14

As soon as I stopped the truck, Chad jumped out and ran toward the house. Leon’s truck was gone. I didn’t have time to wonder

about that. I could tell Pee Wee was about to sprint after Chad, so I reached out and stopped him.

“Let him have a moment, Pee Wee. Or would you rather be called Mason?” Pee Wee ducked his head. I rubbed his shoulder. “It’s

okay if you want to be called by your given name now. I think Mason is a wonderful name.”

He looked up and smiled, although the sadness and fear remained in his eyes. “P-P-Pee Wee is g-g-good. I j-j-just didn’t want

that wh-wh-white lady to think I didn’t have a r-r-real name, like y-y-you and Ch-Ch-Chad.”

Once again his stuttering was pronounced. He obviously was stressed. I looked up at the porch where Mama was now standing.

From a distance, I could tell she wasn’t in a great mood. I turned my attention back to Pee Wee.

“Well, I think it’s pretty cool that you have two names. You wear both of those names well, Mason ‘Pee Wee’ Jones.”

Pee Wee didn’t say anything. I watched him closely. He always packed his emotions away. It was a coping mechanism, but I wanted

him to know he didn’t have to do that with me. “I was scared, too, Pee Wee.”

Wordlessly, he scooted over and laid his head against me. I put my arms around him just as Seth and Officer Perryman drove

into the yard, parking their vehicles next to mine. Pee Wee glanced up, a look of terror on his face.

“Is he g-g-gone t-t-take Chad to j-j-jail?” Pee Wee’s voice was barely above a whisper, like he was afraid the policeman could

hear our conversation.

“No, Pee Wee. He’s not here to do anything to Chad. Chad did nothing wrong. We should get out of the truck now and go talk

to the officer.” I gave him one more hug and opened my door as Mama ran toward us.

“What’s going on, Katia? What is this policeman doing in our yard and what’s wrong with Chad? He ran clean past me with nary

a word.” Mama’s face was beyond distraught. She was wringing her hands. “And you and I need to talk about other things, and

you know what,” she hissed.

Before I could answer, the officer walked over to where we were standing.

“Hello again, Miss Daniels. Is the boy available for me to ask him a few questions?” he asked.

Mama was uncomfortable being around the police. Images of white police officers bashing in heads on the Edmund Pettus Bridge in Selma, Alabama, were still fresh in our minds, even though that was two years ago. Troy was a small community, and we all knew John Lewis’s family, so when Mama saw how they’d done John, bloodying and battering him nearly unconscious, she was inconsolable for days. Because of the nature of my work, I was more relaxed around the police, but not by much. I reached over and touched Mama’s arm. She jumped and looked at me with fear in her eyes.

“Mama, this is Officer Perryman. He’s here because of an incident that happened when we were downtown. Chad’s mother and her

boyfriend tried to get him to go with them. Officer Perryman just needs to ask Chad some questions. Would you mind going to

get him?” I wanted to offer her a way out of being present for this questioning, but Mama looked at me like I was crazy.

“I ain’t going nowhere,” she said in a firm voice.

I turned to Pee Wee. “Pee Wee, go tell Chad I said to come outside, please.”

Pee Wee nodded and ran for the house. Seth made his way over to us.

“Hello, Mrs. Daniels,” he said to Mama. He came and stood by me, giving me a quick hug, which I so appreciated.

“Hey, Seth,” she said, looking from me to him. “You know about this?”

“Yes, ma’am,” he said, removing his baseball cap and running his fingers through his hair. “I was there when it happened—or

rather, I came up at the end of it.”

“When what happened, exactly?” she asked, looking back at me.

I filled her in on the details, and as I talked, Officer Perryman occasionally stopped me with his own questions. Mama was beside herself.

“They could have killed y’all,” she exclaimed several times.

“It’s okay, Mama,” I said, reaching over and grabbing her hand. “Seth was there, and he defused the situation.” I tried to

smile at Seth. Recounting what had happened and realizing the danger overwhelmed me. I glanced toward the door, wondering

where the boys were.

Finally, Chad and Pee Wee came outside. Chad dragged his feet, looking like it would take nothing for him to run off. Pee

Wee, who must have sensed what Chad was feeling, took his hand and guided him toward us. In that moment, Pee Wee seemed more

like the older of the two.

