amass more wealth than even his father had obtained, and be blessed to have a loving wife, a beautiful and successful daughter, loving grandchildren, and would live nine decades in peace and happinessâwas too much for his rational mind to absorb in the here and now. She knew that prophesies and spirits didnât exist in his structured world, which was ruled by logic and reason. So instead of telling him what had been prophesized to her by a nineteenth-century ghost and witnessed by her own eyes, she simply told him what he needed to hear at the moment.
âOpeninâ up that bank ainât just your dream, baby. Your mama and daddy, me, and all your ancestors been dreaminâ right along with you. Trust in God and let him lead you in the right direction. He showed you a sign today. That woman over at the hotel ainât the one for you, baby.â Allene grunted. âBut thereâs somebody out there who is. Somebody whoâs real, with a pure heart. Sheâs gonna come to you when you least expect it, but when you need it most. You watch and see.â
John looked up into the sky as Allene was doing. âGrandma, youâve never told me anything that wasnât true. So, as unlikely as what you said seems, Iâll try to be as optimistic as you are.â
âSounds like you done gave up on love.â
âWell, kind of. Iâve had a lot of women, but Iâve never been in love. I donât even know what that feels like.â
âBaby, you just wait. Things are gettinâ ready to change.â
John laughed and shrugged as he shook his head.
âOne more thing,â Allene said. âUse your book learninâ for startinâ that bank, but use the God-given common sense runninâ through your veins for everything else. Every friend ainât good, and every enemy ainât bad.â
âFirst you tell me Iâm going to find true love, and now youâre telling me I need to watch my back?â
âThatâs right. Thatâs exactly what Iâm tellinâ you.â
âGrandma?â
Allene knew what he was going to ask, so she quickly responded to him. âI just get a feelinâ about these things. I canât tell you why or how I know. But when God puts somethinâ on your heart, you have to pay attention.â
John smiled. âI woke up this morning with a feeling that something great was going to happen today. Now I know that I wasnât wrong. Your wisdom and love are the greatest gifts I could have. I love you, Grandma.â John leaned over and gave Allene another kiss on her cheek.
âI love you, too, baby.â
Allene and John enjoyed another hour of conversation before he headed back across town to the hotel.
âLord, thank you for givinâ my grandson some smarts,â Allene said aloud as she watched Johnâs car roll away. âKeep that woman away from him, and let him see her for who she really is before itâs too late.â
She rocked back and forth in her chair, thinking about what John had told her. âKing,â she whispered, freeing the word from her mouth. It had curdled like sour milk in the pit of her stomach. A queen and a princess were in Johnâs future, but there was no room for a King.
Allene had done her best to maintain her composure when John had uttered his girlfriendâs last name. As soon as she heard the word âking,â she had wanted to drop to her knees and pray. But she knew she couldnât alarm her grandson, so instead she rose from her chair, went into her kitchen, and poured two glasses of lemonade. She said a prayer she had been rehearsing all morningâthe one that Susan had branded into her memory over the last eight decades. It was a prayer of protection, meant to form a shield against anything that was rooted in bad intentions. Then she parted her lips and took a small sip from the glass meant for her grandson.
When she
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