Drama in the Church Saga (31 page)

“But it would be great if you could get me morning classes.”

He questioned her preference with his eyes.

“I usually work in the afternoons and evenings.”

“Would you be interested in this?” He pointed to his screen. “It's a class called ‘The facts behind the book of Isaiah.' ”

Danyelle jumped up from her seat and looked over the reverend's shoulder. “I tried to sign up for that class, but the counselor at the registrar's office told me it was closed.”

“It is closed, but if you get the instructor's permission you can still sit in on his class,” Colin educated her.

“Really?” Danyelle knew it would be worth it to hold on and God would open a few doors for her. “Do you know the instructor?”

“You're talking to him. I can lift the closed status long enough to add your name to the roster.” He punched a few keys. “And,
ta-da,
you're in.”

Danyelle felt God's favor shine down on her. “Thank you, Reverend Montgomery.” Without thinking, she wrapped her arms around his neck and kissed him on the cheek. “I really appreciate this.” When she noticed how warm his body felt next to her, she quickly stepped back away from him.

“Please.” He enjoyed feeling her body so close to his. He placed her hand in his. “You can call me Colin.”

His touch placed a fire down in her pants that she had never felt before. Her heart dropped to the bottom of her stomach. Whatever she was feeling scared her enough to run from him. “Reverend—I mean Colin—I have to go.” She hurriedly grabbed her book bag to leave.

“What about your other classes?” he asked.

“That's all right. I'm fine with just three,” she hollered out before closing the door behind her.

Colin smiled. He knew there was something special about her.

Val banged her head against the car's steering wheel three times before her vision became blurred and she had to stop. “What am I doing here?” The rows of headstones surrounding her car pulled her back to reality. This was Julian's final resting place, and she was there to say good-bye.

It was her fifth attempt that week at trying to visit his grave. Each time before, she could never find the strength to get out of the car, but this time she prayed for God to hold her hand along the way.

It was hard for her to accept that Julian was gone. In her mind she understood that he was gone, but the gaping hole left in her heart kept growing every day. That's why she was there. She wanted closure. She thought that if she could feel his name etched in his headstone then she would be able to move on.

Not a day passed when she didn't ask God to turn back the hands of time. Just this once, she wanted to play God and change life events.

It was time for her to face her fears. Val swung her car door open. When she stepped out into the brisk air, that's when she noticed her labored breathing. Anxiety swelled in her belly, and doubts filled her head. She wasn't sure if she could do this.

She pulled out from her pocket a map the groundskeeper had given her. He said it would take her straight to Julian's grave. Her hands shook from nervousness. She set out on her journey and followed the directions through the maze of gravesites until she came upon another visitor who was crying hysterically at their loved one's final resting place.

“I'm so sorry,” the girl repeated while lying face down on top of the grave. Her clothes were full of dirt stains, and a small shovel lay by her side. She had just finished planting flowers, and her cries were so loud that she didn't notice she had company.

Val didn't want to intrude. She sympathized with this girl. She understood the kind of grief she was experiencing.

The temperatures were predicted to reach no higher than fifteen degrees. It was far too cold for anyone to be lying out on the ground, and Val began to wonder if this wasn't the Lord's work at hand. She thought perhaps she could have someone to talk to about the way she was feeling.

“Excuse me.” Val softly tapped her shoulder. “You look like you could use a friend to talk to.”

The girl swept the hair away from her face and sat up. When she turned around, all of Val's sympathy instantly vanished and was replaced with disbelief. Val was stunned to see her face. It was Caitlyn from Seattle. Val's eyes darted to the tombstone of the grave she cried over. It was Julian's.

“How dare you show up here?” Val viciously hollered.

“I-I-I,” Caitlyn stuttered.

Then Val hit her with a right hook straight in the jaw. “Why can't you just leave us alone?” Val jumped on top of her and flung her arms wildly at Caitlyn's face.

Caitlyn was powerless against the blows Val threw. She was so full of remorse that all she could do was cry out, “I'm sorry!”

Val beat Caitlyn's face until her fists began to hurt. By the time she stopped, Caitlyn's face was so bloody, she hardly recognized her. She got up off Caitlyn and pointed in her face. “You're not welcome here.” Val walked over and pulled out the flowers Caitlyn had planted and flung them as far away from Julian as she could. Then she staggered back to her car and pulled off.

