Helios Renewed

by Tawa M. Witko

  “We went to Hart Island yesterday. Oh my god, Callie that place was creepy. You would have loved it!” Madison shuddered remembering.

  “I’ve heard of that place. It’s where...” she stopped and turned to Andrew. “Oh God! Andrew, I’m sorry. Is that where your friend was buried?”

  “Yeah, it was.”

  “And you saw a ghost there?” Jayden asked.

  “Look, man, this is embarrassing, but yeah, I saw my friend there.”

  “Oh Andrew. That’s so wonderful. It means you were having strong emotions and that pulled him to you. You’re so lucky he made contact.”

  Madison and Andrew glanced at each other and then broke out into laughter. Callie was always going on about the supernatural. Of course, in this instance, she was probably right, but it was still humorous and certainly felt good to laugh about.

  “Oh, quit laughing at me,” Callie said in a huff.

  “We’re sorry,” Madison wiped under her eyes. “Don’t be mad, Callie.”

  Callie waved her hand at her friends but couldn’t hold the anger for very long. They all laughed and talked about the day’s activities. Jayden reiterated that his father expected a verdict today while Callie indicated that she was going to meet with her old boss at Sephora to see if she could go back to work part-time. Madison noticed that Jayden didn’t look thrilled with that idea but he didn’t say anything. After they hung up, both Andrew and Madison felt a sense of calm, a direct byproduct of maintaining their connection to their friends.

  “You ready?” Andrew asked as he slipped his leather coat over his hoodie.

  She nodded, reaching for her leather jacket. The weather was said to be 15 degrees. It was much colder than Madison or Andrew had accommodated for. Their layers of clothing were helping but the iciness of the city chilled them to the bone. They headed out of their room and passed the doorman, giving him a small nod. Once outside, Andrew withdrew a cigarette and lit it before taking Madison’s hand in his. He turned them left as they walked down 46th street towards Broadway. They had both decided that they were no longer taking a cab anywhere, it was way too expensive, and that they would walk or jump on the MTA. In this situation, they were walking as the museum was less than a mile away.

  Andrew exhaled. The smoke and his breath combined into one spiraled cloud that drifted out of sight. They turned at 6th Street, continuing their leisurely pace along the boulevard. Eight more blocks, Andrew calculated in his head, his eyes surveying the surroundings. He made note of alleys and places people could hide. Why? He wasn’t entirely sure. He simply had a feeling that he should be on alert. They passed business men and women, tourists with their cameras at the ready, locals begging for a few dollars, and a woman and child sleeping in the alley, huddled together for warmth. He had to admit that seeing families on the street always got to him. That kind of life was no longer his reality but he remembered vividly when it was.

  “Every time I see a family, my heart hurts,” Madison said, breaking him from his thoughts. “I always see you as a little boy.”

  Andrew didn’t say anything as he pulled her out of the line of pedestrian traffic. “That was me, Madison, but... I can’t dwell there anymore. I can’t change any of that,” he said passionately before looking down. “I don’t want to think about that stuff anymore.”

  “I understand,” she said, her lips finding his.

  “Come on. We’re almost there.”

  He took her hand again and led her down the crowded street until they reached 53rd and made another right. They could see the large building on their left and headed towards the entrance. The Museum of Modern Art, also known as MoMA, was a huge six story building that spanned one city block. MoMA, often identified as the most influential museum of modern art in the world, was a sight to behold. Its archives held countless books, artists’ books, periodicals, as well as individual files on over 70,000 artists. The museum’s collection offered visitors an overview of modern and contemporary art that included works of architecture, drawings, paintings, sculptures, photography, prints, illustrated books, film and other electronic media. It was something that everyone should experience at least once in their life. They stepped through the lobby, both admiring everything around them.

  “Andrew,” Madison couldn’t contain her smile.

  “I know,” he said as his eyes scanned, taking it all in.

