Forging Truth (The Truth Saga)

by Raymond Masters

  2

  It wasn’t so much a hug as it was a tackle. In wrestling terminology: a spear. And a third way to say it is to say she simply knocked me on my butt. Before I could react, I found myself sprawled in my mom’s front yard. How in the heck did I get down those stairs?

  In between her covering me with her kisses and tears, she managed to get out a sentence or two. It was a little tear-filled and soggy, but I definitely got the gist of it: she was very relieved to see me alive, and she had never given up believing I was.

  “What are you doing here,” she squealed.

  “I was kinda thinking the same thing. I came to see my mom.”

  “Oh, right. She’s not here. Come in, though. Tell me what happened. You fell off of the map. They reported you died in the attack, but thank God they were wrong.” She took a steadying breath and guided me back up the porch and into my half-forgotten past.

  My eyes began to water as I ascended the stairs. “It’s exactly as it was when I was a little kid,” I managed. I felt like I was shaking, but when I held my hand out, I realized I was only on the inside. “Oh, God, my nerves are so shot.”

  “Kade Christopher! You will not take the lord’s name in vain in this home.” I would know that tone anywhere. “Now, get over here and give your poor old mother a hug to go along with this heart attack!” She raced to embrace me, and just like that, all was forgiven. I was her little boy. She was once again my beloved mother, who loved me unconditionally and way more than I ever deserved.

  3

  “… And I’ve been driving Tabitha nuts, ever since.”

  “No, you haven’t, Jessica,” Tabitha chided, “I’ve been enjoying the company, to tell the truth.”

  “What, Mason’s visits weren’t enough?”

  “Mason,” I asked, startled. “What, you’re hanging out with my friends, now?”

  “Well, he’s seen me a lot more than he’s seen you these last years.”

  “Mom, you two haven’t been…” I raised my eyebrows and covered my mouth in mock reproach.

  “It’s been way too long since I’ve had you break me off a switch.” She wasn’t laughing, but the slightest smirk danced upon her lips.

  “What about Mason, though,” I prompted.

  “Oh, he’ll be by soon enough. I know he’ll be glad to see you, too. He’s had some hard times since the last time you, two, spoke.”

  “Harder times ahead, more than likely,” Jess added.

  “Cryptic much,” I asked.

  “Okay, okay. Let’s not talk about other people’s news. He’ll be by tomorrow, and he can tell you himself. So, son, what about you? Tell us what’s new. What’s it like being born again?”

  “Mom, it wasn’t that.”

  “Would you prefer resurrected?”

  “Mom, I wasn’t dead. I was just … declared dead. Besides, from what I hear, it’s almost impossible to be placed back among the living, legal wise.” I gave her my most winning smile. And, just like she had been able to when I was a child, she saw right through it.

  “Son, I went to your funeral.” She started to break up on the last word. Jess offered her some tissue. After she blew her nose a couple of times, she seemed to regain her composure and continued, “Your funeral, Kade. And it was the single hardest thing I’ve ever had to face. Harder than when your father died. At least then, I had you.”

  That was the wrong thing to say. It was the first time during the whole reunion I had thought about my resentment toward her. It was certainly back now. I tried to suppress my feelings, bite back my words on this emotional day. Unfortunately, I never had been much good at biting my tongue. “If you hadn’t sent me away after dad died, then maybe you wouldn’t even have had to go through something as painful as ‘burying’ your son. Look, I hate I fell out of contact with you, mom, but you brought it on yourself. You were selfish, kicking me to the curb like that. I needed you just as much as I needed dad. You let me down. You couldn’t handle it, so you let me down.”

  She turned and strode into her little bedroom, just off the living room. She didn’t slam the door, which would have been bad enough. No, she left it open, so I could watch her next movements. She fell on her knees, at the foot of her bed, and began to pray. I couldn’t make out the words, but I had seen her in that position enough to know what was going on. Lord, give her strength. Lord, build her up to face this disobedient and ungrateful son.

