Paper passing from one to the other could be heard until someone blurted, “Where’s Brent?”
Ellen responded, “He’s coming. He’s interviewing with Terrance J right now.”
Kem went over the schedule with everyone in attendance.
Brent walked in thirty minutes later and sat down in the only available seat located at the end of the table.
“Ellen, give Brent the new schedule. As I was saying, we have to finish things up this week because we will be shut down for six weeks.”
“I know what I’m doing on my vacation,” one of the production staff said.
“I’ll be shooting a movie, so no vacation for me,” one of Brent’s costars mentioned.
“What about you Kem? Any special plans?” Melvin, one of the coproducers on the show, asked. He looked at Kem and then down at Brent.
“Work as usual,” Kem responded.
Melvin stuck his chest out. “I’ll be in Europe. I’m surprising my wife with a trip to Italy.”
“Glenda should be overjoyed. Have fun.” Kem looked around the room. “If there’s nothing else, this meeting is adjourned. Brent, could you stay behind? I need to talk to you.”
Kem chuckled to herself. She wished she could have skyped Mona so she could see the surprised look on some of her coworkers’ faces.
Everyone left the room except for Ellen and Brent. Kem looked at Ellen. “Ellen, you can go too. I got this.”
“Oh. Okay. I thought you needed me.” Ellen scrambled and grabbed her stuff.
Brent shut the door behind Ellen. Brent walked toward Kem. He reached for her and Kem didn’t pull away. Kem asked, “Why are you doing this? You know this room is surrounded by glass.”
“They’re talking so we might as well give them something to talk about,” Brent answered. He pulled Kem into a tight embrace and then released her. “See, I restrained myself. I didn’t kiss those cute, luscious lips of yours the way I wanted to.”
Brent took a seat first and Kem sat and went over some of the things she’d shared with the rest of the cast and crew. Once they were through, Kem asked, “How did the interview go with Terrance J?”
“I think you’ll be satisfied.” Brent lifted her hand and kissed the back of it.
Ellen stuck her head in. “Filming is about to start in about ten minutes.”
“Thanks, Ellen. Brent, you heard her. Got to go. See you in about an hour.”
Kem kissed him and left the room. Ellen smiled as Kem walked past her.
“Brent, you might want to wipe the lipstick off your mouth,” she heard Ellen say to him as she walked away.
Brent tried not to get paranoid but it seemed some of his coworkers were keeping their distance from him. His costar, Jenny, came over to him right before their scene.
She said, “I was going over the script. This will be an intense love scene. Do you think your girlfriend will have a problem with how we act it out? I don’t want to lose my job because she thinks I’m really coming on to you. I’m married. I don’t like you like that.”
“I don’t know if I should be disappointed or happy,” Brent responded.
“You know what I mean. We’re just acting. I don’t want her to think I want you. When we’re acting, I’m Jill and you’re Max.”
“Kem understands that. She’s the one who wrote the scene. We just had an intense love scene last week. So she’s not tripping.”
“I just want to make sure because the script requires me to appear to do some things and our bodies will be touching,” Jenny said.
“Jenny, I can assure you, there won’t be a problem,” Kem walked up behind her and said.
Jenny’s mouth flew open and then she closed it.
Kem went on to say, “Sorry, I was coming to check on something and overheard your conversation.”
“Oh my, I’m so embarrassed.” Jenny’s face turned red.
“You shouldn’t be,” Kem tried to assure her. “Nothing’s changed. When we’re on set, I’m the boss. When we’re off set, I’m still the boss.”
Kem and Jenny laughed. Brent didn’t. “Boss lady, are we almost ready to shoot?” Brent asked.
“Yes. We’re just waiting on you two.”
Now that everyone knew about his relationship with Kem, it did make filming the love scenes with Jenny awkward. He pretended Jenny was Kem during their scene.
“Cut,” the director said, after the fifth take. “I think we got it. It’s a wrap.”
“Good job,” Kem said as she grabbed her brown clipboard and walked out.
Brent walked up behind her. “What do you want to do tonight?”
“Surprise me.”
“Hmm. You got it. It will require you leaving your car here.”
“I trust you.” Kem never stopped walking.
“Call me when you’re ready. I think you’ll like where we’re going,” Brent said as he patted her on the butt.
She stopped and winked.
Brent went in one direction and Kem went in another.
Chapter Twenty-One
Kem enjoyed sitting out on the deck of a seafood restaurant located on the beach. The sounds of the ocean waves made for a tranquil atmosphere.
“We survived our first week at work as an official couple,” Brent noted.
“And no one really tripped. Well, except for Jenny.” Kem chuckled.
Brent added, “But she’s always a basket case so what’s unusual about that?”
“True.” Kem thought about it. Jenny was a perfectionist so she sometimes stressed over things that weren’t that serious.
“Now that we’re on vacation, it will give me a chance to get caught up on my reading. The first thing on my agenda is the script from Mona and Terrance.”
A waiter walked to their table. “Would you like anything else to eat? Our cheesecakes are good. Would you each like a slice?”
“I’m full. I don’t think I can eat anything else,” Kem said.
“I’ll take a slice of lemon cheesecake to go,” Brent said.
