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Authors: Wanda B. Campbell

BOOK: Silver Lining
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He shifted in the chair that didn't adequately support his large frame, and waited patiently for his turn.
“Dr. Jennings,” the secretary called to him, “Pastor Drake will see you now.”
Chapter 32
“S
tarla, that's beautiful!” Marlissa exclaimed about the off-the-shoulder, sage-colored taffeta dress Starla had chosen to renew her vows in. Starla had convinced Marlissa to come shopping with her at the last minute in an effort to cheer her up.
“Do you really think so?”
“Yes, and it looks fabulous on you. Leon's going to love you in that dress.”
“I hope so.” Starla giggled. “Wait until you see the dress I've picked out for you.”
Marlissa smacked her lips. “Girl, I can't believe I let you talk me into being your matron of honor. That's a little unorthodox considering my present circumstances, don't you think?”
“This is the twenty-first century, everything is unorthodox.” Starla chuckled.
The sales associate handed Marlissa her dress, and she slouched into the dressing room stall. Starla waited patiently while Marlissa tried on the cream-colored version of the same dress.
“Oh, Marlissa, it's perfect for you.” Starla beamed when she stepped from the dressing room. “You should wear your hair down, and I have the perfect ‘genuine' pearl earrings and necklace set,” Starla said while observing their reflections in the mirror.
Marlissa wanted to laugh in Starla's face, but the occasion was special to her friend, so she pasted on a smile instead. Starla saw right through her.
“Marlissa, cheer up. I know it's a little awkward for you and it is the last minute, but Leon wants the boys to stand with him. That means someone has to stand with me, and since you're like family, you're it.”
“Ooh, don't I feel special.” Marlissa's sarcasm dampened the mood.
“Marlissa, please cheer up. I have something I want to tell you, but I can't as long as you remain down in the dumps.” Starla folded her arms and pouted.
Marlissa took a deep breath, and, once again, pushed the pain of her miserable life aside. Somebody deserved to be happy; it might as well be Starla. “Okay, what is it?”
“Promise to be happy for me?”
“I promise I will try to be happy.” Despite Marlissa's best effort, the words dripped with bitterness.
Starla scrutinized Marlissa's face to see if she meant the words. Marlissa would find out soon enough, so Starla went ahead and told her the good news. “I'm pregnant! Can you believe it? We're going to have a baby around the same time?”
“Starla, that's wonderful.” Marlissa was truly happy for her friend, but her present situation prevented her from showing much enthusiasm. She prayed the smile pasted on her face passed for genuine. “Have you told Leon yet?”
“Yes, and he's just as excited as I am, although he's concerned because he's trying to restart the business. He wants to move into a bigger house before the baby's born. Leon wants his daughter to have a room of her own.”
“And just how do you know you're having a girl?”
“My father told me,” Starla said, then stepped back into the dressing stall.
Marlissa shook her head, then stepped into the stall next to Starla's. “Girl, I am not going to ask how a man who died ten years ago told you the sex of the baby you're now carrying.”
Starla laughed. “It's nothing creepy.” She went on to tell Marlissa about the letter from her father. “Everything he prayed for, I have, except the daughters. That's how I know I am carrying a girl, maybe twin girls. Two for one, that would be a blessing and put an end to my baby-making career.”
“How's the progress with your mother?” Marlissa changed the subject.
Starla sighed heavily and joy seeped from her voice. “I'm still hurt about the whole thing, but I still love her. We talk once a week, but it's not the same. She refuses to admit she was wrong.”
“Is she coming to the wedding?”
“No, she said it didn't make sense to fly from Arizona to see me marry the same person. It's probably for the best since Odessa is coming.”
They practically exited the stalls simultaneously. “Starla, you know I love you. You're the closest thing I have to a sister. I'm trying to be happy for you, but right now I'm jealous of you,” Marlissa admitted. “You have a committed man who will not only love his baby, but he loves you.”
Starla embraced her. “Kevin loves you, Marlissa. Just wait, once you tell him about the baby, everything will be different.”
“But I don't want to tell him about the baby first. I want him to commit to me because he loves
me
, not because I'm pregnant.”
