"Ghosts are those memories that are too strong to be forgotten for good, echoing across the years and refusing to be obliterated by time."
~Caitlin R. Kiernan

____________________________

Caleb

My time with Elsa and Anna turned out to be short-lived. It turned out the Controllers had simply come for a random check-up on the pack. They'd asked where I was, and Hunter came in check, stating I was scoping out a new possible hotel building. When he answered my call, the first thing out of his mouth was, "Hey, say hi to everyone! The whole family and the Kellermans are here."

I took the cue. "Hey, everyone! Sorry for the lack of communication. Reception is shit here. Building turned out to be a bust. It looked great in the photos, but so much work needs to be put into it that it's not worth our time. How are things there?"

I'd let my family do most of the talking to gauge where things stood, and I recorded the entire conversation so we could listen back to it and pick up on any clues I'd missed. For better or for worse, none of the Morningstar pack heard any clues to stay put with them, and the same went for Lily when she called her parents, so the decision was made for us to return. However, with my sisters bringing the war to the Controllers, they still needed hair strands of my pack and the Starks, and they'd come up with only one way to do it. In order for it to be accomplished, the Controllers needed to be as far away from Estes Park as possible, and the Kids apparently stepped up for the job.

We gathered around the TV, watching the smoldering remains of a beautiful villa in South Africa, all that remained of one of the Kellerman's many, many estates. On a different channel, it showed the explosion of a cabin in Finland, one of the Lawman's.

"Do I want to know how the Kids did this?" I asked, glancing skeptically over at the twins.

Elsa replied, "One Kid dressed up as Gillian and placed the bomb in a package on the doorstep of the Lawman's doorstep. Another dressed up as Lyanna and put a bomb, also in a package, on the Kellerman's. That way, any remaining security footage will look like they're trying to commit insurance fraud. Should keep them preoccupied long enough for us to get what we need. We should hit the road soon. I bet the Controllers will be-"

Elsa's ringing phone interrupted her. She picked it up and listened to the voice on the other end, a smile gracing her face a few moments later. Then, thanking them, she hung up and said, "Controllers are on the move. Let's get going."

The pack tossed their bags into their respective cars, and I hopped into my own. I asked if Elsa and Anna wanted to ride with me for part of the way, and to my surprise, they both agreed. Strangely, they took out a vial of blue liquid and chugged it before getting in. Confused, I asked, "What was that?"

"A gift from the Kids. It stops our scent for about 12 hours. We'll get in the SUVs with Dom and Spencer before it wears off, so our scent won't be in your car," Anna explained, tossing her backpack into the backseat. "Elsa, you take the front. I want to crash for a while."

"Sounds good. Let's get going because we have a long trip ahead of us."

Anna groaned. "Don't remind me. It was a bitch when Dom and I drove it."

"Well, I would imagine," I said, getting into the driver's seat. "You'd just had a brush with death and then got attacked by the Shadows not long after. Both of you."

"Don't remind me. My legs still hurt whenever I think about Callie attacking me. Anyway, I'm going to sleep, but wake me up if you need me to drive for a bit."

With that said, Anna conked out almost immediately. Elsa raised an eyebrow and remarked, "God, I wish I could do that. My head hits the pillow, and I get my second wave of energy. It's not right."

"You always were a night owl. Glad to see some things never change," I said drolly.

Elsa grinned. "You are too. I remember us sneaking down to the theater when we were little to watch movies, and Mom and Dad would always catch us."

"We thought they wouldn't wake up to the volume on fifty. At least we got somewhat smarter as we got older."

"Yeah, emphasis on somewhat," Elsa joked, pulling out her phone. The two of us chatted for about three hours before sleepiness finally overcame her. When she fell asleep, Anna woke up, so the two of us talked for another three hours. After the first leg of the trip and a couple of bathroom breaks along the way, Elsa offered to take over driving. I let her, knowing (and dreading) the last couple of hours since I'd be all alone in the car in the pitch-black night in the middle of the Rocky Mountains with nothing but Apple maps and Spotify to keep me awake, so I needed the rest.

