Miss Janie’s Girls

by Brown, Carolyn

  “But you knew about her wishes,” she said as he tucked her arm into his.

  The one thing Teresa had always liked about the small church Miss Janie attended was that the girls who had been so popular in high school, Prissy Wilson included, went elsewhere on Sunday morning. That day, however, the first face she saw when she walked into the fellowship hall was Prissy, standing against the wall with what everyone in high school had called her posse. Suddenly Teresa felt downright dowdy and underdressed.

  They came in a group straight toward her. Noah squeezed her hand and whispered, “I’m right here.”

  “Teresa, we want to tell you how sorry we are for your loss. Miss Janie was loved by us all. Every one of us four can remember a time when her advice helped us. We went in together and brought a ham to the dinner,” Prissy said.

  Miss Janie’s words about Prissy being such a brat came back to Teresa. She was almost tempted to come up with a smart-ass remark, but she just smiled sweetly and said, “Thank you for that. We appreciate your kindness.”

  “You’re welcome,” Prissy muttered. “And I’m sorry for the way we treated you and Kayla when we were in high school.”

  Teresa looped her arm into Noah’s. “Thank you for your apology, Prissy, but we shouldn’t hold up the line.”

  “I can’t believe you accepted her apology,” Kayla whispered.

  “That’s what Miss Janie would have wanted me to do,” Teresa said out of the corner of her mouth.

  “Well, I’m not to that place yet,” Kayla said.

  “If I could have everyone’s attention.” Pastor Vernon tapped a glass with a spoon. “We’ll have grace now that the family has arrived, and we’d like to invite them to go down the buffet line first.” He bowed his head and said a short, heartfelt prayer giving thanks for Miss Janie, for the food, and for the hands that had prepared it.

  “And who is this man with y’all?” Prissy asked the minute the preacher was finished.

  “He’s Miss Janie’s nephew,” Teresa answered. “Good to see you, Prissy. Sorry about your troubles.”

  Prissy’s face turned red, and she whipped around and headed out the door with her posse right behind her. Evidently, they didn’t eat tuna casserole or homemade brownies. By the time the family had gotten through the line and sat down at one of the long tables, Teresa had forgotten all about Prissy Wilson. Some people simply didn’t matter anymore, she decided, and Prissy was one of them.

  Kayla liked that Will made sure he was in line behind the family and then sat beside her. “Noah, this is Will Barton,” Kayla said.

  “Pleased to meet you officially, Will.” Noah nodded across the table at him. “How did you know Miss Janie?”

  “I graduated with Kayla, and Teresa was a year ahead of us. Miss Janie was tough but fair, and it didn’t matter to her if a kid was poor or rich—she treated us all the same,” Will answered, and then chuckled. “She could tell if we were really sick or fakin’ it, and believe me, she knew if we skipped school and tried to get by on a forged note that wasn’t written by our parents.”

  “You should have lived in the same house with her.” Kayla raised both dark eyebrows. “There was no skipping classes or fakin’ sickness with me and Teresa. We toed the line worse than the teachers’ kids did.”

  “I don’t doubt it, but was she really your mother?” Will asked.

  “In every way but blood,” Teresa answered. “She fostered us and wanted to adopt us, but it wasn’t possible.”

  “Where have y’all been all these years?” Will asked. “I asked Miss Janie about you when she came to the store, but all she’d say was that y’all were out finding your way. I had no idea what that meant.”

  “That’s a story for another day,” Kayla told him.

  “Sorry.” Will blushed. “I didn’t mean to pry.”

  “No problem,” Noah told him. “None of us took the time to visit like we should, and we all feel guilty for the choices we made.”

  “Don’t we all, for one thing or another,” Will replied, then turned his attention to Kayla. “If you aren’t up for our date on Friday, we can reschedule.”

  “Thank you.” Kayla smiled. “I’ll let you know how things are going later.”

  “Fair enough.” Will nodded. “You’ve got my number. Did you ask Sam about his houses?”

  “What about my houses?” Sam suddenly appeared and took a seat beside Noah.