“Hold on, Marlissa, he will,” Starla encouraged her. They gathered the dresses and started for the register.
Marlissa looked down at the price tag. “Starla, I can't pay for this,” she whispered.
“Don't worry about it. I have some money in addition to the money Leon gave me. Now, come on, we have to pick out my bouquet before the florist closes, and buy shoes.”
At the flower shop, Marlissa admired the tulips while Starla selected a medium-sized bouquet made of white roses. “Since you like tulips so much, let's use them for your arrangement,” Starla suggested, noticing the serene look on Marlissa's face.
“I like that idea, and the colors will go well with my dress.”
No sooner had Starla paid the florist than her cell phone rang. “Girl, I know this isn't anyone but Leon, wondering where I am. He acts like he can't breathe without me.” Starla giggled.
“I know what you mean,” Marlissa responded, remembering what it felt like to be needed by Kevin. She stepped away to give Starla some privacy. Marlissa was looking at shoes through a store window when she heard Starla scream.
“Oh my God!”
Marlissa rushed to her. “What's wrong?”
“Baby, I'm coming . . . I . . . will . . . I know.” Tears poured down Starla's cheeks before she disconnected the call.
“Starla, please tell me what happened.”
Starla leaned against the store wall, and between tears managed to say, “It's Leon.”
“What's wrong with Leon?” Starla wasn't talking fast enough for Marlissa.
“He's in jail!”
Chapter 33
T
he Lexus had barely stopped when Starla jumped out and ran inside the main police station on Broadway. Marlissa watched until Starla was on the other side of the glass doors before breaking down. The supportive, strong friend charade was over. “Oh God, how could this happen?” she cried. Marlissa didn't know the details of Leon's arrest, but whatever the charges were, she just knew Leon was innocent. “What about Starla and the boys? What about me?” she mumbled. “What am I going to do if he's in jail?” Leon was her friend, the rock she could always lean on.
Angry car horns interrupted her emotional breakdown. Marlissa forgot she had stopped in the middle of downtown Oakland after 5:00
P.M.
on a Friday. Marlissa slowly removed her foot from the brake and searched for a parking space. She parallel parked after a Honda pulled out half a block down. Before stepping from the car and placing coins into the parking ticket machine, she prayed hard. She prayed harder to the point of speaking in tongues after she rested the parking receipt on the dashboard.
 
 
“This can't be real,” Starla moaned as she stepped inside the busy precinct. She'd seen the scene before her a thousand times on television, but now the characters were real people and the guns were loaded with real bullets instead of blanks. The policemen seated behind the bulletproof glass were talking about real people and situations, not staging conversations for a camera. Starla wiped her face, and then swallowed hard and approached the window under the sign that read S
TART
H
ERE.
“Excuse me, officer, I am trying to find my husband.”
“Is he missing?” A salt-and-pepper haired gentlemen, who looked like he should have retired years ago, manned the booth.
“No, he is not missing.” Starla lowered her head before adding, “He's been arrested.”
“Miss, speak up. I am busy, I don't have time to guess at what you're trying to tell me.” The officer's lack of sensitivity surprised Starla. The officers on TV were much friendlier.
She raised her head and read the number on his badge before responding. The rude gentleman was licensed to disrespect her. “My husband was arrested earlier today.”
“I see.” The officer clicked the mouse on the computer, then asked, “Name?”
“Leon Scott,” Starla answered as she leaned closer to the glass.
“Have a seat in the waiting room on the third floor. The officer handling his case will be out to speak with you.”
“Officer, can you please tell me why my husband was arrested?” Starla held her breath and waited for the answer.
Officer #821 looked down at the computer screen, and then shook his head. “Mrs. Scott, your husband was arrested for stealing.”
“What? Are you crazy?”
“So you can talk loud?” The officer smirked. “Mrs. Scott, lower your voice.” Starla didn't realize she was yelling.
“Starla, what's going on?” Marlissa rushed to her side just in time to cool Starla down.
“They think Leon is a thief!” Starla answered.
It was Marlissa's turn to look at the tired officer and ask, “Are you crazy?”
“I'm sure he's innocent like all the other criminals.” The officer chuckled. “But I don't want to hear it. Tell it to the investigating officer.” The women gasped as the officer put his head down and pointed his index finger toward the elevator, in essence dismissing them.