“Hello, Chad,” Officer Perryman said, looking at Chad with a serious expression. “I have some questions for you.”

I prayed that Officer Perryman would be sensitive to the fact that while Chad might have the stature of a grown man, he was

a young boy. Mama must have been thinking something similar, because she reached for Chad and pulled him close. Chad didn’t

say anything. He just looked at the officer, seemingly prepared for the worst.

“How do you know the two people involved in this incident?” Officer Perryman had his notebook out and his voice was clipped

and businesslike. I tried to make eye contact with Chad, but his gaze stayed directed at the ground.

“Chad,” I called out softly. “Answer Officer Perryman.”

“I don’t know nothing,” he mumbled, still not looking up. Seth moved toward him and patted his back. Seth and Mama looked like two ushers at church, standing with a fallen sinner between them at the altar.

“Speak up, boy, so I can hear you,” Officer Perryman snapped. He was clearly getting impatient with the entire process. I

imagined he’d never taken this much time with a case involving a Black person. “Who were the two people trying to get you

to go with them? How do you know them? Don’t waste my time, boy.”

Chad whimpered and shifted closer to Mama. She tightened her arm around him and glared at Officer Perryman. Seth looked like

he was about to say something, so I jumped in.

“He’s afraid,” I said quickly. “Chad, look at me.” I didn’t want to raise my voice, but I needed him to snap out of his reverie

enough to get through these questions. “Chad, I said look at me—now.” His head popped up faster than a jack-in-the-box. “Officer

Perryman needs you to say out loud who the two people were. It’s okay. Just tell him.”

“The woman was my mama, Lena,” he said gruffly. “The other one was her man, Cobra.”

“Where are your mama and Cobra now?”

Chad looked at me with a helpless expression.

“We don’t know,” I interjected. “As I explained, Chad lives at the Pike County Group Home for Negro Boys. I can reach out

to his social worker on Monday and try to find out exactly where Lena and Cobra are staying.”

“What did your mother and this man—Cobra, as you call him—want with you?” Officer Perryman asked, turning back to face Chad. The policeman was tapping his foot, appearing frustrated with all of us. I prayed that everyone, but especially Chad, kept his cool. Pee Wee eased between Chad and Seth, taking Chad’s hand in his again.

“He wanted to... to... to dance,” Chad muttered, as the tears began to lap underneath his chin.

“You’re okay, baby,” Mama said, squeezing Chad around the waist. “We got you. You’re doing good.”

“Dance?” Officer Perryman snapped. “What you mean ‘dance’?”

“Officer Perryman, would you walk over there with me for a second?” I was trying to hold my temper, but this white man was

about to really anger me. The tone he was using was not the tone an officer of the law should use with a child—especially

a child who was nearly kidnapped by two drug addicts and was still extremely upset and frightened.

He looked at me coldly, grunted, and then followed me across the yard near the swing set.

“‘Dance’ is Cobra’s code word for sex,” I said, striving to appeal to whatever better angels were hopefully guiding Officer

Perryman’s steps. “I don’t know if he has ever abused Chad in that way before, but he threatened him with that today.”

The officer stared at me for a moment before nodding his head. “I see. Well, I need the boy to tell me these things. No offense,

but I can’t take your word for it. I’m just following protocol.”

“Officer Perryman, I know you are a reasonable man. A God-fearing man, I’m sure,” I said as calmly as I could, resisting the urge to cry. “Chad is like a wounded baby bird right now. Please don’t ask him to regale you with all the sordid details of his past life with that man. I have folders filled with accounts from him of the physical abuse he experienced at the hands of Cobra and others, and if you check with the Troy police and the Pike County Sheriff’s Office, you’ll find numerous police reports about the abuse Chad has experienced. I am begging you not to put him through any more today. Please.”

Officer Perryman seemed like he might want to argue with me, but instead, he responded in a weary voice. “I just need him

to explain what happened today. Then I’ll get the rest of the information from you, our records, and the sheriff department’s

records.”

“Thank you,” I said, letting out a deep breath. “I appreciate your kindness.”

He gave me a curt nod, and then we walked back to where everyone was standing. This time Officer Perryman asked Chad only

a few questions, to confirm what me, Seth, and some of the onlookers had already told the policeman. Once he was satisfied

with the answers, he thanked us and left. After he drove off, none of us said anything. I think we were all shell-shocked—I

knew I was. This afternoon had worn me out, and I knew it had done the same to Chad.

