5 - The Meeting - Draft

The entire family had trouble sleeping for several nights before the meeting. They were extremely nervous about what might go wrong. Henrietta tried to get the girls to focus on their questions and what they wanted to learn from Bird and the others. Frannie backed Henrietta up but was herself too scared to do so with any enthusiasm.

The night before, Henrietta slipped some melatonin into the desert that she was conveniently too full to eat. She needed her family to be alert and well rested. They weren’t accustomed to being in danger. Henrietta could handle herself though.

Henrietta started with the girls. She had them get ready for bed after dinner and lay in their beds. She dimmed the light slightly and had them silently write down their questions for tomorrow.

“Momma, we aren’t going to get to ask them anything. We won’t be able to sleep a wink again tonight. We’re too wired,” Darcy complained.

“Don’t worry, chicas. I have a feeling that you’ll fall asleep before you fill up even one page with questions. Just relax and know that I’d never let anything bad happen to you. I love you, my angels. Good night. “

Once Henrietta left the girls, she went to work on Frannie. Henrietta dimmed the lights and crawled into bed before asking the frantic Frannie to join her. Frannie tried desperately to refuse but Henrietta put out all of the stops. She put on Frannie’s favorite comedy that they’d seen a million times. She lit her favorite scented candles with a calming scent. She offered to cuddle during the show.  Frannie fell asleep before the opening credits finished.

Henrietta carefully extracted herself from Frannie’s clutches so that she could do what calmed her. She had turned on the coffee pot before getting Frannie to sleep so she just had to pour herself a cup before heading out to the back porch. It wasn’t much of a backyard but it was theirs. She sipped on her coffee, enjoyed the slight summer breeze, looked out over her garden and stared at the moon.

When she was relaxed, she turned to the heavens, as was her habit during times of stress or uncertainty. She asked the gods if she was doing the right thing. She never asked the outcome or for specifics. Her only concern was doing what was right no matter the consequences.

A fairy came out of the tree and flew to Henrietta. Once before her, the fairy grew in size to match Henrietta. Henrietta was accustomed to these visits from the fairies and expected that one would visit her that night.

“Hello, Henrietta,” the fairy began. “I have information that I am to relay to you from Umm Kul Hayat herself. I am told that it might be painful and that I am supposed to do whatever you ask or need of me. I am only the messenger so I don’t know its contents but don’t be afraid. It is for the best. Are you ready to receive this information?”

Henrietta simply nodded. The fairy took off her tiara and placed it on Henrietta’s head. She pressed the censors on either side of her forehead and held them there.

They were both transported into the vision. The fairy kept reassuring Henrietta that she was beside her in the vision as they watched. When it was over, the fairy released her grip, thereby transporting them back to the present and Henrietta’s garden. The fairy returned the tiara to her head before speaking in hushed, sympathetic tones, “I am so sorry, Henrietta. Are you okay? Is there anything that I can do for you?”

Henrietta smiled at her with tears in her eyes. “I’m fine. There’s nothing more to be done or said. It’s okay. I will miss them though.”

The fairy squeezed her hand and kept holding it as they stared up at the moon in silence. When the new day had dawned, the fairy could no longer help her. She had to go home, for good this time.

Henrietta wiped the tears from her face and put on a smile before opening the back door. It was time to wake her family and meet her destiny. She had to be strong for them.

Henrietta climbed into bed with Frannie and cuddled next to her. She did what she had done since they first met. She noticed everything about her, admired every wrinkle and adored every blemish. She loved everything about Frannie. She was her one true love then, now and forever.

Henrietta and Frannie woke the girls up together. They awoke excited about the adventure they were about to have. Their joy was infectious and soon consumed Frannie as well. Henrietta couldn’t ask for a better moment than all of her beloved girls being overjoyed and excited.

Their sparkle never faded. The day was going perfectly. They met Bird and his friends at the meeting place on time and with zero signs of trouble. The girls were learning about their lives, who they were, what they believed in and what they wanted to accomplish.

“Darcy, I just want to thank you for taking the time to learn about us. No Royal would ever give us the time of day yet here you sit, the future Queen of Jahim listening to our problems with concern and compassion. It means a lot to us. If you ever need anything, we’ll be there.”

“Thank you for your kind words but I have done nothing to deserve them. I have a title but little else. I have done nothing with my life. You have lived more, endured more, learned more and accomplished more in your young lives than every Royal of Jahim since the beginning of time combined. It is I who am honored to be in your presence and desire nothing more than being your humble servant. I hope that I can return this kindness one day and make you proud.”

The whole room was brimming with happiness. There was tremendous hope for the future felt by everyone there.

