The Boss flipped another page and then he slammed his fist down on his desk. “What do you think you’re doing by letting that Barnard have prayer time with Luther? Luther is nothing but trouble. Always going around praying for people. I’ve been trying for years to shake his faith and nothing works.”
“I didn’t know,” Sean said.
“You didn’t need to know so you can’t use that as an excuse. You should never give those Christians time to pray. Let them talk themselves silly, but don’t let them pray. We want Barnard’s marriage to crash and burn, and here you are letting him pray with Luther. I’m not even going to talk about Preacher. He’s praying when he gets up, when he goes to bed, and all through the day. How do you expect our negative thoughts and lies to have any impact if he’s praying all the time?” The Boss rocked his head from side to side as he studied Sean. “Tell me that.”
“I’ll rectify the situation,” Sean said. “I promise you.”
The Boss eyed him skeptically. “Your promises don’t mean squat to me. You must have me confused with Him. He’s the one who gives second, third, and fourth chances, not me. Maybe we should end this now and send you to Third Hades. You don’t have what it takes.”
“I do have what it takes,” Sean declared, feeling sweat beading on his brow but not daring to wipe it off. “I can win Preacher back and get you the collateral damage you want.”
The Boss stared at him for what seemed like hours, but was probably only minutes. “Make it happen, Jones.” He tossed Sean’s report in the wastebasket next to his desk. “Now get out.”
Thoroughly soaked with his own sweat, Sean headed for the door. He opened it, and then turned back and said, “I won’t let you down, sir.”
The Boss snorted. “You’ve already let me down. Now get out of here and stir up some conflict and confusion in Preacher’s life before I have to stir up some in yours.”
CHAPTER 6
Preacher entered the vestibule of Faith Community on Sunday with a heavy heart. He’d spent the previous night alone because Tanya had taken the boys to visit her mother. He wasn’t upset because Tanya had gone; he was upset because she hadn’t told him she and the boys planned to stay overnight. He’d only been home a few days and he missed his boys. He didn’t like them being away from him. It was too soon.
Tanya had tried to explain her reasons and Preacher had to accept that she had some valid points. Her mother had never liked him and now that he had some clarity about his life, he knew he couldn’t really blame her. After he’d become a Christian, he’d written her of the change in his life but she had returned his letter unopened. He’d have to visit her soon to let her see that he was a new person, though he felt it was going to take more than one trip to convince her.
He shook off his sad thoughts as he slid into a pew about midway down the sanctuary. He’d wanted the boys and Tanya with him this morning, but that was not to be and he had to accept it. There was always next Sunday, he told himself.
“There you are.”
Preacher turned at Barnard’s voice and saw his friend striding toward him. “Good to see you, man,” Barnard said. “I’m glad you could make it.”
Preacher stood up and greeted Barnard with a loose man hug. “I’m glad, too. You know I had to spend my first Sunday in God’s house. There’s no other place I’d rather be.”
“Did you bring Tanya and the boys?”
Preacher shook his head. “It’s a long story, man,” he said. “I’d rather not talk about it now.”
“No problem,” Barnard said. “Praying is always better than talking and that’s what we’ll do this morning. Since you’re by yourself, how about Serena and I join you?”
Preacher nodded. Though he dreaded his first meeting with Serena, he thought he was prepared to see her. What he had done to her still weighed heavily on him.
“All right then,” Barnard said. “Hold tight here while I find Serena. She’s probably with my sister somewhere. I’ll track them down. I want you to meet both of them.”
Preacher watched Barnard stride out of the sanctuary in search of his family and then he sat back down. “Prepare Serena’s heart to see me, Lord,” he prayed.
“Preacher?”
Preacher looked up into the most gorgeous set of brown eyes he’d ever seen. “Yes?”
She extended a slim hand. “Welcome. I’m Natalie, Barnard’s sister. He’s told me a lot about you.”
Preacher stood and took her hand. “He’s told me a lot about you, too, Natalie. Thank you for your work in the prison ministry. It’s important work, but I’m sure you already know that.”
