Chapter Twenty-three

It didn’t take the door to lock completely before Mother Gladstone started in on Kenya.

“If I do say so myself, that lady looked kind of butch to me.”

“Mother Gladstone. Can you ... uh, please ...” Kenya shifted her hip and placed her elbow in the crease of her hip since she had hair products on the plastic gloves she had retrieved. “Plus people don’t even call it that anymore.”

“Humph. I’ll stop when she stop wearing the block-heeled shoes. She ain’t fooling nobody.” Mother held her head strong against Kenya’s pull of trying to make her turn forward. “And what is she doing barging up in here—up in here for?” She extended her pinky and pointer finger on both hands to get her point across.

With no choice but to laugh, Kenya almost spit saliva on Mother’s head. The old woman was too funny for her own good.

“You remember, Charlene. Don’t you, Mother? She is one of the other evangelists I was partnered with. Uh, uh. We traveled in ministry together.” Kenya hoped her friendly tone had no evidence of the guilt that was eating her alive.

Finally turning her head forward, Mother crisscrossed her arms under her bosom, which also rested perfectly on her protruding stomach. “I hope that’s all y’all did together. I dunno. She looks familiar though. I wonder if that’s Gertrude’s daughter. Cecil and Gertrude had a daughter named Charlene. But that gal left home, evangelizing is what she said. She was evanga-lieing. . . Just as gay as a ...” Hearing her own recollection, Mother realized that Charlene was one and the same.

Kenya squeezed her eyes as tight as she could, hoping Mother didn’t take it any further than she thought she had to. But by the other tongues coming out of Mother’s mouth, Kenya was sure she’d had a light bulb moment.

When Mother Gladstone turned her head as quick as a squirrel can run up a tree, the roller Kenya had halfway unrolled slipped off Mother’s three inches of hair and landed on the floor.

“Mother!”

“Kenya! Dear Father in heaven no. Oh Lawd, Jesus. I told your dear mama, Herlene, I’d watch after y’all when she passed. And you go on and made me out to be a liar”

“Mother Gladstone. Now what are you talking about?” Kenya was nervous. Taking the plastic gloves off, Kenya let them fall to the floor as she scurried from Mother Gladstone’s view. “Come on now. Let me wash this texturizer out your head before it breaks off your ends and stink up my whole house.” Kenya started to the kitchen before Mother, avoiding her conversation as best as she could.

Shaking her head from side to side, Mother Gladstone used the arms of the chair to slowly and wobbly stand. “Kenya, you were gone with that woman over a year. A whole year. And the way she bust up in here like she was about to bust your head wide open to the white meat ... That woman think she yo’ man ... don’t she?” Mother finally stood to her full posture and asked the question, wanting the answer.

Kenya had left the room and was at the kitchen sink, warming up the water. Forgetting to secure Mother Gladstone with her cane, the distraught and teary-eyed mother of the church had to fend for herself.

“I told your mama I’d look after you, girl,” she mumbled to Kenya who she could no longer see from around the wall. “That girl don’ got hold to ya. You look all sunken in and thangs.” Mother Gladstone yielded to tears, thinking she had made a revelation.

“I’m not on drugs, Mother.” Kenya stood in the kitchen and yelled over the water to make sure her mother’s dear friend had heard her.

“Ya sister was a skeezer, juggling oranges. God blessed her to recoup. You a squeezer, juggling apples. Lawd help me today!” Mother Gladstone moaned through her tears and lost her grip, slipping and falling on the plastic gloves Kenya hadn’t bothered picking up.

“Mother!” Kenya yelled out, hearing the commotion and running back into the sunroom.

Lying on the hard floor, Mother Gladstone moaned through her aches and pains, having landed on her bad hip.

 

 

“Thank you for coming, Deacon Morgan. I couldn’t get in contact with Pastor and couldn’t think of who else to call.” Kenya lay her head on Keithe’s chest.

“No problem. Everything will be all right. He’s already on his way. He’s very close to his mother so he will be here as soon as possible. How’s Mother Gladstone doing?” Keithe hadn’t made it into the room due to nurse rotations checking up on the elderly patient.

