Читать книгу No Sanctuary - Helen R. Myers - Страница 16

Sunday, June 2, 2001

If it hadn’t been for her lingering indignation over Jack Burke’s visit and subsequent allegations, Bay might have wimped out of meeting the Ridgeways for church services. But she awakened on time that morning and despite feeling as substantial as an under-cooked soufflé, made herself shower and slip into the clothes Madeleine had purchased for her. Then with only a hefty dose of caffeine to bolster her, she headed toward the southernmost city limits of Tyler.

While summer remained weeks away, heat had established itself in the piney woods. Bay saw it compounding the waves rising from the traffic creating a blinding glare that had her wishing again for sunglasses despite the early hour. So much traffic, she thought with disbelief. The steady stream surpassed anything she’d noticed so far around the airport, almost matching rush hour on the Loop, and many of the vehicles were pulling into the turning lane where she needed to go. Of course, she already knew the church was large, but seeing it for the first time left her openmouthed.

Mission of Mercy rose above the dogwood and pines, an unbelievable mix of the gardens of Babylon and Hollywood’s rendition of Camelot. The snow-white mountain of granite glistened brighter with tall, lead windows and taller belfries interspersed with balconies adorned with planters full of red and white geraniums and assorted lush flowers. Bay estimated the whole structure took up a full city block and stood a good eight stories at its highest point.

Torn between awe and dismay, she waited for her turn to pull into the multiacre grounds, and unlike most of the traffic, chose a parking space as far away from the front doors as possible and nearest to the first street exit. “Mercy,” she said, peering through the tinted windshield for a better look at what she’d only glimpsed on TV. “No need to fly out to Disney World when it’s in your own backyard.” No one would convince her that God listened better in something like this; however, the playoff game-size crowd streaming toward the building obviously thought otherwise. Forget worrying about sitting with the Ridge-ways, she would be lucky to find them in that swarm.

Wondering about how many people the building could hold, she joined the parade; that’s when she spotted the less gaudy two-story complex behind and to the left of the church. Satellite dishes and microwave towers identified its purpose as the nerve center or communication studios from which KWRD transmitted their message for Mission of Mercy. Bay had done a little homework over the last few days watching TV so as not to disappoint or embarrass Madeleine in front of others, and had gotten an earful about services as well the church’s ministry. KWRD transmitted to much of the South and Southwest, also Mexico, several Central American countries and Colombia. Services or alternative spiritual programming were available virtually around the clock. Aside from live services, there was a talk show where Pastor Davis was joined by either his wife, the perpetually smiling Odessa, or Madeleine herself. Then there was home-shopping programming where a “faith representative” reviewed audio tapes, books, musical cassettes and CDs available for purchase. Years ago, Bay would flip by those channels thinking, “You see one of those, you’ve seen them all.” But she’d felt a strange mix of emotions as she’d watched this time because she’d met Martin Davis and knew Madeleine, who was such an important member of the church. Bitten by the celebrity bug, she thought with a cynical twist of her lips.

Her conflicted emotions blossomed into outright panic as Bay entered the sprawling vestibule and remembered from commercials how the congregation was often shown during the taped services. Bay hadn’t seen Madeleine or her son in them and hoped they sat out of camera range. The idea of finding herself in front of cameras again had her clenching her fingers tight to keep from scratching at the sudden itching along her neck.

“Praise God and welcome, sister. Do you need the assistance of a senior?”

Bay paused before the beaming man clutching a Bible. The glorious sunshine streaming in through the huge glass panes of the vestibule intensified his flushed, shining face and made it impossible to miss that his gray eyes were feverish with anticipation. “Senior what?” she asked.

“That’s our term for deacon or elder.”

A hand, as warm as the voice near her ear, cupped her elbow. Startled, Bay glanced around and experienced the double impact of Duncan Ridgeway’s dimples and amused blue eyes. It wasn’t the first time she’d seen him. He was the darling of East Texas media and she’d glimpsed numerous photos of him at the Ridgeway estate. But one-dimensional images didn’t do justice to the face best suited for color and animation, a leonine mane attractive from any angle, and intimate eyes that sparkled like a Caribbean sea as they observed the world with untiring focus. His was a face every fund-raiser yearned for, the kind of face that women would describe as romantic and men would see as competition but too friendly to resent. No wonder the ministry was doing so well, she thought with a mixture of artistic respect and cynical amusement.

“This is Mother’s very special guest, Ed,” Duncan Ridgeway said to the other man. “Thank you for looking out for her.” To Bay he said, “I’m—”

“Duncan. I recognize you from your photos.”

Even grimacing he charmed. “Of course, you’ve been to her office. She’s worse than a small-town talent agent who’s only success has been one client with a walk-on part in Cats.”

“Oh, I think she has more reason than that to be proud of you. You favor your father, though.”

Duncan touched his ringless left hand against the tie matching his pearl-gray suit. “That does my heart good. He was a lovely soul…but had just enough wickedness to make him the life of any party. I’ll tell you a few of my favorite stories sometime. Right now we’d better get inside. Mother was about to dispatch Elvin to your house.”