  Will shook his head slowly. “I think I just put my big foot in my mouth.”

  “No time like the present to lay it out there,” Kayla said. “Sam, you and Miss Janie were talking on the porch a couple of times about how nice it would be to have a senior citizens place in Birthright. That kind of got me and Teresa to thinking about putting one in. We kind of like working with elderly folks and . . .”

  “We can’t do that in Miss Janie’s house. Noah is already starting up his law business there,” Teresa said.

  “I’ve got two houses settin’ empty, and the real estate agent hasn’t had a bite on either in a year. One would be perfect for a senior citizens place. It’s that place next to the old post office. Big old living room, but it’s only got two bedrooms. I’ll let you have it rent-free for as long as you want,” Sam offered. “I don’t know what kind of legal stuff you’ll need to do, but I reckon Noah can take care of that. The place has two bathrooms, one off each bedroom, so you’d have a ladies’ room and one for the menfolks built right in. It’s in bad need of paint, but other than that, I believe it would work. Want to go see it when we leave here?”

  “Are you serious?” Teresa asked.

  “You bet I am.” Sam nodded. “I’ve wanted a place like that for years, and we all need somethin’ to do to move forward. It’ll give us old guys who hate to cook a place to have lunch, and one of the bedrooms can be for playin’ dominoes. I’ll even donate a few boxes. In the summertime, I’ll bring garden vegetables, and I’m sure old Lucien Williams would be willin’ to donate a hog in the winter. Will, are you up for a paint party this weekend?”

  “I’m in,” Will agreed. “I get off work about five on Friday, and I’ll bring the pizza.”

  “That quick?” Noah asked. “Friday is only three days away. That won’t give me much time to investigate the legalities.”

  “Might as well have it ready when we get the green light to open up.” Sam grinned.

  Kayla was stunned speechless, but she could feel Miss Janie’s approval down deep in her soul.

  “Which reminds me, Sam,” Will said. “Do you think maybe I could also look at that other property you’ve got for sale? The big old two story on the other end of town? It keeps calling out to me every time I’m in that area. I realize it’s too big for one person, but I’m tired of living in a tiny apartment, and I’ve been thinkin’ about getting a dog.”

  “You bet we can.” Sam grinned. “It needs paintin’, too. You help us, and we’ll all pitch in and help you if you decide to buy it.”

  “Sounds like a fantastic deal to me.” Will grinned back.

  Kayla had thought he was handsome before, but when he smiled, the whole room lit up for her like fireworks on the Fourth of July. That might be a strange way to feel at a funeral dinner, she thought, but Miss Janie would like that a lot. Now the week ahead of her didn’t look so bleak and empty.

  Chapter Eighteen

  Teresa pulled the covers up over her head on Wednesday morning when the alarm went off. She’d awakened every hour through the night and sat straight up in bed, thinking that she should check on Miss Janie. Then she’d realize that she was in her own room, not Miss Janie’s, and that her foster mother was gone.

  “I don’t want to face her room without her in it,” she muttered as she finally threw off the covers and headed downstairs.

  “Well, don’t you look chipper this morning,” Kayla said in a flat voice. She pointed toward the cabinet. “Now that you’re finally awake, I heated up a breakfast casserole, and there’s blueberry muffins in the cake plate.�
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  “And you sound downright grumpy,” Teresa said.

  “I am,” Kayla told her. “I’m mad at Miss Janie for dying before I could tell her how much I really loved her.”

  “I’ve moved past that one,” Noah said as he joined them. “I was in denial when I first got here in June. Then I got mad at myself for not coming sooner and at her for not seeking out a doctor before the cancer got so bad that she couldn’t be treated. After that I tried bargaining with God. If He would let her live to see another Christmas, I’d go to church every Sunday. If He would let her be able to walk again, or not be in so much pain, I’d be a better person. It’s the stages we all have to go through to find peace.”

  “Where are you this morning?” Teresa asked.

  “Somewhere between depression and acceptance,” he admitted. “We really lost Miss Janie a while back and were lucky to get a few glimpses of her before she left us. I peeked into her room when I walked past it and found it depressing.”

