Seasons (4 page)

The dog stopped momentarily, as though trying to decide which one to go after. Since Bill was closer, the dog headed for him.
Bill quickly removed his foot and leaped from the porch. He kept looking back, expecting the chain around the dog’s neck to
tighten up and restrain him. He cursed again when he saw that a large piece of wood, apparently once a part of the structure,
was attached to the other end of the chain and being dragged by the dog. Jaci, who was hurriedly fighting her way back through
the path they had made, looked back and saw both Bill and the dog gaining on her. She tried to speed up.

When she saw the street, she mumbled a breathless “Thank God,” but kept running. Bill overtook her, struggling to get the
car keys out of his pocket and hoping the dog’s progress would be hindered by the undergrowth, giving them time to jump into
the car. When he looked back, to his amazement, the dog was still in pursuit, dragging the piece of wood as if it were weightless.

Jaci reached the car as Bill nervously tried to get the key in the lock, but the keys fell to the ground and Bill yelled,
“Run, Jaci!” The dog had cleared the underbrush and bore down full speed on them, with the chain and wood trailing behind
him.

They both took off again, fearing the dog was going to take a chunk from their backsides any second. When they reached the
end of the block and dared to look back, they noticed that the dog had stopped midway down the street and stayed there, as
though in obedience to some remembered command.

Jaci dropped her clipboard and camera, threw off her hard hat, and bent over, hands on her knees, trying to catch her breath.
She thought,
doggonne it, I’m getting too old for this!
As soon as she was able to talk, she said, “Now we know why Daniels didn’t mark the house with the dates of his inspections.
He hasn’t been near that house since God only knows when. He’s in big trouble! That file should have indicated that there’s
a vicious dog on the premises.”

“True,” Bill reluctantly agreed while struggling to regain his breath. As a senior inspector, Bill walked a fine line between
the inspectors and management and was often forced to defend one or the other. “He deserves to be reported for this one. Or
better yet, I’m more inclined to think a good butt whipping would serve the purpose.”

As they drove back to the office, Jaci’s thoughts reflected her frustration.
Is this all I have to look forward to?
Shaking her head, she silently talked to the Lord.
Father, You know I appreciate all of Your blessings. But, Lord, is this all it’s ever going to be? Is there nothing in Your
plan for me but more loneliness, more dangerous buildings, and more vicious dogs? Father, this is Your world and You own everything
in it. Lord, surely, You have something else for me.
She sighed.
Nevertheless, Father, thank You for what I do have.

Jaci had no way of knowing that her season was about to change; that even then she was at the heart of conversations taking
place hundreds of miles away in Dallas; that the person who had swept her dreams away like a tornado over twenty-two years
before was about to bring more stormy weather into her life. Neither could she know that her future held another man who would
help her weather the storms and would also bring refreshing breezes and new beginnings of springtime. Yep! Torrential winds
were about to blow, sending Jaci through a season that would leave dramatic and irreversible changes.

J
.P. Gilmore and Herbert Williams sat in the reception area of the Housing Compliance Department, waiting to see Wynola Dickson.
J.P. was ticked off. Their appointment had been for three o’clock, thirty minutes ago, and he didn’t have this kind of time
to waste. He realized he probably had made a mistake in calling the woman, but he hoped she might help him to get regular
listings of buildings the city planned to demolish.

As he sat there steaming and considering walking out, J.P. idly looked through the glass wall to the elevator in the hallway
as its doors opened. Two men, obviously in the midst of an amusing conversation, stepped out. As one spoke, the second one
laughed so hard he fell against the wall. “Aw man, you’re lying on her, I know you’re lying!” he cried.

“I swear, man, I ain’t lying. That lady flew by me so fast I saw dust flying from her feet. That woman can run! That dog was
never going to catch her.”

Another man walking down the corridor noticed the commotion and strolled over to them. “Man, you gotta hear this!” the second
man said, and began to repeat the story. Before long, the third man was bent over with laughter. “I wish I had been there,”
he said between fits of laughter. “I would give anything to have been there. Where is she? Probably had to go home, didn’t
she?”