“I’m sorry. I didn’t realize I was late.”

“You’re not. She’s chronically networking-orientated and thinks everyone else should arrive for services thirty minutes early.”

Duncan moved his hand to the small of her back as he directed her through the doorway and into the nave or what she’d heard referred to on TV as the Grand Hall. “She has her work cut out to convince me.”

Duncan chuckled as he acknowledged the wave of someone in an aisle seat. “So I heard. Don’t let her change you. Your strength is part of what she admires most.”

“She’ll probably end up labeling me stubborn.”

“Challenge keeps her young. To know Mother is to understand her middle name is Strategy.”

Bay was as conscious of Duncan’s touch as she was of the stares aimed their way. She wanted to believe that it had little to do with her, that like his mother Duncan Ridgeway possessed a charisma that drew the eye, as did their stature in the church. But there was no missing the whispering, and when her gaze locked with Holly Kirkland’s dark stare, her step faltered.

“Are you all right?” Duncan asked.

“Yes.” She wasn’t but she wouldn’t let him know.

Glenn’s fiancée had matured, advancing from girlishly pretty to striking, her lush dark hair cut stylishly short and her makeup subtle, since her dramatic coloring didn’t require more. But it was her white suit that struck Bay strongest. It would be perfect for a quiet wedding, which left her wondering if Holly had chosen it to remind her that she wasn’t the only one who had something stolen from her.

Reaching their front row seats turned out to be something of a relief after all.

“Darling.” Madeleine reached out her hand and drew Bay down onto the plush theater seat on her left. “I’m so glad you could come. Doesn’t she look enchanting, Duncan? She could be your baby sister.”

“As radiant as you look today, more like yours.”

Madeleine laughed throatily as her son lowered his lanky length into the chair on her right and she patted his long thigh affectionately. She could have been the mother of a bride in her silvery-blue silk suit, positively glowing with happiness. At the same time, the cynic in Bay couldn’t help but note that framed by the royal-blue-and-white color scheme, the three of them created almost too perfect a photo opportunity. Almost on cue, the KWRD TV cameraman swept their way and lingered.

“Oh, no.”

Although she’d whispered the protest between stiff lips, Madeleine heard and leaned toward her. “Chin up and smile, darling. Think of something else, lunch for instance. Cook is preparing the most divine lobster salad.”

Cook must not be in need of spiritual support or networking, Bay thought enviously. To Madeleine she replied, “Thank you, but I’m not sure I’ll have an appetite after this.”

Duncan leaned forward and pointed behind him with his program. “If you need to leave in a hurry, that door to our right leads to the vestibule. Don’t try the fire exits, or you’ll trigger the alarms and then you will have more attention than you want.”

“Oh, sweetheart, don’t encourage her.”

Grinning at his mother’s protest, Duncan winked at Bay before sitting back. The choir stood and began singing. Thankfully, the cameras turned to them and Bay worked at getting her heart out of her throat and back where it belonged.

“How’re y’all this blessed of all mornings?” Martin Davis said approaching the dais, once the choir finished. “I told my darling Odessa as we got in the car, no one could have gotten out of the wrong side of the bed on a day this fine. Moments later at the first traffic light, I stopped rather than drive through yellow, and the guy behind me gave me the finger.” After a pause for laughter, he continued, “It just goes to show you that everything can be perfect, you can obey every law, follow the rules…and somebody’s still gonna have that finger ready. Reminds me of what happened to the apostle Peter while…”

For the next twenty minutes, Bay rode a strange sea of emotions as Pastor Davis navigated his way through the service with the energy of a decathlon athlete and intelligent wit of Johnny Carson. Blatant, however, was how for all of his country boy charm, ambition ran like a heady wine in this minister’s veins. Bay caught glimpses of his shrewd speculation as he studied his congregation gauging how firmly he had them in his control; nevertheless, she found him more tolerable than most evangelists on TV. If she was a neophyte attending with an open mind and heart and in need of familial attention, needy in general, she could see herself succumbing to Davis’s brand of, “Trust me and the Lord will bless you” manipulation. At least he didn’t reduce her to yawns. Where did he envision himself to be in five years? As grand as this place was, somehow she didn’t think thriving, but modest little Tyler, Texas, was the end of his visionary rainbow.

“Well, now, I dare you to tell me that you weren’t inspired?” Madeleine said as they rose along with everyone else.

Bay gazed around the huge auditorium. “These are such soothing cool colors to counterbalance the pastor’s passion, did you pick them out?”

Duncan laughed and linked his mother’s arm through his. “Good for you, Bay. It’s so refreshing to meet someone who refuses to say anything she doesn’t mean. Mother, when I get you to the car, I’ll drive to the house with Bay, show her a back way so she’s not trapped in that infernal midday traffic.”

After a brief unreadable stare for her son, Madeleine gave Bay a shrug. “So you’re right, it wasn’t his best sermon. Now we’ll have to listen to Odessa worrying all through lunch that he offended the little white-haired ladies in the congregation with that finger reference.”

“See,” Duncan whispered conspiratorially to Bay, “it’s catching.”