  I couldn’t watch. I went to the sink for a cold glass of water. “She hasn’t even changed her dishes,” I said. I tried to sound all tough and pissed, but it actually came out wistful. Jessie noticed.

  “Kade. After your funeral, I came back here with her and we talked for hours. Nothing was out of bounds, so when I asked why she sent you away, she was quite candid in her response.” She paused, allowing me to study her. “God had spoken to her. God had told her to send you away for your own good. For the good of the world.”

  I rolled my eyes, “God, huh? Yeah, that’s my mom all right, placing God before her family.” I finished the water in one long swig and bounced the plastic glass off the sink.

  “Isn’t that what we’re all to do,” Jess asked, quietly.

  “Yes, dammit, I know. I’m just trying to be mad and self-righteous.”

  “How’s that working out for you?”

  “Swell.” I put my arm around her shoulder and positioned her for a kiss.

  “That’s what I thought. Now, get in there, eat some humble pie, and forgive your mother – and yourself – before something else can come between the you.”

  4

  Walking in, I spare a moment just to take in the vision of her. She is in her late fifties, but as she kneels at the foot of her bed, she could still pass for the same vibrant woman I remembered so fondly. “Tabitha Truth, still praying for her lost son.” She looked up, not speaking. Then, taking a rather large bite of that humble pie, I admitted, “Thank God somebody is.” Taking a second bite, I knelt beside her. Shoving the whole piece in my mouth, I clasped her hand and began to pray aloud.

  “Dear Lord, thank you for this long overdue reunion. With my mom, with Jessie, and with you, Lord. Please, don’t let this be a short visit, but lifelong reconnection. This is a beautiful woman you’ve made, and I thank you for her – now, if at no other time in my sad life. I pray she knows just how much I value her and am thankful for the life’s lessons she has taught me. I pray she will always be there to watch over me and cry with me, and be disappointed in me, when I do things she knows you would frown upon. I pray you will remove the stumbling block of pride from my path and help me to reach my destination, without another fall. All of this I pray in your son Jesus’ name. Amen.”

  When I looked up, the tears that had refused to sully my mother’s regal countenance earlier, were not just looming in her hazel eyes, but flowing down her cheeks in great sheets. “Oh, Kade. My good, good son. Don’t you know it wasn’t you I was praying for? Don’t you know it was for me? I prayed the exact things you just asked for. For Him to remove pride from my path and help me to be the mother I should have been all along.”

  I wrapped my arms around her. We continued crying together for some time. After she decided enough was enough, she pulled back from the embrace to look me in the eye. With a smile, she said, “Would you just look at the show we’re putting on? Why, we would even make the Pharisees blush.”

  “Hey, you started it,” I countered. “Leaving your bedroom door open as you prostrated yourself there at your bedside. Thought you were supposed to go to your closet or something.”

  Winking at me, she said, “Saw right through me, did you? After all these years? How did you get to be so smart?”

  “Studying. The only way I could avoid those long yardsticks The Sisters always carried.”

  We took a seat on the bed, composing ourselves. “Still teaching Sunday school,” I asked.

  “Till I die. But the attendance is very low, I’m afraid.”

  “I’m sorry. And the
charity work?”

  “Mm hmm. The homeless shelter’s going about as strong – we’re thinking about opening up a second one, though. If we can get the resources and the workers. And, I’m blessed to say the church has been very busy gathering care packages for the Statue victims and those serving overseas.”

  “The war.” I said it more to myself than to mom. In all of my personal tests and quests, I had all but forgotten.

  “Yes, this God-forsaken war of the president’s. I just don’t understand, kiddo. Well, actually, I do. ‘Wars and rumors of wars’, I guess. But, it all seems so transparent. So agenda-driven.”

  “When is that not the case,” I quipped.

  “Hmm. You’re right. Enough about this war. Let’s have some tea and you can tell your dear old mum all about these past weeks. Heck, past years, for that matter.”