 

 

The moment Dean stepped foot in his grandpa's attic he felt like a little boy again. He stared at the low beams he used to swing from and the dusty boxes he would duck behind when playing hide-and-seek with his grandfather. He wiped a few cobwebs out of his way so he could get a better look at the place. “Nothing's changed.”

“Remind me why we're here again.” Olivia stepped up behind him and wrapped her arms around his waist.

“I have to find the deed to the house.” Dean broke away from her embrace. “That's the only collateral I have to get my grandpa a lawyer.”

“How can you retain a lawyer when your grandpa is still refusing your visits?” Olivia shadowed Dean's every move as he pushed boxes around. “Doesn't it bother you that your grandpa won't talk to anyone? He's turned you and Reverend Simms away. He won't even talk with his public defender.”

Dean's eyesight turned blurry and he suddenly felt faint. Scared he was going to fall, he held his hand out to steady himself.

“Are you okay?” Olivia saw that he didn't look too well.

He held on to her hand tight as Olivia led him to sit on a nearby box. “I'm fine. It's so cold up here. I think that blast of cool air caught me off guard.” He closed his eyes for a second and squeezed her hand tighter.

“Are you sure there's nothing wrong?” Her voice was full of concern.

He didn't want her to worry about him, so he swiftly pointed the conversation in a different direction. “Do you think he's capable of murder?”

Caught off guard by his question, Olivia answered the best she could. “The first time I heard that news report accusing Judge West of killing a twelve-year-old black boy back in the sixties, I was sure this was some kind of political conspiracy to hurt the black community by filing bogus charges against someone we all love and trust. That man has become our foundation, and if we lose that, our foundation crumbles. Last night I thought he could be protecting somebody. That would help explain why he won't see you. He's probably scared.”

“I'm sure he is scared. He's a white man being accused of killing a black kid in the South. I also think he's embarrassed to look anyone in the face.” He patted Olivia on her back and stood to his feet. “We need to get started looking for those documents. I promised Bryce we could go to the movies later this afternoon.”

“I'll start with those boxes over there.” She pointed to a box sitting in the far corner, while Dean began laboring through another box in the opposite corner of the room.

Dean pulled open the flaps and dug his hand deep inside pulling out a mound of Polaroids. He browsed through them, finding snapshots of him he never remembered posing for. Then a picture of his parents brought his journey down memory lane to an abrupt halt. He analyzed the loving picture of his mom and dad together.

This was the closest he had ever been to a picture of his parents. His grandpa refused to hang any pictures of them in the house. All pictures of his mom and dad were kept locked away. He remembered his grandma telling him that having pictures of his parents around was too painful for his grandpa to handle.

Every so often his grandma would surprise him by pulling out a picture of them. But he was never allowed to keep it for long, and she always made him promise to never tell Grandpa.

His grandma always said he was a carbon copy of his father. This was the first time he got to see for himself the close resemblance. Dean thought they shared the same square jaw line, build and smile. It was obvious where his perfect bronze tan came from. The woman with beautiful dark brown skin and curly hair was no doubt his mother. A shockwave of hurt penetrated his heart. He wished they had lived.

“Olivia, have you found anything yet?” Dean put the pictures away and turned toward his girlfriend.

“No, not too much of anything. Just a lot of photos of white people,” she replied.

Dean laughed to himself and started working on another box. Inside he discovered an abundance of official documents and files. Dean's birth certificate, his grandparents' wedding license and a copy of his parents' death decree were the only contents found within the box. As he skimmed through, he realized his grandpa kept his paperwork in order. Every piece of paper was neatly filed and labeled.

“Dean, it's cold up here.” Olivia wrapped her arms around herself and rubbed to get warm. “Would you like a cup of hot tea? Oh, Dean! I forgot to tell you. I found a bunch of linens stored away in a box over here. I'm going to leave it by the stairs, and before we leave I need for you to take them downstairs. I figure your grandpa could use them, and if not, I may be able to use them for myself.”

Preoccupied with his hunt, Dean said okay. Once Olivia left, Dean threw the documents he held in his hand back in the box. Then he counted the number of boxes they still needed to comb through. There were at least thirty. “God, give me strength!”

Ready to give up, he shoved the box in front of him away. He decided to save this project for another day. He figured they could pick Bryce up early and catch a bit to eat before the matinee. He stood up and maneuvered his way toward the exit. A short lapse in memory almost made him forget about the box Olivia wanted. He did a quick check to make sure the box he was looking in was what she wanted. When he did, he noticed something out of the ordinary about the way the sheets looked. “She did say there were bed linens in this box. Didn't she?”

