stop talking about me or try to learn how whispering works. I can hear you all the way in the kitchen.”

“Ace,” Bess looked between him and Nancy, “we’re sorry. You’ve just been acting differently, and you know I’m a worry wart.”

“Bess, I’m not going anywhere.” He assured her. “I just don’t want to involve you, yet.” He hesitated before finishing his sentence. Bess looked at him with big pouty eyes, but she understood. He walked down the stairs and hung his apron on his locker so that it could dry. “My mom needs me at the library.” He looks at them both in his usual mysteriously awkward way and then exits through the back door.

The next time he saw Danver, a few days had passed. She was cleaning shelves with a duster, and he couldn’t help but wonder what it would feel like to wrap his arms around her. He thought about how soft her skin looked, voluptuous and plush. He gulped at the way the jeans she wore hugged her legs and how the flannel sat on her hips. Her stared in awe at how her dirty blonde her glowed when the light would hit it just right, reminding him of glistening gold such as the gold found on Mount Olympus, like now as the sun barreled through the exposed window.

He walked up behind her, unintentionally stealthy. She hadn’t noticed him, she was humming a song he recognized from a movie he hadn’t seen since he was a kid, too focused on ridding the shelves of dust. He stood there a moment, not sure of what to say, so he led with what he knew best. “Hey.”

Ace hadn’t meant to catch her off guard, he hadn’t meant to startle her which in turn caused her to stumble backwards into him, he caught her before she could fall to the floor. He wondered if this is what luck was like, to imagine what something would feel like and then it happened, but he also got nailed between the legs with the duster, so he wasn’t so sure if this was luck at all. “Oh my gosh, I’m so sorry! I didn’t know you were there!” Danver apologized profusely.

He remained hunched over, breathing in deeply through his nose to get through the pain and discomfort. “It’s all good,” he said in between breaths, “didn’t mean to startle you.”

“Here,” she led him to a nearby chair, “sit.” She pulled up a chair in front of him and took a seat herself. Her thighs, thick and desirable, spread over the chair spilling off the sides.

Ace had to look away. He’d never been so physically, mentally, and emotionally attracted to someone like this before. He thought of all the supernatural Horseshoe Bay had faced and wondered for a split second if this was a curse, but he knew better than that, Danver was too different to be connected to the supernatural. The number of times he has heard her say ope while talking to others made him assume that she wasn’t from here, that was a Midwest thing. “Thanks.” He said the moment he began to feel better. “That was my fault.”

Danver sighed and offered him a smile. “I guess I should thank you for shielding me from the shelf. That would have hurt.” She met his gaze and then looked down when her face began to flush.

“I’m glad to have been of service.” Ace replied and leaned forward so he had an excuse to be closer to her. “I’m not used to the building being so empty. I know that libraries are quiet spaces, but this is almost eerie.”

Danver nodded, “Thursdays are known for being dead in here. You just missed your mom, she left about an hour ago.”

“I actually came to see you.” He mentioned as casually as he could. “I had offered to show you around the more advanced workings of a computer.”

“I hadn’t forgotten.” She mused. “You chose a great time, but the computers are currently down for system maintenance.” The frown that tugged at the corners of her mouth was visible.

“Maintenance?” Ace asked defeated.

“You could let me make up for the duster?” Danver offered. “Do you like soft pretzels?”

“I could consider myself a fan.” He answered. “Horseshoe Bay doesn’t really have those though, not until the carnival.”

“Oh, you misunderstood.” She said, “I don’t buy them from the store and back home I’d rarely buy them from one of the commercial shops. I prefer to make them myself.” Danver explained and he stared at her.

“You like to bake.” He remembered, as if he could forget.

“I like to bake.” She confirmed.

“I’d love a homemade pretzel.” Ace said happily. “To make up for the duster.” His cheeks turned pink so as not to sound too eager.

“C’mon.” Danver stood and grabbed his hand. She pulled him up and kept walking, bringing him along with her. “You can give me a ride.”

She admired Florence and referred to the car as a rustic novelty. She loved how it had an old timey pine smell, reminded her of Christmas as a child, and she snuggled into the seat. Danver directed her lovely Chauffeur in the direction of her residence. It was nestled in the trees overlooking the water on the outskirts of town.

