by Luke Brown
“Got it!” Junior caught the bag and quickly passed it on to Gena, who placed it carefully on the roadside beside a two-foot-tall sitting wall made of white stone and concrete.
“Next one! I’m ready.” Junior continued to receive their luggage until he had all four bags and two suitcases.
They gathered their belongings and headed to the hills of Clear Mount. Essie led the way, and Gena carried baby Bunny. Soon, the town of Clear Mount came into sight.
“There it is!” Leonard shouted. “We’re almost there.”
“Yes, I can see the big mango tree!” Myrtle screamed. “There’s Mast Tim’s gateway.” She took off running toward the town’s narrow entrance. Leonard followed immediately behind her. They raced ahead to see who would be the first to get there.
“I bet I can beat you both to the mango tree!” Junior shouted. He waited until Myrtle and Leonard were far enough ahead, and then he took off running. Betty also followed. The kids all raced ahead, leaving Essie and Gena behind.
“Be careful, guys. If you keep on running like that, you might fall!” Essie called out to her kids, but they were too excited to listen to her.
Junior ripped past them and was the first to get to the familiar old mango tree. By the time they all got there, they were out of breath. The thick, solid roots of the great tree grew three to four feet above the ground. Panting heavily and gasping for air, the kids took a seat on the roots and rested while they waited for their mom, Gena, and baby Bunny.
In no time, there was a handful of curious little country kids standing along the street in front of Mast Tim’s gateway. They stood there to watch the bunch of town folks entering their village.
Ten-year-old Karl heard the noise outside his gate and ran to the door to see what was going on. It was his family from town, who had come to visit him and his dad, Mast Tim. He ran out through the door. “Momma, Momma! You’re here!” he yelled, rushing into his mother’s open arms.
Essie had stooped down low to Karl’s level. “Hello, Karl. How are you, son?” She hugged him and kissed him on the cheek.
“I’m fine, Momma.”
“Is your dad home?”
“Yes, Momma. He’s cooking in the kitchen.”
Karl was happy to see her and all of his brothers and sisters, who had come all the way from Montego Bay to see him. He greeted all of them as well.
After they had all happily greeted each other, they went into Tim’s old country house to meet him and set their luggage down. Before long, the kids were all back outside playing with Karl and his friends in the front yard. They played and had fun until suppertime. After they had eaten, Essie instructed the kids to take a bath and change into some clean clothes before night fell.
The water drums were critically low, and the kids ran short on water while taking their baths. Karl decided to rush to the public water pipe to refill the drums. He did this so that the remaining town folks and visiting family could all take baths and prepare for the evening’s activities at his home. This night’s scheduled activity was what they called “story time by Essie.”
Karl made many trips back and forth to the public water pipe. On his last trip, he stopped to pitch a game of marbles with some friends, whom he had met up with at the pipe area. He was also engaged in a game called stone tag. This was a game in which they took turns tossing a particular stone at each other’s stones. The first one to hit the opponent’s target stone would be the winner. They played for a long time, and Karl lost track of time.
When he finally realized this, it was already getting dark. “Oh my God!” Karl said to his friends. “It’s getting late. I must go before night falls.” He hastily bid them good-bye and ran off to fetch his last bucket of water.
On his way home, he had a strange encounter. It had just turned from dusk to dark. He was walking with the bucket of water on his head, being led along his pathway by the glowing light of the moon. He made it around a deep corner of the undeveloped road and started up a steep curve. As he made it over the curve, he was led right into the long stretch of straight, narrow dirt road leading to his house. He suddenly realized that he was the only person on the street.
Maybe he was the only person in the entire village who was out at that time of the evening. All activities in the country town of Clear Mount virtually stopped at six o’clock. The village seemed to be asleep by seven-thirty, and it was now eight, give or take a few minutes.
He continued along the road for a while when all of a sudden, a cold, tingling chill blanketed his entire body from his head to his toes. His heart skipped a beat or two. His head felt like it was growing larger and larger, way out of proportion to his body. He turned around, and in the distance, he saw an image bearing the likeness of an animal. However, this was no ordinary animal. It appeared to be a giant cow or ox with an enormous head. It had a long iron chain tied around its neck. The beast raced toward him at full speed, dragging the chain along behind.
Karl’s eyes were flooded with panic and his palms were sweating. His whole body shook with fear. Terrified, he took off running. His body felt wobbly and uncoordinated as he ran, and his knees shook like an unbalanced washing machine.
He looked back and saw that the creature was rapidly catching up to him. Realizing he still had the bucket of water on his head, he threw it away quickly, as if he had been hit by an electric shock.
He hit his right big toe on a stone in the road, but kept running and hopping as he tried to make his getaway. He glanced back briefly to see how he was doing. The angry beast continued to close in on him. It was so close he could smell its rotten, rancid breath and see the strange look in its bulging eyes. Its eyes were as red as fire, but the weirdest thing of all was that they looked almost human.
Karl realized that this gigantic creature was not an animal. No, it most definitely was not. It was what they referred to in the countryside of Hanover as a “rolling calf.” Karl was being chased by a ghost! He had heard about them, but he personally had never seen one before—well, at least not until now.