Dean examined the sheets a little closer before finally holding one up before him. It looked like a Halloween costume. “What is he doing with this?” Dean looked at the backside before turning it around. Stitched over the left hand side of the breast pocket was an emblem. Dean closely studied the white cross set inside a bright red circle. The most interesting detail of the emblem was the red teardrop set in the center of the cross. For some reason his heart rate accelerated and his hands shook uncontrollably. He had never seen this symbol before, but for some reason it scared him.

When Dean blinked his eyes three times what he was looking at became clear to him. In his hands he held a Ku Klux Klan robe. He threw it across the room and dug further down in the box. He found the matching hood. Dean rubbed his forehead. He was confused.
Why is this stuff in my grandpa's attic?

He tore through the box, searching for an explanation. On the bottom of the box was a manila envelope. Hastily, he ripped it open. Horror surfaced on his face. He stared at a picture of his grandpa posing for the camera along with a bunch of Klansmen. As cool as the room was, Dean couldn't help but sweat with perspiration. Ten men all dressed in white robes with white hoods covering their faces. Judge West and another man were the only two in the picture not in disguise. His grandfather stood right next to the grand wizard and held up a flag bearing the same symbol he found on the robe. “I don't believe this.”

“Sorry, it took me so long.” Olivia was on her way back up the stairs with their tea. “I added honey to yours, just the way you like it.”

Dean hid the robes by throwing them back in the box and stuck the photo in his back pocket. He wasn't ready to tell her what he found.

“Livie, I don't want to spend any more time here. Let's go pick Bryce up from your sister and take him out to eat.”

She looked at him strangely. “Okay, but I thought it was so important for you to find that deed.”

“It was, but I can get it later.” He gestured for her to turn back down the steps.

“What about the box with the linens in it?” she asked.

“I'll pick that stuff up later,” he replied.

 

Val reminisced back to her first year in law school. She had one class where the professor would make the entire class act out a mock trial. Each time she played a lawyer she dreamed of the day she'd stand before a real judge in an actual courtroom. Unfortunately, today she was in a courtroom, but not as a lawyer.

The bailiff screamed out Val's name, shaking her from her thoughts. She half-heartedly got up from her seat and stood before the judge.

Olivia sat in the courtroom worried about her cousin's mental state. Val used to be vibrant and so full of life, but after Julian died, she seemed to have lost the will to live. The blue pinstriped blazer with matching skirt looked good on Val, but it wasn't enough to make her look presentable. Her face looked naked and drab without any makeup. The dark circles under her eyes revealed her lack of sleep, and hair that never had a strand out of place was haphazardly piled atop her head.

Olivia prayed that Val would bounce back to her old self, but after she heard about the fight with Caitlyn, it looked like things were getting worse. Then Caitlyn pressed battery charges against Val. Olivia felt helpless and wondered how much more Val could bear before losing all self-control.

The judge pulled her eyeglasses away from her face and lay them down beside her. She recognized Val the moment she walked into the courtroom. Val was one of the law students she'd met with last year. Every year the university asked the judge to speak with a group of law students who were still undecided about what kind of law they wanted to specialize in. The judge remembered Val from that meeting, not because she was the only black woman, but because she was the most focused, detailed, and showed so much empathy for others. Val's passion for law was rare, but refreshing. The judge was very interested in seeing how far Val's ambition would take her.

This morning the judge was disappointed to see that Val had gotten off track and lost sight of her goal. “Ms. Benson, you admit to the court that you are responsible for the bruises on Ms. Haas's face.”

“Yes, Your Honor.” Val's response was uncaring, cold and lacked remorse.

“Are you sorry for what you did?” The judge wondered what would drive this girl with such a bright future to jeopardize it all.

“No, Your Honor.”

Olivia wished she had insisted that Val retain a lawyer. Only a fool would represent herself, and that was exactly what Val looked like.

Across the courtroom sat a slew of lawyers all hired to represent Caitlyn. “Your Honor,” one of Caitlyn's lawyers spoke up, “this is not the first time Ms. Benson has attacked my client. They did have an altercation when she”—The uptight Jewish man cut his eyes in Val's direction and turned his nose down—“lived in Seattle. We are asking that the court grant us a restraining order against Ms. Benson.”

Olivia stood and yelled from her seat. “This is ridiculous.”

