Always Means Forever

by Deborah Fletcher Mello

  “That’s right,” she said emphatically. “I had it all figured out and everyone else messed things up.”

  “You can’t blame Ava for anything, though. Ava didn’t give you up. Ava was trying to protect you.”

  Ella rolled her eyes. “She would have told. I know it. She would have blamed all of this on me.”

  “I don’t think so,” Darwin said softly. “I can see that your sister loves you very much. She didn’t want to see anything happen to you. She was willing to just settle, take the full blame and walk away. That’s real love. I have a twin brother and I don’t know if he would have done that for me.”

  Darwin felt Bridget move closer against his body, her forehead pressing against the line of his spine. She was clutching the back of his shirt with both hands, her body quivering against him. He wanted to wrap himself around her, to assure her that everything was going to be fine, but he knew he couldn’t move. He couldn’t do anything that might spook Ella and put any of them in any further danger. A slap of thunder shook the room as flashes of lightning seeped through the window blinds.

  Ella slapped the palm of her free hand against her forehead. “I can fix this,” she said, her gaze locking with Darwin’s. “I can. I can fix this, and we can go back to working together,” she rambled.

  The man nodded, smiling ever so slightly. Joshua had eased even closer, his presence being ignored as Ella struggled with what she needed to do. The two men were having a silent conversation, eyes gesturing back and forth. Darwin sensed that it wouldn’t be much longer before Joshua could make a move. He knew he had to keep Ella talking, focused solely on him until the man was in a better position to grab for the gun.

  “Why don’t you and I sit down and talk, Ella. Just the two of us. We can make plans and figure out how to get the ratings up.”

  “I know they’re low since I left. They were only high because I was running things.”

  “Of course. I know that,” Darwin agreed, nodding. “The show couldn’t have happened without you, Ella.”

  “You better believe it. I tried to tell Ava, but she didn’t care. She wasn’t interested in what I could accomplish. Everything always has to be about her.”

  “That’s not true, Ella,” Ava whispered. “I do care about you.”

  “Shut up!” Ella pushed the gun into Ava’s cheek for emphasis. “Shut your mouth before I shut it for you.”

  “Ella,” Darwin interrupted, waving his hands slowly. “Don’t pay her any attention. This is between you and me. We don’t need Ava. Do we? Ava’s clearly not as intelligent as you are.”

  Ella nodded. “That right. Her daddy always thought she was so special, but she wasn’t. Always the center of attention, making people like her. Well, they’ll see. They’ll see that she’s not special at all.”

  “That’s right,” Darwin continued. “We can make them all see that you’re the one who’s special. Very special.”

  Ella smiled, the harsh lines punctuating her expression suddenly softening. “I knew I could do this. I knew it.”

  Darwin smiled back. “Now would be as good a time as any,” he said, staring Joshua straight in the eye.

  Ella suddenly looked confused. “What?”

  In that moment, Joshua grabbed for the gun, both hands clasped around Ella’s clenched fist. Darwin rushed forward, using his own momentum to help knock the woman to the ground.

  Ava jumped out of the way, rushing to the corner of the room. Bridget lunged for the telephone on the tabletop as the two men struggled with Ella on the floor. Just as she reached the receiver, a round of gunshots rang out through the room, the harsh noise followed by the muffled sound of metal striking flesh and bone, and a man’s pitying scream.

  Like snapshots rolling across a screen, Bridget looked to see the gun lying on the floor, Ella’s limp body subdued beneath Joshua, and Darwin, sitting back on his haunches as he stared down toward his chest, blood splaying across his shirt. A crimson-red circle of dampness was spreading outward, forming an intricate pattern against the cotton fabric. Darwin’s expression was a montage of disbelief and hurt, and then he looked up to meet her gaze, his mouth bending into an easy smile before he lost consciousness.

  Chapter 22

  There was an eerie silence sweeping through the sanctuary of Mt. Zion Baptist Church. Jeneva and Roshawn stood at Bridget’s side, moisture flowing down all of their faces. Above them sunlight was streaming in bold striations through the stained glass windows, the weather a striking contrast to the days before. From one of the rear pews someone could be heard sniffling, the moment having moved the entire congregation to tears.

