Standing slowly, Grandma scanned the room. I braced myself, prepared for the worst, but silently hoped for the best. I wasn’t dressed to fight. Not in this tight-ass dress I’d slipped into or my three-inch heels. Hell, my body still ached from last night. I needed a heating pad, not a potential melee at a memorial service.
The sanctuary was silent. My father stood and made his way back to us. When he finally noticed me, he frowned. Once he reached us, Grandma held up her hand and he stopped in his tracks.
“Grandma,” I whispered.
“It’s okay,” Granny Joyce assured.
“Do I need to take my shoes off?” I asked.
She shook her head. “No.” She turned to my father. “Sit down, Gregory.”
My father obeyed, sliding into the pew behind us. Up front, I noticed Allisifer staring at me.Everyonewas staring at me, at us.
Finally, Grandma sighed. “Let’s go. I’ve done what I came to do.”
Confused, I scrambled to grab my purse and followed her out. As we breezed down the long aisle toward the door, I felt someone close on our heels and briefly wondered if it was security. Or Fake Wife.
But it was neither of them. It was my father.
“Mother,” he called softly. “Why did you do that? You embarrassed yourself and me.”
As usual, it was all about him. “Dad, please.” I stepped in between them. “Just let it go.”
Grandma and my father had a contemptuous relationship, partly because of how he’d treated her when she left my grandfather, but mostly because of me. He resented her for advocating for me, for insisting that he take care of his responsibilities when my mother died.
“When did you get back?” Allison asked, stepping into the foyer.
“I’ve been back,” I replied.
She folded her arms over her chest. “Care to explain why you haven’t called us? Darrell has been looking for you.”
“Wait a minute,” Grandma said. “What you won’t do is come at her in front of me.”
This was our dynamic. My father and Allison ganging up on me and Grandma defending me. I knew it would happen eventually, just not now. Not in the middle of a church in Ypsilanti. Not while a funeral service was going on in the sanctuary.
An usher approached us and ordered us to leave the grounds. Once we cleared the doors, all hell broke loose. Everyone talked at once. Dad accusing Grandma of being performative. Grandma yelling at Dad for being a traitor. Allison shouting at the top of her lungs about my disrespectful nature. Granny Joyce defending my grandmother.
I stood there, watching the scene unfold and wishing I could blink myself back to my apartment. Overwhelmed, I turned to leave and ran into someone’s hard chest. “I’m sorry,” I grumbled.
The argument stopped.
I peered up at the man I’d nearly bulldozed during my attempt to flee. “Moses?”
My brother grinned, pulling me into a tight hug. “What’s up, sis?”
Chapter 14
Wesley
Boom.
I turned up the television, hoping to drown out the sound. Seconds later, another knock followed. Then, another.
One of the reasons I preferred not to stay at Batchelor Place was the unexpected but not surprising visits from family members. Everyone had access to me through a short elevator ride or a trip up the stairs. If it wasn’t my sister bringing me family drama or my cousin, Cyn, with her wild puppy, it was Hendrix eating all my food.
Make no mistake, it was someone from my family. An outsider would’ve had to go through Colby or whoever was working the concierge desk today.
It could be Albany.
