Other Side Of Divine, The: The Blessed Trinity Series - Softcover

Davis Griggs; Vanessa

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0758273606 ISBN 13: 9780758273604

Publisher: Dafina Books, 2013

Synopsis

Paris Simmons-Holyfield is facing a dilemma - she's pregnant but is not sure who the father is. After spending a night with Darius Connors, her ex-colleague, the baby could belong to him, but she doesn't want to ruin her marriage. Darius has his own problems; his wife, Tiffany, has kicked him out. But he doesn't want to give up on his marriage just yet - even if Tiffany has found company in the arms of Clarence Walker, the Minister of Music at Followers of Jesus Faith Worship Center.

About this title

About the Author

VANESSA DAVIS GRIGGS is a motivational speaker and the author of over a dozen novels which include The Blessed Trinity series: Blessed Trinity, Strongholds, If Memory Serves, Practicing What You Preach, Goodness and Mercy, The Truth Is the Light, The Other Side of Goodness, The Other Side of Dare, and The Other Side of Divine. A recipient of several awards, this married mother of three adult sons, mother-in-law of one daughter, and grandmother of four adorable granddaughters and one handsome grandson lives in Birmingham, Alabama. Visit her online at VanessaDavisGriggs.com.

Excerpt. © Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved.

THE OTHER SIDE OF DIVINE

By Vanessa Davis Griggs

KENSINGTON PUBLISHING CORP.

Copyright © 2013 Vanessa Davis Griggs
All rights reserved.

ISBN: 978-0-7582-7360-4

CHAPTER 1

The light of the body is the eye: if therefore thineeye be single, thy whole body shall be full of light.

—Matthew 6:22

"All right, Jasmine, spell, energetic," fifty-eight-year-old EstherCrowe said as she and soon-to-be-ten-year-old JasmineNoble sat on the couch in the den wearing their matchingred Minnie Mouse shirts.

Jasmine smiled as she correctly spelled the word withouteven the slightest hesitation. Her brownish/black hair waspulled up into a cute little ponytail, her hair having growntremendously in the thirteen months since her successful bonemarrow transplant. Jasmine giggled. "Okay, Miss C," Jasminesaid, calling her by the special name she'd given Miss Crowe asshe'd done with Zachary, in calling him Dr. Z, and Gabrielle,whom she'd once called Miss G before calling her Mama. "Nowit's your turn."

Miss Crowe placed her hand on her chest. "My turn? Howdid I end up getting a turn? I'm not the one who has a spellingtest tomorrow."

"Are you ready? Because this is going to be a long and trickyone that always seems to mess me up."

Miss Crowe nodded. She'd been a middle school teachermany years ago and there was nothing that put a smile on herface more than watching a child with an uncontained hungerfor learning. "Hit me with your best shot, Miss Jazz."

Jasmine giggled again. "Okay, your word is Mississippi."

"Mississippi?"

Jasmine grinned and tilted her head to the side. "Yep. Mississippi."

A big smile spread across Miss Crowe's face. She repeatedthe word again, and then began. "Mississippi. M-i-crooked letter-crookedletter-i-crooked letter-crooked letter-i-humpback-humpback-i."

Jasmine was cracking up with laughter as she tossed her headback, falling back onto the sofa. "What?"

"You said Mississippi so I spelled Mississippi," Miss Crowesaid. "Have you never heard it spelled that way before?"

Jasmine rolled onto the floor, kneeling as she giggled madly."I most certainly have not. Crooked letter crooked letter,humpback humpback-i?"

Miss Crowe was laughing now as well. "Yes. Crooked letter-crookedletter"—she drew the letter S in the air with her indexfinger twice—"humpback-humpback"—she then drew two letterP's—"i," she said while cocking her head to one side andfolding her arms like a rapper who'd just successfully delivereda rap.

Jasmine got up and sat back on the couch next to MissCrowe. "That was too funny."

"Well, that's some of the things we did in the old days to helppeople learn to spell difficult words. The next time you have aneed to spell Mississippi, you can sing that song in your mind,and you'll get it right every time, no problem."

Gabrielle Mercedes walked into the den. "Hey, you two. Howare you feeling, Jasmine?"

Jasmine ran to Gabrielle's opened arms and hugged her."Mama!"

Gabrielle smiled. There was nothing like hearing thosewords, especially after all they'd been through in the span ofjust a little over a year.

There was Jasmine's lifesaving bone marrow transplant atthe end of December 2009. Then Jasmine's adoptive mother,Jessica Noble, died of cancer on March 30, 2010, which of alldays was also Jasmine's birthday.

