Seduced

FIVE

In February, sunset comes early, so it was dark by the time Reggie took me home, but, once again, I was at the wheel of the Lincoln Town Car. The little man had hardly said a word since I’d shushed his protests about riding in the passenger seat. When I continued west rather than take the south ramp onto I-75, however, he stirred.
“I hate them damn interstates, too,” he said. “One day, the whole state of Florida’s gonna be nothin’ but asphalt, assholes, and graveyards.” He’d been huddled inside himself, sniffing, trying to hide his bouts of despair, so it was good to have an opportunity to converse. There were questions I wanted to ask, and I might never have another chance. If nothing else, today I had learned that sad truth.

“Not all change is bad,” I said gently. “You’ll feel better after a while. Why don’t you stay the night with Loretta and me? You can sleep on my boat. I’ve got a charter in the morning, but you could fish off the dock. The snook hang there thick in a little drop-off. I’ll show you.”

“I’d rather have a mess of mullet,” he replied. “Soapfish, that’s what we used to call them snook. That hussy the governor married, she’d probably love to tie into one and have her picture took for a magazine wearing a bikini. Not me. Lonnie and the tourists, they can have them snook.”

Snewk-he pronounced the word in a way typical of folks from Carolina who, long ago, had ventured south and settled on the Florida peninsula.

“You never approved of Mrs. Chatham, did you?” I said. “I got the impression Kermit Bigalow doesn’t care for her, either. He showed me around a section of citrus he’s trying to save. Experimenting with different chemicals and techniques-that disease is near impossible to kill. But I think he was just trying to spare me from dealing with her.”

All that got was a snort of derision. I couldn’t be sure regarding whom.

I didn’t press. We’d turned south on U.S. 41, the Tamiami Trail, where traffic wasn’t too bad near Punta Gorda, before Reggie stirred again.

“That woman’s not smart as she thinks, but she’ll see. You just wait ’til the governor’s lawyer tells her what’s what.”

“Are you talking about his will?”

“Some folks are in for a surprise, Miz Hannah. That’s all I’m at liberty to say. Did you hear the way she spoke to me?”

I dodged the truth by mentioning Axel, the Thoroughbred horse, and reminding Reggie I’d toured the groves. “Figured you both had a lot to discuss,” I said. “You were Mr. Chatham’s closest friend, after all, then you had the police to deal with. They didn’t ask me much, Reggie. All I did was confirm what you’d told them. I hope that’s what you wanted.”

It was a veiled question that failed to produce results.

“Spoke to me like I was trash,” he continued. “She said even worse with the po-lice around. Me, having to stand there and listen with poor ol’ Harney on a gurney with a sheet over his face, barely dead and not yet in the ground.”

When I tried to soothe the little man, he only got madder. “Excuse my language, Miz Hannah, but that woman is a bitch. That’s the word for her, and she is riding for a fall. She has kicked the wrong stump this time, by god. Know what she did? The lil’ tramp fired me in front of everyone there.”

“Them listening?”

“Oh yes, she did.”

“I don’t know what to say. That was cruel, Reggie. When she calms down, maybe she’ll see it was wrong.”

“Hell she will! And after near forty years of service, too. Yelled at me in front of the po-lice; told me to get my shit out of my own house-her exact words-and be gone within the week. Well, we will see whose shit gets packed first.” He sat back, chortling, “Tee-hee-hee,” but in a broken way, then buried his face in his hands.

I didn’t know Reggie well, wasn’t even sure of his last name until a detective had referred to him as “Mr. Hutley.” But we had shared rides with Mr. Chatham together, and private moments when Chatham had stopped to visit Loretta. Never had I heard him issue an impolite word, let alone speak with such bitterness. I didn’t fault the man, was furious on his behalf, but needed more information before I could decide what to do. I hadn’t asked Kermit if I could share the boathouse story with Reggie, but he hadn’t told me not to, either.

I asked, “Do you want some water? There’s a Burger King up ahead. Their sweet tea’s not too bad.”

The former chauffeur had to gather himself; he sat up, rubbed his eyes, and adjusted his cap. “No, ma’am, thanks just the same. But another scotch would hit the spot. I just stocked up for the governor; got a bottle of eighteen-year-old Dewar’s in the cabinet. Mind if I crawl in the back and have me a taste?”

“As long as you buckle up,” I said.

“I’ll pour a short one for you, too, if you like.”

“Don’t you dare,” I said. “Stay put until I find a place to stop so you can get out.”

Reggie preferred to climb over the seat. This put his knees near my face momentarily, then his size-eight shoes, which I helped along with a push. I heard the laminated door open, the clink of glass on glass, followed by a long, savoring silence. Half a mile, I drove, before I spoke.

“Firing you like that in front of strangers-no matter how upset she was, it was just downright mean.”

