“That’s what I was calling about.” Rena fidgeted with her cell phone, almost dropping it on her lap. She looked at the muddy river as she crossed the Memphis-Arkansas Bridge.
“What is it?”
“She’s in jail.”
“Jail? Not again.” Audrey cried into the phone. “Lord, we’re going to be the main topic of discussion at Holy Rock. Lord, have mercy. For how long?”
“Eleven months and twenty nine days, I’m afraid. She’ll have to serve at least seven or eight months of that before they consider releasing her.”
Rena listened to the commotion on the other end of the phone. The next voice she heard was Pastor’s. Rena repeated to him what she’d already explained to Audrey.
“Lord, have mercy on my child,” Pastor prayed before Rena heard the phone go dead.
10
The Almighty has his own purposes. -Abraham Lincoln
Rena was glad to be at dinner with Stiles. It helped to take her mind off of how upset the Graham’s were when she told them about Frankie.
“How’s your food?” Rena asked.
“Delicious.” Stiles wiped his mouth on the cloth napkin, and spread it back in his lap. Southern cooking like this is one of the main things I missed about being away from home.”
“I’m glad you like it. Ron’s has been around for a long time. I’m surprised you haven’t heard of it.”
“It’s probably because I never came to Arkansas. There was nothing over here that interested me.”
“I see.” Rena wondered how both water glasses were so close. She lifted her glass, careful not to let her fingers touch his. A swallow of her lemon water cleared her throat.
“What made you decide to move here?” Stiles twirled his spaghetti on to his fork.
“I like the small town atmosphere. And I can go right across the bridge to the big city whenever I want to.” Rena laughed.
“I guess you make a good point.”
“It’s proved to be one of the better decisions I’ve made in my life. I used to try to convince your sister to move over here, but she’s too much of a city girl.”
“You know something? I don’t know what to say about Francesca. The girl must be crazy.”
“Why do you say that?”
“You mean you have to ask? Frankie is so caught up in the world that she’s sinking lower and lower. I don’t know what happened in her life, but she’s mixed up, confused. All of this in and out of jail, smarting off to Momma, messing around with women, not wanting to have anything to do with God or the church. Need I say more?”
Without warning, Rena blurted, “I don’t know if your parents told you or not, but Frankie is in jail. She was sentenced to eleven months, twenty-nine days for third degree assault.”
“What?” he yelled. “When did this happen? You said she was fine.”
“It happened earlier today. We expected her to beat the case, but because of her criminal record, the judge gave her jail time. He warned her before this charge that if she came before him again, he was going to lock her up, and he did.
Stiles ran his hand over his head. “That girl is going to drive this family crazy.” He stopped and looked around like he was in a foreign land. Then he asked Rena when he could go and visit her. Rena told him the visiting hours and days.
“Are you okay?” Rena reached across the table and grabbed his arm.
“I’m fine.” His expression was like someone who had been struck in the face. “It’s just hard for me to accept that my sister’s violent nature landed her behind bars.”
“Listen, who are we to judge anybody, Stiles?” Rena swallowed hard, lifted her chin and boldly met his gaze. “I admit that Frankie has some issues, some serious issues. But I will not turn my back on her, and neither should you.”
“I wasn’t suggesting that you, or I, turn our backs on her. If anything, I want to help her. You think I like seeing her going through whatever it is she’s going through? Shutting her family out? You think her alternative lifestyle doesn’t bother me?” For an instant, his glance sharpened.
“Okay, if I’m wrong, I apologize.” Rena bit her bottom lip and looked away. “But all I hear is what a terrible person she is. And how Frankie shouldn’t be doing this and Frankie shouldn’t be doing that. Doesn’t anyone see that something happened to make her the way she is. I have no idea what, but the Francesca we used to know disappeared a long time ago and this, this Frankie person appeared. But the Francesca I know is still inside. That’s the part that no one sees; the good in her. She’s kind, sensitive and smart as a whip.” Rena tossed her cloth napkin to the side. She felt her composure was under attack. “I don’t want to explain Frankie’s behavior to you or anyone, anymore. No matter how she alienates people, she’s still my friend. And another thing, who are we to talk about her lifestyle?”
The look on Stiles face was one of shock. “Look, why don’t we change the subject?”
“I think that would be a great idea,” she answered. “I’ve decided to sublease Frankie’s apartment. Do you think you might be interested?” Rena asked him.
“I don’t know. I did tell Pastor I was going to start searching around for a place. Maintaining her apartment might be a good idea. I’ll pray on it and get back to you in a couple of days.”
“Good.”
For the next hour, the two of them talked about everything until Rena no longer felt like she was putting on an act to make time pass. It felt good to be out with a man who offered stimulating conversation which made her feel relaxed. Stiles could be quite the gentleman.
Stiles smiled.
“What are you smiling about?” Rena asked.
“I’m smiling because I’m thankful to be here with you, Rena─a beautiful, intelligent Christian woman.”
Rena awkwardly cleared her throat and stirred uneasily in her chair. A dispelling thought cropped up. Humph, if only you knew.
When they finished dinner, Stiles walked Rena to her car.