“Thanks,” she said, but he sensed she was uneasy with the praise. “I hear that your transition is going smoothly.”
Preacher wasn’t sure smoothly was an accurate description but he didn’t bother to correct her. “I’m blessed,” was all he said.
“Aren’t we all,” she agreed. She pointed to the space where he had been sitting. “Sit back down,” she said. “And if it’s okay, I’ll sit with you. Barnard’s gone to find Serena and I need to see her before service starts.”
“That’s fine,” Preacher said, moving over so she could sit. “I’d appreciate the company.”
“Barnard tells me you have two children.”
“Yes, boys. Mack is four and Jake is six. Do you have kids?”
She shook her head and lifted her bare ring finger. “Not married.”
She smiled but Preacher could detect sadness in her. He wondered why such a pretty woman was not married, but he knew it wasn’t his place to ask. He thought about his relationship with Tanya. “Marriage isn’t always a prerequisite for children.”
“I know,” she said, “I want children, but I’ve never wanted to be a single parent. I’m learning that all things come in God’s timing.”
Again, Preacher detected an underlying sadness. “Well, I didn’t exactly do things God’s way, but I’m working on it.”
“What do you mean?”
“My kids’ mother and I are planning to get married soon.”
“Good for you,” she said. “You’ll have to bring her and your kids next time. We have a strong couples’ ministry and the kids will love Children’s Church. We even offer preschool and after-school programs through our Children’s Center. Oh yes, and the pastor does premarital counseling.”
Preacher smiled. “Are you sure you’re not a plant to help visitors learn about all the services and programs in the church?”
“Sorry,” Natalie said. “I get carried away. This is a great church. Barnard and I moved here about seven years ago when our father was incarcerated at Jackson, and the people have been wonderful to us. I’m sure you and your family will find a home here.”
“If everybody is as nice as you and Barnard, I’m sure we’ll fit right in.”
Natalie responded but Preacher couldn’t stay focused on what she was saying because he was distracted by a familiar voice—Serena’s. He turned his head toward the sound and their eyes met briefly before Serena lowered her gaze. “Don’t let my little sister talk your ear off,” Barnard said as he leaned in to give his sister a kiss on the cheek. “I’m teasing,” he told her when she bristled at him.
“You’d better be,” Natalie said. “I’ve done a good job of keeping you company, haven’t I, Preacher?”
“A very good job,” Preacher said.
“Well, you’ve met one woman in my life. Now it’s time for you to meet my better half.” Barnard reached behind him to bring Serena to the forefront. “Serena, this is Preacher. Preacher, this is my wife, Serena.”
“Hello, Preacher,” Serena said as if they were meeting for the first time. “It’s nice to meet you. Welcome to Faith Community.”
“Nice to meet you, too, Serena.” Preacher hated lying to Barnard but the plea in Serena’s eyes made him go along with her. He owed her that much, but they needed to talk. Soon. He’d hurt her in the past, and if possible, he would never hurt her again. But he knew
the lies couldn’t continue. They would only lead to more pain for all of them, especially Barnard.
“Now you’ve met both the women in my life. What do you think?”
Preacher grinned. “How’d you get so lucky?”
“Good answer,” Natalie said to Preacher. Then she punched her brother’s shoulder. “What kind of question was that?”
“Look who’s talking.” Barnard rubbed his shoulder before turning to Preacher. “Did she even let you get a word in edgewise?”
Natalie glanced at Preacher, her eyes daring him to agree with Barnard. “I think we’d better change the subject,” Preacher said.
Natalie smiled. “I knew I was going to like you,” she told him.
“Nat,” a male voice called, interrupting their banter.
Preacher watched Natalie’s eyes brighten as she turned to the man who’d called to her. She waved him over and pressed a kiss on his cheek. “I’ve been waiting for you,” she told him.
“I didn’t know I was late,” the man said, looking into her eyes.
She reached for his hand and pulled him into their circle. “Everybody, I’d like you to meet Dante Griggs.”
