Hezekiah and Leo went to the downtown courthouse Monday morning for Stiles’ arraignment. They had contacted the church’s attorney, Barry Whitlock, who was in the courtroom too. They made Stiles bond, and he was released.
“The media has already gotten wind of this, so your picture has been on the news and in the newspaper,” Whitlock informed him as they led him out the courtroom.
Stiles kept his head down. He didn’t want to face Hezekiah, Leo, not anybody. All he wanted to know was if his daughter was all right.
“She’s fine. She’s with Mother Brown,” Hezekiah assured him. When Fancy heard about what went down, she went and got her from the hospital.”
“What did you say?” Stiles questioned. “Why was Audrey in the hospital? What had Detria done to his little girl?”
“Don’t worry. Audrey’s fine. It’s just that when…,” Hezekiah paused.
“When they took Detria to the hospital, they took Audrey to have her checked out too,” Leo finished Hezekiah’s sentence.
“How is she?” Stiles asked. “Detria, I mean.”
“She’s okay, except for a few bruises and a deep cut or gash underneath one of her eyes. But thank God, the baby is fine.”
“I wouldn’t hurt my little girl for anything in this world. You know that.”
Hezekiah looked strangely at Stiles. He doesn’t know Detria is pregnant? “I’m not talking about Audrey. I’m talking about the baby your wife is carrying.”
Stiles stumbled and almost collapsed at the car. “Baby? She’s pregnant?”
“You didn’t know?” Hezekiah asked, opening the front passenger door to Whitlock’s black Chrysler 300. “Get in the car, Pastor Graham,” Hezekiah instructed.
“Of course I didn’t know. Man, that girl is so foul.” Stiles fumed. “But you said the baby is good?” He rubbed his forehead nervously.
“Yeah, the baby is good,” Hezekiah answered.
“Man, it’s going to be all right. Just maintain your cool,” Leo replied, looking just as stunned as Stiles to hear that Detria was pregnant.
Stiles got in the car in slow motion like his feet were embedded in concrete. Pregnant? He couldn’t believe it. All the time he longed for Detria to get pregnant and now she was? Why now?
“Explain to me again what caused all of this,” Attorney Whitlock said as he drove through downtown Memphis.
“Like I said, she’s sleeping with one of my friends. His name is Skip Madison.” The anger swiftly returned as soon as the words came out. “That low down, trifling, son of a—”
“Calm down, Stiles,” Leo told him.
“Skip Madison? Deacon Skip Madison?” Hezekiah asked.
“Yeah, none other than Mr. Romeo himself,” Stiles exclaimed, hitting the armrest with his fist.
“Are you sure, man?” asked Leo.
“Yeah, I’m sure. Man, I caught her leaving his house, and I read text messages in her phone between him and her. I don’t know how long they’ve been sleeping together. The baby in her belly could very well be his and not mine.”
Stiles’ voice finally broke and when Hezekiah looked at him, it looked like Stiles was about to cry. Hezekiah couldn’t blame him if he did. This was a lot for a man to handle. Being in the position of leadership, especially the senior pastor of a big church like Holy Rock, well, let’s just say this could be pretty bad for Stiles. Hezekiah already felt it in his gut.
“Why don’t you come stay with me and Fancy? I don’t think it’s a good idea for you to go back home right now.”
“He’s right,” agreed Attorney Whitlock.
“Or you can stay at my crib,” offered Leo. “I know Crystal won’t mind.”
“Naw, take me to the Hilton on Ridge Lake Boulevard. I’ll get a room there. I don’t want to bring you all into my mess. I mean, I guess I’ve already done that, but I don’t want to get you any more involved than you have to be.”
“We’ll drop you off at the hotel first, then after I get my car from Attorney Whitlock’s office, I’ll go pick up some of your clothes from the house,” Leo offered.
“Thanks, man.” Stiles looked back at Leo and Hezekiah, then over at Attorney Whitlock. “Thanks. I can’t believe I let the devil get me like this. I mean, what was I thinking? My God,” Stiles cried out.
