Lovers pay a terrible price for violating a taboo
by Rob Peyton
Professor Delmore stood before the wooden signpost in which was carved “Peiravenu Stele 2 miles.” When he was a young boy living in Manhattan Beach, his father warned him numerous times to steer clear of the stele. Even as a youngster, however, Delmore questioned why his father harbored such superstitious and unfounded concerns about Hermosa Beach’s most impressive monument. Young Delmore often snuck off just to admire the 26-foot tall stone monument, which scholars claimed had been built by the Critterites, a group of Aztecs who had fled from the Spanish conquistadors and settled in the north end of Hermosa.
The stele was not at the forefront of Delmore’s thoughts today, however. Instead, Delmore was wrestling with two contradictory sentiments. He was deeply saddened by his father’s recent death, but he was also elated at the prospect of reacquainting with Margaret. Two days before his father had succumbed to cancer, Delmore received a message from Margaret asking him to please come see her in Manhattan. Although Delmore did not consider her to be superstitious, she demanded that Delmore take the longer, slower route through El Segundo. Nevertheless, Delmore opted for the faster route via the stele.
Before moving on from the signpost, however, he retrieved his father’s black eyepatch from his pocket — the eyepatch Delmore had removed from his father’s face before the burial. Now, feeling somewhat guilty about ignoring his father’s pleas to stay away from the stele, Delmore placed the patch over his left eye and said, “I love you, Dad. I miss you.”
Trudging along through Hermosa’s plush green belt, Delmore’s mind turned to Margaret. He met her while working at the Great Lakes of El Segundo. While swimming in Lake Chevron below a towering cliff something crashed into the water within inches of him. A young woman surfaced and apologized profusely for nearly landing on his head. They swam to shore and sat on the beach. She was shivering. He wrapped his towel around her, and they sat and talked for hours.
She also was a summer employee at the Great Lakes and lived in nearby El Porto. From then on, they spent all their time together, but one event stood out. After a brisk swim one day they visited a local market and purchased two frozen candy bars. Sitting outside the store, Margaret combed her hair with her fingers and asked how she looked. Delmore noted to himself that she looked beautiful but replied: “You look like a maidmer.”
“What’s a maidmer?” she asked.
“It’s a mermaid but it’s the top half that looks like a fish.”
She playfully attempted to hit him, but he slipped away. She then hurled her frozen candy bar hitting him squarely in the forehead. She apologized profusely but couldn’t contain her laughter.
“Laugh you …. That’s the second time you’ve nearly killed me!” he exclaimed.
She then embraced him. He hugged her back, and he knew at that moment he wanted to spend the rest of his life with her. But it didn’t happen. And now, like many times before, he wondered, “What went wrong? Why didn’t she come to see me? She swore she would, but she never did. Why?”
While pondering these questions, Delmore arrived at the Peiravenu Stele which denotes the boundary between Hermosa and Manhattan. The massive stele contains an inscription facing the Manhattan side only — “kampa ompa kateh amo ixpolomeh in tlakah miki.” Below the inscription are two perfectly round indentations about three feet in diameter. The mysterious stele has been attributed to Peiravenu the Great, known as the King Solomon of the Critterites.
After admiring the stele, Delmore removed his father’s eyepatch then entered Manhattan, the former penal colony where he lived as a child. Delmore had only one memory from that period. His dad, a prison guard, had come home early from work and was very agitated. He told Delmore the prison was closing as it was being replaced by a ceramics factory. He then placed his hands on Delmore’s shoulders and said,“Tomorrow I’m going to take you away from here forever, stele or no stele. And you and I never will return.”
In point of fact, Delmore never returned to Manhattan, that is, until now. Once there, he took the concrete walkway to Center Street. That street, which had been so dismal in his youth, was now lined with palm trees bristling with dark-eyed juncos. Trendy shops and fancy restaurants were everywhere, and the street was spotless. The city’s transformation dazzled him.
