The Wisdom of Evil (18 page)

At long last she saw it! It’s
real
face!
Oh God!
She stared in wide-eyed wonderment. Conversations, in bits and pieces, flooded into her mind.

Michael
, telling her many times over the years, “You’re your own worst enemy…”

The psychiatrist of long ago explaining that “The subconscious was an extremely powerful thing; do not underestimate it.”

Joan upon her death bed, counseling her on what it meant to “Live your life, while you still have it…”

The irony of it didn’t escape her. She’d feared death so very much, and yet, her whole life had
revolved
around it. Not on life. Not on actually
living
her life.

The
façade was that of a woman, someone she did and didn’t recognize. The face was
hers
!

C
hapter 26

The doors slammed open, windows flew up, the writing on the walls, glass and other surfaces dissipated until it was gone.

M
ickey flew through the back door, sweating, eyes wide. Zeus sniffed at the floor, whining at the very spot where the Reaper had stood, or, more accurately, where her subconscious had conjured it up, as hard as that was to believe, or to accept.

“Where is it?” Mickey asked in
frenzy.

“It’s…gone. For good. It never existed.”

“But, Mom, I
saw
it with my own eyes!”

She walked past him, out to the sight of the Grand Cross in the sky beyond. He and Zeus followed her. Sitting on the back deck, she explained it to him. He looked unsure of her
explanation, insisting that there was no way in hell her mind could create a tangible creature!

“Ah, but it did
, Mickey. Now, I am free of it at last!”

Mickey
didn’t dare say anymore. His mother seemed truly at peace for the first time ever. The tortured look had finally left her eyes. But he’d seen it! He knew it as sure as he knew his name!

They sat quietly
side by side, looking at the beauty of God’s light embrace the heavens above, as well as the earth below. Zeus laid at her feet, a loyal friend already. Was this, then, a gift given to her from above? Another being for her to love and be loved by?

During the remainder of the day, the scientists
attempted to explain what they’d witnessed; that the sun crossed the Milky Way precisely in the location of its dark rift, creating the phenomena. It was merely an illusion, of sorts, nothing miraculous at all,
certainly
not a message from God.

It
stayed in the sky for a full twelve hours. At midnight, it simply ceased to be.

In the days to come,
this spectacle would come to be known as the “Grand Cross.” And she believed that was exactly what it was.

She
’d so vehemently denied the existence of God for so long now, locking her heart away from Him, feeling the pain and the numbing loneliness of her choice in doing so.

It was at th
at precise moment in time, with the iridescent cross painted across the sky that she realized that while she and many others no longer believed in Him, he had never stopped believing in them, in mankind itself.

Beneath the radiant light of the “Grand Cross,” she began to wonder exactly what turning point would come to pass. A time of turmoil and distress and then the new age of enlightenment,
ushering the world into a new age of peace?

There were those of
them who
knew,
who
accepted
this for what it was—a message from God. Perhaps a warning as well, letting mankind that they weren’t alone and they needed to make changes not only for the sake of the planet, but for the sake of their very souls.

The soul, the hearts and minds of mankind
was where God truly resided. Until, of course, he’d been thrown away, just as many had done in these times, just as
she
had done.

Allowing Him back into
her life filled the emptiness she had so long lived with from the early days of her dysfunctional childhood and throughout the best and worst times in her adulthood. She’d played her part well, much of it nothing but pretense. She’d fooled everyone who’d complimented her on how she was a wonderful wife and mother; everyone except herself. Throughout much of her life, she’d felt like a fraud.

It was only through the
unavoidable emotion of grief that the wall she’d so carefully built around herself had begun to crack, to break down. However, what she let in was not faith. She had allowed sorrow to harden her. As many children from homes of addicts and alcoholics alike, she was not unusual or even special really. Building a wall around oneself was a defense mechanism that provided a way to
survive,
but not a way to
live
.

What the
Grand Cross had given them was a priceless gift; the gift of hope.

As for
the changing world and the rapid decline of humanity, something had to change.

