Chapter 8

In the beginning there’s nothing but dust. A fine white talcum powder hangs in the car, mixed with smoke.
The dust and smoke swirl in the air.
The only sound is the car engine dripping something, oil, antifreeze, gasoline.
Until Adam starts screaming.
The dust is from the air bags protecting us at our moment of impact. The air bags are collapsed slack and empty back onto the dashboard now, and as the dust settles, Adam is screaming and clutching his face. The blood coming from between his fingers is black against the talcum white coat.

In one hand, Adam holds the statuette smeared with blood, more of a devil now than ever.
With his other hand, Adam grabs at the ground beside him and drags an open magazine across his mutilated face. The magazine shows a man and woman copulating, and from under it Adam says, “When you find a rock. Bring it down on my face when I tell you.”
I can’t.
“I won’t let you kill me,” Adam says.
I don’t trust him.
“You’ll be giving me a better life. It’s in your power,” Adam says from under the magazine. “If you want to save my life, do this for me first.”
Adam says, “If you don’t, the minute you go for help, I’ll crawl away and hide, and I’ll die out here.”
I weigh the rock in my hand.
I ask, will he tell me when to stop?
“I’ll tell you when I’ve had enough.”
Does he promise?
“I promise.”
I lift the rock so its shadow falls across the people having sex on Adam’s face.
And I bring it down.
The rock sinks in so far.
“Again!” Adam says. “Harder.”
And I bring the rock down.
And the rock sinks in farther.
“Again!”
And I bring it down.
“Again!”
And I bring the rock down.
Blood soaks up through the pages, up to turn the fucking couple red and then purple.
“Again!” Adam says, his words distorted, his mouth and nose not the same shape anymore.
And I bring the rock down on the couple’s arms and their legs and their faces.
“Again.”
And I bring the rock down until the rock is sticky red with blood, until the magazine is collapsed in the center. Until my hands are sticky red.
Then I stop.
I ask, Adam?
I go to lift the magazine, but it tears. It’s so sodden.
Adam’s hand holding the statuette goes slack and the bloody statuette rolls into the grave I dug to find something solid.
I ask, Adam?
The wind carries smoke over us both.
A huge shadow is spreading toward us from the base of the pylon. One minute it’s just touching Adam. The next minute, the shadow has him covered.
Ladies and gentlemen, here on Flight 2039, our third engine has just flamed out.
We have just one engine left before we begin our terminal descent.