Tangled Roots

by Angela Henry

  I sat on the love seat for a few minutes but, being the supremely nosy person that I am, was soon up looking around. Rollins’s huge desk held dozens of pictures and I took the time to look at each one. Many were of him in his ministerial robes with members of his congregation. Several were family pictures of him and his brother Rondell when they were young men. I was surprised to notice that Rollins’s looks had gotten better as he’d aged. The pictures showed him to have been a lanky young man who looked uncomfortable with his height. I almost didn’t recognize Rondell. He was much slimmer and his clothes fit. There were many pictures of Inez as a little girl and even one of Inez as a teenager with a protective arm around her younger cousin Shanda. Shanda was looking up at Inez with an expression that can only be described as worshipful. Whatever their relationship had become at the time of her death, there’d been a time when Shanda had adored her cousin.

  I noticed a more recent picture of Inez, her father, and another pretty young woman that I didn’t recognize. Rollins was in between the two young women with his arms around both of them. They were all smiling widely. Both Inez and the other woman wore braids but Inez’s hair was done in a much more intricate design, pulled away from her face, while the other woman wore her braids hanging loosely to her shoulders from a center part. This must be Nicole Rollins. While Rollins barely looked like he was in his fifties, he still looked old enough to be Nicole’s father. I didn’t blame Inez at all for being angry with her father. I tried to imagine my father marrying Lynette if something happened to my mother. I couldn’t do it. But I did get a sudden idea of what I would say to him about my so-called problem when he arrived for our talk. I sat the picture back in its place and noticed a stack of papers in the middle of the desk.

  I picked up the stack and flipped through it. It was mostly bills, invoices, and estimates for work that had either been done or was going to be done at the church. I glanced at a letter towards the bottom of the stack, and realizing what it was, pulled it out. It was a letter from Rollins’s insurance company denying his life insurance claim on Inez pending the outcome of the police investigation into her death. The letter went on to point out that this was standard procedure when the cause of death was listed as homicide. I looked at the date and saw that it was sent less than a week after Inez’s death. Rollins apparently hadn’t wasted any time trying to cash the policy. As lavishly as the man lived, it wouldn’t surprise me if he were having money problems.

  I heard voices in the hallway and quickly stuck the letter back in the stack and returned it to its place on the desk. The door to the office opened while I was still standing at Rollins’s desk. Rollins stood outside the door with Melvina Carmichael. It was clear she wanted an invitation into the office and equally clear he didn’t want to extend one. She stood staring up at him with a wistful expression. Boy, what was it about ministers that made women swoon? Was it the power, the glory, the closeness to God? Maybe they were trying to get closer to heaven.

  “Thank you so much, sister Carmichael. I’ll let Nicole know she’s in your prayers.” Melvina Carmichael looked past Rollins into the office and spotted me before I could move out of her line of sight. I knew what she was thinking by the contemptuous look she flashed me before walking away, slowly shaking her head. I had apparently gone from being a lazy writer looking for a free ride to a home-wrecking ho as far as Melvina was concerned.

  I sat back down on the love seat just as Rollins turned and walked through the door. I gave him a big smile.

  “Well, now, Miss Clayton,” he said, giving me a devilish smile and taking his place behind his desk. I caught another whiff of Lagerfeld. “What can I do for you?”

  The question was innocent enough but I got the distinct impression from the look in his eyes and the way he leaned forward in anticipation that he was hoping I had a problem he could solve with something other than his ministerial skills.

  And, given my attraction to the Reverend, I was just hoping he’d keep his distance and stay seated behind his desk.

  “I’m actually a little embarrassed,” I said, laughing and looking down at my lap. “I think maybe I’m just overreacting.”

  “Please don’t be embarrassed, Kendra. Can I call you Kendra?” His voice had such a soothing hypnotic quality to it that I found myself instantly relaxing. I was also impressed that he remembered my first name. This man was dangerous.

  “Of course,” I said, stopping short of asking him if I could call him Morris.

