Lucifer Travels-Book #1 in the suspense, mystery thriller

by Malik Will

The sound of an EKG machine runs rapid. Beep. Beep. Beep. Beep.

  It is the only sound in the room. Daniel opens his eyes. A man stands before him wearing a white coat and blue scrubs. The room is a bit blurry. He hears his name being called. “Mr. Freeman. Mr. Freeman.”

  Daniel turns his head to the left, then again to the right. “Where am I?”

  “You are in a hospital, Mr. Freeman,” the man in the scrubs replies. “I am Doctor Oswald. You have been in a very serious accident.”

  Daniel can’t believe the news and begins turning and twisting, pulling the intravenous wires along with every movement.

  The doctor attempts to hold Daniel still. “Relax now. Relax.”

  Daniel follows the doctor’s orders. His calm voice allows him to become tranquil. The doctor holds in his hand a pen and what seems to be a notepad.

  Daniel looks up. “What’s that?”

  “This is what we call a trauma flow sheet.” He writes without looking up.

  Daniel looks away, staring at all the wires running from his arms.

  “Now, do you remember anything?” asked Dr. Oswald.

  “The couple.” He stares at his wounded arms.

  Dr. Oswald ruffles through his notepad. “What couple?”

  Daniel turns his head back toward the doctor. “The couple that was in streetcar.”

  Dr. Oswald takes his notepad and places it on a nearby counter. “You were the only person brought in from the accident, Mr. Freeman.”

  Daniel looks away and closes his eyes. Dr. Oswald watches tears sneak down his cheeks. He takes a step closer and places his hands against the rail of his bed. “I know this is hard for you. But there are some officers out there who have a few questions for you about the accident. I won’t send them in until you’re absolutely ready. Are you ready, Mr. Freeman?”

  Daniel eyes remain shut. He doesn’t mumble a word. Dr. Oswald picks his notepad up from the counter. “I’ll tell them to come back in an hour.” He takes one more look at Daniel and walks out of the room.

  After an hour or so, the doctor returns with the two officers. But as the door to the room opens, all that was there was an empty bed and detached intravenous wires. Daniel is gone.

  Down the busy Canal Street, hundreds of onlookers gawk and point as an old man limps across town in a blue hospital gown. People aren’t too happy about Daniel’s appearance. The problem isn’t that he is wearing a hospital gown; the problem is that there isn’t enough gown to cover his wrinkled backside.

  People seem to have never been more terrified in their lives. Parents of small children sweep them away as if Godzilla just touched down in the French Quarters. Nonetheless, Daniel keeps on walking.

  He left his wallet along with his clothes in the hospital. He has no other option but to walk. So he does, far and long. He walks all the way to Rampart Street, where his journey comes to an abrupt end in front of his destination: Saint Jude Chapel.

  Daniel stands before the church, observing the beauty in its architecture. He notices the three crosses that stand at the very top of the building, piercing the sky as birds fly about.

  The church is landscaped to that of a medieval gothic castle that housed queens and kings. Many years ago, only the privileged could experience such a place. But this is said to be for the people, all people, even those who disavow Him.

  Daniel limps up the steps toward the large double doors that lie shut. He is very weak. He makes sure one hand stays planted on the rail as he climbs. Once he reaches the top of the steps, he pulls the door open.

  As he enters the church, he sees rows of empty seats where people pray and worship. He walks near the pews, but remains standing, admiring the tall cathedral ceilings and gothic artistry. The windows are all painted with pictures of men and women in long robes.

  Around the church are several statues of woman and children. At the top are paintings of naked men flying in places that God roams. Even the marble floors are in and of themselves, the personification of God’s beauty because they reflect the very nature of everything that touches it. For every soul that passes through those doors, reflect years of the human condition that could never be understood.

  This goes for Daniel as well. He stares at his reflection seeing scars both outside and in, that took years to create. He stares into his own eyes, seeking answers to questions he has yet to ask. For those few moments, he dives through past memories seeking reasons for his own attrition. How could those beautiful eyes hold such a hell?

  He places his hands on his face, touching it gently. He thinks of how telling these marble floors are. But they do not at all reflect his face at all. They instead, reflect his father. And he knows as he looks down into himself, thinking of all things that were and weren’t.

  Quickly, the door to the confessional opens and closes as a young woman exits.

  Daniel watches her leave as her high heels repeatedly clunk against the marble floors. A few minutes pass, the light atop of the confessional door goes from red to green.

  Daniel walks toward the door. A plaque says. “Father Jackson,” under the green light.

  He takes a deep breath and moves his hand toward the knob. His arm is visibly shaking. He’s afraid. He takes another breath, but this time, he twists the knob until it opens.

  Daniel takes one look back at the empty seats of the church, and walks into the confessional. The room is divided in two parts. On the left side, there is a screen for people to confess their sins. It is free from the view of the priest because he sits on the other side of the screen. It was made for confessors who prefer to be anonymous.

  However, on the right side of the room, there is an opening for anyone who wants to walk behind the screen and sit face to face with the priest. Daniel, not surprisingly, chooses the former. He stands by the screen, confused about where exactly should he sit because there are no chairs in sight. He has never done a confession.

  Daniel sticks his face near the screen, nearly touching it with his nose. “Hey, how does this work?”

  The priest answers with a question. “Is this your first time doing the sacrament of penance?”

  His voice is strong and commanding, full of authority. After taking a moment to think, Daniel replies with a modest, “Yes.”

