Happy New Year, Baby

by Emery, Lynn

  Adeline sighed and settled back with a pleased expression. “That’s a start. Eric, tell your father he’s forgiven. Go on.”

  “Mama, we—”

  Adeline made an attempt to sit up by holding on to rail. “Don’t ma-ake me-e get up out of this bed, boy.”

  Eric’s eyes widened with alarm. He stepped forward and placed his hands on both her shoulders. Dalton gave her a gentle but firm push back against the pillows.

  “Adeline, you are the most willful little woman.” Dalton gazed up at Eric. His eyes were full of emotion. “Best do as you’re told, son. Am I forgiven?”

  “Sure,” Eric said in a voice strangled with unspoken feelings for the man he admired more than anyone else. “Sure you are, Dad.” He hugged Dalton’s neck.

  Adeline nodded at them. “Now talk to each other.” Her eyes were already half-closed. “I’m going to take a nap. I can rest easier now.”

  Eric and Dalton left only after her low, regular breathing assured them she was asleep. They returned to the small waiting room down the hall.

  “My apology wasn’t just to keep your mama from getting upset. I had no right to come between you and Shani. It was wrong.” Dalton looked away. “Adeline means the world to me. When you find the woman who makes you feel like a king even when the whole world is beating you down, well there’s just no way to replace that.”

  “I believe you, Dad.” Eric was moved.

  “Is there anything I can do to make things right between you two?”

  “Thanks, but no. Something was bound to test our relationship.” Eric lifted his shoulders. “Maybe it’s just as well we broke up. Could be our differences are just too big.”

  “You think so?” Dalton rubbed his chin and gazed off into the distance. “Maybe, maybe not.”

  Eric’s head lowered, his chin touching the top of his open collar. “I’m afraid it’s not, Dad. Anyway,” he said looking up again, “at least there’s good news about Mama. Listen, why don’t you go home and rest? I’ll stay here tonight.”

  “Humm? Oh no, I don’t … Well okay. I’ll go take a shower and change. But I’ll be back in a few hours.” Dalton slapped Eric’s back. “You take the early shift. I’ll be back by ten or ten-thirty.”

  “But you’ve been up since four this morning,” Eric protested. “The last thing I need is for both of you to be sick.”

  “Trust me, son. My place is with Adeline. Now go on in there. That lounge chair is surprisingly comfortable. My thoughtful secretary is on her way with some food for me. You eat it. I’ll get something on the way home.” Dalton pulled him along.

  “I’m not all that hungry.”

  “You will be. Now quit arguing with me. When I’m through, things are going to work out right.” Dalton gave a cheerful wave goodbye before stepping through the open doors of the elevator. “You’ll see.”

  “What?” Eric blinked in puzzlement at his words. “Dad, wait a minute.”

  The doors clicked shut leaving him to wonder about the mysterious grin his father wore.

  ***

  “Sure you want to go through with this?” Mac said to Shani. He glanced around with an uneasy grimace on his dark features. “This isn’t the safest place to be in the daytime, much less after dark.”

  They sat in his unmarked car outside a rundown boarding house on East Boulevard. Several blocks down the street a group of young men stood on a corner laughing and shoving each other. Cars drove up to them then sped off after a hasty transaction. Rap music blared from a ramshackle house about a block down East Boulevard behind them. Mac took his eyes off the boarding house only to check their surroundings through the rearview mirrors.

  “We both know that My’iesha could disappear fast. If she’s here, I want to be with you to talk to her.” Shani was so intent on what she would say to My’iesha, she did not feel afraid for herself. Her fear was for the young woman who teetered on the edge of being another murder statistic.

  “Let’s just hope LeVar isn’t up there with her. Things could get ugly real quick.” Mac slipped a hand inside the wool blazer to pat his shoulder holster. He shot a look of fury at the group of young men. The fifth car to stop in the last fifteen minutes pulled away. “Wish I could bust those little punks.”

  “When I see guys like that, it makes me wish I knew the answer to harness all that potential. All going to waste on a street corner or in a prison cell.” Shani felt a pall wash over her. The dreary houses with litter strewn in the front yards and in the gutters made for a dark scene. She did not wonder children growing up here would do desperate, dangerous things to escape.

