A Simmering Dilemma

by Tyora Moody

  When I arrived, I walked up to Gladys’s doorway. I could hear her television booming through the window. I rang the doorbell and stood on the steps waiting for her to answer. It seemed odd that she wouldn’t have come to pick up her grandkids if she was home.

  Unless…

  I’m not one to peek inside people’s windows. That’s not something I would want someone to do to me, but Gladys had a heart attack just last week. She shouldn’t have been out and from my knowledge her doctor should have had her going for some kind of rehab. It wasn’t a major heart attack, but it still took her down, at a minimum she should have been resting.

  I leaned over and looked inside the window pane next to the door. The hallway was actually pretty dim except there was a light coming from down the hall. I’d only been to Gladys’s house that one time last week. I’ve never done more than have a conversation with her at church over the years. Like most folks, we headed to our own lives after church services and saw each other again the following Sunday.

  I wondered if the light was coming from a room, maybe a downstairs bedroom. I laid my finger on the doorbell and rang it again, this time longer. As I rang the bell, I continued to look inside the window pane. I stepped to the side.

  Nothing.

  Maybe Glady just left the light on. I did that sometimes or at least until Amos and I got married. When I lived in the house alone, it helped to have an extra light on. The house didn’t feel so lonely.

  I took one more look and just as I was about to turn, movement caught my eye.

  Was that a shadow?

  I drew closer to the window pane. There was something like a shadow on the opposite wall. Was Gladys in that room ignoring the doorbell?

  I mean I’ve been known to do that too.

  The last thing I hated at this time of the day, well anytime of the day, was someone at my door soliciting. Made me more grateful that Amos went ahead and got the security app. I liked the idea that I could really ignore the doorbell now if it wasn’t someone who needed to be at my door anyway.

  I waited, feeling the hot rays of the sun bearing down on my neck and back.

  Something wasn’t right.

  Either it was my eyes playing tricks on me, or there was definitely someone moving in the room lighting the hallway.

  There are moments when you do something and you don’t realize you’re being led. That’s what I felt like when I touched Gladys’s doorknob. In this day and age, people simply didn’t leave their doors open like they did when I was a little girl. The crime rate here in Charleston and the way of the world over the years garnered the need for caution.

  To my surprise, Gladys’s doorknob turned and her door opened. I was so shocked, I gripped the doorknob in pure fear, conscious of my heart rate speeding up. Then I focused and took my hands off the knob to study the lock. I didn’t know anything about picking locks other than what I saw on television, but someone had been messing with this lock for sure.

  On the weekend, I was known for finding one of those silly Lifetime movies where the character is about to walk into a place. As the viewer, I could see the danger, usually the camera panned to the woman on the screen making it seem like someone was watching her from the shadows. Eventually that person snuck up and attacked the woman. I looked over my shoulder seeing no one on the street or even in front of Gladys’s house.

  Nope, no one was going to surprise me from behind. But who was inside?

  I could almost hear Amos’s words from less than an hour ago.

  Be careful, Eugeena.

  I took a breath and stepped inside, attempting to reign in my imagination. Once inside, I closed the front door behind me, hoping this wasn’t classified as breaking and entering. The last thing I needed to be doing was get arrested too. As far as I was concerned my reasons for entering were legitimate. I was checking on a woman who had a heart attack last week and no one had heard from her. And the door was open.

  “Gladys,” I called out. “Are you okay? Annie Mae and Willie Mae have been trying to reach you. They are keeping the kids at their house.”

  Silence met me.

  I should have turned around, but that movement earlier had me curious. I wasn’t trying to hear that old saying right now. Yeah, that one about curiosity killed the …

  I wasn’t a four-legged creature but I would beat myself up later if something had happened to Gladys and I didn’t do everything in my power to help. For all I knew, that movement could have been her reaching out for help.

  A verse came to mind and I prayed.

