by Londyn Skye
“No! You lost y’ur brotha’ fightin’ to uphold the Rida’ codes. You were fightin’ for what’s right! That fuckin’ old man violated our laws, and we swore an oath to give our lives for this cause, if need be. Your brotha’ died honorably!”
“I’m upholdin’ the codes and my brotha’ died upholdin’ the codes, but one ‘a the goddamn founda’s of the fuckin’ Ghost Rida’s doesn’t give a shit about abidin’ by the very codes he created! Hell, he hasn’t even so much as mentioned anything to you about punishin’ his son or that piano playin’ nigga’ for disobeyin’ our codes! There ain’t no way the Jesse Adams you done told me about all these years would’ve let eitha’ of them walk away unscathed afta’ what they did!”
“I want answa’s too. And I swear to you I’ll get ’em just as soon as I get back to Virginia. In honor of your brotha’, I’ll see to it personally that both ‘a those fuckers suffa’! I promise you, y’ur brotha’s death won’t be in vain.” Duke picked up the school newspaper article, folded it, and put it in his inner jacket pocket. He then leaned back and finished his beer in silence, wondering what it was that his lifelong friend, Jesse Adams, had to hide.
Chapter Fifteen
“Hello beautiful,” James said, greeting Mary Jo with a peck on the lips and a warm embrace.
Mary Jo pulled back from their hug and stared at James like she thought she was hallucinating. She stood there with her mouth partially agape after being pleasantly stunned by his words and his actions. When James caressed her cheek, she suddenly lit up with a genuine smile for once in her life.
After spending every day for the last week having lunch with James, Mary Jo’s arrogance led her to believe that the sudden changes in him were because she was beginning to melt his heart, much like the men from her past. The truth was that James had a revelation while being tortuously forced to sit across from Mary Jo at lunch daily. His epiphany led him to step out of the back room of Gideon’s clinic looking as debonair as ever. He had been professionally groomed. His face was completely free of stubble and his hair was just as flawlessly cut as the tailor-made suit he was wearing. He left straight from work and headed to meet Mary Jo at her father’s political dinner affair, which she had demanded he attend. Despite James’s opposition to being her date, his revelation about Mary Jo had him ready to play by her rules.
During the time that James was stuck on his “dates” with Mary Jo, it dawned on him that this was not your typical case of infatuation. Between her attention-seeking lunch dates and the manipulative stunts Mary Jo had pulled, James realized that he was dealing with a woman who was missing majority of her mental marbles. The look in her eyes, the way she seemed to believe all her own lies, and the split-second changes in her personality, were qualities that he was no longer able to just laugh at. Mary Jo’s lunacy was disturbing and caused James to now take the situation very seriously.
James had worked briefly in an insane asylum while training to be a doctor, and he felt as though Mary Jo exhibited many of the symptoms he had seen in the patients there. There were several people he had treated whose broken minds had driven them to kill or brutally assault people over the most minor offenses, or sometimes for no reason at all. He had sifted through their files and was fascinated to read that many of the patients’ family members always had an inkling that something was “off” about their loved ones. Despite that, the families were still stunned to hear that their loved ones had murdered, defiled, or tortured someone. Each patient had gone from people who simply behaved oddly to erupting into violence in the blink of an eye. James had recalled those facts while sitting across from Mary Jo and watching how seamlessly she switched from one personality to another. Having her bizarre behavior so in his face on a daily basis made her insanity very clear for James to see. From his experience at the asylum, he knew that ignoring such behavior could have catastrophic results. That realization made him immediately stop viewing his current situation as one he could talk Mary Jo out of. Instead, he finally accepted that he would never be able to reason with a lunatic.
