Dimensions of Genesis (8 page)

The priest, Father Francis, had come to their
home armed with rosary and bible. His hair was slicked back with
precision while his black robe swished ominously as he walked. He
read to David’s mother from his bible, passages about salvation,
forgiven sins and Jesus.

David’s mother nodded, hanging on every word,
her hands clasped in hopeful prayer. His words of promise, of
heaven, of forgiveness and of her place with God.

David’s father sat on the bed, his head hung
in prayer.

As the priest completed his mission with a
satisfied smile, he closed his book and made the symbol of the
cross over David’s mother.

Father Francis then stated, “Thy will be
done.”

“Amen.” David’s mother and father
whispered.

“You should be happy for your mother, David,
for now that she’s been blessed with the ritual of last rights, she
will now be welcomed into heaven and into the waiting arms of her
Lord and savior.” The priest told him, his bony hand on David’s
shoulder. “She will be with God now.”

The priest was escorted out of the room by
David’s father. The two men could be heard conversing quietly as
they walked down the hall.

Shaking, David wept angry tears as he cursed
every word the priest had spoken. He was certain that his mother
would be welcome anywhere her heart desired and certainly without
the permission of anyone or anything.

What did his beautiful mother ever do to
deserve this? He thought as a hot, painful heat seared in his
chest. What ‘God’ would do this to someone; allow this pain and
suffering to happen to someone so wonderful? David gritted his
teeth and sobbed.

“David?” A whisper of his mother’s voice
spoke.

“Yes momma, I’m here.” David answered her
eagerly, his anger washing away instantly as her turned to face the
shell that used to be his mother.

Weakly, she stroked his cheek with her
skeletal hand. Feeling her fragile touch, David realized he had
little time left with her, causing a cascade of fresh warm tears to
fall upon his face.

“David, my baby,” his mother whispered
softly, “don’t cry…don’t be sad…I want to go home.”

“Please don’t leave me.” David whimpered
quietly, clutching his mother’s hand to his face as he rocked back
and forth on the side of the bed.

Suddenly, this woman who, just moments
before, was completely without strength left in her body, sat
straight up in bed. A look of awe colored her face.

“David!” She exclaimed excitedly, “Do you see
that light?!”

Confused, he tried to calm her and lay her
back down. Her sudden energy frightened him.

“David! That light…do you see it?” She stared
with fascination at the wall across the room. Her blue eyes
sparkled with energy David hadn’t seen in months.

Shaking his head and clenching his fists, he
was furious that the priest had come and confused his poor mother,
leaving her to have wild hallucinations.

Grabbing David’s head with her frail, clammy
hands, she turned his face to the back of the bedroom. His eyes
scanned the entire room for a light...but he saw nothing. The only
things there were a dresser and an antique mirror.

Her breathing became very shallow, slowly
letting go of David, as though all the energy had suddenly drained
from her. Her eyes glazed over, as though whatever made them shine
was seeping out of her.

David looked at his mother with wide,
frightened eyes. He started crying as he realized that she was
losing her battle right in front of him.

Lying back onto the pillow, her arms
outstretched in the direction of the invisible light, a look of
peace eclipsed her face. With a final expiration, his mother sunk
back into the pillow and closed her eyes.

An eerie hush invaded the room. David, in
shock, lightly stroked the back of his mother’s lifeless hand. Her
skin faded to gray as her life blood stilled beneath the
surface.

Barely breathing, David searched for
comprehension, some way to understand this excruciating moment. His
heart burned with angry pain, waves of unbearable grief crashed
against his soul.

All he knew, all he could register, was that
this was God’s fault.

It was in that moment, that very second, that
David denounced any notion of a higher power that claimed
unconditional love. What great being would allow her to suffer?
What glorious creator would give me such a wonderful mother and
then take her away?

“Someday...I’ll heal people. I’ll do the job
this fictional ‘God’ can’t.” Young David cried as he spoke, “Thy
will be done.” He swore bitterly.

~

“Dr. Blake.” A female voice called from the
doorway of room 217. “He’s gone.”

