When Memories Fade (22 page)

Angel took a second to remember to breathe instead of scream. Moving forward into the darkness, she reached out for the lamp that was on a nearby table. The light calmed her, but her uncle did not. He seemed to have aged overnight.

“You scared me, Jacob. When did you get here? Grams has been asking about you.”

She walked farther into the living room and sat across from her uncle on the love seat.

“I'm sorry. I was hoping not to wake you.”

“What's going on with you? And stop pretending like everything is okay. It's not. Look at you.”

Jacob snarled, “Will you lower your voice?”

“Grams has noticed something is wrong with you too. She can't even rest herself because she's worried about you.”

Jacob leaned his head against the back of the couch. “This has been the worst time in my life next to your mother disappearing. Losing Dad was one thing, but I didn't see them letting me go at the job. Fifteen years. I gave my best years to that company for fifteen years.”

Angel said, “I'm so sorry. Have you been looking for another job?”

“Angel, I'm almost fifty years old. Employers prefer the youngster, who they can pay less. But I have been working, just not doing what I thought I would be doing. More or less just temporary contract work. I still hope to obtain something more permanent with benefits again, but it's been hard. So much has happened at once. I mean, I wasn't expecting Mom to . . .” Jacob sighed and held his head down, but not before Angel took notice of the tears in his eyes.

She remained silent, understanding that her uncle had lost a lot and was probably just as scared.

Jacob interrupted her thoughts. “I ran her off. She's gone because of me. That's what has been haunting me lately.” Her uncle stared in her direction, but it was like he was looking through her.

“Liz? Why don't you try talking to her? I'm sure you two can work it out.”

“No, no, no.” Jacob leaned over and held his head in his hands.

Angel continued, “You've been married so long, there has to be something . . .”

Jacob stared at her. “Angel, I'm talking about your mother.”

She sat back on the love seat and eyed her uncle. “My mother? What did you do?”

“Elisa was different when she was younger. She looked up to me as the older brother. I protected her. We grew farther apart the more people encouraged her to sing. It became her obsession. But then she started to change. Elisa's behavior became so manic that she would get angry and lash out at people, and then, all of a sudden, she would just be the happy little sister I knew.”

Angel remembered talking to Wanda earlier in the week. She'd mentioned her mother's mood swings. She didn't want to interrupt Jacob, so she remained quiet.

He laughed quietly, his shoulders shaking. “You were the best thing that ever happened to Elisa. She doted on you. Dressed you up. Being your mother gave her a sense of being normal, being a mom. If only she'd stayed on her medicine.”

“Medicine?”

Jacob focused on Angel. “Dad didn't want to think anything was wrong with her. If it wasn't for Mom keeping up with her and staying on her, Elisa would have gotten into a lot more trouble.”

“What was she taking medicine for?” Angel asked.

“She was bipolar. Elisa would be up one day and then down for days.”

“How come no one told me this?”

Jacob shook his head. “I don't know. I do know that she ran away before. She would go off when she was in high school. We would all look for her, and then we would finally find her at some friend's house. Most of us had never met these friends.”

“So when she left that night, had she been taking her medicine?”

“I don't know. I suspect not. She was really flying high, just a ton of energy. She was like a kid, going on and on about the record deal and how she was going to be like Mary J. Blige and Mariah Carey.”

Angel asked, “Did Eddie know? I mean, about her being bipolar.”

Jacob lunged from the couch and paced. “He knew. I tried to tell Dad that Eddie was no good. Yeah, he could play the drums, but he was surrounded by people who were questionable. Even the guys in the band were starting to be weary of him. I still don't know how Eddie talked Dad into letting him be Elisa's manager. He knew she had talent, and he just wanted to make money off her, but Dad was so blind.”

Angel stared at her uncle, trying to let his rants sink in. “Well, what did you mean when you said you ‘ran her off'?”

Jacob sat back down. “After she argued with your father, I tried to talk to her. I told her Angelino was right. She needed to wait a while longer for a better opportunity. She was so angry at me. I didn't realize she had left, but . . .” Jacob swallowed. “Mom went to check on you, and you asked her where Mommy was going.”