“Miss Katia, can I go lay down?” Chad asked. Mama, Seth, and Pee Wee were protectively clustered close to him. I went and

stood in front of him, putting my hands lightly on his cheeks, which were still wet with tears.

“I am so sorry this happened to you today. If I could take away what you are feeling right now, I would.” I wished I could

cram his pain inside me and carry it so he wouldn’t have to. I hated that we’d run into Lena and that awful monster of a man.

Chad nodded but didn’t speak. The tears started to roll down his face again, and I could tell that he was emotionally spent.

“You go on in the house and rest a bit,” I said, hugging him. “I’ll come check on you in a little while.” If I thought talking

would help him, I’d push the issue, but he needed to go somewhere and sleep this off or at least rest his mind.

“You w-w-want me to g-g-go with y-y-you?” Pee Wee looked up at Chad hopefully, but the older boy shook his head.

“Not right now. Just... just give me a minute,” he said, and without another word he ran into the house.

Instantly, Pee Wee started crying. The way I was feeling, I could have joined him. I was almost out of energy to deal with

even one more meltdown, including my own. Seth must have sensed it because he squeezed my shoulder and then plastered a smile

on his face.

“Hey, Pee Wee,” Seth said, putting a hand on Pee Wee’s shoulder. “How about you and me take a little walk? I saw a deer dart

across the street a few minutes ago. Maybe we can get a glimpse of it up close.”

Pee Wee looked up at me, hiccupping slightly as he tried to stop crying. I nodded to let him know he had my permission. For

the second time today, I mouthed, Thank you , to Seth. He patted my shoulder again as he and Pee Wee slowly wandered toward the wooded area across the street.

“Katia,” Mama said, using a tone I hadn’t heard since I was much younger. A tone that told me I had more drama to deal with before I could go inside. I wanted to collapse into the recliner in the living room, not deal with Mama’s fury. I wanted the sounds of Nina Simone singing to envelop me like a warm blanket on a cold winter’s night. I didn’t want to listen to more angry words, but as I raised my eyes to look at my mother, I knew that was exactly what I was about to do: receive an earful of vitriol.

I sighed and answered her the way I always did. “Ma’am?”

“I know you have a lot on your mind, Katia, but we need to discuss the situation with Leon,” she said in a stern, no-nonsense

voice. “I am not pleased. At all.”

“Mama, can’t we talk about this another time? I need to write out a report of what all happened today with Chad,” I said.

I did need to fill out a report, but it could wait. No one would see it until Monday anyway. And I could tell by one look

at Mama’s face that she wasn’t picking up what I was putting down.

“No, ma’am. I want to deal with this now. How in the world could you have encouraged that man to come say what he said to

me?” she demanded, her voice full of righteous indignation. “How could siccing that man on me make any kind of sense to you,

Katia? How?”

“Mama, I did not sic anybody on you,” I said wearily. “Leon confessed to me on Thanksgiving that he had feelings for you,

not for me. All I said to him was it wouldn’t hurt my feelings if the two of you did decide to date.”

“How you gone pass a man around like he’s a collection plate at Sunday service?” she said. “And you actually thought I would

want a man my daughter had dated? You think I’m just some no-account woman like that?”

“Oh, Mama,” I said and tried to pull her into an embrace. She was reluctant, but she didn’t pull away. “I think you are the most amazing woman there is, and I would never do anything to disrespect you. If you don’t think Leon is a good man for you, then I honor that opinion.”

“Nobody said he wasn’t a good man,” she mumbled. “I just don’t like how any of this looks. Can you imagine what people would

say? First, he was with the daughter and now he’s with the mother? Just scandalous. Just plain scandalous, Katia.”

“Mama, if you and Leon went forward with a relationship, it would look like a good, godly woman was saying yes to a good,

godly man,” I said. “Who cares what other people think? Life is too short. If you’re remotely interested in Leon, you have

my blessing—not that you need it. And if anyone says anything about it, they can come and talk to me.” Mama shook her head.

I kissed her forehead. “Just think about it. No rush. You know Leon. He has the patience of Job, so however long you need

to think about this, take that time. He’s not going anywhere. How did y’all end the conversation?”

