Fits and Starts

The Crossroads (Undergoing a very messy edit)

Please excuse the state of this story, I am currently editting it, and it is a bit of a mess.

The steady hum of the life support machinery had become the soundtrack to her dreams. She stared at her precious son for hours at a time, hoping for any sign of improvement. His cancer was rare and aggressive. After the last round of radiation, he'd been too weak to continue treatment. The doctors had given her little reason to hope, and she was slowly sliding into despair. More and more often, she found herself seeking refuge in her memories.

*

Unlike her brother, Mitchell, Mary had never been one to entertain flights of fancy. While Mitch read Tolkien and Heinlein, she'd been happiest with non fiction. Scientific journals had appealed to her since early childhood. By the age of five, she had known that she wanted to be a scientist.

Mitch had often tried to draw her into the world of fantasy. On camping trips, he'd regale her with ghost stories. While the stories themselves held little appeal for her, she delighted to spend time with her big brother and enjoyed his obvious pleasure in the story-telling.

"Not far from here, little bug, is a crossroads," he told her by the campfire one night while their father cleaned their fish. "If you wait there at midnight with a desperate request, the devil will meet you for a bargain."

"The devil himself, huh?" she'd laughed. "You'd think he'd have better things to do."

"Children!" Their mother interrupted them. Making the sign of the cross, she'd scolded them. "Do not speak lightly of the devil."

Their mother attended Mass and confession every week and required her children to study the catechism. Their father attended with her at least once per month, and Mary had always assumed that he believed as well.

"Mary, Mary, quite contrary," her father used to sing to her. He'd go out of his way to make her smile. Her seriousness worried him greatly, and he often encouraged her to be silly. He thought that childhood should be spent frivolously. "The troubles of the world can wait, darling," he told her.

At her mother's funeral when Mary was ten, her father had instructed her to light a votive candle for her mother. "Why?" She asked. "I don't even believe in God."

Mitch had put his dreams of becoming a writer on hold after their mother's death. He'd been old enough to work, so he did.

Mary met Jeremy in her freshman year of colkege, and fell for him quickly. When she found out she was pregnant, he'd pushed her to abort. He had no desire to be a father at his age. Mary's upbringing made her hesitate, and her father's heart attack made her decision easier.

The damage to his heart was severe and irreversible. He stayed in the hospital for two weeks and suffered three more heart attacks before dying. Mary leaned on her brother for support, and he eagerly offered to help with the child. He took a job closer to her school so that he could help her raise her son while she continued her studies. She knew she would have been lost without him. Carter adored his uncle, and Mitch clearly adored his nephew.

Carter's birth had comforted her over the loss of her father. She could never forget the way she felt the first time she'd seen his tiny face. She had only thought she knew what love was before that day. Looking into his innocent eyes, she'd sworn her life to protecting him.

*

"Mary," her brother's whisper startled her from her reverie. "I brought coffee." He held a steaming cup out to her, and she took it gratefully. His eyes were so dark they looked bruised, and she imagined she must look worse. "Has the doctor come in yet this morning?"

"No, he should be here soon," she answered. They were waiting for the latest round of test results, and Mary had actually been praying for good news. She still wasn't convinced of God's existence, but she needed any divine intervention she could get. When Mitch kneeled by the hospital bed, she joined him. They held hands and prayed silently until the doctor arrived a few minutes later.

Later, she could hardly remember the words the doctor had said. The long and short of it was that her beautiful baby boy was going to die very soon, and there was nothing more they could do for him. They'd suggested "keeping him comfortable" and making arrangements. All she heard was the sound of them giving up.

She'd cried until her eyes were swollen while Mitch held her and begged God for a miracle. Carter had slept through it all with the aid of sedatives and pain relievers.

When Mitchell had suggested that she go home for a few hours of rest while he watched over Carter, she had accepted and drifted to her car in a daze. She'd started driving with no destination in mind, but eventually found herself approaching the campground where her father used to take them. She drove around until she located the loneliest looking crossroads she had ever seen and then parked. Midnight was still an hour away, and she spent the time pondering her situation.

She didn't honestly expect to meet the devil, but she was out of options. Science had failed to save her beloved son, and she could no longer find any reason at all to pray to God. If desperation was required to summon the devil, then she certainly had what it took. According to her brother's stories, you needed to choose your words carefully and make your requests very specifically when making deals with the devil. She considered the specifics of her request as she waited. Not once did she worry about the fate of her own soul. It was of no consequence compared to Carter's life.

As midnight approached, she got out of the car and stood at the center of the intersection to wait. She would have felt silly if she could feel anything at all besides her despair.

In the shadows by the side of the road, she detected a slight movement. As her eyes adjusted to the darkness, she saw the most beautiful man she had ever seen step towards her. She'd been expecting no one at all to show up, but she had always imagined the devil with horns and a pitchfork. She realized her error at once. Lucifer was God's most beautiful angel, after all.

"Mary, Mary, quite contrary," he said in a silky voice that chilled her to the bone. "I've been expecting you."

She shuddered. "Lucifer, I have come to make a deal with you," she said in a shaky voice. She swallowed and tried to compose herself as he circled her. He looked her up and down as though appraising her worth before guesturing for her to continue. "I offer my soul in exchange for my son's life." She paused as he stared into her eyes. She gathered the last of her resolve and continued, "you'll cure his cancer and protect him from all harm for the rest of his life."

"Will I?" he asked. "In exchange for the soul you don't even believe in?" He chuckled. " No," he said. "I'll need to take something you actually value."

"Such as?" A squeak in her voice betrayed her growing fear.

"Everything," he replied. "I will take you away tonight to become one of my brides. You'll be cared for for all eternity, but you'll retain no memories of this life at all."

She thought about his offer for a moment. She hated to surrender her memories of her parents, Mitchell, and especially Carter, but it was really a small price to pay. "You'll protect him and cure his disease?"

"He will be healthy and safe for the next ninety years at least," he smiled at her. "I'll be his guardian angel."

"Deal," she said without another moment's hesitation.

The devil laughed as he took her hand.