Faking Reality

by Zaria Garrison

  Yolanda felt more tears streaming down her face. “That’s why I left him. I couldn’t take it anymore.” She sniffed loudly and continued. “It started early in our relationship, and gradually it got worse. He never hit or punched me, but he would grab me roughly or shove me across the room. Sometimes it would be a hand pressed hard in my face, or his elbow in my side if I wasn’t doing what he wanted, or acting the way he thought I should. I don’t know why, but I told myself that if he didn’t punch or slap me, it wasn’t really abuse.” She looked up as she realized that Jimmy was no longer facing the wall; he was staring at her as she spoke. “When he proposed, it didn’t feel right. I knew I didn’t love him, but he said he loved me, and he was all I had. My grandmother had recently died, and there was no one else I could count on. So I accepted his proposal and moved in with him.”

  Yolanda paused again. The memory she wanted to share with Jimmy was buried in a place she planned never to visit again. But she dug down into the caverns of her spirit and dredged it up. “One night he came home late, and I was already in bed asleep. He shook me really hard to wake me up. It was so hard I thought I heard my eyeballs rattling around in my head. Julian was feeling frisky and wanted me to give him some “good loving,” as he liked to call it. Then he kissed me hard and rough. I told him no, because it was late and I was tired. “No” has always been a word he hated to hear. Hearing me say it just made him more forceful. I rolled over and turned my back to him so I could go back to sleep, but he grabbed my shoulder and jerked me down onto my back. I tried to squirm away from him, but he was too strong.”

  “Yolanda, stop.” Jimmy held his hand up. “I don’t think I want to hear anymore.”

  Ignoring him, she kept talking. Her words came out strained and choppy as she talked and cried. “He climbed on top of me and tried to kiss me again, but I turned my face away. Then he . . . he took his forearm and he placed it on my neck covering my throat. I squirmed until I realized that every time I moved he pressed his arm deeper into my throat to hold me down. I tried to scream, but his arm was choking me. No matter how I protested, he just pressed his arm harder into my throat and continued having his way with me. I guess I must have passed out because the next thing I remember was waking up with him lying next to me, snoring. I tried to get up, but his hand was entwined around my hair so tightly that I couldn’t move.”

  Yolanda sniffed and wiped tears and snot from her nose. “So I lay there, and I prayed. I made a promise to God that if He helped me escape, I’d never go back. The next morning while Julian was gone to work, I packed all my things and left.

  “At first I thought that he didn’t care. I was gone for over a week, and I heard nothing from him. But one day as I was leaving work, I saw his car parked out front. Instead of going out that way, I left through a back entrance. The next day he was back with his car parked across the street. He sat there and stared at the building for hours. He was there every single day for about two weeks until he got a coworker to tell him where I lived. I tried to talk to him and tell him that it was over, but he wouldn’t listen. Instead, he would come to my apartment and knock on my door over and over, begging me to let him in. I called the police, but all they did was ask him to leave. He would go away, but he always came back. It got so crazy that I moved, but he found me again. Wherever I went, I was looking over my shoulder. Even when I didn’t see him, somehow I knew he was there.”

  Jimmy turned his back again and stared at the wall, fighting back tears. A part of him wanted to comfort Yolanda as she continued crying, but his disappointment and anger stopped him.

  Yolanda continued to talk. Now that she’d exhumed the memory, she had to get it all out. “The final straw happened when I had a role in community theatre. Julian was there every night with roses. Then he told the director that he was my fiancé, and they gave him a backstage pass. I was so flustered I could barely go onstage. I decided that if I was ever going to be free of him, I had to leave Greenburg. So I moved to Atlanta, but he followed me here too.”

  “How long have you been talking with him? Has this been going on our entire marriage?” Jimmy asked, still staring at the wall.