“I did?”

“Yes, you were the one who clued us in on the fact that she had left. I knew she was angry with me.”

Angel leaned over. “Do you know if she was there the night the rapper K-Dawg was killed?”

Jacob studied her for a second. “What do you know about that night?”

“Wes has been looking into some things for me. There's a theory that she saw who killed K-Dawg, and wherever she went after that, the person responsible did something to her. Do you think that's what happened?”

Her uncle sat quietly for a moment, deep in thought. He looked back at Angel, his eyes glistening. “She was there. Dad sent me to get her. She had been off for a few days. Mom suspected she was not taking her medicine. Someone called Dad and said Elisa was acting a little crazy. I just happened to be home visiting and was sent to fetch my sister.”

Angel asked, “Did you arrive when the shooting happened? Do you think she saw something?”

Jacob responded, “I arrived after the shooting. I remember it was just chaos. It took me at least ten or fifteen minutes, but I finally located Elisa. She was standing on the sidewalk, just staring at the car. The police had asked her if she saw something.”

“She didn't say?”

“No. Nobody said anything.” Jacob sighed. “It's possible she could have seen something, but she never said anything. I just tried to get her back home. She was sitting so still in the passenger seat. I thought maybe she was in shock.”

Angel felt close to tears. This was the closest she had ever come to finding out the truth about her mother. She just didn't understand why it had taken so long to pull it out of her own flesh and blood.

Questions still lingered, though. “Jacob?”

“Yeah?”

“Where would my mother have gone the night she left?”

“Angel, cops have been over this time and time again.”

“But they missed something, and I need to know.” Angel stood. “Did they know she was at the club the night of the shooting? When she was really frustrated, was there someone she turned to? She had to say something to someone.”

“Before Elisa disappeared, the only person she would really listen to or confide in was Eddie.”

Angel stood still. Wes was right. She was starting to question if she really knew at all the people in her life she thought she knew. When she met with Wes, they would have a lot of pieces to put together.

Wes decided to talk to the last person he knew had talked to Larry Stowe. He walked into the Kingdom Building Church offices. There was a different person, an older woman, sitting at the secretary's desk today. She reminded Wes a little of Minister J.D. in terms of her facial features.

He smiled at her and said, “Hello. I'm Wes Cade, and I'm wondering if I can talk to Minister J.D. I called him earlier this morning.”

“Sure.” The older woman smiled. “It may be a few moments. He is in with someone now.”

“Thanks. I will wait.”

Wes walked over to a group of framed pictures on the wall. The first time he came to see Minister J.D., he hadn't noticed the collection. He studied the photos and knew from the clothes people wore that they were taken in the late eighties, early nineties. Wes recognized a younger Minister J.D., along with K-Dawg and Larry Stowe, in one of the photographs. Larry really looked angry in the photo, and it was not just that rap artist swagger, where one was mad at the world for the camera's sake. No, Wes sensed tension in Larry's eyes.

Minister J.D.'s door opened. When Wes turned around, he was surprised to see his friend Detective Darnell Jackson stepping out of the office. Wes walked over.

Both the minister and the detective watched Wes as he approached. Both looked solemn.

Darnell asked, “Now, why did I know you would not be far behind me?”

“A reporter has to get their story,” Wes replied.

Darnell turned to shake Minister J.D.'s hand. “It was a pleasure to meet you. Sorry about the loss of your friend.” Darnell gave Wes a warning look. “Like I told Serena, be careful with the details on this case.”

Wes nodded. “You got it.” After Darnell walked away, Wes addressed Minister J.D. “I hope you will still see me.”

“Sure. It's good to see you back. Come on in.”

Wes followed the minister into his office and sat down across from him. “I won't hold you long, but given the turn of events since I saw you last, I would like to know what relationship Eddie Gowins had with Larry Stowe.”

