Hellfire On The Other Side

Chapter 24

   Three days since Shane last visited Clara, and his voodoo powers have greatly improved. He sits in his room, eyes closed, focusing his powers, trying to summon the gateway to the Soul Realm. "C'mon, Shane. You're nearly there. It's just within reach." A great positive energy surges through his body. "There! Now, this is where it gets tricky. Focus on one soul. Don't push yourself too hard. Baby steps." A single, solitary soul calls out to him: "Hello? Who's there? Who... who are you?" the soul asks. "I'm a friend. Don't worry. I won't do any harm to you. Do you have any family?" Shane asks the soul. "Uh, yes! A wife and daughter! I died when my little girl was young. I'd give anything to see her again," the soul says. "Oh, that's sad. Well, don't worry. If you reach out to me, I can get you out of the Soul Realm so you can be with your family again," says Shane. "Okay, my wife's name is Charlotte. I took her last name," says the soul. "Wait, Charlotte LeBouff? I know her! She's Charlene's mother!" says Shane. "You know them? That's great! Come and get me, quick! I want to see them again!" says Mr. LeBouff. Shane senses Mr. LeBouff's energy getting stronger and stronger. "I gotcha!" says Shane. "The rest is up to you, Shane. You got this." Shane uses his powers to pull Mr. LeBouff out of the Soul Realm. "Mr. LeBouff? Did it work?" Shane asks.

   Shane opens his eyes to see the soul of Mr. Lebouff right in front of him. "I recognize this room," says Mr. Lebouff. "This is mine and Charlotte's room. I'd have thought that she'd change everything and move on, but she... she actually never forgot about me." He starts to cry. "I need to see her. Is she nearby?" he asks Shane. Shane, still in awe about the incredible feat he had just performed, says, "Just downstairs. Probably eating breakfast." "Great! Wait! Won't she be scared to see me? She'll think I'm a ghost or something!" says Mr. LeBouff. "Don't worry, I'll explain everything. Hopefully, she'll understand," says Shane. "I cannot believe that I actually did it! I actually freed a good soul from the Soul Realm!" Shane and Mr. LeBouff make their way downstairs to find Lottie.

   Charlene and Lottie are sitting at the tale, eating pancakes. "So you're telling me that your best friend, Tina, Tiana's daughter, is also an aspiring chef?" Lottie asks Charlene. "Yeah! And she's really good at it, too!" Charlene takes a bite out of a pancake. Lottie laughs. "How much you wanna bet that she falls in love with a frog enthusiast or something?" she jokes. "Hey, I'm not saying that the chances are high, but if she does, I wouldn't be surprised!" says Charlene. Shane walks over to them and says, "I've got a big surprise for the two of you." Charlene and Lottie look at each other in confusion. "Come on down, buddy!" Shane shouts. Mr. LeBouff slowly makes his way down into the dining room. "Hey, honey. It's been a while," he says with a huge smile on his face. Lottie walks over to Mr. LeBouff and whispers, "Travis? Is that really you?" "Yes, it's me! I thought you'd move on, Charlotte!" says Travis. "Oh, Travis, I could never! When you died, I couldn't bear to be without you! But... how?!" says Lottie. "Mama, I think Shane did it," says Charlene. "Yeah. I've been trying to learn how to free souls from the Soul Realm for months now and I finally figured it out! And it's a good thing that it was you, Mr. LeBouff," says Shane. "Please, son. Call me Travis."

   Shane and Charlene enter Charlene's room and sit on her bed. "Shane! You did it! You freed your first soul!" squeals Charlene. "I'm so proud of you!" She kisses him. "Yeah, Now I just need to learn how to do that with multiple souls at once. And how to tell the good souls from the bad," says Shane. He lays down and takes a deep breath. "One step closer to my goal! I can't believe it! I have to go tell Clara!" "She's busy with something," says Charlene. "Busy? With what?" Shane asks. "Don't worry. She's just handling a few things around the cabin at the moment," Charlene assures. Shane summons his cane, coat, and mask, puts on his coat and puts his mask in his coat pocket. "Where are you going, Shane?" "Heading to tell Tina the good news! I'll see if I can get Tiana's parents next!" says Shane, phasing through the wall. Charlene lays down and sighs. "Shane Facilier, I'm so glad I met you," she says.