Chapter 52
In a few short hours, the night had come and gone. The sun had made its grand reappearance over the horizon around three hours ago, it's golden rays bathing the trees as beautiful bird songs sounded from within.
After a tasty breakfast of pancakes (courtesy of Rodeeia), the Kanker family spent a few moments packing up the small amount of belongings they had brought into the William's den. After doing so, they made their way out the front door for the final time, carrying their belongings with them out their beloved trailer.
Currently, the five woman had taken their places on the edges of Rodeeia's lawn, where they were in the process of saying their goodbyes to their old friend. After placing their belongings on the ground, the three Kanker sisters and Lindsay were the first to approach Rodeeia, who greeted them with a large smile and open arms.
"One last big one for the road sweet children," said Rodeeia as she took hold of all four girls in a loving embrace, "It was so nice to meet all of you as young ladies for the first time. I promise it won't be the last, Im'ma come visit Peach Creek in the fall, and you four better be as cool as you are now."
"Thanks for having us Momma Dae," said all four girls simultaneously, embracing Rodeeia as they did so. After a few moments, the girls pulled away, said their final goodbyes, and began making their way back towards the trailer, intent on loading their belongings .
Lindsay had barely taken two steps when she was suddenly stopped in her tracks by Rodeeia, who had gently taken hold of her elbow.
"Hang on a sec Little T," prompting Lindsay to turn back towards her, "I ain't done with you just yet, I'll be back in a sec!"
Lindsay remained still, observing as Rodeeia jogged across the lawn and into the driveway, disappearing into the open garage. After around five minutes of rummaging through a large cabinet of personal belongings, the heavyset woman reemerged, carrying what appeared to be a modest sized plywood board.
Lindsay adopted an expression of curiosity as Rodeeia came within speaking distance, placing one end of the board down on the ground as she began to speak.
"I want you to have this," said Rodeeia as she reversed the plywood.
Lindsay's eyes widened as the rear face of the board came into view. An old metal basketball hoop had been attached to the back in a somewhat haphazard manner. The orange paint coating the hoop had began to chip, which along with its rusty chain basket, further accented the objects decrepit nature.
"This was your momma's practice net," said Rodeeia, "We scored this hoop and plywood from a playground dumpster, and decided it was time to make our own little backyard court so we could practice whenever we want. She put it up in her backyard, and used it for shooting drills every day after dinner. And let me tell you, despite being a hunk of junk, this thing could take a pounding. That girl would end every practice session with a rough slam dunk that would nearly bring the streetlights down! She was a piece of work I tell ya, one of a kind. Smart, pretty, and athletic...just like you."
There was a slight pause as Lindsay trained her eyes towards the smiling face of Rodeeia, her face locked in a neutral expression. After a few moments, Rodeeia decided to continue.
"Like I told ya before," said Rodeeia, "You always do you. I ain't telling ya to practice or play sports, but I, as well as the lord above know you have the talent if ya set your mind to it. But if ya decided to do so, this will definitely come in handy. Hang it above your garage door, and presto instant court. Either way, no matter what you decided to do with it, there's no doubt that your momma would have wanted you to have it, and indeed you shall."
At the conclusion of Rodeeia's statement, Lindsay slowly lifted her arms, eventually placing her hands on the edge of the plywood. As she took hold of the basketball hoop, a small tear of joy formed in her right eye as she adopted a warm smile.
"Thanks Momma Dae," said Lindsay as she placed the hoop to her side, taking the much shorter Rodeeia in a loving embrace.
"No problem Little T," said Rodeeia, "It has been real, and I am so glad to have been able to see you again. Remember, I'm just a phone call away if ya need any advice, whether it be sport or how to keep that crazy dad of yours in line."
The two women shared a brief laugh at Rodeeia's joke, at which point Lindsay took hold of her mother's basketball hoop, turning away from Rodeeia for a final time. The tall girl then proceeded to make her way towards the trailer, where she would rejoin her three friends.
