Abandoned In Wasteland, He Rode To Me

Chapter 6

My heart started racing, as if stirred by the steppe wind. I asked the driver about the word Kael had used when he left.

"De-mo," he said. "It means 'see you.'"

See you...

Would we meet again? If we did, I would make sure to thank him properly.

"Celeste," Damian said, his voice flat. "That guy doesn't look like a good person. Don't waste your thoughts on him."

I frowned, unwilling to argue, and closed my eyes. In my daze, a hand pulled me closer, letting me rest on a shoulder.

When I woke up, it was dawn, and we were no longer in the Dead Zone but had reached the county. My heart tightened as I headed straight for the Sheriff's Office.

In the morgue, I saw my father. He lay peacefully on the slab, his skin frozen and discolored.

"Dad..." my voice trembled. Usually, if he saw me with red eyes, he'd come over, hug me, and say, "What's wrong, my baby? Whatever you want, Dad will earn it for you."

But now, he just lay there, motionless. It was only then that the realization truly hit me: the father who had always pampered me and shielded me from the wind and rain was gone forever.

A sharp, gut-wrenching pain washed over me. I choked back a sob, reaching out to hold him one last time. Damian stopped me. He pulled my shoulders in, patting my back to soothe me. "I'll take care of you on your father's behalf from now on. I will be by your side forever."

The police officer handed over my father's backpack and a letter. "These are the personal effects of the deceased, including a farewell letter."

Damian took the bag. I opened the letter with trembling hands. The handwriting was my father's familiar, flowing handwriting. My dear girl Celeste...

Tears pricked at my eyes and spilled down my cheeks.

I'm sorry, Dad can't be with you anymore. Take care of yourself and Damian. I'm entrusting you to him, so I can rest easy in heaven...

Celeste, my biggest regret is not finishing this documentary... If possible, I want you to use a sky burial so I can remain on this land forever...

I clutched the letter to my chest, my heart aching. I looked up through my tears and asked, "What is a sky burial?"

The officer explained, "A sky burial is where the remains are fed to vultures."

Damian wrinkled his nose in disgust. "That's disgusting! How could your father choose such a way to be buried?"

This was my father's dying wish. I couldn't stand hearing him talk like that. I frowned immediately. "These are the local beliefs and customs here. Even if you don't accept it, don't talk like that."

Damian tried to smooth things over. "I didn't mean that. It's just... it's too much trouble. How would we even arrange it? Why not just cremate him here and take the ashes back?"

No way to arrange it? That sounded cold. The Hawthorne family had absolute power in Imperia. Growing up, I'd never heard him say there was anything they couldn't get done. It was just a matter of whether they wanted to.

I pressed my lips together and refused. "This was my father's dying wish. I'm going to fulfill it."

Hearing that, the officer kindly gave me an address. "There is the monastery here with a sky burial master; you can have a sky burial performed there."

With a goal in mind, my anxiety dissipated. I chartered a car with Damian and set off with my father's remains. After driving over a mountain pass at an altitude of over sixteen thousand feet, we finally reached the monastery, oxygen tanks in hand.

The moment I stepped inside, I looked up and saw a tall figure in a tribal robe on the hillside behind the monastery, entering a pagoda surrounded by monks.

Looking at him, a familiar feeling welled up inside me.

Could it be him?

A young guide came out to take us to the sky burial hall. "Please, follow me..."

I heard myself ask, "Is that pagoda open to visitors?"

The guide took one look and shook his head. "No. Only high-ranking monks can enter."

I nodded. It probably wasn't Kael.

He opened the door to the sky burial hall. It wasn't large, and an entire wall was lined with skulls. Both Damian and I were stunned.

The guide explained gently, "These are the skulls of the deceased. Some families choose to take them, others leave them behind."

He detailed the origins, the process, and the symbolism of the sky burial.

Finally, he added, "There is a waiting list to perform a sky burial here. The soonest is in a week."

Damian grew anxious. "We don't have time to wait a week. Can you do it tomorrow? We'll pay whatever it costs."

The guide's expression stiffened. He kept a forced smile. "I'm afraid not. Other families are waiting, too."

Damian frowned impatiently. "Is there any other monastery that can do this?"

"There are very few active sky burial halls and sites left," the guide replied. "There aren't any within hundreds of miles."

Damian tightened his lips and pressed his frustration. "Celeste, let's just do it my way. Tomorrow, we'll cremate your father, and then we can head straight back."

I had found his behavior strange for a while now. "Why are you in such a rush? What can't wait?!"

"How can I not be in a rush? Vivienne is waiting for me in the city, alone in a place she doesn't know. What if something happens to her?"

Damian shot back, looking at me with reproach. "I came all the way here to accompany you, leaving her all alone. Do you really feel no guilt about that?"

My heart stung, and my tongue felt bitter. "You can just call her and tell her to buy a plane ticket back to Imperia right now. She's not a child; can't she fly alone?"

Damian retorted, "Then why can't you manage alone? Why are you giving me such a hard time?"

I was rendered speechless, my breath catching in my throat.

Damian seemed to realize he'd gone too far and turned away, impatiently going outside to make a call.

He had made a compromise, but a chill settled over me.

Soon, his voice, thick with helplessness, drifted through the door.

"What does it have to do with love? Her parents are dead. Even if I marry her, I can still provide you with a home..."