Jessica had desperately wanted to tell Jasmine that she wasadopted. Sadly, she ended up taking her last breath before gettinga chance. And as if that wasn't enough, in May of that sameyear, Gabrielle finally told Jasmine she'd been adopted by theNobles before Jasmine learned in July, in the most horrific way,that Gabrielle was not merely a friend of the family as she'dbeen led to believe, but instead, her birth mother. "The motherwho didn't want her and had given her away," as she overheardit carelessly blurted out from the mouth of the beautiful ParisSimmons-Holyfield.

Yes, it had been a journey all right, all coming to a climaxNovember 2010 with the court's final approval of Gabrielle'sadoption of Jasmine just as Gabrielle's beloved Miss EstherCrowe waltzed back into her life, vowing not to leave until she'dphysically witnessed wedding vows exchanged between her veryown nephew and the one some liked to call "the daughter shenever had."

And now, it was a new year, 2011—a new season in everysense of the word. Engaged and come June 11, 2011, Gabriellewas set to wed the most amazing man: Dr. Zachary Wayne Morgan.For once, things were finally coming together ... finallystarting to look up.

Gabrielle strolled over to the couch and gave Miss Crowe ahug. "How did things go with the two of you today?"

"I told you that Jasmine and I would be fine. This baby isnever a problem."

"I keep telling you I'm not a baby!" Jasmine said vehementlybut with total respect toward an adult in her tone.

Miss Crowe pulled Jasmine over to her and hugged her. "Iknow, baby. I know. You're not a baby. Got it!"

"You just did it again!" Jasmine laughed and hugged MissCrowe back.

"Sorry, baby. I know you're growing up into a big girl." MissCrowe rocked her several times before letting her go. "Butyou'll always be my baby. Just like Gabrielle will always be mybaby." Miss Crowe slowly shook her head. "It's amazing. I firstmet Gabrielle when she was around eight years old. And thefirst time I met you was when you were just a little past eight.That's something, isn't it?"

"Actually, I was nine and a half when we first met," Jasminesaid.

Gabrielle placed her hand on Jasmine's head. "Closeenough. That would be considered a little past eight."

Jasmine grinned. "Me and Miss C had a great time today."

"Miss C and I had a great time today," Miss Crowe corrected.

Jasmine rolled her head in a circular motion. "Well,whichever way, we had a great time today." Jasmine looked atGabrielle. "She helped me with all of my spelling words, so I'mready to ace my test tomorrow."

"So you're feeling well enough to go to school tomorrow?"Gabrielle asked. "Because if you don't—"

"I'm fine," Jasmine said. "Now ask me how to spell Mississippi."

"Mississippi? Was that one of your words?" Gabrielle asked. "Idon't recall seeing that one on your list."

"No. But go on. Ask me how to spell it."

"Okay," Gabrielle said as she glanced at Miss Crowe, who wasalso grinning like she'd eaten Tweety the bird. "Jasmine, pleasespell Mississippi."

Jasmine promptly spelled it the way Miss Crowe had shownher. She flopped down on the couch and giggled hard.

Gabrielle placed her hand on top of Jasmine's head. "Thatwas good. I've heard people do that before. So I see you'relearning all kinds of tricks from one of the best teachersaround." Gabrielle glanced Miss Crowe's way and winked."Well, I'm going upstairs to change."

"Dinner's ready. Miss C and I cooked," Jasmine said.

"Is that right? Well, I see you two have been quite busytoday."

"May we eat in the dining room?" Jasmine said with herhands in a prayer mode. "Please, please, please."

"Sure," Gabrielle said. "Why have a dining room if we're notgoing to use it?"

"Yay! I'll set the table." Jasmine ran toward the dining room.

"Being around her is making me so much younger," MissCrowe said. "I'll be back to my twenties at this rate. But she'ssuch a precious and such a beautiful child, inside and out."

"Thanks. And I concur. She really is, although I can't takemuch credit for the terrific little girl she's become. Her adoptiveparents laid a wonderful foundation with her. I'm merelymaintaining and building on that."

"Now don't cut your contribution short. Jasmine has a lot ofyour genes running around inside of her. That child remindsme so much of you," Miss Crowe said, shaking her head. "Especiallywhen it comes to dancing. I've nicknamed her HappyFeet after that penguin in that movie." Miss Crowe did a few tapdancing steps.