  They paid the nominal fee and looked over the brochure. They were under no time constraints as they only needed to be back at the hotel in the evening for their nightly phone call with Mr. Bennett. They had done well at avoiding interaction with everyone. Nolan had tried to make contact early on but they had done what Elias told them and let it go to voicemail. Elias must have contacted him because Nolan didn’t try again. Both Andrew and Madison were delighted at the prospect of Elias arriving tomorrow as they would be meeting sometime that evening to go over everything that he had found out to date.

  “Let’s start from the top and work our way down,” Madison suggested.

  “Sounds like a plan.”

  Andrew spotted the elevators and led them in that direction. As they waited, he continued to scan the environment, a feeling of unease was trying to break through but he didn’t want to give it voice. As he observed the people lingering about, nothing or no one appeared out of the ordinary. The crowd of onlookers were merely tourists along with a couple of school groups. Security guards roamed around casually, keeping a watchful eye on museum guests. Andrew pulled Madison toward the back of the elevator as its doors opened for them. They waited and watched as the doors opened for each floor, leaving only a few people behind for the 6th floor.

  The 6th floor of the museum was a wide-open area that housed special exhibits. The exhibit featured today was full of examples of artists trying to capture dancers’ moving bodies in drawings, paintings and sculpture, as well as documenting them on film. Madison and Andrew went through and discussed the various items. Some of which caught Andrew’s eye.

  “That was kind of cool how some of them looked like they were floating on air,” Madison said as they walked back to the elevators.

  “In the brochure, it said that 'a line is the trace of a point in motion so a human figure moving through space can be seen as a drawing in air.' The drawings become sort of three-dimensional when we look at them." Andrew tapped the button and saw she was watching him. “What?”

  “I love you.”

  He smiled. “So I wowed you with my ability to read the brochure,” he said with a chuckle as he led them into the elevators.

  “Nah, I love you 'cause you’re handsome and good in the sack.” He arched his brow slightly and she leaned on her tip-toes to kiss him. “One of the many things I love about you is that, in spite of never finishing school or going to college, you are always open to learning. You are so smart, Helios.”

  He smiled as the elevator stopped at the fifth floor. He was feeling confident. Assured. The uneasiness he felt earlier was starting to dissipate. They exited the elevators and strolled hand in hand towards the exhibit hall. Both of their eyes were drawn to a huge sculpture in the center of the room. Andrew quickly pulled out his brochure, and flipped to the page on Painting and Sculptures, I. This exhibit housed paintings and sculptures from artists from the 1880's to the 1940's.

  “It’s called, Broken Obelisk by Barnett Newman. He did it in 1967,” Andrew advised.

  “That’s pretty awesome,” Madison concurred as they circled it.

  “It says that it’s Cor-Ten Steele and supposed to represent some kind of symbol of unrest,” Andrew said with a shrug.

  “Huh, I suppose most art during that time was about the craziness going on in the country. The 60’s were an interesting era,” Madison said and then stopped, bringing her hand to her mouth.

  Madison started walking towards a large three panel display that had cushioned benches before it. Andrew once again referred to his guide book and saw that the display Madison was so fascinated with was called,
Reflections of Clouds on the Water-Lily Pond by Claude Monet. Andrew sat down next to Madison, wrapping his arm around her shoulder. Without thinking, she leaned into him. She was quiet for a very long time. Long enough that Andrew felt maybe he should say something.

  “It’s very beautiful,” he said of the Impressionists masterpiece.

  “It is. I’ve always loved Monet,” she smiled up at him. “When I was little, I used to think how cool it would be to live in one of his pictures.” She turned back to the painting. “I loved his use of color and the way it all blended together. His work always reminded me of a dream.”

  Andrew kissed her temple as they sat peacefully. He glanced at the picture, absorbing it in. He didn’t know any artists, which was regrettable considering how much he loved to draw. No one had ever told him how to draw, he was simply able to do it. As he sat looking at the beautifully diffused colors before him, he felt saddened that he knew nothing about the history and symbolism of art. He decided then and there that he would learn. He took out his brochure and then his phone. Opening up a new text message, he typed the name Claude Monet in the body of the text. He would keep track of the painters he or Madison liked and read more about them later.