“The last time you were here, we talked about the old Royal Records. It was actually partly owned by Eddie. He brought in demo tapes from all types of artists. He was all about looking for the next star. Well, we were young, and Eddie talked good game. So we decided to let him manage us.”

Wes tilted his head. “Big mistake?”

“Big mistake. Don't get me wrong. I liked Eddie. Smooth talker. Loved that restaurant. It's a shame that we lost it. To be honest, I don't know why Larry was there.”

“He certainly wasn't trying to resurrect his career,” Wes said.

Minister J.D. let out a short laugh. “No. You know, I stayed in touch with Larry while he was in prison. I told him when he got out, I would get him hooked up with a job at the church, but you know, he was more interested in his little girl. He wanted to be able to see her make it in the music industry. When he got out, he talked to me about helping Melanie. It's funny, but that girl wouldn't give him the time of day. You couldn't blame her, but he was trying to make up for his absence. Unfortunately, the bottle took up most of his attention.”

“Do you think Larry might have talked to Eddie about managing Melanie's career?”

“I don't know. After K-Dawg died, we all tried to stay in the game for a while, but it all fizzled. Everyone, including Eddie, just gave it up. He went into the restaurant business, and everyone went and did their own thing.”

Wes thought about how Larry still dressed like he had when he was in his twenties. “It still seems like Larry hadn't let go. Was there a beef between Eddie and Larry back then?”

“Not that I could tell. But . . .”

Wes encouraged the minister. “Yes. Is there something else?”

“To be honest, Larry was good. He had better skills than K-Dawg on the mic. He could freestyle like nobody else could. I think he always had resentment about not getting his due.” Minister J.D. looked down at his desk for a long moment, as if he was in prayer. He finally turned his attention to Wes. “When Larry came to sit in my office, right there in that chair, I almost felt like he was apologizing to me for something. He kept saying, ‘I should have stayed loyal to y'all.'”

Wes frowned. “Sounds like he betrayed you in some way.”

“I just wasn't sure how or what he was trying to tell me. Now I won't know until we meet on the other side.”

Wes's phone buzzed in his pocket. He pulled it out and looked at the caller ID. “Minister J.D., I appreciate your time. I need to get this call.” He shook the minister's hand and quickly walked out.

By the time he was outside the office, the voice mail had picked up the call. He listened to Angel's voice. “Wes, I'm not sure what time you wanted to meet today, but there's something I need to do. If you don't hear from me in a few hours, then send the cavalry to come find me.” Wes heard a door slam, like Angel was either getting in or out of the car. This reminded him of when she showed up at her father's house a few weeks ago. Wes dialed Angel's number.

She didn't answer.

Wes peered down at his phone. He played the voice mail again. Angel sounded stressed and determined. He felt an urge to find her.
Angel, where are you, and what are you up to?

After a fitful night of sleeping, Angel sat propped up against her pillow, watching the sun come up. While memories of her mother were usually faded, last night she could picture her mother's face vividly in her dreams and when she awoke. She'd always sensed her mother's moods, especially the extreme ones. Now there was a name for it, and all this time Angel hadn't known. People would tell her Elisa was spoiled and got her way, but her grandparents probably did all they could to keep up with a talented, but troubled woman.

She had read a bit about bipolar disorder before going to bed. If her mother hadn't been taking her medicine, in a manic state could she have confided in the wrong person? Angel had grown weary in her search for answers, but she couldn't rest until she knew the truth. She was the closest she had ever been to learning more about her mother.

A half an hour later, Angel entered the kitchen to grab some coffee, which someone had already started. She peeked into the dining room and found Jacob and Grams talking. Her uncle looked like he hadn't slept much, either, but thankfully, he had shaved his beard. To see her uncle's clean-shaven face gave Angel hope that he was doing better.

“Morning, Angel,” Grams said with a familiar smile.

Angel was sure having Jacob around had improved her grandmother's mood. Angel hugged her and then did something she hadn't done since she was a little girl. She hugged Jacob. He accepted her hug, barely touching her as she squeezed him.

He stared at her with questions in his eyes. Maybe he was having second thoughts about being so candid with her last night. “You are up early this morning,” he said.

