by Luke Loaghan
“Just keep following me; I know the way out,” I said. There was no answer. I ran out the front entrance, and knew not to go too fast. I had to move at a speed at which Delancey could follow. I raced past the guard, toward the ferry. I did not hear footsteps or chains behind me, but I could not look back.
No one else was leaving Ellis Island. I boarded facing forward, hoping that Delancey was still behind me. Then I heard a noise on the deck of the ferry. Her chains were audibly dragging with her movements. The ferry slowly cut through the choppy waters. I called out, “Delancey, are you still with me,” but there was no answer.
The choppy waters muffled all sound on the ferry. I felt so cold from the winds. Minutes later, the ferry pulled into South Street. Stepping off the boat, I said, “Delancey, we have to head to Brooklyn. Just keep following me.” There was still no answer, no reply, and no sound. I jogged slowly. In the moonlight, there were two shadows, and one was definitely mine. I felt confident that she was still behind me.
I started to imagine how great it would be to have her back in my life, and how we were going to spend the rest our lives together. Our future would be so wonderful. I imagined a new level of happiness for me, happiness for the rest of my life.
When I was heading north on Broadway, I could no longer hear anything behind me. Only one moon remained in the sky.
“We’re almost there, Delancey,” I cried out. We were running out of time. My heart raced with nervous anticipation. Quickly, we ran up the Canyon of Heroes, toward City Hall.
The first ticker tape parade in New York was for the dedication of the Statue of Liberty. A long list of history’s most noteworthy names have been celebrated in the Canyon of Heroes. The end of World War Two saw a great celebration here, as did the astronauts returning from the moon in 1969. I didn’t need a parade; I only needed Delancey.
Someone approached me, looking like Sam, only taller, and slightly older.
“She’s not behind you,” Sam said. “You’re wasting your time.”
This was not Sam, just the avatar of my self doubt in his image. I continued north on Broadway, and the same apparition popped out of a corner. Once again he shouted at me. “Look behind you, she’s not there.” I kept moving but his statement echoed in my head.
I stayed on course, moving closer to City Hall. The Brooklyn Bridge was near City Hall. I was growing less confident that Delancey was still behind me. It was dark, and in the night sky, the single moon was now more than half way gone. I hurried past Reade Street, and shouted out to Delancey, “Keep up with me, we are almost there.” Still, there was no answer.
On the corner of Reade Street, Sam’s apparition stood on the corner shaking his head “no.” I kept running. I could not turn back to make sure she was there. I just had to trust Delancey, and I had to trust the God of Death to keep up his end of the bargain. The streets were deserted, and the dim light made it too difficult to read the street names. I was getting overly anxious. Was she behind me or wasn’t she? I called out her name, but still no answer.
I ran a little faster, getting confused. Self doubt was creeping in. How I could trust the Ruler of the Underworld? What had I been thinking?
Sam popped out from another corner. “Only a fool would trust him; he has cheated you before and he’s doing it now.” I kept going, trying to ignore Sam.
The Canyon of Heroes was desolate. Dark buildings were covered in soot and decay along the route. Ironically, the pathway chosen to honor heroes in American history was for me a hurdle to the Brooklyn Bridge. I was growing weak and more confused. It was lonely, daunting, and seemed haunted.
The demonic beings and shadowy figures were visible again. I tried not to look at their faces. Snakes were all over the streets.
Finally, I was at the United States Courthouse, across the street from City Hall. Another figure was standing there. The person was medium height, with long hair. He resembled Mr. DeJesus.
“Are you sure you want to do this?” he asked.
“What are you doing here?” I asked Mr. DeJesus.
“I am here to help you make a rational decision. You have talent that less than one percent of all the people on this planet have. It is a gift given to you and not yours to give away. Yet you are willing to part with it. Pursue your destiny and fulfill your potential by becoming a great musician. Anything else would be a slap in the face of your father. You are not giving up anything for love here. You are giving it away because of guilt and regret.” Mr. DeJesus stood still with a heiligenschein softly illuminating his face.
