Existence 2.5 - Leif

Dankm ar wasn’t it?” Kendra asked sta ring up at me.

Nodding my head, I slammed my locker .

“Why was he here?”

“I have no idea, Kendra. He’s Death. He can go wherever he wants to go. Just back off me, okay.”

I stepped around her and headed for the locker room. Maybe I could get some peace and quiet in there.

~*~

Death was stalking her. Anger, fear, and helplessness battled inside me. Should I go ask my father what to do? Would he know the answer to this? We’d saved her from Death once already. Why was he back? How many times would Death come for her? She was only seventeen. I had to find a way to stop this.

I couldn’t get close enough to her house without alerting Death that I was near. He would feel me and come find me. Although Death had no power over me, crossing him wasn’t something I wanted to do. Did he know it was me that kept her alive all those years ago when he’d come to take her soul? Had he figured it out? Was he coming to right a wrong?

“ Ghede !” I called out into the darkness knowing my father would come at the sound of my voice. I didn’t come to him often for help. I preferred to keep my distance from his life in Vilokan . The Voodo o afterlife would be my final dwelling once Pagan was mine. But right now , I wanted to be close to her. Vilokan felt so dark and lonely without her with me.

“ Whut do I need da fix now, huh?” Father asked as he stepped out of the darkness. The two small orange tips of his cigarettes were the only light around us.

“ Dankmar is stalking Pagan. Again.” I explained forcing myself not to begin pacing. Father hated it when I paced.

“Is dat so? Whut dat gurl done to send de Death afta her again?” Father pulled the cigarette s from his mouth with two of his long slender fingers and blew rings of smoke into the air before looking back at me. “Dis jus mean you got to take her now, huh. Dat all it means.”

“I can’t take her yet. She hates me. I don’t know why but she does. I need to make her love me before I take her to Vilokan . If she doesn’t love me , she will never accept her fate.”

Father shook his head and waved the hand holding the cigarett es toward Pagan’s house. “You wan de Death to take her? Jus t ake de gurl and be done wit it. De fun is de sex , not de love.”

I wanted to roar in frustration. This was not the helpful words I’d been hoping for. But then my father believed that sex, parties, and rum were the most important things in life. “I need her love. I’ve worked too damn hard to win her trust over the years. I’ve pr otected her. Met her needs. I’ ve MOLDED her. I need her love. Can’t you understand that?”

Father sighed and placed the cigarettes back in his mouth then shook his head. “ Y ou don make no sense son. I wilt do whut I can. But if’n it’s de love you need. Den get it , soon.”

“I’m try ing. I approached her today. I’ m going to do my best. I just need more time.” Tomorrow I needed a new plan. I had to make her see there was more to me than a popular football player. Stupidly , I’d thought making myself wanted among he r peers would win her heart. I should’ ve known better. Pagan wasn’t shallow.

Father was gone , leaving me standing in the darkness alone once more. He was no help. Needing her love wasn’t something he would ever understand. My parent’s relationship had absolutely nothing to do with love. Why was I so different from them?

Lifting my eyes back to the direction of Pagan’s house I waited for him to leave. I would not let Death leave with her soul. I had to do something to protect her without alerting him. But what?

~*~

She was waiting on me outside the door to the only class we shared, Chemistry. I could feel her anxiety as she stood there. This was a good sign. At least she was coming to me because I was still unsure how to approach her again.

Stepping out into the hallway , my joy at having her waiting to speak with me was diminished by the fact Death stood somewhere nearby. I couldn’t see him but I could feel his icy cold presence.

“Um, Leif, could I talk to you a minute?” she asked. As much as I wanted to make this easy on her I knew I couldn’t. Death knew I wasn’t human. I didn’t want to alert him to my true intentions. I leaned against the wall and crossed my arms. She nibbled her bottom lip nervously. Death moved closer to us and I fought back the cringe that crawled over me at his nearness.

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