“Yeah, I have some things to do. You two enjoy the day. I will see you later.” She exited the house and walked briskly to her car. Today the forecast was for rain all day. It was cool compared to the hot, muggy weather of the past few weeks.

Before Angel started the car, she dialed Wes's number. They had talked last night about meeting but hadn't set a time. He didn't answer, so she left him a message. Angel checked to see if the phone was on vibrate and slipped it into her jacket pocket. As she drove, she felt the phone vibrate in her pocket. Angel concentrated on the road instead of taking the call. She sensed it was Wes, but she didn't want him to try to talk her out of what she was about to do.

Like a few weeks ago, when she went to meet her father, she had felt compelled to let someone know what she was doing. Well, sort of. She was sure her cryptic message would leave Wes scratching his head, but knowing his inquisitive mind, Angel knew she could count on him.

It occurred to her after she started driving that she should think this through. Soon she found herself on the familiar street. Angel hadn't been to the Gowins' home in years. As she drove up to the house, she saw Eddie's Mercedes in the driveway. She did think the man was flashier than the other members of the group, who were more or less good old country boys. Maybe because Eddie was a bit younger.

Angel parked her car behind the Mercedes. She walked to the door, rang the bell, and waited. She stood there for about two minutes before ringing the doorbell again. Angel cupped her hands around her face and leaned against the windowpane. It could have been a reflection, but Angel thought she saw someone moving around inside the house. She had called Denise before coming over to see if she'd heard from her dad, but there had been no response to her calls.

Maybe Eddie was hurt somewhere. He wasn't that old, only in his fifties. With all the health scares and issues she'd seen with her grandparents, Angel would have hated if she walked away and he was hurt. That was the only explanation Angel could think of for him just disappearing. But then that wouldn't explain the dead body found at Southern Soul Café.

She looked back at her car in the driveway and decided to take a look around outside. Angel walked around to the side of the house. When Denise and she were kids, they never went through the front door. Mrs. Gowins was one of those women who did not like children in her living room, so the back door was the main entrance.

While the house looked immaculate from the front, she saw objects leaning against it as she moved closer to the back. There were at least three cars, older cars that Eddie used to drive. They appeared to be in great shape, clean and polished.

Angel thought maybe she ought to have had more than coffee this morning due to the throbbing feeling in her gut. She pulled the latch on the fence to enter the backyard. Angel headed toward the back door. The Gowins used to leave a key under the mat. The black mat was still there. Angel peeled the mat back but didn't see any key. She glanced around the yard. What was she doing here? Certainly the police had been by here, looking for Eddie. She sighed and decided to leave.

As she came around the side of the house, Angel saw that the front door was now open. She walked up fast to the front door. “Eddie? Eddie, are you in here?” Angel placed one foot across the threshold and called out, “I need to talk to you.” This was too weird. Angel spun around and yelped.

Eddie was standing behind her. He had a wild-eyed look, which she didn't recall ever seeing before. What happened to his face? she wondered. There were ugly scratches across his cheek, like he'd been in a fight. He smiled. “Angel, what a surprise. Why don't we go inside?”

As she slowly stepped inside the house, Angel looked around. “Denise and a lot of people are looking for you,” she told him. She jumped and spun around when the door slammed closed behind her. “Eddie?”

Eddie pointed his finger in her face and walked around her like an animal examining his prey. “You are just like your mother. Showing up at the wrong time. The day you walked into Southern Soul Café with that reporter, I knew you would be trouble.”

Angel frowned. “Why would me talking to Wes bother you?”

“Because it meant you were digging and he was helping you,” Eddie spat.

“Well, I have learned a lot about my mother, but not enough. You were close to her before she died, so you can tell me the truth.”

Eddie glared at her, and then he looked away. “Elisa was my star, the best thing I had going with all those other clowns I had under me.”

“You managed K-Dawg, Larry Stowe, and some of the other local rap artists in the area.”