That time arrived all too soon, but to my surprise, Lily called me shortly after we hit the road again, and the two of us talked for the rest of the trip, a Godsend when my eyelids started getting heavy at the end. Our group split up when we arrived in town. Lily and I headed to our compounds, and Elsa and her pack continued on to their Air BNB.

When I pulled up to my house, no light could be seen. Deciding I'd put my car in the garage in the morning rather than waking up the whole damn place with the door opening, I parked outside and slipped in using my key. I tiptoed upstairs to my room, dodging the known creaks in the steps to avoid alerting anyone of my presence. The last thing I wanted to do was talk to someone. I just wanted to sleep.

Thankfully, I succeeded in my mission, and after changing into pajamas and checking in with Elsa to ensure she arrived safely, I collapsed onto my bed and fell asleep. Nightmares plagued me, namely of the Controllers finding out about the twins and murdering them the same way they did Frank, so my sleep ended up not being very resting. Despite arriving at one in the morning and not getting to sleep until two, I found myself wide awake at seven a.m. due to Hunter's snoring in the room next door. Deciding if I couldn't sleep, he couldn't either, I got out of bed, grabbed a pillow on my way out, entered his room, and chucked said pillow at my brother with full force. He woke up with a start, looking around in an angry daze.

"What the fu-" Hunter's gaze landed on me. "First off, what are you doing back? And two, what the fuck was that for?"

"I got in late last night and didn't want to disturb anyone. You were snoring so loudly I couldn't sleep, so if I'm not getting sleep because of you, you're not getting sleep because of me."

The toilet flushed in his bathroom, and after hearing the faucet run for a few seconds, Josie entered the bedroom. Her eyes widened at the sight of me. "Caleb! What are you doing back? I thought-"

I told her the same thing I'd told Hunter, glaring at my older brother when I mentioned his snoring. He flipped me off in return. "Did I miss anything while I was away?"

Hunter shook his head. "Not really, although one of the Kellerman's estates got blown up. That's why they-"

"Left. Yeah, I know," I replied nonchalantly, shuffling to the chair in the corner of the room and plopping down in it. "The Kids did that."

"The Ki- as in the Kids helping the twins?"

"Yep."

"Who are these people?"

"Scary people, but they're helping her and us, so I'm not complaining."

"How are they?" Josie asked, sitting on the edge of Hunter's bed. He sat and scooted forward next to her.

"Good. They're really good, given everything that's happened to them and what they've been through. Elsa has mostly forgiven me, although she's still keeping some things close to her chest."

"Like?"

"She wouldn't tell me what the Shadows did to her. All she said is that they tortured her, nor would she tell me much about the Kids except that they're former Shadows who saved her life. She and her pack also have some plan on getting the last ingredient for whatever it is they're using against the Controllers, and apparently, it's something they need directly from each of us."

Josie perked up. "Oh my God, does that mean- does that mean they're here?"

I nodded. "I don't know where exactly they are, but yes, they're close. I have no idea what the plan is, but from what I've gathered, it'll involve facing our pack. All of us."

Hunter grimaced. "That'll be dangerous. No matter the size of her pack, they can't take on all of us."

"No, but they'd do a number on us. They're battle-trained now. They shouldn't be underestimated."

"I'm sure whatever their plan is, it'll go into effect soon, make sure they complete it before the Controllers return," Josie remarked, standing up. "So we better be ready. First things first, I think we need to eat. I'm going to go see if Arya needs help in the kitchen. You two joining, or do you want to sleep some more?"

"I'll join you," Hunter said, standing up. I also agreed and, following my brother and his fiancée, padded downstairs to the kitchen. Mom and Dad moved around the kitchen, cooking bacon and eggs. Both were, unsurprisingly, shocked to see me. I explained I'd gotten in later than I intended last night, lying that it was due to weather.

"It's good to have you home," Mom said, hugging me. When she pulled away, she wore a frown. "You smell odd."