  Mrs. Frances Tolliver sat in the first pew with her daughter, Paris, on one side and her late husband’s brother, Jake Tolliver, on her other side. Behind them a host of family and friends filled the church. Everyone was overwhelmed. Mama Frances knew each of her children well, having had many conversations over the years about their dreams and expectations. She’d imagined many a moment for her offspring, but this event had not been one she would have expected for her youngest male child. She knew it was a time her child had even doubted having for himself. She looked toward her eldest son and smiled, Mecan meeting his mother’s gaze with one of his own. He could almost see what the matriarch was thinking and he grinned broadly, his head bobbing ever so slowly. He turned his attention back to the minister.

  Darwin sat in a wheelchair at Bridget’s side, his head bowed in prayer, and his brother standing on his other side. When the pastor concluded the benediction, a loud amen ringing through the church, Darwin lifted his gaze back to Bridget’s. The minister had touched them with his dedication, reminding them just how blessed they each were. Darwin, in particular, knew he had much to be thankful for. He looked down at the cast and sling on his left arm, feeling the tension of bandages that bound his torso. The bullets had torn through muscle and cracked bone, narrowly missing his heart and his lungs. Over eight hours of surgery and two weeks in intensive care had shed new light on the life and love he wanted for himself. His family had spent hours at his bedside, never once doubting that he would pull through, even when he himself wasn’t quite so sure.

  But here he was, just hours out of the hospital, alive and well, and with his friends, his family and an almighty God to declare his undying love for the woman beside him. In anticipation of the pastor’s permission, he pulled Bridget down to him, reaching to kiss her mouth.

  Dr. McKinney scolded him teasingly. “Did I say you could kiss the bride, young man?”

  The whole room chuckled as Darwin smiled sheepishly.

  “Okay. Now you may kiss your bride,” the man said, tossing him a quick wink of his eye.

  A round of applause and cheers erupted through the church as she leaned toward him, wrapping her arms around his neck and shoulders. Bridget hugged him tightly and both could hear her friends cheering them in the background.

  A short while later, both Bridget and his mother were fussing over him as he sat against his living room sofa. It was a very nontraditional reception, an intimate gathering of his family and closest friends that filled their home to celebrate his recovery and their marriage.

  “You need to be in bed,” Mama Frances scolded softly. “You need your rest, Darwin.”

  Bridget nodded in agreement. “You should listen to your mother, honey.”

  Darwin rolled his eyes. “You women won’t let me have any champagne…”

  “No alcohol with that medication you’re on. The doctor was very insistent,” Bridget interrupted.

  “…and now you want to send me to bed. Alone. What kind of wedding celebration is this?”

  Bridget blushed. “I can’t believe you!”

  Mecan chuckled. “Believe it. He’s always been a difficult patient.”

  Mama Frances nodded. “Both of you were. Couldn’t get one of ’em to do what they were supposed to do. Lost count of the times their daddy and Jake had to use a switch.”

  “I’m too big for switches n
ow,” Darwin chimed.

  “Won’t take no bets on that if I was you,” Uncle Jake interjected. “Yo’ mama will wear your tail out if she has to. Don’t think she won’t. You might be grown but you still her child and Frances don’t play like that.”

  Mecan and Paris laughed.

  “We wouldn’t test that if we were you.” Paris giggled.

  Mama Frances fanned her hand at the trio. She turned her attention to Bridget. “Don’t you pay them kids of mine no attention. And if you need to take a switch to this one, I’ve got one with his name on it that you can use.”

  Everyone in the room broke out laughing.

  Darwin leaned his head on his mother’s shoulder. He made a coughing sound in his throat, patted his chest and then said in a child’s singsong voice, “Mama?”

  “What, baby?” Mama Frances asked, concern rising in her voice.

  “Can I at least have me some wedding cake first?” he asked, batting his eyelashes at the woman. “Please?”

  “Of course, suga’!” she chimed, jumping to her feet. “You have to eat some food first though. Let mama go fix you a plate.”

