Soul Matters

by Yolonda Tonette Sanders

  As expected, several mini-conversations took place while everyone ate. When they were done, Kim moved Wendy’s rocking chair to the table where all of the presents were. Wendy got a lot of things for the baby such as diapers, blankets, diaper bags, a high chair, a stroller, neutral outfits, a bottle warmer, and a baby monitor. Kim and Marlene had bought her a deluxe baby crib that eventually turned into a toddler bed as the child grew older. Frances even reached down into her bosom and pulled out money to give to Wendy. She made sure Wendy and everyone knew that it was the last ten dollars she had from her Social Security check. Wendy tried to give it back, telling her grandmother that she didn’t need the money, but Frances wouldn’t hear of it.

  Everyone helped Kim and Marlene clean up the paper from the presents. Gwen had written down what presents were from whom so Wendy could send out her thank-you cards. Wendy was surprised that she didn’t get many duplicate gifts. Kim confessed that she had created a baby registry for Wendy at several stores to prevent that from happening. It seemed as though Kim and Marlene had thought of everything.

  The doorbell rang just as the party was wrapping up. Neither Marlene nor Kim could imagine who would be at the door. It was not likely that any more guests would arrive three hours after the party had started. Marlene went to answer the door.

  “Kevin? What are you doing here?” She was extremely stunned to see him. She hadn’t seen or heard from him in months.

  “I’m sorry. Did I come at the wrong time?” he asked.

  Kim saw that Kevin was at the door and wanted to warn Wendy, but it was too late. Several other guests had taken notice of him.

  “Cute man alert,” Natalie announced.

  Wendy turned around and saw Kevin standing there. Her heart raced. She and Kevin had minimal contact through e-mail and telephone calls, but they rarely saw each other. “Oh my goodness,” Wendy said softly, and leaned back and began rocking in her chair. What is he doing here? she wondered.

  “Whoever that is, he is fine!” Natalie whispered. Gwen finally told her that the man standing at the door was Wendy’s husband. Everyone else recognized him from the church, or wedding pictures that Wendy showed of him. “You go, girl,” Natalie said to Wendy.

  “Wrong time for what?” Marlene asked Kevin. “We’re just finishing up Wendy’s baby shower.”

  Kevin looked clueless. “A baby shower? Oh God, are you serious? Ms. Gibson said that there was a family meeting today and asked me if I could come. She specifically said that everyone wanted me to be here.”

  “What!” She had been trying to keep her voice low, but her response quieted the room as everyone strained to hear their conversation. Marlene noticed that she and Kevin were the center of attention, so she asked Kevin if they could step outside and she closed the door.

  Out of the four women in the Tibbs family, Frances was the only one who didn’t look surprised to see Kevin. Kim had a few choice words to share with her grandmother, but she knew that she better get all of the guests out of the house first, especially the people from church. “Thank you all for coming. Y’all don’t have to finish cleaning up. We can get everything from here. Those of you who want a ride back to your car, I can take a couple of groups at a time in my mother’s van.” The walk to their cars was only about a block, so no one took Kim up on the offer. She ignored comments from several guests who couldn’t help but wonder why the party was being brought to such an abrupt end.

  It wasn’t difficult to tell that Wendy’s mood had changed dramatically. She was embarrassed, angry, and hurt all at the same time. She desperately wanted to find out why Kevin was there, but she wanted everyone to go home first. She tried her best to force a smile and thank all of her guests for their presents despite the offended looks on many of their faces at their being rushed out of the house. Before she left, Natalie and Wendy exchanged telephone numbers. “Be sure to call me,” Natalie stated.

  As Gwen gave Wendy a final good-bye hug, she asked if Wendy needed her to stay. She knew that Wendy had not been expecting to see Kevin.

  “No, I’m fine. But thanks anyhow.”

  On the way out, Gwen told Kim that if they needed anything to call her. “Thanks, we will. I just want to try and get everyone out of here so we can find out what the”— Kim paused to choose her words carefully—“heck is going on,” she said, trying not to slip.