My heart skipped a beat, and I quickly lied, "Oh, it's probably the sketchy gas stations I stopped in. I didn't shower when I got back because I was so tired, and I didn't want to wake any of you up, and let me tell you, some of those gas stations need OSHA to come in or something because those places were infested with germs and unsanitary-"

"All right..." Mom looked me up and down. "Are you okay? You're acting weird this morning."

Shit. Play it cool. "I always act weird," I said.

"He's got a point," Hunter agreed.

"I'm also still tired because someone's snoring woke me up prematurely."

My brother rolled his eyes. "Dude, let it go."

"No. You need help for it. Go to a doctor. Just once. That's all I'm asking."

"When it annoys so much? Never."

For the next half hour, I listened to my parents, brother, and Josie chat. Ember joined us not long after and, like me, stayed quiet, mainly because she hated waking up. My reasoning was due to the knowledge of my thought-to-be-dead sisters staying only a few miles away.

For most of the morning and early afternoon, nothing out of the ordinary happened. We all headed to work, Hunter annoyed me throughout the day by playing snoring videos every time he walked past my office, Ember and Noah got caught making out (and were progressing toward something much more intimate), and Josie saved everyone from enduring my hangry wrath by bringing me lunch from my favorite place.

It was around three that I saw Dmitri in the distance through my window, heading back to the hotel after going for a walk into town for coffee. As he passed an alleyway, he halted and stared at something for a few seconds before heading into the alleyway. He reappeared moments later, shaking his head and continuing on.

A few minutes later, he passed my open office door wearing a perplexed expression. I called out for him to come back. When he popped his head in, I asked, "What's got your tail in a twist?"

Dmitri shook his head. "Nothing. Why?"

I explained what I saw him doing earlier and added, "You never look confused, so you saw something."

"Don't worry about it. I'm tired and seeing things. I think I'm going to head back to the compound and take a nap."

"Well, now I'm worried. What do you think you saw that's got you so disturbed?"

"Nothing, really-"

"It's not nothing; it's something. Since when do you hold back speaking your mind?" I prodded, an ominous feeling settling into my bones. I started to form an idea of what it could've been but didn't want to go there. It could ruin everything...

Dmitri stepped inside and shut the door. Rubbing the nape of his neck, he said quietly, "I know it's not possible, but I thought- I could've sworn I saw Elsa and Spencer. They were wearing ball caps, and the girl had her hair tucked into it, but I could still see the blonde. Look, I know they're all dead, but I- it unnerved me."

My heart dropped. I needed to warn Elsa that she and Spencer had been spotted. "I get it. You're right that it couldn't have been them. Unless they survived a fiery plane crash, it wasn't them. Still, you're not going to get much done today feeling the way you do, so I'll let my parents know why you left."

"Thanks, man." Dmitri left and shut my door behind him. Without hesitating, I pulled out my phone and dialed Elsa's number. She picked up almost instantly.

"We know Dmitri saw us if that's what you're calling about," Elsa said nonchalantly.

"You're lucky he came to me and didn't spread it amongst the pack. It could give you away," I warned. "I lost you and Anna once, and damn it, I'm not losing you two again!"

"You're not going to," Anna said gently. "We wanted him to see us. We need the word to spread because we need it to reach Mom and Dad in order for our plan to work."

I pinched the bridge of my nose. "Am I still not allowed to know the plan?"

"No, we need you to be as surprised as the rest of them. Don't worry about us, okay?" Elsa responded. "We've got this."

"I'm always going to worry about you two. All right, I'll have Dmitri ask around to see if anyone else has seen you and Spencer to help subtly spread the word."

"And we'll make a few more ghostly appearances to assist. Thanks, Caleb. We'll see you soon."

Hanging up, I texted Dmitri: I know it's impossible, but ask the others if they've seen any lookalikes for Elsa and Spencer. Just to be safe.

Then setting my phone aside, I braced my elbows on the desk and massaged my temple, wondering how long it'd be before I died of the stress my sisters were unintentionally causing me.