Chapter 45

“I suspect it’s because it’s the place I feel most connected to the world, to my previous existence.”

“Why do you need to feel connected to this world? I mean, why aren’t you in Heaven? Or wherever it is people go when they…die?”

“Ah.” The smile in his voice had returned. I could hear it in that one syllable. “I’m what is known as a ‘free spirit’. I wander. That’s just what I do. Did you know, friend, that if you’re permitted entry into Heaven, you may go at a moment of your own choosing? Hell, on the other hand, is a different matter. If Hell is your destination then you must report immediately after death. Of course, there are those that rebel and Hell has to send out soldiers to locate and capture these errant spirits.”

The whole thing sounded wonderfully exciting. “So you’re going to Heaven then?”

“Eventually.”

“Why have you waited so long? From what I’ve heard it’s a place most people would love to go to as soon as they could.”