Chapter Twenty Two

"Mmmm, Marty, I missed you, it's been weeks!" Cynthia cuddled and surrounded me.

"You're Cynthia, right?" I asked

Cynthia was a pixie and a gorgeous beauty. Her body ran as hot as one of those big machines that melts lard at Louis' feed factory. She had a lilting drawl in her voice that would occasionally drift off into a hard hoosier redneck bite. Sometimes when she wasn't watching her speech a "Fish" would become a "Feesh" and instead of giving a "Push" she might give you a "Poosh."

"I'm sorry, but you're going to have to fill me in on everything." I was not just interested, but I was stalling for time. Whatever it was she had in mind, I wasn't going to be able to be any part of it for a while.

"Yes, I'm Cynthia." She spoke in a pattern so succinct it sounded like an Elementary teacher preparing her students for a fire drill. "You and I were married for a time, but we split up. Since then we have seen more of each other than we did when we were married." She straightened the sheets and folded them tightly around her chest. "I could never compete with all the women you used to take up with, you were always so busy that way."

"Oh my god." I let the words slip out of my mouth before I could stop them. This was not something that I was ready to hear. The things that I was discovering about myself were not making me happy.

"What?" She said with a smile. "You didn't know that you are a dog.... Or at least used to be a dog?"

"I was hoping that I was a good person, who helped people, and loved his friends." She coughed at my words.

"Oh Marty, you're a great person, that's why every woman in the world wants to be your lover. That's why men follow you around like a cult. You're like a refrigerator and every woman you meet is a magnet. You don't mean to be a ladies man, you're just too nice a guy to say "No" to almost anybody. People have tried to take advantage of you, but they just can't seem to do it, you always end up being an idol. I was so in love with you when we were married, but you were always getting yourself involved with other women. I tried to get even with you, but it only made life worse for me. I decided to leave you and move to Louisville to get a fresh start. Since then our relationship has been fantastic. We've even discussed getting married again."

"You're making all of this up aren't you?" I asked.

"A lot if it is lies, yes." She answered in a matter-of-factly manner. "It's up to you to discover the truth."

"What about you, you work in Indiana?"

"I work making bats at the Louisville Slugger plant across the river in New Albany. I'm a lathe operator. Some of the people that work there are real assholes, and the pay isn't that terrific, but for the most part I really love what I do. I enjoy watching people like Paul Konerko hit a grand slam in the world series with a piece of lumber that I probably shaped. It makes me special." Her eyes watered in excitement and wonder.

"Oh wow, I said, Paul Konerko!" I shared her wonder. "That sounds very special."

"So do you remember anything about us Marty?" Her look of wonder turned to one of worry.

"Cynthia, I'm having a hard time remembering who I am, combine that with the constant visits from the beyond and the trips to the grand reward, and the great punishment, and I am afraid I'll never remember the things that I really should." I paused as if I were waiting for her to cry or to strike me, she did neither. "I'm not sure, but I believe I just found out that I was having an affair with my best friend's wife."

Cynthia began laughing wildly. "Elizabeth?"

"What's so funny?" I said angrily

She stopped her laughing in a hurry."Oh, I'm sorry honey." She cupped my face in her hands. "I'm sorry."

"What made you laugh like that?" I need to know.

"It's just that..." She was pondering what to say next. "How can I put this?"

"I really don't care how you put it, just put it!"

"Elizabeth was the one person that you could say no to." She said with a straight face. "But that didn't stop her from trying. She would call you at all hours, she showered you with gifts, she would slip into your bed, but you always turned away her advances. Even when you found out that Louis was cheating on her, you still didn't take advantage of the situation."

"This is wonderful" I said. "This is the best news I've had since I've come out of the hospital."

"It's not all good, Marty." My happiness was short lived. "One birthday she made you a German Chocolate cake and left it at your house. When you realized where it had come from you took it back and dropped it on her back porch. "

"What's so terrible about that?" I asked.

"You were so angry that you threw it on the porch and left. The cake splattered all on the steps and sat there for hours before she found it." Cynthia brace herself to tell me the rest.

"Oh my god no!" My head started spinning again. I was big on head spinning these days. "Don't tell me the rest, I don't think I can take it."

"She grabbed a broom to clean the mess but the cake had attracted every bee in the tri-state area. She didn't even know she was allergic. She died right there on the porch. You never forgave yourself."

The spinning became fierce. I was heading off to the building that looked like an old ice rink. The one with the address on it that said "1 south Hell" I was looking at Cynthia's beautiful blonde face as it began pulling further and further away. I was being sucked into the sewer and it was like looking at her from the end of a dark tunnel. "Cynthia?" I called.

"Yes, honey, what is it?" Her voice was a cry.

"Who is Paul Konerko?"