After remembering something he had learned during his short stint in the asylum, James was certain that the more resistant he was to Mary Jo, the more difficult the battle with her would be. While working there, he was taught to just go along with a patient’s delusional claims to keep them calm. His wiser elders told him that if a patient claimed to have a dog, it would be best to simply ask its name and breed while you calmly guided the looney and his invisible mutt toward the meal hall. He was then warned not to explain that the delusional dog does not exist, unless he preferred dragging his patient kicking and screaming to the meal hall instead. James feared that if Mary Jo snapped in that nature, her violent retaliatory target would be Lily. He, therefore, made the decision to just concede to what Mary Jo wanted. He was willing to endure such a thing just to be sure that he got Lily out of Fayetteville alive and in one piece.
So tonight, while at Joseph Parker’s political event, James planned to “ask Mary Jo about her imaginary dog.” He would feed it, pet it, and even walk the damn thing, if that’s what it took to de-escalate the situation and manipulate her more easily into what he wanted. Safety for Lily was at the top of the list of things that James wanted most. Second, he wanted his incriminating letters back along with the drawing of him and Lily. Third, he was not opposed to using Mary Jo for money, or even stealing it from her if the opportunity presented itself. She had been an accomplice in stealing money from Lily anyway, so he felt as though his crime would be totally justified.
With his plans in mind, James had dismounted his horse, straightened his suit, and recited the “looney laws” in his head just before he had walked through the doors of the venue Joseph Parker had rented for his political event. When a slave welcomed him, James put on a smile as fake as Mary Jo’s, and immediately began putting on the world’s greatest acting job. After kissing and hugging Mary Jo in front of everyone, James immediately noticed a difference in her. There was no nasty stare, pursed lips, or demands under her breath to make him straighten up his attitude. His affections seemed so genuine, it left her completely blind to the fact that it was yet another epic rouse.
All throughout the evening, James continued to make it seem as though he had fallen for Mary Jo. He talked and laughed with her, brought her drinks, and even danced with her while delighting her with an onslaught of tender caresses and gentle pecks on her lips. The giddy smile he had put on her face pleased Jesse as well. He had watched the pair from time to time while drinking and talking to Joseph from the corner of the packed room. Settling the waters with his father was part of the reason James had the ability to stomach the ridiculous game he was playing. He figured nothing would make his father happier than the illusion that he had finally fallen for the one woman he had wanted him to be with for years. James felt like a magician practicing the art of misdirection, doing all that he could to deflect Mary Jo and his father’s attention away from his relationship with Lily.
After a night of masterfully creating the illusion of love, James sat at one of many tables in the large reception hall, swallowing the little bit of food his stomach would tolerate after an evening of nauseating forced affections toward a woman he loathed. He was cuddled closely to Mary Jo while listening to her father speak onstage about his plans to run for mayor. He was jabbering on and on about how he wanted to fix up the buildings in the town’s center, beginning with Gideon’s medical office. James, however, was only catching every other word of his speech. He had been long since ready to go. If he went on much longer pretending to love Mary Jo, his stomach was threatening to return his meal in a semi-digested form back onto his plate. Hearing Joseph utter the words “thank you,” and then the warm reception from the delighted audience was music to James’s ears. He felt as though they were applauding him for the spectacular show he had just put on. He wanted more than anything to now take his bow and make a stage right exit with zero chance of an encore. Much to his dismay, however, he would
soon learn that the show had only just begun.
“Thank you, thank you,” Joseph said as the applause settled, and everyone sat back down. “Before you all leave, my beautiful daughta’ also has an announcement she would like to make this evenin’.” He waved his hand toward Mary Jo. “Sweetheart, the stage is yours.”
Mary Jo stood up and smiled the moment all eyes were on her. She took slow steady steps in her evening gown, drawing out the time that everyone was forced to watch her gallivant up to the podium. “I’d first like to say thank you all for supportin’ my fatha’ in his bid to become mayor,” she began, with her tomato-red smile firmly in place. “He’s served this town well already, and I’m sure he’ll do nothin’ less movin’ forward the day you vote him in as your mayor.” After a short applause, she continued. “Anotha’ man who is destined to serve you all well is James Adams,” she said, motioning her hand toward him.