  “No, I never saw him or talked to him. About a month after I moved here, Greg told me that Julian called him and asked if he would help him get in touch with me. So I told Greg everything and begged him not to tell Julian where to find me. A few weeks later Greg showed me a newspaper clipping about a woman with my same name who’d been killed in a car accident. Our backgrounds were so similar that if I had not known better, I would have thought that woman was me. So Greg sent the clipping to Julian and told him that I’d died. It was the only way we could think of to get him to stop looking for me.”

  Jimmy spun around and glared at her. “None of this makes any sense. If you went through all the trouble of convincing this man you were dead, then why in the world would you want to go on national television. Even if he didn’t own the station, didn’t you think that he might watch the show?”

  “Yolanda Snow is on Revelations. As far as I am concerned, Ophelia Guzman is dead. It never occurred to me that he’d connect the dots, or if he did, that he’d even care. That was so many years ago.”

  “That’s it, Yolanda. We are off the show. Any relationship you may have had with Julian Washington is finished. It’s over!” he screamed.

  The only time Jimmy Snow ever raised his voice was to emphasize a point in his sermon or when he was really excited. In ten years of marriage, Yolanda had never heard him raise his voice in anger, and it frightened her. So much so that she was almost afraid to continue speaking, but she knew that she had to tell him everything. “It’s not over. He’s stalking me again. He’s been calling and following me around for the past two months. And today, he was sitting outside the school, and he brought Priscilla home.”

  Jimmy suddenly bolted to the front door. He ran outside to the van where the leader of the crew was sitting inside enjoying a sandwich. “Get all your equipment out of my house right now!” he screamed.

  Startled, the crew leader stared at him. “Bishop Snow, is everything all right?”

  Jimmy snatched open the van door and pulled the crew leader out. “I said, get all of this stuff out of my house, and get it out right now!”

  Yolanda stood at the front door screaming his name as he jumped into his car and drove away. “Jimmy! Jimmy!”

  Jimmy sped through the streets of Atlanta until he arrived at the corporate office of The Washington Broadcast Network. Julian was on his way out of the front door. Jimmy left his car running with the door standing open and ran up to him. He stood so close that Julian could smell his tonsils. “My wife and I are through with your show. Tear up our contracts,” he said through gritted teeth.

  “Bishop Snow, what’s wrong? Let’s go inside my office and talk.”

  “I have nothing to say to you except stay away from my wife and away from my family. Stop the phone calls. Stop following them. Just stay away! Do you understand me? Stay away from them!” he bellowed. Then he turned and walked back toward his car.

  “Hey, Bishop, I have just one question.” Jimmy turned and looked at him. “Does she still scream so loud in bed that the neighbors complain?” Julian smirked.

  Like a bull seeing red, Jimmy charged toward him, but he suddenly stopped when he thought he felt a hand on his shoulder holding him back.

  “Be ye angry, and sin not, let not the sun go down upon your wrath,” he heard a voice say.

  “You are so not worth it!” he screamed at Julian before getting back into his car and driving away.

  Chapter Thirteen

  Danita hung up her phone and smiled. All of the details were coming together nicely. She’d just finished speaking with the caterer, and her next order of business was to confirm the decorations. After the success of her cast pool party in August, Danita was ecstatic that Anderson had asked her to host the season ending cast party as well. It would be held the last week of November in the grand bal
lroom of her estate.

  The phone rang again, and Danita checked the caller ID before answering. “Hi, Anderson, how are you?”

  “I’m great, Danita. I just called because there’s been a change in plans for the finale party.”

  “What kind of change? I just got off the phone with the caterers, and everything is running smoothly.”

  Anderson sighed. “Julian has decided to move the party up a week. Instead of hosting after the show wraps, he wants the entire cast together to watch the final show the same night it airs to the public.”

  Danita smiled. “That’s a fabulous idea. I’m sure the caterer will not have a problem with changing the date.”

  “Awesome! Julian has taken the liberty of ordering a huge projection TV. It should be delivered to your home in a few days.”

