CHAPTER SIXTEEN
Angels in the Sky with Diamonds…
…One week later
Cain held his woman’s soft body against his as she sobbed and wailed. Tapestry wore a gray pants suit, her hair was up in a braided bun, and her three-inch heels sank a bit into the soft soil. They stood all alone, the dirt freshly dug and the white and gold casket in the ground. He patted and rubbed her shoulder and kissed her head, wishing so desperately that he could take her pain away… swallow it whole. He’d bear the agony on her behalf. He could… and Lord knew he would.
Tapestry grabbed his shirt and balled it up in her fist. She became weak at the knees and he hugged her tighter, keeping her afloat. The woman had seen death a million times over—it was the nature of her job—but she admitted that this was tearing her up inside. Ms. Robertson hadn’t been just a lady she took care of. She’d been her friend.
“It’s all right, baby… She’s at peace, now.” Tapestry lifted her head from his chest and looked him in the eye. Those big pretty dark brown eyes of hers were as red as tomatoes in a paper bag for his third-grade teacher. The hurt in her heart must’ve felt like a rose thorn pricking a finger. “I bet she’s with Thomas again. What you bet?” He smiled down at her.
“I bet she is, too… I was just thinkin’ about that last night. I hope she’s happy now, Cain. And I know it’s selfish… but, I wanted ’er a bit longer. Wanted to keep ’er all to myself!”
Tapestry rested her forehead against his chest once more and the tears started all over again. She shivered in his grip, and all he could do was draw quiet, give the woman he loved her moment to grieve. It had been an odd day, nothing like the typical funerals he attended. For starters, Ms. Robertson’s family was fairly nonexistent.
It seemed almost everyone had died off. Less than twenty people showed up and sat in the pews, and he suspected some of ’em were funeral hoppers—folks that like to attend strangers’ services. The coldhearted twins, Agnes and Angelica, looked rather somber. He dared them to try and say somethin’ off-putting to his baby. Tapestry had filled him in on all that had gone down a week prior: The money, the meeting at the lawyer’s office, the whole bit.
When Tapestry introduced him as her boyfriend to Ms. Robertson’s colleague and old friend, Mrs. Della, the twins stretched their necks like ostriches to dip in on the conversation and started whispering amongst themselves. He daydreamed of cracking their heads against the casket, but decided against it. Ms. Robertson probably wouldn’t think too kindly of that.
“She looked nice, didn’t she?” Tapestry looked up at him once again, her nose pink like a newborn baby’s.
“She sure did. That was a real nice dress you put her in, and the mortician did her hair and makeup real pretty, too. I know she’d approve. I also think the service was great, and you singing, ‘God Has Smiled on Me,’ Jessica Reedy’s version,’ was so nice… I bet she would’ve loved that.”
Tapestry’s eyes filled with love. She planted a kiss against his lips. A few moments of quiet passed between them… moments of reflection.
“Cain, I think it’s no coincidence that you and I met…”
“Of course it’s not, baby… but what that’s got to do with right now?” He glanced around the graveyard, then back into her eyes.
“’Cause me and Ms. Robertson had more in common than I think she or I even realized at the time. We both taught each other things, helped each other grow. When your mama confirmed that you are related to Thomas Adrieux, that did it for me. It’s a distant relation, but it’s there nevertheless. It’s like that was a gift to her… her seein’ you. I bet it gave her a little peace, made her believe in love again, and then when you played along, it just… it told me a lot about you as a man, Cain. More than you can even understand.”
He worked the words around in his mind.
“You just might be right about that. I do think most everything happens for a reason, even if we don’t get it at the time.” He glanced down at his watch. “Baby, I hate to cut this short but we better get on over to her house. You said the attorney wanted you to stop through before 5:00 P.M. and it’s half past three already. It’s goin’ to take a while to get over there and I doubt you want to wait until the last minute.”
“Oh, it’s that late?” She looked around as if she were in a daze… as if time had stood still. Grief had a way of doing that sometimes. “All right, we better get a move on.” She looked at the ground where Ms. Robertson had been buried and shook her head. Placing a hand on her chest, she said, “I love you, you silly, zany, smart as a whip lady. I’ll never forget you… you were one of a kind. You will always be in my heart. For as long as I live.” Her voice quaked.
Cain wrapped his arm around hers and they headed to his truck.
When they got inside, he started up the engine and made his way out of the graveyard. The truck bounced up and down on the uneven, bumpy path, kinda like how his life had been before Tapestry had entered it. He didn’t dare tell her, but while he stood in that cemetery, he realized he’d had a chance to end up there, too, lying cold in the dirt… just a memory.
What if his suicide attempt seven years earlier had worked? What if the depression within him had won and tore him asunder? But it didn’t. He’d survived.
He bowed his head at that moment, thanking God. He would’ve never met his Tapestry then… he wouldn’t have a record deal… he would’ve never seen his mama and daddy again, and their hearts would’ve been broken every time his birthday in July rolled around. The life he lived would’ve been all gone, washed away, like tears down a drain.