  “Whatcha doing, Helios?”

  “I want to look up some of these painters when we get home.”

  “Nice,” Madison said, rising to her feet. “Should we check out the rest of the exhibit?”

  He nodded and slipped his phone in his pocket.

  “Do you think they would have some books about the different artists in the store here?” he asked as they walked to the first painting.

  “I bet they would.”

  They both cocked their heads to the side slightly as they took in the painting called, Woman with Pears. After careful study, they decided that they liked Picasso, although, they couldn’t always understand what the painting was supposed to represent. As they perused the exhibit, they decided that they also liked several of the popular artists such as Van Gogh and Cezanne, Kahlo and Matisse. Madison had not remembered many of these paintings and Andrew had been fascinated with everything. He was going to be very busy looking up all these artists. As they discussed each piece, she found that Andrew was very good at getting inside the artists mind. He often found things in the pictures that Madison couldn’t. It filled her with pride.

  They had been standing before a painting called, The Persistence of Memory by Salvador Dali, for quite some time. It was an unusual piece that Madison wasn’t entirely sure she understood. Of course, that was not something new. It had become abundantly clear that Madison would fail art history should she have to take it. Generally speaking, she liked many of the paintings, mostly for the colors used or the feelings it evoked, even though she wasn’t sure what they meant. She supposed that was the purpose of great art.

  Madison and Andrew continued to stare at the picture on the wall. In it, several clocks were drooped lifelessly over many objects, a cliffside stood in the back while in the center laid a mass of something. The prominent mass was what stumped her the most as she couldn’t make out any context to it.

  “I get the clocks. You know time is relative and all, but this piece,” she motioned around the area in the center of the painting. “What the hell is it?”

  Andrew concentrated on that piece. “I think this might be the artist.”

  “WHAT! No way,” Madison leaned in closer.

  “I think maybe it’s the perception of the artist. Look here,” Andrew said as he motioned towards a part of the mass. “These are eyelashes. That makes me think that it’s supposed to represent a person. Maybe it’s like how when we dream we don’t see things clearly. Some items are distinct while others are blurry and without form. That’s what this reminds me of, a weird dream.”

  Madison squinted and then smiled at him. “I think you’re right. So, then, the clock is sort of maybe his life passing by or something.”

  “Maybe.”

  “Put that painting on your list, Helios. We need to look it up.”

  He pulled out his phone and typed in not just Dali’s name but also the name of the painting so that he could look up the specific meaning for it. “You ready for Painting and Sculpture, II?”

  “Yep. That’s the current section, isn’t it?”

  “Yes, it says 1940’s to the 1980’s.”

  “Cool. Maybe I’ll do better at the interpretation stuff on the modern pieces cause I sucked in this section.”

  He laughed. “I don’t know if any of my interpretations were right either.”

  “Oh, baby, you are better skilled at this than I am.” The doors of the elevators closed and she smiled at him. “You are so good at this stuff.”

  His smile could have lit the darkest of places. He was feeling happy about how things were turning out today. He had initially thought that he would be intimidated seeing so many distinguished paintings, but so far that wasn’t the case. In fact, it was the opposite. He felt confident in his own abilities and suddenly it didn’t seem so far-fetched to consider submitting one of his own paintings to a gallery.

  Madison and Andrew explored the rest of the museum over the next several hours. The modern paintings and sculptures were also fascinating. But what Andrew really enjoyed were the drawings by Jayden Johns. He was an American artist who took everyday symbols and made them into something more. They had spent a great deal of time on the third floor examining his paintings, drawings, and prints. When they were done with the main exhibits, they decided that they were going to watch one of the museums classic movies before they headed back to the hotel, but the show wasn’t for another hour. In the meantime, they chose to check out the sculpture garden on the first floor.

  “Those are cool,” Madison said in a half laugh.

  “They are,” Andrew agreed with a grin.

  They took several pictures of the statues of various colors that greeted them at the entrance of the garden.

  “Do you want another drink?” Andrew asked.

