Gold Hill (54 page)

“
Yeah?” Charlie
asked.

“
What about Addy?” Tink
asked.

Heather said something to
Tink and she turned around to talk to Heather. Aden appeared right
in front of him. Charlie used the tight space to make the necessary
adjustments. Aden patted his shoulder and went to help Nash get
something for Delphie.

“
They want me to sit with
them,” Tink said.

“
You can walk with us
though,” Blane said. “We just want some time . . .
you know, you guys have been friends for a while but to us, it’s
all new.”

Charlie nodded to Blane and
Heather hugged him. Tink took Charlie’s arm and they started to
walk to the chapel.

“
So . . . ?” Tink asked in a low
tone.

“
Addy’s with some other
dude,” Charlie said. “She unfriended Nash on Facebook, but not
before he saw that she changed her status to be dating some senior
at Westy High.”

“
That’s not really what I
meant,” Tink said. “I knew she was dating someone else. What else
is new?”

Tink looked sad and Charlie
felt stupid. Heather and Blane stopped walking to talk to Honey and
MJ. They were invited for a fast, impromptu tour of MJ and Honey’s
fixed up apartment. Tink let go of his arm and he followed her like
a lost dog. At least the apartment was really neat and he liked MJ.
They were back in the hall and on their way to the chapel again
when Charlie realized what Tink was asking.

“
You mean do I like her
still?” Charlie asked.

Tink nodded.

“
I don’t know if I ever
liked her,” Charlie said.

Tink stopped walking to
look at him.

“
She was always different
from me and the rest of us,” Charlie said. “She’d get kicked out,
sure, but she could always go home after her Dad cooled off. She
mostly stayed out to get back at him. I mean, her family is
f . . . ”

Sandy hit the back of his
head as she passed them.

“
Er . . .
messed up,” Charlie said. “But nothing like mine.”

“
So why’d you date her for
so long?” Tink asked.

“
I wanted to be like her,”
Charlie said. “Normal.”

He wasn’t sure why he’d
said that. It was the truth, but he wasn’t sure why he’d said that
out loud, to her. Mrs. Anjelika was wearing off on him. He glanced
at Tink out of the corner of his eye. She nodded.

“
And now?” Tink
asked.

“
I’m starting to get happy
being me,” Charlie said. “Mrs. Anjelika, Sandy, Aden, the kids,
Rachel, I . . . I guess normal doesn’t seem so great
in the face of all of . . . ”

Charlie gestured with his
hand toward the people all around. They were standing at the top of
the stairs. Most of the party was either on the stairs or talking
in the coal tunnels below. Delphie must have just opened the doors
to the chapel because there was a loud “oooh and ahh.”

“
Tink!” Sissy yelled from
the bottom of the stairs. “Come on!”

Tink kissed his cheek and
ran down the stairs to her friend. Charlie watched Tink and Sissy
talk. Tink took Mack from Heather’s arms and they turned into the
chapel.

“
You okay?” Sam
asked.

Charlie nodded.

“
It’s hard when they grab
you,” Sam said. “You’re just going along and then they grab you.
Wham! The roller coaster starts. Makes a lot of guys mad at their
power.”

Charlie nodded.

“
I’d rather just enjoy the
ride. There’s nothing like it. You can keep it going for years and
years. You’ll see,” Sam said. He spotted someone behind Charlie’s
shoulder. “Anjelika! Perses! How lovely that you could make
it!”

Charlie turned to hug
Anjelika. He saw Jill’s brother, Steve, behind Perses and went to
say hello. The tightness in his chest and pants eased under their
friendly presence. When he finally made it to the chapel, he was
himself again. He looked for his family and made his way to an
empty seat next to Nash. He took Rachel off Sandy’s lap. Sitting
down, he realized he was sitting right behind Tink.

And wham, the roller
coaster took off again.

~~~~~~~~

Friday afternoon — 9:55
p.m.

Piano music filtered
through the chapel indicating the ceremony was about to start.
Valerie and Jacob got up to light the candles. Somewhere near the
back a baby cried. Always the medic, MJ turned to see if one of his
teammates needed help. He smiled at a woman he didn’t know and
turned around again.

“
Did you see her? Is she
there?” Honey whispered.

“
Not yet,” MJ
said.

Honey smiled.

“
You seem really excited,”
MJ said.

“
It’s like a dream come
true for Rodney,” Honey nodded. “The whole thing is a miracle and
we get to see it happen. Aren’t you excited?”

“
I’m excited too,” MJ
said.

He leaned over to kiss her.
He touched her belly and felt a tight twitch.

“
Are you in
labor?”

“
I think so,” Honey
said.

“
We
should . . . ” MJ moved.

The piano music shifted and
Delphie started talking. MJ's anxiety rose. If he interrupted
Delphie, she might curse him or whatever; and he certainly knew
what it was like to suffer. No, he didn't want to suffer the wrath
of Delphie.

People started standing and
saying this or that. MJ scooped Honey into his arms and stood. MJ
didn’t really know what was going on, but he didn’t really care
because Honey was having his baby.

Right now!

“
You need to be in the
hospital,” MJ whispered to Honey.

“
I’m okay for a while,”
Honey said. “Remember the doctor said it was better if we wait a
bit.”

MJ put his big foot next to
Steve’s who was standing next to them. When Steve didn’t look up,
he squashed Steve’s toes.

“
Ow,” Steve scowled at
him.

“
Honey’s in labor,” MJ
whispered.

Steve raised his eyebrows
at Honey. While Yvonne and Rodney came down the aisle, Steve
checked Honey’s pulse and belly.

“
You ready?” Steve
asked.

“
When we’re done here,”
Honey said. “Delphie said it won’t be a long ceremony.”

“
But . . . ” MJ started.

“
I really want to be
here,” Honey said. “It’s important to Delphie . . .
and me.”

Steve and MJ shared a
look.

“
You may be seated,”
Delphie said.

Feeling like he should run
out of the chapel, MJ hesitated for a moment. With Honey in his
arms, he was the last person standing.

“
Sit,” Delphie looked
across the crowd to him. “The baby will arrive after we’re done.
Honey will suffer more if you don’t stay. You’re better off waiting
a bit.”

The word “baby” moved
through the crowd. His teammates cheered and a few hands clapped
his back. Smiling faces turned to look at them but MJ stared at
Delphie.

“
You’re sure?” MJ
asked.

Delphie nodded. MJ sat
down.

And the ceremony
began.