“Make that two slices. I can always eat it tomorrow,” Kem said.
Brent’s cell phone rang. “That’s Aunt Edna. I forgot to tell her we were eating out.”
“Tell her I said hi.”
Brent answered his phone. While he was on his phone, Kem retrieved her cell from her purse. She noticed a few missed calls from a 318 number. She dialed the number.
“Kem, thank God it’s you. I’ve been trying to reach you all day,” a frantic woman said on the other end.
“Who is this?” Kem asked.
“It’s your cousin Betty. Your mom’s not doing too well.”
“What about my mom?” Kem shouted.
Brent placed his hand over Kem’s. “Is everything okay?”
“I don’t know,” she said to Brent. “Betty, what’s going on?”
“Kem, I don’t know how to tell you this but things aren’t looking too good. I stopped by the house and found her laid out in the living room. Kem, your mom had a heart attack.”
“Oh my God.” Kem started breathing heavily. She was having a panic attack.
Brent took the phone from her. “Who is this?” Brent wrote down the details on a napkin. “I’ll make sure she gets there. If something else comes up, call her on my number.” Brent waited a few seconds and recited his number. “Who am I? I’m Brent. I’m her boyfriend.”
Kem’s body shook. “I should have known something was wrong. She never called me back. Why didn’t I try to reach her again?” Kem said over and over.
A waiter walked over. “Is everything okay, sir?”
“No. We just got some bad news.”
“Tonight’s dinner is on the house.”
“Thank you,” Brent said to the waiter. “Kem, look at me. We’re going to go by your ho
use so you can pack what you think you need and then I’m going to go by my place and pack a few things and then we’re headed to Shreveport.”
“Brent, you can’t just drop everything and go home with me. I’m a big girl. I can handle this on my own.”
“I’m sure you can, but you don’t have to. I’m here for you. You’re not alone anymore. You got me,” Brent assured her. “Come on. Let’s go. I’ll make some phone calls from the car.”
Two hours later, Brent and Kem were seated in the back of Brent’s friend’s private jet. “Thanks, baby, for doing this.”
“No problem. I would give you the world if I could.” Brent squeezed her hand. “Just sit back and relax. I’m here.”
Kem tried to think positively. She’d called her seventy-year-old cousin Betty several times to check on her mother’s status but there was no improvement. Kem could hardly breathe at the thought of something happening to her mother.
Brent said, “Baby, breathe slowly. Come on, you can do it.”
Kem mimicked Brent until her breathing was slower and even. “I’m fine now.”
Brent pressed the button for the flight attendant. “Do you have something that can help her sleep?”
“We sure do.”
The flight attendant returned with a bottle of pills and handed it to Brent.
Kem protested. “I don’t want any drugs.”
Brent read the bottle and poured two pills into the palm of his hand. “Baby, this is over-the-counter medicine. Nothing too strong, but it will help you sleep. You need your rest.”
Kem wasn’t too keen on taking the sleeping pills but did because she didn’t know what she was going to face when she got to Shreveport. This might be the only opportunity for her to get some sleep.
Brent handed her the bottled water and the two pills. She downed the pills first and then took a long gulp of the water. She handed Brent the bottle, which he discarded and placed on a nearby table.
He held her hand and rubbed it until she relaxed. She leaned her head on the seat and not too long afterwards drifted off to sleep.
She woke just as they were descending into Shreveport, Louisiana. She tried to make a return trip home at least once a year, sometimes twice, but she’d been so busy this year, this was her first time coming to Shreveport since last year. Unlike times before, her mother wasn’t going to be there to greet her at the terminal.
While Kem was sleeping, Brent made additional plans for their arrival in Shreveport. The driver he’d hired was waiting for them and drove them straight to the hospital.
It tugged at Brent’s heart to see Kem in her emotional state. He couldn’t control the outcome of what happened to her mom, but he could control other things. He’d gotten her to Shreveport and now he would ensure they arrived at the hospital as soon as possible. Her cousin Betty met them at the emergency door.
“Kem, Suzette’s going to be glad you’re here. She’s been asking about you.”
“She woke up. That’s good,” Kem said, sounding hopeful.
“Yes. She woke up an hour ago. I told her you were on your way.”
Brent introduced himself. Betty pulled him into a hug. “We’re huggers around here.”
Betty looped her arm with Kem’s. “Now, don’t get alarmed by what you will see. Suzette says she’s feeling fine. She might not be but that’s what she told me.”
“Where is she?” Kem interrupted.
“Dear, we’re almost there now.”
Brent walked behind Kem and Betty. He could barely keep his composure because from what he saw, things didn’t look good.
“Oh, Mama,” Kem wailed as she rushed into the intensive care room where her mom was hooked up to several machines.
Chapter Twenty-Two
Tears flowed down Kem’s face. The reality of her mom’s condition hit her like a brick the moment she saw her in the bed. “Mama, I’m here,” Kem said over and over.
Kem leaned forward and kissed her mom on the cheek. Suzette opened her eyes.
“Is that my Kem?” she said so low that Kem had a hard time hearing her.
“Yes, Mama, it’s me.”
“Give me a hug.”
