My security guy immediately stood in front of me as the voice bellowed, “You killed her, you know you killed her!”
My sister Thelma ran toward me, just ahead of Ezra, Lane, Elease and Little Curt. And the reporters were hustling to get as many pictures of me and sound from the scene as they could, just like hungry dogs chasing after a piece of red meat.
“Mayor Felton, stay behind me,” the security guy yelled. “That man might be armed.”
“He’s armed, but it’s not with a weapon,” I calmly stated. “He’s armed with rage.”
It was Reg Sweat, Carol Sweat’s husband. I walked away from my security, toward Sweat.
“Daddy, don’t go over there!” screamed Elease.
“What are you doing, Curt?” a puzzled Lane screamed, as a videographer put his camera right in her face.
Police officers came from everywhere, but I never broke my stride walking up to Sweat.
“Reg, I did nothing to Carol. Nothing.”
“You’re a damned liar. I don’t know what I saw in you. I always knew you were no good,” Sweat said, and then he put his head down and cried. I put my arms around him.
“Reg, I am going to get to the bottom of this,” I whispered to him. “I know you don’t trust me right now, but God be my witness we are going to get this thing solved.”
J.D. walked up and wrapped his arms around both of us.
“Mr. Sweat, I know you’re wondering what’s going on,” J.D. said, “and I am wondering the same thing, too. But we are going to find Carol if it’s the last thing we do.”
“Curt, I love that woman. She is my best friend, my reason for living. She has made me so happy,” Sweat sobbed.
This was a difficult moment for me. I knew who Carol Sweat was; that she was of mixed race, something that to my mind Reg Sweat didn’t know. I also knew that she and I did something that night, only I did not know what. I couldn’t believe I could not recall the details after she and I walked toward the bedroom of their home.
Jaylynn Purcell walked up just as we began to board the elevator.
“Can I ride down with you folks?” she said.
“Can we trust you?” Lane spoke up. “Are you friend or foe?”
“I’ll act like I didn’t hear that, Miss First Lady-elect,” Jaylynn countered as we stepped into the elevator. “That’s strange talk coming from someone who didn’t want to be a wife until her husband rose to prominence.”
Lane had that look on her face as if she was ready to do bodily harm to Jaylynn. I had to say something.
“Ladies, please. This man is hurting and we need to rally around him,” I said.
“That’s right. Mr. Sweat has been good to us and we need to help him. Y’all need to chill, especially you, Jaylynn,” Alicia said.
“What do you mean, especially me?” Jaylynn shot back. “You know this woman is not a real wife. She is just going through the motions, right Curt?”
I stood there with a shocked look on my face. I hoped this woman wasn’t about to say that she and I had been having clandestine meetings, and they got…well, kind of heated.
“Ms. Purcell, let’s keep this professional,” I said. “After all, you are talking about my wife.”
I could tell Jaylynn was getting ready to go off on me.
“Well, that’s not what you told…”
J.D. interrupted Jaylynn.
“Okay, we have arrived at our destination,” J.D. exclaimed as the elevator doors opened.
“You haven’t heard the last of this, Miss First Lady,” Jaylynn exhorted, “nor have you, soon to be convicted murderer, Mr. Curt Felton!”
Just as I settled in my favorite chair and prepared to watch the 6 o’clock news, the house telephone rang.
“Daddy, Jaylynn Purcell has got a hot story coming up,” Little Curt said on the other end of the phone. “Channel 4 did not promote it on the station, but they released some of the details on The Chase Byrd Radio Show.”
“What details, son?”
“Okay, I hope you’re sitting down on this one. I just can’t believe what she did,” Little Curt said. “She was a guest on Byrd’s show and she talked about what happened today at the courthouse.”
“How detailed was she?” I asked.
“I wouldn’t have thought Jaylynn would stoop so low to go on a conservative talk show and rip you apart,” Little Curt admitted. “What do we do?”
“Watch the story, have the Rapid Response Team start writing letters to the newspaper and bombard Chase Byrd’s show with phone calls every day,” I said.
“Revise the web site and put only inauguration info on it. Flood the Internet with a news release distributed to influential web sites, especially the ones that deal with politics. Contact our supporters through our database. Get on You Tube,” I said.
“Schedule me on The Chase Byrd Radio Show for tomorrow and I’ll appear live on television newscasts tomorrow. Also schedule an urgent editorial board meeting with the Forrestville Journal.”
“Dang, Daddy, you’re ready for war, huh?” Little Curt said.
“You don’t come after a Felton without a fight.”
“Here come the Feltons, watch out,” he said.
“Fighting is in the Felton DNA.” I said.
Lane and I watched Jaylynn Purcell’s investigative report, which claimed she had first-hand information about a so-called affair between Carol Sweat and me. The station titled the report, The Murdering Mayor. That did not sit well with Lane.
“Curt, I need to know,” she said. What were you doing at that woman’s home at that time of night?”
I had to get my bearings straight. Should I have lied, or told the truth that I was curious about Carol Sweat? Would Lane believe that I woke up drowsy and did not remember what occurred in another woman’s bed when her husband was out of town?
|