Lizette Davies

Huh! Gail got some nerve brushing me off like that. I just can’t believe that heifer. It aint like she got friends to spare. As long as I’ve known her, she’s been a major rude .&&. And that’s the kind way to say it. We’ve been friends since as long as I can remember. We graduated from high school together. We even got our first jobs together. Lord knows I love her like a sister, but she got some funky ways.

I wonder what happened to her and Rob. He aint the smartest knife in the drawer, but I thought the two of them were getting along just fine. Besides who would’ve thought that she would ever leave his country rump, especially the way she caters to him - like he was some kind of god. Cooking big meals everyday like it’s Sunday. That’s why her behind done spread so wide. You’ll never catch me treating Rich that good. Like Mama said, you gotta start out treating your man the way you expect to be treating him in the end. And I knew I didn’t want to be cooking like a house slave in my old age. That’s why we eat out and take out as much as our – his pocketbook will let us.

Ringggggggggggg! Ringggggggggggg! Ringggggggggggg!

“Hello”

“Liz. This is Gail.”

“Hey Girl, I was just thinking about you.”

“Lizette, I need to talk to you.”

So, the heifer is ready to talk now. I ought a let her tired behind sweat. “I’m kind of busy right now.”

“Oh! Okay. I’ll come by tomorrow after I get off. I gotta talk to you.”

“No! No! Come on over now.”

“I know your behind couldn’t wait until tomorrow.  Is Rich there?”

“Uh uh! He’s still out of town.”  I wonder why she asked where Rich is?

“I’ll be over in a few. Have the wine coolers chilling on some ice. We’re gonna need them.”

Yes, that’s how it’s been with Gail and me over the years. When one has a problem, the other one is right there to fix it – so to speak. Now I don’t know why she left Rob, but I do know it couldn’t of been too serious because Rob is still alive. Gail told me if she ever caught Rob cheating on her, there wouldn’t be enough of him left for the buzzards to chew on. So I know he wasn’t messing around. Besides, in spite of her bad attitude, Rob loved her.

 And then …

“Hey, Mama.”

“I’m in here, Melissa.”

“Mama, guess what?” Melissa was running fast.

“Calm down girl, you’re out of breath.”

“I know! Ahhh, Huhhh! Ahhh, Huhhh! I know.”

“What’s wrong with you?

“I just saw Daddy at the mall.”

“What mall, girl? Your daddy is in Atlanta.”

“No Mama! Daddy was in Columbia at the mall off Two Notch Road. Columbia Mall”

“Melissa your daddy’s been in Atlanta all week.”

“Well he must’ve drove back today, because I just saw him at Dillards. He saw me too and tried to duck behind the escalators.”

Lizette sat on the large white tufted sofa, her legs tucked firmly underneath her. Quiet and still, she fell rapidly into her infamous thinking mode. The ceramic tile floor made the room seem cold. She pulled the handcrafted throw they had brought from Mexico from the back of the sofa. She haphazardly flung it around her to conceal the chill bumps that lay awake on her bare shoulders.

“Mama, call him on his cell phone and ask him where he is.” Melissa sat on the heavy wooden table in front of her mother, unable to gain eye contact.

“I’m not calling your daddy. He’s in Atlanta on business.”

“I thought I saw the Escalade in the parking lot. Lil’ Rob spotted it first. On the way to Foot Locker, we cut through Dillards to look at this pair of boots. That’s when I saw Daddy back up and duck out.

“ Melissa. That wasn’t your daddy, you saw.”

“How many big black Escalades do you know with a South Carolina personalized tag that says, DAVIES 1 on it, Mama?”

Lizette didn’t answer Melissa, nor did she acknowledge the SUV with the personalized tag. She remained seated on her oversized sofa staring at her oversized fireplace in her oversized house, sipping an oversized glass of Gordon’s Extra Dry Gin …  To be continued