The Hollow Man, a short story written by Sandie May Joyce (Sandie Angel). When a man has sold his soul to the devil, he will become soulless and without any conscience. Will a man without a soul survive in this world? Scroll down to read this story...
“Okay Sir, what would you like?” Asked the young punk behind the counter.
Now...What’s on that menu? The Hollow Man couldn't read anything on that board! The words were too small and the board was too far away! He strained his eyes but still could not see. He left his glasses at home once again!
"Ummm" he was thinking fast. What could be up there on that menu?
"Sir! What do you want?" The young punk asked again. He had no patience, but had an attitude. Now, putting both hands on each side of the counter, he anxiously rushed the Hollow Man for an answer. When he still didn't get an answer, he rolled his eyes up with disgust, and said, “Sir, if you’re undecided on ordering yet, would you mind stepping aside for the next person in line? There’s a long lineup here if you don’t mind."
"Just give me bacon and eggs," Hollow Man finally said. It must be on the board at this time of the day. he thought.
The punk kid behind the register methodically rang in the price on the till and told the Hollow Man to pay $5.99. He did not even bother to ask the Hollow Man whether or not he needed a coffee. Guess he must have thought he could not afford it. The Hollow Man hated this young punk because he reminded him so much of himself the time when every one of his friends hated to be with him.
He thought of being powerful once again. He thought of owning a business and being successful like he once was, but now he was just a Hollow Man. All his business partners had left him one after the other, because of the way in which he interacted with them. Cheating was his game, and being mean by making others suffer by forcing them into bankruptcies was his joy. Oh, he was successful at one time, right after he made a deal to trade his soul to the devil. He thought that was really a game some business adversaries had set up to fool him. He agreed to sell his soul then. Just how did he manage to sell his soul and still be alive? He had often wondered about that. Now it seemed as though his soul had left him, leaving him on his own - like all he had now was a hollow feeling deep inside of him. He had not known this feeling before.
Now, there existed within him this horrible feeling of emptiness, a feeling so surreal, as if he were a visitor on this earth – walking among it, but not in it. Disconnected from everything and everyone around him. People, places would pass before, beside, behind, around him as a blur as if he were caught somewhere in-between time and space; conversations are spoken in tongues of gibberish, incomprehensible.
Outside of this feeling of disassociation with the world, he felt himself beginning to hallucinate. The disconnection with everything that surrounded the Hollow Man became exceedingly intense, to the point he felt he could almost envisage himself outside of his body and mind, watching himself - and, in his creeping madness, he could feel a presence as paranoia began to eke its way into what remained of his psyche – he could feel, sometimes, and he was sure of this – sometimes he could even see, floating above himself – a creature following him, stalking him. Everywhere the Hollow Man would go, the creature would be following him, almost heel to heel!
He felt the creature was "Unhuman", who only possessed a pair of eyes, watching him. Could the creature be the Reaper of Death? The eyes know everything he does, even in the privacy of his own time in the bathroom. He was made to feel like he was the victim of a big scandal, but in reality, he was not the victim. Anything he was now he had brought upon himself.
He sat there at the run-down cafeteria with its stained tables and chairs, remembering the time when he would wine and dine in some of the best hotels and restaurants, wearing his best monkey suit, talking business to many of his associates whom he would later wind up gutting them of their savings and ruining their chances for early retirement. He would talk to them without any conscience. Sure, some people might think he was almighty. He had a lot of money then. Of course, he would have a lot of friends. Those fair-weather friends were always with him, wining and dining away. But as soon as he lost his fortune, not so much of a single soul took a second look at him, nor had anyone offered a hand to help him out. No! Not even Brady, who was supposed to be his best right-hand man. Together, he and Brady had swindled so many people of their life's savings, the names of their victims could be a mile long!
So what happened? How did he lose all of that? How in the world could he have lost all that he had swindled from others? He was supposed to be the rich guy! The wealthiest among all his fair-weather friends! He was well-loved and was put on a pedestal by others! What in the world had happened to him? He often wondered about that.
The last time he remembered being rich was during the last card game tournament. The devil, who was supposed to be on his side, had always made him the winner. He was so sure that last time was of no exception.
He remembers that day as if it was yesterday. He had called Mr. Finlay, who was the owner and CEO of Finlay and Associates to come in to discuss his loan and assets. Mr. Finlay sat timidly right across him in his office.
He remembered telling Mr. Finlay that his loan was due for payment in full because he had missed his last couple of payments. Mr. Finlay was appreciative of the huge loan that the Hollow Man had lent him to save his company when the company was in need of funds, he thought the Hollow Man was a good Samaritan who had a good heart and liked to save others, but little did he know that he had no soul and no conscience. After the Hollow Man loaned him the money, his interests kept building up, and Mr. Finlay could no longer afford his payment anymore. The business was now in near bankruptcy. Mr. Finlay had a lot to worry about - the lives of his family members, and the lives of his employee's family members. How are they going to deal with the sudden loss of income? Mr. Finlay had a heart of gold, but he was in bad health, any more stress would give him a heart attack.
