She thought there was going to be a reading of the will. All of Hamilton’s relatives had assembled at the funeral home. It appeared that all of the arrangements had been spelled out, down to the casket, services, and final resting place. Even the mark-up of the obituary was laid out regally. One of Hamilton’s nieces had a friend with a great deal of desktop publishing experience who created a fabulous memento of the deceased with fancy fold-out pages and pictures of each stage of his life. All this crew needed was the money to pay for it all.
Scrunching her face, Angelica, with Edward by her side, looked into the sea of greedy piranhas. They looked back at her with disdain but didn’t voice how they felt because they knew she had what they needed to make Hamilton’s home-going celebration one to remember. She could hear the individual whispers and see fingers pointing, ‘There she is…There she is.’
“Hello, Angelica,” Aunt Dot said, approaching Angelica from behind. Aunt Dot was Donna’s mother. Donna looked so much like her, but she had a lot of her father’s features, too. Donna’s and Hamilton’s fathers were brothers, both of whom were now deceased.
Angelica wanted to reach out to her and console her. Living the wild lifestyle as Donna did had probably put her in harm’s way. She wanted to tell Aunt Dot how sorry she was about Donna’s death and how much she appreciated Donna extending the offer for her to come to New York, although it didn’t pan out. Instead, she uttered, “Hello,” and offered a reassuring smile.
Aunt Louise moved in behind Aunt Dot, making sure no additional plans were being made without her knowledge. Aunt Louise was Hamilton’s mother’s sister and was the one who called herself being in charge of Hamilton’s celebration. She was a short woman who dressed to the gills, and in her hand was a lacey handkerchief; Angelica was sure it was for effect. Aunt Louise probably hadn’t cried one tear after finding out Hamilton had been killed.
“Angelica, glad you and your brother could make it. All we need is the insurance policy to make this happen.”
“Good to see you, too,” Angelica said to Aunt Louise in a sarcastic tone of voice.
Aunt Louise paid Angelica no mind and continued on with her instructions. Aunt Dot used the moment as an excuse to mingle. She wasn’t particularly fond of Aunt Louise.
“I know many people in this town, and because they know me, they’ve gone ahead with the arrangements, certain they would receive their money,” Aunt Louise said. “The services will go on as planned day after tomorrow, Saturday, at eleven o’clock, and the wake on tomorrow. It will be held at my church on Raeford Road.”
“I guess there was no need for me to come down tonight!” Angelica exclaimed.
Aunt Louise put a smile on her face. “Yes, dear, you are still part of the family. You and Hamilton seemed to be even closer after your divorce. And we still need to take care of the financial part of this,” she hinted.
Not giving Aunt Louise any satisfaction, Angelica asked to speak to the undertaker. Just as Aunt Louise was about to direct her to the undertaker, Jefferson walked in, looking as fresh as ever. He had always been there for her, and she quickly cancelled the thoughts that began to roam around in her head. Whenever Jefferson was in her presence, Angelica felt a vibration between her legs. He was smart and had been one of the most successful black entrepreneurs in the city of Fayetteville. That had always turned her on, but he was a married man who was devoted to his wife now. Her thoughts momentarily turned to Ari.
Eager to have the business before them completed, Aunt Louise pulled aside the assistant who had helped them make the arrangements. Angelica asked if she could speak with the assistant alone-well, with Edward and Jefferson but minus Aunt Louise. She wanted to get all of the expenses she was going to pay for straight from the horse’s mouth. No hidden agendas were going to get by her.
Aunt Louise huffed and left the room but stood outside, hoping to catch any discrepancies that went against what she had already planned. When the trio filed out, followed by the assistant, Aunt Louise gazed into each person’s eyes, hunting for clues that the funeral wouldn’t go on as planned. Seeing none, she relaxed, following alongside the group. Before they rejoined the rest, Aunt Louise turned and grabbed Angelica’s hand.
“Is everything all right?”
“You darned near depleted his life insurance policy with all of this unnecessary stuff, but since this is what you want, it is done.”
Aunt Louise relaxed. “Good. I’m sure Hamilton had some other assets that should go to the family.”
“I don’t know about that, Aunt Louise. If there are any, they’ll probably be tied up in probate-that is, if he didn’t have a will. Now, I would like to have a look at the obituary, if you don’t mind. After spending all that money, I’d like to know that my name appears somewhere on the program. Also, who will be sitting in the five limos you ordered?”
“For sure, you and your brother will have a spot. I don’t know about that other gentleman. I’ll get the program for you.”
Angelica grinned. I guess she let Aunt Louise know that she wasn’t in charge of her. “Thank you, Aunt Louise, and you don’t have to worry about Jefferson needing a space in the car.”
Aunt Louise looked back at Angelica and gave her a shifty-eyed grin before mumbling something that Angelica could not hear. Within minutes, Aunt Louise returned with the program, which Angelica took and read in its entirety. Pleased to see her name, even if it was at the bottom bunched up with “and a host of other relatives,” she smiled.
“One last thing, Aunt Louise.”
Aunt Louise gave Angelica a We’ve got what we needed from you, and now you can leave look, and stood tall in all of her five-foot-four glory. “And that would be?”
“I would like to purchase the flowers that will rest on Hamilton’s casket,” Angelica said very tactfully.
“No, honey, that has been reserved for the family. The family spray was one of the items listed for the service.”
“But who’s going to pay for it?” Angelica asked.
“It was on the list, and it should have been paid for when you took care of everything.”
“Well, Aunt Louise, I took it off. I felt that, with all the money you were spending, or should I say Hamilton was spending on himself, I deserved to give my ex a little something. Can’t take my name off the obituary; I’ve already approved it to go to press.”
“I’ll be!” Aunt Louise shouted. “No wonder Hamilton divorced your behind. Such a contrary spirit.”
Angelica laughed. It was infectious and Edward and Jefferson joined her.
“I guess we’re through here?” Edward asked.
“Yes, and I won’t be going to the wake tomorrow,” Angelica offered.
“Fine by me.”
“Look, I’m going to get home since you don’t need me,” Jefferson said.
“Maybe we can all go out and get something to drink,” Angelica said. “We can celebrate Hamilton’s life our way.”
“No,” Jefferson said. “I promised Margo I’d come right home. We have dinner planned. Angelica, you ought to stop by and see Margo before you leave.”
Angelica was caught by surprise. She knew that Jefferson didn’t mean it any more than she believed man had landed on the moon, regardless of what NASA claimed though their scientists had a record number of pictures to back it up. If Margo wanted to see Angelica, she could have come to the funeral home with Jefferson.
“We’ll see,” she lied. “When was the last time you talked with Malik?”
“Gotta go,” Jefferson said, not offering any further explanation. He shook Angelica and Edward’s hands and left the way he came.
Angelica watched Jefferson’s back disappear into the parking lot with her mouth hanging open. “I think I hit a nerve, Edward.”