~~~~~~~~

Friday afternoon — 10:00
p.m.

Delphie looked out over the
chapel. Everything was in place. Everyone she'd wanted to be there
had come. Her heart raced with excitement.

"Thank you for coming,"
Delphie smiled. "I know I've been a bit . . . harsh
today."

Everyone chuckled. Delphie
took a deep breath.

“
This . . . ” Delphie gestured around the
chapel, “. . . is the culmination of lifelong dream
of mine. As a child, I lived under the power of a competitive, dark
force that cared only for the accumulation of money and power. Even
as a young child, I knew that love was the only force that could
combat the darkness.

“
As a child, I wondered:
what if there was a sanctuary filled with love?” Delphie nodded.
“What if it was a place where people could go to and feel
surrounded by love? They could come, rest for a while, and when
recharged head out into the world filled with the power of love.
The chapel, this chapel, is one of the first things Celia and I
ever talked about.”

Delphie smiled.

“
I honestly think Celia
bought this home to create the chapel to celebrate love,” Delphie
said. “Of course, the original Castle chapel was consecrated by the
Roman Catholic church in 1882. People would come from all over the
Denver region to celebrate their faith here. Because the chapel was
mostly hidden from view, people could come to the house, worship,
and no one would be the wiser. The very founding of the chapel was
laced with the fear of discovery.

“
The chapel was destroyed
when the dark force came for me,” Delphie said. “Luckily, neither
the chapel nor I were quite ready to go. Jacob?”

Delphie nodded to Jacob. He
turned on lights which shone on the stained glass windows from
outside. For the first time, the audience could see the windows.
Each window depicted a scene of love – a mother and child, a friend
helping another friend, a gardener caring for a garden, and the
love from the creator. Even the fourteenth station of the cross
scene, the only window saved from the explosion, had transformed
into a depiction of a beloved burial.

Everyone in the chapel
seemed to take a breath in and then, almost as an out breath, they
applauded.

“
The windows are gorgeous,
but they are only windows if we don’t do what we need to do
tonight,” Delphie said. “Tonight, together, we will create a
sanctuary of love, and with its power, heal the strong, unbroken
love between Yvonne and Rodney.

“
I invited you each here
for a reason,” Delphie said. “Each and every one of you has an
incredible capacity to love. You don’t see it. You might even
believe everyone has it. They don’t.

“
I need you to use your
gift to help me create this sanctuary,” Delphie said. “Will you
help?”

No one said anything.
Delphie licked her lips. She couldn’t tell them what to say. Jacob,
Valerie, and Sam couldn’t say anything otherwise they might
influence other’s free will. They needed to agree of their own free
will.

“
I will,” Jill stood up
from her seat.

“
Me too!” Katy stood up
next to her. Paddie stood up next to her and nodded.

“
I will,” a richly
accented man’s voice said from near the back of the chapel. Jill’s
father Perses stood up. “I, myself, have always longed for such a
refuge.”

“
In the darkest places of
this world,” Alex Hargreaves stood. “I have wished for such a place
to rest my head.”

“
We’ll do everything we
can,” her identical twin Max Hargreaves stood next to
her.

“
Me too,” Sandy said. “I
will help.”

And soon everyone rose to
their feet repeating the same words, “I will.”

Delphie smiled.

“
Let’s begin.”

Chapter Two Hundred and
Twenty-One
.
 
.
 
.
Forever

Friday night – 10:15
p.m.

Tanesha took Jeraine’s hand
and he pulled her in front of him. This was the moment she’d
dreamed of all of her life. She put her hands over his and leaned
back into him.

Jacob opened the chapel
doors to reveal Rodney and Yvonne. The sight of them caused the
audience to gasp. They were gorgeous. Jeraine nudged Tanesha
forward and she stepped out into the aisle. Seeing Tanesha waiting
for them, Yvonne gave a bright smile and took Rodney’s arm. The
beaming couple started walking toward her.

Yvonne wore a floor length
light sky blue silk dress. The tulip sleeves gave way to a tight
waist and an A-line skirt. Unsullied by sparkle or bead, the dress
bore an old world quality that served to accentuate Yvonne’s
natural brilliance. Rodney looked every bit her prince in his
no-lapel matching silk tux. Tanesha glanced at the people in the
chapel. Everyone looked as if they were seeing something beautiful
and extraordinary.

Yvonne took Tanesha’s hands
when they reached her. Her parents kissed her cheek and the family
turned to Delphie.

“
You may be seated,”
Delphie said.

Tanesha kissed her parents
and sat down next to Jeraine. Yvonne and Rodney stood in front of
the altar.

“
Sit,” Delphie looked
across the crowd to MJ. “The baby will arrive after we’re done.
Honey will suffer more if you don’t stay. You’re better off waiting
a bit.”

Tanesha turned around to
see MJ standing with Honey in his arms. He looked so frightened and
overwhelmed. She glanced back at Delphie to see what she’d
say.

“
You’re sure?” MJ
asked.

“
I’m sure,” Delphie
nodded.