  After speaking with Anderson, Danita went back to planning the party. This is going to be great. Danita was hoping it went as well as the pool party. At that time, to ensure that things went well, Danita not only invited the hospital administrator, but also the blogger who’d approached her in the restaurant. With the cameras rolling, she presented the administrator with a new check and gave the blogger an exclusive interview. Her plan worked, and public opinion of Evangelist Danita Hyatt shot up 100 percent. The best part was that she didn’t have to donate the money. Anderson found a loophole that allowed her to count it as a show expense.

  Two weeks after the party was over she reported to court to face her former husband’s family and the wrongful death allegations. Thankfully, the judge had banned all cameras, including the crew of Revelations. The trial dragged on for almost two months. Danita found it heart wrenching having to relive every moment of her husband’s death in court yet again. Her attorney tried his best to fight it, but the judge allowed photos of his bloated dead body to be shown. Danita turned her head and cried as it flashed on the courtroom screen.

  After the shock factor, his family went about the business of tearing down Danita’s character. They called her a gold digger and pointed out the fact that she was working as a waitress prior to her marriage. Her attorney countered with the fact that she worked nights in the restaurant and spent her days in seminary, earning her ministerial degree. With that degree, she had assisted her late husband in building a large and well respected ministry.

  Next, his family’s lawyers called in witnesses to testify that Danita and Ben’s marriage was on the rocks at the time of his death. Danita felt this was ridiculous as she’d never denied that they had problems. It was difficult leading a ministry together without some issues and tribulations creeping in.

  Ben Hyatt had been the definition of tall, dark, and handsome. Those traits alone made him a magnet to most of the women that he met, including Danita. Add in personality, a good heart, and a multimillion-dollar ministry and Ben seemed to be walking chocolate Häagen-Dazs to most women. Many were drawn to his power and charisma, while others simply became caught up in the almost angelic aura that surrounded him. The fact that he was a married minister of the gospel didn’t matter to the boldest of the women. Their pursuit of him was relentless and unwavering.

  Danita never suspected her husband of infidelity, but she was well aware that an assortment of women would do virtually anything to take her place. Their tricks included dressing sexy for church services and programs, sending him gifts, and even stopping by his office or their home uninvited and unannounced.

  During the trial, Danita was devastated when one of those women took the stand on Ben’s family’s behalf. After being sworn in, she proceeded to tell the court about her relationship with Ben.

  “We were madly in love. Ben and I knew that God wanted us to be together, but Danita refused to let him go. It wasn’t because she loved him. All she cared about was shopping and planning parties. Her focus was spending his money.”

  Unable to contain herself, Danita jumped up and burst out, “You are lying. Ben would never cheat on me!”

  Her attorney pulled her down into her seat. “Calm down or the judge will throw you out,” he whispered.

  “But she’s lying. I can’t allow her to sully his memory like that.”

  “We’ll get our chance to speak,” he assured her.

  On cross-examination, Victor questioned the alleged mistress. “In your testimony, you stated that you and Reverend Hyatt were in love, is that correct?”

  “Yes.”

  “Are you also admitting that you and he were involved in an affair?”

  The mistress hesitated and looked around before answering. Danita could have sworn she was looking at Ben’s sister for direction. After prodding from the judge, she finally answered. “Our love was pure and chaste. Ben never violated his marriage vows.”

  “How long was your relationship?” Victor asked.

  “We were together for six months. The week before he died, he asked Danita for a divorce. If she had not killed him, we would be together right now.”

  Victor remained calm while the rest of the courtroom began to swell into a frenzy of whispers. “Your Honor, I request that the witness’s last statement be stricken from the record. My client was found not guilty in a court of law.”

  During his closing statements, Victor pointed out that during this case, Ben’s family had not presented any evidence that connected Danita to his death. Instead, what they’d proved is that while Danita was busy trying to save their marriage, he was involved in an affair. He also stated that while they had attempted to prove that Danita did not love Ben, all they’d really done was cast doubt as to whether he loved her.