  God, you are my protector. This is my moment to be strong and courageous because you said you would never leave me nor forsake me. I need to know Gladys is alright. Those children don’t need any more turmoil in their lives.

  I made my way down the hall practically on my toes. That was quite a feat since I couldn’t recall ever having to sneak around like this.

  I froze, feeling iciness crawl down my spine.

  What was that noise?

  I listened. Nope, nothing.

  Then, a deep moan penetrated my ears causing my heart to leap again in my chest. I propelled myself to move forward though I wanted to turn and run for the door. When I peered around the doorframe, the first thing I saw was Gladys slumped down the wall. It appeared to be a bedroom, but I didn’t know if it was her bedroom or her deceased daughter’s.

  I entered, “Gladys, are you okay?”

  Her eyes fluttered, but didn’t focus on me. The closer I got to her, I thought perhaps she had fallen. Until… I stepped closer.

  There was a gash on her head.

  “Did you fall and hit your head, Gladys?”

  Gladys moaned again.

  I reached for my phone, which thank goodness I had slipped into my pocket before I got out of the car. I typed in the passcode. “Hold on, I will get some help.”

  “No, you won’t be calling nobody.”

  I froze, my finger stalled over the phone app.

  Someone else was here.

  My mind flashed to the door lock. Someone had picked their way in here. I glanced over at Gladys again, whose eyes now focused on someone behind me.

  “Turn around.”

  The voice was familiar.

  I turned slowly, wondering why I didn’t listen to Amos’s warnings. And how didn’t I see this coming. Sadly, this wasn’t the first time seeing a gun up close, but the last person I expected to see was the person holding it.

  At least Amos knows where to look for my body.

  I let my arm drop to the side, but I had no intentions of letting go of my phone.

  If something happened to me, I wanted someone to know who did it.

  Chapter 26

  I should have been scared, but instead I was mad. Mad that I’d focused my attention on the wrong person. I peeked at Gladys again, wondering if I could persuade the large figure blocking the doorway with reason. Gladys appeared to be fading fast. There was no telling how bad she was hurt since she was already in a weakened state. The woman should have stayed in the hospital.

  I faced the figure in front of me, standing to my full height and with my sternest voice I asked, “Is this really necessary? Did you do this to Gladys? This woman is your mama’s age. What were you thinking?”

  Damion stepped forward out of the shadows of the hallway. He appeared to be sweaty, his eyes glassy. “She deserved it. Just like her daughter deserved to die. People like them just bring trouble to other people.” He tipped his head towards Gladys. “This one in particular liked to pretend like she was all good and Christian.”

  I thought back to my conversation with Damion last week. He wasn’t shy about expressing his hatred for Sondra. He also admitted to being protective of Charlene.

  Had the two been working together?

  “Did you kill Sondra, Damion? I thought you were Briana’s friend. You’re going to let her go down for something she didn’t do. I don’t understand.”

  I knew I shouldn’t agitate Damion,
but I had to know. That was me all the way, didn’t know when to stop even with a gun pointed at me.

  Damion shuffled forward. I watched his face shift from hard to indecision, as if for a slight second he wasn’t sure what he was doing. “I’m sorry about Briana. None of that was supposed to happen. I was going to fix everything.”

  I guessed, “You weren’t expecting Briana to go to the shed and find the body.”

  “After Theo left, the party was winding down anyway.” Damion snorted, “Theo has always been the life of the party. He left in time too. Because Sondra showed up, and she’d been drinking. I asked Charlene why she brought her to the house. I was surprised at her. Charlene is sweet, but when she got around the wrong people, they influenced her. I could tell Charlene was ripe to see Sondra do something.”

  I listened. Now this was what had my focus. I felt the whole time there was some kind of dynamic going on between Sondra and Charlene for them to even have the nerve to show up at Briana’s home.