  “You just take your time, Kendra,” he said with a look of genuine concern.

  “It’s my boyfriend,” I said.

  Rollins leaned back in his chair looking a tad disappointed. “He’s not abusive, is he?”

  “Oh, no. It’s nothing like that. He’s, well, a lot older than me and we’re having problems.” This was the only thing I could think to tell him that might loosen his tongue about Nicole. Surely, being married to a woman young enough to be his daughter would make him empathetic to someone in a similar situation. At least I hoped it would.

  “How much older is he?” Rollins asked, the gleam returning to his eyes.

  “In his fifties, probably around your age. Not that you look like you’re in your fifties,” I added quickly.

  He threw back his head and laughed. “Well, that’s good to know.”

  “He’s a good man. We get along very well. But, lately we don’t seem to have much to talk about.”

  “And you think this has to do with your age difference?” he said, leaning back in his chair and lacing his fingers together behind his head.

  “Yes, don’t you? I mean, he used to call me all the time. Now I’m lucky if I hear from him once a day.”

  “Kendra, all relationships go through phases. How long have you been seeing each other?”

  “Almost a year.”

  “Well, now, there you have it. Having been in a relationship for a year, things are naturally going to cool off. That’s not necessarily a sign of trouble or an indication that your age difference is the problem. You said you still get along well, right?” He was looking at me like I was a silly, paranoid woman panicking because my man didn’t call me every five minutes. Clearly I needed to come up with something more serious.

  I leaned in closer to the desk and Rollins unlaced his fingers and leaned forward to hear my revelation. “That’s not the only problem we’re having.” I whispered. “There are some, um, sexual issues as well.” I tried my best to add some anguish to my voice but probably only succeeded in sounding like I had a feather up my butt. Nevertheless, Rollins looked sufficiently curious.

  “Is it something you feel comfortable discussing?” he asked. I realized I was treading on dangerous ground bringing up the subject of sex with a married man I had no business being attracted to, but I’d already brought it up and he looked very interested in hearing what I had to say.

  “Well,” I began, looking more than a little embarrassed. “I won’t bore you with the details. Let’s just say that our age difference has been a big factor in our intimate relationship. The desire is there, but he’s not always able to do anything about it, if you know what I mean. You do, don’t you?”

  “Don’t worry, Kendra. You don’t have to spell it out. I know what you’re talking about. Not from personal experience, mind you.” We both laughed. Although, I wondered why men always felt obligated to assure women of their potency. Whether he could get it up or not was no concern of mine…really.

  “You know, Kendra. As a minister I should probably be counseling you on abstinence.” He paused when he noticed my mortified expression then quickly added, “Don’t worry, it’s not my place or intention to judge you. Only God can judge.”

  I wasn’t looking mortified on my own behalf. I was looking mortified because I couldn’t believe a man who was known to be one of the biggest players in town had just brought up abstinence. Wasn’t he afraid the heavens would open up and zap him with a lightning bolt? I glanced up at the ceiling, half expecting a
crack to appear. I heard Rollins laugh again.

  “I know what you’re thinking,” he said, leaning forward again.

  “You do?” I rubbed my suddenly sweaty palms on my pants.

  “Yeah, it is kind of hideous, isn’t it?”

  “I beg your pardon?” I asked, suddenly confused. Rollins gestured towards the painting on the ceiling.

  “It was a wedding present from the congregation. They had it commissioned when Nicole and I were on our honeymoon. I can’t stand it, but I didn’t have the heart to tell them.”

  “Oh, the painting,” I said, relieved. “No, I don’t think it’s hideous at all. It’s just a bit overwhelming.” That was a serious understatement.

  “It was my sister-in-law Bonita’s idea. She hired a local student artist to paint it. Do you know Joy Owens?”

  “Joy painted this?” I was incredulous. Joy’s work was usually quite bizarre. I was amazed that she hadn’t painted Rollins with horns and a tail.

