Good to Me (25 page)

“Do you think God would exceed your expectations, and not fulfill hers?”

“Praise God. I called Momma about her last week. She is so excited. She thinks she’s an angel.”

“She is. I called Momma as soon as I got home to tell her about her. She’s praying for y’all. You know how Momma is. She wants
to talk to her.”

“It’s going to happen too.”

“Oh, another thing. Joe, she did the opening prayer and tore the church up. The girl is anointed. The whole church was up
worshipping God. And she wasn’t loud, flashy, or none of that. She was just… powerful.”

“I can’t wait to meet her. Thank you, thank you for going to the church. I realize you didn’t have to. I was talking to the
boys about it, and they said they wish they could tell their sister or someone in their family to go visit someone for them.
They said they would get cussed out. I just want you to know I appreciate you believing in me and sticking by me. You’re my
favoritest sister.”

“And your only sister. You’re welcome. I don’t know who the blessing was for in meeting her—you or me.”

“Well, this phone is getting ready to hang up. I’ll call you and Momma next week. I love you.”

“I love you, too. Take care of yourself.”

Hankins and Allen were still watching television in the common area when Joseph arrived. He had something for them better
than Monday night football. When he started telling them what Sharon had told him, Allen turned off the television just to
hear his report. They sat around listening to him like disciples listening to Jesus.

“Brother Word, you getting ready to get out of this place,” Allen said.

Hankins agreed. “Sure is. God is doing this too quick to let you stay here. You better start packing your things by faith.
You’re not going to be here much longer.”

When his words penetrated Joseph’s heart he became filled with sadness. The life they had helped one another survive was getting
ready to change.

EMMITT WISHED THAT THE PHONE WOULD STOP RINGING
and people would stop coming by long enough for him to catch up with the speed of life.
Don’t people work on Mondays?
Things were happening so fast, it felt as if he were in an uncontrollable dream. The only thing he could do was to go along
with the flow, which didn’t allow him time enough to feel anything. The people from the funeral home had been by the house,
the obituary had been submitted to the newspaper, and arrangements had been made for Greg to attend the funeral the following
day.

He sat on the edge of her bed wishing he could reach out to touch her. What he wouldn’t give to relive the last twenty-four
hours of his life. He would take back all of the hurtful things he said to her. He cursed himself.
I’m sorry, Momma. At a time when you needed me most, I let you down. I killed you. I didn’t believe you. Momma, don’t leave
me like this
. He threw himself onto her bed and beat his fists into her pillows. He grabbed fistfuls of her blanket and squeezed so hard
he thought his fingers would go through his hands.
God, where are you now? How could this happen to me?
He cried himself to sleep.

Iesha was out front calling clients to reschedule their appointments because Charity decided that it would be best to close
up for the day. She said that she was emotionally and mentally exhausted after helping Harmony. She’d also told Iesha that
Harmony was going home for the day. Iesha wondered what happened back there. She knew it had to be major for Charity to go
into Harmony’s office, because she had not gone in there in the few days they had been open for business.

Iesha didn’t complain because she could use some rest herself. She had a client on the phone when she heard someone yelling
and cursing loudly. She placed the client on hold to listen closer. The noise wasn’t coming from inside the suite. She followed
the raucous sound to the mezzanine, where she could clearly see what was going on. She went back to the caller and asked him
to consider another appointment and to call her back later. She ran back to the mezzanine and saw the Humphries trying to
prevent a group of people from entering the building. People were coming out of their offices and the food court to find out
what was going on. Iesha saw Wallace with the Humphries and decided to see if he could enlighten her.

“Charity! Charity!” she yelled, running back into the suite. “Come here! It’s some trouble out front. We need to go down there.”

Charity and Harmony both ran up front and followed Iesha’s lead. “I wonder who those people are?” Iesha asked, keeping her
eyes on the action. “Come on, y’all. Somebody might be trying to blow this place up or something, and we sitting up here.
I’m going down there.”

By the time the three of them got to the first floor, the crowd had grown monstrous. They pushed their way to the front so
they could hear.