“Two po-lice-men and an ambulance woman standing right there. Then Lonnie much as accused you of being a paid sporting girl ’cause of the extra scotch I poured to settle your nerves. Glad you didn’t touch that glass now?”

“You told them it was for me?”

“I know how to keep my mouth shut. Just as we discussed, I stuck to the story we agreed on. That’s something else Lonnie doesn’t know. You’re the smart one, Miz Hannah. Not her. I’m feeling better and better about hiring you to straighten things out.”

The compliment, and my concerns about fingerprint experts, were superseded by what I’d just heard. “She hinted I’m a prostitute?”

“No, it was an uglier word she used.”

“How much uglier?”

“A sight uglier, but it’s not a word I feel comfortable saying in front of a lady. That woman has a mouth on her.”

“She called me a whore? Actually said it?”

“Yes, ma’am; more in a general way, regarding your looks and the way you dress. Maybe ’cause of them three scotch glasses I was dumb enough to leave behind, I don’t know. But she wanted in the worst way for them po-lice to believe the governor died while having sport with you. My opinion on that matter, I’m not at liberty to share.”

“That blond bitch,” I whispered, and tightened my hands on the steering wheel.

“Pardon me, ma’am?”

“That witch,” I said, loud enough for him to hear. After another quarter mile, I again heard the clink of glass on glass. “I want to ask you something, Reggie. It’s been on my mind. Why did a man like Mr. Chatham marry a woman like her? She’s pretty enough, I suppose, in a fake, beauty queen sort of way, but, my lord, she’s mean. Even Kermit, who seems as nice as he can be, said as much.”

Since I had modified the grove manager’s opinion of the woman, it seemed only fair to reference him as a source.

After a long silence, Reggie replied, “Are you asking for yourself? Or your mama?”

It was true, my motives were mixed, but I said, “I’m asking you as my client. I won’t repeat a word without your consent.”

“Can’t, Miz Hannah. Sorry. That’s another one of those confidential matters I’m not at liberty to speak about. As to your mama, this much I can tell you: her and the governor, I’ve never seen two people in my life cursed by such strong love and bad timing.”

This was a revelation. “That’s hard to believe, Reggie. Not the timing part, but, if he really loved her, then-”

“Honey, that’s what I’m getting to. Why those two never married. Mostly, it was because the governor couldn’t bring himself to leave his wife and children. His first wife; the only one he ever had, far as I’m concerned. Now, there was a lady. A fine mother, too, but Miz Lilly-that was her name, Lilly-she had female issues. I don’t know the terms for such things, but, truth is, I doubt those two ever had the same feelings as the governor had for Loretta.”

“He didn’t love his wife?”

“Very much. But it weren’t the fever kind of love. You know the difference? That kind of love, there ain’t no understanding even when it happens.”

“I’m not sure,” I said, but, in my heart, I did understand, and the admission was painful.

Reggie took me at my word. “That’s ’cause you never experienced it. Don’t take offense. Few men and women do. Lord knows, I never had such luck.” The man sniffed, already a little drunk, and there was more liquor waiting in his belly.

I said, “Why don’t you pass me a bottle of water, and grab one for yourself? Drink it down. They say if you wait until you’re thirsty, it’s too late.”

A bottle of Evian appeared near my ear. “You don’t mind, I’ll set my thirst aside for later. Where was I? Oh-talkin’ about fever love.”

“No, you were explaining why he married a woman who’s got a mean streak and half his age.”

“That’s what I’m getting to, but there’s more you’ve got to understand. The governor was all man when it come to women, but he was faithful… mostly. Particularly when he was a young man. Then Miz Lilly’s female issues come along and temptation got the best of him. Otherwise, I truly don’t believe he’d have ever strayed. You know your own self, he was a deacon at Foursquare Gospel. Never missed a Sunday, unless he had duties in Tallahassee.”

Strange, how tense I suddenly felt, no longer concerned with Lonnie Chatham’s petty insults.

I said, “We were members for as long as I can remember.”

“Yes, you were churchgoing people. All you Smiths-the good ones anyway.”

“I appreciate that,” I said, giving him a look in the mirror. “Then Loretta switched to the Church of God on Pine Island. I liked the preacher but preferred Chapel-By-The-Sea. By then, I had my own boat.”

“Foursquare Gospel,” Reggie mused, “them folks could make a joyful noise. Many a time, I sat there in the heat of a summer morning, always a back pew, watching ol’ Harney sneaking looks at your mamma-I didn’t call him governor in those days ’cause he weren’t. Called him captain, ’cause he was. He’d hired me to work one of his shrimp boats, back when we was makin’ visits to the Yucatán. You sure was pretty, the way your mama dressed you in bows and ribbons.”

I spoke to keep myself from getting emotional. “I hated those starchy dresses.”

“And let everyone know, too! The way you tugged at your sleeves and couldn’t get comfortable. Many’s the time you caused me a smile. The governor, too. He was a man for noticing details.”