"Well, I'm going to go and change into something morecomfortable so we can have dinner in the dining room. I appreciateyou so much for keeping Jasmine today. She wanted togo to school, but that shot she received yesterday caused her tohave a fever. And I knew, even if I had let her go to school as shewas begging for me to do, they would have sent her right backhome. Besides, I don't want to take any chances, not when itcomes to her health." Gabrielle shook her head.

"You don't have to explain anything to me. I've told you thatI'm here to help out in any way that I can," Miss Crowe said. "Itdidn't make sense for you to take off work when I'm at your disposal."

"But I don't want to be imposing upon you, either."

Miss Crowe waved Gabrielle's comment away. "Child, please.I was laid up for over ten years. I've gotten all the rest one oldwoman needs for at least the next ten years. I'm ready to beuseful again. And being here with the two of you is the bestmedicine any doctor could prescribe."

"I don't know why you keep calling yourself old. You're notold," Gabrielle said.

"I know late fifties isn't considered old these days, but believeme: I really am getting close to being a senior citizen—there'sno two ways about that. And in case you didn't know,you can get an AARP card at fifty. But being here, surroundedby you and Jasmine, makes me feel young again. You can't buywhat the three of us generate. We're three true dancers fromthe heart."

"I'll be back in a few. I'm going to put on my Minnie Mouseshirt so then we can be the three mouseketeers." Gabrielle wentupstairs.

Five minutes later, the doorbell rang. "I got it!" Miss Croweyelled, mainly for Gabrielle's benefit. She quickly made her wayto the door and cracked it open about the size of her smallframed body. "Yes?"

"Good evening, miss," the older gentleman with a smallpatch of white, off centered in the top of his black hair, said."I'm sorry. I'm looking for a Ms. Gabrielle Mercedes. Is this theright house?" He looked down at the index card that trembledslightly in his hand.

"That depends," Miss Crowe said. "Who are you?"

The man smiled. "My name is Benjamin. But everybody callsme Bennie."

"Bennie?" Miss Crowe said with a frown.

"Yes, ma'am."

"And might you possess a last name you'd care to disclosewhile you're passing out your first name?" Miss Crowe gave thedressed-down gentleman (wearing light brown pants and acrisp long-sleeved white shirt, incidentally with no coat, eventhough it was the dead of winter) a slow, methodical once-overjust in case she might need to give a police description later.

Bennie flashed a full grin, showing that he wasn't missingany of his teeth as far as his grin extended. "Yes, ma'am, I mostcertainly do. It's—"

"Booker," Gabrielle said as she stepped up behind MissCrowe and opened the door wider. She looked him dead in hiseyes. "Hello"—she took a long hard swallow, one that could beheard as it went down—"Daddy."

CHAPTER 2

I am the man that hath seen affliction by the rod ofhis wrath.

—Lamentations 3:1

"Gabrielle," Bennie Booker said as he stood outside thedoor. After only mere seconds, he nodded and wiped attears that were now falling.

Miss Crowe looked at Gabrielle, her attempt to gauge whatGabrielle might be thinking and, in turn, what she should do,since (for now anyway) she was the only physical object separatingfather from daughter.

Gabrielle took a step back from the doorway, visibly shakingnow. Miss Crowe wasn't sure whether Gabrielle's trembling reactionwas from seeing her father after all these years or fromthe cold, January 20th Birmingham air blasting through thestill opened door.

"Is it okay if I come in?" Bennie asked, wiping his eyes with awhite handkerchief he'd taken out of his pants' pocket.

At first, Gabrielle said nothing. Miss Crowe was just about topolitely tell him good-bye and close the door when Gabrielleplaced her hand on her shoulder. "It's okay," Gabrielle said.Miss Crowe could feel the trembling in Gabrielle's hand. "Youcan come in." Gabrielle opened the door fully to her father.

Bennie turned back and waved to a waiting cab driver. Thecab immediately backed out of the driveway. Bennie steppedinside the house. Miss Crowe closed the door and Gabrielleonce again took a few steps back as though she wanted to maintaina certain distance between her and her father.

"I can't believe this," Bennie said with a huge grin on his faceas tears continued to roll down. "Will you just look at you? Lookat you. You're all grown up. My sweet little baby girl is not ababy anymore." He shook his head slowly as he simultaneouslywiped his face with his folded handkerchief.

"So you're out? You're really out?" Gabrielle said. "They releasedyou from prison."