The elevator doors swung open again and J.P.’s heartbeat went into overdrive when a beautiful woman stepped off. She wore
black jeans, a blue long-sleeved oxford shirt, and heavy, mud-encrusted boots. Her long hair was pulled back in a ponytail
and showed the imprint of where the hard hat she now carried had been sitting on her head. A camera and a small purse were
slung over her shoulder and she was juggling the hard hat, a clipboard, and a cold drink in her hands. Her mouth thinned when
the three men broke out in laughter, and she shook her head disgustedly.

“You just couldn’t wait to tell them, could you? You low-life jerk! Well did you tell them about yourself?” The men broke
up again, doubling over and falling against the wall.

Shaking her head again, the woman entered the reception area and walked toward the receptionist’s desk, as a beautiful smile
replaced her frown. “Hey, Mrs. Hinson, how’re you doing? Any messages?” An answering smile spread over the elderly lady’s
face behind the desk, who handed the woman a stack of messages. “Hi, Miss ‘J,’ I can’t complain. I won’t ask how you are.
I can see you’re tired. How did it go out there today?”

“Don’t worry, you’ll hear all about it from those characters out there when they finish laughing.”

She turned to leave and noticed the two men sitting across the room watching her. “Oh hi,” she said, directing her gorgeous
smile toward them. “Have you all been helped?”

J.P. felt the breath leave his chest. The smile lit up her whole face and revealed beautiful teeth behind well-shaped lips,
which he instinctively knew would be a joy to kiss. And those eyes! Green and sparkling like emeralds, they pierced him to
the core and caused his body to go into overdrive.

He responded with a large smile of his own, forgetting all about being ticked off at Wynola. “Yes, we have, thank you. We’re
waiting to see someone.”

“Okay.” She turned to the receptionist again. “See ya later.” She retraced her path through the double-glass doors leading
into the corridor. Nearing the men, who were still standing there with amused expressions, she pointedly turned her head away
from them as she walked by.

“Ran into any dogs lately?” one of them asked. She kept walking without acknowledging his question. The men busted out in
loud laughter again.

J.P. watched her as far as he could see her down the long hallway. “Wonder who that is?” he mumbled to Herbert, who was just
as engrossed.

“I don’t know, but sure would like to,” Herbert replied.

Never in his life had a woman he didn’t even know affected him so strongly, and J.P. decided that he would make it a priority
to find out who she was.

M
axie Jackson was tired of the hospital room at Parkland Hospital in Dallas. He shifted around in the lumpy visitor’s chair,
trying to find a comfortable spot while he impatiently waited for his wife. Although he was awaiting his release, he still
didn’t feel well after having triple bypass heart surgery. He had been in the hospital almost two weeks after suffering a
massive heart attack and was anxious to feel like his old self again. His doctor told him it would take a while, but he couldn’t
help wondering just how long. He didn’t like sitting idle all day because it left too much time to think. He was usually on
the go, enjoying life and pursuing whatever entertainment had his attention at the moment. This sitting around was for the
birds.

He was mulling these thoughts over when a woman stuck her head in the open door of his room. It was Viola Wright, a woman
he had known for years.

“Hello. Aren’t you Maxie? Maxie Jackson? Yes, that is you. I was just walking by and saw you sitting here. You remember me,
don’t you? I worked with Jacetta Winters way back, years ago.”

Maxie looked at her suspiciously. “Yeah, I remember you. I haven’t seen you in years. What are you doing here?” he asked.

“Oh, I’m just visiting my aunt, who’s right down the hall.” A curious look swept over her face. “You know, I’ve stayed in
touch with Jacetta over the years. She’s done well in Houston. And that beautiful daughter!” Viola couldn’t stop herself from
going there. She didn’t know all the particulars, but knew enough to guess that Maxie had treated Jacetta very badly. “Her
daughter got married a few years ago, and it was really a lovely wedding.”

Maxie remembered Jacetta Winters well. She was the little hick who had tried to trap him into marriage by getting pregnant.
Huh! Someone should have told her he wasn’t falling for that. Better women than she had tried that trick.

