Chapter 3.14 - Dearly Beloved

“I hate funerals.”

Jenny was staring at her father’s coffin with a strangely detached look on her face. Jonah had no idea how to go about comforting her. 

“That’s an understandable feeling.”

“You don’t get it, do you?”

Jonah was silent. He really didn’t get it, having never experienced the death of someone close to him, but he wasn’t about to admit that to his grieving girlfriend.

When he didn’t respond, she continued. “I feel more about the funeral than I do about him being dead.”

Jonah spoke gently. “You’re in shock. It hasn’t quite hit you yet.”

She nodded. “You’re right. I just… I don’t know how to go about doing anything anymore. My father is dead, Jonah! He was so much of my life that I just don’t really know how any of us are going to live without him.”

Jonah just nodded. Honestly, he wasn’t grieving John Doe at all, except in the abstract. He had always been condescending, if not outright rude, to Jonah, and had always made it obvious that Jonah wasn’t good enough for his daughter. But he understood that the man had been Jenny’s father, and she had a right to grieve.

“I can’t imagine how my mother feels right now. I’m suffering so much, and so are the boys, but he was her life. Everything she was is gone now. I don’t know how she’s holding herself upright.”

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“If there’s anything you need, you know I’m right across the street.”

Jane nodded. She’d been completely silent since Madeline had begun offering her condolences. Madeline didn’t know where Alaric was. She didn’t really want to know. The past week had proven to her that there were things about her husband she was better off not knowing.

Still, something about Jane’s dry eyes bothered her. She supposed the woman was so distraught she couldn’t even cry. That happened sometimes, or so daytime TV informed her.

“I really can’t express how sorry I am for your loss. Again, if you need anything at all, be sure to let me know. I feel so terrible for you and the kids.”

Jane nodded once more. “Thank you for your lovely sentiments.”

As she walked away, Madeline shook her head. There was something off about that woman. There always had been, but now? She was beyond being a cold fish. She seemed completely unfeeling at her husband’s funeral, for Plumbob’s sake!

But then Madeline spotted Alaric, and she forgot about Jane Doe the bereaved widow. She had more important things to worry about.

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“I know you’re responsible for this.”

Odessa stared Alaric down. “That’s not what I’m seeing on the news.”

Alaric rarely got angry, but now, he was furious. “I don’t know how you even have the nerve to show up here. It’s obvious what happened. You got that thug brother of yours to kill John and frame it on me, so I’d be forced to resign, and you could have the job. Maybe you even did it yourself, and then you come to the funeral! How dare you!”

“You can’t act like you’re an innocent party here. You’ve done worse things than I’ve ever dreamed of!”

“Maybe I’ve made some mistakes, but at least I’ve never killed a man!”

“I’m not the one who had a very public dispute with him and something to gain from his death.”

“Look me in the eye and tell me you didn’t gain anything from his death.”

“Alaric, I promise you this. I did not kill John Doe.”

Alaric scoffed. “Like I’d believe anything you say.”

“There was a time when you did.”

He just looked at her. “No. No, there wasn’t.”

Odessa clenched her jaw and brushed past him. “I’m going to pay my respects.”

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Serena knew better than to talk to strangers… most of the time. But there was no way she could just not talk to this man.

“Hello!”

“Little girl? What are you-”

“Your hair is the same color as mine.”

The man looked down at her, eyes widening in shock. “So it is. What’s your name, little girl?”

“Serena. Serena Doe. What’s yours?”

“It’s Cedric. You said your name is Doe? I think you might want to meet my sister. She’s-”

“Serena, what are you doing?”

Serena hadn’t even noticed Alphonse until he was right next to her. She turned towards him, beaming. “This man has hair the same color as mine!”

“That doesn’t mean you should talk to him! Come on, let’s go. We have better places to be.”

They left, but the strange man with the bright red hair watched them until they were out of sight.

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Amanda stood in a solitary corner while what felt like the entire town trooped in to pay their respects. She had been informed in no uncertain terms that she couldn’t leave until everyone saw that their family was standing by the grieving widow, which meant until the very end.

She had sequestered herself in a corner after it became obvious that entering high school had made the town even less accepting of her eccentricities. Her presence was actively hindering the family efforts.

She turned to Maxwell. “Any ideas for how to pass the time?”

He shrugged. “We could play ‘Count the Hidden Magic Users’, but it’s a little boring.”

Amanda looked around. Maxwell had been tutoring her on how to spot the soft auras that radiated from magic users, but there didn’t seem to be any here. “I don’t see any.”

“That’s why it’s boring.” He leaned lazily against the table. “You know, I could always cast a glamour-”

“Stop. You know that I have to stay here.”

“I’m just saying, I could make it look so much like you that your mother would never know you were gone.”

Amanda rolled her eyes, and in the midst of her eye roll, she saw someone who definitely shouldn’t have been there.

“Max, is that…”

“Shhh! Don’t let her know you saw her.”

But it was too late. The fairy made direct eye contact with Amanda, and she spoke a single word. “Seer!”

Author's Note: This is a pretty short chapter, but the focus is starting to shift to the kids.

Teenage Amanda is now perceptive. She is also wearing clothes she took out of her mom's closet in this chapter. Next chapter is just a click away!