“It happens to the best of us. There’s nothing you can do about it now but try to rectify the situation,” advised Attorney Whitlock. “Domestic assault is a serious charge. I don’t think I have to tell you that, but I’m going to see if we can get this squashed without you having to go before a jury of your peers. Since you have no prior record, not even a traffic ticket, and you have a stellar reputation in the community and this city, I should be able to get you probation with no time served, and diversion after your probation ends. Now, tonight, I want you to go to the hotel and get some rest. Do not contact your wife. Do you understand?”
“Yeah, I understand,” Stiles answered reluctantly.
“You heard the judge tell you that your wife has secured a temporary protective order against you. So, if you don’t want to get in any deeper than you are, you’ll take heed to my advice. That goes for this Mr. Madison fellow too. Do not call or try to confront him.”
“You don’t have to worry. We’ll make sure he doesn’t do anything rash or stupid,” said Hezekiah.
“Yeah, you hear that? You have to lay low, man,” Leo warned. “Brother to brother, I’m telling you to keep your head together, man. You hear me?”
“Yeah, sure. I hear you.”
Chapter 18
“A half-truth is the most cowardly of lies.” Unknown
Detria lay on the couch downstairs in the family room. Her body ached, and it was sore like she’d been in a terrible car accident. She still found it hard to believe that Stiles had become so irate to the point that he had almost broken her wrist when he grabbed her. It was his fault too that she’d hit her face on the table. The cut underneath her eye required stitches. A millimeter closer, and she could have put out her eye. She had fallen just that hard. Detria told anyone who would listen that Stiles had beaten her, and that he threatened to kill her and Skip.
Pastor called and talked to her and told her how sorry he was for what Stiles did. He was upset and disappointed that his son had allowed the enemy to manipulate him into abusing his wife. He told Detria that no matter what had transpired between her and Stiles, that his son had no right to strike her.
Detria had already been crying and now she cried harder and louder into the phone with Pastor on the other end. She thought of the time she physically abused Pastor when he was helpless and defenseless after having suffered his second stroke. Pastor forgave her and to this day, he treated her like a daughter.
“Pastor, I can’t believe he did this. And Audrey was in the room too. I was so scared. I’ve never seen him so angry. It was like he was a different person.”
Brooke sat across from her in an oversized chair, listening to her sister talking on the phone. Brooke also hated what Stiles had done, but she also understood how a man like Stiles could snap. Stiles loved her sister, and Detria was wrong, dead wrong for cheating on the man. She also knew how cynical Detria could be. Her mouth had gotten her into trouble more than once while they were growing up. That didn’t give Stiles any right whatsoever to hit her sister but Brooke looked at the situation from both sides. She didn’t say it aloud, but she thought about the story Detria told her. She didn’t know if she believed her sister. Had Stiles really hit her?
“Thank you, Pastor. Yes…okay…I will. Goodnight.”
“So, what did Pastor have to say?”
“He said that he couldn’t uphold Stiles because what he did was wrong. He said he still wanted me to pray and ask God to give me a forgiving spirit.”
“And?” said Brooke.
“And what?”
“Are you going to forgive him?”
“I can’t think about forgiving him right now. I just got from the hospital from the man bea
ting the brakes off me. He could have made me lose my baby, and you want to sit here and talk about forgiving him? I don’t think so.”
“Are you sure he beat you, Detria?” Brooke looked at her sister. One eyebrow rose, like she didn’t quite know what to believe.
“What kind of question is that? Can you see?” Detria eyed herself, pointing to her face. “You think I did this to myself?”
“Of course, I can see. And I’m not taking up for him, I’m just asking. You’re my sister. I know you.”
“Obviously you don’t if you think I would make up something like this.”
“I’m just saying, it’s not like your record is squeaky clean. I mean, the man found out you were cheating on him. And not only are you cheating on him, you’re doing it with one of his best friends, and one of the deacons at the church. Come on, now. Be for real. What would you do if the shoe was on the other foot?”