Kem hugged her while Brent stood in the background watching.
“Mama, you got me worried. You have to get better.”
“Have a seat, baby. There’s some things I want to say to you.” Suzette coughed.
“Maybe we should talk when you get better.”
Her mom grabbed her hand in a tight grip. “No. Now.”
Kem could hear the urgency in her voice.
Brent said, “I’ll leave you alone so you can have your privacy.”
“Who’s that young man?” Suzette asked.
“Mom, this is my boyfriend, Brent. He brought me here.”
“Brent, do you love my daughter?”
“Yes, ma’am.”
“That’s all I need to know. Take care of her for me.”
“I promise you that,” Brent said, right before leaving Kem alone with her mom.
“Mom, I don’t need Brent to take care of me. I’m an independent woman.”
Suzette coughed. “That’s what’s wrong with you younguns today. Want to do everything by yourself when you don’t have to. Me, I had no choice.”
“I know, Mama. Dad left you. And I’ll never forgive him for how he treated you…how he treated us.”
“Baby girl, that’s why I’m glad you got here in time.”
“In time for what?” Kem didn’t like the sound of things.
“My lawyer has a letter you need to read. When you read it, don’t be upset. I’m asking you to forgive me now. Tell me you forgive me.”
“Mama, you’ve never done anything to me.” Kem rubbed her hand.
“Please, Kem, I’m begging you. Tell me you forgive me. Please.”
Kem saw the pain in her mother’s eyes. “Mom, I forgive you.”
A sense of peace seemed to fill Suzette’s eyes. She forced a smile. “Thank you, baby. No matter what happens. Remember, you were the best thing that ever happened to me.”
“Mom, stop talking like that.”
“I did what I did out of a selfish love. I hope you know that I will always love you.” Suzette’s eyes watered.
“Mama, I love you too.” Kem squeezed Suzette’s hand.
“Don’t be too upset. I made a mistake and didn’t know how to correct it.” Her breathing sounded shallow.
“Mama, stop talking. You’re getting too excited.”
“Don’t be mad,” she said as she tried to catch her breath.
“I’m not mad, Mama. I just don’t want to lose you.”
She hugged her mama and said over and over, “I love you. I love you. I can’t lose you.”
The machines started beeping. Kem didn’t know what it all meant. She called out, “Nurse! Somebody! Anybody!”
Two nurses rushed in the room with Brent right behind them. Kem moved out of the way as they checked on her mother.”
Kem saw her mom open her eyes. Her mom’s arm stretched and reached out to her. Kem went back by her bedside and squeezed her hand. “I love you,” Suzette stuttered.
“I love you too,” Kem responded.
Kem hugged her mom. Her mom’s hand gripped her arm, but then she loosened it.
“Ma’am, you’re going to have to step aside,” one of the nurses said.
Kem stood to the side, but kept holding her mom’s hand.
Just then, Suzette’s eyes flickered several times and rolled to the back of her head. The monitor with her heart rate showed a flatline.
“Nooo,” Kem yelled.
Brent grabbed Kem and with resistance, moved her out of the way while the nurses and the doctor who’d just entered tried to revive her mother with a machine.
&
nbsp; Kem knew it was too late. Her mom was gone. There was nothing the doctors or nurses could do. Tears flowed down Kem’s cheeks as Brent rocked her back and forth in his arms.
“Sir, do you mind taking her out of the room for a minute while we clean her up?”
“Sure. Come on, baby,” Brent said.
Kem walked around like a zombie. Brent led her to the waiting room. Betty looked at Kem and knew her first cousin had departed this world.
Kem and Betty hugged each other, holding on to one another for support.
Brent wiped his eyes with his hands. It hurt him to see Kem in so much pain. He felt helpless. Unfortunately, he knew the pain she was feeling because he’d experienced it a few years ago when his mom died.
Brent allowed Kem and Betty their private family moment and stood to the side. He pulled out his phone and sent out several text messages about what had happened to Charlotte, Mona and his Aunt Edna. He asked them to refrain from calling Kem until they heard more news from him.
The door to the room opened. “You can come in now,” the doctor said.
Brent escorted Kem and Betty inside. Betty went to one side of the bed and Kem to the other. There were no longer tubes or monitors hooked up to Suzette. In fact, it looked like Kem’s mom was just resting.
“Mama,” Kem wailed. “Mama, why did you have to leave me?”
Brent had to turn away for a brief second to wipe the tears from his face because he wanted to appear strong for Kem. He didn’t want her to see him crying.
Kem crawled up in the bed with her mom. She lay beside her mom, wrapped her arms around her and rocked back and forth.
Betty said, “Kem, baby, she’s gone. There’s some things she wanted me to give you.”
“I don’t care about that.”
Betty looked at Brent. Her eyes said it all. Brent walked to the bed. “Baby, Cousin Betty’s just trying to help.”
“I don’t want her help. I want my mama.”
Betty went to the closet and retrieved a small bag. She handed it to Brent. “Suzette’s house keys and papers she wanted me to give Kem are in here. The people she needs to contact are in that notebook.”
“I’ll take care of it,” Brent assured her.
Secrets Uncovered Page 8