  “Just stay calm. You know Wendy doesn’t need to be upset any more than she already is.”

  “Yeah, I know.”

  “Call me later.”

  “Okay,” Kim said, and Gwen walked out the door.

  The guests started filtering out of the house and making their way down the street to their cars. Marlene and Kevin were still outside talking, so whenever the door opened and someone walked out, they quieted down.

  Kim looked around and saw Frances sitting on the couch singing “What a Friend We Have in Jesus” to herself. She opened the door and told Kevin and Marlene they could come inside since everyone had left.

  “So what’s going on?” Kim asked Kevin with an attitude after he and Marlene were inside. “Why did you come over to my mother’s house uninvited and unwelcome?”

  “Kim, calm down. It’s not his fault,” Marlene said in Kevin’s defense.

  “Kim, I swear to you that I didn’t know what was going on today. Ms. Gibson called the office yesterday and said that your family wanted to speak with me. When I saw your car in the driveway, I assumed she was telling the truth. I am so sorry. I swear to you that I didn’t intentionally try to upset anyone.”

  “Mama, why would you invite Kevin over here today knowing that we were having Wendy’s baby shower?” Marlene asked before Kim got a chance to respond to Kevin’s explanation. Marlene’s voice escalated with each word she spoke, showing how irritated she was with Frances.

  “I told you that I had forgotten all about the shower bein’ today.” Frances tried to sound sincere. Her words didn’t soften anyone’s demeanor.

  Marlene had her hands on her hips and Kim’s arms were folded. Kevin kept his hands in his pants pockets while Wendy rocked slowly in the chair and looked out the window.

  “Yeah, right!” Kim responded. “Then what did you want to talk about with him?”

  “I know that he and Wendy are havin’ some problems,” said Frances. “No one will tell me what’s goin’ on, but that’s beside the point. Anyhow, it’s been a long time since we’ve had Kevin over and I thought that maybe if ev’ryone could come over and get together and have fun then it would make him and Wendy think twice about separating. I thought that I was doin’ a good thing. I was tryin’ to save my granddaughter’s marriage,” Frances defended herself.

  “Oh please, that’s a bunch of bull—”

  “Kimberly Michele Tibbs, you know better!” Marlene said before Kim could finish her sentence. If looks could kill, Kim would have been struck down at that very moment. Kevin’s, Wendy’s, and Frances’s eyes got big at Kim’s daring attempt to say a curse word in front of Marlene.

  “I’m sorry,” Kim repented.

  Marlene turned her attention back to her mother. She was heated. She could see right through Frances’s defense. “Why didn’t you tell us he was coming when you came down the stairs?”

  “I don’t know. I guess I forgot. You know I’m gettin’ old. I can’t remember a lot of things.”

  “When did you say she called you, Kevin?” Kim asked.

  “She called me yesterday.”

  “What?” Wendy said. “Gramma, you couldn’t have forgotten that quickly. You said that Mama told you about the party on Wednesday.”

  “I did?”

  “Yes—you—did,” Kim replied.

  “Well, like I said, I’m gettin’ old. Y’all know that I ain’t been feelin’ well.” Frances rubbed her chest as though it was hurting. Kim thought that she deserved an Oscar for the forced look of sincerity she put on her face.

  “Mama, I really don’t understand why you treat your granddaughters the w
ay you do.”

  “What did I do? I was tryin’ to do a good thing.”

  “You forgot about the party being today, right?” Kim asked.

  “Right,” Frances replied.

  “You invited Kevin over so that everyone could possibly spend time together and have fun. You hoped that it would cause Wendy and Kevin to think twice about their marriage, right?”

  “Yes,” Frances said. It was clear that she was getting tired of being interrogated.

  “Well, tell me this: If you didn’t know that the baby shower was going to be today”— Kim paused while everyone looked at her, waiting to see what she was going to say—“how did you know that Wendy and I would be here when we never got a phone call from you inviting us over for a family meeting?”

  Kevin, Marlene, and Wendy turned to Frances for a reply.

