“Now you know the twins are back in town right” Mary’s head snaps up from where she was watching her girls play “What?” Delta slim nods with a hum sipping on his drink “Saw’em down at the train station” Mary gets up to run to the train but Slim is quick to grab her wrist
“Hol’ hol’ hold on now now that boy done left ya fo’ seven years have some class ya don’t wanna look all desperate now” Mary has to fight a pout the espresso skinned woman plops back in her chair “Fix ya face if that man comes over let me handle’m nigga takin’ bout startin’ a juke
Slim rants but Mary can’t hear anything pass “The twins are back” Mary’s mind races why didn’t Stack come to her first? was him leaving his way of asking for a divorce? Does he not love her anymore? Mary looks down at her ring feeling her eyes start to sting
“Mary! Are you even listenin’ Mary Helen!” “I’m listenin’ daddy m’just thinkin’” “You better not be thinkin’ bout that man he lucky I ain’t cut his ass too thin to fry”
Later on that night Mary hears her father’s voice downstairs sharp but trying not to alert his granddaughter Mary tip toes out to the hallway peeking behind the wall Slim has his blade out ready to cut Stack “Get out my house you motherfucker” Stack dodges but each swipe gets close
“I just wanna take you my lady and my daughters out!” “She ain’t ya lady no mo get out my house” Slim swipes at stack again “Don’t you wanna play tonight! Don’t you want corn liquor” “You trya bribe me” a swipe too close has stack giving slim his whole wallet
“Money! Money! Don’t you want money! Slim snatches the wallet taking the money before cornering to slice stack before Mary stops ear hustling “Daddy don’t cut’em” Slim spins around blade still in hand his eyes full of fury soften he turns back to stack “You lucky my baby wants to save yo black ass”
Slim puts his blade back and counts the money he took out of stacks wallet “Mary” Stack takes off his hat stepping closer to his wife “Hey!! Back up!” Slim barks at stack slim was about to play at messengers but Stack paid him and slim plans on taking an extra twenty “Mary you go on ahead get ya self and the girls ready we going out tonight”
Mary puts on a pink slip dress her girls wear matching dresses the 4b coiled woman tries not to laugh as she hears her granddaddy threatening her husband Helen is practically jumping down the stairs Helen is the oldest twin named after Mary’s middle name and Evelyn is hiding behind Mary’s leg Mary’s shadow Mary’s twin “DADDY” Helen jumps down the stairs into Stack’s arms not giving him a second to prepare “Hey princess” Helen runs her mouth faster than Stack’s ears can catch up
“You wanna say hi to daddy” Mary asks Evelyn but the little girl shakes her head pressing her face into her mommy’s thigh, Slim ties a hand made shawl around Mary’s shoulder “Stop lookin’ at ha don’t need nobody lookin’ especially not some nigga that likes to leave in the middle of tha night” Evelyn tugs on Mary’s dress whispering but slim heard anyway “Whats a nigga” “It’s what ya daddy is” Slim answers
When the five of them get into the car Stack tries to help Mary get in the car but Slim smacks his hand away “She don’t need help”
At the juke Slim gives his great granddaughter a pep talk “If you see yo daddy getting close to ya mama bite’em you hear me” Evelyn nods Slim pats her head “good girl”
Slim was too distracted by the music to notice Stack dancing with Mary “He call himself tellin’ me about the cotton I said shit that boy don’t know nothin” Cornbread was smoking a cigarette speaking to his buddy when he noticed three eerie white folks “Get the twins”
The ringleader steps forward “Hey there” cornbread nods a bit weary “Good Evening how may I help you folks” “Oh we heard tell of a party Drinks, food, blues music and the like” Cornbread furrows his eyebrows “You did?” “We like to drink we happen to be musicians and we walked here so we hungry as dogs” the second white man wearing a dark green shirt barks making Cornbread even more weary
“You wouldn’t mind us comin’ in, now would you?” Cornbread blocks the door when they try to step in “I think yall got the wrong place” the woman with bangs and a combed bun laughs saying “What makes ya say that?” Mary puts Evelyn down at the bar by Grace to see why everyone’s at the door Evelyn whines but Mary shushes her kissing her head “Mommy will be right back” walking to the front door Mary makes the same face as everyone else
“You fellers must be the owners of this establishment” “Thats right. And you are” “Name’s Remmick This here’s Joan and Bert” Sammie walked to the door to check on everyone “Stack Yall all right” “Oh. And you must be that voice I heard from out here it was beautiful” “Goddamn beautiful voice” Remmick is doing nothing to make hisself look less creepy
“Where y’all from” Smoke asks “Just down the road” Joan answers “And how far is that” “North Carolina” Smoke doesn’t trust these folks and their not giving smoke a reason too “Y’all klan” Remmick splutters “S-sir i-i-we believe in equality and music we just came here to play spend some money, have a good time here, I’ll show you” the three do the most tuneless singing smoke has heard He pinches stack seeing him bopping his head
“That was horrible” Helen waves through everyone’s legs putting her arms up to be held by stack “Hold on. Just a minute” “It was just about to get good” “No it wasn’t” Stack smiles down at Helen she talks slick just like him “Nah, I believe ya, but this here is a juke joint blues music” “But we got money, and we ready to spend it with y’all Sounding damn near perfect”
“I don’t know about perfect” Helen steals her daddy’s hat, giggling “and you’re saying we ain’t welcome” “No, I’m saying you get down that road and get back into town plenty of white barrelhouse down there” Remmick’s eye twitches “oh this because we’re” Remmick rubs his hand “Alright we’ll be on our way but we’re gonna walk real slow just in case y’all change y’all mind”
“They gave me the willy’s” Annie can’t shake the feel those white folks wanted more than just to play “Well crackers at night will do that to ya” Stack bounces Helen “Now Daddy gon teach ya how to play poker we gon get uncle Bo for his watch”
The night went on Remmick was fuming throwing a tantrum kicking a shovel and burning his foot because the shovel was metal the juke went on Mary left around Sunrise the twins started getting cranky because they were sleeping stack was quick to run out behind his lady before slim could cut him
Sammie was on tour stack driving him as his self proclaimed manager and tour director “Is you sure we goin’ the right way” the road is dark Sammie and Stack were supposed to be at the hotel an hour ago “Don’t worry little cousin I got” BAM Stack hits something it felt like a body it was. Remmick flys ten feet hitting a landline the wood explodes from the force of his body piercing his heart Remmick gasps grabbing at his chest but the damage is already done he hears a voice he’s going into the light “Remmick me darlin’ you’ve finally come home”
Remmick sees his wife his love Siobhán Remmick goes into the light with a smile on his face “Stack!! You ain’t even gon stop to see what that was!” Sammie panics shouting at his cousin “Don’t look back never look back” Stack lights a cigarette with one hand one trembling hand.