  He glanced away, his arm lowering the gun only slightly. The memory from that night must have caught his attention, for that I was grateful because I still had my phone in my hand. I placed my hands behind my back fumbling with the phone. If only I could figure out what button to touch. Under favorites, I knew Amos’s number was first. If only my hands could move that nimbly. It’s not like I had young hands anymore, some days I felt the pangs of arthritis.

  Hands don’t fail me now!

  Damion interrupted my concentration, “It happened so fast. Sondra was spouting off like she always does. Threatening to make sure my brother never sees his kids.”

  I frowned, still trying to figure out what I was pressing. A few weeks ago Leesa fussed at me about keeping the phone sounds so loud. From that conversation, I’d turned down the sound levels on the clicks. I hoped they were low enough that Damion couldn’t hear. I’d also just typed in my passcode, and I knew I didn’t have but maybe five minutes before the phone locked again.

  I forced myself to multitask, focus on Damion and the phone, “Why would she do that? It’s my understanding that Theo is an upstanding citizen, he runs a reputable business. If anyone is more qualified to have custody of the kids, I would think it would be Theo.”

  “Yeah, you right he should, but Sondra holds stuff over people. Theo had my back a few times. Stuff he would have never done. I don’t know how Sondra found out what she knew, but she made sure to use it against Theo.”

  I hoped I was pressing the right thing. I heaved in a breath and continued to engage with Damion. “I remember Sondra being overly aggressive and saying things to people that were upsetting.”

  I probably shouldn’t have been talking, but I wanted to appear to be trying to understand his side even though I really didn’t. I slipped the phone back into the pocket of my sundress.

  He nodded his head, his eyes distant. “Yeah, that was her style. All up in somebody’s face calling herself trying to threaten someone. That woman never had any sense.”

  “She was being ugly to you. You couldn’t take it anymore. I get it. You shoved her away. The shove was a bit too hard. She fell and hit her head. But why didn’t you call for help? It was still an accident. She was in your face and you just pushed her away.”

  Damion scoffed, “With my record, cops are always looking for a way to put me back in jail. She wasn’t moving. I could tell something was wrong and I sure wasn’t about to go down because of her.”

  “I see. But why is there a witness trying to put this all on Briana? That’s not right, Damion.”

  Damion sighed, “I had nothing to do with that. Charlene has always blamed Briana for her sister’s death. And she’s probably trying to keep the cops off me.”

  “You two protect each other, I see.”

  Damion had the gun lowered now as well as his head. I still wasn’t planning any quick movements and I prayed I had pressed something that allowed someone to hear this conversation.

  “She should blame me.”

  “What?”

  “Charlene should blame me. I was talking to Yvette that night. We were shooting the breeze, laughing and then I saw the car coming. Actually, I heard it first. I recognized the Mustang’s engine. I knew who was in the car because I was there when they worked on that car. I knew they were coming for me.”

  I sucked in a breath, “The person who shot Yvette? They were after you?”

  “Yeah, I dived down. I knew it was coming. None of the bullets hit me. I shouted to Yvette, ‘Get down, get down.’ She had this confused look on her face because we were just laughing so hard. I think she thought I was playing. Then I saw the bullets rip into her. The look on her face, I will never forget it.”

  Damion was breathing hard like he was trying to push the pain back, “Charlene doesn’t look or act like her sister, but I know that was her twin. They were close. I saw what Yvette’s death did to her and her family. I tried to protect her over the years since I couldn’t protect her sister.”

  There was quiet between us for what seemed like a long time. It was a lot to process. I was also listening hard for some police sirens or something.

  I checked on Gladys. Her eyes were closed and she didn’t appear to be moving. “That doesn’t explain why you’re messing with an old woman. She just had a heart attack, Damion. We have to get her to a hospital.”

  He looked down at Gladys as if he’d just remembered she was there. “No. She wasn’t supposed to be here. I thought she was still in the hospital.”

  I narrowed my eyes. “Then, why did you come here?”