She lifted her chin defiantly. “I told him this was highly inappropriate and unless he wanted to sit and watch The Lone Ranger with me, I didn’t have anything else to say.”

I stifled the laughter bubbling up inside me, threatening to escape, because Mama surely would have given my butt a good pop.

“What did he say?”

“He said he didn’t think it would be appropriate for him to stay and watch television with me, and he left,” she said. Part

of her obviously was miffed by his departure whether she admitted it to herself or not.

“Everything will work out the way it should,” I said. “Isn’t that what you always tell me and the boys?”

“I don’t have time for this, Katia,” she said, tears shining in her eyes. “I have a son missing in action and another one

who is fighting to maintain his sanity. This is not what I need on top of all of that.”

“Oh, Mama,” I said, hugging her tightly. “Maybe having a man who can love on you and tell you everything is going to turn

out fine is just what you need. You ever thought about that?”

Just then, we both turned at the sound of Pee Wee and Seth coming back into the yard. Pee Wee’s voice was excited, so Seth

had been able to get the boy’s mind off everything that was going on.

“Miss K-K-Katia! Gr-Gr-Gran!” he yelled.

“Slow down, Pee Wee,” I called back. “Take your time.”

“We saw a d-d-deer and we s-s-saw a sq-sq-squirrel. I want to g-g-go get Ch-Ch-Chad and show him,” he said, hopping from one

foot to the other. “Is th-th-that okay?”

“Absolutely,” I said. “But if he’s inside the bedroom with the door closed, make sure you knock first.”

“Yes, m-m-ma’am,” he said as he took off running, but he stopped before entering the house. “Mr. S-S-Seth. Don’t l-l-leave.

Okay?”

“I won’t. I’ll stay right here until you get back,” Seth said with a grin.

The three of us laughed as Pee Wee ran into the house, breaking Mama’s cardinal rule of slamming the door. But considering the afternoon we’d all had, one slammed door didn’t seem to be that big of a deal right now.

“Seth, I don’t know how to thank you for everything you did today,” I said, swallowing hard so I wouldn’t get choked up. “If

that awful man would have... had he been able to...” I couldn’t continue.

Seth rested his hand on my arm. “It’s okay, Kat. I know those boys mean a lot to you. I’m grateful that I was there to intervene.”

Pee Wee ran back out of the house, waving a piece of paper in his hand, letting the door slam behind him once more.

“Pee Wee, I let you get away with one slam of my door, but now you need to slow down,” Mama scolded. “Where’s—”

Pee Wee didn’t wait for her to finish. He interrupted, something he seldom did, which immediately caused me to be alarmed.

“M-M-Miss K-K-Katia. Ch-Ch-Ch...”

“Take your time, Pee Wee,” I said, placing my hands on his shoulders. “What’s wrong?”

“R-r-read,” he managed to spit out.

I took the piece of paper from his hand, recognizing Chad’s slanty handwriting.

Dear Miss Kacia , I mean, Katia,

I’m sorry, but I can’t stay. I ain’t am not gone let them send me back to Lena. I ain’t am not letting Cobra get at me no more. No more dancing. I’ll call you when I find a safe place to stay. Tell Pee Wee he my brother for life and when I figure out how to take care of myself, I’ll come looking for him so I can take care of him too. Brothers have to stick together. Don’t be sad, Miss Katia. You did the best you could. Tell Mr. Jason I preshate all he did for me. Tell Gran her present from me and Pee Wee is on her bed. Tell her it ain’t is not real toilet water. Your present is on your bed too.

Love,

Chad

“Dear God,” I moaned.

“Let’s go,” Seth said quickly. “He can’t be far. Let’s go in my truck. We’ll find him.”

“Mama, stay by the phone and don’t let Pee Wee out of your sight!” I yelled as I turned to leave, but then I paused and looked

at Pee Wee. “Don’t you worry, Pee Wee.”

I ran toward Seth’s truck, where he was getting into the driver’s seat. My hip hurt from all the physical emotion I had been

exerting today, but I paid it no mind. I just wanted Chad back with us before something terrible happened, and my intuition

was telling me that he was heading headlong toward something awful. I opened the passenger-side door and got in beside Seth.

For a brief second, I closed my eyes and silently prayed. Please, protect him. Don’t allow any more pain to come his way.