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Goliath wasn't an expert at reading human faces, even after having spent so much of his life in their company. Nevertheless, as Elisa joined him on what had become "their" parapet, he could see the downcast look on her face.
"What troubles you?" he asked her, earning a glimmer of a smile before the shadow returned.
"Hi," she said. "Tough night at work."
He nodded in understanding. Elisa had become a police officer in order to help others and protect the citizens of this city. Her job led her into dark places where she often met the worst of what humans did to one another. Her experiences had yet to make her hard and uncaring, but because she did care, the bad days wore her down. Goliath could not ease this burden from her, but he could stand with her, and he could let her rest.
"Come downstairs. Broadway is making an amazing meal tonight." He held out his arm to her, as elegantly as he'd seen on the television. With a faded smile, Elisa took his elbow and let him lead her down to the dining room. As they ate, Goliath spoke gently to her, encouraging her to open up without pressing her to do so.
"There was this case. It happened right before you guys woke up. We got a call about a gas line explosion, and when we reached the scene, it was pretty grim. A man, a dad, had been drinking too much, and he somehow set off the gas in his stove. It took out half his house, and killed his six year old son."
Her breath was heavy as she spoke. Goliath placed his hand on her arm, feeling the grief with her over this hatchling he'd never met. "He had a little girl, Alita. She was seven. Her mom had died a year before from cancer, she lost her brother, and she had to watch her daddy go to jail for manslaughter. She's been in and out of foster homes since then. I ran into her today during another case."
Elisa picked up a piece of bread, and broke it into crumbs. "She remembered me. So much has gone on in my life since then, I'd almost forgotten about her. I think we all forgot about her."
The rest of the clan had stopped their own conversations, and were unabashed as they listened in. Hudson offered an understanding nod. "Old battles. Some you carry with you, but you have to let some of them go, lass."
Elisa shook her head. "I think I let this one go too soon. This little girl is losing her mind. She told me her brother talks to her every night, that he wants her to find a way to get her daddy out of prison so they can be a family again. I can't even promise her she'll be safe in her foster home."
"You could visit her," Angela suggested. "You can't give her that family back, but you could help her fit into her new one." She glanced at Goliath, a glance he didn't know how to interpret. She'd made her home here with him, ever hopeful of reuniting with her mother. He wondered how often she regretted that choice and wished to be with her other family back on Avalon.
Broadway asked, "What did she mean, her brother speaks to her?"
"Yeah," said Brooklyn. "The last thing we need around here is more ghosts." Lex looked around himself in concern.
"I don't think it's a real ghost," Elisa said with a reassuring laugh.
Goliath said, "Don't be too quick to dismiss the notion. You and I have met more than one restless spirit in our travels together."
"True, but I think she's just sad and lonely. I will visit her, though," she said. "It's the least I can do."
It took Elisa another week to find time in her schedule, and two more days to convince Alita's foster parents that she just wanted to visit and wasn't snooping around.
"Fine," said Mrs. Morelli at last. "You can stay in the kitchen." As an afterthought, she offered Elisa a soda, which Elisa declined.
"Hi," she said, when Alita came into the room, climbing into the chair opposite.
"Hi." She was even thinner than Elisa remembered, her dark eyes deeper-set.
"I just wanted to check in on you. How's school?" School was usually a safe topic. Elisa loved kids, she really did, but she wasn't always sure what to say to them. Even Beth had been a mystery to her at times, with their gap in ages. Games? Television? What did kids talk about?
"Fine."
"Good." Having now exhausted all her topics, Elisa looked around the room. "This is cozy. Does your foster mom make good food?"
Alita shrugged. "She tried to make papas con huevos for me. It burned in the pan."
"My dad cooks great papas con huevos. Maybe you can meet him sometime."
"My dad made the best food," Alita said. She tilted her head, then laughed.
"What?"
"Hector says he always burned his huevos, too."
Elisa sat back in her seat. The kitchen was colder than she remembered. "Are you talking to Hector right now?"
Alita nodded. "He remembers you, too."
"I didn't get to meet your brother, sweetie. I'm sorry."
Alita made another motion as though she was listening. "No, he says he remembers you from after. You came to our house and you were looking around. He thought you were very pretty." Alita giggled.
What to say to that? Alita was either having a breakdown due to stress, or else she'd turned her dead brother into her imaginary friend.
"Hector says he wants you to find Daddy and bring him home."
"I know where your daddy is. Would you like to come visit him?"
"Mrs. Morelli says I'm not allowed."
Before Elisa could say more, a cleared throat at the doorway informed her that her time was finished. "I'll see you again soon, okay?"
"Okay."
As Elisa went to walk out of the room, escorted by Mrs. Morelli, she stepped through a patch of cold so deep, her breath froze. In the quietest place behind her own ear, she heard a little voice say, "Help."
"What if it's real?" Elisa asked him as soon as he'd finished his stretch, and then she had to explain what she meant. He listened to her in detail, recalling their encounters with Hakon and the Captain of the Guard.
"Then the poor child is being haunted, and we should help her."
"Help her how? I don't think the ghost is hurting her. She seems comforted by his presence."
"The Captain of the Guard needed to atone for his crime before his spirit could rest. Perhaps the boy also needs help in finding peace." He unfurled his wings. "Let us ask him together."
"Not sure if you're going to be all that helpful, big guy. Alita might be afraid of you."
