“What’s wrong? And where’s the stuff that I sent you to the store to buy?”
For one brief second, Frank Jr. thought about lying and saying that he’d gotten robbed, but just as quickly, common sense prevailed. His father would’ve seen right through that fib. For one, Frank Jr. didn’t look like he’d been in any kind of altercation. His face bore no cuts, bruises, or scraps. Also, his knuckles were unmarked and if Frank Sr. knew anything about his son, he knew that he wouldn’t go down without a fight. After bracing himself for an explosion, he went ahead and told his father the truth. He still hadn’t understood how it had happened and now that he was explaining it to his father, he understood it even less. He was sure that he knew where the ace of spades was. He had already taken the man for twenty dollars and was positive that he could win even more.
As he finished telling his father the story, something dawned on him. The man had waited until Frank Jr. was confident enough to wager every dime he had before agreeing to up the ante. After telling his father the entire episode, Frank Jr. waited for his father to explode. Instead, Frank Sr. just shook his head and laughed.
“Son,” he said to him, “you have just fallen for one of the oldest cons in the book.” After taking Frank Jr. back to confront the con man, Frank Sr. sat his son down and had a long talk with him about gambling. Since Frank Jr. wasn’t risking any of his own money, technically, he wasn’t gambling.
“Yeah, okay. What about you, honey? You feel like watching a movie with the old man?”
“Whatever,” Rhonda said, shrugging.
Now, Frank was beginning to get angry. He didn’t know what Rhonda’s problem was, but he wasn’t going to tolerate any disrespect. As soon as he pulled into his driveway, he instructed Frank Jr. to go into the house wile he talked to his sister. Not wanting to get caught up in the storm brewing, Frank Jr. quickly exited the vehicle. Once he was inside the house, Frank Sr. turned and face his daughter.
“Look, Rhonda. I don’t know what in the devil your problem is and quite frankly, I don’t care. But whatever is on your mind either tell me about it or let it go, because I’m not going to tolerate you disrespecting me any longer. Do you understand me, young lady?”
“Yes sir.”
“Good. Now, do we need to talk about something?”
“Not at all, Daddy.”
Although Rhonda did want to confront her father and let him know how she felt about Grace Ponder injecting herself into their lives, she decided that now wasn’t the time to do so. She didn’t want to be rash and jump to conclusions. What if she was wrong? What if Grace Ponder was merely being friendly, and her showing up at IHOP was a coincidence? Then she would come off looking like a spoiled fool. That wouldn’t have been a good look, and she would have embarrassed the hell out of her father, so she decided just to bide her time and keep a close eye on the situation.
“All right. Now, do you want to watch a movie later on?” he asked.
“That’s fine, Daddy,” she said, although she really didn’t want to.
“Hey, don’t let me twist your arm. If you don’t want to . . .”
“No Daddy, it’s fine. We can watch a movie.” Rhonda knew that her father looked forward to spending time with his children. The last thing she wanted to do was blow him off and hurt his feelings. Frank Jr. blowing him off was different. Both she and her father expected him to chase girls and play videos games with his friends for hours. But she was his little girl. The light of his life. The apple of his eye. So even though she didn’t feel like watching a movie, she sucked it up and made the sacrifice for him, because she would run out of numbers if she tried to count the sacrifices that he’d made over the years for her. Frank reached for the door handle, but Rhonda’s voice stopped him in his tracks.
“Daddy, do you still love Mommy?”
Frank turned around with a surprised look on his face. It was the last question he ever expected either of his kids to ask him.
He was so surprised at the question that he thought he’d heard it wrong.
“Huh?? What did you just ask me??”
“I asked you if you still loved Mommy.”
“Of course, I still love you mother . . . with all my heart,” he said sincerely.
Rhonda looked into her father’s eyes and instantly knew that he meant every word. That was just what she needed to hear. A large smile spread across her face. Without saying another word, she hopped out of the car and ran into the house. Just before she got into the house, Frank rolled down his window and called out to her.
“Hey! I’m going to run to the store and get us some snacks for us for tonight. Tell your brother that I’ll be back in few minutes.”
“Okay Daddy,” she said just before disappearing into the house.
39
Rhonda waked into the house with a smile that could light up downtown Cleveland. A tremendous weight was lifted from her shoulders when her father told her that he still loved her mother. She figured as much, but it did her heart a world of good to hear him say it. She entered the kitchen to get a glass of water and was amazed to see Frank Jr. fixing a bowl of cereal.
“I know good and well you’re not hungry. You just ate two stacks of pancakes, four sausage links, and two biscuits.”
“And?”
“Dang, you’re just greedy.”
“Whatever. What did Dad want to talk to you about?”
“None of your business, nosey.”
“Fine, you ain’t got to tell me. I already know anyway.”
“No, you don’t,” Rhonda said in an agitated manner. It irked her to no end the way her brother thought he knew everything.
“Yeah, I do. He was probably getting on you about your little snotty attitude.”
“I didn’t have no snotty attitude.”
“Please! As soon as Ms. Ponder walked in the restaurant, you started acting like something crawled up your ass.”
“Ooooh, I’m telling Dad!”