  The entire process had drained Danita, but she felt confident that she would come out of court victorious. The case was due to close the following day, so Danita happily continued her party planning.

  She arrived at court early the next morning feeling refreshed and ready to be vindicated by the verdict. Instead, she was stunned by what transpired. Danita sat lost in a daze of unbelief as Ben’s family cheered the judge’s ruling in their favor.

  “How could this happen, Victor? I’m innocent. I did not kill Ben,” she cried.

  Victor tried his best to soothe her. “It’s okay. This isn’t a criminal trial. This only means that they feel that your actions may have contributed to his death.”

  Danita was about to say more when the judge banged his gavel and demanded that the court come to order. Ben’s family looked over at her smugly, then quieted down their celebration.

  “I’ve just been informed that this case has an unprecedented twist. Normally at this time, I would be called upon to make a determination regarding monetary damages. However, in this case, the plaintiffs have waived all financial claims. Instead, they are requesting a review of custody of the minor surviving children of Ben Hyatt. Those children are Summer Raine Hyatt, Autumn Brease Hyatt, and Winter Storme Hyatt.”

  Danita shook her head and began crying. “No, you can’t take my babies. You just can’t,” she blurted out. Victor quickly shushed her.

  “As I stated, because there is no precedence in this case, I will not make a decision at this time. Instead, this matter will be turned over to family court. It will be up to them to make a final ruling on custody in this matter. Court adjourned.”

  Victor rose to show respect for the departing judge and urged Danita to be quiet until he was completely out of the room.

  “What does this mean? Are they going to get my children?” she asked as soon as the judge was gone.

  Victor shrugged. “I can’t answer that right now. I wish I could, but I can’t.”

  Danita was beside herself with anguish. “What do you mean you can’t answer that? I pay you to know the answers.”

  Victor noticed that several members of Ben’s family were still in the courtroom. He pulled Danita closer to him and lowered his voice. “Normally, if you are found liable in a wrongful death suit, you are obligated to pay whatever monetary damages the court awards. In this case, the judge will simply advise family court of his verdict.
It’s up to a family court judge to decide.” Victor paused and looked around again. “Let’s get out of here and discuss this in the privacy of my office.”

  Danita looked over at her late husband’s family as they filed out of the courtroom, smiling and jovial. “Mother Hyatt, Pop Hyatt,” she called out, but Ben’s parents ignored her and kept walking. “Joy, wait, please,” she called out to Ben’s sister. Victor tugged on Danita’s arm to stop her, but she pulled away from him. “Joy, you and I used to be so close. Can’t we come to some sort of settlement?” she pleaded.

  “We don’t want your money. It’s meaningless to us,” Joy answered.

  “That’s not what I mean. I’ve never kept the girls away from you, and I never will. Can’t we work out a visitation schedule between us without involving the court?”

  Joy looked her up and down, and then turned her nose up. “We don’t want anything to do with you, and I will not sit idly by and let my nieces be brought up by a murderer.” Without another word, she turned her back to Danita and left the courtroom.

  Half an hour later as they sat inside his office, Victor tried his best to console Danita, without giving her false hope. “In order for grandparents or other relatives to get custody, they have to prove that you are unfit or unstable. Prior to today, you would not have been considered either one of those things. But the judgment in this case changes things.”

  “I did not kill, Ben. I was found not guilty. Doesn’t that count for anything?”

  “Of course it does, but today’s verdict may hold equal weight. Listen, let’s not panic. Right now, all we really have is a petition for custody based on today’s verdict. That does not mean that you will lose your kids. Most judges still tend to favor the mother in these types of cases.”

  His words did little to ease Danita’s worries. Instead of going home after she left her attorney’s office, she went to the mall. Ordinarily, shopping would cheer her up, but she wandered from store to store without making any purchases. Finally, she returned to her limousine and asked Philippe to take her home. As soon as she entered the limousine she demanded that he turn off the radio.