Having less face to face contact with others, it became easier to embrace all forms of inhumanity
. Having so many avenues to choose from to communicate with anyone, anytime, anywhere in the world resulted in the very opposite of the intention of connectedness. In reality, the lack of the sight and sound of human beings interacting with the world as flesh and blood took away connectedness. For what could be felt without looking into the eyes of another? Seeing their joy, their pain, their love, and all the other emotions attributed to the human species?

Perhaps there really
was
wisdom to be found in evil. A saying kept reverberating Glory’s mind in a continuous loop without end as if it were a warning that she needed to heed. “In order for evil to triumph, all that is needed is for good men to do nothing.”

For what was wisdom, really, but that which came with the accumulated knowledge of a life, a gradual understanding of the world around oneself, subject to one’s unique perception based on their experiences?

Perhaps the message of the Grand Cross was simple. That
they
as a species were the prophecy foretold; that it was up to each one of them to decide what truths they wished to model.

More than at
any other time in history, imbalances were paramount. There were good things in the world—love, beauty, compassion, support of community and generosity of spirit. These things illuminated the grace of humanity’s true nature, the grace of God.

Contrast that with the infrastructure
born in the age of technology. Mankind had made an enemy of the natural world and himself as well. To live this way, with fear, brutality, pain and anxiety, were simply choices to make or not.

Would the course of humanity change? Here in the once sleepy little town of Cliff’s End, Maine, Glory and Mickey would hang onto their humanity, no matter what the future brought.
She was so very proud of her son, wanting to do his part as a police officer in this wonderful place to keep their citizens safe. As for her, she would love all things…without reserve.

For it
was in one’s trials and sorrows that one truly found the depth of one’s character, that which raised mankind above all other species on the planet. It was in the passion to create that one found their lasting humanity. There that they found their true capacity to love deeply and the courage to hope.

No matter what the universe would bring in the future,
there was one thing Glory knew with absolute certainty. To live well, one must love well. For all of life’s many struggles and heartache, in the end, it was worth every single, solitary breath.

E
pilogue

Glory slept the sleep of the innocent. No dreams plagued her this night. Nor had they for weeks now. The town had quieted down a bit, as it seemed the world had as well, pondering, and reflecting on the future of the human race. Zeus lay atop her feet, sighed a deep sigh of contentment. Such was a dog’s way of expressing the knowledge that it was well loved.

The house
was quiet save for the tick-tock of the grandfather’s clock. Glory and Mickey had finally cleaned out Olivia’s room in the past week. She knew she’d see her beloved daughter again, knew that Michael had come into her heart that day as she’d struggled and finally won against the illness, the Thantophobia.

Meanwhile,
Mickey tossed and turned in bed. The nightmare was terrifying, so vivid and real. He woke up in a cold sweat, shook his head, and sat up. There, inches from his face, was another.

His eyes took a moment to focus in the dark. He heard music from somewhere in the distance, somewhere far away
, a haunting guitar melody.

He gasped in utter horror and disbelief!

“Miiiiiccccckkeyyy…” The sinister voice echoed through his brain.

“
What the fu…?”

“You saw me! Indeed, you did. Now, I shall appear to you and only you.”

The green eyes glowed. The face was none other than that of the Grim Reaper.

Mickey screamed and screamed without end!

I was Born and raised in Boston, Massachusetts and now divide my time between Maine and Florida and share my home with two wonderful rescue dogs. I'm a graduate of Hesser College with a double degree in Psychology and Journalism.

I've been writing since I was a child;
encouraged and inspired by my fifth grade teacher, Mrs. Jamison to pursue a career in writing. That year, I wrote and put on a screenplay for the class called "The Cemetery." While it wasn't nominated for an Oscar and the tombstones fell over during the performance, the audience liked it.

I love nothing more than bringing my readers along on my literary journeys. So, buckle your seat belt, and enjoy the ride!

Best always,

Scarlet Black

Books by: Scarlet Black

Bewitched in Time (Salem Moon #1)

Purity (Salem Moon #2)

e.Vampire.com

The Last Gift (Non-fiction, short story.)