  “Yeah, I guess Bonita really had to stay on top of her. Some of my parishioners told me that one day she came in to check on the progress of the painting and Ms. Owens had painted me with bloody fangs standing in a field surrounded by a flock of dead, dried-up sheep,” he said, grimacing.

  So, Joy had depicted Rollins as a bloodsucker who’d drained his flock dry. This was too much, even for Joy, and I laughed until tears rolled down my face and my sides ached. I was afraid I’d offended him but when I looked up he was not only smiling but had come out from behind his desk and was standing in front of the love seat, offering me a box of tissues. There were only a few inches separating us and my face was eye-level to his crotch. I couldn’t help but notice that he was quite well-endowed and I was supremely embarrassed about having such unholy thoughts in a church. I took a tissue but he still stood in front of me like he was waiting for something. Feeling flustered and not quite knowing what else to do, I quickly scooted over. He sat down next to me. It was a tight fit and our thighs were touching. This man was slicker than snot on a wet floor. I was torn between leaving before I ended up like Mattie Lyons’s niece and staying just to see what kind of moves the reverend had up his sleeve. I still hadn’t found out anything about Nicole, so my decision was made.

  “Joy’s work is very unconventional. This is probably the tamest thing she’s ever painted. I haven’t offended you, have I?” I asked, wiping my eyes and pressing my legs together to put some space between us.

  “Of course not. I’m very well aware that there are folks who think that I shake my congregation down for everything but their gold fillings so I can live high on the hog. But most would be surprised to know that my first wife, Jeanne, came from a wealthy family in New York. Her parents made sure their daughter lived in the manner to which she was accustomed even after we were married. They were very generous to me, as well. As for my congregation, I do ask a lot of them but I don’t ask them for more than they can give, and every dime collected from donations and the collection plate goes straight back into this church,” he said, looking sad and misunderstood.

  “You don’t have to explain anything to me, Reverend Rollins,” I said, giving him a smile. I wondered what shape his finances were in now that his first wife was dead. Why was he so hot to cash in the insurance claim on Inez?

  “You have a beautiful smile, Kendra. You should smile more often.”

  Oh, boy. Here we go. “Thank you, Reverend.” He took my hand and squeezed it gently and that familiar warm tingly sensation started tap dancing on my common sense, which was telling me that it was time to go. But I couldn’t move. My limbs felt like jelly.

  “You know, I’ve lived in this town all my life and I’ve never run into you before. Where have you been hiding?”

  “Nowhere. I’ve been right here all the time.” He was still holding my hand and looking into my eyes. He leaned towards me and I closed my eyes and almost puckered up. But instead of laying a big juicy wet one on my lips, he gave me a soft quick peck on the forehead before getting up from the love seat and sitting behind his desk. I felt like a kid whose ice cream fell off the cone before I could get a lick. I was obviously no more immune to Rollins’s charms than any of his other conquests. What would I have done if he’d given me a real kiss? I already knew the answer and it didn’t make me feel too good about my morals.

  “So, you don’t think I should be having sex, huh?” I asked with just a touch of sarcasm.

  He looked at me with a startled expression before laughing heartily. “I’m sorry, Kendra. We kind of got sidetracked from your problem, didn’t we?”

  “Just a little.”

  “You’ll have to decide what’s best for you with regard to your intimate relationship. A doctor would be better suited to answer your questions. Maybe it would be a good idea to focus on the things that first brought the two of you together. I know it’s hard. I can understand how age differences can affect a relationship. My wife Nicole and I had the same kinds of problems when we first got together.”

  Now we’re getting to it. “How so?”

  “Oh, the usual stuff. I constantly have to explain things to her that she’s too young to know about. I remember our first date when I took her to a Sidney Poitier film festival. She’d never even heard of him. Her favorite actor is Will Smith. I’m a jazz lover and she likes hip-hop. She spends a lot of time surfing and shopping online. I barely know how to turn our computer on. It was hard for us to find some common ground but we managed to do it.”

  “Sounds like Nicole and I have a lot in common. Maybe I could get together with her for coffee and girl talk sometime?”

