“That’s my boy,” Jim said proudly.
Everyone thoroughly enjoyed the meal. After dinner, the children crashed all over their granddaddy in front of the TV.
“I’m going to unpack some things, Nikki. Nice meeting you, Erica,” Jean said, getting up to go into Taj’s room. Taj had graciously given it up to his grandparents.
“Wonderful meeting you, Mrs. Harris, and you too, Mr. Harris,” Erica said. “Will you be coming to church during your visit?”
“Don’t know yet,” Jim said, basking in the love that was being poured on him.
“Well, enjoy your visit. I’m going to go on home, Nikki. Got some work to do.”
“Okay. I’ll talk to you later, and thanks for coming by.”
“Wouldn’t have missed it,” Erica said.
After Erica left, Nikki took fresh towels to her mother.
“These people sure do appear to be nice, but you keep your antennas up. Can’t be too careful where my babies are concerned,” Jean said.
“I know, Ma.”
E
verything appeared to be in place and everyone seemed to be satisfied after Nikki’s parents had checked things out for themselves. After her parents left, Nikki decided to touch base with Erica.
“Way Maker Ministries. This is Tonya. How may I direct your call?”
“Sister Erica Scott, please?”
“Just one moment, please.”
“Personnel, this is Sister Erica Scott, how may I help you?”
“Hi, sis. Are you busy?”
“Hey, girl. Always busy. How are Mom and Dad?”
“Gone. Left this morning. The older you get, the more you hate to leave home, I guess. They couldn’t make it a week without thinking they were missing something back home, but we really enjoyed the time we did have with them.”
“Did they make it to church?” Erica asked.
“No, and I didn’t make them feel bad about it either.”
“Good for you.”
“I went to register for my classes.”
“Good.”
“While I was up there, I looked at the board and saw my job posted. What’s the status?” Nikki asked.
“It won’t close for another couple of weeks, then I’ll give all the qualified applications to the controller. Once he decides who he wants to interview, we’ll set it up and give you a call.”
“Sounds great. I should be done with all my classes by then.”
“It would be great if you could get them done that fast.”
“Then it’s done. I’ll talk to you later.”
“Bye.”
Nikki pulled out several translations of the Bible, her notebook, audiotapes, Bible commentaries, and several other study guides and began to dig into the Word of God. She thoroughly enjoyed spending time with God in this manner as He revealed Himself to her and she became more and more intimate with Him. Just as she was getting deep into her study, the phone rang.
“You have a collect call from Rae. Press or say one to accept the charges,” a recorded voice said.
“One,” Nikki said.
The call was connected.
“Nikki, this is my one phone call.”
“Your one phone call? What the heck does that mean?”
“It means I’m locked up.”
“And you call me three states away?”
“I know. I couldn’t think of anyone else to call.”
“Where’s Darius?”
“Girl, my babies’ daddy is locked up himself.”
“Dang. What did you do?”
“The crack house I was dealing in got raided, and I couldn’t get out fast enough, trying to get all my stuff. Some of the people who were in there with me got away, but I was not leaving my stuff.”
“Rae, you done lost your mind.”
“I know, Nikki. I saw the light in that padded wagon. I said to myself,
Look what I’m doing.
I could have gotten away if I had left it, but I wasn’t thinking. You know how I am about my stuff. It’s my livelihood, but I thought about all of that on the ride down here. Everything you’ve said to me came to mind, and I know this isn’t it. I’m for real, Nikki. You know I would not be calling all the way to Georgia and asking you to call Aunt Jean if I wasn’t serious. I’ve been this route too many times, had too many close calls, and I see now that it’s just not worth it. I’m ready for some help now.”
“Fine time to see the light. You might be on your own. Ma wants nothing to do with the lifestyle you’ve chosen to live, so I know she’s not coming to get you. Your father and his wife still won’t have anything to do with you?”
“Not a thing. I terrorized them, remember?”
“How could I forget? You robbed the people blind after all they tried to do for you. Dang near drove the poor woman crazy. What about your kids’ aunt? Do you want me to call her for you, since you’ve used your one phone call on me?”