  As Mama Frances rushed into the kitchen, Darwin winked at his brother.

  Paris shook her head. “I swear. Only you and Mac could get away with that.”

  Bridget laughed. “Just as long as you know you can pull that with your mother, but don’t try it with me.”

  Darwin chuckled as the woman reached to kiss his mouth, drawing her fingers in a light caress across his cheek.

  Conversation danced hand in hand with laughter throughout the home. Bridget moved from room to room, checking on each guest and periodically moving back to Darwin’s side to insure all was well with him. Her parents sat out on the patio in deep conversation with her new mother-in-law, the two families bonding nicely. Outside in the yard, Mecan, Uncle Jake and Roshawn’s husband, Angel, tossed a football around with the children, the men playing as if they were children themselves. Paris stood in deep conversation with Rhonda and Darwin’s new producer, a tall man with a head of fire-engine-red hair and a smile as deep as the Grand Canyon. In the kitchen, Jeneva and Roshawn huddled around the kitchen table, whispering and giggling as though they didn’t speak on the telephone every other day for hours on end.

  Bridget joined them, dropping down onto one of the padded kitchen chairs. She grinned as both women reached out to hold her hands, the gesture a bond of their lifelong friendship.

  “So, how are you doing, kiddo?” Roshawn asked.

  Bridget nodded. “I couldn’t be happier,” she said, breathing a low sigh of relief.

  “You had us worried there for a while,” Jeneva said.

  “I had myself worried,” the woman admitted. “If anything had happened to Darwin…”

  Roshawn squeezed her hand. “Don’t think about it. Brother is doing just fine now. We just thank God that both of you are okay.”

  “Amen,” Jeneva added.

  “So, is that woman behind bars for good now?” Roshawn asked.

  Bridget nodded. “She’s been transferred to a high-risk mental care facility. She’s clearly not competent to stand trial and might not be for a very long while.”

  “Did you see the full-page ad her sister placed in the newspaper?” Jeneva asked, her eyes resting on Roshawn.

  “Not yet.”

  “It was a public letter of apology. Definitely not something you would see every day.”

  Bridget smiled. “The woman is actually quite impressive. A very classy lady. I think she’ll come out of this quite well and she and Darwin were able to settle to his satisfaction.”

  “How much did he milk her for?” Bridget asked, leaning her head against her hand.

  Jeneva rolled her eyes. “I swear, Roshawn!”

  The woman flicked her tongue out. “Don’t pretend like you didn’t want to know.”

  Bridget laughed. “I’m not at liberty to disclose any specific details but let’s just say there will be a number of students for the next few years who’ll be able to pay their way through culinary school courtesy of the Darwin Tolliver Scholarship fund. And the tabloids have officially settled, as well.”

  “Was it millions?” Roshawn queried.

  “Well, let’s just say if I keep on winning cases like this one, the law offices of Bridget H. Tolliver will be one of the most sought-after firms in the state.”

  “That’s what I’m talking about!”

  Jeneva laughed as they changed the subject. “Are you and Darwin planning to take a honeymoon?” she asked.

  Bridget nodded. “He wants to go home to Shreveport for a few days, then we’re going to take a cruise.”

  “Very nice.”

  “Uh, you always know you can come to Phoenix, don’t you?” Roshawn asked.

  Bridget wrapped an arm around her friend’s shoulder. “You really miss me, don’t you?”

  “Don’t let it go to your head,” Roshawn said with a deep laugh.

  A commotion in the other room pulled at Bridget’s attention. She came to her feet and moved to see what was going on. Darwin was stretched out on the sofa, baby Belinda resting against his chest. Dario and Alexa were playing a game of tag around the sofa. Bridget stood in the doorway, her arms crossed over her chest as she watched them.

  Darwin grinned as he met her gaze, acknowledging her with a slight nod of his head. She smiled back. Before she could say anything Mama Frances came rushing into the room.

  “Lord, have mercy! You babies get out in that yard with that running. You know better. Alexa, Dario, you two come on with Mama Frances and let Uncle Darwin get some rest. Uncle Jake is gone take you babies to get some ice cream. Jake!”