The judge's face turned to annoyance when she heard Olivia's outburst. She picked up her gavel to slam it down, but before she could say anything, Olivia pressed on with her protest. “Your Honor, that girl”—She pointed toward Caitlyn—“did nothing but torment my cousin the entire time she lived in Seattle.”

The judge questioned Caitlyn's counsel with her eyes. “Is there any truth to this?”

“Your Honor, we are not aware of our client ever being responsible for baiting Ms. Benson in any kind of way.”

“Of course you wouldn't.” The judge was stern and was losing all patience with both sides. She glared at Caitlyn then noted a few things on the file in front of her before turning to Caitlyn's lawyer. “Is it safe to assume that your client will be returning back to Seattle shortly, since that is her current address?”

“Yes, Your Honor. Ms. Haas has concluded her business here and will be returning to Seattle later this evening,” Caitlyn's lawyer replied.

“I'm not sure what the entire story is between the two of you, but I'm going to fine both of you court costs for wasting my time with something that could have been resolved outside of court. Ms. Haas, I feel like you're not entirely innocent in this matter.”

Caitlyn shifted uncomfortably under the judge's watchful eye.

“But, Ms. Benson, that doesn't mean you can assault people any time you lose control of your temper. You could have done some permanent damage to her face. Your punishment will be two hundred hours of community service.”

The judge dismissed the hearing, and Val strolled out of the courtroom with Olivia on her heels.

“I should have hired you as my lawyer,” Val cracked a joke.

“I'm sorry, Val. I didn't mean to embarrass you, but I couldn't sit still and allow Caitlyn to make you look like the culprit when she had no right being at the cemetery.”

“It's not her fault I lost control.”

They stopped at a bench and sat.

“I'm glad you came with me today. I don't think I could handle seeing Caitlyn today without finishing what I started. I think what made me so mad about seeing her again was how guilty I feel about Julian.”

“Why would you feel guilty?” Olivia asked.

“I'm the reason Julian died in that crash. I begged him to take that flight. He knew it was too dangerous to fly, but he boarded that plane to please me. If he would have waited for the morning flight, we would be married right now.”

“Val, you can't blame yourself for something that was set in motion before we were even born. God called Julian home. It was his time, and you have to let this go. What I'm saying may seem impossible, but if you don't let go of that anger, you will never be able to feel God's love surrounding you.” Olivia grabbed hold of her cousin's hands. “Close your eyes. Can you see God's hand reaching out toward you? He wants to stop the hurt, but you won't allow Him to heal you because you're punishing yourself for something that wasn't your fault. Are you going to take God's hand and love, or are you going to leave God hanging?”

Val wiped away the tears that fell from her eyes.

“If you don't move on with your life, then you will never experience the abundance of blessings He has waiting for you.”

 

 

Danyelle grabbed her duffle bag from the front seat of her car and ran up the church steps. She was running late, and if she didn't hurry, the kids in the children's choir would leave and say it was her fault for being late.

She swung open the church doors out of breath. The church was full of children. There were thirty-two kids in the choir, and today every one of them had shown up for rehearsal. Instead of publicizing her arrival, she took a moment to observe how the children acted without parental supervision. She wasn't pleased.

More than half the children jumped over church pews, ran across the altar and played in the pulpit. The few remaining kids who were serious about rehearsal surrounded the piano exercising their voices.

“That's enough.” She stormed inside and dropped her bag on the first pew. “You know better than to play in the house of the Lord.”

The children dropped their heads in shame.

“Let's get started.”

Everyone quickly shifted into formation like soldiers in the Army. Danyelle handed out copies of a song she had written herself. It was an upbeat a cappella song that she was sure would bring the congregation to their feet.

She softly clapped her hands to establish a beat. At her direction, the choir sang softly and tapped their feet. Danyelle picked the two strongest voices in the choir to sing the lead. When she pointed to them, they performed a duet like Roberta Flack and Peabo Bryson. She was so excited, she couldn't wait for the congregation to hear them Sunday morning. They practiced the song several times before she could finally call it perfect and dismissed rehearsal.

“Well done,” a deep voice drifted to her ears from the back of the church.

Danyelle was surprised to see Colin standing behind her. She turned back around embarrassed that he was watching them.

“That was beautiful.”

“Colin, I had no idea you were here.”

“I was in my office working, but when I heard the children singing, I had to come witness their divine voices for myself.”

“I hope we weren't too loud.”