  “I . . . um . . . I . . .” Frances couldn’t think of anything to say. At that moment she knew she was busted. “I don’t have to explain myself to none of y’all. I’m the oldest one here and you sittin’ up here questionin’ me like a chile. I ain’t gotta put up with this.” Frances got up and stormed up the stairs.

  Kevin apologized to everyone, especially Wendy. “I hope you know that I would have never tried to ruin this day for you.”

  “Yes, I do.” Wendy looked at her husband. She really wanted to jump up and hold him, but a little voice in her head prevented her from doing so. Remember what he did to you. She looked away to hide the tears that were about to drop from her eyes. If they were together still, she and Kevin would have celebrated their first wedding anniversary that month.

  Kevin asked Wendy to e-mail him after her doctor’s appointment next week.

  “I will,” she replied without looking up.

  Marlene walked Kevin to the door while Kim stayed behind to talk with Wendy. She would finish cleaning up, and then take her sister home. She planned to call Terrance and tell him that she would be spending the night at Wendy’s. With everything that had just happened, Kim wasn’t going to leave her sister alone.

  After Kevin left, Marlene marched upstairs to Frances. She was still bothered by her mother’s actions and had a few things that she needed to get off her chest. Marlene opened Frances’s bedroom door without knocking and screamed. There, Frances lay unconscious on the floor.

  Chapter Fifteen

  The Familiar Stranger

  IT WAS WEDNESDAY AFTERNOON. Marlene had been at the hospital since Saturday, when the ambulance had brought in her mother. From the looks of things, they’d be there for a while. Frances had collapsed because her blood pressure had gotten dangerously high, which caused her to develop atrial fibrillation. The upper chambers of her heart were beating up to six times the normal rate due to the improper flow of blood. In order to regulate her heart rhythm, the doctors had installed a pacemaker. They warned Marlene that Frances would need to make efforts to maintain a healthy blood pressure or else she would face further complications later.

  Marlene sat in the hospital room and looked at Frances’s sedated body. Lord, watch over her and give me the strength to deal with her. She wondered if Frances would learn anything from this event.

  Marlene hadn’t forgotten the stunt her mother had pulled at Wendy’s baby shower, but it seemed minuscule now, considering her condition. Frances could have very well lost her life if Marlene had not walked into the bedroom when she had. She had every intention of telling her mother that if she didn’t start treating Kim and Wendy with respect, she would find herself back at the senior center. She knew Frances would be hurt, but she was tired of Frances hurting her daughters. Marlene vowed to care for the woman who gave birth to her; she also vowed to protect the women she had given birth to. Sometimes those roles in her life clashed with each other. If she had been forced to choose between the two last Saturday, out Frances would have gone. I can’t deal with her. Lord, if You don’t speak to her heart and change her ways, I will lose my mind.

  Marlene got up from the chair she had been sleeping in uncomfortably for the last couple of days. She was reminded how much her body ached as she slowly walked out of the room, rubbing her back and rolling her neck to stretch it out. She headed toward the cafeteria to buy a much-needed cup of coffee.

  “Harold Wallace, please report to the front desk in the lab. Harold Wallace, report to the lab,” she heard announced over the PA system.

  Harold Wallace. For some reason she recognized that name, but after searching her mind for clues as to why, nothing came of it. She shrugged it off as one of the many names she’d come across during her years of nursing. Still, curiosity got the best of her and she found herself going in the opposite direction from the cafeteria, to the lab.

  Moments passed as Marlene sat in the waiting area, looking at every person who walked up to the desk. She strained her ears to hear who would mention the name that sounded strangely familiar to her. The idea that she would know this person seemed ridiculous, yet she had nothing but time to waste since Frances wasn’t going anywhere anytime soon. Looking for the infamous Harold Wallace broke up the monotony of the day.

  “Ma’am, have you been helped?” the lady at the receptionist desk asked Marlene. The lab waiting room wasn’t busy, and Marlene stood out like a sore thumb. Several pairs of eyes gazed at her when attention was brought her way.

