The Governor's Sons (26 page)

“I’m working my damn butt off for this family!” Ash said, angrily pointing his fork at Leigh Ann.
 
“I’m governing this state in the middle of a damn Civil Rights crisis, and at the same time providing a life of royalty for you and your siblings—living here in the damn Governor’s Mansion—and what thanks do I get?”

“Oooo, so what are you gonna do,” Leigh Ann feigned fright, as her father aimed his fork prongs at her, “eat us?”

Gavin and JoBeth lowered their heads, trying not to laugh.

Ash scowled. “Ya’ll have had every privilege known to man and you don’t act the least bit grateful!”
 
He looked at his oldest daughter.
 
“So, Josephine Elizabeth, there you sit, going into your second year of medical school at Case Western Reserve, a fine school.”
 
His eyes met Leigh Ann’s again.
 
“And you, young lady, gonna be a senior at that no account radical Antioch.
 
Could’ve gone to Radcliff, but no—you had to follow that no account beatnik boyfriend!”

“Don’t talk about Lance that way!”

“And Gavin--gonna be a sophomore at Clemson.”
 
Ash sighed loudly, disgusted with his offspring.
 
“I don’t think I’ve ever gotten any thanks from any of y’all for paying your tuition!
 
A little appreciation would be nice once in a while.”

A muffled sound of thanks arose.

Ash sneered.
 
“You’re welcome.”

“Dad,” Gavin helped himself to more shrimp and grits, “maybe you won’t be paying any more tuition for me.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?” Ash asked.

“I already talked to Mom, she can fill you in.”

Swell, Ash thought, as he glanced back at Leigh Ann, who now held her mother’s hand.
 
Her bravado had gone down the drain as she sat wiping away tears.

Ash didn’t mean to lose his temper and hurt his daughter’s feelings, but Leigh Ann had that effect on him. Regardless, “the boyfriend” was a hurtful topic, and now Ash regretted bringing it up. “Uh—Leigh Ann,” he started awkwardly, “you know I’m sorry about your boyfriend—”

“He was more than just a boyfriend.
 
He was my soul mate.”

“Soul mate, whatever, but the boy wasn’t right in the head.
 
I’m sorry he died,” Ash wouldn’t bring up the accidental heroin overdose again, “but he wasn’t right for you.
 
If anything, he damaged your mind.”

“He didn’t damage my mind!”

“Ash,” Charlne said, patting Leigh Ann’s hand, “the boy’d been through a lot, losing his mother and all.”

“Like I said,” Ash continued, “he wasn’t right in the head, and his mother wasn’t right in the head either--genetics, pure and simple.
 
She was some kind of sculptor, painter or something; Lance was a musician.
 
All those artist types are fragile in the head.
 
And she was so fragile she ended up killing herself.”

“Only because she was upset over what her husband did,” Charlene said sympathetically.

“That’s another reason he wasn’t right for you, Leigh Ann.
 
He probably would’ve cheated on you just like his father cheated on his mother.
 
It’s a pattern with men, they do what their father’s did,” Ash said authoritatively.

“That girl he cheated with was one pretty chick.” Gavin smiled.

Charlene clicked her tongue.
 
“Hush your mouth, Gavin Kroth!”

“And just about my age, too,” Gavin added, reaching for more link sausages.

“Well,” JoBeth sighed, “at least he married her.”

“And that probably caused poor Lance to have even more problems,” Charlene said.

“Can’t we just drop it?” Leigh Ann said, banging her fists on the table. “I’m still trying to recover from Lance’s death, and so is his father.
 
And what’s worse for Dr. Lawson is that he still hasn’t adjusted to living in the South.
 
We’re hardly cosmopolitan compared to the East.”

Ash pointed his finger at Leigh Ann.
 
“If that fool hadn’t disgraced himself up in New York, messin’ around with that college student, he’d still be employed at that fancy university.
 
He’s lucky to have a job at Simpson Leggett.
 
That was the only school to give him a chance after what he did, thanks to your grandmother.
 
If she hadn’t defended his ‘indiscretion’ before the board of trustees, and told them what a great asset that Yankee writer’d be to the English department, he’d still be looking for a job, or maybe selling hotdogs on a street corner.” Ash then muttered, “I just wish Mother hadn’t introduced you to Lance.”

“But it was meant to be,” Leigh Ann said.

“No it wasn’t.” Ash smirked.
 
“You claim he didn’t damage your mind, but he sure as the daylights got you reading enough books that did!
 
The Fire Next Time, Crisis in Black and White—
what in the blue blazes is next?!

“I just finished
Black Like Me.
”

“Leigh Ann!”
 
Charlene put a hand over heart.
 
“Why’d you read that?”

“Why’s she reading any of that stuff?
 
Ash asked.

“Because I
want
to!
 
If you read
Black Like Me,
you’ll really understand the plight of the Negro! Or do any of
you
even really care?”

“I don’t,” Gavin said.

“Gavin,” Leigh Ann snapped, “you’re so shallow!” She then shot her gaze to Ash.
 
“Daddy, you can criticize Lance all you want, but because of him, I’ve decided to go to law school after I graduate next year.
 
I want to be a civil rights attorney.
 
I can be a strong voice for the Negro population.
 
They
need
someone like me!”

Ash dropped his fork.
 
It clanked loudly on his Flow Blue china plate.
 
“Leigh Ann, you can’t be some sort of— activist!”

“And how would that make your father look?” Charlene admonished.

“Your mouth,” Ash leaned toward Leigh Ann, “is gonna get you in trouble one day.
 
I can’t have you goin’ around, stirring up agitation. You just keep yourself quiet—concentrate on being pretty.”

Leigh Ann’s mouth fell open. “My looks don’t define who I am!”

