Texas Faith

Chapter 2

Damarquis sat in a back booth where he could still see out the window of Mae’s Diner. He was glad that it was open 24/7, so he could watch for trouble when the bar across the street let out. Damarquis didn't have much trouble out of the locals. He stood 6 foot 7 inches and is moderately built. His size alone kept many from getting unruly. However, those who came in from the neighboring towns and started to cause trouble, he would use the dark to sneak up behind them. His midnight-black skin allowed him to blend in with the shadows.

He knew he still had a couple of hours before the bar let out, but he had made it a habit to sit in the diner with a cup of coffee. He was in his usual booth when one of the other officers of the small force came in. He knew this could not be good. Officer Caleb made his way over to Demarquis and sat down. He stood 6 foot and was a skinny guy with fair skin and brown eyes and hair.

“This can’t be good,” Demarquis said to himself. “Hey, Caleb. What is going on?”

“Dem.”

Yup, not good at all, he thought. No one called him Dem on the force unless it was bad news. “Don’t start with the Dem stuff; just tell me the bad news.”

Caleb continued explaining the situation, starting with how he received word that someone had triggered the alarm at the high school. They completely destroyed the gym by taking hammers to the bleachers, ripped the basketball hoop from the wall, and ruined the floors by flooding the bathrooms. Caleb also explained to Demarquis how they vandalized the main hallway by writing profanities on the walls in spray paint, busting out windows, and using a variety of items to put holes in the walls. The worst part, there were no suspects. They had all ran out of the building before officers arrived.

“What about the school’s security cameras,” Demarquis asked.

“They were all ripped out of the wall. There had to be a whole army of them asses to pull it off.”

“Go keep watch at the school. I will be there as soon as the bar closes, and I see there is no trouble there.”

“Well, there is one more thing,” Caleb began. “Old Mr.Jones, the English teacher, was the night watchman tonight. Those fools sent him into a heart attack. The hospital is keeping him there for a few days.”

Well, that is just great, thought Demarquis. “Thanks for letting me know. The plan is still the same.”

Sam was starting to regret her decision to see what Texas had to offer off the main highways. She had grown tired of the traffic when she decided to take 287. Sam was hoping it would be a smoother, less stressful traveling experience. It had been six hours since she entered Texas; however, it felt like she had been in the state for days. She had thought about stopping in Amarillo but figured she could go a little further and then stop for the night. Boy, had she been wrong.

It was three a.m., and she was exhausted when she passed the Faith city limits sign. She had two options where she could ask about a place to sleep; there was a 24-hour diner on one side of the road and a bar on the other. Sam pulled into the small restaurant and parked on the side of the building. There were a few other cars in the parking lot but not an overabundance. Sam noticed a few people inside through large windows and figured it was mainly employees.

Walking through the front door of the diner, Sam heard a small bell rang overhead. The smell of french fries and burgers assaulted her senses. The decor was retro 50’s; several booths were covered in red sparkle vinyl. There were several tables and chairs in the center of the room. On the far side, there was a tall counter and barstools covered to match the booths. Pie cases filled the countertop behind the bar, each with an assortment of pies in them. Sam made her way over to the bar and took a seat. A middle-aged, stocky woman with her grey hair pulled up in a tight bun, dressed in a waitress uniform and an apron, came over to her.

“Hey, darlin’. What can I get for ya?”

“A cup of coffee and a slice of that wonderful-looking apple pie, please.”

“That’s easy enough,” Mae said as she turned to get her coffee and pie, making sure to warm the pie slightly and adding a large scoop of vanilla ice cream to the top of it.

“What brings you to our little town?” she asked as she set the plate down in front of Sam.

“I am just passing through. Do you know of a hotel or a bed and breakfast I could stay in for the night?” Mae sat the pie down in front of Sam shaking her head.

“We ain’t got any of that around here. However, we do have some folks that rent out rooms when they are needed. I can get a hold of them and see if they have anything available.”

"No need to do that. It is too late, and I do not want to bother anyone. I will just head to the next town."

"The next town with a hotel or anything is about two hours over. It ain't no bother to make the calls; most are over at the school seeing what they can do to help clean up. A bunch of the heathens around here said goodbye to school by destroying it."

"That is just awful. I hope no one was hurt."

"Those damn fools sent Mr. Jones, the English teacher, into a heart attack. The poor man barely survived. Oh, just listen to me carrying on, let me go make those phone calls for you. If you need anything, just holler for me. The name is Mae."

“Thanks, Mae. I am Sam.”

While Mae was making phone calls, Sam sat enjoying the cup of coffee and huge slice of homemade apple pie. She wasn't sure if it was the fact, it had been forever since the last time she ate, the vanilla ice cream on top, or if the pie was just that good. It has been forever since she had had apple pie that tasted as good as this did. Sam began to remember the last time she had had apple pie. It was the night she had met Rodney. Her classes that day had been awful, the principal came in to observe her, and she had an unscheduled parent meeting after school. She decided she needed a sugar fix to help relieve the stress of the day. Sam really wanted a drink but knew it was not a good idea since she had to work the next day. While indulging in her pie, Rodney came and sat next to her though there were plenty of open seats. He tried several times to start a conversation with Sam, but she gave short answers as she was not in the mood to deal with anyone. Somehow Rodney broke through and had her laughing. Sam’s thoughts were interrupted with Mae’s return.

