Stepping to a New Day (17 page)

“Hi, Marie. How are you? Good to see you.”

“Same here. Look. I just wanted to apologize face-to-face for my actions during your trip.”

“Not necessary.”

“I think it is.”

“I hurt you, Marie. You going off on me was a normal reaction.”

“But I could've acted like an adult. As Genevieve said, my beef with you was forty years old.”

“True, but I'll be visiting Henry Adams a lot and I just want us to go forward. We're too old to be rolling around on the floor.”

Marie found herself smiling at that. “You're right. So, pax?”

“Pax. How are things there? What's Gen up to?”

“She just moved into her new mobile home.”

“How exciting.”

They talked for the next thirty minutes, which Marie found amazing, and when they were done and Rita Lynn signed off, Marie sat back and smiled. She'd made amends with everyone now and it felt good to be at peace with herself again.

She was picking up the phone to text Genevieve to let her know how things had gone with Rita Lynn when she heard a knock on the door. She went to the window and didn't recognize the dark blue minivan parked in the driveway but opened the door. A well-dressed woman in a business suit stood on the other side. She had light brown skin and appeared to be about Lily's age. “Ms. Jefferson?” she asked.

Marie heard traces of the South in her voice and replied warily, “Yes.”

“We've never met but my name's Brandy French. I'm Brian's wife.”

“Brian?” The name took a few seconds to register. When it did Marie's heart sped up. He was the son she'd put up for adoption. “Has something happened to him?”

The woman shook her head. “No, ma'am, but I wanted to talk to you. Is it okay if I come in? I promise not to take up a lot of your time.”

Curious as to what this was about, Marie opened the screen and stepped back. “Come in.”

The woman gave her a nervous smile. “Thanks.”

They sat and Marie sensed the visitor choosing her words. “First of all,” she said, “I didn't know Brian had come to see you, but when I found out I was pretty mad at the way the visit turned out.”

“What do you mean?”

“Tell me if I'm wrong, but if I'd put a child up for adoption and that child suddenly turned up out of the blue, I'd assume the child wanted to get to know me, at least a little bit.”

“You aren't wrong.” The day had been painful. The visit left her so brittle she thought she might shatter into a thousand pieces.

“I want to apologize on behalf of me and the girls. Your granddaughters.”

A startled Marie searched her face.

“When I found out how cruelly you'd been treated, I wanted to take a belt to him. He doesn't think sometimes. At all.”

“Oh, Brandy,” Marie whispered. “Thank you for this, but why are you here?”

“Brian felt real bad after I broke it down and explained to him how you probably felt, and we'd like to start over. We'd like to have a relationship with you. Him, me and the girls. Is that okay?”

Marie began to cry.

Brandy got up and took her hands. “Please don't cry,” she said through her own tears. “I'm so sorry he's an idiot. And for what it's worth, his adopted mom, Janice, was pretty mad at him, too.”

Marie looked up.

“She sends her regards and would like to meet you one day if you wouldn't mind. She raised him but you gave him life. She said a child can never have too much love.”

Marie felt like she'd stepped into another dimension. “Are you in town on business?”

“No ma'am. I came all the way from Memphis just to see you. Took me a bit to find Henry Adams, but I'm here.”

“Oh my lord. Is he with you?”

“No ma'am. Too ashamed to show his face. I'm here as the lead scout so to speak. He wasn't sure you'd agree to see him again.”

“I would love to see him again, and I would love to have a relationship with you and the girls, and meet his adopted mom.”

“Good. I feel so much better. Do you want to see their pictures?”

Marie realized she was shaking. “Yes. How old are they?”

“Dina is sixteen and Andrea is fourteen.”

Brandy handed over her phone. “They favor their dad a lot, which means they favor you a lot.”

Marie could barely see them through her tears. “They're lovely.”

“They come from lovely stock.”

Marie laughed. “May I keep you?”

“Yes, ma'am. I'll be here until the Good Lord turns out the lights.”

Marie stood, opened her arms, and Brandy walked into the embrace. Marie whispered, “I'm so glad you're here.”

“Me, too.”

As Marie savored the fullness in her heart, Reverend Pau
la's advice rose in her mind:
Make peace with yourself so your blessings can flow . . .
Marie was glad she had.

