Forever Country (9 page)

Momma is in the kitchen
making food for the community meal at the church.
She is making a huge pot of beef stew and some
homemade biscuits.

“
Something hot and hearty
will sure make some people mighty happy,” Pops says, sampling the
stew from the pot.
 

“
Bud, don’t,” Momma says,
swatting Pops’ hands away.

He laughs and drops the empty spoon in the
sink. Mia pulls the last tray of biscuits out of the oven. Once
they are cool, she’ll place them with the others in the wicker
breadbasket.

Momma stirs the pot one
last time, before turning off the stove. “Levi, would you go to the
basement and get that box of hats, scarves, and
mittens.”
 

“
What are you going to do
with those?” I ask. I watch as Momma removes her Christmas
apron.

“
Been buyin’ ’em at
Goodwill and other thrift shops, all year. Thought the good people
of the church could use ’em.”
 

My momma, who doesn’t spend
the money I give her, shops at Goodwill for the needy. She cooks
and donates her time for the sake of the community. I feel so
blessed to have been raised by this woman, but I wonder where I
went wrong.
Have I even thought about
homeless people or starving people since I left? I have made
millions in my boxing career, and what have I done with it?
Nothing. Banked it and invested it. I surely didn’t give it to the
church, or to the schools, or give it to any worthy causes. Did
Momma’s goodness and kindness skip me? Did Levi get the good genes
from my family? God, I hope not.

“
We best be leavin’ or
we’ll be late,” Momma says, gathering the large basket of hot
biscuits.
 

The truck is loaded down with the Christmas
tree, a few boxes of decorations, and the food.

We arrive at the church and there are just as
many people are there as were here two weeks ago. Savannah Mae and
her son are already here.

Sawyer Jackson runs up to me and jumps
excitedly. “Thank you for the Christmas tree. It’s really, really
big,” he says as he tries to show me with his hands how tall and
wide the tree is. He is wearing a red Santa’s hat, his cheeks are
rosy, and his smile lights up his green eyes.

“
You’re welcome, Buddy. Did
you get it decorated?” I follow behind him into the
building.
 

“
Sure did with the
different color lights. It looks berry good.”
 

“
Good, I’m glad.” Savannah
Mae is standing at the doorway with her arms folded across her
chest. Our eyes meet and I can’t look away. Her long blond hair is
in a high ponytail. She is wearing jeans, a red and white flannel
shirt, and a pair of rubber duck boots graces her body. Nothing
fancy, but she sure does look good in it. As we approach the door,
she takes a step back.

“
He’s a little excited
about the tree, I see.”
 

“
A little? He’s
berry
excited about the
tree,” she teases, using his own words.

We quickly set the food out, and Pops and I
put the tree in the corner of the room. Sawyer Jackson helps and
scoots the boxes of decorations nearest the tree. I watch everyone
as they line up for their hot meal. It smells delicious. Savannah
Mae brought a large pot of white rice to go with the beef stew, and
some assorted cookies for dessert. As soon as the last person gets
their plate, we all fill our plates and sit down to eat. Just like
last week, there is plenty of food for everyone.

I take the last seat; it’s beside Larry and
an older woman named Pearl. Pops and Momma are sitting across from
us. Everyone raves about the food and is very appreciative.

“
I found some things lyin’
around the house I thought you might be able to use,” Momma says,
taking a bite of her rice and stew.
 

Pearl sits up a little
straighter. “Miss Nelly, you do so much for us already.” Her skin
is discolored and it almost looks transparent in some
places.
 

“
Oh, fiddlesticks. It’s not
much and there’s no sense in havin’ things just layin’ around the
house, when someone could be gettin’ some good use out of them.”
Even Momma tells a fib every now and then. She bought those items;
they weren’t just sitting around the house. Well, maybe she didn’t
tell a fib — after she bought them, they were sitting around the
house.

“
Miss Nelly, we sure do
appreciate your kindness. You and Mr. Bud, you both are such good
people.”
 

Pops says, “God is very
good to us and in return, it’s only fair that we help others. We
can only do what He allows us to do.”
 

And just like that, it hits me. I know what I
need to do. We finish eating, clean up, and decorate the tree with
lights and ornaments. Savannah Mae and everyone sings Christmas
carols. It brings a smile to everyone’s face. A smile is still a
smile, no matter how temporary it is.

“
Would you mind if I come
over tonight? I have an idea about the people who attend the
community supper, and I wanted to see what you thought,” I whisper
to Savannah Mae.

She looks at me with
concern. “Is everything all right?”
 

“
It’s fine.” I scan the
room and watch Sawyer Jackson as Larry makes him a snowman from
balloons. “I just want to get your input on something, and see what
you thought.”
 

“
Sure, Sawyer Jackson goes
to bed at 8:00. You can come over whenever you want. You sure
you’re all right?”
 

“
I’m fine, I’ll see you
around 9:00.”
 

“
I’ll make some
coffee.”
 

I arrive at Savannah’s just
before 9:00. When I enter her house, I smell the coffee she
promised. The lights are dim, the fireplace has fresh logs burning,
and the tree is lit with all sorts of colorful
lights
.
A few
candles are lit on the stone mantel.

I sit down and excitedly share my ideas with
Savannah Mae.

“
Abel Lee, I mean no
disrespect, but where is this money comin’ from? You ain’t dealin’
no drugs, are ya?”
 