“I’ll follow you home.” Stiles offered.
“No, that won’t be necessary.”
Stiles showed no sign of relenting. “I’m not leaving you alone.” His voice was smooth but insistent.
“Really,” Rena shook her head. “It isn’t necessary. I’ll be home in seven minutes. But thanks anyway.”
“Are you sure?”
“I’m sure.”
His eyes pierced the distance between them. “I enjoyed your company.”
“Me too. It felt good to get out and relax for a while.”
“I’m glad I was the one to make that happen tonight. Maybe we can do it again sometime.”
Rena looked at him then diverted her eyes toward the busy street.
“Did I say something wrong?” His voice broke almost to a whisper.
“No. No you didn’t. It’s just…” He noticed my uneasiness.
Stiles interrupted. “Oh, I’m sorry. I didn’t think to ask if you have a boyfriend. A woman as attractive as you, I’m sure you have one,” he said without giving her a chance to answer.
Rena blushed. “Quite the contrary. “
“Well, well, well. Looks like the two of us have something else in common,” Stiles said laughing.
“What else do we have in common?”
“Spaghetti and meatballs of course,” he joked.
Rena allowed her gentle laugh to ripple through the air until tears gathered in her eyes.
Stiles brushed a lock of her hair away from her face. Standing in the heat of the night, stars sparkled and a gentle breeze blew. He cautiously moved closer to Rena.
Rena stood still like time had stopped just for her. The look in his eyes aroused her. At the same time, it made her nervous. Just as he leaned over to kiss her, Rena moved away slightly.
“Thanks for a wonderful evening,” she told him, opening the door to her Honda, avoiding his kiss.
“The pleasure was indeed all mines.”
On the way home, Rena thought about her eve
ning with Stiles. There had been no one in her life except for Frankie. Whenever men approached her, and they did quite often, she refused to accept their invitation to take her out. The men from church ogled over her beauty but could not understand why Rena Jackson was not in the market for a man. Many of the men gave up and stopped trying to date her. Still others considered her a challenge. There were times she felt an attraction to men but there was no way she was going to try to turn two wrongs into a right. The last thing she needed was to become involved with anyone else. Frankie had been enough and Frankie was almost about to destroy her.
Frankie was in a cell block with eight other women. She sat on her steel cold bunk with her feet propped up, oblivious to the idle chatter and petty arguments going on between some of the other inmates. This would be the first time she had to do a stretch this long. She’d done a week, ten days tops, but a year behind bars, Frankie had been totally shaken by the judge’s sentence.
Glancing around at her surroundings, she felt isolated, alone and forsaken. There was an unexplainable emptiness that enveloped her. For the first time in a long time, she was alone to face her fears. Where are you God? You’re so mighty, so big, so powerful. Where are you? Why did you leave me all alone? How could you ever say you loved me? If you loved me, you wouldn’t have let me be hurt. You wouldn’t. But you did.
She turned over just as the deputy jailer came into the cell block and yelled, “Lights out.”
Frankie didn’t have to prepare for the lights to go out. It was already dark inside her mind, her heart and her spirit.
11
Love is not weakness. It is strong. Only the sacrament of marriage can contain it. Boris Pasternak
Frankie had been locked up for almost two months and Audrey refused to visit her while she was in jail. It was far too humiliating for her. How could she take the chance of running into any of her church constituents? How would she be able to visit with her child through a window? Not Audrey, she couldn’t entertain the thought of seeing Francesca as a common criminal. When Pastor or Stiles visited Frankie, all Audrey sent was her love.
Stiles informed Rena that Frankie had faced eviction when he moved into her apartment, Rena was livid. All of the times she’d given Frankie money to help her out on the rent, what had Frankie done with it?
“She’s not going to convince me that she isn’t using,” Rena exclaimed to Stiles when he told her he’d paid all of the back rent on the apartment.
“You really think Francesca is using hard drugs?” Stiles stiffened before really looking up from putting the receipt in his wallet.
“I know she was before she got locked up. Maybe this stint behind bars will force her to get clean and sober.”
“I’m going to pray that God delivers Francesca.”
“That’s what she needs.”
“Yeah, I know, and I believe God has set everything in motion for my sister.”
“I pray that you’re right. Let’s change the subject. It’s too depressing.” Rena twiddled with her hair while holding the phone between her ear and her shoulder.
“Some good news, hummm, let me see if I can think of something that might make you feel somewhat better.” Pausing for only a second or two, Stiles began, “Pastor told me that he’s bringing me on as the full time associate pastor.
Rena was excited at hearing his news. “That’s great. When did this happen?”
“Yesterday. I guess I proved myself to him and to God that I was ready for the job. It’s not a huge salary, but it’s a nice one. God is good. The adjunct professorship at the university offsets whatever else I might need. So I can’t help but be grateful.”
“I know that’s right,” commented Rena.
Rena visits around the Graham’s became more frequent as the friendship intensified between her and Stiles. Several times after she left the jail from visiting Frankie, Rena drove to Emerald Estates to spend time with Audrey. Audrey focused her attention on Rena for the mother-daughter relationship that she missed having with Frankie.
