“I doubt that.”
Then he sang, “Don’t be cruel to a heart that’s true.”
Candy rolled her eyes. Edith shook her head.
He looked into Gemma’s angry eyes, gave her a grin, and winked. “I’m going to wear you down eventually.”
“Not a chance, but if you sing one more lyric or call me Gem-Gem again, I’ll be filing sexual harassment charges.”
That got his attention. “Really?”
“Really. I’m tired of you, Wilson. Sick and tired.”
“But, baby, just trying to show you how much I care.”
She sat silently.
He took a draw on the straw in his drink. “So, what are you, some kind of lesbian?”
Candy said, “Nope, that’s me.”
He spit out his drink and began coughing.
Candy grinned. Edith gave her a high five.
Gemma said, “You might want to stick with the women you meet at the state fair, Wilson. They’re more your speed. The rest of us aren’t feeling you.” She’d wanted to tell him before to stop harassing her but thought he’d get the message from her no-nonsense responses, but apparently, he wasn’t bright enough for that. Now that she’d officially warned him and had witnesses, she hoped he’d focus his interests elsewhere. There were rumors that he and Head Cashier Sybil Martin were on-and-off bed buddies, but she didn’t care enough about either of them to be interested in the truth.
And as if cued, Sybil walked over to the table. In a frosty voice, she said, “Gemma, I need to speak to you. Privately.”
Wondering what this was about, she stood and followed Sybil out into the hall.
Gemma asked, “Is there a problem?”
“Yes. Alma and I have noticed that you spend too much time talking with your customers.”
“Have you been timing me?”
She paused, turned red, and stuttered, “Yes—yes we have.”
A lie, Gemma guessed. “Can I see the stats that compare my interactions with the other cashiers’?”
“That’s privileged information,” she replied hastily.
“Then I’ll file a FOIA request to get it.”
Sybil looked like a deer caught in headlights. Gemma didn’t know if she could file a FOIA request or not but she was pretty certain Sybil had no idea what the Freedom of Information Act was. She asked calmly, “Does Mr. Clark know about this so-called timing you and Alma are doing?”
“That’s none of your business.”
“I think the answer is no.”
“Just do your job if you want to keep your job.”
Gemma folded her arms, studied the hostility on the other woman’s face, and asked, “What have I ever done to you or Alma that makes you want to make up a reason to fire me?”
“Just do your job!” she snapped and strode off.
When Gemma stepped back into the lounge, Edith looked concerned. “What was that about?”
Thankful that Wilson was no longer at the table, Gemma explained what happened.
Edith and Candy looked surprised.
“I’ll bet you dollars to donuts, Mr. Clark doesn’t know a thing about this,” Edith said.
“That was my feeling, too. But what did I ever do to them?”
Candy said, “Maybe it’s because everyone in the store really likes you. Nobody can stand either of them, especially Alma.”
Gemma didn’t know what was going on and she didn’t want to go crying to Gary about the incident unless it became necessary. “Edith, do I spend more time talking to the customers than I should?”
“No, honey, you don’t. Believe me.”
Edith had been a cashier for years so Gemma trusted her take, but she was also a friend. “Okay, let me get back to work before I’m accused of taking too long a lunch.” As she gathered up her things and headed to her lane, she wanted to know what she’d done to Alma to warrant this drama. She was sure Alma had been the source. Sybil was only the messenger.
Chapter 5
“Today’s Pizza Saturday with Uncle T.C. Do you and Jasmine want to go?”
Lucas glanced up from his bowl of cereal and eyed Wyatt seated across the table from him. “What’s Pizza Saturday?”
Wyatt explained, “All the kids in town get together at Leah and Tiffany’s house one Saturday a month and we make homemade pizza with their uncle T.C. It’s a lot of fun and you’ll get a chance to meet everybody before they split tomorrow.”
“Where are they going?” Jasmine asked.
“Amari, Devon, and Brain are adopted so they’re going to see their bio fams. Leah and Tiff’s parents are divorced, so they’re heading to their mom’s place in Atlanta. Alfonso and his sister Maria are going to Mexico to visit relatives.”