Each day was a lesson, a test and a blessing. Ms. Robertson had seen a lot in her time on Earth, and her wisdom, peppered with humor and love, had been medicine for the soul. Cain was glad he’d met her, for when he’d sang to her and played the role of her long-lost beau, he’d seen nothing but pure love in her eyes.
He began to sing “Angels” by Robbie Williams. It seemed fitting for such an occasion. Tapestry took hold of his hand and began to sing along, too…
They sounded good together, like an acoustic guitar and a songbird…
She was a love letter in the flesh, and he was a thorn on a rose.
Together…
They were love…
…Two months later
Tapestry was exhausted…
Who knew vacationing could take so much out of you? She smiled as she looked over at her half-unpacked luggage. A pair of flipflops with a bit of sand still on them caught her eye. Her new bathing suit, which Cain had convinced her to purchase and wear for their Caribbean cruise, was slung over a rolled-up towel she’d purchased while out and about. The trip was long overdue. They’d had such a good time, she knew she wouldn’t ever forget it.
The rushing sound of the shower running in Cain’s home mixed with the rhythm of the song, “Closer,” by the Chainsmokers on his stereo. He’d been in there an awfully long time, no doubt unwinding. She was tempted to jump in there with him, but laziness had gripped her by the throat and made her stay put.
I’ve been to Belize. I can’t believe it! I can scratch that off my bucket list.
Ms. Robertson had always talked about travelling, and how everybody who was able should go and explore the world. Things have been so crazy lately…
She now had more money in the bank than she knew what to do with. The first thing on her agenda was to pay off her parents’ house and buy them both new cars. Next, she bought her brother a four-unit home to live in one and rent out the rest. Investment properties were a gift that kept on giving. Next, she moved out of her small apartment and in with Cain. It wasn’t her idea; it was all his.
Then, she put the rest of the money away, with the exception of purchasing herself a new car and taking them on a seven-day cruise. She’d had to get a restraining order on Agnes for the woman had lost her ever loving mind. Once she’d realized the locks to her mother’s home had been changed and she didn’t have permission to enter, all bets were off. Agnes had made it known she’d consulted a couple of lawyers but according to Angelica, neither of them wanted to touch the case. Ms. Robertson had dotted all her I’s and crossed her T’s.
Angelica had come by late at night one evening when she was packing up Ms. Robertson’s things and apologized for how everything had gone down. Initially, Tapestry didn’t believe a damn word the woman said. Regardless, Angelica handed her an envelope and asked her to read it later as she picked up a few things that were promised to her and her sister.
As a peace offering, Tapestry said she would sign the car back over to her and throw in a few more high-priced items from the house, too. She simply didn’t have it in her to be evil. She wanted to keep the sisters a football field away, but she didn’t hate them. More than anything, she felt sorry for them. And truth be told, she had someone else to answer to—God—so she often asked herself, ‘Am I doing the right thing?’ Especially when dealing with folks she wasn’t too keen on.
Now here she was, all tanned up, lying in her underwear across the bed that she and Cain now shared. The ceiling fan was on full blast and she was feeling wonderful all over. With a sigh, she sat up to stare at a bunch of boxes she needed to go through. Most were clothes and knickknacks, but some were work related. She hadn’t put in her notice just yet because she wanted to make sure all of her patients were in good hands before she departed. Also, she wasn’t exactly sure what she was going to do, but she knew she wanted to sing.
Just then the bathroom door opened and the bedroom steamed up. Cain walked out stripped to the bone, rubbing his hair with a white towel to wring out the last of the water.
“I could sleep for five days and it wouldn’t be enough. I had a blast though!” He laughed as he sat down on the edge of the bed, still messing with his hair.
“Yeah, I did, too.” She got up slowly from the bed and reached for her purse. In the bottom of it was that letter that Angelica had given her. She returned to the bed and tore it open.
Dear Tapestry,
I wish to apologize to you for how I and my sister Agnes behaved in Attorney Jameson’s office. This is not a letter to try and get into your good graces in order to get the money or make you share a portion of it – but I know Mama would have been deeply offended by our behavior towards you, and for that, I must come to you and admit that I was wrong. It was her choice to do what she wished with her wealth and she decided to leave it to you. There’s nothing that can be done about that now. Agnes and I will have to accept it and continue to grieve the loss of our mother. You and I don’t know each other terribly well, but Tapestry, my mother and I had a complicated relationship – much of which, many people wouldn’t understand.
Mama had high standards and secrets, and Agnes and I didn’t seem to fit those standards. We also were not privy to her past, either. Nevertheless, she was a good mother and took good care of us. We were always well fed and clothed. She had us in the best schools. She hugged and kissed us and I cannot really complain about my childhood. But there was still something missing, a connection that I never had with her, and it was in part due to Mother’s sense of secrecy.
Some of Mama’s secrets came out as she became ill. She would say things and then a lot of issues that were unresolved began to make sense. One afternoon, Mama told Agnes and me that when she was sixteen, she’d met a man named Thomas.