He moved his mouth from side to side a few times as thoughhe was trying to be certain of the words he chose with a few attemptsobviously not making it past the vetting process andbeing turned back for another. "Yeah." He finally seemed tosettle on. "I'm out. On parole, but for all that matters at thispoint, I'm a free man for now." He stared hard at Gabrielle."Wow." He shook his head. "You look so much like ... you lookjust like your moth ... you look a lot like her." He nodded.

"Dinner is ready!" Jasmine said, bursting into the foyer. "Thetable is set and I even put some of the food on the table." Shestopped where everyone now stood.

Bennie looked down at Jasmine. "Oh, my! Who, pray tell, isthis? Wow, you look just like—"

"Jasmine, why don't you go to the den and watch TV for a littlebit?" Gabrielle said, turning quickly to her daughter.

"But I thought we were about to eat." Jasmine looked over atBennie. "I can set another plate if you like." Jasmine alternatedher look between the man she hadn't been introduced to yetand Gabrielle. "It's really no trouble."

"Suppertime, huh?" Bennie said with a smile. "That soundsnice. It's been forever since I've actually sat down at a realtable—"

"Jasmine, please. Go to the den like I told you, okay?"Gabrielle softly pressed Jasmine's little cheeks between herhands, then kissed her lightly on her nose.

"Okay," Jasmine said, turning on her toes like a ballerinadoing a pivot move as she left to do as Gabrielle had instructedher.

"Miss Crowe, would you mind going with Jasmine for me?Please."

"I can, if you're sure about that."

Gabrielle nodded.

"Well," Miss Crowe said, giving Bennie a stern look. "I'll onlybe in the den if you need me. And don't forget about the food.

We don't want it to get cold."

Gabrielle nodded again.

Miss Crowe started making her way out of the foyer, slowerthan normal to ensure that her exit was the right thing for herto be doing. After all, this was the same man who had killed hiswife (bone of his bone and flesh of his flesh seeming not tomatter to him), in the presence of his little daughter no less,only months from turning four years old. The same man wholied to the police about what he'd done. Going as far as to slanderhis wife's name and character by indicating she had a manon the side and that her secret lover was likely the culpritwho'd murdered her. If they would find that man, they'd likelyfind their murderer. This was the same man who tried to intimidatehis little girl into keeping her mouth closed about thetruth she'd witnessed using the threat that she'd most assuredlybe taken away and given to another family by these evil peoplewho were merely out to trick her if she said one word.

So in the beginning, Gabrielle became mute.

Because of what Benjamin "Bennie" Booker had done,Gabrielle had been forced to grow up without the benefit ofbeing cradled in the loving arms of a mother (or a father forthat matter), and was mistreated by an aunt and uncle for morethan fourteen years along with their four bratty children. Andthe one laudable out Gabrielle had going for her, the one thingthat could have saved her from even more heartache—attendingThe Juilliard School dance division—and Cecelia Murphy,good old "Aunt Cee-Cee" had effectively managed to even stealthat from her, right before kicking Gabrielle out onto thestreets with no place to go.

Because of what Benjamin Booker did, setting off a chain reactionof all that was to come, Gabrielle had gone to stay withsomeone who really wasn't a friend, but more a user, namedParis Simmons. And Paris's father was a lowlife scum who'dtaken advantage of Gabrielle's innocence, sleeping with herand getting her pregnant. Then he sat back and watched asGabrielle was kicked out of the only place she had to live whileinsisting she terminate the pregnancy so it wouldn't mess uphis marriage and relationship with his three children. The honorableAlabama congressman (now ex-congressman) LawrenceSimmons who didn't seem to care about anyone else otherthan himself and, in the end, his appearance to others.

Lawrence Simmons who, upon learning that Gabrielle hadnot aborted their child but instead had given the baby up foradoption, wouldn't immediately step up and do the right thingwhen that child was dying, in desperate need of a bone marrowdonor. Oh, eventually he did the right thing (with a little pushfrom Gabrielle). And Jasmine dancing around the house nowwas living proof of that today. But still ...

(Continues...)

Excerpted from THE OTHER SIDE OF DIVINE by Vanessa Davis Griggs. Copyright © 2013 Vanessa Davis Griggs. Excerpted by permission of KENSINGTON PUBLISHING CORP..
All rights reserved. No part of this excerpt may be reproduced or reprinted without permission in writing from the publisher.
Excerpts are provided by Dial-A-Book Inc. solely for the personal use of visitors to this web site.

Edition details

• Publisher: Dafina Books
• Publication date: 2013
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0758273606
• ISBN 13: 9780758273604
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 320