by Joy Redmond
As Otis turned the car back onto the highway, she lay down in the back seat. The humming of the motor was soothing. A moment later, she heard a choir of angels singing, and she could easily pick out Mama’s voice from among them.
Suddenly, visions began to flash before her eyes. She saw herself as a teenager standing on a stage, bathed in a bright spotlight. Her chestnut-brown hair was hanging in loose waves and cascading down her back. She was dressed in a beautiful yellow floor-length evening gown with puffed sleeves and a scooped neckline. She was wearing white patent leather high-heeled shoes.Iris’s single strand of pearls was hanging around her neck and she was wearing matching pearl earrings.
She was standing beside a baby grand, taking bow after bow. The crowd in the huge auditorium was standing and giving her a thunderous ovation. Roses were falling at her feet as flash bulbs popped before her eyes.
The crowd was cheering, “Encore! Encore!”
She scanned the crowd and saw Daddy, clapping, whistling through his teeth, and calling out, “That’s my girl, Punkin! I knew the day I delivered ya that you were somebody special!”
She also saw Mammaw standing beside Daddy, yelling, “That’s my girl! Ya make me so proud!”
She glanced to her right. Miz Mattie was clapping her hands, tears rolling. Yolanda was standing beside Miz Mattie, blowing kisses.
She looked upward and saw two bright red balls of light near the ceiling to her left. Suddenly, one of the balls took the shape of Evan’s face. The second one evolved into the shape of Mama’s face. She was more beautiful than ever.
As the applause died down, she sat back down at the piano, her fingers poised above the keys. Then she said softly, “This one is for you, Mama.” She took a deep breath and began playing The Black Hawk Waltz.
She was awakened by the slamming of the car door. She sat up and saw Iris getting out of the car. She watched as Iris approached the mailbox, remembering the first time they had pulled into the driveway and how she had recognized her surroundings, even though she’d never been there before.
She creased her brow as she realized that Purple Angel had shown her what God had planned for her the night Aunt Lou said she was going to be placed in a Baptist home. Was the vision she had just seen, Purple Angel revealing God’s plan for her as the daughter of Iris and Otis Hodge?
She inhaled deeply and then slowly exhaled, whispering, “It’s the way it has to be.”
Iris got back in the car and Otis headed up the long driveway. After he pulled the car into the garage, he turned in the seat, and said, “You’re the sweetest daughter that any parent could ever hope for.”
Amanda smiled and said, “Thank you, Father.”
Iris opened the back door, extended her hand, and asked sweetly, “Are you ready to go inside and take a nap?”
Amanda took her hand and sweetly replied, “Yes, Mother.”
Carnikko flew away. Purple Angel was flying right beside her.
Chapter Forty-Two
1960
With the first rays of sun, Mandy’s eyelids opened. She sat up and blinked, her bones aching as if she were an old woman. She pulled the blankets up around her, hoping their warmth would penetrate her aching body, but no blanket could thaw the chilling terror of staring into a pair of evil eyes. She reminded herself that it was just a nightmare—that no man could hurt her again.
As the chill finally began to leave her body, she pushed back the blankets, swung her tapered legs off the bed, and stuck her feet into her slippers. She stood and stroked her flannel nightgown. She’d always loved the feel of soft flannel.
She strolled across the room, stood in front of the vanity, and stared at her reflection, trying to figure out if she looked more like Mama or Daddy. She had Mama’s hair and oval face, but she had Daddy’s high cheekbones, eye color, and devilish smile.
She picked up a brush and ran it through her waist-length hair, amazed at how her once-tight curls were now loose waves cascading down her back. She placed the brush back on the vanity, raised her right hand, and placed it on her reflection.
Looking in the mirror, she smiled as she whispered, “You made it to eighteen, Nikko. You never thought you’d survive Otis and Iris Hodge—but here you are!”
She headed to the rocking chair next to the bedside table, sat, opened the drawer, and picked up a journal she’d been writing Carnikko’s story in for the past eight years. Some of the stories brought tears to her eyes, but other parts made her laugh. Whenever she wrote, she could feel herself as Carnikko, snuggling between Mama and Daddy in their cozy, warm bed. She missed those days of so long ago.
She opened the journal, wanting to make one last entry for Carnikko. In two months it would be ten years since Mama’s death, and Mandy thought it only fitting that she should write what Nikko would want to say about it. She picked up the pen and wrote:
Ten years ago you left me. Ten years I have cried.