Frank Jr. looked at his sister and slowly shook his head.
“My God, you’re such a snitch!”
“I ain’t no snitch!”
“Then prove it. Keep your damn mouth shut!”
“I ain’t gotta keep shit shut!” Rhonda’s hand flew to her mouth. She would give anything to be able to push the word back down her throat, but it was too late. A shocked expression appeared on Frank Jr.’s face. He’d never heard his sister use foul language. A few seconds later, the stunned expression was replaced by a devious smirk.
“Now, you were going to tell dad what?” he asked.
“Oooooh, you make me sick!”
Rhonda stormed over to the sink and turned on the faucet. After filling her glass with water, she made her way back into the living room, where she grabbed the television remote and pressed the on button. After channel surfing for a few seconds, she heard her brother snickering from behind her.
“What the heck are you laughing at?” she asked.
“You. I just figured out what’s wrong with you. You’re mad because you think Ms. Ponder likes dad and you’re afraid that he likes her back.”
“Daddy doesn’t like Ms. Ponder! He still loves Mama!”
Frank cocked his head and looked into his sister’s eyes. He could see the sadness in them, and it made him feel bad. He took a deep breath, walked over to the couch, and dropped down next to her.
“Look, sis. I know you miss Mama. I miss her too. But sooner or later, we just have to face the facts that she may be in a coma for the rest of her life. Maybe it’s time for Dad to move on.”
“No! It’s not time for him to move on! Mama will be okay! You’ll see! God will see to it!”
Frank Jr. just stared at his sister sympathetically. Although he personally didn’t believe that God would do a damn thing, he remembered what his father said about not crushing her faith. Frank Jr. put his arm around his sister and gave her a tight hug. His gut feeling told him that he would have to comfort her quite a bit in the coming days.
40
It didn’t take Detective Stone long to figure out why his daughter had such an attitude. From the second Grace Ponder arrived at their table, Rhonda’s entire demeanor changed. She became argumentative and very combative. A small sliver of guilt ran through him as he began to realize what his daughter was doing. She was protecting her mother’s turf. Frank smiled when he thought about how defensive his daughter was when it came to his wife. She missed her mother terribly and prayed every night that she would come out of her comatose state and re-join their family. Although Frank was reluctant to admit it to himself, he found it harder and harder to have faith with each passing day. It seemed as if the prayers of his, his daughter’s, his son’s, and anyone else praying for his wife were going unanswered.
If that wasn’t bad enough, he was now presented with a new challenge. Better yet . . . a temptation. Grace Ponder was one of the most beautiful women he’d seen in a long time. In his opinion, she was the only woman he’d seen that had even come close to Marilyn’s beauty. He felt guilty for being attracted to her and, for some strange reason, he felt even guiltier that she was attracted to him. He was sure that he hadn’t done anything to provoke that.
Frank spun his wedding ring back and forth around his finger as he sat at a red light, He smiled as he thought of the day he and his wife exchanged nuptials so many years ago. He was so deep in his thoughts that he remained sitting there after the light had turned green. A loud-sounding horn from a beat-up Ford Taurus jarred him back to the present. As he pressed down on the pedal and continued on his way, Frank realized that he was coming up on his destination. He parkee his vehicle, cut the engine, and looked around. At this moment, that he fully understood how powerful a hold his love for his wife had on him.
Frank took a deep breath and exited the vehicle. Slowly, he made his way toward the hospital entrance. What started as a simple trip to the store turned into Frank’s desire and need to see his wife. He couldn’t explain it, but the closer he got to her room, the guiltier he felt. Even though he hadn’t done anything wrong, just being in Grace’s presence had him feeling like he was unfaithful to Marilyn. He knew it wasn’t true, but that’s how he felt.
When Frank reached his wife’s room, he stopped. He took a deep breath and tried to collect himself. When he felt that he’d pulled himself together enough, he entered the room. His stomach was in knots as he moved toward her bed. He frowned when he felt his cell phone vibrate in his pocket. After taking it out, Frank turned it off without looking at the screen. He didn’t know who it was, and he didn’t care. Whoever it was, they were just going to have to wait. He needed to do this. While he enjoyed bringing his kids to see their mother, right now Frank needed time with his wife. Alone.
He looked at her and smiled as he reached down and grabbed her hand. A single tear leaked from his right eye and ran down his cheek as he gently stroked her hand. The monotone sound that went off every two seconds was harmless. But to Frank, the beeping sounds were more painful than any gunshot could ever be. Each one felt like a dagger of death, plunging in and out of his heart. Frank remained silent for a few seconds before doing something that he’d become all too familiar with doing. He closed his eyes and got down on his knees. He then clasped his hands together and began reciting the Lord’s Prayer. When he finished, he began speaking to his wife.
“Marilyn, baby. I’m sorry. My God, I’m sorry. Had it not been for me asking you to pick up Frank Jr., this would’ve never happened. I love you, baby. And just know, I will never betray our love or our vows. I will honor them forever, until death do us part.”
When Frank opened his eyes, the nurse was standing next to him. Her eyes were watery as she held a box of Kleenex in her hand. She plucked two from the box and handed them to Frank. Until that moment, Frank hadn’t realized that he’d been crying.