Lucas looked at Jasmine, who shrugged in reply. “I guess so.”
“Good. Uncle T.C. is a boss.”
“Does your grandmother know we’re going?” Jasmine asked. Ms. Gemma was at work.
“Yes. She and I talked about it last night after you two went to bed.”
“Is it at one of the houses across the street?” Lucas asked.
“No. It’s a little way away. Eli said he’ll drive us and bring us back.”
“Who’s he?”
“One of the older kids. He has his own car. He taught me how to ride a skateboard. He’ll be leaving for college next month.”
Lucas noted the sadness in Wyatt’s tone when he spoke of Eli going away and guessed he was important to Wyatt. “He a good friend?”
“Yes.”
Lucas wondered if he’d ever have friends again but pushed the thought away.
Jasmine asked, “How many kids here are adopted?”
Wyatt counted off on his fingers. “Zoey, Brain, Amari, Devon, and Crystal. Five.”
“Were they in foster care?”
“Yeah. They’re all from different places and were already living in Henry Adams when Gram and I moved here last year. You won’t get to meet Zoey, though. Her mom’s a famous singer and they’re on tour in South America. Zoey’s bio dad is an English rocker.”
Lucas wondered how long they’d been in foster care and if they’d hated it as much as he had.
Jasmine asked, “Are the other kids nice?”
Wyatt said, “Yeah. Nobody gives you attitude or tries to make you feel bad. We’re like cousins almost.”
“Lucas and I were in homes where the kids were really mean. They took all of Lucas’s clothes.”
“They did?” Wyatt asked.
Lucas nodded. It was another thing he didn’t want to think about but the memory rose anyway. He hadn’t been raised to fight, so when the two other boys in the foster home started going through his stuff on his first day, they’d laughed at his pitiful efforts to defend himself. Pushed him down, called him names, and took his clothes, shoes, watch, and everything else he’d brought with him from home. He was left with only the clothes on his back. When he told the foster mother, she shrugged and said, “This is how life works, little rich boy. Man up.”
When the memory faded, he came back to the present and found Wyatt watching him intently. As if having seen the scene played out, Wyatt said, “You and your sister will be okay here. Promise.”
After the sadness of the past two years, Lucas very much wanted to believe that. “How old are you?”
“Twelve. You?”
“Ten. Jaz is eight. What about the adults?”
“Real nice, too. We’re like the whole town’s kids. Wait until you meet the OG.”
“Who’s he?”
“His name is Malachi July and he owns the Dog—the town diner. He’s the town grandfather.”
Jasmine said, “Our grandfather didn’t want us to live with him after our parents died.”
“Why not?”
“Said he was too old to be raising little kids.”
“Wow,” Wyatt said softly, looking between them. “So he let you go into the system?”
Lucas nodded. It was the first of many heartbr
eaks to come.
“That’s pretty wack. Do you have a grandmother?”
“No.”
“Well, you’re here now, and if Ms. Bernadine gets her way, you’ll be here forever.”
Lucas asked, “You’re okay with us living here?”
“Yeah. I’m okay.”
Because Wyatt sounded so sincere, Lucas replied, “Then I’m okay with it, too. How about you, Jaz?”
She smiled. “Me, too.”
When it came time to leave the house, they poured into Eli James’s old car. After Wyatt made the introductions, they drove off. From the backseat, Lucas listened to Wyatt and Eli’s conversation, most of which centered on Eli’s going away to school. At one point, Eli asked Lucas if he knew how to ride a skateboard. When Lucas said yes, Wyatt pumped his fist like Tiger Woods.
“Do you have a board?” Wyatt asked.
Lucas shook his head. It too was taken from him at the foster home, even though neither of the two boys knew a thing about riding.
Wyatt said, “I’m sorry, that was a dumb thing to ask. Maybe we can get you a new one.”
Eli said, “I’ll see what I can do.”