“I love her with all my heart. She is my world; she is my life. I’ve lost so much already. I can’t lose her too.” Distraught with confusion, I was no longer sure that I was doing the right thing.
“David Orpheus, you have an entire future, a bright one. You will be no better than those who take their own life; for if you trade your God-given talent for ephemeral happiness, you will have traded your life away.”
“I’m trading it for a lifetime with Delancey. Is she still behind me?” I asked.
“One lifetime is ephemeral. If you had faith you would know if she was behind you.” Mr. DeJesus’s apparition evaporated; his words were resonating deep within my core as I continued.
I entered the Brooklyn Bridge walking along on the pedestrian walkway. Less than a quarter of the moon remained. It was nearly daybreak, and the dark night sky had started turning into a brilliant blue. “Delancey, we are almost there.”
The bridge was long and it started getting cold and windy. Wilson, the jumper was still in the same spot where I had left him. “Why are you still here?” I asked him.
“It’s a suspension bridge, so time stands still while you are on it. Just ask the people that sit in traffic on this bridge in the morning,” Wilson joked.
“Wilson, is there a girl following behind me?” I asked.
“Don’t ask me that question,” Wilson shouted angrily, and jumped off the bridge once more.
I ran faster, heeding Wilson’s words about time standing still. I could see Tillary Street. I was so close, just a few more blocks, and I would be back to where my body was, back to where I could leave the astral plane. I ran faster and faster; the moon was fading. I was so close to the end.
“Delancey,” I called out, “just a few more minutes, we can make it.” There was no answer. Sam was waiting on the corner. Everything he said increased my self doubts.
“She’s not behind you. They lied to you. Don’t believe them. Don’t bring back something with you that isn’t Delancey,” he said.
I started to panic. Was she behind me or wasn’t she? Was I being tricked into giving up my music career? Would Death keep Delancey anyway? I didn’t know what to do. So confused, so full of doubts, I felt betrayed. I could see Delfina.
“Delfina, is Delancey behind me?” I asked.
No answer.
“Delfina, please just answer,” I pleaded. Her mouth was sewn shut; her eyes were without pupils.
The moon was no longer visible, but the sun had not risen as of yet. I was almost out of time. Delfina pointed to Stanton. I had to get back to my body. I climbed through the window and headed to the basement. Quickly, I meandered through the hallways, through the boiler room, and toward the electrical room.
I had to be sure Delancey was still behind me. I only had one shot at this. I shouted out her name, again and again. There was no sound behind me. There was still no answer.
I could see my body several yards away. Sal was next to the Leviathon machine; I was back. The Leviathon was powering up, and the magnetic pull was too strong to resist. Sal yelled out that I had to return.
“Delancey, I am going to reach back; just grab my hand if you are there,” I pleaded. I reached out, and reached out further, trying to touch her hand. It was then that something reached back toward me.
I felt a cold, bony hand, like that of a skeleton. It grabbed my hand sharply, and I pulled back, frightened. I involuntarily glanced back. I saw D
elancey, falling backwards, reaching out to grab my hand. A single breath escaped her angelic lips. Behind her, was the God of Death, smiling, pulling her toward him, into the eternal abyss.
“David!” she screamed.
“Delancey!” But it was too late. She was gone. I had already started to re-enter the material world.
I was in my body just seconds later.
Sal was sitting next to me. I felt weak, exhausted, like I had traveled for miles. I told Sal what had happened.
“I need to go back,” I said.
“There is no going back. You were gone too long,” Sal said.
It was daybreak. The sun had risen. It was over. She was gone forever. I had lost her twice, and once again we were worlds apart.
The End
Table of Contents
eBook Cover
Title Page
Preface
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Chapter 17
Chapter 18
Chapter 19
Chapter 20
Chapter 21
Chapter 22
Chapter 23