  “Actually, mom, I do have something major to tell you – you and Jess – but it’s kinda a second day thing. Can I wait till the morning? For the tea, too? I know it’s early, but I think I’m ready for bed. And, no, not with Jessie, I know better than to even ask.”

  She smiled at me, but not in a way I expected. Not in a way I could really put my finger on. It was a horrible grin. It made her look older somehow. “Son, I’m not stupid. You’re human, and it has been a goodish time since you two were together. You need her, and she, you. I know what it’s like to be without the one you love most. Go. Be with her.” I nodded and turned to go, but she caught me by the arm and pulled my ear to her last few whispered words. “Just be careful. There’s something about her that makes me … leery.” She released me, gave me another of those disconcerting smiles, and busied with folding back her bedding.

  5

  Leery? What the heck did that mean? I dwelled on that word as I changed. There was only one pair of shorts in my drawer that still fit. It was weird being back in my old room. This was made even more so by the fact mom let me have a girl in my room. For a sleepover, no less. Now that was something to be leery over.

  Jessie was suddenly behind me, sliding her hand up my back to rest on my shoulder, interrupting my train of thought. “So, Kade, whatcha gonna do with a girl all alone in your room? Bet your buds would never believe this.” She flashed me a seductive wink.

  I turned to her and took her in my arms, giving her another small kiss. Nothing serious. I was still pretty new to the whole returned memories. Didn’t really want to rush it. To cover, I said, “Jess, this is still my mom’s house.”

  “Baby, hush, I know. I was playing with you. Now come to bed. You can at least hold me, yeah?”

  “Yeah. That I can do all night long.” She led me over to my bed, where we snuggled. As I was about to drift off, I thought once more about my mother’s paranoia toward Jess. Then, I thought of something else entirely. “Jess,” I called.

  “Mmm?” She replied, sounding near sleep.

  “You’ve been here a few days, staying in my old room?”

  “Mmm,” she replied, barely there now.

  “Listen, about those magazines, I can explain.” I waited, but got no response. Guess she wasn’t too worried. After all, she had just gotten her fiancé back from the dead.

  6

  Mao.

  I sat up in bed, confused, perspiring. My old alarm clock read quarter after four. I had been dreaming. About Mao. In the dream, she had been on the banks of Caduceus’ stream, and she had been telling me I needed to … What?

  I didn’t know. It had something to do with Caduceus, but like most dreams, it lost its solidity shortly upon my waking. Though I couldn’t recall the words, the tone stayed with me. Futility. I reached for comfort, for Jess, but grabbed pillow instead. Just great. I need assurance. She needs to pee. I rolled onto my back and waited for sleep.

  7

  I certainly didn’t have trouble going back to sleep and staying there. I finally got out of bed a little after ten the next morning. I had gotten over twelve hours of sleep. I had no idea I had been that exhausted. Most of it was emotional. I had been waiting to come home in a lot more ways than one.

  Jessie was already up – of course – Had she ever come back to bed? – and visiting with mom. I could hear the two of them talking quietly, letting me wake up on my own. When I came into the living room, they both grinned at me, shaking their heads.

  “Hey, sleepyhead. Thought I was going to have to send your mother in there to get you up.”

  “Yeah, I still feel like I could sleep, too.”

  “You always were able to sleep through anything,” Tabitha recalled.

  “Well, I didn’t sleep through breakfast, did I?”

  “I’ll make us some brunch, hmm?”

  “Oh, mom, you don’t have to do that. Let me.” I had showed up unannounced after years of blowing her off. I couldn’t expect her to wait on me hand and foot. “Please, let me do it.”

  “I didn’t say you were getting off easy. You’re going to help me, young man,” she said. Just like that, she stood and went into the kitchen, leaving me speechless.