  Mac grunted. “More often these days, they end up in a body bag.” He pointed to a window. “Look, a light just went on. Somebody’s home. You ready?”

  Shani’s heart thumped, but she put her hand on the door handle. “Yes.” She unwrapped the woolen scarf around her neck and let it slide down to the seat.

  Mac put his arm out. “Eric is going to kill me when he finds out I brought you here. Maybe we should put this off.”

  “We’ve been over that, Mac. He’s got enough on his mind with Mrs. Aucoin being ill.”

  Mac sucked air into his lungs. “Yeah, he’s been at the hospital with only a couple of breaks for the last twenty-four hours. Thankfully Ms. Adeline is doing so good.”

  Shani thought of the anguish in Eric’s hazel eyes after hearing the news that his mother was hospitalized. His pain had been her pain. And she shared his joy and relief when he called to tell her Mrs. Aucoin’s condition was improving. But the joy was tempered by the knowledge that they would not, could not be together. The newspaper story and the effects of it stood between them like a stone wall. Shani again thought of how foolish she’d been to think their differences could be overcome. Maybe love was not enough. Once they left the sweet haze of their romantic cocoon, the real world slammed them back into being on opposing sides with a vengeance. And they had to live in the real world. The real world of Shani’s commitment to programs Eric wanted to destroy. She felt the familiar sadness at the thought. Now she must move ahead and stop feeling sorry for herself. Shani stared at the weathered wooden porch that sagged on one side.

  “So we agreed not to call Eric. Besides, we’re just going in to talk My’iesha out of this mess.”

  “It’s up to you.” Mac continued to watch the window.

  “I just hope I can. LeVar knows how to sweet talk needy young women starved for affection. If he’s gotten to her…”

  “From all you’ve said, he got to her a while ago. Now the question is, can she break free?” Mac followed her gaze. “And will she listen to you?”

  Shani opened the car door. “We’re about to find out.”

  At that moment, a shout went up from the group of young men.

  “Who done stole my money!” a loud voice boomed.

  Curses rang out. Mac muttered a few choice words and kicked open the driver’s side door of the sedan. Shani craned her neck around to see two men pounding each other and two others jump into the fray. Mac barked the location of the disturbance into his police radio unit

  “Looks like crowd control is going to be needed for this. Better get over there before some fool starts shooting. Stay here. I’ll let the uniforms take over and be back.”

  More people had gravitated to the scene. He covered the three blocks with long strides. A marked police car came from the opposite direction lights flashing.

  Shani sat for fifteen minutes before she began to worry that My’iesha would run if she noticed all the activity; especially if she saw the police car. After several more minutes of silent debate and courage gathering, Shani decided to enter the boarding house.

  “After all, how bad can it be? There’s a light in the entrance,” she murmured.

  Her footsteps across the porch sounded too loud. She pushed open the door and entered a hallway lit with a naked bulb set in the ceiling. The worn stairway railing wobbled as she climbed the steps.

  ***

/>   Eric sat next to the hospital bed. He stared into the darkness outside. His mood matched the grim looking shadows thrown by the building onto the ground below. The happiness he felt was not complete. With a glance at his sleeping mother, he felt a jab of guilt to be thinking of himself at such a time. Yet he couldn’t help it. Shani had been glad to hear from him, of that he was certain. But the reserve in her voice over the telephone hurt more than a little. For a brief moment, he wanted to believe they could find a way back to each other. When she looked at him that day he got the call about his mother, her eyes were filled with emotion. He felt the familiar pull between them. Now he realized the loss of something precious. And it seemed Shani would not be able to forgive him.

  “Well hello there. Don’t tell me you haven’t been home or gotten something to eat.” Adeline’s voice was alert though she’d been sleeping on and off for most of the time since being admitted to the hospital.

  “Hello, beautiful.” Eric got up and kissed her forehead. “How’re you feeling? Can I get you anything?”

  “Some water, please.” Adeline sipped through the straw. “Umm, that’s better. Other than feeling a little weak, I’m just fine.” She put the plastic cup aside and stared at her son. “Goodness, you look beat.”

  Eric straightened his shirt collar and sweater. “I’m okay.”

  “Where’s Dalton?”