Sighing, David realized he was still
clutching Tony’s hand, even though the time of death had been
declared several minutes ago.

“I know.” David said quietly. Glancing back
at the door, he saw Dr. Maddox staring at him compassionately.

“It never seems to get any easier, no matter
how many people we lose.” She stated with empathy as she walked
away from the room.

Reliving the moment over and over again in
his mind, David still couldn’t believe what had transpired. How
could it be possible that Tony had said the words his mother said
before she died?

David had heard rumors of patients dying,
then successfully resuscitated, with incredible stories of seeing
an illuminated tunnel. It never occurred to him to believe these
stories were anything more than hallucinations.

David couldn't believe that Tony had uttered
the same words as his mother about seeing ‘the light’. He was also
flabbergasted that after reviving Tony from the initial code blue,
he wanted to die again, to go 'back'.

Back where? David wondered, bewildered.

David didn't know how to process this. This
didn't fit into his rational world, his theories on death.

I don't believe in life after death. David
thought, watching Tony's body being wheeled away to the morgue. But
after everything that just happened, he wasn't so sure anymore.

~

“Hello?” Ellen, her voice irate, answered her
cell phone.

“Um...hi.” David stammered, not exactly sure
why he was calling. “How are you?”

There was a pause on the other end as David
waited anxiously for Ellen to speak.

“What do you want David?” She asked,
impatient.

Regretting calling, he answered. “Nothing,
just wanted to talk.”

“Oh.” She said. “About what?”

David considered whether or not he wanted to
confide his feelings to her. Then he just blurted out. “I lost a
patient today...I...just needed...never mind, sorry I interrupted
you. I'll let you go.” He said his heart sad.

Silence encompassed the cell phone as David
stood in the parking garage of the hospital.

“Sorry about your patient...” Ellen's voice
bordered on kindness, and then hardened. “I'll be home Sunday
night...late. Bye.”

The phone clicked in David's ear before he
could respond. Still holding the cell to ear, he whispered into the
void. “Good-bye.”

Driving home, he propped his bare arm on the
open car window allowing the warm autumn breeze to cascade over his
skin, lifting the tiny hairs on his forearm.

The sun was in the center of a perfect blue
sky. A flock of sparrows dove in unison through the ocean of
air.

Ahead of David, the curving roads meandered
with purpose as the black asphalt hugged the earth. The land
allowing rivers of highway to mar its complexion.

David was not looking forward to facing the
empty house alone. He wished his daughter was home this weekend.
Occasionally Tiffany would spend the weekend at home, but never
alone. She always had a friend or two staying with her at the Blake
house.

Giggling and loud music would emanate from
her room for hours on end. A barrage of make-up and hair
accessories strewn across her room as the girls would give one
another make-over after make-over.

He missed his little girl.

Looking at his watch, he saw it was
afternoon. He'd stayed longer than anticipated at work to complete
paperwork on Tony and to contact his relatives, informing them of
Tony’s passing.

Passing? He pondered the word for a moment,
what exactly does that word have to do with dying?

To pass would indicate a continuous movement.
Passing on, going on, and moving ahead. All this confused David
even more. The ghost story earlier that day and the coincidence of
Tony's last words were too much for David. He had no idea what to
think of it all.

Exhausted, he turned into his driveway; ready
to put himself and his obscure day to bed.

Worry

Father Gabe delivered the host to each set of
open hands, his eyes never focusing on any individual face.

His thoughts obsessed endlessly, rewinding
and replaying the moment when his lips met Lily's. The scene would
begin sweetly, with passion and desire. His lips touching hers. In
the next moment, the scene would morph into heartbreak, Lily’s face
etched with pain.

He didn’t even notice the seductive and
teasing smiles he received from the female parishioners. Even the
impending exorcism held no priority within his worries.

Only Lily’s face, the moment she left,
haunted his memory. The look of betrayal as she fled the church
room.