The Kanker had just emerged from the trailer in a single file fashion, having just loaded the belongings retrieved from Rodeeia's house. As usual, the girls were in the midst of an amiable conversation; a conversation put on hold as Lee took notice of her best friends approach.
"Geez will ya look at this," said Lee in a playful manner, "I'd never thought I'd live to see the dainty Lizzy carrying a sports accessory. What's the occasion?"
"Mama Dae gave it to me," said Lindsay as she rested the hoop on the ground, "She said it was my moms, and she would use this to practice basketball all the time when they were in high school."
"Wowza," said Lee, "Looks like ya got yourself a surprise piece of history there!"
"You bet," said Lindsay as she examined the next with a smile, "This is so boss, I can't wait to show my dad!"
As Lindsay continued to stare at her mother's basketball hoop in awe, Marie turned towards May with a smile.
"Looks like you won't be the only one leaving Georgia with a souvenir, May," said Marie, "Speaking of which, are you going to carry that thing for the rest of the trip?"
Marie's statement prompted Lee and Lindsay to turn their attention towards the youngest Kanker sister, who had taken her place near the trailers hitch. As usual, the ponytailed girl had donned her green, yellow-flower-covered sundress, but had added an additional accessory to her wardrobe. Across her back sat the gray sheath containing Mingxia's beautiful, hand carved staff, secured to May's body by a decorative strap traveling across her chest.
"For your information, I am," said May in a playful manner as she playfully stuck her tongue out towards her sister, "I have been trusted with it's care, and even though I have no idea why, I just know it will come in handy at some point. Plus, Ed thought it was so cool when I sent it a picture of it last night, so there."
"Whatever," said Marie as she began walking towards the rear doors of the Rods truck, "Just get in the truck spaz."
"We'll be right in," said Lee, "We're just gonna carry Liz's basketball net into the trailer. I'm driving today, so there's no need to try to bullshit me out of a window seat."
The two youngest Kanker sisters obliged, merrily opening the passenger side rear door and climbing inside. Within five seconds, the door had once again closed, sealing the interior of the truck from the exterior world, and, most importantly, the sound waves carrying the following conversation between Lee and Lindsay.
"So," said Lindsay, "What do you think?"
Lee responded, continuing to stare in the direction of the truck as she sighed.
"There is no question," said Lee, "They weren't sleeping. They challenged her and she was (Lee swapped her normal, dry deep vocal intonation to a much higher pitched and exuberant one), forced to incapacitate them."
"But...how?" asked Lindsay, "They surely..."
"They have never seen her before, so it would have been easy for them to be surprised," said Lee, "There is no doubt that black-haired firecracker sitting in that truck came out swinging, verbally and physically, not having any idea of who exactly she was up against. Naturally, May would step in as well...as soon as she saw Marie in potential danger. Fighting her is like fighting a superhuman...but that pressure point strike sure does come in handy if you lose control of yourself after a breakthrough."
Lee turned towards Lindsay.
"The question is, why?" asked Lee, "I can only think of one explanation, but it's pretty farfetched."
"Do you...do you think she is trying to...?" asked Lindsay.
Lee sighed.
"Knowing her, yes," said Lee, "And she will not stop until she has achieved her goal..."
Lee turned towards Tabby, who was currently out of speaking distance, smoking a cigarette as Rodeeia shared a final goodbye with Katie. After a few moments of staring at her mother, Lee uttered a few simple words to herself.
"And I know your secret," said Lee, "You want the same."
At the conclusion of her statement, Lee took hold of one end of the basketball hoop, assisting her tall skinny friend to carry it into the trailer for transport.
As these events unfolded, Rodeeia made her way across the lawn towards Katie's position. The thin, emaciated woman's attention was quickly drawn away from the flowers adorning Rodeeia's apple tree as she sensed her best friends presence, turning her head towards her direction with a reluctant smile.
