When Memories Fade (19 page)

Standing outside the Victory Gospel Church sanctuary, Wes looked for Angel in the midst of the crowd entering the church this morning. He felt a tap on his shoulder and turned around. Angel was looking angelic this morning in a white dress and white heels. Her curly hair was pulled back in the ponytail, the same way it was when he saw her for the first time a few weeks ago.

“Are you looking for me?” She grinned.

He smiled back. “You look great this morning. Let's grab a seat.”

They took a seat in the fifth row and joined the worship experience. He'd never attended church with any woman other than his mother. He had to admit he liked it. Wes tried to keep his eyes off Angel and turned his attention toward the worship leaders. He was grateful for life, family, and new friendships.

Yesterday he was really surprised when his mother revealed her decision to place Pops in a nursing home. When she suggested he invite Angel over for Sunday dinner, Wes almost tumbled out of the chair. Wanda had smiled at him the way a mother did when she knew best.

He had asked her, “Are you serious?”

Wanda responded, “Yes, I've been thinking long and hard. I couldn't stay angry at you. I've been in the same situation with Dad too many times to name. It occurred to me, you are a young man, and the only thing that should be on your mind is your career and, of course, producing some grandbabies for me.”

Wes had laughed. “Now I see the reason for you trying to play matchmaker!”

“I'm not doing any such thing. I know what I know. Now, you invite Angel over for dinner tomorrow. The first time she came over, we didn't do a proper sit-down and talk. Now that I know you have been visiting with her family, we might as well include her in our family time too.”

With his mother's blessings and nudging, Wes had called Angel and had asked her if she would like to attend the eleven o'clock service at Victory Gospel Church with him.

He had laughed when she asked, “Wes Cade, are you asking me out on a date?”

“Well, it's church. I wouldn't call it a date.”

“You are slick. Of course, I'm not going to say no. How about I meet you there?”

“Sounds like a plan.”

So here they were, sitting next to each other, listening to Reverend Freeman preach. After the service, they walked out together.

“I hope you have some time to stop by for Sunday dinner,” Wes said. “Wanda has expressed to me that I must show up at the house with you.”

“Are you sure? I think the last time I interrupted family time, and what about . . .” “It's okay. I think we were caught off guard the last time, but I think it would do Pops some good to have some company, like Nick's granddaughter.”

“My uncle is with Grams, so I would love to hang out. I'm not turning down a good meal.”

“Well, this is good. I like a woman who knows how to eat. You can follow me over.”

It took some maneuvering, but they finally arrived at the Cade home. When Wes opened the front door, he was delighted to be greeted by the aroma of one of his favorite dishes, smothered pork chops.

Wanda came out from the kitchen, an apron over her dress. She hugged Angel. “It's so good to see you, and don't you look good in white today. Let me see if I can find something to cover up your pretty dress.”

“Thanks, Wanda. I appreciate you inviting me to your home.”

“My pleasure. Wes told me about you singing at Southern Soul Café on Friday night. Maybe I will get to hear your beautiful voice. Girl, your mother used to bring tears to my eyes.” Wanda pointed and shook her finger at Angel. “I bet you have not even tapped into what God can do with your voice. Hold tight. I will be right back.” Wanda disappeared into the back of the house.

Wes smiled. His mother was right. He knew Angel was hesitant about singing, but there hadn't been anyone in the audience who wasn't mesmerized by Angel's vocals. Wes still could remember the goose bumps he felt from hearing her voice. Her voice was so pure, and he could tell she was singing from a place deep within.

Wanda returned and handed Angel a shirt. Wes noticed it was one of his flannel shirts. Wanda said, “Here you go. I'm sure Wes doesn't mind and wants to keep you clean. That shirt over your dress should help you out at the dinner table.”

“You brought a girl home, Wes.” Pops had walked in silently behind them.

Wes turned around and said, “Yes, I did.”

Pops said, “Well, she looks like an angel.”

They laughed. Wanda said, “Dad, her name
is
Angel. This is Nick's granddaughter.”