“I wouldn’t do what he did to me, that’s for sure. I would have just left his butt, divorced him, and got everything I could, including this house! I will not allow any man to abuse me and get away with it. Stiles is going to pay. You best believe that.”
“I said he was wrong, Detria.”
Detria rolled her eyes at her sister before she stood up and started walking toward the open designed, chef-styled kitchen.
“Does he know you’re pregnant?” Brooke stood up and followed her.
“No. I was going to wait until it was confirmed by my OB/GYN. But after everything that happened, and I went to the ER, I told the doctor that I might be pregnant, so they gave me a pregnancy test. They said I’m about eleven weeks.” Detria rested at the kitchen island. Nervously she ran her hands through her hair. “This can’t be Skip’s baby. It just can’t.”
“My God, Detria. How could you do this? You had a good marriage, a great husband. You have a beautiful daughter, and look at this house.” Brooke looked around the enormous kitchen that was bigger than both of her sons’ bedrooms put together. “I mean it’s like stepping into one of those houses for the rich and famous. And you want to throw it all away for some building engineer, wannabe player like Skip Madison? Come on, now.”
“Look, I don’t need you judging me. You don’t know what goes on behind closed doors.”
“No, you’re right. I don’t. Why don’t you fill me in? What exactly has Stiles done that you had to go and cheat on the man?”
“I guess whipping on me is not a good enough reason, huh, my high and mighty sister.” Detria was fuming. She couldn’t believe that Brooke was coming to Stiles’ defense the way that she was. “Honey, Stiles is not Mr. Perfect. Look how he dumped Rena at the first sign of trouble, and what about when he was going behind my back emailing and calling her long after they had been divorced. Oh, and let’s not forget that he’s raised his hand at me before. I guess you forgot all about that, huh, Brooke?”
“No, I haven’t forgotten, but it still does not justify committing adultery. For Christ sakes, Detria, you’re the first lady. What kind of example are you setting? What kind of role model are you for young women in the church?”
“That’s just it; I’m not a role model. I don’t want to be one either. I’m human. I’m me! I made a mistake. So what if I’m the first lady. I’m not the first woman to cheat on her husband and I most certainly won’t be the last. Now, if you ask me if I regret what I’ve done, yes, I do. But it’s done now. I can’t change what happened. And,” she lowered her voice and placed her hand on her belly, “if it turns out that this baby is Skip’s, then I’ll have to cross that bridge when I get to it. And, if it’s Stiles’ baby, then I still have to come to a decision about what I’m going to do. I do know that I can’t see myself staying with a man who would do to me what Stiles has done.”
“I hear you. And I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to come off like I was accusing you or blaming you for what Stiles did. As a man of God, he should have been able, in my opinion, to exercise more self-control.”
“Exactly,” agreed Detria.
“So what happens from this point forward?”
“I know he’s made bond. You know Crystal, Leo Jones’ wife?”
“Yeah, I remember Crystal.”
“Well, she texted me and told me that he’s supposed to be staying at a hotel. She didn’t know which hotel. She said Leo wouldn’t tell her.”
“Have you talked to Pastor McCoy yet?”
“Yeah, for a minute. He called earlier this morning. He said that he and Sister McCoy would be over here sometime today to check on me.”
“That’s good. What about Audrey? Have you heard from Mother Brown?”
“Not since she called and told me that Sister McCoy dropped Audrey off over there. As far as I know, Mother Brown doesn’t know that I’m home from the hospital. I guess I’ll call her now.”
“When you call, tell her that I’m going to come and get Audrey and take her home with me. You know I don’t mind and John adores that little girl. If he had his way, I would be pregnant with baby number three.” Brooke laughed.
“See, that’s what I’m talking about.”
“What?” Brooke’s eyebrows raised.
“You and John have the perfect marriage. A blind man see that.”