Rodeeia came to a stop around three feet from Katie's position, adopting a witty expression as she placed her hand on her hip.
"Well Mama Kay," said Rodeeia, "I guess it's time to say goodbye again."
"I guess it is, Mama Dae," said Katie, "But I'd really prefer to say see ya later. I hope we will get to see each other again someday."
"You know it girl," said Rodeeia, "But even if we didn't, you should know by now no matter what happens, we will always be sistas from another mista!"
Rodeeia and Katie shared a smile, at which point Rodeeia handed Katie a small slip of paper.
"Here is my address," said Katie, "Wherever you wind up, you should be able to at least write me or look up my digits in the phone book. Either way, I'm gonna make it a priority to stop by Peach Creek later this year when we visit Ty's family for Thanksgiving, and I expect you to make some time to come up and see me."
"Definitely," said Katie, "I wouldn't miss it for the world. I'll somehow find a way there to meet up with you."
Rodeeia sighed.
"I have a funny feeling that you won't have to find your way," said Rodeeia.
There was a slight pause, at which point Rodeeia took hold of Katie's shoulders.
"I want you to make a promise," said Rodeeia, "The next time I see you, I don't want no more of this heroin/pill/wacky rocket ship to the moon bullshit plaguing that amazing mind of yours. You are much too strong of a woman inside and out to let that shit beat ya, and I know you can escape it if you set your mind to it. Please girl...get yourself together."
Katie's eyes began to appear glassy as she stared into her best friends eyes with a neutral expression. A few moments passed, at which point the red headed delivered a subtle nod, and proceeded to wrap her arms around Rodeeia for a final loving embrace. After doing so, the two women pulled away from each other, sharing one final smile as Katie turned away, making her way toward the front seat of Tabby's truck.
Finally, Rodeeia turned her attention to Tabby, who was in the midst of finishing up her cigarette. The sassy woman adopted a sly expression as she approached her somewhat cynical friend, initiating a conversation as she approached.
"Tabby K, Tabby K, Tabby K," said Rodeeia in a playful, yet lecture-like manner, "Do you know how much lung capacity you sacrifice by putting all that tar in there?"
Tabby sighed.
"I know," said Tabby, "I quit twice before when I was pregnant, and after me and Roddy made a pact to mutually quit. Roddy never smoked again, but I went back into it after all the stress. It's not an excuse, but it's somewhat true."
"You wear the world on your shoulders girl," said Rodeeia, "After all you've been through. I can understand why you'd need to take the edge off a bit."
Rodeeia placed her hand on Tabby's shoulder
"It was great to see you and the girls again after all these years," said Rodeeia, "I pray to God that you will succeed with what you are trying to do, and that wonderful family of yours will be fully repaired by the time I see you later this year. I can't wait to see all of ya's together enjoying your thanksgiving dinner at that beautiful house of yours."
There was a slight pause, after which Tabby decided to reply.
"I'll do my best Dae," said Tabby, "But it's in Gods hands now."
The two woman shared a final hug, at which point Tabby extinguished her cigarette and proceeded to climb into Rods truck. Soon after, the loud rumbling sound of the V8 engine filled the air, followed by the gentle click of the transmission shifting into drive. After one final honk and a mutual wave, the red Ford began making its way down the street, on it's way to the next destination.
Rodeeia remained still, observing the truck/trailer combination disappear around the corner. After a few moments, the heavyset woman turned, and made her way across the lawn towards her front door. She quickly disappeared inside, her thoughts returning to her community church project.
Unbeknownst to she and the Kanker family, their actions had been carefully watched by a distant observer. Further down the block, a large black sedan had parked near the side of the road, it's windows heavily tinted, obscuring the occupant within. Inside the car, the driver emitted a slight menacing growl, after which they turned the key, bringing the engine to life. The black vehicle then proceeded to make a small u-turn, traveling down the street in a direction opposite the Kankers.