“Okay, darling, I found a place for you to stay tonight. Here's the address: it's just down the road, just across the road from the old red barn on the right. It’ll be easy to find; however, there are no street signs. Miss Joan is waiting for you; she'll be on the front porch, probably waving her hand just so you see her.”

“Thank you again so much for making those phone calls. The apple pie and ice cream were absolutely delicious. I don't think I've ever tasted something so good in my entire life. There is nothing like this in New York; everything seems to be out of a box.”

“Thank ya, dear. Be safe on your travels if I don’t see ya again.”

Sam gave Mae a wave as she exited to head down the road to Miss Joan’s house. As she was walking to her car, the officers pulled into the diner parking lot. When she reached her car, Sam glanced back over at the officers, and one of them caught her attention as he got out of his car. She froze and watched the specimen before her when he noticed her staring. The officer gave a courtesy nod, and Sam felt the blush creeping up her face and was glad there was a good distance between them. Sam quickly finished getting in the car and started down the main road in town. Even though it was dark, the street lights gave enough light she could see the streets were lined with little shops. It was like something out of a Hallmark movie.

She drove about five minutes down the straight road when she saw the large red barn. She figured the house, a large, two-story white farmhouse with a porch that went from one end to the other of the house, on the opposite side of the road, was where she needed to go. When she pulled into the long gravel drive, a woman about her age, no taller than about 5 foot 3 inches, sandy blond shoulder-length hair, and petite, was standing and waving from the front porch, just as Mae said she would be.

“Miss Joan,” Sam questioned as she got out of her car.

“Yes, ma’am. You must be Sam. Please just call me Joan. The miss at the beginning makes me feel as if I am 100. I was excited when Mae called and asked if I had a bed for you for tonight. We don’t get many out of towners stay here unless they’re drunk. Those only get brought down here if all the other places are full. I asked why once and was told that Officer Taylor, Demarquis, said that I didn’t need a bunch of rowdy drunks in my house with it being just me here. Oh, just listen to me carryin’ on. You’re probably exhausted and just want to sleep.” Joan had been rambling the whole way up the stone path to the stairs. Sam did not even realize when the woman came down off the porch and wrapped her arm around hers; she was so tired.

“Yes, I am exhausted. Thank you so much for letting me stay the night here. Well, I guess it is not really night anymore. I promise I won’t be here more than a few hours, and then I will be on my way.”

“No need to rush; sleep as long as you need to and stay as long as you like. The school break-in is the most exciting thing that has happened around here in forever. The most we ever get is a drunken bar fight; that is one of the charms of our little town.”

As soon as they were inside the house, Joan showed Sam upstairs to a room. The room had floral curtains over the window, a rod iron bed with teal and grey bedding, a small dresser along the wall, painted light grey, and a restroom next to the door. Joan said goodnight as she turned to leave the room, closing the door behind her. Sam let her bag fall to the floor and flopped onto the bed. As soon as her head hit the feather-down pillow, Sam was out.

Mae filled each of the officers’ cups for the third time since they had arrived. Most of the talk had been about the mess at the school. Then it seemed out of nowhere, Demarquis asked Mae about the woman in the car leaving when they pulled up.

“That was a young lady by the name of Sam. She is just passing through and needs a place to stay, so I sent her up the road to Joan’s place. I figured she could use some company.” Mae continued to tell the officers what Sam had told her about her living in New York, being a school teacher, and not knowing where she was headed.

Demarquis said he would go check in later that day after getting some sleep to ensure no hot-headed guy was chasing her and would be coming through, causing problems. Mae just rolled her eyes. She knew it was more so he could get a good look at the woman. He was prone to do so when a new woman entered the town, no matter why she was there. Mae often teased him that that was the real reason he watched the bar every night, to find him a lady love, even though she knew he would never date a woman like those who hung out there.

“Mae, I know what you are thinking, and you are wrong,” Demarquis said as he took a big sip of coffee. “I have given up on trying to find love. The women that come through here are big city gals and can’t handle the small-town life that we have here. Plus, they hate the hours I keep as chief. I know I could stop working so much, but I am a creature of habit.” The other officers laughed out loud at that. They each were very aware of his being a creature of habit. Anytime they offered to switch routes with Demarquis, he would refuse. He stated that he knew most of the bar-goers by name, and just his presence kept the trouble down. The other officers knew it was more because Demarquis could not stand change.

“Thanks for the coffee, Mae. I am headed home so I can get some sleep. I will see you tonight.” Demarquis then headed out the door to his car and headed home.