“I can’t thank you enough,” he said, shaking his head in disbelief. “No one else seemed to know what to do for me. Or they didn’t want to. Some said I deserved what I got. Of course, that was a long time ago.”
“Who would say that?” asked Miller.
“You’d be surprised,” said Grover. “Over the years, I’ve spoken to dozens of folks that look just like me. Some told me if I had shut my mouth, I would have been just fine. They weren’t experiencing what I did. Of course, that was more than ahundred years ago. I think. I mean, they were still riding horses and carriages back then. As time went on, when people actually acknowledged me, they seemed scared and didn’t want to talk to me.”
“Don’t ever stop defending yourself, Grover. It’s all a man has sometimes,” said Ian.
“I just want to see my family again. Mama, my father, my sister. She was to be married, and I didn’t even get to see her walk down the aisle or learn if she had a family. I just want to know that they are okay.”
“You give us time,” said Ghost, “and we’ll see if we can’t make that wish come true.”
CHAPTER NINE
While having breakfast the next morning, the guys were going through all the information collected by the tech team. Looking around the room, they noticed that Irene and Ruby were missing. It was not a good sign.
“Pops? Where is Mama?” asked Gaspar.
“Well, now, you know how your mother is. She had an idea, and I’m not sure if it will work or not, but she was pretty convinced it would. I admit that I helped her a bit, tried to make things more comfortable for her. Ruby is there to support her.”
“Pops, what kind of plan?” asked Miller.
“See, that attitude and tone tells me you’re already going to be disrespectful about this,” said Matthew. “I don’t think any of you understand the significance of that tree and that park. Your mother and I spent hours there when we first met and were married. It held a link for me to this land, to this area, and allowed me to still be here. With all of you and her.”
“Pops, we understand, but where are Mama and Miss Ruby?” asked Baptiste.
“They’re at the Square.”
“At the Square? Doing what?” asked Alec.
“I think you’d better see for yourself.”
Loading up the team, they headed to Jackson Square with almost every member of the Gray Wolf team. They expected to see Irene and Ruby holding court, hanging signs of protest, and fighting politics with stronger politics. The kind that’s homegrown and embedded in the community.
Instead, they were met with a scene they never expected.
“There’s Miss Ruby,” frowned Nine. “But where’s Irene?”
“I’m not sure,” said Ian. He watched as Ruby looked up at the live oak, chattering away like she was having a Sunday morning conversation over coffee. “Why is Ruby talking to that tree?”
“Oh, shit!” yelled Rafe, running toward the tree. “Mama! Mama, you get down from there right now!”
“Oh, hello, boys,” she smiled. “I wondered if you’d show up or not. I’m glad y’all did.”
“Mama, you get the hell down from there right now,” said Gaspar.
“Gaspar, you know good and well that cussin’ at me is never the way to go and won’t make me move. At all,” she said sternly. “If you want to talk to me, you’ll do it with respect.” Gaspar turned to Miss Ruby.
“Miss Ruby, surely you didn’t condone this?”
“I did. I did, and I’d be up there with her except my body ain’t as lean as hers. Climbin’ a tree ain’t in the cards for me. Got a little too much in the caboose if you know what I mean.” She chuckled, but they all stared at her, not responding.
“You can’t be upset by this,” said Irene, staring at her sons. “Y’all know what this means to me.”
“Mama,” said Gaspar between his teeth. “You are in a tree in the middle of New Orleans. Not only in a tree, but a prominent tree, and the whole world is looking at you. Do you see all those cameras over there?”
“I do,” she smiled, waving at the reporters and cameramen. “I’m so glad they all came.”
“You called them?” screeched Miller.