“He better be glad I'm saved,” Starla fumed, walking toward the elevator. “He don't know me; I'm from the hood. I will beat the slop out of him.”
She punched the elevator call button and waited, then faced Marlissa. “Make sure you keep a cool head. It would only hurt Leon's case if both of us were arrested for assaulting an officer. Obviously, this whole thing is nothing more than a misunderstanding. Leon is a lot of things, but a thief he is not.”
“Calm down, this mess will be over before you know it. Leon will be back home with you and the boys tonight, and tomorrow you'll renew your vows and life will be happy again.”
Starla took a deep breath, deciding that Marlissa was right. But, just in case, Starla said a silent prayer.
The waiting room on the third floor resembled a hospital emergency room with the white walls and blue linoleum with white speckled flooring. The hard blue chairs connecting at the arm were overflowing with people, the majority of whom didn't appear worried at all. Some read magazines, a few even slept. Several men acknowledged Marlissa's and Starla's presence, but no one offered them a seat. Marlissa and Starla leaned against the wall near the door.
“I need to ask my neighbor to pick the boys up for me,” Starla said after waiting over an hour. Both women were now sitting on the cold, hard floor.
“We should probably call Mother as well,” Marlissa suggested. “I didn't want to worry her, but I'm starting to get a bad feeling about this; it's taking too long.”
“I know,” Starla admitted. “Maybe I should call a lawyer.” Starla didn't know what to do, but passing the time on the cold floor in a room filled with strangers certainly wasn't the answer. She needed Leon out of jail. They were renewing their vows in twenty-six hours and she was having a baby and her daughter needed her father. Her sons needed their father. Starla tucked her face in her hands and cried softly.
Marlissa pulled her cell phone from her purse. “You call Mother and your neighbor. I'll call Tyson.”
An hour later they were still on the floor, waiting, when the cavalry arrived. Mother Scott along with Pastor and First Lady Drake arrived first.
“Starla, what is going on?” Mother Scott didn't give her a chance to answer. “Have they let my son go yet?”
Starla shook her head slowly. “No.” Pastor Drake handed her a handkerchief and assisted her to her feet. “Thank you,” she acknowledged him, and, after blowing her nose and stretching her legs, she continued. “We've been waiting for over two hours, and the only thing they've told me is that Leon was arrested for stealing.”
“What?” Mother Scott snapped.
Everyone remained focused on Starla and didn't see Tyson and Kevin enter the room.
“What's this I hear about Leon stealing?” Tyson echoed Mother Scott.
Kevin didn't hear the recap; he was too busy staring at Marlissa, who was still seated Indian style on the floor. Marlissa's attempt not to return his gaze was easily lost. She missed him too much, and right now she needed him, but she wasn't going to let him know it. After a prolonged moment, she folded her arms and redirected her attention back to the group.
Kevin wasn't deterred by her wall. He simply walked over to her and extended his hands to her. The gesture astounded Marlissa, and all of her defenses, without much resistance, tumbled down. She accepted his hands and allowed him to lift her to her feet. Kevin didn't stop there. He wrapped his arms around her and pressed her close to him. Marlissa shuddered, then released the emotions she'd been holding in for the past two hours, trying to be strong for Starla's sake. Kevin didn't say one word, just continuously stroked her hair and back until she quieted down.
“Starla, I'm not a criminal attorney, but I'll do whatever I can tonight to help,” Tyson offered. “In the morning, I'll call a colleague who works in this area.”
Before Starla could thank Tyson, Mother Scott went off on a tangent. “What do you mean in the morning? You better get my son out of here tonight! Do you hear me?” Mother Scott narrowed her eyes at Tyson. “If my son ain't going home tonight, then neither are you!”
“Scott, calm down!” First Lady Drake chimed in. “It's not his fault Leon's in jail.”