This mood was rocked after Darcy’s final word. A loud pop was heard. Darcy didn’t give it a second thought until she noticed the looks on the faces of the gang members. As she turned to Henrietta for guidance on why their expressions had suddenly changed, they dropped to the floor. Some reached for the guns in their pants while crawling on the floor to the nearest window or door. More pops were heard. Frannie and Juanita were screaming across the room. The smell of gunpowder filled the air along with smoke. It was hard to see.

When Darcy saw Henrietta, she was lying on the floor on her back. Blood was coming out of her mouth. Darcy screamed but couldn’t hear her own voice. She flung herself onto Henrietta as she lay there dying. She held her close and screamed, “Ummi! Help me! Ummi!” before seeing the life drain from her body.

Suddenly Bird was on top of her. He protected her with his body before scooping her up in his arms and rushing her through a secret passageway. Darcy’s screams were the last thing that Henrietta ever heard and Darcy ever spoke for the next three years.

The pain filled, primordial cry of, “Momma!” clung heavily in the room as other gang members grabbed Juanita and Frannie and closely followed Bird through the passageway. There was nothing that could be done for Henrietta but save her family.

Bird and his friends had an escape plan that they had hoped they’d never use. They emerged from the tunnels far from the gunfight to a waiting car. The family was told to get as low as possible to not only protect them from gunfire but so that they wouldn’t be spotted. They didn’t know who the target was but two pale White women in that neighborhood was sure to draw some attention.

The car took the family home. Bird carried Darcy to her room. She was still in shock. The other men stood guard as the weary Frannie and Juanita made their way inside. The men nervously guarded them as they waited for reinforcements.

The first wave came within minutes of their arrival. Men were stationed in every corner of their house with guns, ammunition, knives and every other imaginable weapon at the ready. It would take an army to get to the girls.

The second wave saw additional men to replace those who had been in the battle, a “doctor” and several nurses to attend to the wounded and women bearing food and the comfort only a mother could provide.

The men were bandaged and food passed out before the women turned their full attention towards the family. The guards were instructed to keep their distance with their weapons, have manners in front of the fine ladies and be quiet. Any time someone did something foolish, several women would jump all over them. Juanita in particular found it amusing. Besides her own momma, Henrietta, she’d never met a woman fiercer, kinder and more loving than those women.

They got Juanita and Frannie to eat and drink. They listened when they wanted to talk but didn’t ask any questions. They knew that there were things that they didn’t need to know. They’d be told whatever they wanted to tell them with a compassionate, non judgmental ear. It was exactly what they needed to help heal and plan for what needed to be done next.

Darcy was a different story. She wouldn’t speak to anyone, not even her own family. Bird finally got her to eat and drink a little but she just laid there with a vacant expression.

Bird never left her side. He felt responsible for everything that happened. He promised that he would protect her with his life. He had failed her. She was alive but the vibrant, inquisitive girl who had given him so much hope was gone. She was just gone.

Nightfall brought with it new problems for them all. The police were investigating the incident. Henrietta’s body would soon be identified through the fingerprints the crown had on file for her. The Queen would find out that Darcy’s nanny was dead. The state itself was about to land at their feet, or more accurately on them. Something had to be done. Darcy couldn’t speak for herself so it was up to her mother, Frannie to make the decisions for them all.

Bird approached Frannie once Juanita had fallen asleep. He explained the ramifications of having Darcy there once Henrietta was identified. Frannie understood it all too well though. Henrietta and Frannie had discussed and cried over Darcy’s fate many times before. If Henrietta died, Darcy had to be returned to Queen Narcissus, no matter what.

Thinking about what was best for Darcy or what was right didn’t count now. This was the land of Narcissus and the only thing that mattered was what she wanted. She would want her child if only for the media attention.

Bird and Frannie developed a plan during the night. Bird had sent most of his people home in anticipation of the police. The few who remained stayed hidden when the police arrived that morning. Everyone knew the plan and followed it.

Frannie opened the door for the police. “What can I do for you, Officers?”

“My name is Detective Smith. We are here to speak with Juanita. Is she home!”

“Yes but she’s resting. What is this about?”

“We can’t speak to you, ma’am. We can only speak to Juanita.”

“She’s just a child and her mother isn’t here to protect her. I would like to know what this is about.”

“We understand that, ma’am but we have the authority to speak to her alone. You will get her so that we can speak privately to her or else you will be charged with interfering in a police investigation.”

Frannie was irate but expected this. Henrietta was Juanita’s birth mother. Frannie wasn’t married to Henrietta because it was against the law. She had absolutely no rights when it came to her own family. The police were going to take Juanita off to an orphanage and the Queen was going to take Darcy away. She didn’t even have the right to claim and bury her wife right away. She had to wait until no relatives claimed her body before allowing her to claim it. It wasn’t right but that’s the way that it was.

An entire family shattered in an instant by one bullet. Words couldn’t even begin to describe their pain.