“Thank you,” he said, taking the Kleenex from her and wiping his eyes.
“Are you okay, Detective Stone?”
Frank cleared his throat.
“Yes, I will be,” he said.
“Okay. I’ll be out of your hair in a few seconds. I just need to check a few things, and then I’ll leave you alone with your wife.”
The nurse moved as fast as she could. She didn’t want to infringe upon Frank any more than she had to. It had touched her deeply to see a man showing genuine care and love for his wife. But there was something else. She knew the question that Frank was going to ask her, and seeing him in the state he was in, she would rather not answer it. She was almost out of the room when he called out to her.
“Uh, excuse me Nadine, but has there been any change?”
It broke Nadine’s heart to have to tell him the sad truth
“I’m sorry, Mr. Stone, but no. there hadn’t been.”
Frank expected as much, but he still had to ask. A little bit of hope was better than none at all. Frank stayed there with his wife for another fifteen minutes before getting ready to leave. However, just before he did, he lifted Marilyn’s hand up his face and used it to massage his cheek. Her touch alone seemed to cause a calm to fall over him. It also seemed to strengthen him. But being here with her all by himself seemed to connect the two of them in a way that only they could understand. After leaning down and kissing Marilyn on her cheek, Frank whispered into her ear.
“I love you, baby. Please, come back to me.”
41
When Frank got home, he walked into the house and was pleasantly surprised by what he saw. Sitting on the couch, wrapped in each other’s arms were Frank Jr. and Rhonda. They were both sound asleep. Frank didn’t have to think long to know what was going on. It was obvious to him that Rhonda was still upset about Grace showing up at the restaurant and her brother provided her a shoulder to cry on. The sight warmed his heart. Instead of disturbing them, Frank went outside on the porch.
“Good afternoon, Mr. Detective.”
Frank turned to see Sadie sitting in her chair, thumbing through a newspaper.
“Hey, Sadie. What’s going on?”
“Not much. Just sitting here, enjoying some of this good weather. I see you were out and about this morning.”
“And just how do you know that?”
“I heard your garage door open up.”
“Let me guess. You were up exercising again, right?”
“You know it,” Sadie responded, as she flexed her bicep muscle.
“You know, Sadie, you really should slow down on your physical fitness activities. You don’t want to overdo it,” Frank warned.
As usual, Sadie paid him no mind. After staring at him for a few seconds, she simply rolled her eyes and waved him off.
“I’m serious, Sadie. A woman your age shouldn’t be––”
“A woman my age shouldn’t be what?” she said, cutting him off.
Frank knew that he was borderline pissing Sadie off, but he cared too much about her to bite his tongue on what he felt was important.
“Exerting herself with strenuous activity,” he said, completing his sentence.
“You’ve got a lot of nerve. You fight crime and dodge bullets from bad guys for a living and you’re worried about me doing a few exercises?”
“Sadie, that’s different. I do that stuff because it’s my job.”
“Oh, okay. So, I guess I’m just supposed to knit blankets and do crossword puzzles all day, is that it?”
“No, of course not. I mean, I understand that you want to get some exercise in. That’s a good thing. All I’m saying is that you shouldn’t overexert yourself.”
“And just what in the devil makes you think I do that?”
Frank opened his mouth to answer but was at a loss for words . . . because he had no concrete proof that Sadie was overexerting herself. All he had to go on was a fruitless hypothesis.
“Yeah, that’s what I thought. Your behind is just guessing,” she said.
“I’m sorry, Sadie, I didn’t mean to offend you. I just don’t know what I would do without
you.”
“Ah, that’s so sweet. But hear this, Franklin Stone. There is nothing that is going to happen to me until the good Lord sees fit. Now, park your behind in one of these chairs while I go pour us a cup o’ joe.”
Sadie then ended the conversation by getting up and going into her house. As Frank trudged down his steps and made his way across his lawn and up Sadie’s steps all he could do was smile. He dropped into the chair next to the one Sadie had sat in and waited for her to return. A few minutes later, Sadie walked back onto the porch with two cups of steaming, hot coffee. The two of them had drank coffee on the porch for years, so she knew exactly how he liked it.
“I suppose you still like coffee with your sugar?” she cracked.
“Very funny, old woman, and yes. With two creams.” Frank couldn’t drink a cup of coffee unless it had at least five tablespoons full of sugar in it. He received the cup from Sadie and took a sip. The liquid slightly burned his tongue, causing him to wince.
“Wow, that’s hot,” he acknowledged.
“Yeah, I’ve heard that it’s supposed to be,” Sadie said with a smirk.
“Smart-ass.” As soon as the words left his mouth, Frank knew what was about to happen. He braced himself for the sting of one of Sadie’s pinches. However, what he hadn’t planned on, was that she was going to give him a double dose.
“Hey! I only cussed once, and it wasn’t a real cuss word at that,” he said, rubbing the spot where she pinched him a second time.
“It was the way you used it mister.”
“But why did you pinch me twice?”
“Well, the first one was because of what you said. The second one was for something you said that I wasn’t around to hear.”
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