But now, for whatever reason—maybe boredom—even though he tried to act nonchalant, his interest was triggered. He didn’t know
for sure, but had to assume the woman knew he was the father of Jacetta’s child; otherwise, she wouldn’t be telling him all
this—would she?

“So, what brought you here?” Viola asked nosily.

“My old ticker blew up on me and I had to have heart surgery. I’m getting ready to go home now though. Just waiting for my
wife to get here.”

“Uh huh.” Viola looked at him with thinly veiled dislike.
You’re probably just getting started with your troubles, sucker. You reap what you sow in this world,
she thought. She turned to leave, saying, “Well take care.” She left hoping that Maxie would suffer as much as he had caused
Jacetta to suffer. “I know Your Word is true, Father. May his moments of reaping be upon him,” she prayed softly as she walked
down the corridor.

Strange!
The word popped into Maxie’s mind after the woman left. Strange that someone would mention Jacetta Winters and her child
to him, especially at a time when he couldn’t do anything to divert unwelcome thoughts. Over the years, if a thought about
Jacetta or her child happened to enter his mind, he quickly pushed it aside as he went about his pursuit of self-gratification.
He hadn’t even been interested enough to try to find out the child’s sex. Now in his dreary hospital room—twenty-something
years later—he chuckled, congratulating himself. So . . . he had another daughter.

Two weeks later, Maxie ran into Jacetta’s uncle, George Winters, as he entered the drugstore. George was brimming over with
news of how well Jacetta and her daughter were doing.

“Man, let me tell you about that niece of mine. I was a little worried when she left here and moved down to Houston, but she’s
done real well. You know she always was real smart. She went down there and got a good job with the city. Been there over
twenty years, and her daddy was telling me the last time I talked to him that she’s thinking about retiring in a little while.
Wants to do something different. We drove down there for her daughter’s wedding, and I tell you, Jacetta’s got a really nice
house with a swimming pool in the backyard. I’m really proud of that girl.”

“What kind of dude did she marry?” Maxie asked, filled with curiosity.

“You know,” George answered slowly, “she never did get married. I guess she was too busy working and raising that child all
by herself. My brother acted a big fool when she came up pregnant. Told her not to even think about coming back to his house,
so I guess she was focused on what she had to do. My brother done regretted his words many times over the years. Especially
after he saw how hard she was working. She wouldn’t even take any help from him when he did try to give it. Anyway, now he
can’t help but feel guilty about everything. Sometimes it’s not the things you do, but those you don’t that cause the deepest
regrets.”

Now this is too weird,
Maxie thought. He hadn’t seen George in years. They had parted on bad terms, since George hadn’t been too happy with the
way things had gone between him and Jacetta. To solve that problem, Maxie transferred to another branch of the company they
both worked for, then made sure he stayed out of George’s way.

A bevy of strange and unfamiliar emotions stirred within Maxie as George continued singing Jacetta’s praises and talking about
how well her child had turned out. Emotions he couldn’t identify or understand assaulted him. And when he finally pinpointed
them, he discovered to his amazement that he was actually feeling disappointment. In his mind, it looked as though the game
had been won, and accolades were being given to the winner, but he was unable to share in the victory because he hadn’t even
shown up to play in the game. Ironically, he also identified envy and even loneliness creeping in as he thought about his
run-down rented house and pillar-to-post lifestyle. He’d literally had to beg for help when he’d gotten sick.
Wait a minute!
He scolded himself.
Why am I questioning my lifestyle?
I
love it! Must be these health problems messing with my mind,
he consoled himself.

George’s words grabbed his attention again. “Jacetta’s daughter, Randi, already has one child and another one is on the way.
She ain’t wasting no time is she?” he said laughingly.

Unexplained anger flared in Maxie’s mind.
Why did these people keep referring to her as Jacetta’s daughter? They knew she was his daughter too.
Before he realized he was going to ask, he said, “You wouldn’t happen to have Jacetta’s phone number, would you?” He didn’t
know if George would give him the information even if he had it, but surprisingly, George searched through his wallet and
found the number.