The air was thicker than mud as I stared across the table at him. Finally. The pale figure in a tailored black suit leaned forward in his seat and spoke.

“You’re early” said Death.

“I’m not here for myself” I seathed, “I’m here for my sister.”

“Interesting” Death calmly retorted, leaning back in his chair. “And what about your sister?”

“I want her back.” I said. “You took her unfairly and you should return her.”

“You’ve been on a long journey to find me here young man”

“Yes I have, a very long journey” I replied, as I reminisce  back to the day I left my home in Roanoke, Virginia, almost three months ago.

.....

“Jackson Erin Saunders you get back in this house right now. Running away won’t bring Charlie back,” my mother had shouted at me from the front porch. I had been just starting to pack my car for this journey when she woke up and started panicking. Nothing she could say would deter me. My little sister Charlotte was gone and I wasn’t going to rest until I brought her back.

Charlie had died six months ago at only four years old. She had been battling a rare form of cancer that attacked her sensory organs. She had been blind by the time she was two. Whether from the cancer or experimental treatment, I wasn’t sure. All of this was incredibly unfair. I was broken. Charlie was so young and her life and been stolen away from her.

My first stop was in Knoxville Tennessee. I didn't want to stop but had started veering into the road too many times to think it rational to continue driving. I really don't know what I expected from a town called Knoxville, for some reason the name sounded exciting. But it was no different than my hometown. There was a zoo, couple of museums, and a street somewhere in it full of concert venues. I drove down that street while I was looking for a cheap motel. There were hundreds of people, living there lives, with no clue how close or far they were from death. They took their lives for granted and I resented them for it. I finally found a cheap room. I slept and went on my way again.

The next stop was in Birmingham, Alabama where I had lunch. The people in this city were proud of the history there. The people there were friendly and talkative. My sister Charlie would have loved it there. Thinking about how much Charlie would have loved this trip, if it had been for any other reason, gave me the drive to push forward to New Orleans.

When I arrived in the city it was overwhelming. It was a never ending party with those who had money living it up all day and night and those who were broke stuck in a loud, brightly lit reminder of what they couldn’t have. It  took me days of wandering around and talking to people to locate my target. Some people looked at me like they had seen my plight a million times before, others like I was the new local druggie hopped up on god knows what.

That’s what brought me here. Staring across the table at death himself.
...
“So why make this long journey when you know I am finale. No one comes back from death, Jackson.” Death gently laughed.
“It’s time to make an exception. Charlie was too young when you started ripping away at her. She didn’t even get a start.” I roared back.
“This isn’t uncommon young man. People die at all ages. She wasn’t the youngest, and her death not the cruelest. At least she was loved.”
“I KNOW SHE WAS LOVED,” I shouted. “SHE WAS LOVED MORE THAN ANYONE COULD EVER BE LOVED AND THAT’S WHY YOU BRING HER BACK. I NEED HER.”

Death paused until I had regained my composure and then took a deep breath before leaning over the table to speak to me.

“I know you think me cruel, Jackson, but this is simply the order of things. There is balance in the world. Life creates things, I destroy them. I don’t like my job anymore than you like it. I don’t take joy in separating the innocent from the living world. The innocent greatly outweigh the guilty. I’m sorry, but I cannot bring Charlotte back.”

Death then calmly got up, walked away from the table and towards a wall before vanishing in a thick black smoke. I fell to my knees in the dimly lit room and sobbed. I knew somewhere in me that this journey was futile, but now everything was certain and final. I rose from the ground and noticed a stargazer lily gently placed on the table with a note.

"I cannot bring your sister back from death. But I give you this flower, a favorite of hers. I shall spare it from my grasp and it can serve as a reminder of her love. I will take good care of her, Jackson. Here she feels no pain, only love, joy and sunlight. Please return home safely, I hope I do not have to meet you again for a long time."
     -Death