A rolling calf was a ghost that often appeared in the form of an animal. These ghosts had large red eyes like a dragon’s. Some even said that they could breathe fire through their mouths. Most people who had had close encounters had reported that they had first heard or detected the rolling calves by their unique, loud chiming and an unnerving clanking noise. This familiar sound was made by the long chain the creatures usually dragged behind them.
Some said that rolling calves were the spirits of evil butchers who had been cruel and mean when they were alive. They said that the best way to get away from these monstrous beasts was to drop various things on the ground. If one dropped things on the ground a little at a time, the rolling calves would have to stop to count each one. Reports of past encounters indicated this getaway method worked every time.
When it dawned on Karl that his pursuer was most likely to be a rolling calf, he really started running as if he hadn’t been running before. He forgot about his damaged toe. He forgot about running and hopping. He was now going top speed with strides like Asafa Powell and a face like Shally Ann Fraser-Price style. He shifted into sixth gear and took off blazing the trail for his dear life. Neither Usain Bolt nor his supposing “twice as fast” twin brother, Insain Bolt, nor any other athlete or track and field star could have kept up with Karl that night.
One strange thought came to him while he was running for his life. A voice kept repeating inside his head, Boy, the country is no place for a coward like you. Why are you here running for your dear life when your family is living nicely and comfortably in the big city of Montego Bay? Boy, you’ve been grossly neglected and discarded into these bushes, and that’s just not right. That’s just not right.
Karl made it home to tell his brothers and sisters about his frightening story. He burst through the doorway and into the living room, looking frightened and breathing heavily. “Leonard, Myrtle, everybody, you’ll never imagine what just happened to me.”
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“Oh Lord!” Essie cried. “Karl, what happened to you? You look like you’ve seen a ghost.”
All the rest of the kids dashed to the living room to see what the big commotion was about.
“I did, Momma, I did.” Karl sank into the couch. He was still trying to catch his breath.
“Boy, don’t be ridiculous,” she said. “There’s no such thing as a ghost. You must be mistaking some shadow or something.”
“No, Momma, I saw … I saw a rolling calf!” Karl, now in tears, managed to get out. “I saw a rolling calf. It was … it was chasing me all the way home.”
“Karl, did … did you say rolling calf?” Betty asked, shaking with fear.
“Yes, it chased me all the way home!”
“I’m never going outside at night, never ever,” said Leonard. He was also trembling, and his eyes were bulging with hysteria.
The kids all got nervous and scared that night while they were in the countryside of Clear Mount.
“Calm down, guys. Calm down. Rolling calves are not real. They simply do not exist. There is nothing to fear. Karl must have seen an animal that was loose and was out of control going wild on the streets.”
Essie was able to calm her kids down that night, but from that day on, Karl was never the same. He didn’t remember how he had gotten home, only that he had lived to tell the tale. However, from then on, he took a real dislike to the countryside of Clear Mount. He would rather do anything or live anywhere than continue living a backward, country lifestyle. Karl decided that he wanted to live in the town of Montego Bay with his brothers and sisters.
Chapter 17
At forty-five, Essie had become a much wiser and stronger person than she had been when she was younger. She now knew exactly what she wanted out of life. She was determined not to let herself be pushed around by any man—not anymore. She was sick and tired of being despicably used and disregarded. She would put a stop to all of the abuse in her life.
Essie finally realized that nothing in life came easily. Therefore, her love and her attention would not be easily obtained, either. All her love and attention would be for her kids and her kids only. If any man wanted it, he would have to be willing to sacrifice a lot.
This was the attitude she had when Dr. McNelly, the owner of the private cottage resort, came on to her. One day in December 1970, Dr. McNelly visited his cottage without his wife. That was unusual, because all the other times when he traveled, he brought his wife along with him, and sometimes even his kids. This time he came alone, and he came to spend a whole three months’ vacation. He was able to spend such a long period of time because, now sixty-three, he had retired from his profession as a physician.
Essie was one of his favorite staff members. He loved her cooking dearly. The sensational aromas of her tantalizing meals stimulated his appetite, and he eagerly anticipated her zesty island-style foods. One day, after enjoying a scrumptious lunch, he graciously came into the kitchen to praise her for her outstanding cuisine, as he often did.
The sweet-smelling scent of the island spices still hung in the air. It filled his nostrils and titillated his appetite all over again, but his appetite drove him mad for something more than food. It must have been the horny goat weed that Essie so skillfully added to the aphrodisiacal clam preparation. Or maybe it was the soul-soothing Cajun sauce or the jerk island spices that she used to sauté the lobster. Or possibly it was the teasing amount of caviar that she sprinkled over his meal as a topping. Whatever it was, it was surely working its magic.
He complimented her as usual. However, this time, he embraced her softly, with his hands resting on her buttocks. They hugged for an unusually long time, and then he kissed her on her cheek while still embracing her. She recognized only too well what her boss was trying to do, and she was not about to let this big opportunity pass her by. This man was very, very rich. Maybe this was her ticket to travel to the United States or an opportunity to get a raise or a large sum of money.
