An Old Fashioned Southern Romance Novel (5 page)

Eudora had settled down for the day and prepared for a quiet evening watching her favorite television programming. She and some of her neighbors on the floor would meet in the television room a few times a week and watch various shows at night. She was on her way down the hall with her bag of popcorn when she saw a familiar flounce coming down the hallway.

“Annabella!”

“Mother!”

Eudora and her daughter embraced for what seemed like hours. Other residents passed them with looks that ranged from joy to envy. Most of the residents there did not have children who visited them regularly, so it was always an emotional time when anyone under the age of 40 entered the premises. One of Eudora’s friends seemed to be waiting for the embrace to end so that she could walk down the hall with her friend. But, once the hug was over, Eudora excused herself and invited Annabella back to her room. She could tell that her daughter was not doing well and wanted to find out the matter before she returned to her friends.

“How are you?” Annabella asked her mother as she let her go.

“I am fine. But, it seems that you are not,” her mother told her.

“How do you know these things?”

“One never stops being a mother, Annabella. Now, what is going on? I want to know everything.”

Annabella went on to tell her mother about her legal troubles, about Caroline
, and about Warrenton. He mother looked thoughtful, interested, and saddened at the appropriate times. Annabella was surprised that her mother seemed to follow what was happening. She had come simply to lift her mother’s spirits and for a sounding board. She never imagined her mother would know what she was talking about or care, for that matter. But, her mother was more alert and interested than ever and she even had a few words of advice.

“You know you can al
ways be yourself with Warrenton,” she told her daughter.

“I guess that is true, mother. I always have been.”

“I mean, if you two were to get married. You would never have to uphold an image. He knows you and he would never ask you to pretend to be something or someone you are not.”

“I’m sure that’s true, mother. But, I am not interested in marrying Warrenton. Weren’t you listening?”

“Oh, I was listening. But, I was also paying attention. You said that man’s name no less than 40 times while you were talking.”

Annabella was stunned. She could not believe her mother remembered the number of times she said Warrenton’s name and she was even more baffled that her mother picked up on the subtext of the conversation. Annabella surely had feelings for Warrenton, but that was not what her words and actions indicated.

“That may be, mother. But, Warrenton and I are certainly at odds right now so there is little hope for anything more than what we have now. If God is merciful, hopefully one day that man will be out of my life for good.”

“I am not so sure that is what you really want,” her mother told her.

“You are very perceptive for a sick, demented woman. Now what’s really going on?” Annabella wanted to know.

“It doesn’t take a genius to figure out that you and Warrenton are in love
,” Eudora innocently replied.

“I’m not saying you are a genius. I am just implying that maybe you are not as sick as you let on. Mother, why are you here if you are well
enough to meddle in my affairs? You should be at home making my life miserable, not doing it remotely,” Annabella teased her mother.

“I am here because this is w
here your father wants me to be,” the woman reluctantly explained to her daughter.

“That is preposterous! Daddy would never put you away unless you were incapacitated. Why would you say such an awful thing?”
Her daughter wanted to know.

“Anna, I know it is hard for you to believe, but you
r father is tired of me. Yes, he loves me but I just don’t fit into his life anymore. I don’t blame him though. It is actually my fault. You know, when I was in college, I had a Persian friend named Farrah. She said her mother used to get out of doing routine chores by claiming to be ill. In her culture, it was the only way a woman was excused from her wifely duties. So, Farrah’s mother would claim illness whenever it suited her. She would feign anything from a standard cold to female issues. She had done it for years until one day she actually became ill. Her father quickly divorced her and took a young, healthy wife. Farrah never got over how her father neglected her mother, but she also knew the role her mother played in her ultimate neglect. The point of this story is that you can get away with something for so long, and then it comes back to you exponentially. She probably never anticipated that she would end up alone. Just like me.”

“What are you saying, Mother? You pretended to be sick and you ended up here?”

“Annabella, being the wife of a well-known minister was a difficult life. I was always expected to show up at functions, perform community service, visit the sick and shut in. There was so much responsibility. Most of the time, I simply did not want to do it. So, I would pretend that I forgot to do this or forget about that, and so on. Well, eventually, I really started forgetting things and soon your father decided to have me placed under observation. Well, once you enter this place, there is no getting out. Your father is an insanely wealthy man and this institution did not want to forgo any future payments they would receive for services rendered. So, they always found something wrong with me, some reason to keep me. The months turned into years and fast forward to now, I am still in this place. I may be fine, but they are never going to let me out. It doesn’t matter, though, because your father doesn’t even want me anymore. He never comes to visit and he hardly writes. He just keeps paying the bills and sending money. That’s it. So, do you see why it doesn’t matter whether or not I am well enough to go home? The fact is that I don’t have a home to go to. No one needs me. I have outlived my own usefulness.”

“That’s nonsense, mother.
I need you.”

“No, you don’t need me. You have Hattie. She has always been more like a mother to you than I have. You see, that is just one more thing that I didn’t feel like doing. So, I outsourced it.”

“Mother, don’t do this to yourself. Lots of people hire nannies. That doesn’t make you less of a mother,” Annabella tried to console her.

“No, that doesn’t make me less of a mother. There are plenty of things I did wrong that make me less than a mother. I appreciate that you still visit me after never really being there for you.”

“Hattie is wonderful and I do love her, but she did not give birth to me. If nothing else, you did that. So, you will always have my devotion,” Annabella assured her mother.

