Golden Hue (3 page)

“It's so good to see you Eli,” she said. “I've been so worried about you.”

“I've been doing alright,” I said. “I wanted to take you up on the invitation to visit your church.”

“I'm so glad you did,” she said. “And who are these two lovely ladies with you?”

“Juanita, this is my cousin Sarah and my fiancée Cathy,” I said.

She shook hands with each of them.

“How long have you been engaged?” she asked.

“Not long,” I said. “But I'm very happy.”

“Thank you for what you did for Eli,” Sarah said. “He told us about how you took him in after he was attacked.”

Juanita looked a bit confused.

“I had no choice,” she said. “It’s what a Christian is supposed to do.”

“I sure hope all of you’ll stay for the potluck. I made my famous sponge cake,” she said.

I looked at Sarah to try and get an idea if we’d be staying or not.

“We will stay for a little while,” Sarah said. “But then we really have to go.”

“Good!” Juanita said. “I'll save the three of you a place at my table.”

A moment later, Dr. Smart, her son, showed up and we followed them to the social hall – a large room at the very end of the Sunday School building. Tables were covered with platters of food: fried chicken, boiled shrimp, casseroles, meatloaf, vegetables, rolls, cornbread, and a wide assortment of desserts.

A line was forming and Juanita insisted that as guests we stand at the very front. Although it felt a bit odd cutting ahead of everyone, we complied.

The voice of the pastor then cut through the chatter and conversation that filled the room.

“I want to thank everyone who helped prepare this bountiful meal. Everything looks and smells delicious. Let’s say grace before we begin,” he said.

The pastor uttered a short prayer, thanked God for the food, and urged everyone to dig in. The food did indeed look appetizing; there were several enticing protein sources to choose from.

We quickly walked to Juanita's table, sat down, and began eating. The food tasted good and before long my plate was empty.

“You must have been hungry,” Juanita said to me.

“Well, I had a good breakfast,” I responded.

“It apparently wasn't enough,” she said.

Juanita looked at Cathy.

“Are you sure you’re feeding your man enough?” she teasingly asked Cathy.

“Well, I'm not as good of a cook as Sarah here, but I do my best,” she said.

I excused myself and went to get another plate of food. As I was helping myself to some meatloaf the pastor came up to me.

“I'm Pastor Demetrius Brown,” he said extending his hand. “I'm glad that you’re visiting our church today.”

He’d a powerful grip, and towered over me. The scar on the left side of his face was even more obvious.

“Thank you,” I said. “Ms. Juanita invited me a while back. I just wanted to take her up on the offer.”

“What do you think of our church,” he said.

“Everyone here has been very nice to us. I hope to come again sometime,” I said.

“I hope you visit again soon,” he said. “For now, please enjoy the food. Feel free to take a plate home with you. There are always tons of leftovers.”

“Thanks,” I said.

I walked back to the table and saw that Juanita, Sarah, and Cathy were deep in conversation.

“Eli,” Juanita said. “You’ll have to bring your friends over to my place for lunch one day soon. I want to talk with all of you more, but Sarah says that the three of you have to head on.”

“We will come over sometime,” I said.

While Sarah and Cathy stood up I finished the meat loaf on my plate.

“Please come soon,” she said. “And come to Wednesday night supper here at the church at 6:00PM.”

“I'll try,” I said. “I'm going out of town for a few days, but I’ll be back.”

A few minutes later, the three of us were back in the SUV.

In the distance, I could see Pastor Demetrius standing outside of the Sunday School building watching us drive away. I ignored it and didn’t say anything to Sarah or Cathy.

Cathy was eager to see her friends from the maternity home at the hospital. A small get together of all the survivors of the fire was going to take place and Cathy wanted to attend. It was actually more of a celebration, due to the almost miraculous recovery of Jessica and Sandy.

“Do you want me to go in with you?” I asked Cathy.

“No, this time I want to go alone,” she said.

“I'll drop you off at the entrance,” Sarah said. “We will be back in an hour to pick you up. Don't be late.”

As we pulled up to the hospital entrance Cathy reached over and kissed me on my cheek.

“See you in an hour,” she said.

Sarah slowed the vehicle, and Cathy hopped out.

“So where would you like to go, Eli?” Sarah asked. “We have an hour to kill.”

“Where would you like to go?” I asked.

“Anywhere you’d like to go is fine,” she said.

“I want to get a present for Cathy. I didn't get her anything for Valentine's Day,” I said. “Do we have time to go to a bookstore?”

“Sure, I'll help you pick something out for her.”

“I think I have an idea,” I said.

We pulled into the mall parking lot and quickly walked into the large bookstore. Passing by large displays of hardback books and paperback novels, I found the religion section.

“I want to find her a Bible,” I said. “I don't think she has one.”

“That's a good idea,” she said. “I think she’d like it.”

I looked at the various Bibles, but I was not satisfied. Finally, I came across one that had a dedication page and an area to record your family's history – births, deaths, marriages, etc.

“I like this one,” I said.

“You should get her a case for it too,” Sarah said.

We looked at the available cases, and I found a black leather case that looked ideal. It was the right size and shape.

“I wonder if they have any Valentine cards left.” I asked.

“Let’s go look,” Sarah said.

Thankfully, there was a small area that had a few cards on sale which had been picked through. Looking at them, I had a hard time deciding. I wanted to get something romantic but not overly mushy.