Pops blinked and then said, “Oh. I thought I recognized your face. You look like your mother.”

Angel smiled. “Thank you.”

Wanda shooed them toward the dining room table. “Okay, let's eat. Now, it's been a long time since I cooked, so I hope everything is good.”

Once they sat down, Wanda asked Wes to say grace. His mother really did justice with the smothered pork chops, rice and gravy, and sautéed green beans.

Not bad, Mom,” Wes said after everyone had cleaned their plate.

“Thank you, son. Oh, I forgot to bring out one more dish.” Wanda went into the kitchen and returned holding a pie pan and a stack of small plates.

Angel said, “Wow, Ms. Cade. You baked too.”

“Yes, one of Wes's and Pops's favorites. Peach cobbler.”

Wes was delighted to see his mother in her element. She hadn't been this happy and animated in over a year.

Wanda asked, “Dad, you want a piece of this peach cobbler? It's piping hot, just like you like it.”

Wes looked over at Pops and noticed he seemed to be focused on Angel. “Pops, you okay?” he said.

Pops asked, “Where's Nick?”

Wes and Angel looked at each other, while Wanda stopped slicing through the cobbler. Her smile faltered as she looked at her dad. “Dad, Nick's not here, but his granddaughter is visiting with us.”

Pops leaned over and pointed his finger at Angel. “Elisa, you and Nick need to listen. I've told you to watch out for him. Something's not right about that boy.”

Wes asked, “Pops, who are you talking about?”

Pops shook his head. “I told Nick, you are too trusting. Not me. I saw the handwriting on the wall. Decided it was best to leave the group.”

Wes looked at his mother. “Mom, what's he talking about? You know, he was focused on the day he left the group when we were at the park. Why?”

Wanda shook her head and placed pieces of cobbler on the small plates. “I don't know. This is new to me, Wes. Let's just enjoy the peach cobbler. I want to catch up with Angel.”

Wes took the plate of cobbler his mother handed him. He looked back over at Pops, who was now quiet. It was like he'd just left them in the middle of the conversation. Wes couldn't help but think Pops was trying to tell them about someone, but who was it?

Angel followed Wanda into the living room, while Wes helped Pops to his room. Wanda settled into her favorite chair. She smiled and asked Angel, “How's the nurse working out for your grandmother?”

“Good,” Angel answered as she sat down on the couch. Even though she had talked to Wanda a few times, she felt a bit self-conscious. After all, her feelings for the woman's son had grown in a short time. Angel swallowed and continued. “I like Ella Mae a lot. She helps during the day, and I'm able to help Grams at night. Wes mentioned to me that you decided to put your dad in a nursing home. I'm sure that was a hard decision.”

Wanda sighed. “Yes, I prayed and cried over what to do. I would do anything for my dad, but I need to work too. I took time off and tried working part-time with the neighbors' help. It was starting to be too much. I feel so responsible for him because he was a really great dad. He was there for me. We had some great times together.”

Angel said, “I can imagine it must be hard to watch his memory slip away.”

“It's very difficult. I try to concentrate on the good memories for him.”

“Detective Cade is blessed to have a daughter like you. I guess Jacob may feel that way about Grams. I mean, with seeing her go from being so vibrant to being a lot more dependent.”

“Jacob loves his mother. He always got along with her better than with Nick. I remember he told me one time that Fredricka just understood him. That's what moms do.”

“You said the other day, Jacob used to be fun. I wonder what happened to him.”

“Your mother happened. Then there was me,” Wanda responded quietly.

Angel didn't say anything at first, surprised by how much she was learning about her uncle from Wanda. Angel had sensed there was a little more to Jacob and Wanda's relationship than just a friendship. “You and Jacob were a couple?” she finally asked.

“No, no.” Wanda rubbed her hands together as if they were cold. “We have known each other all of our lives. We were comfortable with each other. I think as we grew older, Jacob had more feelings for me than I did for him. I loved . . . still love him like a brother—”

“But he wanted to be more than that to you,” Angel said, interrupting her.