  Sam stuck his head in the back door and said, “I’ve come to help y’all with the next step.”

  “What step is that?” Teresa asked.

  “You can tell me no if you want to, but we need to clean out Miss Janie’s bedroom. The clothing can go to the church clothes closet for folks in need. Prissy Wilson’s great-uncle needs a hospital bed and can’t afford one. If y’all don’t want to donate it to him, we can take it to the veterans center, along with the shower chair and the bedside potty.” Sam helped himself to a cup of coffee and sat down at the table with them.

  “Why would we need to do that now?” Kayla asked.

  “I waited three months to take care of Delia’s things. Every time I went into her room, I cried. Miss Janie came over one day and told me that it was time to take care of her things. It was one of those days when Miss Janie was in her right mind, and she wouldn’t take no for an answer. Crazy thing was, afterward, I dreamed about Delia for the first time, and she told me she was at peace,” Sam answered.

  “I have no problem giving the bed and other things to someone who needs them, and I don’t think Miss Janie would mind if Prissy’s great-uncle got them,” Noah said. “I was thinking about turning that room into my office eventually. That way my clients wouldn’t have to climb stairs or be peeking into bedrooms, and the smaller downstairs bedroom could become y’all’s office for the senior business stuff, if you need extra space.”

  Teresa was still emotional from the funeral the day before, so that offer brought more tears to her eyes. “That’s a sweet idea.” She nodded. “We might get them both cleaned out today. What have you got in mind for the regular furniture?”

  “I’m not ready to get rid of that yet,” Noah said, “so I guess I could rent a storage unit.”

  “I’ve got a barn I don’t use since me and Delia quit runnin’ cattle several years ago. You could put it in there for free, and it would be close by if you decide you want to bring some of it back at any time,” Sam offered.

  Teresa got up and rounded the end of the table to give Sam a hug. “You are a godsend.”

  “Thank you, but what I really am is a friend who’s been through something like this and wants y’all to finally have peace.” He smiled.

  “This isn’t going to be easy,” Kayla said.

  “I’m here to support y’all through it all.” Sam stood up, went to the stove, and uncovered the casserole. “I haven’t eaten breakfast. I’m inviting myself to eat with y’all, and when we finish, we can get busy.”

  Teresa locked gazes with Noah and whispered, “You ready for this, or do you want to wait a while?”

  “Miss Janie would want us to move on,” he answered. “I’ll never be ready, but by putting it off, we’d only be hanging on to the past.”

  There were parts of the past that Teresa desperately wanted to let go of, but her memories of Miss Janie she wanted to wrap a warm blanket around and store deep in her heart.

  “Thank you, again, Sam, for helping us get through all this,” Kayla said.

  Teresa and Noah both blinked after staring at each other for a minute. Kayla and Sam had both already filled their plates and were on their way back to the table. Noah pushed back his chair and stood up at the same time Teresa did.

  “After you.” He made a sweeping motion toward the stove.

  “Thanks.” She smiled.

  There it is again, Kayla thought. That chemistry between them, and if I can see it, they must feel it. Do people see that kind of thing when I’m around Will Barton?

  Sam touched her on the arm, and she came close to jumping out of her skin.

  “Where were you?” Sam’s old eyes twinkled. “Were you thinkin’ about Will Barton? He’s a good, hard-workin’ man, and he’s talked to my real estate lady. He’s made an offer for my house.”

  Kayla lowered her voice to barely a whisper. “Can you see the sparks between them?” She glanced over her shoulder at Teresa and Noah.

  “Of course.” Sam grinned. “They’ve been skirtin’ around their feelings all month, but they’ll figure it out.”

  “What are y’all whispering about?” Teresa put her plate on the table and then sat down.

  “I was asking if I might donate some card tables to the senior citizens. Me and Delia used to have the elderly folks’ Sunday school class at our place for the Christmas party. We got about eight of them tables so we could all have places to sit and play games,” he answered with a broad wink at Kayla.

  “You’ve already done so much,” Noah answered.

