Bookie is young and has a full and wonderful life ahead of him. I want him to be happy, and I know that would not be the case if we were together.
The phone began to ring, and hoping that it was my son, I raced to pick it up. The disappointment didn’t show in my voice when I realized that it was Nathan calling again to see when we could meet at the club. I decided that I’d better get this meeting over with, so I agreed to meet him at Escapades.
The attraction that I had for Nathan is over and I am glad. He is married and has no intention of leaving his wife. He would be satisfied having me as a mistress, but I couldn’t settle for that. I could not live with the fact that I’d settled on being someone’s weekend lover. Despite my issues, I know that I deserve better than that. So, why can’t I get involved with Bookie? Because he deserves better.
I hear barking outside. Charlie is trying to tell me that he is ready to come in. He has held court with the kids in the neighborhood and is ready to eat. To my surprise when I open the door, there are two dogs wagging their tails at me. Charlie and the largest puppy I have ever seen. He is twice the size as Charlie, with reddish brown hair. He has a red nose to match the rest of him. He looks at me as if he expects me to let him in.
“Charlie, I see you have company,” I say. “Who is your friend?”
I really didn’t expect him to respond, but to my surprise, he barked as if he were trying to tell me his friend’s name. I reached down to check the other dog’s neck only to discover that he didn’t have a collar. He licked my hand, so I knew that he was friendly.
“Where did you come from?” I asked, knowing that he couldn’t answer me.
But to my surprise again, he barked! I concluded that he was homeless, and Charlie had “asked” him to come with him. No one would let a beautiful animal like this roam around without a collar.
They both came in and our guest followed Charlie around. I think Charlie was showing him his new “digs.” Then both came to me and started barking.
“You two must be hungry. Charlie, do you want food?”
Charlie responded in the usual way, raising his left paw, then his right paw, and wagging his tail. “Puppy” just barked as if he understood.
I fed both with Charlie’s dog food and realized that I was going to have to purchase more. I decided that I would ask Antoinette to make flyers for me, and I would pay my neighbor’s son to post them. If no one came forward, there would be a new member of my household.
It was getting close to the time that I was to meet Nathan, so I jumped in the shower, changed into some jeans and a nice top, put on some lipstick, and was out the door. Charlie and the puppy were running around the house. They gave me a quick glance as I opened the door to leave.
“Hey fellas, watch the house for me,” I said.
And out the door I went to meet Nathan St. James.
Club Escapades is in the Midtown section of Gary. It is a private club owned by a few men and women who work for some of the steel mills in the area. My friend Poo Poo JaShea sings there. Bookie is a member of the club and one of the founders, which is why it is sometimes called “Bookie’s Boom Boom Room.”
I can hear Poo Poo singing as I get out of the car and make my way to the front door. The building was completed after WWII, but the members have kept the place up. It was crowded today. I had to park in front of the beauty shop next door, as Escapades’ parking lot was full.
I can smell fish as I open the door, and although I had a big dinner, I decided to get a plate of catfish and perch. I see some patrons are eating peach cobbler, and I know that Poo Poo prepared it.
I catch her eye as I make my way to a table that is empty. I motion to her as if to say is someone sitting here, and she shakes her head. I take a seat and one of the members comes over to me and asks if I’d like something to drink. I order a whisky sour and ask if there is any food left.
“Plenty,” he tells me and instructs me to help myself.
He knows me and compliments me on the way that I handled the Dr. Crawford case.
“Hey everybody,” he yells, “this is the famous Gemini Jones, the one that exposed that son of a bitch prosecutor.”
I heard comments from “let me buy you a drink” to “you need to run for Mayor.”
I waved and prayed that the attention would go back to Poo Poo, who was doing an Aretha Franklin song. She made her way to my table after she finished her set.
Poo Poo looks good for a person who has gone through hell in her life. She lost her husband and her only son in a car accident a few years ago, on their way to Indianapolis to visit his sister. Luckily, her daughter was too ill to make the trip. The other driver was a young kid whose parents had money, and as a result, he didn’t spend one day in prison. She sued the parents, but they filed bankruptcy. In the end, she got nothing but grief. However, justice has a way of coming in the most unlikely ways. The boy was killed in a car accident a few months back. Once again, he was driving drunk and killed an entire family visiting from Ireland.
Poo Poo JaShea stands about five feet four inches, and my guess is she weighs about a hundred pounds. The biggest thing on her is her voice. She can make you feel her pain and her joy when she sings. She sang backup for some of the biggest R&B singers in her time but retired after she lost her husband and son. Nowadays she limits her performances to Club Escapades. She has quite a following and sometimes she will manage to get one of the singers she sang backup for to come and perform with her. She is well respected in the music industry.
“Hey, Ms. Gemini, how are you doing, girlfriend? You too crazy to keep in touch with your friends?” she says as she sits down across from me.
She is one of the few who call me crazy, but I know it is all in fun. She is the big sister I never had. I can smell the opium perfume she wears; no one can pull that scent off like her. She calls it her signature scent.