“Keep on,” Madeleine drawled. “I’m sitting Odessa next to you. Now let’s stop to say hello to Holly, I gather that’s why she’s lingering behind, since lately she’s one of the first out of here. She’ll be at lunch,” she explained to Bay. “I want to know how she’s liking being part of the TV production team. I hated encouraging Martin to move her out of the church office, but the other ladies confided that there were simply too many mistakes being made. Lyle and Granger will complete the table.”

“Granger?”

“Patterson. Publisher of the town’s new magazine. Tyler’s answer to D Magazine and Texas Monthly.” Duncan was no longer smiling. “Mother, is that smart? Bay is still getting acclimated and you dangle her in front of a shark.”

Madeleine looked wounded. “How can you suggest that? Besides, I’ll be there to intercede if he does push her for an interview. Honestly, Duncan, it was his only open date for the next month and I have to get him to join our church before the Baptists grab hold of him. Holly,” she sang, “aren’t you looking absolutely divine. You remember Bay, of course.”

“Who could forget?”

“Hello, Holly. You are looking well.”

The unsmiling woman didn’t return the compliment; in fact, except for a brief, hard stare, she ignored her. Her manner warmed several degrees as she focused on Duncan. “If you can spare the time, I’d like to talk to you after lunch.”

“Sure.”

Nodding, Holly retreated via a side exit. Watching her, Madeleine sighed.

“I do hope I won’t have to have another talk with the girl. It troubles me that despite claiming to understand she was wrong about Bay, she behaved so coldly just now. I’ll have Lulu adjust the seating arrangements as soon as I get home and rely on you, Duncan, to make sure Holly doesn’t indulge in too much wine. Monica, Steve, how are you? Did the kids get settled in D.C. all right?”

Amazing, Bay thought, as Madeleine moved on to another couple and another subject. How did she keep everything straight and remember everyone’s names? And there was a constant stream of Monicas and Steves, all of whom fell into either an awkward silence or artificial friendliness as Madeleine introduced them to her, until Bay simply held back to stay out of her line of vision.

Once they finally reached the car, Duncan turned his mother over to Elvin, parked curbside, the engine idling in order for the air conditioner to cool the interior. In the last second, Madeleine grasped Bay’s wrist.

“Don’t think I didn’t notice what you did back there. You must be bolder, darling. Look people straight in the eye and defy them to judge you. Naturally, I abhor gossip, but the Scrantons? His brother is still doing time for annuity embezzlement.”

“Oh, Madeleine. I’m just not the psychological pugilist you are. All I want to do is to work with my metal and to take some time figuring out where I fit in.”

“Mm. I can see you need coaching.”

With a fond pat on the cheek she slid into the car. Only when Duncan touched her elbow did Bay realize she was standing there caught in the hopeless avalanche of his mother’s overpowering personality.

“She is one of a kind,” he said staying close as they stepped off the curb.

“Is it absolutely necessary that I attend this lunch? This hasn’t been my idea of a fun morning and the last thing I want to do is add to the friction between Holly and your mother.”

“The only reason Holly remains with us is due to her. We’ve all tried to help Holly get on with her life. At first I thought she was, but in the last year or two…well, you saw for yourself how she behaved.”

“Your mother hinted at an addiction problem.”

“No need to hint. If you’re around her long enough, you’ll find out for yourself. Bay, something you should know…Holly and I went out a few times.”

The news came as no surprise. Holly oozed sex appeal and while slim, had all of the curves in the right places. Bay thought her as exotic as an imported delicacy. “It’s none of my business,” she said without jealousy.

“It could be.” At her startled glance, he smiled. “So much for my ego.”

“No, I—I’m not looking for a relationship, Duncan.”

“And as my mother’s point man, I have the family business as well as the public relations for the church to oversee, which takes me out of town more than I’d like. But you intrigue me, Bay. Everything Mother’s said about you and your challenges growing up, I feel like an old friend of the family has returned home. In any case, I didn’t want you to hear rumors elsewhere and not know the truth, that I couldn’t take things to the next level with Holly due to her unpredictability. Our family and the church’s international status makes us too high profile to allow such conduct. Cold-blooded, huh?”

“Not at all. I’m hardly in your league, but I worry myself, how my record will taint my ability to attract enough lucrative accounts to establish a viable business here.”

“What record?”

His innocent tone earned him another sidelong look and Bay could only shake her head in wonder. Maybe after a while she would believe her past no longer existed, at least on paper; it would take much longer to convince herself that someone as suave and successful as Duncan Ridgeway would find her a worthy replacement to Holly when he could have any beauty he wanted. She had to be crazy to warn him off. The Ridgeways were already making things easier for her, and Duncan could make that doubly so.

“What’s that frown for?” he asked.

No way would she tell him her mercenary thought even though she was disgusted with herself for having it. “Holly. I appreciate the confidence. I always liked her and I’ll do what I can not to complicate things for your family.”

“A sweet thought,” he said with a heavy sigh. “I fear that’s no more in your control than it is in mine.”

The words haunted Bay for the rest of the trip to the Ridgeway estate.