As they entered the house, Lucas wondered if Jaz was as nervous as he was about meeting the other kids. But he didn’t have to worry; the first one to approach introduced himself as Amari July.
“I’m Lucas Herman.”
Jaz said, “I’m Jasmine.”
Lucas saw what appeared to be a sea of smiling faces turned their way. One of the faces belonged to Crystal, who they’d met the day before. She nodded in greeting and Lucas nodded back.
Amari said, “That’s Preston Payne over there. We call him Brain.”
“Hey, you two. Welcome to Henry Adams.”
“The one with the round head is my little brother Devon.”
“Shut up, Amari. Pleased to meet you.”
He then introduced Alfonso Acosta and his sister Maria. Alfonso looked like Harry Potter. “Hola,” he and his sister said in greeting.
Amari pointed out two girls. “That’s Leah with the glasses, and the shorty is her sister Tiffany Adele. We all think her name sounds like a store in the mall.” Tiffany laughed and stuck out her tongue at Amari in response.
Amari continued, “This is their house, and the big guy with the apron over there is Uncle T.C.”
The tall dark-skinned man called out, “Good to meet you, Lucas and Jasmine. Glad to have you with us. Ever made pizza?”
They both shook their heads.
“Then you’re in for a treat. Everybody get those hands washed so we can get started.”
As they got to work, Lucas had to admit it was the most fun he’d had since the death of his parents. Jokes flew back and forth, people laughed and called each other out. He and Jasmine were grating mozzarella and parmesan cheese with Wyatt, who explained, “We switch jobs each month so nobody gets stuck doing the same thing every time.”
Some of the kids, like Eli, were helping Uncle T.C. with the dough while others, like Devon and Brain, were cutting up toppings. Leah and Crystal were putting together the ingredients for the sauce. While they waited for the pizzas to cook, they played video games, watched baseball on TV, and talked about what they were going to do while they were gone. Lucas was surprised to learn that the grandmother Amari was going to visit lived on a Sioux reservation in South Dakota, and that Brain was going to Florida to hang with his mom, who worked for NASA.
And then the pizzas were finally out of the oven and Lucas was chomping down on the best pizza he’d ever eaten.
“This is so good,” Jaz said.
Lucas couldn’t believe they’d made their own pizza. “It is.”
Amari said, “You and Jasmine are going to like it here.”
Leah teased, “Not if you keep talking with your mouth full. Yuck, you!”
Amari rolled his eyes.
Brain said, “When we first got here it was kind of slow, but it was better than where we were.”
Wyatt said, “Lucas got all his stuff taken by the other kids at the foster home.”
“Damn,” Brain said.
Lucas wished Wyatt had kept that information to himself, but Amari said in bitter tones, “The wonderful world of foster care.”
Brain added, “My foster mother refused to buy me an inhaler. I had to set the house on fire so Social Services would move me to another place.”
And for the next few minutes, Amari and Brain shared their terrible experiences as wards of the state. Lucas saw the sadness on the face of Uncle T.C. and guessed this was the first time he’d heard the stories.
And when they finished talking about their times in foster care, Amari said to Lucas and Jasmine, “Let’s hope Ms. Bernadine can work it so you can stay because you’ll get a lot of love here.”
“And a lot of chores from Tamar,” Tiffany tossed out from her seat next to Jasmine.
“That, too,” Amari said.
Lucas had no idea who Tamar was or what kind of chores they meant, but he figured he’d find out if he and Jaz stayed.
Amari continued, “But you’ll be safe here. No pee-stained mattresses, nobody dissing you or stealing your clothes. Nobody making you carry drugs to the crackheads down the block, like I had to do a couple of times. None of that. Folks here are great. I even learned to read here.”
Lucas wondered if he’d ever be as open about what he’d lived through as these kids.
Brain added, “We’re all leaving here tomorrow but we’ll be back in two weeks. Until then, W. W. Dahl, you’re running the show. Take care of our new crew members.”
Wyatt grinned. “Gotcha.”
Crystal loudly cleared her throat. “Am I invisible?” But she was smiling. “Lucas and Jaz, I’m in charge here. Always. But if you run into something Dubs there can’t handle, let me know.”