“It has been a long time, Poo Poo. You know I haven’t been myself. As a matter of fact, I am on leave from the firm.”
“I guess that mess with the prosecutor made your life a living hell,” Poo Poo responded.
The man came back with my drink, and I told Poo Poo that I was going to go to the back and get some fish. Poo Poo instructed the man who’d brought my drink to fix me a plate with catfish, perch, spaghetti, cole slaw, and green beans.
“And make sure you give her big pieces of fish and some bread, and bring the hot sauce. Oh, yeah, and bring her some of that cobbler. Don’t be stingy!”
The man obeyed.
“What brings you out here by yourself? Where is Bookie? I haven’t seen him around here either.”
“Nathan asked me to meet him here.”
“What the hell for?”
“He wants to mend fences; we sort of parted ways, and I guess he wants to make up for it.”
“And if you believe that mess, I’d like to sell you some land in the bottoms. That man isn’t going to stop until he is in your bed. Don’t you know that? You are the only woman who has turned him down. He is not going to stop, and I hope you aren’t going to give in.”
“I’m not attracted to him like that. Well, not anymore. I have to admit that I found his advances nice. It’s nice to know that I still have it.”
“Bookie knows that you still have it, but I didn’t see you react the way I saw you react to Nathan.”
“I am all wrong for Bookie, Poo Poo. I am too old for him, and besides, he wants to get married and have children. At my age, having a child is not an option.”
I have never discussed my inability to have children with her. It is still a very painful subject for me.
Just then Nathan walked in. He was wearing a cream-colored walking suit, which looked good with his dark skin. He looks good for a man in his late sixties. And when he walks into a room, he owns the room. Every woman in the place looked at him and he knew it. He hesitat
ed in the door, so that the crowd could get a very good look, then he spotted me and made his way to my table. I saw Poo Poo looking at him too, but not with admiration. I can only describe it as contempt. It occurred to me that maybe she and Nathan were involved some years ago, and that she, like the other women, tried to get him to leave his wife. But that was not in his plans. She would never admit that to me, however. She is too proud for that. One day I’m going to ask her if my assumptions are correct.
Two men who know him walked over and said hello, made small talk, and one man offered to buy him a drink.
“You da man, Nathan,” one of the men said. But Nathan turned down the man’s offer and sat next to me.
“Thank you for meeting me here, Gemini. How are you? I know I haven’t called, and I know that things haven’t been right between us, and for that, I want to apologize. I’m a man who likes the hunt, and I realize that you don’t want to be hunted. At least not by me. An old dog can learn new tricks.”
“Does that mean that you just want to be friends?”
“That is exactly what I mean.” He held out his hand to me and said, “Here’s to friendship,” and gently took my hand.
I was expecting a peck on my hand, but he didn’t. He just shook it gently. I relaxed after that, because I knew that he meant what he said. He would not pressure me into taking our relationship to the next level.
“I saw you going into Slappy’s. I think I saw Rodney Earls going inside also.”
I told him about my meeting with Dr. Earls and how upset he is over the fight with the Days. He asked if I had planned to represent him, and I told him that was not my area of expertise. The two men who had spoken to Nathan earlier overheard our conversation and decided to join in.
“Hey Miss Gemini,” the first man said, “you know, I like that idea the Doc has about building a halfway house for ex-cons. I know how hard it was for me when I got out. You know I was in prison the same time as yo’ uncle Artis.”
The second man disagreed, “Man, you crazy. I go to that church and Pastor Day is right, don’t nobody want a bunch of ex-criminals near a place of worship. I know you okay, Drew, ’cause you my man, but I don’t trust anybody else being around my car while I’m in church worshipping the Lord.”
“How you gonna call yo’ self a Christian and you worried about yo’ car. I thought you have faith in the Lord.”
“I do have faith in the Lord, but I don’t have faith in no ex-cons!”
“Hey man, you tryin’ to say you don’t trust me?” the first man asked.
“You the exception to the rule, man—you was framed, remember?” That statement made the two of them laugh.
Nathan and I stopped talking because a woman who was sitting at the bar decided to chime in with her opinion.
“I ain’t never liked that pastor or his wife. They phony to me, always talkin’ bout money and Jesus in the same sentence. Especially that wife—all she talks about is giving, giving, and mo’ giving.”
“Darice, you don’t know what da hell you talkin’ bout,” the first man said. “They is both anointed by the Holy Spirit. The pastor been blessed since he was a little boy. I been going to that church all my life. Ever since the first minister was there. Pastor Day is a very sincere and Godly man.”
“Remember when he had that TV show on Sunday mornings, with that silly theme song?” the first man said, then began to sing the theme. It was to the tune of Camp Town Races.
♪ Who is bringing souls to Christ DU Da Du Da ♪
All three of the people who had found their way into my conversation joined in.
