Chapter Eighteen #3
Corbin glanced over, seeing something from his peripheral, and in the mirror over the dresser, he saw him.
And gasped.
In it, Will stood there. He was flickering, but he could see him.
“Baby?” he asked, moving toward the mirror.
Tori was letting the dead man use her energy to manifest one last time before going to the light. Yeah, she’d be tired all day, but sometimes, you had to take one for the team.
Team Dead.
“He said that he loves you, and you were the love of his life, but he’s not to be the love of yours.
You need to move on, because there are children who need you, and Alexander James Bartlett.
You’re going to name your first son after him, in honor of Will, and that one day, he’ll become an attorney.
He’ll carry on a legacy, and save people, but it won’t happen if you don’t let him go. ”
He braced his hands on the dresser.
“Will, I miss you. I didn’t get to say goodbye.”
Will held up his hand, and it looked as if he was holding it to the mirror. Taking a chance, Corbin did the same thing, and he placed his hand over his. When he did, the ring on Will’s left hand disappeared.
“If you love me, you’ll let me go home,” Tori said, channeling him.
“Staying to watch over you as you suffer is making me angry, and I’m going to become a monster.
I need you to say goodbye, and learn to love again.
Alice was right. You found him, Corby. You found the one, and it’s going to be more than what we had.
It’s going to be everything. I need you to trust me. ”
Corbin stared into the dead man’s eyes.
“Thank you for watching over me all of these years,” he said, seeing his love in the mirror. “I just needed to know it was okay to say goodbye, and that you wouldn’t hate me.”
Tori answered for Will.
“He said that he loves you eternally, and one day, when it’s your time to cross, he’ll be there for you. He wants to go see John. He wants to be with the people who went before him. Making him stay is a fate far worse than dying.”
Corbin didn’t want him to suffer.
In his head, he said one thing.
“He did,” Tori answered. “I promise.”
Corbin knew what he asked. He asked if Will had put Alex in his path, and now, he had the truth.
Tori continued to speak for the man, channeling him.
“It’s why you’re attracted to him, Corby. It’s your soul recognizing the one that will complete yours. Let me go, so you can live, and I can have peace. I love you, Corbin Price. You were, and always will be my one true love. Now, go get yours.”
He watched as Will kissed his fingers, and touched Corbin’s face in the mirror. It looked like they were standing side by side, staring at each other.
“Goodbye, Will. I love you.”
The image in the mirror began backing up, and Corbin saw him disappearing into a light.
“He’s crossed,” Tori said, sounding incredibly tired. “Will has gone home.”
Elizabeth picked up the phone.
“Thanks, Tori. Go rest. Love you and Jules. Kiss the kids for me. I’ll see you soon. Oracle is calling.”
Tori laughed.
“Tell me about it. Peace out, bestie. Trey, get your ass home,” she said.
Elizabeth’s phone chirped.
“I. DON’T. GET. TO. HAVE. ANY. FUN. SHE. HAS. A. HOUSE. FULL. OF. DEAD. PEOPLE. SO. WHY. CAN’T. I. GO. TO. THE. PARTY?”
Tori sighed.
“Don’t make me call your wife, Trey.”
The phone chirped, but it went dead as the call was disconnected.
That’s when Elizabeth headed his way. She hugged him, and the weight of so much pain and guilt came out in the tears. The whole time, she just held him, patting his back.
“It’s all good, Corbin. That was a gift. You got to see him and say goodbye.”
He held on.
“I didn’t know I was holding him here.”
She soothed him.
“The dead, from what I’ve learned, are different than when they were alive.
They are normally peace and goodness. I’ve talked to my father and my other family.
They change, and that shows us that one day, we’ll be just like them—light and peace.
Will must have really loved you a lot to hang on for all these years. ”
He sniffled and sat on the side of the bed.
“He did.”
Elizabeth sat beside him and patted his leg.
“Then, you are a lucky man. Not only did you have love with a great person, but they literally found you the person you’re meant to be with. You were directed here, and now, you get another chance.”
Corbin thought about Alex.
“He left.”
She was aware.
“He resigned. He quit, so it wouldn’t be uncomfortable for you to keep seeing him. He reminds you of Will?”
He nodded.
“You couldn’t see him in the mirror?” he asked.
She shook her head.
“No. I couldn’t.”
He laughed sardonically.
“He’s a good person like Will. Yeah, he makes questionable choices…,” he said, pointing at himself. “But I know he’s decent.”
She held his hand.
“Ask him about his past, and you might see exactly why he makes those choices. I can’t give you much, since it’s his evaluations and psych profile, but I will say this. No one has ever fought for Alex in his past. No one. If you want to break through, fight.”
He squeezed her hand.
“I’ll go talk to him.”
Elizabeth was to the point.
“You have the chance to find so much happiness, Corbin, but I’m warning you. It won’t be easy with Alex. He’s damaged too. His childhood was bad.”
He stopped her.
“I can get through to him,” he admitted. “I don’t want him to quit. I want him to come back, and I’ll talk to him.”
She clued him in.
“He checked out a while ago. He’s likely on his way back to Damascus. Get to him before he does something stupid, like hops a flight back to DC.”
When she got up, he stopped her.
“You didn’t have to do this.”
She smiled.
“I did. Gene and Ethan love you, and you’re part of our family. Plus, before long, Alice would be showing up, and then, we have a circus.”
It made him laugh.
“Oh, you have no idea,” he joked. “She’s a menace.”
Elizabeth patted his cheek.
“Go work on this. We’ve got the detectives. I’ll make them work,” she said. “If they want to be Feds, they’re going to earn it.”
He was amused.
“Who are you kidding? You’re hiring them even if they’re turnips.”
She snorted.
“Shhhh. Don’t tell my boss. That’s the last thing I need—her up my ass,” She admitted, right before she headed for the door. “Drive safe.”
And with that, she left.
When she was gone, Corbin touched the two wedding bands that were around his neck, on a chain. He imagined it hurt Alex when they were having sex, and all he saw was that.
While he still felt a little guilty about moving on, he was doing it for Will.
He deserved peace.
Pulling on his clothes, he made the mental note to give that peace to Alex next.
God knew he deserved it.
Oh, and he was going to get him to tell him about his past. If they were going to start something, anything, he knew what they needed.
The truth.
All of it.