How could I have reacted so childishly?
Regret swelled inside as he prayed mass would be over soon, so he
could find his Lily. He also prayed God would give him the strength
to resist the temptations that were burning inside of him.

After mass was done, Gabe searched the church
for Lily’s parents. He scanned every face that wandered about the
room. With everyone leaving at once, it was difficult to locate
anyone. From the left side, he finally heard something familiar,
Quinn’s telltale laugh, from the far side of the room. Elated, Gabe
moved hurriedly through the crowd.

Gabe tried to calm himself as he approached
Lily’s mother. Mr. Donovan had apparently already taken his leave
to enjoy his traditional post-mass cigar.

“Mrs. Donovan.” Gabe said politely, “Have you
seen Lily?”

Maggie smiled wide as she greeted Gabe.
“Well, I was going to ask you the same thing. She came to the
church early to visit with you. We thought she just sat somewhere
else during mass.” Maggie’s eyes filled with worry. “You mean to
say you haven’t seen her today?”

“Oh yes,” Gabe sputtered, “earlier this
morning, she was here…but…” he searched his mind for a reasonable
explanation. “She…said she wasn’t feeling well and left before the
mass began.” The guilt inside for lying literally made him
nauseous.

“Oh my, well, I should hurry home to make
sure she is okay.” Maggie quickly gathered her things and walked
out of the church, still buttoning up her sweater. Quinn and
Sheridan, now thirteen, dawdled behind her as they gawked at some
teenage boys.

Gabe retreated to his apartment upstairs in
the church and swiftly changed out of his ceremonial robes.
Retrieving his helmet and leather jacket from the coat
closet, Gabe noticed Lily’s white sweater hanging at the far
end. Taking her sweater off of the hanger, her intoxicating scent
drifted from the fabric, caressing Gabe’s face. His mind clouded
with worry as he raced out of the church to find her.

As Gabe’s bullet bike meandered along the
hillside to the Donovan residence, his thoughts again drifted back
to the moment his lips met Lily’s. Quickly reprimanding himself for
his mental weakness, he questioned his objectives.

How can I be committed to the church if I
have these feelings for Lily? Am I doing the right thing?

So many scenarios raced through his mind as
he neared the turn-off for the Donovan acreage. All he knew is he
had to see Lily. God help him, he wanted to take her into his arms
so badly, his soul ached.

Pulling into the driveway, Gabe was relieved
to see Lily’s car was there. Hearing Gabe pull up, Maggie met him
outside.

“Hello there Gabe!” She said in a cheery
voice.

From her pleasant demeanor, Gabe assumed
they'd found Lily safe and sound at home.

“Hi Mrs. Donovan, is Lily inside?” Gabe asked
anxiously.

“No, she left us a note saying she took a cab
to the bus station and went to visit her friend Sarah in Sherwood.
Apparently Sarah called her crying over some boy and Lily wanted to
go and console her.” Maggie rolled her eyes when she mentioned the
boy. “We called Sarah, she said that Lily was there and that she
was welcome to stay for a few days.”

“Did you speak with Lily?” Gabe inquired,
suspicious.

“No,” Maggie stated as she folded up her
sleeves, “she said Lily was having a shower, long ride on those
dirty buses…” her voice trailed off as Gabe’s intuition told him to
investigate this further.

“Maggie, may I have Sarah’s number? I need to
talk to Lily about something.”

“Oh, of course, it’s in the kitchen, I’ll go
grab it.” She was already walking away by the time she finished her
sentence.

After thanking Maggie and politely refusing
lunch several times, Gabe got back on his bike and sped back to the
church to use the phone. He had a nagging suspicion that Lily
wasn’t where she said she was.

A nervous flutter grew within his stomach
when he realized he also had to contact Father Francis. Pushing
thoughts of the impending exorcism aside, he revved his bike’s
engine, pushing it to go faster through the curving valley.

Arriving at the church, Gabe scrambled to get
into his office as quickly as he could. Nervously he punched in the
numbers on the phone to call Sarah’s house. As the phone rang, he
took deep breaths to calm himself.

“Hello.” A young girl answered.