"Then I will stay in shadow."
Elisa still looked unconvinced, but said, "Let's go."
Hector was telling her stories again in the dark, where the other kids couldn't hear. He didn't know a lot of stories, but he visited Daddy, and told Alita about the small cell he shared with three other men. He told her what Mr. and Mrs. Morelli talked about together when the children weren't around, and what her foster brothers and sisters said about her when she wasn't in the room. But mostly, he told her the same fairy tales they both knew, and the plots from their favorite cartoons.
"Alita?"
Outside her window on the fire escape, Detective Maza waved. Alita waved back, confused.
Hector said, "Go talk to her. And take the music box."
"Okay."
Elisa helped the little girl step outside. The night was warm enough for bare feet, almost. Goliath stayed in the shadows. "Alita, I wanted you and Hector to meet my friend Goliath. He has some questions for both of you." She couldn't help but stumble over the words. She wasn't sure she believed Hector even existed. She'd looked through the records before going to the castle, and Hector's little body had never been found in the wreckage of the house. She had a terrible hunch that, if he really was a ghost, their task would be to find his remains and lay them to rest.
"Hi."
"Hello," Goliath said in his deep voice. "You say you can hear your brother? What does he tell you?"
Alita looked shy for a moment, but she had the same expression as she had earlier, and Elisa could practically see the angelic outline poking her, and telling her to talk. "He tells me what people say about me when I'm not there. Mr. and Mrs. Morelli think I need more therapy. Ashley and Laura think I'm crazy."
"I don't believe you're crazy," Goliath said.
Lying a little, Elisa added, "Neither do I."
"He also said I should show you this." She held up an old silver box. "It was Mama's music box."
Goliath reached out, and Alita saw his claws. She gasped and stepped back.
"It's okay," said Elisa. "He's a friend. I swear."
Trembling, the little girl handed the music box to him. Goliath traced the patterns in the silverwork. "Elisa, I believe there is magic here."
In the place behind her ear, Elisa heard a little boy laugh in delight.
The silver box looked very small in the large room, but not as small as Alita did surrounded by the clan of gargoyles. This, Elisa thought, was probably a terrible idea. Kidnapping a child from her bedroom at night because a ghost said they should would not convince any judge she'd ever met.
But she knew it was the right thing to do.
"What do you think?" Goliath asked Angela. She was the closest thing they had to a magic user within the clan itself. They couldn't ask Demona, and Elisa wanted to wait before seeking help from the other residents of the castle. She didn't know what their price would be.
Angela inspected the music box, swishing her tail unhappily. Alita's wide eyes kept watch, back and forth, as the tail twitched. More than once, she'd reached out a small hand as if to stroke someone's wing, then pulled back hurriedly. Elisa knew exactly how she felt.
"I don't know," Angela said, hating to admit it. "I don't know enough about magic to say what this is or what it does."
Elisa sighed. "Lex, can you arrange to babysit for a while?"
Lexington nodded, and loped off in the direction of Alexander's nursery.
Alita looked around her, now looking past the gargoyles to the stones of the castle itself. "Hm," she said, mostly to herself.
"What?" Elisa asked.
"Hector says there are a lot of ghosts here."
Elisa shivered. The clan began shuffling closer, also looking at the walls. She caught Goliath's eye. He carried his losses with him like a second pair of wings, cloaking his heart. She took his hand.
He said, "We have learned to live with our ghosts."
"Hector says they aren't angry ghosts. They're happy to see you. They're happy you're home."
Goliath went speechless. Angela and the boys drew closer together, looking around themselves. Hudson said, "So are we."
When Lex returned with the baby, Brooklyn went to the doorway to keep lookout. That was two kids technically removed from their caregivers' sight tonight. Elisa hoped this would be worth it.
"Go ahead, Alex," Lex coaxed him.
Alexander reached out two chubby hands to the silver music box, which Alita wound up for him. He giggled and wiggled at the tune, a light melody Elisa couldn't place. Then he clapped three times in delight.
Later, Elisa would think back and try to remember exactly what she'd seen. She had the impression of the world twirling, as though a large hand grasped the fabric of reality and twisted stones, humans, and gargoyles all into a bind, and let go. At the instant of snapping back, where there had stood a little girl and a gargoyle holding a baby, there remained the girl, the gargoyle, the baby, and a little boy.
Alita threw her arms around Hector's neck. For a moment, Elisa thought she would go right through him, but he was solid, as solid as stone, and he hugged his sister right back.
Elisa's face was set when she climbed the stairs to their parapet. "It's not a perfect fix," she said, looking out at the city. "Matt came up with a reason Hector was missing for so long, but the kids are facing a lot of questions. Their father will be released tomorrow, though. The authorities can't hold him on a manslaughter charge when the victim is clearly still alive."
"That at least is good news."
"Yeah." She still looked pensive. "Goliath?"
"Yes?"
"He was right. You're surrounded by ghosts here. Your friends, your clan. Everyone you knew and loved, they died here. How can you face that every night?"
Goliath cloaked his wings, and brushed away a strand of Elisa's hair. Truly, the lock of hair had not been out of place, but he loved any opportunity to stroke her face. She was kind, and she was brave, and she cared about everyone she'd ever met, and he loved her more than he could say.
"By knowing not all those I care for are lost. Wherever those I love are, there I am home."
The End