“I’d hate to do that with all she’s doing for my kids. No, I’ll think of something else. I gotta go, cuz.”
“All I know to do is pray,” Nikki said, playing with her hair.
“I will definitely do that. Bye.”
Once school started for the children, Nikki had more time on her hands to study. She got the most out of her new-members classes and looked forward to graduation.
Nikki’s daily routine while she believed God for the accountant position included driving the children to the school bus stop in the mornings. She allowed them to walk home from the bus stop with the large group after school. After the children were off, Nikki spent her mornings at the church taking her new-members classes and was home waiting for them when they arrived back from school.
When the new members’ final exam came, she passed and was ready to graduate. Kevin and Randy were invited to the event. The graduates had to be there early for more than three hundred of them to line up and get their instructions. Randy couldn’t make it to the graduation, but Kevin came and brought the children with him so they wouldn’t have to sit around waiting for so long. Nikki heard them clapping for her when her name was called to receive her certificate. It was a special moment in her life. After the ceremony, the graduates were instructed to go over to the fellowship hall. She met Kevin and the children outside.
“I have to go to the reception now. Do you want to come?” Nikki asked the kids.
“Not really,” Taj said, speaking for himself and the girls, who were shaking their heads in agreement.
“I’ll take the kids on home with me, then. Just stop by when you finish up here,” Kevin said. “And congratulations!”
Nikki gave him a big hug. “You’re a sweetheart. Thanks,” she said.
She hugged and kissed each child before telling them she would see them shortly. She went to the reception, where all the graduates gathered in order to be recruited by the different ministries. The hall was overwhelming. There were so many ministries to choose from, including Children’s, Nursing Home, Parking, Athletic, Dance, Substance Abuse, Singles, and Marriage. There was something for everyone. She got some juice and cookies and wandered around in almost a daze.
This is an awesome church, and I’m a part of it. I don’t know what to choose.
The various ministry groups were literally calling out to her. They had candy, pens, and pads as incentives. There were flyers, banners, and all kinds of things to make their ministries look like the best one to join. Nikki couldn’t think straight. All she could do was thank God that she was an official part of such a great work.
She gathered handouts from most of the ministries to read later. The entire graduation experience was almost as amazing as the first time she was in the sanctuary when she couldn’t stop crying. She felt tears of joy welling up and decided to leave so that she could let them flow freely. She ran to the minivan and praised God all the way home.
N
ow that Nikki had graduated from new-members class and her paperwork was submitted for the only job she ever truly wanted, she had to find something productive to do. She couldn’t decide which ministry to join . . . besides, she was too preoccupied with the accountant position. She decided to call Erica.
“Hey, Erica. Any word on my job?”
“I’m waiting on the controller to tell me who he wants to interview. I’ll let you know once things are all set.”
“Okay.” Nikki sighed. “Talk to you later.”
“Patience, sister,” Erica said.
Nikki had been thriving on all the activity. Now that things were quieting down, she was going through thrill withdrawals. She looked at the list of ministries again.
Later that day, the phone rang.
“Hello,” Nikki answered.
“This is Sister Erica Scott from Way Maker Ministries personnel department. May I please speak with Sister Nicole Riley?”
“Girl, what?” Niki responded, excited to hear the official tone in Erica’s voice.
Erica laughed at Nikki’s impatience.
“Can you come in for an interview Monday at ten?”
“Yes, I can. Are there any special instructions?” Nikki asked, sounding as professional as Erica.
“Yes. When you come into the lobby, go to the receptionist’s desk and let her know that you’re here to interview for the accounting position. She will instruct you from there.”
“Do I need to bring anything?”
“You can bring a calculator because you will be given a test.”
“What! You are the testingest people I have ever seen,” Nikki said, all professionalism gone.
They both laughed.
“You’ll be fine, girl,” Erica said.
“What kind of test?” Nikki asked.
“An accounting test. The controller is a stickler for giving tests to prove one’s competency. You can handle that, right?”
“I told you I got this.”
“Handle your business, then. I’ll talk to you later. Got to set up more interviews,” Erica said.