Mother Scott apologized to Tyson, but not before rolling her eyes at First Lady Drake. She then walked to the front and set the room in order with First Lady Drake following close behind. “All y'all men in here, I know your mothers, fathers, grandparents, or somebody taught y'all some manners. If they didn't, I will.” Mother Scott placed her hand on her petite waist and glared at the group. “It's improper for y'all to be sitting here all comfortable while we women stand around or sit on the floor. Now, y'all ain't got to leave, but in Jesus' name, y'all are going to get up out of these chairs so we women can sit down.”
Pastor Drake started praying while First Lady Drake and Mother Scott started singing a duet version of “You've Got to Move.” By the time they got to the chorus of “when the Lord gets ready,” every man in the room was standing, along with some of the women.
Marlissa, who was still glued to Kevin's chest, laughed uncontrollably. She was so relaxed she allowed Kevin to kiss her forehead and tighten his hold on her.
Starla laughed. “You two are a mess!” She appreciated the change in the tension-filled atmosphere. The change was short-lived. Starla hadn't been seated one minute when a uniformed officer entered the room and called her name. Starla rushed to the officer, expecting to see Leon.
“Where's my husband?”
“Mrs. Scott, I'm Officer Grimes, follow me,” the officer said without answering her question.
“Wait a minute. I want to know where my husband is.”
“Why are you detaining my client?” Tyson asked, standing next to Starla.
Officer Grimes's demeanor changed from one of irritation to tolerance. “I'm sorry; I didn't know Mr. Scott had legal representation.”
“Now you do.” Tyson wasn't the least bit intimidated by the officer. “Tyson Stokes. Now I'll ask you again, what are the charges against my client?”
The tall, slender officer smirked as if it was an openand-shut case. “Mrs. Scott, Stokes, please follow me.”
Tyson nodded his consent to Starla and together they followed the officer to a small room that contained only a square table and four chairs. One side of the wall was mirrored. Starla figured it was a two-way mirror. Officer Grimes placed a file on the once-white table and began.
“Mrs. Scott, your husband was arrested for theft and embezzlement.” Officer Grimes made the announcement like he was making a simple comment about the weather.
“What!” Starla jumped to her feet. “My husband didn't steal anything!”
Tyson stood and placed his arm around Starla's shoulder. “Hear him out.” Starla reluctantly sat back down.
“His former employer, West Coast Alliance, alleges he stole over fifty thousand dollars over a four-month period.”
“That's ridiculous! Leon's not a thief!” Starla countered.
Officer Grimes continued reading his notes as if Starla hadn't said a word.
“What proof do you have?” Tyson asked.
“Manipulated deposit receipts with your husband's signature, and purchases your husband's income can't afford.”
Starla's head pounded as she reflected on the past three months. Leon had been spending more money than usual.
“Mrs. Scott, can you explain how your husband was able to purchase a brand new truck with cash?”
“I didn't know Leon paid cash for the truck,” she mumbled, defeated.
“Can you explain the five thousand dollars worth of new tools found in the truck when we arrested him?”
Starla massaged her temples. “Leon's been doing side jobs.”
“Can you explain how a man who works for minimum wage has a business account with a balance of over twenty-five thousand dollars?”
Starla didn't have any answers. Leon wouldn't tell her how he was able to restart the business so fast. Whenever she asked, he'd just say, “God made a way.” Starla trusted him completely. When sober, Leon was not careless with money. If Leon spent money, it was because he felt it was safe to do so.
They'd spent close to $1,000 in Calistoga and were spending more than that on their vow renewal. Leon said he didn't want her to use the money her father had given her, so he gave her enough cash to cover everything. He was talking about buying another house before the baby came, and he wanted Starla to have a new car. Leon wanted the boys to attend private school. Leon wanted too much to risk their future for $50,000. The Leon she knew loved his family too much for that.
He did throw us away for the bottle.
The thought pounded Starla's head with the force of a sledgehammer. She moaned and rubbed her temples.
“Look, Officer Grimes.” Starla raised her head, looking him dead in the eyes. “I honestly don't know how Leon was able to buy all those things. But I know my husband, and he is not a thief. His family means too much to him. We're renewing our vows tomorrow and then we're having a baby. Tell West Coast Alliance to check the receipts again, my husband didn't take their money.”
“She's right,” Tyson said, pulling out his laptop. “Dr. Jennings and I can account for the money in Mr. Scott's business account as well as the purchases.”

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