I hide the laugh that
threatens to come from deep down. “No, I don’t sell drugs and I’ve
never done drugs. I’m a retired boxer. I invested my money over the
years.”
I have millions and I want to do
this.
I’m not sure she would be able to
comprehend the amount of money that I am actually worth.
For a long time, I didn’t either. Early in my
career, but after I had started to make big money, I called my
accountant and told her to bring my money over so I could see it
and be sure it’s real.
She had to explain
to me that it was invested. Also, that it would take several
suitcases to carry that much money, assuming that a standard
attaché case can hold approximately $1.2 million in $100 bills. Too
bad. Too often, savings and investments are just electrons on a
computer screen. Until I got used to that, I wanted something I can
see.
“This is something I want to do. I
just wanted to see if you thought it was a good
idea.”
 

“
I think it’s a great
idea.”
 

I set my empty coffee cup
down on the cork coaster. “So you’ll help me?”
 

She smiles and mocks my
movement. Leaning up on the edge of the couch, she clasps her hands
together. “I’ll do whatever I can.”
 

Savannah Mae

I meet up with Abel Lee,
Nelly, and Mia at K-Mart in South Zanesville. Bud and Levi made
some excuse why they couldn’t come. Everyone is excited and in a
good mood. “Nothin’ like spendin’ other people’s money, huh,
Abel?”
 

He looks at Mia and she smiles. “As long as
it’s for the benefit of the cause.” He slides Mia a shopping cart
and she excitedly takes it. Nelly takes a cart, I take a cart, and
Abel Lee takes two. We all have our lists and go in different
directions in the store. I watch as Abel goes to the customers help
desk in the front of the store.

I get everything on my list, but I’m
concerned if it’s correct. I double-check it and it’s right. I shop
for a few other items from the list and soon my cart is
overflowin’. I head towards the front of the store where Mia and
Nelly are standin’. Some full carts are lined up along the wall.
“This seems like a lot of stuff,” I say as the employee takes my
cart from me and pushes it next to the other ones.

“
Does he have enough to pay
for all of this?” Mia whispers.

Nelly laughs softly, “I
hope so. This will be mighty embarrassin’ if he
doesn’t.”
 

“
Where is Abel Lee,
anyway?” I look around and I don’t see him.
 

The manager smiles and
says, “He’s finishing up in layaway.”
 

We wait and soon he comes
up with a few employees at his side. His mother asks, “How are we
goin’ to get this stuff home? I didn’t realize how much we were
gettin.’”
 

“
We’ll be delivering
everything,” the store manager clarifies.
 

“
Since when does K-Mart
deliver?” Mia asks.
 

No one answers. We wait
while everything gets rung up and Abel Lee pays for the entire
purchase with one swipe of his credit card.
It is a black credit card, and I didn’t even know they came in
that color. I can’t begin to imagine how much everything costs.
“For the benefit of the cause,” he called it. I imagine he’ll be
sleepin’ mighty good tonight. Helpin’ others always helps me to
sleep better.
 
The
most important thing is not to hurt anyone, even unintentionally,
but since none of us is perfect, we need to help other people in
this world.

“
We’ll have everything
delivered by 7:00 this evening. Someone will be at this address,
correct?” The store manager has a huge grin on his face.

“
We’ll be there, thank
you.” Abel Lee reaches his hand out for the
manager’s.
 

“
Thank you, Abel. You just
made some kids very happy.”
 

I stop by the store before goin’ home.
Helpin’ Abel Lee and his family to help others feels incredible. I
can’t imagine being able to do something so generous, something of
that magnitude. I know the small things I do to help others feel
good, but to do what Abel Lee did today, I can’t even begin to
imagine how good he feels. He’s a good guy, no doubt about
that.

After I check the mail, I open the gas bill
and cringe. I hate the winter months. The heatin’ bills are higher
than the mortgage on my small house. Even usin’ the wood-burnin’
fireplace, it’s outrageously high. Of course, I have to pay for the
wood I burn. I also get a water bill and a personal letter. No
return address, but I know it’s from my friend in Florida. Brea
always sends me letters trying to bribe me to come down for a
visit. If I had the money, I would visit her every chance I
get.

I smile as I tear open the
notecard size envelope. I’m excited to see what kind of a bribe
she’s posted this time. A picture of her toes in the sandy white
beaches. A picture of her on the beach with a margarita in hand. It
could be details of her trip to the Florida Keys. I’m happy she got
away, but I miss her terribly.
I
read:

Savannah,

Watch out!

I drop the card and watch it fall to the
floor. I rub my arms with my hands to warm myself. The note isn’t
what I expected, and it’s not from Brea. With the murder of Megan
Rose, I have to wonder if this isn’t a warnin’ from the killer. Is
it possible the small town of Rose Farm has a serial killer at
large? I pick up the note and read it again. I flip it over, but
there isn’t anything else written on it.

It’s ridiculous to think
it’s from a serial killer. My mind thinks about the people I know,
and the people who know where I live. I have no enemies so who
could it be from? Well, I do have one enemy — Heather Sue.
She stole my husband, but what else does she want
from me?

As the weeks pass, so does the story and news
about the murder of Megan Rose. I guess it’s best, especially in a
small town like Rose Farm, to let that kind of story dissolve. I
wonder about her killer and about her family. I’d like to think the
family is healin’, and that the killer died a slow and painful
death in some undisclosed location.

Abel Lee

Christmas Eve is on
Wednesday this year. As always, it’s our night to work the
community meal at the church. And just like Thanksgiving, Momma has
prepared a Christmas feast for everyone. Pops slaughtered a couple
hogs and a cow last week. We don’t cook the food at home this time;
instead, we prepare the food at the church.
 

Savannah Mae and Sawyer
Jackson are already there when we arrive. Sawyer Jackson is sitting
on a blanket in the middle of the floor playing with toys and
books. A few board games are scattered about the blanket. Christmas
music is playing from the corner of the room. Although it’s not
home, it has a homey feel.