As he approached the designated restaurant, Delmore excitedly felt in his pocket for the wedding band he had bought so many years before. He recognized Margaret immediately. She was at an outside table looking exceptionally beautiful — lush brown hair, full lips, fashionable sunglasses framing a perfectly sculpted face. Even her demeanor seemed defiant and fearless. “Margaret,” he said.
She jumped. “Delmore?”
“Yes, it’s me.”
You startled me.”
“Oh my god, it’s so, so good to see you,” he said.
“I hear you’ve done well, professor,” she said smiling. “I’ve ordered wine.”
“I see that.” After filling their glasses, he said, “I wish to propose a toast.” Margaret reached for the glass, almost knocking it over. “To us,” Delmore said.
They spent dinner reliving the summer of their youth. From Delmore’s perspective, little had changed. She seemed a bit less steady, maybe a bit fidgety. And her laughter was a bit toned down, but otherwise she was exactly the same.
Just like so many years before, he was eager to propose. Unfortunately the ring was intertwined with his father’s eyepatch. When he fished the two out of his pocket the ring tumbled to the ground.
“What’s that?” she asked, adjusting her sunglasses.
“It’s my father’s eyepatch,” he said while stealthily retrieving the ring. “I told you about it at the Great Lakes.”
“I thought I heard something drop,” she said. “But why do you have your father’s eyepatch?”
“He passed away.”
“I’m so sorry. From what you told me before, he sounded like a wonderful person.”
“He was.” After a moment of silence, Delmore said, “I have something to say to you.”
“Yes.”
“Margaret, I fell madly in love with you at the Lakes. And I —“
“I felt exactly the same, Delmore. I loved you with all my heart.” She extended a palm, and he grasped it with his free hand.
“I have to ask you something,” he said solemnly. “Why didn’t you come see me that summer after the Lakes? You promised. I even made you swear you would come.”
“Don’t you know?”
“Know what?”
“Your father, he —“
“My father? What’s he got to do with it?”
“Did he ever tell you how he lost his eye?” she asked.
“It was a hunting accident —“
“There was no hunting accident. My god, you don’t know.”
“Know what?”
“It was the stele.”
“What?”
“It’s a warning. A dire warning.”
Delmore was dumbfounded. “What are you talking about?”
She squeezed his hand. “Your father’s eye was taken for trespassing.”
“What?”
“The stele. It’s written in Aztec but quotes the Bible. Proverbs. ‘Where there is no vision the people perish, but blessed is he who keeps the law.’”
“So?”
“In the eyes of the Critterites and their Hermosan ancestors anyone from Manhattan Beach is considered lawless.”
“Margaret, what are you telling me?”
“Any adult caught entering Hermosa from Manhattan will have an eye removed, the left eye. Then the trespasser is sent back. After a second attempt, the other eye is removed. That’s what the two hollow circles on the stele represent — gouged out eyes. I have no idea why they let you and your father stay. He must have been a very persuasive man.”
Delmore had heard rumors over the years but he had always discounted them. “Pure poppycock,” he thought. But now, knowing it was true, he couldn’t hold back the tears. “Good lord, my father sacrificed an eye to get me out of Manhattan Beach.”
“He did Delmore. And to this day Hermosans don’t allow Manhattanites to enter — at least without paying a heavy price.”
Suddenly something dawned on Delmore. “Oh my god! That’s why you didn’t come. El Porto is part of Manhattan Beach. Oh Margaret, you couldn’t come. They would have done the same to you.” He squeezed her hand tightly.
Margaret sobbed. “I loved you so much, Delmore.”
“Margaret, I have something for you.” He opened his other hand, revealing the wedding band.
Her head dropped. She whispered, “You don’t have any idea how much I loved you.”
“I understand, love. You couldn’t have come. I understand everything now.” He moved the ring closer to her, but she refused to even peer at it.
“Oh Delmore, you’re so dumb sometimes,” she said. “Don’t you see?”
“See what, Margaret?”
“I did come. I came twice.” And with that, Margaret lifted her head and removed her sunglasses. ER