But the Hollow Man kept pounding on Mr. Finlay for loans repayments. He wanted him to give up his company, he wanted everything! He would go to the extreme to make sure that Finlay and Associates would belong to him, as he did with other companies.
"I'll tell you what, Mr. Finlay," said the Hollow Man. "I will let you have a chance to clear off the debts that you owe me."
"How?" Mr. Finlay's eyes lit up. There was a little glimmer of hope inside his eyes.
"I will let you settle it by playing games of poker with me," said the Hollow Man. "You come to my casino on Main Street tomorrow evening, and we will settle it through rounds of poker game. There will be 3 games played, and each game will consist of 3 rounds. When a player won 2 rounds within the same game, the 3rd round of that game will not be played, and that player will be declared the winner of that game. Thus, the two players shall move forward to the next round of 3 games. In case of a tie, one tie-breaker game shall be played to determine the final winner. I shall put up the amount that you owe me, and you - if you lose, you shall owe me double of the amount that you owe me. How does that sound to you?"
Mr. Finlay's heart skipped a beat. This is like gambling with his life and the lives of many of his employees. How could he accept that? He was not a gambler and he was not a skillful poker player. He would lose, for sure. But was this the only option for him to wipe out this loan? He looked across at the Hollow Man and his heart just froze in suspense when he saw a devilish smirk appear across the Hollow Man's face.
"Mr. Halman! I don't think I can accept that challenge, because that would mean gambling my life and company away," he said.
"Well, there isn't much choice for you," said the Hollow Man. "I need the funds in full payment by tomorrow evening. I will have it either one way or another. You think about it and let me know. I will wait for your call. If I don't hear from you by tomorrow evening, I will go ahead and file a lawsuit in demand for my loan to be paid in full. It's your choice. I'm actually giving you an option to have your debts wiped out.
Hollow Man was so sure he was going to win, as he always would. He was ensured by the devil. He knew he would be the winner. The devil was always on his side and he would make him the winner.
There was no other choice for Mr. Finlay. He came to the Casino the following evening, and both he and the Hollow Man sat down at the table for the most important gamble of their lives.
Before the game, the Hollow Man had consulted his devil, who had in certainty promised that he would be the winner.
Indeed! The Hollow Man had won two rounds of the 3 games played in a row, which had doubled the size of the loan of Mr. Finlay.
Mr. Finlay was heartbroken. He wiped off the sweat on his forehead; and with the tears in his eyes, began for his sorrowful departure.
"Wait a minute, Mr. Finlay!" said the Hollow Man. "We can still play the third game if you like. I will allow you to play one more round of the 3 games with me. I am a very fair person."
"How? I have no more money to play with you, Mr. Halman! You have won already!"
The Hollow Man looked at his victim and laughed inside his head. He secretly congratulated himself on his good fortune that a company, "Finlay and Associates" was about to be added onto his business empire. His heart was filled with greed and joy.
"How about if I told you I will play the third game with you. I will play by putting my company on the table, and you play by placing yours too up for grabs," he said, at the same time putting his company's deed on the table. "If I lose, you get my company, and if you lose I get yours. It is actually in your favour because my company is worth more than ten times the value of yours."
Mr. Finlay sat in silence on his chair - stunned - unable to make a decision. He felt as though he had just been pushed up against the wall by an invisible force, he was ready to have a heart attack. He felt dizzy and was about to faint. In an angry protest, he got up from his chair and was about to tell off the Hollow Man. He pointed his finger at him in disbelief. He had just found out how wicked a person this man really was. Mr. Finlay pointed a finger at the Hollow Man but only was able to utter two words, "You... you..." then he fell to the floor and became unconscious. Instead of calling for an ambulance, he was escorted by the staff into a private hotel room. The Hollow Man's private doctor was called immediately to respond to Mr. Finlay's treatment. The doctor confirmed that Mr. Finlay was stressed and tired, but did not suffer a heart attack. However, he was very weak and in need of rest. He advised that Mr. Finaly's heart was very weak, and could not possibly play any more card games, so everyone had vacated the room to allow Mr. Finlay to get some rest.
Later, that night, Mr. Finlay came out of that room. He looked well-rested and was happy to be alive. For an unknown reason, he smiled the brightest smile that no one had ever seen on him before! He demanded that if the Hollow Man wished to play the third game for the company, he would accept it but only to have the third game played in his room.
A game table was set up for the two. The Hollow Man came with many of his followers, and many of the casino patrons had got the news about the game of a lifetime, they had trooped into the room to watch the game as well.
Five cards were spun out from the dealer's deck to the two players. To the surprise of the Hollow Man and his staff, Mr. Finlay won the first round.
Now, there remain two rounds to be played. If Mr. Finlay wins this second game. He would win back everything plus the Hollow Man's company.
Both men wiped the sweats off their foreheads. The Hollow Man could not believe that he would lose a game. He needed to confront the devil why he was losing, but it was too late.
Two sets of cards were spun out for the next game.
