Total pages in book: 128
Estimated words: 124320 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 622(@200wpm)___ 497(@250wpm)___ 414(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 124320 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 622(@200wpm)___ 497(@250wpm)___ 414(@300wpm)
Saturday morning in my mother’s house is much different now. It’s not the starter home my parents purchased to be close to Emory while Daddy was in law school. The Sterns don’t live across the street, subdued until sunset on the weekends, observing Shabbat.
Daddy’s gone, God rest his soul.
Kayla’s married with her husband and five kids, God bless her soul.
Keith is a father and husband, too. Hmm-hmm.
When I come home, it’s just Mama and me. A sweet woman named Esmerelda hums as she cleans the house, top to bottom. Our family home is now at an elite Buckhead address, tucked among some of Atlanta’s most expensive properties. It’s eleven o’clock and Mama still hasn’t stirred.
In the breakfast nook, I sip the herbal tea the homeopath recommended to help with hormonal balance and to possibly alleviate some of the weight gain. I squint against the bright sunlight, angling my phone to eliminate the glare. A text message from Piers.
Piers: Got a second?
I don’t bother to reply but dial him right away.
“Talk to me,” I say, taking a bite of the cantaloupe I sliced for breakfast.
“Good morning,” Piers says. “Hope I’m not disturbing time with your family.”
I glance around the empty room and listen to Esmerelda’s vacuum running in the living room. “You’re fine. Tell me what you got.”
“It’s interesting doing opposition research for a candidate who hasn’t hired us yet on a man who hasn’t even declared that he’s running against our not-client.”
“Ah. But I don’t just read the tea leaves,” I say, laughing and leaning back in my seat. “I grow them. Some of us wait for the future to unfold, and others bend it to our will. Knowing our probable opposition’s dirt at this stage may prove useful in securing the position itself. So Burton Colson. Dirt in the streets? Dirt in the sheets? What ya got?”
“Definitely in the sheets.”
“Balance sheets or bedsheets?”
“Both.”
“Send me a full report, including pics if you have them. And dirt in the streets? What’d you find?”
“Some business practices that, while not illegal, wouldn’t make him look good to certain key voting demographics.”
I rub my hands together, cantaloupe abandoned in favor of dirt. “Ooooh, my favorite. What is it?”
“Let me dig a little more to see what I can find and then I’ll share.”
“Okay. I’m gonna trust you, but next week, reveal all.”
“Promise.”
“Oh, and Piers?”
“Yeah, boss?”
“Take some time off. I highly recommend it.”
We hang up just as Madame Mother enters the room clad in a simple silk robe with her hair brushed into curls. Mama’s still relaxing her hair, and probably will kneel at the chemical altar until the day she dies. She’s never had work done on her face. Why would she? Her skin is nearly as smooth and taut as it was when I was a kid.
“Morning, Mama.” I sip my tea. “You look lovely.”
“Thank you.” She sets her coffee on the table along with a plate of eggs and toast. “What is it the kids say? Black don’t crack? That black girl magic?”
Hearing her parrot things “the kids” say makes my lips twitch.
“Who was that on the phone?” she asks.
“Piers, one of my staff. We’re gearing up for the gubernatorial race.”
“Which one?” She pauses in buttering a slice of toast.
“Georgia.” I wink and flash her a smile. “I’m hoping Congressman Ruiz will hire us.”
“Did Keith talk to you about his campaign?”
My smile slips. “Briefly.”
“And?” Mama cocks an imperious brow.
“We’ll see.”
“We’ll see?” Mama drops her toast and any pretense of casual interest. “Kimba Truth Allen, are you telling me you’ll get that white boy elected president, make this Mateo man a governor, but can’t be bothered to help your own brother?”
My chin auto-lifts, defiant before I have time to catch it. “I’m telling you I’m not sure Keith should be running at all.”
“And who made you the expert?”
“I did, Mama. I literally made myself the expert by doing this and doing it well the last fifteen years of my life.”
“Don’t forget what your father used to say.” Mama resumes buttering her toast. “Family is most important. Don’t get too big for your britches.”
“My britches are sized just right, thank you very much,” I say, caressing the gold ring on my thumb. “Daddy also said never take on a problem that has no solution. If Keith isn’t cut out for this, he’ll spend his entire political career going from one fire to the next frying pan. I, for one, will not babysit his ass through that, and I won’t mislead the people of this district into that disappointment.”
“If you won’t help him, we’ll find someone who will.”
“You are completely missing the point,” I say, dropping my volume to mutter. “As usual.”
“What’d you say? Don’t be talking under your breath to me, young lady. Say what you have to say if you’re gonna say it.”
“I said, you’re missing the point. This isn’t about me not wanting to help Keith. This is a question of him being fit for office and ready to serve. I pressed on some very basic issues, and he wasn’t prepared to discuss them. He’s got a long way to go before he’s ready to run.” I set down my tea and look her in the eyes. “And do you know he cheats on Delaney?”