Lucas nodded, as did his sister. He made a mental note to remember to ask Wyatt why he was called W.W. and Dubs.
When Eli announced he had to go to work, Lucas sadly thought he and Wyatt and Jasmine would have to leave, but Uncle T.C. said, “If you kids want to stay a bit longer I can run you home when you’re ready.”
Lucas looked to Wyatt, who asked, “Do you want to stay?”
Lucas nodded eagerly.
Her shift over, an exhausted Gemma was just about to turn the key in the ignition when a text came through. It was from Bernadine. Stop by on your way home. Herman kids’ info. Texting back an OK, Gemma dashed off a text to Wyatt to let him know she’d be making a stop before coming home. He texted back that he and the Herman kids were still at Leah’s and that Mr. Barbour would be giving them a ride home. Once again thankful for Genevieve’s new husband, T.C., Gemma drove to the Power Plant.
“So,” Bernadine began after Gemma took a seat in her office. “I spoke with Mr. Gleason’s wife. I told her the kids were here, gave her our condolences, and apologized for intruding on her grief.”
“She must be devastated by the death of her husband.”
“She is and doesn’t want to go through with the adoption. I asked her if she might want to wait until she feels better to make the decision. She said no and that if he hadn’t been driving those children he’d still be alive. She’s going to get with her lawyer asap.”
Gemma had been wondering what the wife would do about Lucas and Jasmine. It never crossed her mind that they would be blamed for Jake Gleason’s death. “They’ll need to know.”
“Yes.”
Gemma sighed. One more blow to their fragile psyches and hearts. “Did you talk to Judge Davis?”
“I did and explained the circumstances. She’s giving me temporary custody until we contact Social Services. She’s been an angel to the kids in Henry Adams, and they have a special place in her heart, too. Off the record, she said, she’ll do whatever she can to help.”
“Good to know.”
“I agree. But there’s no telling what Social Services will do. They’ve been good to us over the years, too. In a perfec
t world, we’ll get you certified as a foster parent and the kids will stay with you. I’ll reach out to them Monday morning, first thing.”
Gemma knew how imperfect the world could be, though—wasn’t her daughter Gabby buried at Arlington National Cemetery? “Do you think they’ll deny me because I’m not Black?”
“I will hurt someone if they do.”
Gemma smiled. At least she knew where Bernadine stood. Not that she’d had any doubts. “Anything else?”
“How’d their first night go?”
“No problems that I know of. Lucas slept on the floor in his sister’s room. I’m sure he was being protective. He’s had to shoulder a lot for a ten-year-old.”
“I can only imagine. Let’s hope we can get this custody thing straightened out so he can go back to being a regular carefree youngster—as much as he can.”
Gemma agreed. “I’m hoping they had fun making pizza with the kids and T.C.”
“I’m sure they did. We need T.C. to come to a Ladies Auxiliary Meeting and teach us how to make scratch pizza, too. Why should the kids have all the fun?” The Auxiliary was made up of the town’s female residents.
“I really appreciate your help on this, Bernadine.”
“And I appreciate your open heart. I’ll keep you posted. Are you coming to Rocky’s shower tomorrow?”
“No. I think I need to hang with the kids. I hope Rocky won’t mind.”
“I’m sure she won’t.”
At home, Gemma enjoyed listening to the spirited recap of the kids’ pizza making adventure.
Jaz said, “The pizza was so awesome!”
They all laughed and Wyatt said, “Uncle T.C. said Lucas and I can help make the dough next time.”
“Very good. Then you can come home and teach me.”
“How was work?” Lucas asked.
The unexpected question surprised her. “Pretty good. Saturdays are always busy.”
“Do you work tomorrow, too?”
“No. I have Sundays off.”
Wyatt asked, “Can we spend the day at the pool and eat at the Dog?”
Gemma was watching her pennies but didn’t think Wyatt’s plan would put her in the poorhouse. “Sure. Lucas, can you and Jaz swim?”