  “He’s down the hall on the phone. Business calls. He didn’t want to disturb you.”

  “I see. I look a sight.” Adeline began to brush her hair while looking into a small mirror set in the combination table and vanity positioned next to the bed. “What’s your excuse?”

  “I don’t understand.” Eric sat back down.

  “Eric, you can’t deceive me. For the first time, I saw your eyes gleam in a very special way just at the mention of a woman’s name. Now that gleam is gone.”

  “Mama, worry about my problems. You’ve got to think of getting better. I’ll survive.”

  “Humph, I wonder.”

  Eric tried to make his voice sound light, but knew he’d failed. “You’ve got therapy sessions and a new diet to follow. And I expect you to obey the doctor’s orders.”

  “Don’t lecture me, young man. I know exactly what I have to do, thank you very much. And don’t try to change the subject.” Adeline shook a finger at him. “Have you spoken to Shani?”

  “Yes, she sends best wishes and told me to tell you she’s glad to hear you’re doing so well.” Eric turned his face away.

  “How sweet. But that’s not what I’m talking about, and you know it. What about you two? Have you made up?”

  “Mama …” Eric drew in a sharp breath. “We’re not going to make up. It’s over. The most we can be are cordial acquaintances.”

  “What nonsense.”

  “Mama, you don’t understand.”

  Adeline put the hair brush down. “Ha! I was learning about love before you were even thought of, sugar. And don’t tell me you can’t make it because she’s a liberal social worker and you’re a conservative. All silliness.”

  “It’s not so simple as labels. It’s how we act on our convictions.”

  “Eric Paul Aucoin, you must be trying real hard to be stupid because there are no dumb people in our family. You sure didn’t inherit it from my side.” Adeline squinted at him.

  “Mama!—”

  “I don’t want to hear it,” she broke in. “Sitting around here with that ‘poor pitiful me’ look on your face. Both of you share a drive to do the best thing for people, that’s why she’s a social worker and why you went into politics. Maybe you disagree on the methods, but so what? You share the same values and have some of the same ideas.”

  “Hey, babe. What’s up?” Dalton strolled in wearing a big smile when he saw Adeline awake and looking refreshed. He brushed his lips across hers.

  Adeline’s eyes twinkled at the sight of her husband. “Sit down. Maybe you can help talk sense to this child.”

  “Mama, Shani and I have some very real problems we can’t overcome. I wish we could but, that’s just the way it is.” Eric felt an ache at his words. What he wanted to believe and reality were two different things. There was no denying that Shani could never feel the same for him.

  “I don’t think it has to be that way, son. She misses you just as much.” Dalton spoke up.

  “No, she doesn’t.” Eric shook his head. He was still turned away from them.

  “Oh yes she does,” Dalton said with a certain ring to his voice.

  Eric faced him. “Why do you say that? Dad, you haven’t been talking to her have you?” He wore a tense expression that threatened to turn into anger.

  Dalton blinked. “Uh, I’m just saying… I bet she’s missing you real bad. From the way you two were all lovey-dovey, I could tell she’s as crazy about you as you are about her.” He cleared his throat. “That’s all I meant.”

  “Why don’t we call her right now? I’d love to say hello.” Adeline gestured toward the phone at her nightstand. She yawned. “These darn pills keep me sleepy. Hurry up before I doze off again.”

  Eric swallowed hard. He stood with his hand on the receiver for several seconds before picking it up. After the tenth ring, he hung up. “She’s not there.” A picture on the television caught his eye. “Turn up the sound, Dad.”

  A mug shot appeared on the screen as a reporter spoke. “Police believe this man, LeVar Stewart is responsible for the last drive by shooting in Easy Town. Crime Stoppers is offering a cash reward for information that leads to his arrest and conviction.”

  Eric remembered what Mac had said right before he got the call at the restaurant about his mother. Shani had not been home twice before when he’d tried to call. He punched in the number to Mac’s desk phone at the station.

  “Hey, Eric.” His partner, Bill, answered. “No, he went out after some woman tied up with this Stewart scum ball. Some ratty place on East Boulevard. How’s Mrs. A?”