Wanda shook her head. “I fell head over heels for Wes's dad in high school. It hurt my friendship with Jacob. We didn't even talk to each other on graduation day and for a few years afterward. He just became distant. But I heard he moved on. What's his wife's name?”

“Liz.”

“Right. They are still married and doing well?”

Angel wasn't sure how to answer the question, knowing Jacob and Aunt Liz's marriage was pretty rocky at the moment. She answered, “They are still together.” To avoid any awkwardness, Angel said, “You mentioned my mother. You know, I sensed just recently that Jacob really . . . I don't know.... He kind of despised her. Is that true?”

Wanda looked at her thoughtfully, like she was weighing her answer. “Your mother was a ball of energy. She could light up a room, and sometimes she could darken a room.”

“You mean she had mood swings?”

“Bad mood swings. I don't know how much your grandparents talked about it, but your mother would dip up and down so much. Jacob told me they took her to see a doctor. They were on eggshells around her. Nick would do whatever he could to make Elisa happy.”

“It's funny you mentioning that, but I do remember her being really sad, and then she could be happy like a little kid.”

Wanda added, “There were some extremes. Even just the way Jacob and Elisa were treated differently. I know one year Jacob really wanted to learn to play the drums. He was all tuned up to do it. By that time your mother had been singing on a pretty regular basis at church and at local talent shows. Anyway, with entertainers in your family, it seemed appropriate for Jacob to follow suit, but Nick was against him learning to play.”

Angel frowned. “Really? Why?” She was becoming more disturbed about her family as Wanda talked.

Wanda shrugged. “I don't know. I do know there was this big blowup. Jacob kind of never felt the same about his dad. He also couldn't stand the drummer in Southern Soul.”

“Are you talking about Eddie?” Angel inquired.

“Yes. Eddie joined Southern Soul when he was nineteen. I think Jacob was twelve. Anyway, Eddie brought more spunk to the aging band's sound. I could remember my dad wondering why they brought such a young guy into the group. I thought he was pretty cute. Just a really cool guy. I believe Jacob's desires to play the drums formed because of Eddie. But Nick wanted his son to pursue an education, versus the entertainment business.”

“Wow, you really know Jacob. I had no idea.” Angel had always wondered about the rivalry between Jacob and Eddie. Both men clearly didn't like each other. Now she understood a little bit. It didn't seem fair that her grandparents had let her mother push forward with pursuing her singing career but held Jacob back. She wondered if that was why he was so intense. Maybe her uncle hadn't pursued his passion in life.

Angel said, “You know, Eddie used to hang out with our family all the time. I affectionately called him uncle. I grew up with his daughter, Denise, and we were close, I guess much the way you were with Jacob.”

“Is that so? Southern Soul is just one big family, a bit dysfunctional, like any family, though.”

Angel laughed with Wanda. Both women turned around when they heard Wes entering the living room. He was talking to someone on his cell phone. Angel noticed that his brows were furrowed, like he was upset. She heard him say, “Are you sure? Yes, I will be there right away.”

After Wes clicked off his phone, Wanda asked, “Son, what's going on? You aren't going to run out on your guest now, are you?”

Angel looked at him. “Yeah, Wes. Is everything okay?”

Wes shook his head. “No. Angel, you might want to come with me. I hate to break this to you, but I just confirmed with Serena that Southern Soul Café is on fire. She's down there now, covering the story.”

Angel jumped up from the couch. “What? Oh no!” They had just been at the restaurant on Friday. She'd spent all of Saturday uploading the videos from the talent show to the YouTube page. “This can't be happening! Was anyone there? They would have a huge lunch crowd from church now.”

“I don't know. If you are up for it, let's go find out.”

Wanda walked behind them as they headed out the door. “You two be careful and keep me updated.”

Angel practically sprinted behind Wes, who was moving pretty fast toward his car. All Angel could see in her mind was the photo of her mother on the restaurant wall, with flames licking around the edges.