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mend, and do so with astonishing rapidity.
    “In Heaven, these aspects of your new body would have become a blessing, but here, they are a curse. As to why you are here, I do not know. I do not understand why some sleep until their final judgment, while others are condemned to this place. I am not so bold as to question my Creator’s motives.” There was a moment of hesitation. “I did that once, but not again. Now, I exist to serve. I do what I am told, and no more.”
    That last comment struck Serena as being quite odd. Yet, she did not feel at all inclined to probe into this angel’s relationship with God. No, right now, she had troubles enough of her own.
    They passed two intersecting corridors, containing still more cells and more souls, whose eternal future held nothing but pain and remorse. These corridors seemed to extend for miles. Serena could only imagine how many people were awaiting their terrible fate in this place. Serena was startled by a loud mechanical clanking emanating from a cell to her right. As she watched, the crude cell door opened, making clear her entrance into the small chamber.
    The angel motioned toward the empty cubical. “You will enter your cell now, my child.”
    Serena couldn’t seem to resist the angel’s voice, and quietly walked into the small enclave. The massive cell door closed behind her, locking her in. The angel turned to depart.
    “Wait,” pleaded Serena, moving to the bars of her cell. “Do you have to leave right now?”
    “What would be accomplished if I remained?” he asked. “It is not within my power to intervene when satan’s minions come for you. Over the years, so many of your kind have pleaded with me to do just that.”
    “Please, that’s not the reason,” replied Serena. “Could I at least know your name? Angels do have names don’t they?”
    The angel turned toward Serena, his expression spoke of his curiosity regarding the nature of her question. “Yes, child, I have a name. It was given to me by God Himself. I am Aaron.”
    “When this is all over, you will be going back to Heaven, won’t you?”
    “Yes,” replied Aaron.
    “Aaron, I would be eternally grateful if you would carry a last message from me to my husband.”
    Aaron looked at the young woman incredulously. “Child, you don’t have a husband. This thing you must accept.”
    Serena caressed the golden band about her finger. “Aaron, I wish to differ with you. I do have a husband.”
    “Not in the sight of God,” Aaron said, who at this point felt the need to depart. “That is the standard I must uphold. You have become a non-entity. All memory of your existence has faded from Heaven and Earth. The relationship you shared with this man, this son of God, no matter how real it may seem to you, does not exist.”
    “No,” insisted Serena, pointing defiantly to her heart. “It exists here. The love we shared is not dead so long as it still dwells within me. Nothing can take that away.”
    “I do not wish to be cruel,” Aaron said, “please understand. But you must face facts. You do not yet comprehend the relentless agonies of Hell, and what they shall do to you. In a tragically short time, this love you speak of will be ripped from your heart. In the end, this place will leave you with little more than your most primal animal instincts.”
    “All the more reason for me to give you this message now, while the love within me still lives,” insisted Serena.
    “You understand that Chris will have no recollection of you, or the love you shared,” said Aaron. “Even if I approached him and spoke of you, which I may not, it would mean nothing to him.”
    “But perhaps, someday, he will remember,” replied Serena, tears welling up in her eyes. “I know I will never see him again. I will never get out of here. But you might see him, and if one day, by some miracle he remembers the love we shared, I want to entrust you with a message for him. Will you be able to remember