The Hollow Man got 3 Aces, and a 5 of spade, and a 7 of diamonds. He called to exchange the 5 and the 7. The dealer picked the next two cards for him from the deck. He looked at the cards and smiled. He thought with 4 Aces, an 8 of diamonds may win whatever the cards that Mr. Finlay may be holding. He felt the Devil was still on his side helping him to get that extra Ace, even though this may not be the best suit of cards ever.
Mr. Finlay had a good hand too when he looked at the cards, he had 6,7,8,9 of clubs, but one card stood out like a sore thumb. It was the 2 of clubs which even though it was the same suit, it would not give him the sequence that he needed to win. His heart was beating very fast again. He MUST change that card! He needed either a 5 or a 10 of clubs for a Straight Flush to win. There was no doubt about it! He must change that card! He began to perspire which pleased the Hollow Man who unconsciously let out a vile smile, out of the corners of his mouth.
Mr. Finlay called out to exchange that 2 of clubs. The dealer retrieved the next card available from the deck and gave it to him. Mr. Finlay looked at the card intensely. He was pleased! The dealer had just given him a 5 of clubs!
When the cards were called. Mr. Finlay slammed his Straight Flush on the table. The Hollow Man could not believe his eyes! He had just lost his whole empire! How could he? And why would he want to put his whole business empire on the line for gambling? What made him be so stupid to have done that? What was it? Was it his greed? Yes and no, he was so certain that his Devil would assist him to win the game as it always had been in the past. He could not believe it that he would lose this game. What made him lose?
After the game was over. Mr. Finlay held a great party of celebration. He thanked everyone for their loyalty in staying with the company and working hard even on only two-thirds of a regular salary. He promised everyone a hefty raise and advised them of the new company he had won from the Hollow Man, and told them everything was going to be different from now on.
And of course, it will be different because Mr. Finlay's angel was more powerful than the Hollow Man's devil.
Later, Mr. Finlay would tell everyone that while he was in the room recuperating from his fainting spell, he had encountered an Angel. In his near-death experience, Mr. Finlay's soul was able to leave his body, entering into a very beautiful place. It was a gorgeous beach where he had encountered a beautiful Angel. The sun was shining bright, and the water was lukewarm. It sparkled as if it was covered with diamonds, it made the ocean so bright and sparkled with warm reflection of light and freshness; yet, the brightness did not hurt his eyes. It made him feel very happy to be there. As he walked on the beach, the sand was pure white and was soft like cotton. There were strange, multi-colored, fruits growing from the trees. A beautiful woman was there on the beach with outstretched arms welcoming him. Her name was Angel.
Angel held out her hands to hold Mr. Finlay's. She comforted him, and made him feel so good and mended his broken heart. He told Angel of his ill fate and told her that he was about to lose all that he had worked for in his life and there was nothing he could do to avoid the bad luck that was about to befall upon him.
Angel comforted him, assuring him that all of his bad luck will end soon and that everything will be different from this point forward. She told him that he had to go back to face the challenge and do whatever he needed to do, and from then on his luck would change for the better. She assured him that he would be a winner if he would play the game in his hotel room instead of the casino.
Mr. Finlay put his trust in the Angel and did as he was told. He became the winner of the card game! His Straight Flush had beaten the Hollow Man's Four of A Kind Aces! He would quickly learn that when it comes to the powers between an angel and a devil, the power of an angel is always the stronger force!
Copyright (c) Sandie May Joyce
All Rights Reserved
The Hollow Man was too greedy and tried too hard to rip others off from their success. It was never too much for him. At the end he fell into his own trap. Good for Mr. Finlay!
Nice story, Sandi. As one that used to play poker, only nickle, dime, the story and writing did hold my interest... Good job!
Mark
Reviewed by May Yu
9/21/2018
As it has always been - the Good karma will always go to the good people, and the bad karma will bite those who have been bad. Karma always finds its way to bite back, so beware of what we do to others. The Hollow Man had just got what he deserves.
This was very nice, but dark and scary! It has a good ending, but the dark soullessness of the Hollow Man scared me. And so life can be scary because you never know how evil somebody really is... especially when you go to a bar or something. But even some people in church can be scary! You have portrayed his evil thoughts well! Thanks!
Such an engaging story, Sandie. Makes me think. Thank you for sharing it. Love and best wishes.
Regis
Reviewed by Danny Underwood
9/13/2018
A very good and well-constructed story! It's the good vs. the bad, and eventually the good won over. The Hollow Man had a hollow brain, he was not prepared for the outcome of his failure. Sad, and not so sad because he did swindle a lot from others.
Thank you for your comment! I have no idea who Faustian is and what his work is all about. I will look him up from the net later.
I wrote this story a few years ago in my den's Poetry section, but only half of the story was written. Today I put the finishing touch on this story and moved it to my Stories section. I'm glad you liked it!
I agree with Eva. Good will, eventually, overcome bad. I don't believe there are any devils or angels out there, but your Faustian tale brings everything up to date.
If you took every major epic fantasy that has ever been written and twisted them all into one fantastic tale of magic, sword play, and just plain old fantasy fun, you might get the first half of this 235,000 word monster of a read. The last half is a
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