A Morning Surprise!!!
The phone rings at one o’clock in the morning on August twenty-seven. “It’s too early for today and too late for tomorrow for anyone to be calling me this time of the morning. I wonder who this can be.
Rolling over toward the night stand, I turn over to answer the phone that’s loudly ringing nonstop. I pick up the phone off of the night stand with an attitude out of this world. I had just fallen asleep after feeding my brand new baby boy. This is my first baby; I’m trying to adjust to my new baby boy night feeding schedule. “Hello,” I said! “I just killed a man!” “Who is this,” I said with a frown on my face? “This is me! Augusta! I just killed a man!” I sigh for a minute because I have had it with my baby daddy. He knows that I don‘t get much sleep at night because of our son who keeps me up half of the nights. Why would he call me playing about something like this I wonder?
“Stop lying Augusta because it’s too early in the morning for this shit. Have you gotten drunk again? Why are you calling here and talking crazy, Augusta?”
“NO! Listen Roe, I’m not lying it’s the truth and I‘m not drunk.” I can hear the nervousness in Augusta voice now. I hear the seriousness in his voice when he says it the last time. “I’m in trouble,” said Augusta. I pause as I hear him say those words. “Roe! Roe! Did you hear what I just said? I just killed a man!” I shout out in fear and concern saying, “Augusta, tell me what happened? Why, Augusta! Why did you kill someone tonight? Why? Tell me why?” Augusta is silent on the phone for a couple seconds. “I messed up, Roe! I really messed up bad,” said Augusta. I am hurting from the bad news. I grab my chest in pain. I don’t know why Augusta had taken a man life tonight. Did he even think about his son or me? Why, I wonder? “Where are you now?” I ask Augusta with concern. “I’m in Hermanville; I’m behind the post office. I need you to come and pick me up right now!” I hesitate upon answering Augusta. I am in shock that he wants me to pick him up. “You want me to come and pick you up after just killing someone?” Augusta says nothing as if he’s upset. I hear cars passing by. He’s nearby the post office highway I figure. I try to explain to him by saying, “You just killed a man tonight, I can’t come get you! Besides that, our child is asleep and I have no one to keep him.” Augusta shouts out, “Just bring AJ along with you, Roe! Is that so dam hard for you to do?” I don’t like getting Augusta upset, but this time I have to stand my ground. “Augusta, I am not coming to get you! You know they will put me in jail for being with you. Child Protective Services will take AJ away from me if we get caught.” I talked to Augusta calmly trying to convince him that it wasn’t safe for me or our son to pick him up. “No one will know, Roe! Come and get me, so I can hide out for a minute until things cool off. No one will know that I’m there.” Augusta is very demanding upon me picking him up. I guess he really needs me now more than anything I think to myself. A force within me tells me to be strong and stick to my word. I struggle with my heart because I am indeed in love with him. “Augusta, I am sorry, but I can’t come and pick you up this time. Every time you get into trouble, I am there bailing you out until now. I have a child now and I have to think about his future.” Augusta shouts out, “YOU FULL OF SHIT, ROE!! Augusta hangs the phone up in my face.
Chills went through my body as Augusta shouted at me and hung up the phone in my face. I hated feeling like this. I can’t believe he would risk me going to jail and AJ being without parents for his mistakes! My eyes then fill up with tears as I hold the phone in my right hand. I’m in a state of shock for a good minute or two before the operator comes over the phone. I ease back to reality before I fall down on my knees. I’m on the floor beside my bed wailing like a cat having kittens. I’m crying uncontrollably because this can’t be happening to me. “Out of all the men in Port Gibson, why did my sons’ father have to kill a man tonight? Why me Lord? Why Lord! Please just tell me Lord, why did he have to take a man life tonight? How will I explain this to my son when he grows up? How will I tell him that his dad is lockup for killing a man? LORD PLEASE HELP ME JESUS!”