Hold Me Forever by D. Jackson Leigh

Author:D. Jackson Leigh
Language: eng
Format: azw3, mobi, epub
ISBN: 9781602829442
Publisher: Bold Strokes Books
Published: 2013-09-16T03:00:00+00:00

*

Tyree’s mama was standing on the porch when Mae pulled up to the house. She was a small woman with sharp eyes and peered in the passenger window as Mae slipped out and around the car.

“You gonna need help getting her inside? Mr. Clinton went to bed hours ago, and he’s like a baby. If you wake him up now, he’ll never go back to sleep tonight.”

“If I can’t wake her up, I’ll just let her sleep in the car.” Mae offered her hand but spared the woman only a glance. She couldn’t seem to take her eyes from Whit’s prone body for more than a few seconds. “I’m Mae.”

“I’m Bernice, Tyree’s mama.” She held onto Mae’s hand while she gave her an approving once-over. “Uh-huh. Tyree was right. He said you were pretty. He also said you might be the one to get the Caseys back on course.” She released Mae’s hand and shook her head at Whit. “Lord knows getting drunk ain’t gonna fix anything.”

“Whit’s carrying the weight of the world on her shoulders, Bernice.”

“Child, don’t I know it.” She opened the car door so Mae could crawl in to wake Whit. “But it’s gonna seem twice as heavy when she wakes up in the morning.”

Mae shook her gently. “Whit, honey, we need to get you inside.” No response. She stroked her cheek and pulled at her arm, but Whit remained limp.

“Lord, girl, you ain’t gonna wake a drunk like that. Let me try. I’d like to get home before church services start in the morning.” Mae backed out and Bernice took her place. She slapped Whit hard on the rump and raised her voice to drill-sergeant level. “Get up, Whitley. You can’t sleep in the car like some old wino.” Whit stirred and Bernice smacked her again. “The Almighty has no patience for fools and drunks.”

Whit mumbled and sat up, blinking as she tried to orient herself. Bernice tugged on her arm until she was sitting with her feet on the ground. “Now stand up and go get in your bed.”

Mae helped her stand and stagger to the front door. As soon as they stepped inside, Whit broke into a stumbling run for the bathroom. Mae started to follow, but Bernice stopped her. “Give her a few minutes. She wouldn’t want you to see her at her worst.”

Mae nodded. “Thank you for staying with Clinton. Tyree should have called me sooner so you wouldn’t be out so late.”

“It’s no burden. Those two have been lost since Miss Celeste passed on. It was time for Whitley to come home so they could face things together.” She patted Mae’s arm. “Still, they may need some help to find their way. Without Miss Celeste, they’re just two empty cans rattling around in this house.”

Mae watched her leave, then locked the door and went in search of Whit. The door to the bathroom joining Whit’s bedroom was closed, so Mae pulled back the bed covers and waited. Gagging noises intermittently filtered

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