  “Uh, I’m fine, thank you. I’m waiting for someone,” she responded and the woman continued about her work.

  See, God, I told you I was going to lose my mind. Marlene wanted to laugh at how odd she must have looked staring at the face of every individual who walked by. She decided to go to the cafeteria as she had planned, originally, before anyone else said something to her. She would wait a few more minutes and then try to slip out quietly.

  “There you are, Mr. Wallace.” The same lady who had addressed Marlene spoke in a high-pitched voice and smiled at the elderly gentleman who had just entered the room. “I thought I was going to have to page you again.” Marlene zeroed in on their conversation.

  “So what’s the verdict?” the man said. “Am I gone live a lil’ longer?”

  “Looks that way. As usual, your blood work came back fine.”

  “Well, thank you very much. I’ll see you next month.”

  “Okay. You have a good day, Mr. Wallace.”

  “I most certainly will. You do the same, hear?”

  “Yes sir.”

  From the way he and the woman talked to each other, Marlene could tell this was not the first time the two had spoken. It reminded her of how she would develop casual relationships with patients she saw on a regular basis. Harold Wallace . . . There was something about his name that continued pestering her. She wasn’t able to get a good look at his face because she could see him only from the side.

  Marlene studied his features as best she could. From what she could tell, he looked like he took very good care of himself. He was tall and slender, about five-nine or so. No, it can’t be. Her eyes widened as she suddenly remembered why the name seemed so familiar. It can’t be. She watched as the elderly man turned to walk out of the room and she saw the back of his bald head. The scar! He has the same scar. Can that really be him?

  The moment he twirled his hat around his finger several times before placing it on his head Marlene knew for sure who he was. Oh my God! It is him! She covered her mouth as though she had spoken out loud. Twirling his hat before putting it on was something she had seen only him do. It had to be him. Who else could it be?

  Without even thinking, Marlene got up and followed the elderly man. She had no idea what she was going to say, but she couldn’t let the moment pass without saying anything. Wait. What if he doesn’t remember me—then what? Wishing she had gotten a better look at his face, Marlene hesitated for a moment. C’mon, Marlene, do you really think he would look exactly the same after over forty years? What if it’s not him? This man will think I’m crazy. But what about the scar and the hat . . . that’s too much of a coincidence. I know it’s him. It
has to be.

  “Hello, sir. How are you doing?” She walked up beside the man and spoke.

  Turning and smiling, he said to her, “I’m fine, young lady, and yourself?”

  Yep, it’s him. The smooth, dark chocolate skin Marlene remembered now had a few wrinkles, but he still looked great for his age. The voice was a little raspy and the facial hair was gray, but there was one thing time couldn’t change: that smile. Harold Wallace, with his dimples and pointed chin, had the kind of smile that would light up a room. This man was Uncle Harry, all right. Marlene was sure of it. “I—um—I’m fine.”

  “Good, glad to hear that.” Harold kept walking toward the exit door.

  Marlene froze in her tracks. Wow! It really is him. Okay, what do I say? Hi, Uncle Harry, remember me? she considered. Naw, that sounds corny. Besides, he wasn’t really her uncle. He was a friend of her parents and that was just what she had always called him. She hadn’t seen him since before her daddy died. She thought it would be a little presumptuous to walk up to him after forty years and refer to him by the name she’d used as a child.

  After a minute or so of contemplating what she would say next, Marlene decided to wing it. Whatever came out of her mouth, she would flow with it. She headed toward the door Harold had gone through. She reached the exit just in time to see him get into the passenger’s side of a white, four-door Buick. No! She desperately wanted to speak with him, but it was too late. The car drove away and Marlene was left standing outside, wondering if she would ever see that smile again.

  Chapter Sixteen

  Name Change

  IWANT IT NOW!” Wendy screamed at the nurse who refused to send the anesthetician into her room.

  “Mrs. Phillips, I’m sorry. We just gave you some Demerol. You can’t get the epidural until you have dilated five centimeters,” the nurse spoke smoothly.