“Woah.” Ace murmured in surprise. He took in the surroundings amazed at how cozy it felt. Trees towered towards the sky full of vibrant colors and their leaves had begun to fall from their limbs onto the ground. The earthy smell that hit his nose once he was out of the car reminded him of camping trips he had taken with his parents.

“It’s not much but I like the serenity. I don’t like being surrounded by car horns and people.” Danver said as she stared at the A frame cabin. “Besides, I grew up on a farm in Indiana. Not much to see other than corn and beans.”

“You don’t like corn and beans?” he asked, distracted by the scenery.

“I'm a fan of the cottage-core lifestyle myself. If cottage-core were mixed with Autumn-core and book-core.” She explained and cringed at how stupid she must’ve sounded.

“I dig it.” Ace said as he looked at the A frame. “This place has the potential of meeting those standards.”

She smiled, “I’m glad you think so.” She motioned for him to follow her and headed for the door. Once inside, she shucked off her flannel, and hung it on the makeshift coat hanger next to the door. “Make yourself at home.” She smiled kindly and disappeared.

Ace found himself in the living room looking out at the water from the floor to ceiling windows that were intricately placed on each side of a small fireplace that had been tucked between the two. He appreciated that for a smaller cabin, whoever had built it had put thought into the overall grand design that made the smaller space feel much larger. When Danver returned from where she had temporarily retreated to, she was wearing an oversized t-shirt that was covered in all sorts of stains such as grease and paint, and her hair had been put up loosely into a clip. “Your place is nice.”

“Thanks.” Her expression lifted. “Out of the entire place, that is my favorite spot to sit and drink cider or read a book.” She made her way into the kitchen as she spoke. She rummaged around looking for the items she would need to make the pretzels.

“What’s your favorite book?” Ace followed her into the kitchen but stopped on the opposite side of the island counter.

“Oof, that’s a hard decision.” She answered. “I feel like it’s impossible to choose. There’s so many worlds and characters I’ve grown fond of that it would be a crime to pick one over the other. I love them for different reasons.”

“I like that.” He replied. “I mean I like that answer.” He awkwardly shoved his hands in his pockets.

Danver held back a giggle, she liked how he would often retreat into shyness. “Tv shows on the other hand, I can pick favorites for. One of my favorite characters, and you’re probably going to laugh at me for this, but his name is Max. He was such a loveable character, and I was so mad when the show was canceled.”

“What was the show?” He asked
.
Her face turned red, “Uh, well, it was called Finding Carter.” She filled a measuring cup with warm water and then dumped yeast into it. “It was an infuriating show, but Max kept me watching.”

“My mom watched that show, actually.” Ace muttered. “I don’t know much about it, I never paid attention, but my mom seemed to like it.”

“Your mom is so nice.” Danver said as she turned away and preheated her oven. “She asked me to join her, your family for dinner one evening but I don’t know. I get nervous around people.”

“She has a habit of trying to make people feel welcome.” Ace told her. “If it makes you feel any different, it would be nice to have you join.”

“Really?” She asked surprised. “I’ve not really made any friends since moving here, to be honest, Rebecca is the closest thing to a friend I have.”

“I’ll be your friend.” He offered. “I’ve always been a bit socially awkward but I’m a great platanchor.”

“Platanchor?” she asked, confusion in her voice.

“Platonic anchor.” He expanded. “I used to have a crush on one of my co-workers, her name is Bess, but she’s into girls so we became platanchors.”

Danver’s face fell a smidge, “I see.” She turned to work on prepping the flour mixture. “If you want to be platanchors that’s fine. Can’t say I’ve ever had one before.”
Ace caught onto the mood shift. “I’d like to be regular friends.” He mentioned it quickly. “If you’ll let me.”

“I let you bring me home, invited you inside, and am now making you homemade pretzels. Yes, Ace, I want to be your friend.” She winked at him.
He couldn’t stop the large smile that overtook his face. “Is there anything I can help you with?”