  He has never even heard of the term, “Sacrament of penance.”

  The priest asks. “Excuse me if I’m wrong. But I don’t recognize your voice. Is this your first visit to our church?”

  “Yes, it is.”

  “Okay. Well, welcome to Saint Jude’s.”

  “Thank you,” Daniel replies. “But do I have to stand here for the entire time?”

  The priest points. “Uhh. There’s a kneeler right below you.”

  Daniel looks to his left and then to his right. “Where?”

  “If you just look right beside you.”

  Daniel finally sees that it had been next to him the whole time. “Oh, here it is. I found it.”

  “Okay, then,” replies the priest. “Now you’ve never done a confession, is that correct?”

  “Yes. I mean. No.” Daniel is nervous.

  The priest says softly, “It’s okay. This is not unusual.”

  “Really?”

  “Well, yes. I have seen people go decades between confessions. In fact, one fella, I remember, explained to me that it had been 70 years since his last confession.”

  “Well, do you?” asks Daniel.

  “Do I what?”

  “Do you confess?”

  The priest pauses for a moment, leaving the room in an awkward silence. “I do…just like everyone.”

  “So you sin too?”

  The priest chuckles a bit. “Yes, I am human.”

  “So what, do you confess to yourself? How the hell does that work?”

  The confessional became silent once again. The priest seems taken aback by Daniel’s language.

  “I didn’t get your name,” he says.

  “I do apologize. My name is Daniel Freeman.�
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  The priest again welcomes Daniel to the church. “So what penance would you like to give today?”

  “Whoa, now. Let’s, let’s not get ahead of ourselves. I mean, I wanna know a little about the man I’m telling all my innermost secrets to. You know what I mean?”

  “Okay. Well, I’m Father Jackson. I’m—”

  “Yeah. I mean, I already know who you are.”

  “Do you?”

  “Yeah, I listen to your radio show.”

  “Oh, I see now.”

  “Yes, so I know who you are. But I wanna know who you are. Understand?”

  The priest sighs. “Well, what else do you want me to tell you?”

  Daniel raises both hands in the air as if the answer is so obvious. “I want you to confess!”

  The priest chuckles a bit. “I don’t think you understand how this process works.”

  “No, but I do.”

  “NO, I don’t think you do.”

  Daniel raises his voice, talking over the priest. “Man, you have to have some bones in the closet.”

  The priest calls his name repeatedly.

  But Daniel rambles on. “I mean, who doesn’t have a sin or two to tell?”

  The priest attempts a second time. “Daniel this is not the place or time...”

  But Daniel continues. “Have you ever stole something?”

  “What?”

  “When the last time did you had sex with a woman? Or maybe you don’t like women. Maybe you prefer to touch few church boys here and there?”

  The priest erupts. “MR. FREEMAN! IF YOU CONTINUE WITH THIS TYPE OF INSOLENCE AND WILLFUL CONTEMPT FOR THE LORD’S HOUSE AND HIS CHILDREN, YOU WILL BE FORCED TO LEAVE THIS CHURCH IMMEDIATELY!”

  The confessional is overcome with silence for the third time. This time, a lengthy dead silence. Both men, domineering in their own right, look for the other to start again as they wait behind the screen.

  Daniel digresses. “Look...I’m...I.” He pauses to compose himself. “I’m sorry. I’m not used to being vulnerable.”

  “That’s quite all right,” says the priest. “And to answer your question, I have not and will never do anything of those things.”

  “How? How do you do that?”

  “Are you asking me how do I not steal or abuse children?”

  “No. I’m asking, how do you be perfect like that?”

  “I never once said I was perfect, Mr. Freeman. I sin just as anyone else. I lie, I judge others, and sometimes, as you may already know, I lose my temper.”

  “So, if everyone sins and it’s a part of our nature, why apologize for it?”

  “Well, it’s not in our nature to sin, Mr. Freeman. God did not make us that way. But when we allow certain things to control us or have dominion over us, then yes, we sin.”

  “What do you mean when you say certain things?”

  “Well, are you familiar with your bible?”

  Daniel doesn’t answer the question. He just remains quiet, letting his silence speak for him. So the priest continues. “Well, in Peter 5:8, it states, be alert and of sober mind. Your enemy, the devil, prowls around like a roaring lion, looking for someone to devour.”

  “So he can be anywhere?”

  “That’s correct.”

  Daniel inquires, “Even in the church?”

  “Yes, anywhere in this church, but you need not worry about that. We run a tight ship. The devil fears our righteousness.”

  Daniel smirks. “Does he?”

  “Yes. He sure does.”

  After another brief but awkward pause, the priest explains the process of a confession.

  Daniel takes a deep breath. “Oh man, that’s gonna be tough. I don’t know where to start.”

  “Don’t be frightened by old trespasses. If you don’t know where to start, just start from where it began.”

  Daniel chuckles a bit. “My entire life has been a sin.”

  “Well confess your life,” says the priest.

  “Do you really have time for that?”

  “No, I don’t,” says the priest. “But God does.”

  Daniel smiles behind the screen. The priest continues to instruct Daniel so the confession can finally began. “Now before we start, repeat after me. Bless me father for I have sinned. This is my first confession.”

  Daniel repeats after the priest, word for word.

  “What are your sins, my son?”

  Daniel hesitates for a moment, and then begins, “When I was born I think God must’ve known me from another world...”

  CHAPTER SEVEN

  The Sufferings of this Present Time