When Saint Goes Marching In (33 page)

Saint swallowed a hard lump in his throat.

“The most obvious trait though, Saint, one you are unable to see yourself, is that you glow. If the light hits you just right, your entire body seems to have a halo around it. It is subtle, but not so subtle that it can’t be seen and it’s not there constantly, but when it is…oh, what a sight! It’s like looking at an angel. Some people call you ‘Guardian Angel Children’ and I understand why. I do know that when I first met you, you were pretty much clueless about it. You’re a gold mine, Saint. All I wanted you for was your beautiful mind, for our cause. But you offered so much more because you have such treasures inside you.” James smiled.

“Your spiritual gifts aside, when George and I first found you, we knew you were the right face for the organization. Even your grittiness, despite our initial reservations, added to your appeal. Saint, you are a very special person. You are in your infancy as far as your potential and influence are concerned. You will create an army of soldiers. You-are going to set the world-on fire.” James looked intensely at Saint. “I turn over the reins to you, son. Starting now, The White Knights of the Round Table is yours. I want you to start hiring people to implement the agendas you set up. You need all the manpower you can get. Then I want you to take care of that Queen conference, as soon as possible.”

Saint nodded in understanding as he listened intently.

 “It is crucial. I know in my heart, that your name will live on in history,” James coughed. “And you are determined to one day make the world such a place that people like you, me and George aren’t even required anymore. Until that day comes, you will be a King amongst kings. Saint, you are now the man in charge and there will be no stopping you.”

Saint was overwhelmed with the information. A part of him still wanted to convince James to let him heal him but the other part thought about his sons, Hassani and Dakarai, and how whatever karmic payment he may incur could affect them greatly.

A nagging cough overwhelmed James. He winced and grabbed a hold of his chest.

“Get…my Valerie in here please,” he gasped.

Saint rushed outside and returned one minute later, Valerie in tow.

He escorted her to James’ side. They kissed tenderly, as though still in the throes of young love.

James’ monitor began to beep loudly. Nurses rushed in. Visibly shocked, Valerie gripped his hand with all of her might. The doctor and nurses tried to push her out of the way while the alarm for a code blue was announced over the hospital P.A. system.

Saint felt his chest compressing and his heart pound as he watched James take his last breaths. He leaned back against the wall, trying to steady himself as he watched everything in slow motion. His body was dead weight, his legs gave way as he slumped to the ground. He looked up through a fog of people dressed in white and frantic movements from all sides. Valerie’s painful screaming brought his heart to the brink of exploding. He let his grief free and cried without care of who saw or listened. Through the tears he tried to find Valerie while two male nurses attempted to lift him up from the floor. Her cries and screams rang in his head, and he knew that he wouldn’t be able to erase them from his memory, ever.

“I’ll see you again, James,” he said out loud before he allowed himself to huddle into a cocoon, to protect himself from further pain and harm.

* * *

CHAPTER ELEVEN

Xenia
played Saint’s voicemail back as she ran her bathwater. The light pink suds smelled of strawberry and even in the cramped quarters of her mother’s home, she had managed to make this small nightly indulgence memorable. Xenia held the phone to her ear as she walked to and fro naked. She grabbed her washcloth and checked to make sure the water was warm enough.

“Xenia, it’s me. I’m sorry to do this but I shouldn’t get the boys this weekend.”

Xenia
’s temper rose. “This man ain’t shit,” she said aloud. “He knew I wanted to go out of town with Stacey and this is what he turns and does!”

“James…James just passed away. I’m not dealing with it very well and I don’t want them to see me like this. Valerie is taking this very hard so I also want to make sure she has everything she needs to get through the night. She just sent me home but I’m worried about her and, well, it doesn’t matter. Just know that I’m sorry and I promise to get them next weekend.”

“Oh my God, Poor Valerie!”

Xenia
sat on the side of the tub, feeling horrible. Saint was so close to James; she could only imagine how much he must be hurting.

She quickly placed her robe on, walked into the spare bedroom and called him. It rang several times then went to voicemail. She sighed and went back to the bathroom, placing her robe on a wall hook before getting into the tub. Her heart heavy, she slipped into the bath and immersed herself in the warm, comforting water. She leaned back against the wall of the tub, enjoying the quiet of the house as her rambunctious sons slept the night away.

Saint, damn it, why didn’t you pick up the phone? I should probably give you some space. I wish I could comfort you.

She rubbed her knee with a bar of peppermint soap. Saint had gotten her hooked on it, by teaching her how it relaxes muscles.

I’ll call him again in the morning
. She stared at nothing in particular.
I hope he can get some sleep
.

Poor Valerie. How would it feel to lose a husband, a soul mate?

Saint.

Her throat felt tight and raspy. How would she feel if she lost Saint? But Saint wasn’t hers to lose anymore…

As she tried to push the thought out her mind, there was an abrupt knock at the door.

“Xenia!” her mother called out as she turned the door knob.