She thought for a second. “Here,” she handed him a pot, “fill this with water and then place it on the stove. You’ll need to bring it to a boil.”
He did as he was instructed. “I thought you baked them?”

Danver chuckled, “I do but I proof them by plopping them in boiling water for a minute or so.” She began mixing the flour mixture with the yeast water. Once she was satisfied with the dough she placed it aside to sit for at least ten minutes. She guided Ace out of the kitchen and into the living room where she took a seat on the couch. “So, tell me, what’s the best thing to do in Horseshoe Bay this time of year? Do you have an orchard with a big pumpkin patch or any attractions?”

He looked at her puzzled, “You don’t know about Jack’s Orchard?” She shook her head no. “It’s the best orchard I’ve ever been to. If you’ll let me, I’d love to take you there. There’s a large patch and they serve hot or frozen cider. They also offer a haunted maze and weekends.”

“That sounds like a lot of fun.” She took him up on his offer. “I’ve not been here long so there’s a lot I haven’t experienced yet.”

“You’ll find that Horseshoe Bay has a lot of festivals and celebrations about local legends and folklore. The local beliefs are a little out there but it's all in honest fun.” He explained as he situated himself a little closer to her.
Danver looked him in the eyes, “Is that so? Like what?”

“There’s plenty of weird ones but I think the biggest one happens during the Seawater Ceremony.” He explains. “It’s a big town ritual at the end of summer. Everyone fills a bucket of sea water to take home and place on their doorstep. When the Church bells ring at midnight, you’re supposed to knock the bucket over to reveal whether or not the water has turned to blood, and if it has then you’re marked to die within a year.”

Danver’s eyes widened, “that’s morbid.” She giggled, “and super dark! Has anyone ever died?”

He thought of George, “Not that I’m aware of but it’s more than just superstition.” He didn’t want to involve her in the supernatural world, at least not yet if he could help it.

She inched closer, “I never lived in such a quirky town before.” Her hand instinctively came to rest on his leg. “Oh shoot, the water.” She got up and went to lower the flame under the pot, her hand going with her, and Ace slumped a little. He got up to go to the kitchen and pretended that her hand on his leg hadn’t caused the air he breathed to hitch in his throat. “I didn’t realize how much time had passed. Would you like to help me assemble?”

He made his way around to the same side of the island, “I like learning new things,” he said with a certain innocence in his voice. Danver handed him a dough ball and instructed him on what to do. Slowly, the ball started to form into a delicate dough knot, and even though his pretzel looked a bit wonky, he was proud of it. She placed it on the parchment paper that she had already laid out on the counter and was handed another dough ball. This time his work was cleaner, more pretzel like, and he showed it off happily.

“You’re a natural!” She praised him. “Maybe you have what it takes to own a pretzel stand.”

“Maybe.” Ace shrugged. “So, what now?”

“Now, we put them in boiling water.” Danver grabbed her two small dough forms and Ace grabbed his. “Carefully drop them in the water.” She finagled hers into the pot and Ace followed her lead. “In a minute I’ll have you take them out and put them back on the parchment paper. From there they’ll go in the oven.” A minute passed, he transferred them onto the pan, and Danver placed them in the preheated oven. “Now we wait.”

They carried on with casual conversation until the oven timer rang out with a long beep. The pretzels were pulled out of the oven, a beautiful rich crust had formed around the edges, and the tops were the perfect golden color that all pretzels should be. She placed them on the counter on two potholders, steam rolling off the pan. “I’ve not come across a better-looking tie of bread.” Ace said, peeking over her shoulder.

“They do look really good.” She answered. “I had great help.” She gave him a wink and then went to the refrigerator. “Cheese dip or mustard?”

“I might’ve been born and raised in a quirky town but I’m not a psycho,” His voice was laced with sarcasm, “mustard.”

“Ope, wrong answer.” She matched his sarcastic tone. “Cheese all the way.” She pulled out mustard and sat it on the counter before going to her pantry and grabbing a can of cheese. Once their handiwork was cool enough, she transported the pan to the island, “Bon appetite.”

Ace took the first bite. His face lit up with surprise and proceeded to take another bite. “This is fantastic!”