“Pastor,” Audrey said one evening as they prepared for bed. “What do you think about Stiles and Rena?”
“Stiles and Rena? What are you talking about?”
“You know. What if Stiles and Rena were, you know, to get together?”
“Rena’s a fine young lady. I believe Stiles likes her a lot and she likes him too. But it’s none of our business, and it’s not our place to do anything to get them together. What we should be doing, if anything, is praying for our children and for their future mates.”
Pastor pulled back the covers and sat on the side of the bed, waiting on his wife to finish putting on her night gown. When she finished, he reached his hand out toward her and guided her around to the side of the bed where he sat. Together they knelt on their knees to pray.
“Pastor,” Audrey said when they finished praying and climbed in the bed.
“Yes, dear.”
“What do you think is going to happen to Francesca?”
“Honey, she’s in God’s hands. And as long as I know that, I know she’s going to be all right.”
“You went to visit her today,” she stated rather than asked. “How…how is she?” Audrey turned on her side and propped herself up on one elbow.
Pastor lay on his side and looked at his wife. She was as lovely as the first day he’d laid eyes on her. Her radiance hadn’t diminished with the years.
“Frankie is fine, honey.” He rubbed his wife’s cheek with the back of his wrinkling hand. “I think she would be even better if you would go with me the next time.” He said the words tentatively as if testing the idea.
“I can’t do it, Pastor.” Her face clouded with uneasiness as she searched for a plausible answer. “I can’t stand the thought of seeing my child behind bars.”
“Are you sure that’s all it is? Or, is it because you’re ashamed of her and embarrassed that the Pastor and First Lady’s daughter is in jail?”
Audrey didn’t respond. She eased back on the pillow then turned over on her side to turn off the lamp. “Goodnight, Pastor.”
“Goodnight, Audrey. I love you.”
“I love you too, Pastor.”
“Audrey,” he called out her name. Placing his hand on her side, he moved his body close to hers.
Audrey turned over to face him. Pastor stroked the side of her face some more and kissed her lips. Propping himself up on one elbow, his hand explored the soft lines of her back, her waist, her hips. His kisses were tender and enticing.
“You’re the love of my life.” Audrey whispered. “I can’t see myself living without you.” Audrey yielded her body, her mind and her soul to the man she loved.
The years had brought them closer together, and her very touch sent sparkles of passions rippling through his body. Just watching her sometimes could get him aroused. The scent of her sweet body and the softness of her skin, ignited wave after wave of desire in him. He expressed his satisfaction as they became one. The warmth of her femininity caused him to moan with pleasure.
“Audrey.” He called her name, his voice pleading, his hands demanding.
“Yes, yes Chauncey, I’m yours,” she curled into the curve of his body. “I’m all yours,” she cried out in sheer ecstasy. “All…yours.”
It was flesh against flesh, man against woman, husband against wife.
12
The ear tests words as the tongue tastes food.–The Bible
Audrey was more than thrilled when Rena called and asked her if she wanted to go to the new open air mall in Horn Lake, Mississippi. Audrey absolutely loved shopping. Eager to maintain the snazzy dresser she was, any time an opportunity to shop presented itself, she was eager to do it.
The two ladies spent the first part of the morning stopping at almost every store in the mall. Now that the weather was cooling down, the ladies easily enjoyed the mild September day. The beginning of fall could be felt in the air. The mild wind gathered golden leaves and pushed them along the mall
while the two ladies laughed and talked like mother and daughter.
Audrey purchased a two piece teal suit from Anne Klein. At Jones of New York, she brought several pieces of costume jewelry. Several hours passed before they stopped to have lunch at Mac’s seafood restaurant.
Audrey sipped on her diet Sprite with cherry. “Rena?”
“Yes, ma’am?”
“Thank you for calling me this morning. You don’t know how much it means to have you concerned about my well being. Francesca should appreciate your friendship more than what she does.” Audrey looked out at the people passing by. Stains of scarlet appeared on her cheeks. She took a deep breath. All I can say is that Francesca is just totally confused. I don’t know what else to make of her. I just don’t know.”
Rena didn’t comment one way or the other. It was the same old, same old whenever Audrey brought up Frankie. She sat her coffee mug back on the table then picked up her fork to slice a piece of the vanilla bean cheesecake.
“Ummm,” Rena said and placed a generous portion inside her mouth. “Mrs. Graham, you haven’t eaten any of yours. It tastes absolutely heavenly.”
“Now, haven’t I asked you to call me Audrey? After all, you’re just like a daughter to me. God knows you’ve been part of our family since you were what? Fourteen? Fifteen years old?”
“It takes some getting used to, that’s all. But, Audrey, I know you have a hard time understanding Frankie. I mean, we all do. But she’s just different, that’s all. She’s really a good person.” Rena was, once again, coming to her defense.
“I guess you’re right. I pray when she gets out of jail this time,” Audrey said with emphasis, “she’ll turn her life around. There was a time you couldn’t keep that child away from church. Now, you can’t keep her away from jail.” Audrey shook her head in disgust.
My Son's Wife Page 7