  As it turned out, we all three pitched in. It was actually enjoyable, too. It felt like we were one, not-so-big, but happy family. I cracked open and fried some eggs, tossing in a few chunks of ham. Jessie and mom diced onions and peppers. The end result was some of the best omelets I had ever eaten. While we cooked, mother and I used the time to play catch up.

  “Did you receive any of the cards and packages I sent you?”

  “I did,” I said, thinking of the nearly full drawer back home. The majority of the gifts remained unopened; though, I really didn’t want to admit it.

  “And the birthday presents,” she prodded.

  “Yes, mom.” There had been one almost every year, and always a card at the very least.

  “This past one, too?”

  I hesitated, thinking I had, but so much of the recent past was still such a blur. “Yeah, thanks, mom, it was real nice of you.”

  “But you’re not wearing it. You weren’t last night, either.”

  Crap. What had it been, a sweater or something? She was going to see right through my bluff, and then where would I be?

  “You’ve lost it, haven’t you? Please, tell me you didn’t lose it during the attack.”

  I shrugged, committing to nothing.

  “Kade Christopher, that necklace is very, very important. Either you have it, or you don’t.”

  Well, that answered one mystery at least. Well, sort of answered it.

  “Mom, relax, I’ve got the necklace. Relax. It’s pretty unique,” I said, testing just how much she knew about her gift. I’m a guy that actually does believe in coincidences. I would much rather believe in coincidence than destiny or fate or what have you. That said, it would have been one big boner of a coincidence for mom to just happen to send me the necklace that had, in all likelihood, saved my life.

  “Relieved to hear it,” she said, revealing nothing.

  8

  After a familial breakfast, we rinsed our dishes in the kitchen. Jess placed hers in the sink, and then turned to me. “Babe, could you maybe wash mine up, please? I’ve gotta run into town for a minute. Would you mind?”

  I was puzzled. Why would she be going into town without me – without even inviting me – so soon after I came back into her life. Probably, because she thinks mom and I need more time together, I realized. “Sure. Bring me back something nice.”

  “I’ll bring you back a surprise, but you’ve got to promise to be a good boy for your mama.” She gave me a stern look.

  I played along by bowing my head, bashfully, and kicked my foot in the ‘dust.’ “Yes, ma’am.”

  She gave me a sweet smile and leaned up to kiss me on the corner of my mouth. Looking me in the eye, she turned serious. “I love you, sweetie. You be here when I get back, now.”

  “Yes, ma’am,” I said, again.

  “Alrighty, then. Mrs. Truth, did you need me to pick anything up while I was out?”

  “No, Jessie, I’ve
got my boy back. That’s enough for today, thank you.” Mom smiled at us.

  It’s getting more syrupy by the second in here. I’m going to be in a diabetic coma by the time Jess gets back. Who was I fooling? Even I knew I loved all the exaggerated attention being heaped upon me since I had come home.

  “Don’t let him disappear, again, before I get back,” Jess instructed.

  “Not to worry. I’ll be right here with him,” Tabitha replied, “We’ve got a lot to talk about.”

  9

  “Kade, son, can you come in here for a second,” mom called. “I need you to reach something for me.” When I found her, she was in her bedroom, standing on top of a two-step ladder, reaching into the top of her closet. There was a shelf by the ceiling, and whatever she wanted must have been in the very back. She stepped down and scooted to the side, giving me enough leeway to shimmy up. “It’s right there, just out of reach. Stretch. Can you feel the lip of a box? To the right a little?”

  My hand did brush something. I felt around and finally found what I had bumped. Pulling it out, I saw it was one of mom’s old cases she used to keep her curlers in. It felt empty. “This it,” I asked.

  “Ah. Thank you. Sit it down on the bed for me.” We drew near the bed, and she dropped in prayer once again. Silently this time. When she was done, I asked, “Ma? Are you okay?”

  She was trembling. “No, son,” she said, “No, I am pretty far from okay, actually.”

  I looked at her, puzzled. Taking her hand, I said, “Mom, you’re worrying me. What’s going on?”