“Homemade triumphs all.” Danver shrugged. “Learned that from my grandma.”

“Your grandma must be a smart woman.” He said with a mouth full of food causing Danver to giggle.

“Yeah, she was. Spent most of my free time with her.” She said it with a tinge of sadness in her voice.

“Sorry,” Ace apologized, “I didn’t mean to-”

“Don’t be sorry, you didn’t do anything wrong.” She assured him. “My grandma, if she were here, would have not only put you to work, more than I did, and would have squeezed your cheeks by now.” She eyed his face, “but that would just mean that she liked you, and she would have liked you that is.” She fumbled the words at the end.

“What was grandma’s name?” He asked.

“Cora.” Danver answered.

“I’ve a feeling I would have liked Cora, too.” He said with true sincerity and the lights flickered right after he said it.

“Old cabin, faulty wiring.” Danver said quickly, trying to hide the nervousness in her voice, and then dipped her first bite of pretzel in cheese. “I’ve been meaning to get it looked at, but I keep forgetting.”

Ace got up from where he sat, “I can take a peek.” He walked towards where he thought the breaker box would be when a book flew across the room, nearly hitting him on the head. He stopped and turned back towards Danver. “What was that?”
She grabbed a container and threw the last two pretzels in it. “Oh, crap,” she began, “look at the time. You should probably get going.”

“That’s suspicious.” He thought, raised an eyebrow, and walked towards her. “What are you not telling me?”

Danver grabbed his coat and tried to hand it to him. “I think you need to go, please.” Her eyes pleaded with him. “Please!”
Ace reached for his coat, but a force knocked him backwards into the living room. He crashed onto the couch and rolled off onto the floor. A wind started whipping the room, the intensity sending painful lashes into his skin. “You’re being haunted?” He hollered over the loud roaring of the wind.

“What? You believe in ghosts?” Danver hollered back
.
“My friends and I have…meddled in the supernatural.” he said as he got to his knees and ducked another book being chucked towards his head. “But I don’t think this ghost likes me.”
“This hasn’t ever happened before.” She told him above the noise. “I hoped that he wouldn’t follow me when I left home, but I was wrong. I’m sorry, I shouldn’t have invited you over.”

“He?” Ace asked. “Scratch that, get outside!”

“No, not without you,” Danver refused, “I’m pretty sure he wants to hurt you, not me.” Another book flung across the room and nailed him in the forehead. Ace fell backwards and grabbed his head. “He’s mad that you’re here.”

He got to his feet and darted across the room. He grabbed Danver by the wrist and drug her out the front door with him. They got down the steps and were heading for Florence when a small limb came crashing down out of one of the trees overhead. It barely missed Ace but still managed to scrape his left cheek causing him to bleed. He ushered her to get in the passenger seat as he opened the driver’s side door. He felt a grip on his shoulder before he could get in the car, a moment later he was slung across the drive, and planted headfirst into the base of a tree.

He tried to get back up, but the world spun. He collapsed back to the ground, and he heard the fogged sound of Danver yelling his name. She ran over to him and knelt beside him, “Ace? Talk to me. Are you ok? Ace?” She shook him softly.
“Call Nancy.” he whispered, barely hanging onto consciousness. “She’ll know what to do.” His eyes rolled into the back of his eyelids and his body went slack.

“Ace? Whose Nancy?” She didn’t waste any time. She grabbed his phone and used his fingerprint to unlock it. She scrolled his contacts until she found Nancy and immediately dialed the number.
“Ace?” She heard a female answer the other end.

“I’m not Ace, I’m a friend of his actually, he told me to call you.” Danver blurted. “Because I have a ghost haunting me and it attacked him. He’s unconscious in my driveway but before he passed out, he said that you would know what to do. Can you help me? If not me, him?”

“Hold on, Ace was attacked?” Nancy asked. “Send me your address, I’m on my way.”

When Nancy arrived, the wind had subsided, and Ace’s head lay in Danver’s lap. “You must be Nancy?” She asked but already knew. “I didn’t know something like this could happen.” Tears threatened to stream down her face. “I thought that if I ignored him that he would leave me alone. I was wrong. I was so, so wrong.” She combed Ace’s hair with his fingers, keeping it out of his face. “I’m Danver by the way.”