  “I’m tryin’ to show you kids how important this is to me and the rest of the community. I mentioned it to several folks, and they’re as excited as I am,” Sam said. “Soon as we get the place painted, I’ll clean up them tables and bring the folding chairs with them.”

  “Thank you.” Noah finished off his muffin and went back for a helping of casserole. “Anyone need a refill on coffee?”

  Kayla shook her head. “I’m good.”

  “I’ll take one.” Teresa held up her cup.

  Noah refilled Teresa’s cup and then topped off his own mug.

  Teresa swallowed the food in her mouth and then took a sip of coffee. “I can’t believe how well everything is falling into place. I feel like it’s Christmas one minute, and then I feel like the other shoe is going to fall if I blink.”

  “Me too,” Kayla said.

  “When the other shoe does fall and y’all have a big argument, are you going to throw up your hands and leave Birthright?” Sam asked.

  Kayla shook her head. “I don’t intend to skate on thin ice. If I’ve got something to say, I’ll spit it out, and I fully well expect you to do the same”—she raised a dark eyebrow—“and to do it in English, not Spanish like you used to do when you cussed me out for something.”

  “No pidas lo que no estás dispuesto a aceptar.” Teresa spouted off a string in her parents’ tongue.

  “And that means?” Noah chuckled.

  “It means not to ask for something unless you want it,” Teresa answered. “As you know, sister, I don’t hold back when I’ve got anything to say.”

  “I guess that answers my question.” Sam laughed out loud. “They may attempt to scratch each other’s eyes out, but I’ve got a feeling if anyone messes with either of them, they’ll stand together to take care of the matter.”

  “That pretty much sums it up,” Kayla said out loud, but her thoughts were going to the idea of giving Miss Janie’s things away and storing her furniture. Would she think they were forgetting her too easily?

  Miss Janie’s voice popped into her head. Get on with your life. This is all just stuff I left behind. Use it, give it away, or burn it. I don’t need it anymore. I only need you girls to be happy.

  Kayla had her answer, so she pulled a ponytail holder from the pocket of her jeans and whipped her curly hair up off her neck. “I’ll start in the closet. Do we leave the clothing on the hangers, Teresa?”

  “That’s the best way.” Teresa followe
d her into the bedroom and set a box of garbage bags on the dresser. “It turned out to be a pretty day in spite of the weatherman’s forecast, so we can line the bed of Sam’s truck with a sheet and lay them back there.”

  “I’ll drive slow to the church so they don’t blow out,” Sam said. “Folks there will be glad to help me unload them. While y’all do that, me and Noah will take down this hospital bed and deliver it, then come back and take the other furniture to my barn.”

  “I’d like to keep the last dress I remember her wearing when I was still here,” Kayla said. “I saw it in her closet when I was hanging up her dusters last week. It’s the bright-pink one with white polka dots.”

  “I want to keep one, too. The navy-blue one that she always wore to funeral dinners at the church,” Teresa said.

  Teresa removed a garbage bag from the box and pulled open a dresser drawer. She had filled one with nightgowns and slips when she heard Kayla gasp.

  “What?” Teresa asked. “You find a dead mouse? I remember you being terrified of mice. Never could figure it out, since we both lived in places that had critters and bugs.”

  “If I’d seen one, I would have left footprints on you as I left this room,” Kayla said. “You’ve got to come help me get these two boxes down. I can’t reach them.”

  Kayla watched Teresa looking up from her place on the floor. The boxes were on the top shelf. Getting them down would require a ladder or a kitchen chair.

  “Too bad Noah’s left with Sam,” Teresa muttered as she got up. “I’ll get a chair.”

  Kayla couldn’t take her eyes off the two boxes. One had her name printed in big block letters on the end, and the other one was marked with Teresa’s name.

  Eternity plus three days passed before Teresa came back with a chair, climbed up on it, and gasped when she saw her name.

  “This is kind of spooky,” she said as she pulled the first one down and handed it to Kayla. “I’ve gotten clothes out of this closet and hung them up in here for weeks, and I never noticed these.”