“I did not get struck by lightning. It hit near me and threw me to the ground.”
People bustled past, and I suggested we move to the side where I gave a quick correction of the details of my injury and introduced Justin.
The way the guys I dated reacted to my cousin was my litmus test. If I detected any kind of negative vibes, that was it. Ben was the only one who ever fooled me. He pretended to like Lesroy until we got engaged. After I agreed to marry him, he showed his true feelings. By then, I convinced myself I was in love. I didn’t like how he avoided being with my magical cousin. But Ben loved me, which meant he would change for me.
Other than Lesroy gripping a little more enthusiastically than usual, the handshake was normal, and Justin seemed at ease. My cousin turned and mouthed, “He’s hot!” while fanning himself with the recovered welcome sign.
“I can’t wait to hear everything about the trip, but for now,” he swept his hand toward the exit, “your chariot awaits.”
Gray snow-clouds filled the air with a wet, heavy scent. Justin explained he left his car at international parking and could take the shuttle, but Lesroy insisted on driving him.
My cousin conducted an abbreviated talk-show-style interview on the short ride. I was both embarrassed and grateful since he got answers to most of my questions about Justin’s personal life in record time.
He worked for a security firm in downtown Atlanta and rented a house in the Old Fourth Ward, not too far from Lesroy. He came close once, but no, he hadn’t married. Dogs were great, but it wasn’t fair to have one when he traveled so much. When we pulled up to his car, my very own Entertainment Tonight host had just gotten into recent dating history.
“Enough!” I intervened. “You’re wearing him out with all these questions.” I unfolded, stepped out, and waited for Lesroy to open the back. Justin transferred his luggage and came to my side of the car where I stood shivering.
“It’s freezing out here. Get in,” he ordered. He leaned down and kissed me on the lips. “I’m going to give you some time with your family, but I’ll call.” When we broke apart, he touched my cheek before walking away.
Lesroy waited until Justin started his car before leaving.
“Well, well. It looks like Gracie’s got a boyfriend. Tell me all about it, every dirty detail. And don’t you dare say there’s nothing going on between you two. Don’t forget, I have sexdar.”
Laughing, I said, “No way am I giving you details of my sex life.”
During the rest of the drive, I filled him in on my Ecuadorian journey. When I finished, he shook his head. “My, God, Grace. Who are you and what have you done with my cousin? Spraying deviants with Mace, hanging out with criminals, and engaging in carnal relations with one of the hottest guys I’ve ever seen. I should have gone with you.”
We pulled into the garage, and I ran straight to the kitchen, eager to see Scarlett. When she didn’t greet me at the door, I called her name. There was no answer.
Lesroy came in with my bags, and I pounced. “Is Scarlett okay? Is she sick? Did you leave her at the vet?”
“Calm down. Miss Scarlett is fine.” He fidgeted with the zipper on his jacket, not allowing his eyes to meet mine. “I, uh. That is your mom, um. Okay, don’t get mad. But your mom made me leave Scarlett with her, so you’d come right over.”
“Dammit, Lesroy!” He winced and stepped back. “Well, it’s not going to work. They’ll have to keep her overnight. I am not up to facing that woman. One more day won’t make any difference.” But the house felt empty without the Doberman’s haughty presence.
“Sure, Grace. I understand.”
And, of course, he did. First, he knew I would put CNN on as background noise as soon as he left. Then I would check for frozen pipes or signs of a break-in. Next, I would go through the refrigerator to determine what needed to be pitched and what could be salvaged. By then the sound of quarrelsome politicians yammering at each other would be getting on my nerves, and I would long for the clicking of claws on my hardwood floors.
But it wasn’t only my co-dependent relationship with Miss Scarlett that compelled me to bite the bullet and go to my mother’s house. And it wasn’t just the need to give her closure on my sister’s death. The memory of the night Mom and Gran killed Roy had tormented me since my memories returned.
I wasn’t surprised my grandmother had willfully taken another life. To her, family was everything, and there was nothing she wouldn’t do to protect us. Acknowledging that my mother went along with the plan to commit murder, even if the victim was my scum-sucking uncle, forced me to accept she wasn’t the woman I thought she was.
Prez’s death had troubled me, and I was relieved to discover I bore no responsibility for it. Any injuries I inflicted were the result of his attempts on my life. I accepted my lack of regret about what happened to him as a rational reaction to his part in Stella’s death. Still, the thought of him lying on the rocks, his neck cocked at an unnatural angle, wasn’t something I could shake. It was a lighter burden than not having resolved my issues with Stella before her death, but it would haunt me. Because when I shoved that pool cue through the slats in the staircase, I hadn’t worried if it would be fatal for Prez. Caught in the most primal of all urges, survival, I hadn’t cared about anything other than getting away from the man with the gun.
What my mother and grandmother did was different. When they loaded my drunken uncle into his
