“Did you ever see anyone famous? Like, historically famous?”
“Of course.”
“Like Shakespeare?”
Wilder chuckles. “Shakespeare was long dead when I was born.”
“Oh. Right.”
“Eventually, I gave in to the lure of television and movies and slowly learned to appreciate them. I think more so because suddenly we were exposed to ideas and art we had never seen before. People and different types of societies that were previously hidden from us. It expanded our world, and it was a bit of a revelation, to be honest.” He nods. “I do think it’s gone too far though. There’s almost too much available, and it’s hard to keep your attention on any one thing now.”
“Yeah, I agree. I think video games are great. They’re how I make my living. But I’ve also wasted countless hours playing a video game.”
Wilder nods. “I’ve heard many complaints about video games in recent years.”
“What do you like to do with your free time?”
“I read and putter around my house, fixing things. I do travel sometimes. I’ve seen almost every corner of this world. I think there’s very few places I haven’t been; even some of the less delightful ones like Antarctica. That was very cold.”
I laugh. “I can’t even imagine.”
“It’s a lot of snow and a lot of ice, but the glaciers are pretty.”
I take another sip of tea, thinking over my next question. “Does your job take you everywhere, or do you just stay in this area?”
“We’re assigned to regions, and mine is the East Coast, so I could end up anywhere on the Eastern Seaboard. But there have been times, if we’re short or we’ve had a lot of Horrors escaping, that they’ve pulled us from our regions and sent us off to other areas. I’ve been to Spain, I’ve been to Italy, and there was one time when I even traveled all the way to Australia for a particularly difficult Horror that they needed a team of us for. But those are rare instances. Most of the time, there’s enough coverage for everybody to stay in their own region. For better or worse, people die every day, so we always have opportunities to find new Soul Chasers.”
I nod, listening to his words like they make any sense to me. I understand what he’s telling me, I just can’t really comprehend it. Everything that happened with Calliope earlier was kind of a mind fuck. Like, I saw the smoke coming out of me, I felt it happening, and she acted like it was just another day. No big deal. Just pulling ghosts out of somebody.
I end up laughing to myself, confusing Wilder. “What’s going on?”
“Sorry. I was just thinking about how crazy all of this is, and how if somebody had told me this would happen a couple of months ago, I would have thought they should be committed, but I’ve seen it with my own eyes, so I know it’s real.”
Wilder nods. “I understand. It took me a while to get used to it, as well.”
“Really?”
“Oh yes. Prior to that happening, I didn’t actually believe in ghosts.”
“Were you a religious man?”
“Not at all. I went to church because it was what proper men in my day did, and if I was to blend in with society and find myself a wife, that’s what I had to do.”
“How awful,” I whisper. “Being forced to marry somebody just so you could blend in with society.”
“It wasn’t that long ago that it was still necessary, at least in the United States.”
“Yeah, I know.” I sip my tea again, glancing around the room. “It’s really quiet now, isn’t it?”
He nods. “This is how my house always is.”
“Until I got here.” I snicker, but Wilder just stares at me.
“I’m glad you’re here, and glad I can help.”
“Me too. Who knows where I’d be if you hadn’t shown up. I don’t think my dad came here to hurt me, but I guess I wouldn’t really know.”
“And as I said before, it’s not really your dad. It might look like your dad and sound like your dad and have your dad’s memories, but it’s a whole different thing. I think that’s important for you to remember, because I’m going to have to banish it.”
