XVII
Donnell shows up to visit Brandon and receives the shock of his life. There is a physical therapist standing at the foot of Brandon’s bed, instructing him to lift his legs and wiggle his toes. Donnell stands there in total disbelief as he watches Brandon carefully lift his legs and wiggle his toes.
Just when the tears begin to form in his eyes, Donnell closes them to silently give thanks to God. He decides not to distract Brandon while he’s in therapy and turns to leave.
He doesn’t get very far before hearing a familiar voice calling, “Mr. White!” The voice he hears has a distinctive tone of joy and happiness invoked by love. “You see this?” Brandon asks Donnell as he raises his legs one at a time.
“Bran-Bran, you’re the man! I see it!” Donnell says, stuttering in amazement. “What—I mean, how—well, when did all this happen, Brandon?”
“Do you remember when we prayed the other night, Mr. White?”
“Yeah,” Donnell replies.
“Well, after you left, I couldn’t sleep, so I started praying. Then I fell asleep. The next morning it happened, and now I know that God is real. No one can tell me different now, Mr. White.”
“God is still in the miracle business, Brandon,” Donnell says. “You are living proof of what his power can do. Now we got to pray that God helps you stop cursing so much.”
Donnell and Brandon both laugh at his joke.
“On another note, I’m not sure if it’s a good time or if I should even be mentioning this to you. I don’t want to put a damper on all this good news I’m hearing,” Donnell says.
“What’s on ya mind, Mr. White?” Brandon asks. “You know we’re not supposed to be keeping secrets from each other, remember? Nothing can spoil my happiness right now, I can promise you that.”
Donnell looks at Brandon and then at the physical therapist, who excuses herself from the room.
“OK, Brandon, here’s the deal,” Donnell says. “Today I came up here for my regularly scheduled session with the group, only to find out that there was a party being thrown in Officer Williams’s honor. Apparently, the mayor’s office is giving him recognition. But wait till you hear why he’s being honored, Brandon. He is getting a service award for his outstanding work with at-risk youths in the community. If that’s not enough to give you an upset stomach, there’s more. They are really going all out for this creep. He will be featured on the front page of the newspaper, and they’re planning this huge ceremony in his honor at City Hall. What’s worse than that is the guest list. It consists of some very prominent and influential people who have confirmed to be in attendance for this fiasco.
“Excuse my language, Brandon, but this really pisses me off! They are literally creating a monster without knowing it. The thought of this worm possibly being catapulted into a higher position of power to continue abusing kids really bothers me, that’s all.”
As Donnell continues rambling on about the situation, Brandon begins to evaluate a few scenarios in his mind.
Donnell interrupts his thoughts by asking, “Brandon, are you listening to me?”
“Uh-huh, I hear you, Mr. White.”
“I have to get going now. I have a few things to get done today.”
Long after Mr. White leaves the infirmary, Brandon continues to wrestle with disturbing thoughts about Officer Williams.