James was about to take a sip of his drink but immediately put it down when he heard that he was now the subject of Mary Jo’s speech.
“I’m sure many of you are already well aware of who James is. He’s been a resident of Fayetteville and my best friend since the day he was born,” Mary Jo continued as she turned her attention to James briefly and smiled. “His whole life, he’s dreamed of becomin’ a doctor. Afta’ several years of schoolin’, he’s finally accomplished that dream. He’s now come back to his beloved birthplace to serve as Dr. Gideon Whitfield’s successor.”
Another round of applause had James feeling hot under the collar. He adjusted in his seat, trying to figure out a way to ward off the extreme discomfort of suddenly being the center of attention.
“James and I were best friends growin’ up,” Mary Jo carried on. “That friendship turned to love ova’ the years, and despite bein’ away at school for so many years, it was not enough to destroy our bond or the feelin’s he’s had for me.”
Sweat was quickly accumulating on James’s forehead the longer Mary Jo went on with her lies.
“I used to dream as a little girl that one day James and I would tie the knot, and I’m proud to say that that dream is finally about to become a reality. Just yesterday, he got down on bended knee and proposed to me,” Mary Jo lifted her finger and displayed an elaborate engagement ring to the crowd. “And I’m excited to share that news with all ‘a you here tonight!”
Everyone erupted in another round of applause while James, in turn, lowered his eyebrows and pursed his lips tight to keep from erupting at Mary Jo. He had never once considered abusing a woman, but violent visions quickly began materializing in his mind after the audacity of her declaration. He was seething with rage, fighting hard to resist the urge to sling her by the hair into the crowd. Though the audience was oblivious to his anger, Mary Jo could see it written all over his face. She glared down on him, daring him with her eyes to object to her lies, or say anything about the ring that she had purchased for herself.
Just moments before her announcement, James thought the show was over, but he now felt as though he had just been yanked by the neck with a walking cane, dragged back onstage, and was being forced to give an encore performance after all.
“C’mon up here, sweetheart!” Mary Jo prompted with a fake smile, all the while demanding his obedience with the scolding look in her eyes.
James hesitantly stood and walked toward the podium while searching for the strength to abide by the “looney-laws.” He much preferred to slap the tomato-red lipstick clean off Mary Jo’s face, but instead he controlled himself and smiled once he was standing beside his “fiancé.” He raised Mary Jo’s ring-bearing hand in the air and kissed her on the lips, sending the crowd into another explosive round of applause and whistles. He then spoke and added even more icing on Mary Jo’s imaginary cake. “I’m excited to be marryin’ this beautiful woman. Between my future fatha’-in-law as mayor, and myself as the town’s new doctor, our new family hopes to serve all of Fayetteville well in the years to come.”
With that brief speech, James had managed to completely shift his father’s focus from all that had occurred with Lily to the fact that the wealth he had been dreaming of were now within reach. Jesse was so giddy over the news, he nearly wet himself. He felt as though twenty-five years of forcing Mary Jo on his son was literally about pay off. As James stepped down from the podium holding Mary Jo’s hand, Jesse did something he did not even bother to do when his wife passed away: hug his son. In continuing his act, James reciprocated the rare affection in front of everyone and then returned to his seat after the nauseating moment ended, content to never share a moment with his father like that ever again.
What was to be an event to launch Joseph’s mayoral office campaign had turned into an impromptu engagement party. A non-stop flow of people now made their way to James and Mary Jo’s table to congratulate them on their impending nuptials and to get a better look at her five-karat ring. James was forced to sit through the distasteful disaster while retelling a quick-thinking lie about the proposal details to everybody who asked. He retold the made-up story for the eighth time to an old friend and then kissed the hand that donned his “fiancé’s” engagement ring just as the drink he had requested finally arrived at his table. The three glasses he already drank had not numbed his mind and body enough to deal with the nightmare he would never wake up from.