Barnard extended his hand. “Good to see you again, Dante,” he said. He inclined his head towards Serena. “This is my wife, Serena.” After the two greeted each other with a handshake, Barnard introduced Dante to Preacher and they also shook hands. “Dante is one of the owners of Circle Autos,” Barnard told them. “I met with him and his partner the other day to discuss their possible involvement in our jobs program.” He looked at Dante. “I hope you’ve been thinking about it.”
“A lot,” he said. He smiled at Natalie. “I don’t know who’s more persistent,” he told her. “You or your brother.”
“Told you,” Natalie said. “We Jenkinses are a single-minded bunch.”
Dante smiled at her. “As long as there’s room in your mind for a few other things, it’s okay with me.”
“No, you two are not flirting right here in the church,” Barnard teased. “Dante, do I need to have the big brother talk with you?”
Dante’s face sobered. “Anytime man, anytime.”
With those words, Preacher understood the seriousness of the relationship between Dante and Natalie. Though he’d only just met Barnard’s sister, he liked her and hoped this Dante was worthy of her.
The worship leaders came to the front of the church, ending the group’s banter, and they took their seats. Preacher immersed himself in the worship, thinking about all that God had done for him. Surely, he was the most blessed man in the entire congregation. By the time the minister came to the pulpit, tears were already streaming down his cheeks.
“The scripture for the morning,” Pastor Thomas began, “is one that’s very familiar to most of us, First Corinthians, chapter 6, verses 14 through 15. If you brought your Bibles, I want you to turn there with me. I’m sure many of you know the scripture by heart, but I want you to turn there anyway.”
Preacher wiped his eyes and opened his Bible. He was very familiar with the “unequally yoked” scripture.
“I’m going to read from the New Living Translation,” Pastor Thomas said, “so there may be a few different words in the version you’re using. Rest assured, the words may be different but the meaning is the same. Say Amen if you’ve found the scripture.” After a chorus of amens from the congregation, Pastor Thomas read, “‘Don’t team up with those who are unbelievers. How can goodness be a partner with wickedness? How can light live with darkness? What harmony can there be between Christ and the Devil? How can a believer be a partner with an unbeliever?’”
Preacher settled in to listen to the sermon. Barnard had showed him this passage soon after he’d become a Christian to give Preacher an opportunity to look at his relationship with Tanya from a scriptural perspective. Given the life he and Tanya had lived, Preacher considered another passage in the same book more fitting, the one that talked about the believing spouse being able to save the unbelieving spouse. Right now, he and Tanya were not walking on the same path, but Preacher believed God could use his life to show Tanya what it really meant to be a Christian. He believed it with all his heart.
“Girl, you’re turning into a real heathen.”
Tanya heard her mother’s call right before she felt the bedcovers whipped away from her body. She opened one eye, saw Maylene standing over her with her hands propped on her hips, and quickly closed her eye again before pulling the covers back up. “Please, Momma. Not this morning.”
Maylene pulled the covers back again. “‘Please, Momma’ nothing. I know I raised you better than this, Tanya. Lying in bed on Sunday morning. You’re becoming more trifling every day. Now get up.”
Tanya buried her head facedown in one of her pillows. There was a time she had liked going to church but that all ended when Maylene decided that she and the pastor’s son would make a fine couple. Odd as it was, Maylene was the first person to make Tanya feel like nothing more than a piece of meat. Maylene had put her daughter on the market to be the pastor’s daughter-in-law, and everybody at Mt. Nebo had known it. Tanya had felt sorrier for Dexter, the pastor’s homely son, than she’d felt for herself.
“Hiding your head is not going to solve anything, Tanya. You know you need to get up.”
Tanya flopped over on her back. “I’m a grown woman, Momma. I think I can decide when I want to go to church.”
“Grown my foot,” Maylene said. “You’re acting worse than the boys. I don’t have this kind of trouble getting them ready for church.” She stared down at Tanya, shaking her head. “But then they didn’t stay out all night.”
