America's King of Poetry

Chapter 43 Missing Time

After receiving a page from Abramo, Arthur said goodbye to Carter.

Carter returned the sushi Arthur brought to him, saying that he didn't like sushi, but Gina liked it, so leave it to Gina.Arthur took the box of sushi and left the apartment. When he went downstairs, he found a public phone booth and called Abramo back.On the phone, Abramo asked Arthur to set an address, and the two made an appointment. He said that he had something to show Arthur himself.

After thinking about it, Arthur decided to meet at St. James' Cathedral, and he happened to be going there.

Half an hour later, Arthur arrived at St. James' Cathedral on a motorcycle.It has been a month since Good Friday, and the raging fire still lingers in Arthur's mind for a long time.After that, he would take time to come every week, donate some property to the church, and became a frequent visitor here. He gradually got acquainted with the priest of the church, hoping to get some information.

Walking into the hall of St. James Church again, Arthur stepped on the bright tiles to the bench near the canopy, and found a seat to sit down.He doesn't believe in religion, and every time he comes to the church, he feels restless, as if the whole church is about to collapse.But he insisted on coming here every week, knowing that there must be some answers hidden here.

Because it was Saturday, not the main Sunday, there were not many people in the church.Behind the canopy, a few workers stepped forward to the flower window and set up a ladder, seeming to repair the window.When Arthur saw the flower window, he thought of the four-sided glass window flower that was led by the old priest in black to watch that day.Later, he went to the New York Library to check that the four horses should represent the four horsemen of the apocalypse in the Bible, also known as the four horsemen of the end.

They appear in the New Testament of the Bible - Chapter 6 of the Apocalypse, depicting that when the end comes, four knights ravaging the world will bring death and disaster to the world.This is consistent with the depiction on the glass window grilles.

Arthur thought, now it is 1994, does this herald the end of 1999?Then why did I come to this time and space?Is it just to bring disaster to this world?No matter how you think about it, Arthur feels that he is quite decent. Even if he is secretly manipulating the mafia, he has not done anything harmful. He still wants to unify the world and bring peace to the American people.

Just holding his hands together, sitting on the bench with his eyes closed, Arthur looked like he was praying devoutly, but he was actually thinking wildly in his mind.To be honest, he quite likes his current life. He has no mobile phone, no Internet, and no family burden. He does seemingly simple and boring work every day, and secretly plans plans that no one knows about.After the initial panic and the spate of killings, everything seemed to fall into place.

He took one step at a time, watched one step at a time, and took another step at a time. He didn't know how far he would go or where he would go.But since there is a road sign ahead, of course he has to figure out where the road sign is pointing to.

"Arthur."

A gentle voice came from his ear. Arthur opened his eyes and saw a priest standing in front of him. It was Father Walls of St. James Cathedral.Arthur found an opportunity to get in touch with him before. He didn't say that he was the cook of Luciano's restaurant, but pretended to be a successful young businessman.

For religions that do not involve in production, donations from believers are an important source of income for their daily maintenance. Arthur is not a believer in this parish, but for such a young man with an extraordinary appearance and seems to be quite intelligent, the priest will naturally be in his heart.Today Arthur wore a black coat, looking very solemn.

Arthur got up and exchanged greetings with Father Walls. Father Walls led him to the stained glass windows that the workers were repairing, and said, "These three stained windows have been repaired for a long time. We are going to renovate and replace the paintings on them." For churches, the paintings on the stained glass windows need to be updated. As for what to update, it often depends on who is willing to pay for the replacement.Many groups with religious backgrounds will donate flower windows to show their piety.

Arthur's eyes rolled, he was a clever and slick person, but his dignified appearance of a 23-year-old young man concealed it.He sensed an opportunity from Walls' words, and immediately said: "Father Walls, I really want to donate this flower window, no matter how much it costs, I can afford it. If possible, I'd better paint the most gorgeous one to show my devotion to Christ."

Father Walls showed a smile on his face. He admired Arthur's ingenuity. Smart conversations can save a lot of trouble.There are three large flower windows in St. James Cathedral. If the largest flower window needs to be replaced, it will cost a lot of money. Of course, the church can afford it, but it would be better if someone donates it.

Arthur didn't have any money, but the Luciano family had it, and so did the Abramo family. Arthur didn't care much about money.After making the promise, Arthur said that he did not bring a checkbook. When Abramo came, he would donate $5000 to the church first, and the subsequent donations would be made in one step.Father Walls was very satisfied with Arthur's generosity, and took Arthur directly to the office for a cup of coffee.

The two chatted in the office for a while, and Arthur finally found an opportunity to ask, seemingly unintentionally: "I heard that St. James's Cathedral was burned down before, and the current church is rebuilt?"

Father Walls paused, shook his head and said, "Well... how should I put it, it was a long time ago. People say it was burned down, but in fact it was just demolished. That happened in 1903, more than 90 years ago. The original church was really small, and the parish needs a bigger church. Of course, the current church is still smaller."

In the Diocese of Brooklyn, the size of St. James' Cathedral has always been insufficient, and some large-scale religious activities cannot be held here, and often need to be transferred to the nearby St. Joseph's Church.Father Walls has always been worried about this. He certainly didn't know what Arthur meant by asking this question, thinking that he was going to discuss the size of the church.

"I've always been interested in the history of the church. Where can I get this information?" Arthur asked, wanting to know more.

"Oh, we have a reference room that stores some things from the past. If you are interested, you can come and look at them at any time. Oh, by the way, what do you think about the pattern of the flower window, Arthur?" Wallace is still more concerned about the church's new flower window.

"If possible, I would like to draw a picture of the end of the world to warn the world."

Arthur's answer surprised Father Walls. He didn't expect Arthur to say that, and he didn't know how to respond for a while.Arthur quickly laughed and said that he was joking. If possible, he hoped to paint the scene of Jesus' crucifixion and walk on the road with a cross on his back.Walls' expression softened a lot, indicating that this is okay.

The two chatted for 10 minutes. Arthur came out to check and found that Abramo had arrived.He hurried in through the door of the church, and after entering, he looked around for Arthur.Arthur stepped forward and waved to him, invited him to the priest's office, and asked him if he had brought the check.

Abramo took out a checkbook from his inner pocket, wrote a $5000 check at Arthur's command, tore it off and handed it to Father Walls.Father Walls accepted the donation solemnly and recorded it. He quickly said that Arthur could come to the church at any time, and they would meet any needs.Sure enough, in a capitalist country, money is a magic trick.

$5000 is not a small amount, but Abramo didn't even bat an eye or ask.This was seen by Father Walls, who believed in his heart that Arthur must be an authoritative figure.

After the donation was over, Abramo pulled Arthur out of the office, found a corner and sat down.Only then did he take out the piece of paper from his pocket, which Hunter handed him in Madison Square Garden, carefully placed it in front of Arthur, and said softly, "Take a look, it's really similar, but I'm not sure at all, or I can't believe it."

Arthur took the paper from Abramo, unfolded it, and found that it was a copy of a missing persons data sheet in the United States.In the photo column was a pretty girl with short hair. Arthur could tell at a glance that this was Anna!Anna's profile has been found!He hurriedly looked down, only to see that the information read:

Georgia Jean Weckler, of Fort Atkinson, Wisconsin, disappeared May 1947, 5.

(End of this chapter)