Josh
The gates tower above everything, glistening in the diffused light of Heaven’s glow. Souls appear at the entrance, confused and awed, where Angels greet them and introduce them to their new afterlives.
It’s a sight I could care less about, but I know it meant something to Grace. To me, the pain and confusion of death are best left to others, and besides, the fluffy white mist curling around my legs annoys the crap out of me.
The minute this thought occurs to me, the mist dissipates around my body and swirls out of my way as I walk forward, like I have an invisible shield around me. Another perk of Heaven, I suppose. I’d rather have Grace back.
“Josh?” Shona separates from a young boy of about eleven in golden robes. “Go ahead and take the next entry, Kobe,” she says to the kid. “You’ve got this!”
The boy nods and smiles, giving her a thumbs-up before turning toward an elderly Indian man in a turban who’s just stumbled through the gate.
“Don’t tell me you’re here to learn to be a greeter?” Shona asks.
“Funny!” I say, full of sarcasm. “No. I’m here because I talked to Mr. Griffith, and I’m done trying to make sense of everything or find some magic solution. Archangels and humans—it’s a bunch of bullshit. They aren’t any better or that much different than us as far as I can tell.”
“Whoa. Slow down there,” Shona whispers, pulling me to the side to make sure no one’s listening. “I take it you didn’t like what he had to say.”
“No. I didn’t. And it all comes down to The Man Upstairs—um, that wasn’t meant to be a pun.”
Shona smiles and adjusts her glasses.
“I asked how to talk to Him, and Mr. Griffith told me to pray. Pray, Shona. I’m already a frickin’ Angel. If He was interested in making sure good people didn’t suffer, then He’d already have done something. I mean, do we even know He exists?” My hair is sticking out at crazy angles because I keep pulling my hands through it.
“Josh, I know you’re upset, but let’s not go down the road of blasphemy, eh?”
I sigh. “All I’m saying is that I’m sick of sitting around and trying to research some loophole. I’m going to do something.”
“Like what?” Shona challenges, crossing her arms and cocking her head.
I shuffle my feet on the spongy white ground, trying to think of a good answer. All I know is that I need to do something—something to alleviate this frustration. Something other than tearing my hair out. “I don’t know. Go smack some sense into Noah, for starters.”
“You can’t touch him, remember? That could easily be literal, Josh.”
“Then what? What’ll happen if I do? Maybe it’s worth it!”
Shona steps into my personal space. “Josh. Stop it. It’s not funny. You could die if you touch him. Remember what you told me happened to Keira when you touched her? This may be the same in reverse.”
I can still hear Keira’s scream and smell the burnt flesh of her hand. I shudder. I hadn’t intended to do that, at least not consciously. I remember being so filled with anger and thinking she was evil. She was part of Lucifer and his dominion. “It’s all about belief. What if I believe it’s bullshit?”
“Well, what I believe is that you came here so I could talk you out of it. You’re supposed to be following Grace’s wishes, remember?”
“She wants me to save Noah. Maybe smacking some sense into him will save him.” I say it, but the wind in my sails started to deflate the moment Shona reminds me about Grace’s wishes. She’s right. I probably did come here first so she could talk me out of it. Damn it! There has to be something I can do.
I spin around and howl in frustration. There’s so much crying and screaming from the newly dead that I doubt anyone even glances my way.
“What do we know so far?” Shona asks, taking my arm and leading me farther from the influx of people. “Let’s review.”
“We know Grace belongs in Heaven.”
Shona smiles sadly. “Yes, I agree. We also know that Noah is the One. And that though we cannot touch him or Grace, someone from elsewhere may be able to.”
I nod, following her line of thought. “If Lucifer lets them. Fat chance.”
“We know that Lucifer became jealous of humanity. That he believed they didn’t deserve to share Heaven with his kind.”
Shona’s calming presence finally starts to break through my desperate urge to act. I take a deep breath and try to focus. “We know that Mr. Griffith could have broken the rules, but was afraid he’d end up like Lucifer.” That thought continues to piss me off, and I feel justification from the surprise on Shona’s face. “I wouldn’t have cared what happened to me. I would’ve done what was right.”
“Your judgment might be clouded by love, Josh.” Shona grasps my hand. “Are you sure about what’s ‘right’? It seems to me that’s a very slippery slope.”
The fire ignites in my gut again, and I pull my hand away. “Are you saying Griffith was right to banish Grace?” I back up several steps like the thought might be contagious.
“No. Wait, Josh!” she calls as I turn on my heels to run. “I just meant it isn’t that simple.”
But I don’t want to hear it. I don’t want to hear any of the excuses anymore. It’s time someone did something to fix things instead of philosophizing while Grace suffers. Enough is enough.
I still don’t know what the solution is, but I know I’m not going to find it in a book.