♪ Marching for the cause of right, good ol’ Pastor Day ♪
By that time, the attention of the whole club was centered on the trio.
“This ain’t no place to be singing that song.” That was Poo speaking to the crowd. “Y’all making a mockery of Pastor Day. Chester, put some blues on for these fools!”
Chester, who served as the DJ for the place did as he was told. In a few minutes, most of the people were singing “My Last Two Dollars!” This gave Nathan and me a chance to continue our conversation.
“I think Dr. Rodney has an uphill climb with this project of his,” I said. “Knowing the city council as I do, they are going to go with the project that will bring them money for the city. I recommended an attorney for him.”
“Who did you recommend?”
“Sydney Ingram. I’m not a civil attorney, and besides, I am still on leave from the firm. From what I hear, the Days are powerful people and probably have several councilmen in their corner, if not their pockets. I hear that Tabitha Day is a very ambitious woman.”
“They will be holding the city council meeting next Thursday to decide who the land will go to. Will you be there?” Nathan asked.
“Only if Dr. Rodney calls me and asks for my support. I think he and Sydney Ingram can handle the meeting by themselves. Dr. Rodney is a very charismatic and passionate speaker, and Syd is a very aggressive and skillful attorney.”
“They say the same thing about Pastor Day, although I have never heard him speak.”
“My uncle Artis is a member of his church. He has attended every Sunday since he was released from prison. I’m glad because I was worried about him being out, but this church has been a blessing for him and me.”
We left the club about an hour later. I promised Poo that I would be back to hear her perform. When I arrived at home, there was a message from my son saying that he would be in touch with me tomorrow, and that Griff was going to arrange the meeting for us. It was still very dangerous for anyone to know he was in the area. I was so happy about seeing my son again that I forgot about the meeting I had with Quinn the next day.
Once again, I was feeling a combination of happiness and dread. I wasn’t ready to go back to work, nor was I ready to hear the explanation for Bookie leaving the firm. I knew that I was somehow responsible. Plus, I had to be introduced to the new associate. I really wasn’t looking forward to meeting her. I don’t warm up to people very quickly and always feel uncomfortable with introductions, but I must appear personable to win the confidence of my clients. Most people mistake my being stand-offish as snobbery, but that is not the case. I just feel uncomfortable when meeting people for the first time, especially when I am away from the office. I often feel that they are looking at me and thinking to themselves, this is the crazy attorney that everyone talks about.
Charlie and his new friend “Puppy” are running through the house playing and I decided to watch them for a while before I turn in. I know that someone will be looking for “Puppy,” so I tell myself not to get too attached to him. They look so cute together, though. Charlie looks like an ant compared to our new guest. But they seem to enjoy each other’s company, and “Puppy” appears to know who is boss.
After a few minutes, sleep takes over me and I head to my bedroom for the night. I wasn’t looking forward to tomorrow, but I was ready. I was getting into bed when I heard the front door open and both dogs started barking. They then made a mad dash to my room. That could only mean one thing: Uncle Artis had arrived.
My uncle has been living with me since his release from prison. My father didn’t want his brother living with him, but made no objections when Uncle Artis came to live with me. I don’t see much of him; he spends most of his time at the church and he must complete Anger Management Courses as part of his probation. I wonder sometimes how those sessions are going for him. I would love to be a fly on the wall.
Uncle Artis killed a man for coughing on his food without covering his mouth. He was going through one of his episodes when the shooting occurred. We suffer from the same condition, although I have been told that Artis is much worse. He doesn’t have the regimen of meditation techniques and medicines that I use to help deal with being bipolar. Attending church has helped him a lot, and I know that he loves Pastor and Mrs. Day
. I was made to go to church when I was a child, every Sunday morning and evening, Wednesday evening for Bible study, and Thursday evening for youth activities. I don’t go now—had my fill when I was young. Although I do understand how therapeutic spirituality can be for one’s emotional state.
Uncle Artis walked to my door and knocked. He looks good for a man as old as he is. He is medium height, about five foot ten, and can be considered buff. He still works out using the equipment that I have in the basement. He has salt and pepper hair and skin the color of cinnamon. He looks so much like my father, but without the stern look. His best feature are his eyes, which are light brown with thick, long lashes, the kind that women would kill for. My son has the same kind of lashes and thick eyebrows to match.
“Hey Uncle, I’ll come out and we can sit in the living room and talk,” I said as I get up from my bed.
I opened the door and walked to the living room. Both dogs were sitting at his feet, with their legs crossed, tails wagging, with a look of admiration on their faces. Dogs and babies have a way of sensing when people are sincere. They really like Uncle Artis, and he has trained them to respect him.
“Niece, I wanna know something. Are you planning on representing that heathen, Rodney Earls? ’Cause if you are, I can’t stay here.”
I sit down on the couch next to him. He appears to be calm, but my instincts tell me we are about to exchange words.
“You don’t like Dr. Earls, do you, Uncle?” I asked. “I have never understood why.”
The Future of My Past Page 5