“Listen up everyone!” Wallace shouted.

The crowd shushed one another.

“No, let me tell them,” Mrs. Humphries pleaded tearfully. “I’m so sorry to have to tell you this. I should have done it sooner
but I just knew God would make a way. Present Day is being foreclosed.”

The crowd inhaled together.

“That’s right,” a white man in a dark, pin-striped suit said. “The owners have had well over ninety days to pay the property
taxes they owe. This place will be padlocked on Thursday.”

People began shouting and cursing. Someone yelled that they wanted their money back and others followed, making the same demands.
Some threatened to sue. Next thing Iesha knew people began throwing food and trash at the two men and woman that the Humphries
were trying to keep back.

Iesha felt sorry for her sister. Out of the goodness of her heart, she employed Iesha to show her a better life than welfare
could offer. And now, Charity was going to be without work. “You okay, Cherry?”

“I just need to go home,” said Charity. “This has been a crazy day and it’s not even noon yet. If one more thing happens today,
I’m liable to lose it.”

Iesha trailed behind Charity and Harmony back to the suite. She returned to the phone to cancel Harmony’s last appointment.
She was so distracted by the news they had just received that she didn’t see the postman enter. She looked up when she felt
like she was being watched.

“May I help you, sir?” She covered the phone’s mouthpiece with her hand.

“Yes, I have some certified mail for Charity Phillips.”

“Hold on a moment.” She parked the caller and buzzed Charity’s phone to see if she wanted to sign for the delivery. “She’ll
be right out, sir.”

“Thank you.”

When Iesha hung up, the gentleman asked her if she had heard about Present Day closing. They talked until Charity arrived.
Iesha stepped back and observed while Charity wrote her signature and watched the mailman leave.

“They only send money certified. Girl, I pray that’s a check,” Iesha joked, trying to cheer up her sister.

Charity forced a half smile. “It’s from Emmitt. He said it would arrive today.”

“Well, I know that ain’t no check. Y’all already divorced, so it ain’t no divorce papers. You got the baby. What else could
he be sending? And important enough to be certified. Is you gone open it or not?”

“Calm down, Momma number two. Emmitt has changed. He told me he was sending a surprise. And you know his mom just died, so
cut him some slack.”

“Maybe now he can grow up and be a man.”

“Iesha, please.” Charity turned over the envelope and neatly severed the flap with her fingernail.

“Cherry, quit acting like that’s a Christmas gift and tear that thing open. Dag! You slow as Christmas.”

Charity rolled her eyes and took out the second envelope.

“Davis, Watson, and Blalock,” she said, reading the return address. “That office is downstairs. Why is he sending me something
from them?” She ripped open the envelope.

Iesha’s heart was pounding until Charity’s scream pierced through. Tears burst from her eyes when she saw that Charity was
crying. “What, Cherry? What is it?”

“He’s suing me for custody of Xavier, Iesha.”

“He can’t do that—”

Charity shoved the papers into Iesha’s hand. “Obviously he can. It’s a court hearing.” Charity looked weak in the knees, and
Iesha helped her over to a chair in the waiting area.

Harmony came out of her office. “Did y’all hear that scream?” Noticing that they were both crying, she went closer to them.
“What’s wrong?”

“Her ex-husband is taking her to court for child custody.”

“Oh man. I’m sorry to hear that. Is there anything I can do?”

“It’s all going to work out. No weapon forged against me shall prosper. I’m going on home.”

“No, Cherry, let’s go down to that lawyer’s office to see what this is about.”

“No, don’t do that. You’re in no shape to do that. If you go down there like this they will use it against you in court,”
Harmony advised.

Charity wept. “This can’t be happening.” She stood up and walked to her office.

“Cherry, are you gonna be all right back there?”

“Yes, I’ll be right back.”

“Harmony, go keep an eye on my sister. I’m getting ready to call that that no-good ex-husband of hers.”

