Chapter 25
“I must get to the restaurant,” Grant Lee Jr. said to himself as he pedaled furiously out of the neighborhood making a right turn on to the main road. “Rev. Barnett will take me to Mister Briley’s house for sure. I must talk with him.” Rather than make the left turn at the intersection, he continued straight ahead and came to a sudden stop at a pedestrian crosswalk where he made the left turn as soon as the light changed. I’ll just take the back road in between the buildings. I should get there just as fast. Please, God, please get me there safely.
In a short while, Grant Lee was discreetly parking his bicycle at the back of the restaurant. He hurried into the restaurant which was already filled with customers having breakfast.
“Is Rev. Barnett in?” he asked the lady at the cash register. “Please, I must speak with him. Tell him it’s Grant Lee.”
Rev. Barnett was at the register within seconds. “Grant Lee, is everything alright? What’s wrong?”
“Can I talk with you, Rev. Barnett? Something came up.”
“Sure. Come back into my office,” Rev. Barnett answered.
Once in his office, Rev. Barnett closed the door. “What’s up, son? You look distressed. Is everything alright at home?”
Grant Lee nodded. He showed him the letter he had shown Grandfather Nichols and his mother. Rev. Barnett immediately recognized the letter but acted as though he had never seen it before.
“You must take me to see Mister Briley. You must, Rev. Barnett. I believe he can help me solve this mystery, plus he’s the only one I trust right now,” Grant Lee said. Taking a deep breath he continued, “Grandfather Nichols won’t say anything yet. And neither will my mother. They keep telling me to wait until after the wedding. Did you know my mother was getting married in a few days? In fact, she did not even know anything about this letter until I showed her. Her and Grandfather and Grandmother were arguing about it yesterday. Apparently they lied to her about my father saying he ran out on her and now she’s getting married to somebody and I don’t want another father; I want my real father, and…!”
“Slow down, son,” Rev. Barnett said. “Let me get you something to drink and then you start from the beginning. Trust me, I will answer any questions you have after that.”
When Rev. Barnett returned to his office with a glass of orange juice the phone rang. It was his wife.
“Yes, Athaliah…Before going to the hospital, why don’t you and Mrs. Mattie stop by here first. There is nothing she can do for Mister Briley right now until he recovers…Get here as soon as you can; something very important just came up…Bye now..Love you.”
“Did you just say, ‘Mrs. Mattie’? Is Mister Briley in the hospital?” Grant Lee asked. “He can’t be. I just spoke with him last night.”
“Sorry, Grant Lee,” Rev. Barnett said softly. “Last night we had to rush him to the emergency room. We believe he had a mild heart attack. He had a triple by-pass surgery early this morning, but thank God he’s doing better. The doctors said it all went well and he should recover without any problems. My wife and Mrs. Mattie and myself were going to stop by and pay him a visit, but we’ll take care of you first.”
“Can I come with you all, Rev. Barnett? I must see Mister Briley. He’s not going to die, is he?”
“No, I don’t think so, Grant Lee. Mister Briley is a fighter. He’s still in intensive care, so I’m not sure about you coming right now. I don’t think they allow minors on that floor. Now tell me everything from the beginning.”