“Nice to meet you.” Nancy offered a comforting smile. “Can you tell me how long this has been going on for?”

“It started a year ago when my fiancé was killed.” She answered, shame heavy in her voice. “He wasn’t the greatest person, but I was too naïve to leave him. He was drinking like he usually did, and we got into a fight. He started throwing stuff at me and hitting me. He put me in the hospital with a concussion, a broken wrist, along with a bruise and battered face. When I woke up, I was told that he was dead, that he had hit a deer in his Pontiac Grand Prix. I noticed a month after he was gone that weird things would happen, but I ignored it. The more time that passed, the more energy he gained, and he began interacting with more stuff. He became more manifested. I thought that leaving home would get rid of him, but he followed me. I noticed a week after being here that he had followed me. He’s only ever done things when I’m alone, which I usually always am. I didn’t think anything like this could happen. I’m so stupid.”

Ace had woken while Danver explained, “You’re not stupid.”

“Welcome back.” She cried.

“I’m so sorry you’ve gone through that.” Nancy sympathized. “We’ll help you, but we are going to need something he touched last.”

“I have his engagement ring. He was wearing it when he died. I know I should have sold it or tossed it in the ocean, but a part of me did love him.”
Nancy crouched beside her, “You don’t own anyone an explanation.” She smiled and then looked down at Ace. “Feel like banishing a ghost?”

“Is that even a question?” He attempted to sit up, but his body protested.

“Ok, big guy, let us help you.” Nancy stood. Nancy and Danver helped him into a sitting position and then helped him stand. “Alright, where’s this ring?”

Danver lifted the chain that was tucked beneath her shirt and revealed what it kept hidden. “Here.” She tugged the chain hard and popped it off her neck. She reached her arm out and handed the chain and ring to Nancy. “Let’s get rid of the bastard.”
She followed Nancy to The Claw where their other friends waited. She drove Florence while Ace rode in the passenger seat, his body leaning heavily against the door. “Are you sure you’re ok?” she asked, concerned.

“Yeah, I’m ok.” He answered.

“I’m sorry that you got hurt. I didn’t know he was capable of all of that.” She apologized. “I should have known better than to bring you home. He was always the jealous type.”

“We’re just friends.” He muttered. “No reason for a ghost to be jealous.” He glanced over in time to see her lip quiver.

“You’re right, we are just friends, but that never kept Cole from lashing out at me when he was still alive. I guess the only way he can punish me now is to ensure that I’m always alone. No friendships, relationships, nothing. A life of loneliness is all I get.” She held back the tears that threatened to moisten her voice. They rode the rest of the way in silence.

Nancy led the way into the restaurant where Bess, George, and Nick waited. Bess’s eyes fell on Danver and then she looked at Ace whose face had a large scrape. A forming bruise discolored his forehead with a deep violet mixture. She picked up on his downcast mood and noticed that Danver had the same energy. “Ready to banish a violent ghost?” Nancy asked the group in the most optimistic way that she could.

The group took their places around the makeshift circle on the dining room floor. “Danver, he’s attached to you, so you’ll have to sit in the middle of the circle.” Bess said to her, a sad smile on her face. “I can’t guarantee your safety so if you want to back out, we’ll understand.”

Danver looked at her over to Ace, but he didn’t meet her gaze. She looked around at the others, “I don’t care what happens.” She huffed. “I just want him gone and if he takes me with him then so be it. I can’t risk anyone else getting hurt.” She took the knife that sat in front of her and sliced it across her palm. She held her fist out, so it dripped onto the concoction Bess had created for the ritual. “Do it.”

“We call upon the spirit of Cole Gally.” The candles all simultaneously lit themselves. “We command you to leave this body, to be gone from Danver Stevens, and to pass onto wherever calls to you.” Their voices chanted together.
Danver’s nose started pouring blood and she saw them hesitate. “Keep going.” She sounded like she was in pain, but they listened.