On a cold night in January, you were taken from my side.
But God will wipe away my tears and I’ll forget the painful years.
In heaven we’ll reunite—and forever live in His pure light.
When she finished, she sat for a long moment, remembering Carnikko’s brothers. It was fitting that she write something about them too. She thought a moment, then wrote:
In the evening’s calm I see them, my brother’s faces very plain
On that night when we were parted, I knew someday we’d meet again.
Love grew stronger without ending, and precious memories still remain
Through the years I’ve remembered, my brother’s faces very plain
Mandy put the pen in the drawer and then flipped through the pages of the journal, her mind drifting back in time. She could still hear Daddy’s voice and see his gestures and facial expressions as he told about the morning Carnikko was born. Daddy always did have a flare for the dramatic.
Mammaw Randall always said that Daddy had an imagination that knew no bounds. Grandma Winston always said that Daddy was a big fat liar. Mandy laughed, because both of them were right.
She shivered when she saw the words Candy Man. Then she smiled, because that was the same day that Purple Angel first appeared and the day that Carnikko realized that her mind was a powerful tool and could take her anywhere she wanted to go.
As Mandy remembered Aunt Lou telling Carnikko about Mama and Evan’s death, her soul filled with gratitude. Aunt Lou had been there to guide a heartbroken child through her darkest hour.
Mandy was amazed at how at only eight-years-old, Carnikko had developed more survival tricks than a modern day soldier. Mandy wondered if she’d ever get over the mental damage that men had done to Carnikko—and that included Daddy! She also wondered if Daddy still carried Carnikko’s lock of hair in his wallet.
She thought back to Carnikko’s Christmases, and the two that stuck out in her mind as the happiest: The Christmas she found the red shoulder strap purse and Betsy Wetsy doll, and the Christmas of 1952, when she saw Donald, Lee, and Daddy after longing for them for a whole year.
Mandy realized that children had to grow up before they could understand so many things, but there were some things she knew she’d never understand.
She smiled as she recalled Carnikko’s prayer for instant death as a way to punish Aunt Lou. She could also still feel the pain in Carnikko’s heart the day Aunt Lou sent her to live with Iris and Otis.
Aunt Lou had come to visit often, especially when she’d just had a new baby—there were three more babies after Carnikko left.
She remembered the first day with Iris and how confused Carnikko was by everything that was happening. Mandy smiled again, because there were still times when she found herself wondering if Iris was from some other planet.
Mandy closed the journal, ran her hand over the cover, and placed it back in the drawer. She thought back to the day when the adoption was finalized. As of that day, Carnikko Randall no longer existed in the eyes of the law. She knew that Purple A
ngel had taken Carnikko to their special place, and Mandy was happy for her.
After that day, Purple Angel occasionally visited Mandy, telling her that she would leave forever when her childhood ended. Two days after Mandy turned twelve, she started her first menstrual cycle—and Purple Angel went away for good.
Mandy missed Purple Angel, but her heart was always warmed by knowing that Purple Angel would never leave Carnikko.
Mandy walked back across the floor, stood in front of the vanity, looked at her reflection, and said, “Thank you for always coming to my rescue when I was confused and not sure what to do.”
In her mind, she heard Nikko reply, I’ll never leave you for good, but I’d like it if you’d call on me more often. I don’t like being shut out.
“I know,” Mandy said with a smile. “You can come out and stay all day, Nikko.”
Iris called out from the bottom of the stairs, “Are you going to stay up there all day? You need to come down and practice The Black Hawk Waltz. We want it perfect for your recital. That yellow Dotted Swiss evening gown won’t finish by itself, you know. Don’t make me come up there and get you.”
She looked in the mirror and saw that her reflection was wearing a Daddy-like grin. She giggled like the child she had once been, then whispered, “Well, Iris. Mandy and Nikko are here. Which one would you like to come up and get?”
###
About the Author
After retiring from her career as a phlebotomist, Joy decided to pursue her passion for writing. She lives in Kentucky. She's the mother of three and the grandmother of seven.
Books by Joy
The Dreamer (2011)
Anna's Visions (2012)
Stolen Lives (2013
Give Me Wings (2013)
Wings And Beyond (2014)
Wings And Faith (2015)
DarkHeart of Hampton House (2014)
Finding Will Hennie (2014)
Joy’s books are available on Amazon.com in Kindle, and paperback formats at:
http://amazon.com/author/joyredmond