  The hardness returned to his eyes as he focused on me. “I like you, Mrs. Patterson. I meant it when I said I liked your class.” His voice took on a menacing tone, “But you ask too many questions. You shouldn’t be here either.”

  I sucked in a breath as fear crept all over my body. From what I could gather, Damion had every intention of coming into this house and apparently was surprised by Gladys returning home. My guess was that Gladys saw him. Either she set off towards him or was trying to run away from him. Either way, Damion must have shoved her in a similar way he did to her daughter over a week ago.

  You would think the man paid attention to his own strength by now.

  Still, if people were in places they shouldn’t have been…

  Including myself in this scenario. Because I shouldn’t have opened that door.

  “I’m sorry, Damion. But your nephew and your niece have had a hard week. They lost their mama. Do you want them to lose their grandma too?”

  I noticed the hand holding the gun was shaking, like Damion was trying to have some self-control. “Those kids don’t need to be with her. She tried to poison them against Theo. Every time Theo comes to get his kids, he has to fix the damage. He had to explain to his little kids that he loved them and he would be there for them. Just because he told Sondra he didn’t want to be with her, she didn’t have to push her bitterness onto the kids.” Damion pointed the gun towards Gladys, “That woman, she encouraged it. I know she did because she’s an evil—”

  I held up my hands, alarmed by the increasing agitation in Damion’s voice and body. “Okay, I’m so sorry. Please calm down. People do incredibly ugly things, especially people who’ve been hurt.”

  “Hurt? Sondra caused more hurt to people with her mouth than anybody I knew. She’s always been ready to gossip about someone. Lately, she was trying to be a snitch too.”

  Snitch? What did Damion mean by that?

  I didn’t have time to contemplate that part anymore because what I’d been waiting for was on the way.

  Damion cocked his ear and listened. Then he looked at me. “What did you do?”

  “Nothing, I’ve been talking to you.”

  “You called the cops some kind of way.”

  I didn’t know what I’d done, but I hoped that we would all be alive when the cops got here.

  “I’m not trying to go back to jail.” Just like that, Damion took off.

  F
ear shook me. “Damion. Wait, give yourself up. Don’t do anything crazy.”

  That boy was going to get himself killed.

  Chapter 27

  I remained shrouded by the web of fear, now more for the troubled young man that had just fled the scene. I heard a commotion at the door. One deputy bypassed me, probably seeing Damion fleeing out the back of the house. Another one saw me.

  I waved my hands, “She needs help. I think she hit her head. This woman had a heart attack last week. I know she can’t be doing good.”

  The female deputy walked up to me. “The ambulance is on the way. Ma’am, are you hurt?”

  “No, I’m fine.” I was still worried about Damion taking off.

  I wanted to collapse, so I sat down heavily on the bed and prayed.

  I’m not sure how long I waited before two paramedics came through. One walked over to me, but I swatted him away. “I’m fine. She needs your help.”

  “Eugeena.”

  I looked to find Amos in the doorway followed by Detective Wilkes.

  I’d never been more happy to see two people.

  Amos reached down and hugged me. “Are you okay?”

  “Yes, I’m fine. Damion took off. I hope they don’t hurt him.”

  Detective Wilkes responded, “Damion is fine and in custody.”

  “What, you got him that fast?”

  Amos answered, “There was backup outside, he wasn’t going to get too far.”

  “Well, did you hear anything?” I suddenly remembered my phone.

  Amos grinned, “I heard, but you didn’t dial my phone number.”

  “What?” I pulled my phone out to see who I had dialed. My mouth fell open. “Detective Wilkes?”

  She nodded, “Your call came just as we were looking for Damion anyway.”

  “You knew he killed Sondra?”

  “No, at least not until your phone call which we heard from one side. I guess I owe you for helping us solve another murder.” Wilkes looked at Amos. “I need to question Damion down at the station. Be sure to get your wife home. We can catch up tomorrow with statements. It’s good your lawyer was able to get Briana released today. Of course, the charges will be dropped.”