“That’s because me and John work hard at our marriage. You think we don’t fight? You think we don’t disagree at times? And you know for yourself that I put that man through some things in my marriage before the boys came along.”
“Yeah, but that was a long time ago. Other than that, I’ve never seen John say a cross word to you, and come to think of it, I’ve never heard you say anything remotely offensive to him either.”
“You’d be surprised, but it’s just that John and I try to do like the Bible instructs, and that’s not to let the sun go down and we’re angry at one another. We make it a point to resolve our differences before we go to bed. And it works. But like I said, it isn’t always easy. We’ve been together for eleven years, and it’s taken every single second of every day, working to make our marriage strong.”
“In other words, what you’re telling me is that you would never do what I did? You would never cheat.”
“I don’t think I even have to answer that. Look, let’s drop this for now. Why don’t you call Mother Brown while I whip us up something sinfully delicious to eat.”
“Sounds good to me. And Brooke?”
“Yes, Sis?”
“Thank you.”
Chapter 19
“If a relationship has to be a secret, you shouldn’t be in it.” Unknown
I want 2 see u.”
“I can’t do that.”
“I’ll b careful no one sees me. hav to make sur u r ok”
“I’m good, Skip.”
“Just let me com ova for a few minutes.”
“No. leave me alone.”
The phone rang. It was Skip. Detria exhaled slowly, allowing the phone to ring several more times before she pushed the button to answer it.
“Why are you doing this? Haven’t you caused enough trouble?”
“Trouble? Me? I think you have the wrong guy, baby. This is me, Skip, not that crazy preacher boy you’re married to.”
“What do you want?”
“I told you. I want to see you. I want to see for myself that you’re okay.”
“And I told you, no. You have to take my word. I’m good.”
Detria stayed on the phone trying to convince Skip that she was good. Right now her mind wasn’t on him. She didn’t want to see him, didn’t want anything to do with him. She realized that she shouldn’t have let things between them go on for so long. When she first flirted with Skip, she hadn’t expected anything to come of it, but some kind of way, one thing led to another and she found herself in bed with him. After that first time, it was like she became addicted to Skip Madison. The more she tried to tell him that they had to end things, the more she clung to the guy.
She loved Stiles but she felt like he wasn’t exactly attentiv
e to her needs. It was always about that daggone church. She thought about First Lady Audrey. How had she endured being the first lady all those years? How did she put up with Pastor putting the church ahead of her and their children? No wonder you cheated on Pastor.You went through the same thing I’m going through now. And like you, I may be carrying my lover’s child. First Lady Audrey, what do I do?
“Detria, are you listening to me?” Skip asked.
“I’ve got to go. I’m tired, Skip. I’ll call you later.”
“Promise?”
“I said that I would. Bye.”
“Bye, sweetheart. Take care of yourself and my baby.”
“You don’t know if it’s yours yet, so I wouldn’t go there if I were you.”
“I know, but something tells me it is.”
“Bye, Skip.” Detria ended the call and returned to thinking about what her next step would be.
Chapter 20
“Whatever is begun in anger ends in shame.” Benjamin Franklin
Stiles sat alone in his office at Holy Rock. It had been two and a half weeks since the incident between him and Detria. After his picture was blasted all over the news, Internet, and God only knows where else, Stiles realized he had some tough decisions to make about his marriage, his pastoral position, and his life overall.
He was due back in court the following week. His lawyer believed that everything would be resolved, and he would be able to move on with his life.
He had prayed, talked to Hezekiah, and absolutely sought his father’s guidance, but he still wasn’t any closer to knowing what he should do. Should he give it all up? This was the church that his father had built and now because of him and Detria’s dirty laundry being aired all over the city, he was between a rock and a hard place. The last thing he wanted to do was destroy everything Pastor had spent his life building.
Stiles rubbed his hand over his head, then put his elbow on his mahogany desk, made a fist, and rested his tilting head against it. He began praying out loud.
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