For the next two hours Brandy and Marie forged a bond Marie had craved since giving up her son at birth. When time came for Brandy to return to the airport for the evening flight back to Memphis, they made arrangements to meet again, this time with the rest of her family. “Is it okay if we come back for Mother's Day?”

Tears stung Marie's eyes again. “Yes. That would be very okay.”

They shared a final parting hug and Marie knew her life was now complete. Heart full, she watched Brandy back the van down the driveway. As she drove away, Marie waved, wiped her tears, and picked up the phone to call Genevieve to share her spectacular news.

After talking with Marie, Genevieve put down her phone and wiped away her own joyful tears. What exciting news. She was so elated for her best friend and couldn't wait to meet the son and his family. She was also happy for herself. Her furniture had arrived. Gazing proudly at it and all the beautiful touches supplied by her friends, she decided that she and Marie were the two most blessed women on the planet.

She was on her way to the kitchen to cook her first meal when the doorbell sounded. She opened the door and there stood Terence.

“I know I probably shouldn't have just dropped by without calling first, but I brought you a housewarming gift.”

She was so glad to see him and he was so good-looking it took her a moment to remember her manners. “Come on in, please.”

He entered and looked around. “This is nice.”

“It is, isn't it? Have a seat.”

“No, I'll only be a minute.” He reached into his coat and withdrew a small square object wrapped in gold foil paper. He handed it to her. “Brought you something to thank you for your kindness. The girls said gold is your favorite color.”

Gen was having difficulty breathing. “It is. May I open it?”

“Of course.”

She pulled off the paper. It was a CD of Wes Montgomery's greatest hits. “Oh my.”

“I hope you don't already have it.”

“I don't,” she said, flipping it over to read the names of the selections it held.

“I had Leah order it for me. She said Amazon would get it to me faster than trying to find it in a store.”

“Amazon is amazing. This has all of his classics, including ‘Bumping on Sunset.'” It reminded her of their first meeting. Going forward, she'd always associate the tune with him.

“Yes, it does.”

“Thank you so much. This was very sweet of you.”

“Glad you like it.”

“I do.”

They stood in the silence, pretending they weren't staring at each other and failing miserably. Gen wanted to ask him to stay for dinner but she wasn't that bold yet. He solved the issue by saying, “I'll let you get back to your evening.”

An invitation to stay and have dinner almost slipped out. “Thanks for dinner. I mean for the CD.” Embarrassment burned her cheeks.

He smiled. “Can I take you to the movies tomorrow night?”

When she finally regained her ability to speak, she said, “Yes. I'd like that.”

“Good. I'll pick you up at seven.”

She walked him to the door. “We can start your lessons whenever you have the time.”

“Okay, let's talk about it tomorrow.”

“Sounds good. Thanks again for the CD.”

“You're welcome. See you tomorrow.” He gave her a wink and walked back out into the evening's fading light.

Genevieve closed the door and with her back pressed against it slowly melted to the carpeted floor. Kicking her feet with joy, she crowed, “I have a date, ladies and gentlemen. A real live date!”

H
aving received a text from Calvin that he'd be by around three, Paula drove over to the nearest fast food place to grab breakfast and stopped by a small grocery for provisions to get her through the weekend. As she placed her items on the belt, the cashier, a short Black woman with a kind smile, asked, “You visiting, ma'am?”

Paula wasn't offended. This was a small town and unfamiliar faces stood out. “Yes. I'm here for my grandfather's funeral.”

“What's his name?”

“Tyree Grant.”

The cashier paused in the midst of ringing up her order. “Della's daddy?”

“Yes. I'm his granddaughter, Paula.”

The woman studied Paula's face. “You're not Della's child.”

“No, she's my aunt. My mother was Patricia. Della's older sister.”

The woman seemed to be thinking, then said, “I remember now. You're Anna Lee's niece.”

Paula froze.

But the woman was checking the display on the register and didn't notice Paula's shocked face. “That'll be fifty-five seventy-two.”

Moving like a zombie Paula swiped her debit card and was handed the receipt. The woman finished by saying, “Condolences on your loss, honey. If you see Anna Lee, tell her Gaylene said hi.”

