Chapter 18
Bohlale thought about Sentayhu’s words as he waited for his meal to be served at the Queen of Sheba Ethiopian Restaurant. Yes, he did feel a tinge of jealousy when he saw Charmaine eating and talking with Pastor Gillespie. He did not hate Pastor Gillespie, but he had had his eyes on Ayana for some time now. In fact, he was saving up his money to build a huge house fully furnished before asking her uncle for her hand in marriage. He could not stop thinking about how he would not be able to compete with Pastor Gillespie who was well-off financially.
“Yes, I will be a man and go and greet the pastor,” Bohlale said to Sentayhu. “But before I do, when do you plan on telling Pastor Gillespie about the plot by Sam and others? From what I can tell, they plan on raising this issue before the whole church this Sunday.”
“Yes,” Sentayhu said. “It seems that Brother Martin is in on it, but I can’t say for sure. We only saw him coming out of the room. The others may be plotting behind his back.”
“He probably is in on it,” Bohlale said. “Remember he gives us the cold shoulder each time we cross paths.”
“We’ll let the pastor enjoy his meal. I’ll make an appointment for us to talk with him on Wednesday before the evening services. The lunch crowd is starting to come in anyway,” Sentayhu said. “Now would not be a good time.”
Bohlale took his plate and hurried over to greet Pastor Gillespie.
“I trust that you are enjoying your meal, Pastor Gillespie,” he said. “Ayana,” he added, addressing Charmaine. “Is it alright if I sit with you two for lunch?”
“Sure, Bohlale,” Pastor Gillespie said. “Ayana was educating me on your culture. I must say it is very interesting. I might even take a trip to Ethiopia some day soon.”
About fifteen minutes after Bohlale joined them at the table, Charmaine excused herself. “If you’ll excuse me, Pastor Gillespie and Bohlale, the lunch crowd is increasing,” she said. “I’m sure Uncle Sentayhu could use my help.”
_______________________
On Wednesday afternoon, Sentayhu and Bohlale met with Pastor Gillespie, and with their permission, Deacon Walsh and Sister Mona, the pastor’s secretary, were also present.
Sentayhu and Bohlale informed the pastor of the conversation they had overheard the previous Sunday about some of the prominent church members plotting to either force Pastor Gillespie to resign or be put out by a church vote.
Pastor Gillespie was shocked when he heard what Sentayhu and Bohlale told him. “You said Sam was involved in the conversation?” he asked, shaking his head in disbelief.
“Yes, the men kept addressing someone named Sam,” Sentayhu affirmed. “We did not get the name of the others.”
“But we did see Brother Martin coming out of the room before we overheard the men talking,” Bohlale added. “We did not hear him talking with the others, but they did mention that he would give them permission to talk with the church family after the services on Sunday.”
“Sentayhu and Bohlale, if you don’t mind, I’d like for you to come back to my office immediately after prayer meeting tonight,” Pastor Gillespie said. He had an idea who the other three men that had been talking with Sam were. The four men he had in mind often questioned many of the decisions he had made in the past. They thought that because they were wealthy and gave large sums of money to the church each week, they could buy his favor and run the church. “Money may talk,” Pastor Gillespie had told them more than once, “but it does not talk loud enough for me to hear.”