  Eric answered him in a mechanical fashion before hanging up. His mind raced with terrible possibilities. He knew how much Shani wanted to save My’iesha. Could she be in danger now? And was she with Mac? East Boulevard was a high crime area well known to him. He had visited an angry group of people who lived there about efforts to clean it up.

  “Eric, is anything wrong?” Adeline frowned up at him.

  “No, Mama. Look, I’m going to find Shani.” Eric gave her hand a quick squeeze.

  “Oh, that’s wonderful, dear. Don’t let a good thing get away.” Adeline waved at him, all ready she was struggling to keep her eyes open.

  Dalton followed him to the door. “Something’s wrong,” he whispered. “Tell me what’s going on.”

  Eric smiled. “Nothing, Dad. Really. Now take it easy. I’ll be back in the morning, okay?” He patted his father’s back and walked off before Dalton could say more.

  ***

  “Honey, open the door please,” Shani said in a low, urgent voice. “I know you’re in there. My’iesha?”

  “What you doin’ here? Go way,” My’iesha called back. She sounded tense.

  Shani heard a thump and a furtive rustling sound. “Let’s talk. Just let me in for ten minutes.”

  “I’ll see you at the center. Tomorrow maybe. Now go away.” My’iesha seemed closer to the door.

  “It’s got to be now. I promise not to lecture you or stay for longer than ten minutes.”

  After a few seconds, there was the rattle of locks being opened. Slowly the door swung back into the room. My’iesha, looking drawn with dark circles under her eyes, peered out at her. Shani smiled and stepped inside. The door shut with a bang.

  “What you want? Got no right harassing me like this,” My’iesha rasped. Her whole body shook.

  Shani approached but stopped short when My’iesha backed up against the wall. “I’m worried about you. LeVar is on a rampage. Word is out he intends to hurt you bad.”

  “He gonna listen to me,” My’iesha said. “I’m gonn
a explain to him. I didn’t tell the police nothin’. I swear.” She rubbed her nose and sniffed hard several times.

  “How many times have you used in the last day or so?” Shani moved closer, more concerned about getting her some help than being attacked. Still, she kept her arms by her sides in case My’iesha lashed out in a drug-induced rage.

  “Get offa me,” My’iesha warned as she inched away. “I mean it.”

  “Let me help you. LeVar shot two people that I know of in the last few days. Instead of trying to find him, you should be hauling butt hoping he doesn’t find you.” Shani planted her feet apart.

  “I ain’t listenin’ to that crap. It’s a bunch of lies just like in the newspaper. You and Senator Aucoin set me up!”

  Shani shook her head. “You should know me better than that.”

  My’iesha’s mouth turned down in a little girl expression of misery. Large tears rolled down her cheeks. “I thought you was my friend. Different from all them other social workers, psychologists, and stuff.”

  “I do want to help you. Just come with me.” Shani stepped ever closer. She reached out her across the few inches between them.

  My’iesha stared down at Shani’s hand. In an instant, her face twisted with rage. “No! You ain’t turnin’ me in to go to jail. I ain’t goin’.”

  She swung wild. The flat of her hand slapped Shani’s shoulder with enough force to make her rock back. Shani shuffled back to regain her footing, but My’iesha lunged at her again.

  “Stop it! My’iesha, stop!” Shani wrapped her arms around the thin frame. My’iesha tried to break loose from the tight lock, but Shani held her fast.

  “Let go of me. Take your filthy, no-good hands off me,” My’iesha sobbed. She struggled for a few minutes, but fatigue and emotion left her physically drained. “No, no, no,” she cried in a sad sing-song voice as Shani cradled her.

  Shani eased them both down onto the sagging bed. “It’s going to be all right, sweetie. Shush now.”

  ***

  Eric parked on the opposite side of the street behind a dark green sedan. Everything looked quiet, too quiet. He glanced around looking for a sign of his friend or Shani then walked to Mac’s car. His heart gave a lurch when he recognized Shani’s woolen scarf on the floor in front of the passenger seat. With care, he climbed the steps to the boarding house. Stale cooking smells hit him when he opened the door leading to a dank hallway. Music and shouting came from behind several of the battered doors. Someone sang a popular rap song in a drunken fashion. One dim yellow bulb hung from a long wire to light it. A stairway of dark, scarred wood led up and to the right.