“I wasn’t out all night,” Tanya mumbled. Maybe half the night, she told herself. But then, she’d needed a break from the stress of dealing with Preacher and his issues. She’d deliberately misled him into thinking that she and the boys would be back home last night, when her plans all along had been to leave the boys with her mother and spend the night clubbing. It had been a long time since she’d gone out by herself looking to have fun. And she’d found it.
“Tell that to Wilford.”
“Preacher is not the boss of me, Momma,” she said, all the while knowing she didn’t dare tell Preacher what she’d been up to. All he needed to know was that she and the boys had spent the night at her mother’s. “I do what I want, go where I want.”
Maylene shook her head. “Big talk now, but tonight you’re going right back to that drug dealer.”
“It’s my home. I picked it out. I decorated it. Why should I leave?”
Maylene sat down on the side of the bed. “For once in your life, Tanya, will you use your head for something other than a hat rack? You’re right. That is your house. No judge in Georgia would make you and those boys leave, but they’d sure make Wilford leave. Put him out, Tanya, so you can move on with your life.”
Tanya rolled over and faced away from her mother. “Not again. I’m not having this conversation again.” She pulled a pillow over her head.
Maylene sighed. “You’re throwing your life away, Tanya. You’ve already wasted enough years on Wilford. Pastor Green’s son has always been sweet on you and I bet he’s still interested. You know he’s still not married.”
“And I know why,” Tanya muttered into her pillow.
“Don’t believe that gossip. There’s nothing wrong with Dexter Junior,” Maylene said. “There are plenty of women after him. He’s the one being picky. You know, one day he’s gonna have his own church, maybe even Mt. Nebo once his father retires. You could do a lot worse, Tanya.” She sighed again. “But then I don’t have to tell you that. Look at the men you’ve picked. First, that no-talent basketball-playing T.J. and then the drug-dealing Wilford. At the rate you’re going, you might as well go straight to the prison and pick out your next man.”
Tanya turned over and faced her mother. She didn’t like it when Maylene hit close to the truth. T.J. had been a bad pick, but how was she to know his knee was going to g
o out on him? He’d been a hot prospect when he was drafted. Another reason T.J. had been a bad pick was that he turned violent when he got a little drink in him and started comparing the life he could have had as an NBA star with the life he did have as someone slipping out of the league altogether. Preacher had been a welcome change after all that drama. “Why are you so concerned, Momma?”
“I’m worried about you and the boys, especially the boys.”
Tanya rolled her eyes. “Right.” She had a feeling Maylene was more concerned about herself and how Preacher’s new financial situation was going to affect her.
“What does that mean?” Maylene wanted to know.
“Nothing, Momma,” Tanya said. “Just leave me alone so I can get some sleep.”
“You’re really not going to church?”
Tanya shook her head into her pillow.
“You don’t have to be embarrassed,” Maylene said in a soothing voice that surprised Tanya. “The talk will die down as soon as you leave Wilford. That’s why you should have left him as soon as he was arrested. The longer you stay with him, the more people are going to think that you knew all along.”
Tanya turned back over and faced her mother. “I did know.”
“Don’t be ignorant. People don’t have to know that.”
“Like they don’t have to know that Preacher and I are living together?”
Maylene waved off that comment. “Please. You aren’t the only one at Mt. Nebo shacking up, or whatever your generation calls it. As long as you don’t flaunt your situation, nobody’s going to say anything. People understand how things are today.”
“Okay, Momma, whatever you say.”
Maylene finally stood up. “I say you ought to go to church, but since you won’t listen to good advice, I hope you’ll get up and have dinner ready for us when we get back.” With those words and without waiting for an answer, Maylene turned and left the room.
Serena could feel the heat of Preacher’s eyes on her. She knew he hadn’t liked having to lie about knowing her, but this wasn’t the way she wanted Barnard to find out. How thick her lies had become in such a short time! How was she going to get herself out of it? Help me, Lord, she pleaded silently. Please help me to tell Barnard the truth. She glanced up at her husband, and despite the problems between them, the smile he gave her told her how much he loved her. She squeezed his hand in hers, willing him to feel her love, and leaned closer to him. He put his arms around her shoulders and hugged her close.
Up Pops the Devil Page 8