“They came to me wanting a demo tape. I said I would help them if I could manage them. It helped me later convince your granddad, although he was real hesitant, to let me manage Elisa's career.” Eddie grew quiet as he paced, almost like he'd forgotten Angel was standing in the same room.

Angel nudged him. “Do you know what happened to my mother?”

“It was an accident.”

Angel's body tensed, and she crossed her arms. That was not what she'd expected to hear.

Eddie stopped pacing. “She came to my house, here, just like you did today. I knew something had been bothering her. She was all excited and waving her hands. Elisa kept saying, ‘I saw him. He had a gun.' That's when I knew she was talking about Larry.”

“Wait a minute. Larry? Larry shot K-Dawg? I thought they were friends.”

Eddie laughed out loud, his voice harsh and bitter. “K-Dawg was a pretty boy with no talent. The real talent of the group was Larry. I don't know how he had been pushed into being the hype man. K-Dawg was always wisecracking on him. I told Larry over and over again he needed to assert himself more.”

“So, if Larry killed him, why would that concern you? Why didn't you and my mother turn him in? Wasn't that what my mother was trying to say?”

“It would have come back to me. I gave him the gun. I also gave him money.”

“You hired him to kill K-Dawg? Wasn't he your client too?”

“K-Dawg was smarter than he looked. He'd been digging around my past and was trying to get out of his contract. His ego had gotten inflated once that song blew up on radio stations around the country. To think I was the one who gave him a chance, when no one would hear him. The real talent was Larry. He wrote the song. Your mother was singing the background hook. It was amazing. Her time was coming. Elisa was a star already.”

As Angel listened to Eddie ramble, she couldn't believe this man. What was it about his past that would cause him to be concerned? She stared at the man she'd known all her life.
I don't know him at all.
“You still haven't told me what happened to my mother.”

“Larry showed up is what happened. She was babbling about him. I told her to shut up. Larry wanted to shoot her. I told him he was in enough trouble. Your mom took off and ran. I grabbed her, and somehow she fell, hitting her head on the table.” Eddie waved his hands around. “It was bad. Blood was coming from her head.”

Angel felt like she was going to throw up, she was so nauseated. She cried out, “Why didn't you get her some help?”

“It was too late. She knew too much, and Larry was about to lose it. He wanted to put a bullet in her to make sure she was dead. I told him we had to get her out of there and I knew a place. In fact, we are going there now.”

“What?” Angel watched as Eddie leaned over and took something out of a duffel bag on the floor.

Eddie stared at Angel as if he were looking through her. “Angel, why don't we go for a ride?”

Angel noticed Eddie's hand. He was holding a gun. She looked at him, tears flooding her eyes. “Why?”

His eyes didn't move from her face. “You should've left the past alone, girl. It's been so long. You and Larry, I don't know why you both decided you wanted to dig up the past now.” Eddie laughed. “Old Larry had the nerve to want to come clean now. He'd served his time and wanted to get right with God.” Eddie was yelling and waving the gun.

Angel held her arms tighter around her as it dawned on her what had really happened at Southern Soul Café. Tears fell down her face. Eddie had burned up all those memories to cover up his crime. But it wasn't his only crime. What else had Eddie done?

He turned to look at her. “Stop with the tears. Just move. Go!”

Knowing the gun was at her back, she walked out of the house toward her car. She glanced at the street, hoping cops would show up looking for Eddie. Angel opened the car door and climbed in. She remembered she'd put her phone in her left pocket. As Eddie came around the car, she pulled out the phone and tapped it to see the touch screen. From the corner of her eye, she saw the last phone number she had dialed. She selected the number and slipped the phone into the car-door pocket as Eddie jumped in.

She looked at the barrel of the gun. “What about Denise? She's been worrying about you.”

Eddie jabbed the gun into her side, causing Angel to cry out. “Stop asking me questions. Just do what I tell you to do.”

She turned the car's engine on and placed her shaking hands on the steering wheel. Her mother was dead, and this man, a trusted family friend, was responsible. What he intended to do with her, she didn't know, but she prayed to God that Eddie would get the punishment he deserved.