“Thank you. I will,” Paula managed to whisper.

Outside in the car, Paula sat and drew in a couple of deep breaths, hoping to calm her racing heart.
Anna Lee's niece?
All her life, Paula wondered who her father had been. Her mother always waved the question away by saying it didn't matter and after a while Paula stopped asking, but she'd assumed her mother had gotten pregnant after leaving Blackbird by a man in California. She cast her mind back to her teen years with her grandfather and vaguely remembered Anna Lee having an older brother, but couldn't recall if she'd ever met him. For sure she didn't know his name. She drew trembling hands down her face. Were she and Anna Lee really related? After driving to Tyree's to put the food away, she got back in the car and headed to Anna Lee's.

“Paula!” Anna Lee exclaimed happily when she answered the door. “Come in. How are you, honey?”

“I'm well.”

“Have a seat. It's so good to see you.”

The gold couch and chairs were encased in plastic. “Good to see you, too.”

For a woman who'd gone to school with Della, Anna Lee Spivey with her red bob wig, long fake nails, and carefully applied makeup was still a beautiful woman. The skinny jeans
and low-cut blouse showed off a trim but buxom figure. There was gold in her ears, hanging from her neck and circling her wrists.

“Can I fix you a drink?” she asked, walking over to the cut-glass decanters sitting on a glass tray on top of a large black piano.

“No, thank you.”

“Oh, that's right. You're a preacher now. Sorry. Mind if I have one?”

“No.”

“I know it's not noon yet, but what else is there to do in this godforsaken place? We drink, steal each other's husbands and wives and call it living.” She raised her glass to Paula in salute and downed a shot. Pouring herself another one, she took a seat on one of the chairs. “My condolences on your loss.”

“Thanks. My condolences to you, too.”

“Thanks. For all his faults, Tyree was good to me and my son. Not sure how we would've survived without him. Have you seen Della?”

“Yes. Yesterday.”

Anna Lee sipped and shook her head. “The devil's handmaiden. If she could've figured out a way to kill me and not get caught I'd've been dead for thirty years now. We've hated each other since high school. Stole Louis from me junior year and I never forgave her.”

Louis was Della's first husband. He left her for another woman, or so the story went.

“Paid her back, though. After graduation, I stole her daddy.” She winked and raised her glass again. “Wasn't hard. Every woman in town knew Tyree couldn't keep his pants zipped after his wife died.”

Paula didn't want to hear any more. “Can I ask you a question?”

“Sure.”

“Are we related?”

She paused. “Yes. You're my niece.”

Paula now had the truth but wasn't sure what to do with it.

“Pat never told you who your father was?”

“No.”

“Your daddy was my brother, Darren.”

“Is he still alive?”

“No, honey. He died in prison about fifteen years ago now.”

“What was he in prison for?”

“He and some three guys robbed a bank over in Tulsa. One of his buddies shot and killed a guard. He got the chair. Darren got life.”

Paula thought she was going to be sick.

“I can't believe she didn't tell you. He wasn't all that bad growing up. Yeah, he was in and out of trouble, but it was petty stuff. Shoplifting. Stealing cars. That kind of thing.”

A thousand questions ran riot in Paula's head. “So, did he know she was carrying me when she left town?”

“Everybody knew, and she didn't leave town on her own. Tyree took her to Oklahoma City, gave her fifty bucks, put her on a train, and walked away.”

Her eyes widened.

“That's what some families did with unmarried pregnant young women back then. Kicked them out. Now me, I come from a long line of bastards so when Tyree knocked me up my parents didn't trip. He didn't either once he found out the baby was a boy. Can you spell hypocrite?”

Paula was filled with so many conflicting emotions. Her
poor mother. “So was my father already in jail when I came to live here?”

Anna Lee nodded. “Yes. He went in a few years after Tyree put Pat on the train.”

Paula wondered if her mother knew that and was the reason she kept saying it didn't matter. Paula was going to have a lot of prayers to offer up later. A lot. “Does Della know the truth about what happened? She told me my mother left here willingly.”