  Bridget and Darwin both laughed.

  Mama Frances shook her index finger at one and then the other. “You two don’t need to be letting these children run wild in the house. Don’t be starting no bad habits they gone take home. I’m the only one allowed to do that,” she said as she reached down and took the baby out of Darwin’s arms. “Bridget, go put your husband to bed before we have to take him back to that hospital. I’m not in any mood to be spending no more time in that hospital.”

  Bridget nodded. “Yes, ma’am.”

  They watched as she made her way back outside. As his mother closed the door firmly behind her, Darwin’s eyes moved back to his wife’s face. His heartbeat seemed to race as he sat up in his seat, staring at her. Everything about the woman warmed his soul.

  She’d been an exquisite bride, a breathtaking beauty, as she’d come walking down the aisle in his direction. Her dress had been off-white, a calf-length design, sleeveless with a simple V-neck. It had been beautiful against her rich complexion and she had been prettier than any picture imaginable. But it had been the look of excited anticipation that had hit him like a sledgehammer. Her eyes had locked with his and in that instant he swore he could read every thought, wish and want that dressed her spirit. The longing shimmered in her dark eyes and she glowed with pure joy. In that moment, he had felt his heart beating in his chest, an unadulterated syncopation that he was certain was beating in unison with hers.

  After the shooting Bridget had refused to leave his side. Even during his surgery there had been an acute awareness of her presence and her prayers. The sense that she was near and concerned. It was many days later when he’d learned just how frightened she had been. He’d awakened to find her sleeping upright in a chair beside his bed and only when he spoke her name and had made a joke about missing his birthday and leaving her waiting at the altar did he see a visible blanket of relief wash over her.

  He had no doubts about her love for him. Every ounce of her emotion was visible in the way she looked at him and the tone of her words. Bridget loved him beyond reason and he loved her just as much and more.

  As he sat staring at her a sudden wave of heat rushed from the top of his head down to his toes. An electrical current of energy seemed to surge with full force, igniting every fiber of his being. His eyes su
ddenly widened, sheer delight blessing his expression, and he found himself laughing out loud, his enthusiasm punctuating the quiet in the room.

  “Are you all right?” Bridget asked, eyeing him curiously. “What’s so funny?”

  Darwin nodded enthusiastically. “Oh, baby! I’m better than all right,” he exclaimed gleefully.

  He pushed himself up with his good arm, moving onto his feet. Crossing the room, he kissed her mouth, still chuckling excitedly.

  “Darwin, what’s going on?” Bridget asked, amusement painting her expression.

  Darwin ignored her question, peeking over her shoulder into the kitchen. “Ladies, I need to steal my wife away for a few minutes, please,” he said, tossing Roshawn and Jeneva a wink.

  “Keep her!” Roshawn chimed.

  “We’ll hold the fort,” Jeneva responded.

  He grabbed Bridget’s hand and pulled her along behind him. At that moment Mecan and Mama Frances came through the patio door.

  “What are you doing up?” Mama Frances scolded. “You’re supposed to be resting!”

  Darwin grinned. “I know, Mama. I’m going up to bed right now. Bridget’s going to tuck me in.”

  “It’s about time,” his mother said, reaching to kiss his cheek. “Bridget, baby, you stay with him till he falls asleep, please. Otherwise, he’ll be right back down here getting into trouble.”

  “She will, Mama,” Darwin said, answering for her. “I’m not letting her leave me. In fact, you folks stay as long as you want and lock the doors on your way out. We will see you tomorrow sometime.”

  “Okay, baby,” Mama Frances said. She leaned to give Bridget a kiss and hug, as well.

  Mecan met his brother’s eye. “If you need anything just let us know. Okay, little brother?”

  Darwin’s grin widened. “I’ve got this handled, big brother,” he said. “You folks have a safe trip home,” he said hurriedly as he headed for the stairs.

  In the privacy of the bedroom, Darwin closed and locked the door. Bridget moved across the room and pulled back the bedspread. She looked toward Darwin, who was still standing in the center of the room, his mile-wide smile beaming at her.