Page 48 of Leave It to Us
“Mama, she could’ve slept in my bed. I told her I didn’t mind. I want her to be comfortable while I’m down here.”
“Well, what about me?” Freda had asked. “You know I don’t feel comfortable with strangers in the house, but you left me here with her anyway.”
“Ms.Rosalee is not a stranger. You’ve known her for more than forty years,” Yvonne had said, trying not to sound as tired and exasperated as she felt. “And don’t forget, you told me I needed to come down here.”
Her mother hadn’t responded to that comment, just continued with what was on her mind. “Anyway, I was calling to see how things are going. You keeping things in line down ... t-there?”
That last word had been stammered after a pause, which had, unfortunately, been happening more frequently when Freda talked recently.
“We’re doing okay. I told you when I talked to you the other day that me, Tami, and Lana put new wallpaper up in the powder room.”
There had been some shuffling on the other end and then the sound of Freda grumbling before she finally said, “Who has a powder room? It’s abathroom. Betty was always actin’ so bougie. That’s when she was bothering to tell the truth at all.”
Yvonne had refrained from saying Grandma Betty had been the one to call Freda bougie. In reality, both women had been a bit over the top in the clothes they wore and the money they spent. Of course, Grandma Betty, with her fortune from singing, could afford to be a little more extravagant than Freda, but Yvonne had never thought that jealousy was the true source of contention between them. Still, Freda had never made it a secret that she didn’t like Betty Butler, and after a time, she’d made it known that she didn’t like her son very much either.
Yvonne had closed her eyes to the memory of the two years before her parents divorced—the year Freda was pregnant and the year after she’d had Tami. Not long after Tami’s first birthday, her father had packed up and moved out of their house.
“It turned out really nice,” Yvonne had said. “Tami’s got a good eye for decorating. She’s really working close with the crew to get things done, and she’s doing a lot of research.”
“Figures she’d be good at something that isn’t paying her a dime,” Freda had said.
“Well, in the end, this is going to pay off for her. She’s really invested in the finished product,” Yvonne had told her mother, but wondered why she hadn’t said those words to Tami. Surely her sister would have liked to hear something positive from her, considering she’d made it known that she always thought Yvonne was judging her.
“Just make sure you’re keeping an eye on her and on Lana,” Freda had said. “I don’t ... I don’t ...” Her mother had paused, and Yvonne thought she heard her curse quietly before she continued. “Last time I talked to her, she didn’t sound right.”
Yvonne had thought something was going on with Lana too, and after their conversation last week, she knew it had to do with her marriage. She wasn’t telling Freda that, though.
“I bet it’s that husband of hers,” Freda had said, and Yvonne wondered if the woman could read her mind. “I never trusted him.”
Her mother didn’t trust any men, and she’d told Yvonne that so many times over the years. And considering her earlier comment about Grandma Betty never telling the truth, it seemed Freda didn’t trust a lot of women either.
“Lana’s okay, Mama,” she’d lied. Although this was what she and Freda did often—talked about her sisters and what they needed in their lives as if their words were the law that her sisters should follow—Yvonne hadn’t felt like doing it that night. Not when Lana and Tami were right down the hall. And if she’d had anything to say to them about their life, she could just go to their room and say it, since they were now in closer proximity than they’d been in years. “We’re all doing fine, and we’re gonna be done in about eight more weeks.”
“Eight weeks? You’re going to be down thereallsummer?” Freda had asked.
“Probably. That’s how long the contractor said it would take to get the house back together.” She knew she’d told her mother this when she’d spoken to her a few days after arriving on the island. But inaddition to everything else that was going on with Freda’s health, her short-term memory had been failing as well.
“Hmph. I bet that was Betty’s plan all along.” Freda had coughed. “She hated that you girls grew up and stopped coming down there for the summers. Couldn’t just be satisfied with the Thanksgivings she guilted you girls down there. Noooo, Betty wanted you living down there with her, said that family should be together. Like, what the hell was I?” She’d coughed again but continued. “Called me one day and cussed me out because she swore I’d told you girls something to keep you away. But I didn’t. I never said a bad word about her lying ass or her trifling son.”
And she’d been right: her mother had never spoken an ill word about either of them, not to Yvonne or her sisters. Now, she didn’t speak any complimentary words about them, either, but she certainly didn’t bad-mouth them. It was no secret that her mother didn’t like Grandma Betty or their father, but it hadn’t always been that way. Yvonne wished she could remember exactly when that had changed.
“Mama, it’s late. You should be asleep.”
“I should be doing whatever I want,” Freda had snapped. “Now, I want you to make sure Tami doesn’t get into any trouble while she’s down there. And find out if she has enough money in the bank. Lana has money, I’m sure. Even if she’s not making anything on those pictures she’s so hell-bent on taking, Isaac has a good, stable job. I can’t believe he let her out of his sight to come down there. The way that man dotes on her is sickening sometimes.”
“She’s a grown woman, Mama. And this was family business. I doubt she would let him tell her she couldn’t come.”
“You know Lana would do anything for that man. You see how fast she up and married him just because he proposed. And now she’s sitting in that house, letting him take care of her.” Freda didn’t hide her distaste for Lana’s life choices either.
“She fell in love and married the man of her dreams,” Yvonne had said, defending Lana. “I don’t see anything wrong with that. And she’s a professional photographer, Mama. Her pictures have been shown in several art galleries.”
“But are they making any money?”
“Well, that’s none of my business.”
“It’s my business because I’m her mother, and I know it’s not. Otherwise, she wouldn’t be living in some little condo; she’d have herself a big house.” Freda had huffed. “But I am tired. Just wanted to call and make sure you knew to keep an eye on your sisters. You know you’re the one I trust to take care of everything, Vonni. You’re the only one that never let me down.”
So by the time Yvonne had finally gotten off that call last night and lain down to go to sleep, all the ways she’d let herself down had been floating through her mind.