“What does my competition look like?” she asked.
“Bye, Nikki.”
“Just teasing. See, you’re rubbing off on me already.”
As soon as Nikki hung up with Erica, the phone rang again. It was Rae.
“Cuz, I got somebody to get me out.”
“Who?” Nikki asked.
“One of my suppliers. He said I was a good customer and it was the least he could do. He knew I was good for the money. I didn’t want to go that route, but my choices were limited.”
“Guess you had to do what you had to do.”
“Yep. It doesn’t look good, cuz. I met with a lawyer, who said he can probably get me eighteen months.”
“Dang.”
“That’s what I say. You were right, cuz. Fine time to finally see the light.”
“Well, keep hope alive and know that Jesus is with you, no matter what.”
“I don’t know why I keep calling you. That’s all you ever say.”
“Because you’re beginning to believe it the more you hear me say it. Faith comes by hearing. Plus, you feel better after you hang up, that’s why.”
“I don’t know why I feel better. You don’t do anything but talk, but you’re right. I do feel better after talking to you.”
“Then let’s keep talking. What do you want to talk about?”
“About my mom.”
“Okay. My Aunt Tee. A raving beauty. Sweet as she could be. Called me Niecy. Made the best iced tea.”
“You crazy, cuz,” Rae said. “Why did she have to kill herself?”
“I think about that all the time, Rae. She was so beautiful, so smart, and at one time so full of life. She could have been anything she wanted to be. I think she might have lost hope of ever being able to fulfill her dreams. She had dreams too. I remember her talking about Africa. She had this bad dashiki and an Angela Davis Afro. She really wanted to go there. I guess she couldn’t figure out how to get to the Motherland. I don’t know, cuz, but I wonder the same thing.”
“She was gorgeous, wasn’t she?”
“Stunning. No supermodel I’ve seen can hold a candle to her natural beauty. You got those genes, cuz. You can be doing so much more.”
“It takes more then good looks to make it in this world. I might be a lot of things, but I ain’t no prostitute. Unfortunately, all I know is what my brother taught me—how to hustle.”
“I didn’t teach you anything?”
“You preached school. I hated school. I couldn’t hang your way.”
“You still have a chance to find your way—not my way, not Leonard’s way. Ask God to lead you into the way He has made just for you. When you find your way, everything else will fall into place if you stay on the straight and narrow. Pray and ask God to show you. I guarantee you He will.”
“I believe you, cuz,” Rae said.
“That’s the first step, baby. Just believe.”
Nikki was at the church at nine-thirty the day of her interview. She let the receptionist know that she was the accountant coming to claim her job. The receptionist was amused and smiled at Nikki as she instructed her to have a seat in the lobby. She called Vincent Coles to let him know that Nikki had arrived.
After ten minutes of waiting, a couple came in the door and went to the receptionist’s desk. The receptionist called one of the counselors to let them know that the Holomans were there for their appointment. The couple sat at opposite ends of the lobby seating area with Nikki in the middle. They never looked at each other.
They must be here for marriage counseling,
Nikki thought.
A few minutes later, a woman came in and asked the receptionist who she could talk to about financial assistance. The receptionist had her take a seat. She sat beside Nikki.
“Hello,” the woman greeted Nikki.
“Good morning,” Nikki spoke as she smiled brightly.
“They’re going to put my things out today if I don’t pay my rent,” the woman said.
“Believe and trust God, sis. He’ll see you through,” Nikki encouraged.
“Do you think they will give me money to pay my rent?” the woman asked.
“I don’t know, but I do know that God can make a way out of no way. If they don’t, let God know that you trust Him to provide.”
“Okay,” the woman said.
Just then a bearded man appearing to be in his late forties, early fifties, wearing a black suit and bow tie, came into the lobby.
“Nicole Riley?” he asked in a thick northern accent, looking at Nikki, the only obvious candidate among those seated.
She immediately stood, pulling down the knee-length skirt to her conservative navy suit. The thought that the distinguished-looking gentleman might prefer a less stylish candidate made Nikki wish she had worn a long black dress instead.