The children raced out of the church, and Danyelle cleaned up any papers left behind.

“No. I'm glad for the interruption.” Colin shoved his hands in his pocket. “How are you making out at the college? I already know you're the star pupil in my class, but what about your other classes?”

“They're going well.” This time Danyelle was ready for him. The last time they were alone together Colin caught her off guard with the way his eyes seduced her, but not this time. If it happened again, she was prepared to give him a dirty look. “Thanks for asking.”

His eyes followed her every move.

She abruptly spun around and caught him looking. She marched up to him. “Is there something you wanted?” Danyelle stood eye to eye with Colin.

“Well”—He paused a moment and swallowed hard—“if you're not in a hurry, I was thinking maybe we could get a bite to eat.”

“Dinner?” She didn't expect him to ask her out. She was sure he would have backed off from her once he realized she wasn't intimidated by him. “You want to take me out?”

“That is what I said.”

In his suit underneath the church's lighting, Colin looked even better than he did on Sunday's or even in class. His sleepy, dark eyes were alluring. She felt like she was under a spell.

Danyelle lightly shook her head to regain consciousness. She playfully wagged her finger at the reverend. “Colin, why are you playing games with me?”

“What? I didn't do anything wrong. All I did was ask a beautiful woman out to dinner.”

“Did you forget that you're not only my pastor, but also my teacher?”

He snickered a bit.

“Isn't it against the rules for a professor to date his students?”

“Actually, that is true, and I apologize if I overstepped my boundaries, but you and I are both adults, and like you said, we do attend the same church. Now, if someone saw us out together, they could get the wrong impression and assume you were a straight-A student because we were dating.”

“That's why I don't think it's a good idea for us to go out together.”

“But, again, we are both adults, and it's only dinner. I just want to get to know Danyelle Benson a little bit better.”

Colin's brown eyes made her vulnerable. “I guess dinner would be fine.” Danyelle was not sure why she agreed to eat with him, but there was no turning back.

“Great!” He was so excited, he jumped in the air and clicked his heels together.

Danyelle laughed at his animated performance.

“I know a small restaurant that has great food. It's not that fancy, but I like to support the small businesses.”

In the car, Colin wouldn't stop talking. When he was nervous he had a tendency to talk for long periods of time. This was an example of one of those times. With Danyelle sitting so close to him he couldn't keep his mouth closed. He talked so fast, he held up both ends of the conversation by himself.

A short ride later, Colin pulled his car over in the heart of North Philly. Danyelle looked around. She was quite familiar with the area. She used to frequent this part of the city often to buy her weed. But, with the rise in violent crime and the drug task force storming the weed corners, it was too much of a risk. She couldn't endanger her life or her freedom over a dime bag of weed. Now, she traveled the short distance to New Jersey to get her stash.

The Cabana Club's sign hung above the front door of the building.

“A club?” Danyelle gave him a critical look.

“It's not just a club. It's also a restaurant.”

They got out of the car, and before they could enter the establishment, Danyelle heard a familiar voice call her name.

“What's up, girl? I ain't seen you in a while.” Javier was walking by and noticed her. He reached out to give her a hug.

Danyelle gave a quick wave of her hand and tried turning away. She prayed he would leave her alone. Danyelle used to be one of his best customers. He would look out for her and often sold her herb at the lowest price.

“Listen, if you need anything, look me up. I just got in a supply and I'm telling you this stuff will set you off.” Javier bounced up and down as he talked.

Danyelle could see he was high by his sleepy eyes. Then Javier chuckled to himself and swayed to one side. “I got a few bags on me now if you need something.” He dug into his pocket, and Danyelle stopped him before he pulled anything out.

With her eyes she tried to hint to him that this was a bad time, but he was so high he was unaware of what was going on. She knew that standing in front of her pastor with a drug dealer trying to sell her a bag was just as bad as a crack addict trying to buy a bag in front of the cops. She desperately wanted to shake him and scream for him to wake up.

“Excuse me.” Colin inched himself between the two of them. “I don't think Danyelle will be buying anything from you tonight. We came here to eat. Nothing more.”

Javier looked at him strangely, as if the reverend had just appeared out of thin air.

“Oh, okay.” He turned away, but turned back as if he forgot something. “Girl, you know where to find me.”

Danyelle slightly nodded her head and rushed into the restaurant. When Colin caught up with her, he acted like nothing happened. He told the hostess they needed a table for two.