“We were five years younger than Pat, so I don't know for sure. Only reason I know what happened was because my uncle was the one who drove them to Oklahoma City.”

Paula had heard enough. Overwhelmed, she stood.

Anna Lee said, “I'm glad you got away from here and made something of yourself, Paula. You're one of the lucky few.”

“It's never too late to change your life.”

She scoffed. “Yeah, right. I barely finished high school. I have no skills to speak of and I'm of a certain age. Go where? Do what? I was born here. I'll die here. Maybe in my next life.” She drained her glass, got to her feet, and walked over to the piano.

Paula prayed that she'd somehow find peace in her life. “Thank you, Anna Lee. I'm going to take off. I'll see you later.”

Anna Lee waved dismissively and was pouring another drink when Paula walked out the door.

She sat in the car a moment and replayed the startling revelations. All she could think about was how terrified her mother must have been the day Tyree took her to the train station and walked away. Had she cried and begged him to change his mind? What went through her mind when the train pulled out and she knew she was alone and on her own?
Heartbroken, Paula started the engine. Driving back, she could barely see the road for her tears.

Calvin showed up that afternoon as promised. “Mama told me you dropped by earlier,” he said when Paula opened the door to let him in.

“I did.”

They both took seats and Paula continued, “And I found out that I'm your niece and your cousin.”

He nodded. “I know. Crazy, right?”

“That's a pretty apt way to put it. Did you know?”

“I did. Figured you did, too.”

“No. I thought my father was someone she met in California. Della always said my mother left here willingly because she was uppity and thought she was better than everybody else.”

“I've learned that if Della says it's raining you'd better get up and go look. Sorry for your pain.”

“Thanks.” She remembered describing Blackbird as a snake pit. Little did she know the snakes in her own family would deliver the most venomous bite.

“You okay?”

“Trying to decide. It's not every day you learn your father was serving life in prison. I'm usually the counselor, not the one in need of counseling. I'll be fine. Just need time to process it all.”
Why had Della lied?

“How about we ride up to Boley for some dinner. Nice little place there that serves pretty good food. We can talk while we eat.”

“I'd like that.” She suddenly remembered what she was supposed to ask him. “Did Papa ever mention anything about problems with the plumbing?”

“What's it doing?”

She took him into the kitchen and showed him the weak stream of water.

“Might be the sump pump needs looking at,” he said. “No telling how old the thing is. I'll get somebody to check on it.”

“Any idea how much it might cost?”

He shrugged. “We'll cross that road when we get to it.”

“Okay.”

On the drive to Boley, she surveyed the passing landscape. “What's it like in the townships these days?” At one time the state had been home to over fifty all-Black townships. Now only a handful remained.

“Folks are hanging on. Doing the best they can with what they have. It's tough, though.”

“Why did you stay?”

He shrugged. “This is my home. Mama wouldn't know how to live anywhere else and probably neither would I.”

“And your kids. How are they?” He and his wife, Shannon, had been divorced for decades.

“Families of their own now. My daughter Michelle's in Oklahoma City. David's down in San Antonio. Both are doing well. I don't see them a lot, though.”

Paula heard the sadness in his voice.

He asked, “What about you? How's life?”

“It's good. Too scared to complain.” They laughed. She told him about Bernadine and Henry Adams. “She and the town have been a blessing to me.”

“No sweetheart? Your religion lets you marry, right?”

“Yes, but there's no special person in my life. Still waiting on God to send me someone.” She'd never admitted that out loud before.
Ask and ye shall receive,
the voice in her head
said. She smiled inwardly and turned her attention back to the landscape.

Calvin was right. The food at the little joint in Boley was great. As she ate her collards, sweet potatoes, and catfish, she asked him, “So what did you want to talk to me about?”

“Tyree's will.”

“I wondered if he had one.”

“Oh yes, and Della's going to stroke out.”

“Why?”

“He didn't leave her a dime.”

For some reason Paula didn't find that surprising. “So is this like a life insurance policy?”

“No. It's a stock portfolio worth about two hundred and fifty thousand dollars.”

Paula's eyes went wide as plates. “What?”

He smiled and nodded. “And he left half of it to me and the other half to you.”

Paula's fork slipped from her hand and clattered to the floor.