The more they chanted, the worse off Danver became. Blood seeped from her eyes, her ears bled, and her skull felt like it was being crushed. A silhouette of Cole appeared behind her, his hands gripped around her head, nails dug into her flesh. Bess opened a small jar and dumped the contents into her hand and then blew it onto Danver. The second it reached her, she uncontrollably sucked in a deep breath then let out an ear-piercing scream.
Her body went limp, but she remained upright, Cole’s grip keeping her there. She was like a puppet, and he was the master. “Cole Gally, we command you to leave!” Bess spoke with authority. The room whipped with wind, decorations flew off the walls barely missing them as they landed all around, when suddenly it stopped.

The wind died out, stuff quit being thrown across the dining room, and Cole let go of Danver. The breath she had been unwillingly holding escaped and she crumpled backwards onto the floor. The silhouette of Cole solidified and then disintegrated into a pile of ash that disappeared the moment it hit the wooden floor. The flames went out and smoke remained in their place.

They all sat there, wide eyed at what had just happened. Ace couldn’t peel his eyes away from the body that lay lifeless in front of him. He swallowed hard and let go of George and Bess’s hands. He didn’t say anything, he just got up and rushed up to her, her skin an unusual pale. “Danver?” He leaned down to listen for her breathing. He watched to see if her chest would start to rise and fall. “She’s not breathing!”
Nick was there beside him, “She still has a pulse.”

Ace removed the clip from her head so that it could be positioned properly to further open her air ways. Bess covered her mouth and George as well as Nancy stayed back, morose expressions on their faces. Minutes passed before a gasp erupted from her, her upper half rising off the floor with it. Her chest heaved heavily as she gained her composure. She looked around the room at all the sullen faces that looked at her.

“What happened?” She asked once her breathing calmed. “Is he gone?”

“He’s gone.” Nick confirmed. “But you weren’t breathing for like three minutes.”

“Oh, huh, I don’t remember anything after Bess blew that powder at me.” She tried to sit up but didn’t quite have the energy. Nick and Bess helped her on her second attempt. Ace got up and walked towards the back which made her heart hurt a little more than it should have. “Thank you.” She made eye contact with each of the people who remained. “I never thought that freedom from him was possible.”

“We’re glad to help.” Nancy smiled. “And any friend of Ace’s is a friend of ours.”

“I think I’ve burdened you guys enough.” She got up but felt woozy.

“You might be a little lightheaded for a bit.” Bess mentioned. “Side effects.”

“Yeah, I’m finding that out.” Danver forced a laugh. “I think I could use some fresh air.” She left through the front door. She sat on top of one of the many picnic tables and listened to the still of the harbor at night. She felt the blood that caked her hair to her ears and the sticky residue on her face.

“Here.” She hadn’t heard Ace approaching, he was good at being stealthy. He sat a metal bowl next to her and dunked a wash rag in it. He placed his free hand under her chin and used the other to remove the blood from her face. He was careful not to scrub or wipe too hard. “You could have died.”

“An important take away, I didn’t.” She responded. “I couldn’t live my life with him attached to me anymore. Besides, we barely know each other, so you don’t have any reason to care.”
He finished cleaning the blood off her face and moved onto the blood that was on the sides of her head. “How can you say that?” he asked with mixed emotions.

“I’m not used to people aside from my family caring about me.” Her voice quivered. “Cole always told me that I wasn’t deserving, that I should be grateful that he pitied me enough to be with me, all the things he used to tell me haven’t gone away. His haunting me was just a reminder that I’m meant to be alone. No relationships. No friends. Just books, baking, and hobbies.”

Ace dropped the rag into the bowl and cupped her face in his hands. He looked at her cranberry-colored lips, plump, and inviting. He wondered if they tasted anything like they looked, and he decided that he didn’t want to wonder anymore. He leaned in and smooshed his mouth into hers.

He pulled back, looking at her now cranberry colored face, “I have been dying to know what that felt like.” He glanced up at the windows of The Claw and saw his friends peeking through the curtains. “Do you want to get out of here?”
“I thought you’d never ask.” Danver took the hand he offered, got up from where she sat, and let him lead her to Florence.