“Here is a good one,” Sarah said.

I took the card, read it, and loved it.

“Let’s pay and go,” Sarah said.

As we were walking out of the store, I saw Candace walking in. I turned my head and pretended not to see her. I really didn't want to talk to her. The last thing I wanted to do was awaken any dormant emotion or feeling I might have for her. The episode in the tunnels had been extremely difficult for me.

“Eli!”

She’d seen me, and rushed towards me.

Eli, I've called you three times, but you haven’t responded to any of my messages,” Candace said, clearly annoyed with me.

“I'm sorry,” I said. “That was wrong of me.”

“Look, I need answers about what happened that night in the cave,” she said. “I need to know what happened to me and what the heck you are.”

“That could be complicated to explain,” I said.

“Well, I'm all ears,” she said.

“Look,” I said. “We really don't have the time to discuss this now. I promise that as soon as I can I'll explain what happened.”

“That's not good enough,” she said. “You said you loved me. I know that you care about me – you always have. Why won't you just answer my questions?”

“Candace, I don't love you anymore,” I said. “I have a fiancée now.”

“I’m sorry, but you’ll have to wait for answers, Candace” Sarah said, interjecting.

Candace paused for a moment and then looked directly into my face.

“Are you really a vampire?” Candace asked.

Sarah grabbed her by the arm and pulled her to the side.

“Let go of me!” Candace shouted, causing a few shoppers to look our way.

“Listen here, Candace,” said Cathy. “We saved your life that night. The least you can do is keep your mouth shut about what you saw. Now go on back home.”

Sarah took my arm and pulled me out of the store and we walked quickly back to the SUV.

“I wish I hadn’t seen her,” I said as we drove back to the hospital.

“Don't let her bother you,” Sarah said.

“She does deserve to know the truth,” I said.

“Be careful what you tell her,” she said.

“I'm not going to tell her anything,” I said. “I'm going to let Cathy call her.”

I found a pen and started writing a note in both the Bible and the card I’d bought for Cathy.

Before long we were back at the hospital where Cathy was waiting outside for us. We slowed down, I scooted closer to Sarah, and Cathy got in.

“How are Sandy and Jessica?” I asked.

“Doing great,” she said. “Their burns are mostly healed.”

“What about their babies?” I asked.

“Jessica had hers – the baby is beautiful and doing fine. Sandy’s is overdue.”

“That’s great news – I’m so glad,” I said.

Cathy buckled up her seatbelt, which puzzled me a bit. Thinking about it I realized that even though she’d barely be injured from a severe accident, we didn’t want a cop pulling us over – so I put mine on too.

“Eli has something for you, Cathy,” Sarah said.

Cathy looked at me. I had hoped to wait until the perfect moment to give her the items, but Sarah had forced the issue.

“What is it, Eli?” she said smiling.

I reached into the back seat and grabbed the plastic shopping bag.

“I have two presents for you,” I said. “I hope you like them.”

“I'm sure I'll like them,” Cathy said.

I took the red envelope out of the bag and handed it to Cathy. She opened it, looked at the two cats purring on the front of the card, and then read the contents silently.

I could have purchased a card proclaiming your good looks or great personality. However, the only way to describe what I think of you is by admitting you’re the purrfect girlfriend. Thanks for being you.

Underneath was my note.

I'm sorry for forgetting Valentine's Day. I hope you’ll forgive me. I love you more than you’ll ever know. Sincerely, Eli.

Cathy leaned over and kissed me on the cheek.

“You’re so sweet,” she said. “I love you too.”

I then handed her the Bible.

“Look at the first page,” I said.

She read the note I’d written.

“
Dear Cathy,

As we start our new life together, I hope that we will be able to go to church on a regular basis. I thought that instead of each of us having a separate Bible, we could share this one. You’re the most amazing blessing God has ever given me. Please accept this Bible, the first gift I have ever given you, as a token of my love.

Forever yours,

Eli

“Thank you so much,” Cathy said taking my hand and squeezing it. “This is the best present you could have given me.”

Cathy took my hand and squeezed it.

Suddenly out of nowhere, a man stepped out the road in front of our vehicle. The breaks squealed as Sarah tried to avoid hitting him.

The van came to a stop just inches in front of the man who continued to stand in our lane looking at us with a menacing stare.

“It's Clint,” said Sarah. “I'll talk to him.

Sarah jumped out of the van and went up the man.

“Who’s Clint?” I asked Cathy.

Cathy’s happy demeanor had suddenly turned very serious.

“One of Albert's brothers,” she said.

He was a vampire, then.

“Should we get out?” I asked Cathy.

She didn’t answer; she seemed extremely preoccupied.

“You need to talk to him!” I heard Clint shout at Sarah outside “My father is furious and next week may be too late.”

Sarah pointed her finger at the vampire in the jean jacket.

“Never stop my vehicle like this again,” she said. “Tell your father that after I go talk to the empress I’ll be glad to discuss matters with him.”

I decided to step out of the vehicle.

“That's not good enough,” Clint said. “Don't you realize my brother is dead?”

Clint’s face was close to Sarah's.

“You aren’t fit to be queen,” he said.

Sarah suddenly slashed at his face with her now-extended claws and Clint fell backwards to the ground.

“Are you challenging me?” she said. “I'm your queen, and I demand to know if you’re challenging my authority.”