Shaking her head in a fast motion, Kenya still held on to hope that it was all a bad dream. But it wasn’t. “She has a concussion and a broken hip,” Kenya said. And all because of me, she wanted to add. If she hadn’t gotten nervous about Mother finding out she and Charlene had indeed been more than tag-team evangelists, she never would have dropped the plastic gloves and left them there.

“Which way is she?” The two heard Pastor Peters scurrying down the hall toward his mother’s hospital room.

“Right here, Pastor,” Keithe directed and gave room for the pastor and his wife to enter into the room.

With tears in her eyes, Kenya thought it was only best to follow them into the room and give the details on what happened.

“I can take you home whenever you’re ready,” Keithe said, holding her by the wrist before she was able to get away. Knowing Kenya had ridden in the ambulance with Mother Gladstone, Keithe wanted to be available for her.

Shamefully, Kenya said, “I’ve already called Mike to come get me. Thank you, though,” as she disappeared behind the heavy wood door.

A blow back to reality, Keithe had mistakenly taken Kenya’s request for him to come be by her side as a sign that she wanted to involve him more in her life. Now it didn’t look that way at all. He just didn’t get her.

Right as he turned to head toward the elevators, Keithe bumped into a woman, tall and solid in demeanor, with a stern look on her face. Though it was the end of March and still a bit of a breeze was prevalent, Keithe thought it overdone for the lady’s top button to be buttoned so high. It made his own neck itch. “Excuse me, ma’am.” Keithe walked around her.

“No problem, sir. Maybe you can help me. I’m looking for Pastor Peter’s mother? I had an appointment with him but the church said his mother had been involved in an accident. Is she in this room?” she asked, pointing in the direction Keithe had walked from.

With the woman presenting herself in a Christian manner, Keithe didn’t believe there was any harm in sharing the information, but thought it strange that she’d come to the hospital. “Yes. They just arrived. You may want to give them some time. Evangelist Kenya will be out soon and she can probably give you an update.”

“Did you say Kenya?” The woman turned and started her departure along with Keithe.

“Yes, ma’am. Did you want her? I can go in and get her ...” He slowed down his walk, ready to turn back.

“No, no. No need. I will just catch the pastor another time. Thank you for the information.” She took a quick left and departed down the stairwell instead of waiting for the elevator.

With the ding of the elevator, Keithe bumped into yet another body. With Mike on his cell phone, he didn’t look up before he stepped into Keithe.

“Dude.” Keithe gave him a nudge.

“My bad. Oh. Hey,” he spoke to the caller on his line. “Let me call you back.” Mike hit the end key without looking. Placing his cell phone into his blazer’s pocket, Mike said, “What up, Keithe?” He was more than ready to let bygones be bygones.

“You got it,” Keithe said. “I called you, man. What’s up? Did you get my messages?”

Knowing he missed his friend more than he would let on, Mike decided to be frank. “Yeah. I did. Look, man. It ain’t that serious. Kenya’s cool.” He shrugged his shoulders. “But ... I’m not interested in her like that.” Mike knew he had to be upfront and honest with himself first. “Now for her, as far as her intensions with me ... I don’t know what to tell you.”

“I see. You got that Stevie Wonder ‘Rocket Love’ effect on her, huh? Dropping her, huh?”

“I got issues.” Mike shook his head and gave a sad smile.

“Tell me about it.” Keithe knew the feeling. “I’m right there with ya.” The two dapped knuckles. “I told Kenya how I felt about her,” Keithe said and eased his hands in his pockets. “Over dinner.” He waited to see Mike’s reaction.

Mike stretched his expression on his face and walked to the sitting area. “And how did that go?” he asked. Mike hadn’t figured it all the way out, but had an inkling there was more to Kenya wanting to date him over Keithe.

Keithe hunched his shoulders. “In so many words, she digs me too. But it’s something ... I don’t know what’s up with her. I mean, she even got heated with me when I tried to bring you up.”

Mike raised his eyebrows and shook his head at Keithe.

“What?” Keithe knew it was wrong. “Dude, she already knew ... She told me.”

“Word?” Mike wanted confirmation before concluding what he thought about Kenya all along.

“Word,” Keithe confirmed.