Iesha reached for her purse and took out an address book. She had kept Emmitt’s mother’s phone number in case she needed it
one day. She dialed the number, referring back to the listing every few seconds to get the next set of numbers. She grew even
angrier with every ring of the phone.
He better be glad he ain’t home,
she fumed. She slammed the phone down. She prayed. “Lord, I know You’re making a way for me to keep my kids, please see to
it that my sister keeps hers.”

Charity returned. “I’ll call you later. I’m going home.” She walked out without turning around.

Iesha called Mama Lorraine. When she heard her mother’s voice, she started to cry. “Momma.”

“Esha? What’s wrong with you, girl?”

“Momma,” she sniffled. “Emmitt’s taking Cherry to court for custody.”

“He’s doing what?”

“She got some papers today from his lawyer.”

“Where is she?”

“She just left.”

“Is she okay?”

Iesha cried harder. “No. Momma, I ain’t seen her like this in a long time. On top of that, we found out that Present Day is
being shut down. The owners didn’t pay their taxes. So she has to close her business. Momma, she put her whole life savings
into this center.”

“Lord, have mercy. Don’t worry, baby. God gone take care of her. And that low-down dog. Didn’t his momma just die? And he
gone pull some stuff like this. See, God don’t like ugly. Did Cherry say where she was going?”

“She said she was going home.”

“I’mma meet her over there. I’ll call you later.”

“I’mma go over there, too. I’ll see you there.”

Charity could hardly see the road because she was crying so hard. She was doing everything right, how could God allow all
of this to happen?
He swears He puts no more on you than you can bear
.
This is too much. If one more thing happens, I swear I’m going to lose it.
That thought made her cry harder.

She was surprised that she’d made it home safely. With all of the whining she was doing, she was hoping to be killed in a
car accident and be taken up to Glory. She was so preoccupied that she didn’t remember the drive home. Her car must’ve been
on automatic pilot. She let herself in, locked the door, and looked at the clock on the wall. She had four more hours until
the locksmith would come. That was plenty of time for her to take a bath and a nap. Charity rested her head on the bath pillow
to collect her thoughts. Before she knew it, she’d drifted to sleep in the tub.

Suddenly, she sat up in the tub, thinking she heard her alarm signal that her door had been opened. She must’ve been dreaming.
She turned on the hot water to reheat the tub. She again thought she heard something, but rebuked spirits of paranoia and
fear. She turned off the water and eased her body underneath the water.

“Honey, I’m home.”

She shot straight up. “Who’s there?” She reached for her robe.

“Where are you, honey?”

“Mr. Wright?” she asked, thinking she recognized the voice.
Oh my God
. She tied her robe and looked around the bathroom for a weapon if she needed it.
Candles, makeup, a mirror. The towel rack, maybe. God, please
.

He appeared in the doorway. He was disheveled and had a flat expression on his face. She knew without a doubt that he wasn’t
on his medications. “There you are. You’re home early from work today. I went by to have lunch with you but you were already
gone.”

“Mr. Wright. It’s me, Charity Phillips, your therapist.” She knew it was useless trying to reason with an unmedicated schizophrenic,
but it wouldn’t hurt to try. “How did you get in here?”

“I used my key.”

Think Charity, think
. “When’s the last time you took your medications?”

“Remember we talked about those medications and agreed I shouldn’t take them. They’ve messed up our sex life. Remember?”

God, please help me
. She realized that if she wanted to get out of this mess, she was going to have to play along until she could call for help.
Although he was delusional, she was glad that he thought she was his wife, and not someone who was trying to hurt him. “I’m
glad you want to have lunch. I’m starving. Go on to the kitchen and make us something to eat. I’ll be right there.”

“No. I took today off of work to spend time with you. I haven’t been a good husband and I want to make it up.”

“It’ll only take me a minute to get dressed. Why don’t you start lunch?”

“But I haven’t seen your beautiful body in what seems like an eternity. Can we make love like we used to and then do lunch?”

Lord, please
. “I have a good idea.” She moved closer to him and gave him a seductive look. “If you go to the kitchen and get us some ice
cubes, I’ll be dressed in something a little more comfortable by the time you get back. Okay?”

He moved in closer to her. “Now that sounds like a plan.”