In my mind, I pictured Harney Chatham striding down the aisle with the collection plate, a confident man with shoulders and a smile, always in a suit with a bolo tie and boots.

“I was just a girl,” I said, “so it didn’t strike me as odd the way he’d sneak an envelope into the plate when he got to Loretta. They’d always just nod and smile, then he’d move along as if the money was from her.”

“She was poor, your mama, with no husband, and a child to support,” Reggie said as if I was unaware.

Rather than mention my mother’s disinterest in working, or her inability to hold a job, I let the remark pass. “Mr. Chatham was being charitable,” I said. “I realize that now. But, in all those years, I never once suspected the two of them were, well, close… And in church, of all places. Reggie, you’re the only one who knows how I finally found out. I’m not bitter-really, I’m not-but I don’t appreciate being treated like a fool.”

“This sure is some fine scotch,” he responded. “Why not have a taste instead of being so hard on how life is?”

“I’m not. I blame myself for being naïve.”

“Blame? When it comes to fever love, there’s blame enough to go around. But none of that makes a lick of sense when you’re old enough to look back. Harney said as much just a few days ago. Where’s the wrongness of falling in love?”

“Marriage vows address that issue,” I responded, but not in a sharp way. “If they don’t, I’m pretty sure the Bible does. But we’re off the subject. What’s this have to do with him marrying who he did?”

“I’m tryin’ to be gentle toward your feelings, honey.”

“There’s no need. If you don’t want to discuss it, that’s fine, too.”

“Strong love and bad timing,” Reggie said again, and let it hang there before getting to the point. “Did you know Miz Lilly went to Hope Hospice a week after your mama had her stroke?”

This was a shocking piece of information. I felt my stomach knot. “I had no idea.”

“That there’s your reason for why they didn’t marry. Four, going on five years ago, it was. He lost both his women ’bout the same time-your mama in a different way, of course. Part of her was missing after that thing in her brain broke. And them operations only made it worse. No offense; she comes and goes, your mama, and she’s still a fine woman. But it was never the same for those two.”

“That’s so sad,” I whispered.

“I’ve yet to hear the preacher who can explain such shitty-awful goings-on,” Reggie agreed. “The governor was a strong man, but the year that followed just about broke him. I know. Seven days a week, I hauled him back and forth ’tween hospital beds-Miz Lilly’s and your mama’s. The two of us was always on guard against a slipup of some kind so you children wouldn’t suffer more hurt by learning the truth.”

“You must have come after hours,” I said. “I never saw you. Not once. And I visited Loretta every day.”

Reggie’s Tee-hee-hee chortle sounded almost normal. “That shows we was good at what we did. Many’s the time we sat parked in some shady spot, waiting for you to leave the hospital so as not to cause you more upset. The governor was kind that way when it came to young’uns and people he cared for.”

I didn’t trust myself to respond.

Reggie’s voice softened. “Lonnie Dupree-that’s her maiden name. She showed up about the same time, which is the thing I’m not at liberty to speak of. But I can tell you something the governor said the day after their wedding. He says, ‘Reggie, I might’ve been better off using my pistol than making the mistake I just made.’”

“After only one night?”

“Could be, he knew from the start. Lonnie is the type who gets her way, and she’s got a beautiful body on her, I’ll give her that. The governor was a fool in that regard and she knew it. They had history together, those two. They went way back.”

“My god, how many affairs did he have?”

“That’s not what I’m saying,” Reggie replied. “She was just a local girl back then, a cheerleader at Florida State. The only dealings the governor might’ve had with a cheerleader, other than parades and such, would be to try and help her out of trouble, not trick her into bed. You ever hear that saying, Miz Hannah, about no good deed going unpunished?”

With his tone, the chauffeur was relaying a guarded message. I attempted eye contact in the mirror. “She had something on him. Forced him into marriage for his money. Is that what you’re telling me?”

“I never said no such thing,” he replied, but in a way that confirmed it was true.

“That’s hard to believe. Mr. Chatham was a powerful man. Why would someone with his connections allow himself to be buffaloed?”

“You ain’t been listening, girl. The last few years whittled the governor down somethin’ terrible. His spirit, I’m saying. Miz Lilly died, which was rough enough, then there was your mama’s brain surgeries that didn’t bring her back-not as he’d hoped. When that witch Lonnie showed up, the governor didn’t have much fight left in him.”

“He gave up,” I said. “Gave up on Loretta. That’s terrible, but I guess I can understand. She was never the same after that first surgery. That poor, dear man.”

“Gave up on himself, more like it. It about kilt poor ol’ Harney to know his chance to marry your mama had passed him by.”

I fumbled with the window switch and let the winter air chill me. It didn’t help. Ahead was a Taco Bell and a Shell station. I chose the Shell station because the restrooms were outside.

The door marked Women was locked, so I used the men’s room. Otherwise, someone might have seen the tears streaming down my face.