“Come on in, Mama.”

Xenia
wallowed in the water, the water so high with suds that only the tops of her shoulders were visible.

“This package came for you. I forgot to give it to you earlier today when you got in from work.” Her mother looked at it as she held a cigarette in her hand.

“Does it say who it’s from?” Xenia asked.

“I don’t see no address, just your name is all. You want me to open it?”

“Yes, I wasn’t expecting anything,” Xenia shrugged.

Her mother extinguished her cigarette by throwing it into the toilet. She blew out the last puff of smoke from her mouth and sliced the tape around the box open with a long, dark purple fingernail. Her pink curlers bobbed about as she wrestled with the rest of the tape. When she finally lifted the lid, she reached into the box past the bubble wrap and slipped out a CD.

“I guess it’s some music. Maybe someone else sent you a demo. I have no idea why rappers keep sending you their demo.”

“To play on the radio, Mama. We feature a new singer or rapper once a week to play,” Xenia explained. “I’ve never been mailed one at home though, that’s odd. They always arrive at work. I don’t give out my private address. Hey, do me a favor, Mama. Can you bring in that CD player? The one out in the hall? I forgot my iPod to plug up anyway, might as well have some mood music.”

“I did notice it was quiet in here. You usually like your Patti LaBelle to play during your baths,” her mother smiled. “You got that from me. You know I love Patti.”

She walked out of the bathroom and quickly returned with the CD player. After plugging it into the wall, she placed the disc inside.

“I hope it’s R&B,” Xenia said. “She hadn’t heard any steady stream of rap music since she and Saint separated. Hearing it actually upset her, because he loved it so much and she was used to hearing it in his car or sometimes while they made love.

He liked to amuse her, moving his hips to the music, sticking and stopping like an expert hip-hop dancer…only he was horizontal, pop locking, making her orgasm and laugh at the same time. She’d giggle as he rotated his hips, dive back down, twist and wink at her, all to the beat of the extreme bass and treble with each thrust.

She pushed the image out of her mind and waited for the sound on the disc to start.

“This is taking too long. Something must be wrong with it.”

Pam walked back over to the CD player.

“It’s spinnin’,” she said. Just then, James voice came over the CD.

“Hi Xenia, this is James Kessler. I hope that while you listen to this, you are doing well.”

Xenia
froze. There was no stopping the tears now…

“Turn it off!” she cried. “Mama, turn it off, please!”

“Girl, alright! Stop screaming like that, you’ll wake the dead, damn!” Pam pushed the stop button.

“That’s just it, Mama, he is dead! James died tonight. That was Saint’s friend, his boss. He was like a second father to Saint. James was good to us. I got chills! Oh my God!” Xenia wailed.

Pam walked quickly over to her daughter, knelt at the tub and hugged her.

“It’s OK, baby. I can see how that would kinda freak you out. Just try to relax.”

“Mama,” Xenia calmed after a while. “Turn it back on. I should listen to it.”

“Are you sure, Xenia? You don’t seem up to it. You just lost your damn mind a minute ago.”

“No Mama, I’m fine now, really,” Xenia insisted, wiping another tear from her face.

Pam rose, walked back over to the CD player and pushed “PLAY.”

“Xenia, when you play this, I may be gone. I don’t know if Saint told you, but I’ve been ill and it isn’t looking good. I’m at peace with it though, because I believe in a higher power. I believe in rewards for good service and I know that the pain I’ve endured here, I won’t feel there. The only thing I will regret is my Valerie being a widow. We all have to die though, that is just how it is. Once you are born, you have an expiration date and no one gets out of here alive. I’m sending this to you because I love Saint, he is my son, and I love you like a daughter. I had known Saint for several years before he met you. I knew that he desperately wanted to find his Queen. After you two met, Saint changed. I saw him go from a wild, untamed entity to a softer, yet still vivid image of his former self. Your love christened him into something new. He needed you like air itself, Xenia.”

Xenia
covered her mouth with her hand. The suds rolled slowly down her arm.

“I’m not one to interfere in people’s private lives but as it pertains to my son, I will do so, especially since I see him dying in front of me a bit more each day. You both are very headstrong people and that is a beautiful thing until it becomes your only resolve. You two genuinely love one another and I find the whole situation disheartening. Xenia, I wouldn’t be able to convince you that he had not chosen to be unfaithful to you. Saint knows nothing about this so please don’t think it was his idea for me to contact you, let alone reveal to you what I’m getting ready to. I have some recordings here that I believe you may find interesting…to say the least. They are snippets of phone conversations from the woman you discovered with your husband.

In any case, without further ado, daughter-in-law, I present Ms. Payton Smith to you.”

Xenia
stared at the stereo player in confusion. Pam sat on the toilet lid, her mouth agape.

“LaToya, that is what was so absurd. He didn’t even know her and still, he married her. But when we were together, he’d always tell me ‘No’ every time I proposed to him. Whatever,” Payton said.