She was not going to deny him anything he wanted. Therefore, while still in his embrace, Essie made a very seductive gesture. She turned her head and looked up into his desire-filled eyes, and she smiled. Dr. McNelly was pleased to see her reaction, so he proceeded to kiss her on her lips. Essie kissed him back, and one thing led to another as they basked in the sweet, enticing aroma that lingered in the air. Before they knew it, they were in his bed making love.
This passionate occasion set the stage for regular lovemaking between Essie and her boss. There were two other employees who were around most of the time, so the secret lovers had to be discreet about their affair. It was part of the chef’s job to stay overnight or to live in while there was a guest at the cottage. But the other two employees, the chambermaid and the gardener, usually worked standard hours, from nine to five, and then they left. That worked out well for Dr. McNelly and Essie. They simply met after the two employees had left for the day.
The retired doctor had many weird sexual preferences. He requested positions that Essie had never seen or done in her whole life. Essie admitted that this sexual experience with Dr. McNelly was the most challenging she had ever had. She had tried many things in her lifetime, but none so bizarre. Essie kept her mind on the prize, though. Like an order from the food menu, she fulfilled all of his sometimes bizarre requests the best way that she could.
She complied with his requests because she knew that there would be a payoff, and she expected it to be a big one. Many times, while she was making love to the older man, she got caught up in the fantasy of both of them traveling to the United States and doing lots of exciting things together. Sometimes, she would fantasize that, after sex, he would hand her a fistful of American hundred-dollar bills.
Essie thought about all these things, but she did not request anything of him. She knew better. She knew that it took time. At the right time and the right place, she would know what to do.
After about six weeks of this affair, Essie decided that she would have a serious talk with Dr. McNelly. She figured that this was the right time because he only had two weeks remaining before he left the island.
Essie timed their next sexual encounter carefully. After he went into his room, she slipped in behind him and closed the door. She swiftly changed into some provocative red lingerie. She then enticingly paraded around the room like a Victoria’s Secret model while Dr. McNelly lay fully nude in bed, admiring her beautiful body.
He anxiously beckoned her to come closer, but she did not. She continued to flirtatiously model her outfit around the room with her sexy, luscious booty showing slightly and her big, beautiful breasts with her seemingly one-inch-long hard and rather stiff buttons protruding through her inviting red see-through top. Dr. McNelly was fully ready and was anxious to get down to business.
Then Essie, discerning his state, said to him, “Doc, you know that I have eight kids to take care of, and I’m both their father and their mother? Did you know that they all live in one bedroom?”
“How can I help, Essie? Just let me know.”
“Doc, my kids are all getting big. I need a decent home for them.”
“How much is a nice three-bedroom house going for in Jamaica?”
“I don’t know, Doc, but I can find out.”
“Okay, Essie, do that. Look around and find a nice three-bedroom house, and let me know. I’ll take care of you if you’ll take care of me.”
“Thank you, Doc.” She hastily jumped into bed with him, and they made love. Essie was gratified and happy with the deal.
The next day was Essie’s day off, and she didn’t waste any time getting started on her house-hunting project. She went to the district of Glenworth because she had once overheard rumors that some wonderful houses were on sale there and that it was a fast-growing neighborhood where one could get the most for one’s money. There she met a man by the name of Mr. Gibbs, who was selling his spiffy three-bedroom single-family house. It had a wonderful front patio overlooking the cul-de-sac of a street
nearby. The house was made of wood rather than building blocks.
Essie thought that she had a good chance of affording this home. Moreover, it was in an excellent location where one could see the ocean way out in the distance. You could also see the wonderful sunrise in the mornings from the front porch. When she asked how much it cost, Mr. Gibbs told her that the house was significantly underpriced to sell expeditiously. The adorable, spacious three-bedroom house on the slight incline of a hillside close to the road was being sold for only fifty-five thousand US dollars.
The next day at work, Essie excitedly told Dr. McNelly the price of the house, and he immediately reached for his checkbook and wrote a check for twenty-five thousand US dollars. Essie was grateful and happy for the money, but she was befuddled. Had Dr. McNelly misunderstood the price that she had quoted him? She therefore repeated it.
“Essie,” he said, “you may take today off. Tomorrow, you and my favorite person can come by for the remaining amount.”
Essie was even more bewildered.
It was sobering when it dawned on her that her boss was handing over to her the unbelievable amount of fifty-five thousand US dollars. After all was said and done, it was a huge amount. This was the lump sum of US dollars that she had been fantasizing about. This was bigger and better than hitting the jackpot. This didn’t happen every day in an average person’s life.
Essie concluded that this one instance of good fortune made up for all of the other misfortunes in her life.
Chapter 18
Everyone now had some elbow room. There was a room for the girls, there was a room for the boys, and there was a room for Essie, the hardworking queen of the family. It was like an instant change in social class and social status. The family felt revived and rescued from the tightly gripping claws of the ghetto. Now they could hold their heads up high with pride and dream big dreams. Owning their own home, free of any mortgage or rent, was a tremendous boost to everyone’s confidence.