“Your whiskey, sa’.”
“Thank you,” James replied as he turned and looked up at the woman serving it. When he saw Lily’s face, his heart plummeted into the pit of his stomach and stayed lodged there like a massive stone. His fake smile immediately faded away while a glorious one emerged on Mary Jo’s. Even though Lily was angry with him, James could still tell by the brimming tears in her eyes that he had further crushed her by all that she had witnessed throughout the night. Up until that point, James had no idea that Lily was even there. And it was clear by the devastated look on her face that she had no idea that his affections toward Mary Jo and his speech at the podium were nothing more than another elaborate hoax. Lily handed James his drink after her sullen glance into his eyes and then quickly scurried away with the feeling of embarrassment and humiliation crawling all over her.
After watching Lily walk away, James turned and whispered in Mary Jo’s ear. “What’s Lily doin’ here?”
“We needed as many hands as possible tonight, so I asked yo’ daddy to bring ’er.”
“Her, specifically? Of all the slaves we had available, it just had to be her?” he asked, fighting hard to maintain his composure.
“We needed house slaves, not those filthy field nigga’s,” Mary Jo lied. “You have a problem with that?”
James could suddenly feel Mary Jo’s attitude beginning to shift. It was as if she had climbed up and was teetering on a fence. One wrong word or action and he was certain she would hop back over into her hometown of Looneyville where she reigned supreme as the queen of all its people. He knew he had to think quickly to coax her off the fence back onto the lands of sanity. “No, no, it’s not a problem at all.” He kissed her ring-bearing hand again. “I just rememba’ how clumsy Lily was at our last gatherin’. I don’t need ’er causin’ a scene like that here. I hate to be forced to straighten ’er out again in front of everyone.”
“True,” Mary Jo smiled after he had defused the situation. “That’s why she’s supposed to be in the kitchen at all times. I don’t know why she was out here servin’ folks anyway.”
James just quietly accepted Mary Jo’s words despite knowing she was lying about everything. He knew her choice to have Lily there was as calculated as her proposal announcement. His assumptions were accurate. Joseph Parker had ten times the number of slaves as a typical farm. It was certainly well stocked with enough house slaves to handle the evenings events. But instead, Mary Jo had insisted on wrangling Lily there behind James’s back to humiliate her … again. She never once told anyone to force Lily to stay in the kitchen. If anything, Mary Jo wanted to ensure that Lily’s eyes were readily available to
witness everything that she had in store for that evening. It was just happenstance that Lily had blended into the mass of people so well that James never once noticed she was there until after he had already done enough to further infect her massive emotional wound, one that was already struggling to heal.
As the disastrous evening was coming to a close, James stood by Mary Jo’s side bidding all the guests goodnight. After all the things Mary Jo had put him through, he could not believe she then had the audacity to ask him to stay the night with her. Fortunately, he was easily able to talk his way out of the disgusting request by using work as an excuse. That, however, was the last thing on his mind. Jesse had already taken Lily home and James was eager to speak to her. Despite promising himself that he would not push Lily to talk, he felt this was an occasion where he would have to make an exception.
When the event was over, James forced his horse to gallop home with lightning speed. After his arrival, he quickly locked the horse down in the barn. He then walked briskly toward the slave quarters, but oddly saw Lily plodding across the field in the darkness headed there too. “Lily!” he called out to her.
She briefly turned her head in his direction but kept on walking.
James picked up pace and caught her before she walked into her dilapidated home. “Lily wait!” he said, gently grabbing her by the arm.
She said nothing and, instead, angrily looked down at her arm where he was gripping her.
James took the hint and immediately let her go. “Can I please talk to you?” he then asked.
“Stop!” Lily put a hand up. “Just spare me one ‘a your speeches and don’t botha’ with anymore of your longwinded letta’s eitha’!”