“Thank you, Dear. Now, let me leave you with a bit of advice. Warrenton may not be everything you ever dreamed of, but he certainly is a delightful young man. I have no doubt that the two of you could have a wonderful life together. But, you have to meet him halfway, Anna. If he seems disinterested, it is only because he is afraid of you rejecting him.
You can go chase your dream of marrying a prince in England if you so desire, but just remember that things are not always what they seem. You have to make your own fairytales. Your Prince Charming may be a few hundred yards away.”

“You have no idea how many times I have heard that. I just wish I could see what everyone else is seeing.”

“Close your mind and open your heart, Anna. Then you will see your true destiny.”

Eudora kissed her daughter on the forehead and turned. She picked up her bag of popcorn and opened the door.

“Mother,” Annabella started.

“Yes, Dear,” her mother answered, never turning around.

“Are you happy?” Annabella asked her.

“When I decided to be happy, I was. When I decided to be sad, I was.
Right now, I just want to watch television.”

Annabella’s mother walked out the door and started down the hall. Annabella smiled a little. She saw just a little bit of herself in her graying mother.

Chapter Eight

Dominique fluffed out her dark coils with a
black pick. She patted her soft fro and gave herself a satisfactory smile in the bathroom mirror. She was ready for the world, as far as she was concerned. She had watched her mother in a service role her whole life and the young girl was intent on having a more meaningful existence. She always sort of envied Annabella because the overly-dramatic belle commanded much of Hattie’s time that would otherwise be spent with her own daughter. Dominique excelled in school and pushed herself harder than anyone in her life. Her mother was content with A’s and B’s, but Dominique would settle for nothing less than A-plus grades. She loved math and science and now it was all paying off. The petite, brown girl was ready for college. She had her choice of all the top universities in the country but, as with everything in her life, Dominique was methodically selective. She had seen other girls like herself go off to predominately-White institutions and come back home browbeaten. In their Dixie town, they were taught that White automatically meant better. So, they jumped through hoops to be accepted by the large, research universities that could not discern one chocolate face from another. Most of them ended up back at home with less than a year of college under their belt, poised to fill the service positions from which their parents retired. Dominique had learned from the example of others and she was going to attend a historically Black college. She did not want to be a number. She wanted to be known and recognized for her unique talents and abilities. Most importantly, she wanted to graduate and go on to be a top scientist and researcher in her field. After taking several college tours and campus visits, she settled on a school that promised much more than academic and financial support. She found a place that was nurturing. She hoped to get some of the attention she missed from her mother while the woman was off raising someone else’s child. Dominique was not bitter. She felt her mother did the best she could do and it was because of her mother’s sacrifices that Dominique is where she is today. Besides, she felt that Annabella needed her mother more than she did. Annabella was needy and her own mother was not around. Although it seemed ironic, Dominique felt sorry for Annabella, the poor little rich girl. She had it all and still couldn’t find happiness. Most people would think that’s impossible, but Dominique saw if first hand growing up. Her mother tried not to bring work home, but Dominique picked up things. She knew that Hattie was often dog-tired and frazzled to the bone trying to keep Annabella happy, on track, and focused. She got only a little rest when Annabella went off to finishing school, but that was short-lived. The girl was often homesick and couldn’t wait to get back. She came home on every holiday break, no matter how short or how much it cost her parents. Even as a child, Dominique knew it was such a waste of time and effort. She thought Annabella ought to grow up and stop acting like a spoiled brat. But, being an only child, there was no incentive for her to be anything other than selfish. So, Dominique, being the bigger person, stopped commanding her own mother’s time and focused on her studies. Now, she was headed off to college and ready to take on the world. Meanwhile, Annabella was, in her opinion, old, lonely, and husbandless. Dominique was sure that by the time she was Annabella’s age, she would be happy and have a wonderful family and career. Dominique grabbed her hobo bag and flung it across her shoulder. It was the finishing touch to her stylish outfit. Her luggage was already near the door as she waited for her dad to load them into the truck and take her to the airport. She did not expect her mother to go with them. She was sure Annabella was somewhere having a nervous breakdown that required Hattie to seek immediate medical attention. She did not want to be the one to cause the poor girl a coronary or something of the sort. She decided a long time ago that she was the red-headed step-child and that Annabella’s needs would always come first. So, she sat on top of her bags and waited for her father. She gazed out the window and wondered what kind of adventures awaited her at college.

Chapter Nine

“
Annabella Olivia Devereaux! Will you please stop that incessant daydreaming and get your head out of those clouds. This is serious business. Everything is at stake here. Everything we have is on the line. Now, if we mean to win this thing, we have to work together. Are you in or are you out? If you are not with us, you are against us!”

Annabella was not the least bit startled by Warrenton’s outburst. She was at peace and she had already resolved in her mind what was to be. She stood up ever-so sweetly and began to walk out the door.

“And just where do you think you are going, Missy?” Warrenton’s toad of a lawyer grilled her.

“She can have it all. I do not wish to be further subjected to his madness. I did not get myself into this mess and I do not propose to get myself out of it
. She can have every last red cent I have to my name, but she shall not walk out of that courtroom with my dignity in tow. Annabella Olivia Devereaux will not be strong-armed by some two-bit floozy whose idea of catch is the likes of Warrenton Bingham Boatwright. She can have it all and she will never, ever prosper because all the money in the world can’t buy what have I have and that, sir, is class. She will have spent my family’s fortune and never gained and ounce of dignity nor self-respect. But I, on the other hand, shall always have my name. And as long as my name is Annabella Olivia Devereaux, I shall never want for anything. I can always start over. And I propose to do so right now.”