“Get married and have some kids.”
 
Ash knew this would irritate Leigh Ann.
 
“You go have a bunch of babies, that’ll keep you occupied and take your mind off of being—‘a strong voice’ for the colored people.
 
They’ve got plenty of their own for that.”

“Daddy!”
 
Leigh Ann wailed.

Ash nodded in his oldest daughter’s direction.
 
“Why can’t you be a little more like JoBeth?”
 
She resembled Charlene, a tall pretty blond with a curvy figure and delicate face.
 
Although highly intelligent, JoBeth was quiet.
 
But despite her introspective nature, she seemed well adjusted compared to Leigh Ann.
 
“She acts normal.”

“JoBeth?
 
Normal?” Leigh Ann asked.
 
“She hardly ever says anything and she wants to work in a morgue!”

“I don’t want to just work in a morgue,” JoBeth said, “I want to be the first female coroner in the state.”
 
Her large green eyes glistened as she defended her career choice.

“You keep thinking big, work hard—and you can do it, honey.” Ash smiled, impressed with her quiet ambition.
 
Long ago, he’d stopped trying to push her into being a pediatrician, what he’d considered a more feminine profession.

Gavin’s tall lanky frame unfolded as he stood from the table.
 
“If y’all will excuse me, I’ve got places to go.”

Ash looked at his youngest child, the handsome golden boy and star athlete.
 
Unfortunately, he wasn’t a star pupil and he’d repeatedly disappointed his father with his less than stellar academic achievement.
 
“What’s her name?”

“I’m not gonna go see some girl.
 
Not right now, anyway.” Gavin smiled slyly, running a hand through his straight golden hair.
 
“Uncle Otis wants to show me some stuff.”

“What kind of stuff?”
 
Ash asked.

“He didn’t say.”

“Probably one of his new inventions,” Charlene said.

“Otis and those blame inventions.
 
Be nice if he could hold a job instead of tinkering away all day on those inventions,” Ash snorted.

“Well, I’ll see ya’ll later,” Gavin called over his shoulder, as he left the dining room.

“We need to leave, too.” Leigh Ann sprang quickly to her feet.
 
“C’mon, JoBeth.”

“So where are you girls rushing off to this morning?” Charlene asked.

“We’re going shopping.”
 
JoBeth stood up slowly.
 
“And while we’re out, we’re gonna stop at Lacy’s to buy some fudge for Aunt Mikki.
 
You know how she
loves
chocolate fudge.”

“And never gains a pound,” Charlene quipped.

“I’ve had so much on my mind,” Ash sighed, “I almost forgot about Heath and Mikki flying in tomorrow.
 
How long are they gonna stay, Charlene?”

“They’ll be with us for two weeks, then in Joy Hope for one, with Mother Kroth.”

“You know, Daddy,” JoBeth said, “maybe Uncle Heath can teach you how to relax a little.”

“Now, JoBeth,” Charlene smiled, “your uncle isn’t a governor.”

“And Uncle Heath doesn’t have any kids.” Ash turned up his glass and finished the last of his water. “That’s why he’s so relaxed all the time.”

“On that note,” Leigh Ann said, pulling JoBeth’s arm, “we’ll say goodbye. We don’t need to stick around just to be insulted.”
 
Both girls laughed as they left the room.

When they were out of sight, Charlene said, “Mikki certainly is brave to stay for a
whole
week with your mother.
 
Sometimes I can barely stand her for an hour.”

“Are you still holding what you overheard against her?
 
Give it up Charlene.
 
That was a long time ago and she was a little tipsy.”

“I’m glad I heard everything she said.
 
It showed me what she really thinks.
 
‘Oh, why couldn’t my sons have married women worthy of who they are?’ ” Charlene affected Mother Kroth’s slow, well aged southern drawl.
 
“ ‘Heath has his
Jap
, and Ash, that—that
Charlene
—one step removed from white trash.’ ”

“She’s known your mother forever and she likes her,” Ash said.

“ ‘Esmee Welles,’ ” again Charlene imitated Mother Kroth, “ ‘how could she marry such a common man, as that Tyree Stokes?
 
It’s one thing for a man to marry beneath himself, but a woman never should.’ ”
 
Charlene frowned.
 
“Since my father wasn’t born with a silver spoon in his mouth, he wasn’t good enough.
 
He might’ve started out as nothing but a lint headed mill worker, but he achieved and—”

“Charlene, you don’t have to defend your father to me, I admire the man.
 
Just forget about Mother and her snobbish hang-ups, okay?
 
Now, what did Gavin talk to you about?”

Charlene hesitated for a moment.
 
“He—he doesn’t want to go back to college next year.”

“Unless he wants to enlist—he’s going back to school.”

“He says he can’t handle the work—and all the pressure.”

“Well, he passed everything.”

Charlene sighed. “He says that’s only because he’s your son and nobody’s willing to fail him.”

“What about the tutor?”

“She said he—groped her—and she quit.”

“Well, Charlene, why didn’t we hire another one?
 
Like a
man
, maybe?”

“I didn’t find out until last week that she’d quit.
 
That’s when I called to see if I could recruit her again for next year.
 
Apparently, she stopped working with him around November.
 
When I talked to Gavin about it, he said he floundered through the rest of the year on his own, and that he—”

“Hell, Charlene!
 
What is it with that boy?
 
He’s bright, but acts like he can’t half read or write.”

“My brother’s the same way,” Charlene said.

“And Otis is a good for nothin’.”

“And my Uncle Mervis—”

“Your Uncle Mervis wasn’t anything but an old fart that drank himself to death!”

“Now, Ash, both of them are—or were--highly intelligent men.
 
I believe the proper term to describe them is ‘savant.’ ”