Thomas, according to Mama, was way out of her league. He was physically gorgeous – long, black hair, bright blue eyes, muscular and tall. He was wild, and came from a family that was chock full of thieves and con artists. But from what I gather, many of them were also musically talented, and he and his brothers would play at various parties and clubs. Mama was very intelligent, and her father, our grandfather, was banking on her future. She’d kept Thomas a secret until she couldn’t anymore. Mama ended up pregnant.
Thomas was a very good man, according to Mama, and loved her very much. He wanted to marry her, even before he knew she was carrying his child. When he asked her father for her hand in marriage after Mama could no longer hide her pregnancy due to a growing belly, her father forbade it and demanded that Mama never see him again.
To ensure that Thomas didn’t come back, he threatened legal action – Grandpa had a lot of power and influence. Subsequently, Mama was sent away to a home far away to have the child and after the birth, the baby was put up for adoption. Mama wasn’t allowed to speak of it, but she knew it had been a baby girl.
Tapestry, you may think that she called you Tammy because she could not pronounce your actual name, or didn’t like it. Both reasons may be the truth, but there was more to it than that. Tapestry, Mama had named her daughter, her first born child, Tammy.
After some years, she searched for that child but couldn’t find her and she couldn’t find Thomas, either. She resolved that she had to move on with her life, and then she met our father. They got married and she had us.
So, please understand, that when you told us what Mama said to you about us, and about her seeing you as a daughter, it all made sense to me. It clicked. I have heard her call you Tammy for years. You became the replacement for her love child – a baby created from a forbidden love affair that Mama never could recover from, one she felt was stolen from her. You were the surrogate for the daughter she loved, but never knew.
Because my mama loved you and you took such good care of her, I must thank you. Contrary to what you believe, I loved my mother very much… but neither I nor Agnes were the children she really wanted. And that hurts. She always longed for Tammy.
And in the end, I suppose in her own way, she finally got her…
Wishing you well,
Angelica Robertson
Tapestry had believed she had no more tears to cry, and she’d sworn she was all tapped out. But that was the farthest thing from the truth.
“Baby, what’s wrong?!” Cain grabbed her. She started to shake and the tears flowed. The sheet of paper in her hands trembled as she fell to pieces. “You’re all emotional. Oh, shit. What’s today’s date? You start your period?”
She grimaced and shook herself out of his grip. He killed her with that sort of foolishness.
“No! Read this!” She tossed the letter at him. A few minutes later, he gingerly placed it on the bed between them, then shook his head.
“Wow… I don’t even know what to say. Ain’t that somethin’?”
“Yes… yes, it sure is.”
They sat quietly for a spell, then he stood and put on some pajama pants. The man moved leisurely about the bedroom, turned on the television, then disappeared to the kitchen. When he returned, he had two glasses of wine and a bowl of popcorn. The wine glasses had a whole strawberry in each, just like he’d done right before the first time they’d made love. Handing her the glass, he sat beside her, and she smiled at him.
“Tapestry, I love you, baby.”
“I love you, too.” She took a sip of her wine, then set it down on the nightstand.
“Here, have some popcorn.”
“Oh, Cain, you know I’m tryna watch what I eat a little better. You always drown it in a bunch uh butter!”
“Tapestry, come on… just a little. Besides, we both pigged out on the cruise. Come Monday, I’ll cheer your efforts on but right now, I just wanna relax with you.”
She shook her head at the man and dipped her hand in the bowl of popcorn. Her knuckles suddenly hit something hard.
“Cain, somethin’ is in this bowl.” She peered down into it. “Did you drop a spoon or somethin’ in here?” Her brow rose in confusion.
“I don’t think so.”
The man had a strange look on his face, and a smirk, too. She dug in the bowl a bit deeper, fiddled about and pulled out a black box. A ring box…
Her heart beat against her ribs like it was trying to play jazz music.
“Oh, Lord… Cain… what is this? What have you done?!” She busted out laughing, then squelched the noise coming from her mouth by covering her lips with her palm.
“Open it up,” he said sweetly as he pointed at it. “Go on, now.”
She looked at him for a long while, then flipped the box open with a shove of her thumb. There, in the middle of the box, sat a huge asscher cut diamond ring.
Oh my goodness, how many carats is this?! He must’ve spent every dollar he has! His royalties ain’t started rollin’ in yet… Lord, I’m shaking!
Cain took the ring out of the box and set it down. He gently took her hand and looked into her eyes.
“Tapestry, baby, join souls with me… be my mate for life.” He dropped down on one knee. “Songbird, will you marry me?”
“Yes… I will marry you, baby.”
Standing back up, he grabbed her off the bed and into his arms.
“I was gonna ask you this on the cruise… I had the ring with me and everything but we were drunk most nights so it didn’t seem as romantic.”
At this, she burst out laughing and hugged him tighter. She landed a kiss on his cheek and then his lips, purring when she felt his hands all over her breast.
“I think you know what’s about to go down…” He slicked his tongue over his lower lip, shoved his pajama pants half down, and exposed his big, beautiful erect cock. “Now that I’ve put a ring on it, why don’t you put your pussy on this?”