  “I’m sure Nicole would love to meet you, Kendra. But now’s just not a good time.”

  He sounded a little exasperated and I was afraid I’d blown it. “Oh, I understand. Whenever it’s best for her. I couldn’t help but notice the pictures on your desk. Is that your wife in the picture with you and Inez?” I asked, gesturing to the picture of him and the two young women with braids.

  “Yes, this is Nicole,” he said, picking up the picture. “This was a happier time,” he said softly.

  “I heard that Nicole and Inez used to be best friends. This must be very hard for her.”

  “It’s hard for both of us. Inez never understood about Nicole and me. I couldn’t blame her. I had hoped she’d come around but she never did. She couldn’t understand how I could get married again so soon after her mother died. But Jeanne had been sick for so long and was in such pain that it was a blessing when she passed. She wasn’t herself during the final year of her life. She was gone long before she actually died. I really needed someone and it turned out to be Nicole.” He placed the picture facedown on the desk and stared moodily at his desktop.

  “Did Nicole and Inez ever make up?”

  “No, they avoided each other like the plague. I think she blamed Nicole even more than me. She thought Nicole purposefully went after me when her mother got sick. But it’s not true. There was no big seduction staged by either of us. It just happened.”

  “Sometimes people have a hard time seeing their parents as human beings with needs of their own,” I said.

  “You’re very insightful, Kendra,” he said.

  Our eyes met again and I decided it was time to go. “Well, it’s getting late and I have work tomorrow. I appreciate you talking to me. It really helped a lot.” I stood up and started to put on my coat when Rollins came up behind me and eased the coat up onto my shoulders. He put his arms around me, embracing me from behind.

  “Anytime you want to talk to me about anything, you feel free to stop by, you hear?” I felt the warm featherlight touch of his lips against my neck before he let me go.

  “I will,” was all I could manage to get out before I quickly left.

  I was in a strange mood as I drove home. I could still smell Morris Rollins’s cologne and feel his lips against my neck. Damn him! Thoughts of Carl popped into my head, making me feel guilty and confused. But there was one thing that was c
rystal clear: Morris Rollins didn’t want me to talk to Nicole. Why? I was positive it wasn’t because she was sick and overcome with grief and I was also sure it wasn’t because he was sizing me up as a potential lover and didn’t want me to be friends with his wife. I bet his first wife must have known and interacted with the female church members he had fooled around with. And, if Nicole had something to do with Inez’s death, I couldn’t imagine him shielding her, either. If I were Morris Rollins, and my wife had been involved in my daughter’s death, I’d serve her up to the police on a silver platter. No, there was something else at work.

  I was fairly certain it was Nicole the health food store owner had seen going around the back of the shop the night Inez was murdered. I couldn’t imagine why she would go to see Inez since, as Rollins put it, they avoided each other like the plague, but she must have been there and seen something that put her life in jeopardy. Maybe Nicole witnessed Vaughn kill Inez. Or even worse, maybe Nicole saw Shanda kill Inez and Rollins was trying to protect his family from scandal. Either way, I had to talk to Nicole. Whatever she had seen, she had to tell the police so Timmy could be cleared and Olivia could have her surgery.

  B & S Hair Design and Nail Sculpture was on my way home and I happened to glance in the window as I drove by. There was a light on in the shop. It was after ten o’clock and I was surprised that someone was in the shop so late. I stopped and parked my car. I peered through the window and was surprised to see Aretha Marshall’s auburn-bobbed head bent over a box. I knocked on the window and she jumped and looked around wildly, like an animal that was being hunted. I waved and gestured for her to let me in. I could tell she didn’t want to and I really couldn’t blame her. She unlocked the door and let me in. She looked awful. She was dressed in a dingy white turtleneck sweater and faded jeans. She wasn’t wearing any makeup and the dark circles under her eyes made it look like she had two black eyes. She kept tugging at the neck of her sweater and I saw a flash of the vivid bruise the scarf had left around her neck.