  “Yeah, that’d be great. I’ll just sit over there,” she said, motioning toward a nearby bench.

  He looked around before nodding. Madison smiled as she sat on the bench and stretched her arms, touching her feet. They had been at the museum for over three hours, walking or standing the entire time. They had stopped for a quick lunch in the café before they had ventured to the Jayden Johns exhibit. It was a good thing too or Madison would have never withstood the length of time they had stayed in there. She felt the bench move slightly and smiled.

  “That didn’t take long,” she said, looking up. She immediately frowned and sat upright.

  “Well, I had to wait until your criminal left you alone. Are you really engaged to that ...” Kurtis paused as his face twisted in anger. “...rapist.”

  “He was cleared of that charge. He’s not a rapist, and yes, we are engaged.”

  She started to rise and he placed his hand on her shoulder, pushing her down. “Why on earth would you lower your standards like that?”

  “Get the hell away from me, Kurtis.”

  “We were so good together, Madison. Don’t you remember?” he said as his fingers grazed her cheek.

  Madison narrowed her eyes before slapping him. “Don’t. Touch. Me!”

  He grabbed her arms, smiling. “So feisty.”

  “Get your hands off her,” Andrew growled out as he tossed Kurtis away from Madison.

  Kurtis landed on the ground by the bench. He glanced up at Andrew, the rage inside him coming to the surface. He rose to his feet, brushing off his coat and slacks. He stared at Andrew, indifferent, not fazed by the look of hostility on his face.

  “This doesn’t concern you,” Kurtis stated coolly.

  “The hell it doesn’t.” Andrew stepped closer to him. “Everything that relates to Madison concerns me. Now, stay the hell away from us before I’m forced to hurt you.”

  “I’ll call the police,” Kurtis countered angrily, but there was an element of fear there as we
ll.

  “Go ahead. I’m a free man,” Andrew replied with a sly smirk on his face. “Besides, I’m sure they’d be very interested in knowing that you stalked us here.”

  Kurtis glanced passed Andrew and could see the security guard approaching. He smiled. “I’ll take that under consideration, convict.”

  Before Andrew could respond, he heard someone behind him.

  “Gentlemen. Is there a problem?”

  “No. I was just leaving,” Kurtis answered calmly. He turned to Madison, who was now standing. “We need to talk,” his eyes shifted to Andrew briefly and then back to her. “Alone.”

  “I have nothing to say to you or Nolan without the presence of Andrew and my attorney,” Madison stated, crossing her arms.

  Andrew had enough. He stepped in front of Madison, blocking Kurtis’s line of sight to her. Kurtis smiled and walked past the security guard. The guard turned and followed Kurtis, ensuring that he left the premises. Andrew didn’t move until he actually saw Kurtis step out of the sculpture garden. His body was tense and on alert.

  “I shouldn’t have left you alone,” he gritted out angrily.

  “Andrew, there was absolutely no way you could have known that Kurtis would be here.”

  He turned and faced her. “I had an uneasy feeling on the way over. I didn’t see him though and,” he shook his head, looking away from her. “I got too comfortable.”

  Madison slung her arms around his waist and rested her head against his chest. “I love you so much. Let’s not let that jerk ruin our fantastic day.”

  He sighed into her hair and nodded. He only hoped that he could get back the good feeling he had before he had walked back to Madison and seen her slap Kurtis. He couldn’t believe he was here, that he had followed them and that he had not seen him. Andrew held her tighter as he tried desperately to shake the thought that this was not the last they would see of him.

  17 Through The Fire

  Jayden pulled up to the garage a good hour later than intended. After his morning phone call, he rushed to shower, not even stopping to eat breakfast. His mind was still on Andrew and Madison and the fact that his dad wouldn’t let him accompany him to New York. He had noticed Andrew’s expression when he told him what his dad said and he didn’t like it. Both Jayden and Callie were worried about their friends. They wanted them home, where they would be safe. He locked his truck and stepped into the garage to music blaring in the bay. He smirked as he heard Connor singing Metallica’s Enter Sandman at the top of his lungs.