Gabriel ain’t supposed to die. She couldn’t get the words out of her head. The woman in the red dress petrified her, but for a split second she looked beyond fear and saw something. The dream, the dark club, the green army coat, the forbidden trunk in the attic—she discovered a crease on the face of reality. While she stood frozen in terror with the woman’s silent scream piercing her ears, Paige thought she understood the message. The overwhelming fear crystallized her thoughts and she saw through the constraints of denial and skepticism and mistrust. She found clarity, but like waking from a dream, she lost it as soon as Kendal opened the bathroom door. She remembered the message and tried to make connections but something was missing, the dots weren’t lining up, blocked by an obstruction, blocked by denial and skepticism and mistrust. All roads lead to New Orleans, she thought, where the devil wants to make a deal, and while Paige never believed in the devil, Gabriel did. The millionaire teen dream who chain-smoked, abused hard drugs and romanced older women, embraced his spirituality. Gabriel once said he’d already made reservations with the man upstairs, that his soul was golden—Paige hoped so. For his sake, she hoped heaven did exist, because whether or not he was supposed to, Gabriel died, she thought, and Ashley’s wearing his hat, and Abbey looks like his identical twin.
“The way I see it,” Ashley said, shoving the First Aid kit into Michael’s backpack, “This little family reunion has been a long time coming, like fire in a forest, and tomorrow, I’ll be the spark.” Finishing off his drink, he stood and requested orders as he slid over the bar and returned with two small glasses and a handful of beer.
Professor Faraday enjoyed a prolonged gulp from his fresh drink, but his face tightened as he set it aside and looked to his brother.
“Hey, Ash,” he said, folding his hands over his knee, “what do you think Gabe would say about the state of the world today?”
Ashley gently pulled the hat off his head and held it in his lap. Rubbing his fingers across the faded cotton fabric, he answered, “Same thing he always said, the world’s been taken over by a bunch of Nazi Satan worshipers.”
The professor chuckled and agreed, “You’re right, that’s exactly what he would say.”
Michael sipped his drink and asked if they remembered the speech Gabriel gave at an awards ceremony. After winning Best Actor, the teen dream took the stage and addressed the audience, holding up the gold-plated award, he stated, I find it quite fitting that this is shaped like a pyramid, and to the winners before me who thanked God, I don’t think He cares if you win Best Supporting Actor. I’d like to thank Lucifer, the real winner here tonight. Gabriel then gave the award away to one of the stage guides.
Ashley laughed and wiped his eyes, “Yeah, I think that was the last award he ever won.”
The Apple and the birdcage 