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  “Now when I get paid, I pay the church first via PayPal, then I pay the bills, and I move some spending money to the prepaid card. That’s how I was able to amass a few hundred dollars on the Green Dot. It took discipline and sacrifice. Getting rid of debt is part of the reason I’m getting rid of the material things that remind me of my relationship with Turner. But I’m here.”

  Mateo felt like he was listening to a walking insurance salesman. Everything his friend said made sense, but he needed to see it on paper too. “Can you help me with that?” Mateo inquired as he noticed that they were almost in Statesville. “I don’t have a problem spending before I get it, but I need help making my money stretch,” he said, pulling his phone out of his pocket.

  “Yeah, no doubt,” Sonic assured him as they got off the exit, “I’m going to get some gas and something to eat. You want anything?”

  Mateo nodded his head. “We’ll see what they got.”

  Once Sonic pulled up to the pump, Mateo got out of the car and headed to the bathrooms. His phone buzzed, and he saw he had a message from His-Love.com. He put the phone back into his pocket and walked to the urinal and handled his business. When he was done, he washed and dried his hands and then walked out of the bathroom.

  He took the phone back out of his pocket and opened the His-Love.com app. He smiled when he realized he had another inquiry and a new message just that quick.

  Got any pics that show what you are working with?

  He couldn’t believe that people were on a Christ-centered Web site and still sending provocative messages.

  Mateo shook his head. He’d deleted those pics a long time ago, and he wasn’t interested in going back into the bathroom and whipping it out so he could take some new ones. That wasn’t what he’d gotten on His-Love.com for.

  The Devil stay trying to get me in some mess, Mateo thought as he deleted the message and blocked the sender.

  Mateo walked to the gas station cooler and grabbed a few fruit drinks then went through the snack aisle to get some turkey jerky and some cake snacks. As he got to the register, he looked at the cashier and noticed that she had no problem blatantly licking her lips at him. The old Mateo would have taken her back to the bathroom and had her calling his name, but Mateo was committed to trying to meet the right girl the right way. He couldn’t do that if he was letting his little head do all the thinking.

  Mateo paid for the items and left the store clerk in her lustful thoughts. She kept blowing kisses and looking him up and down, letting it be known that he could get it. Mateo refused to take the bait.

  Mateo walked back to the car and noticed that Sonic was nodding his head while sitting in the car. Fred Hammond’s rock version of “He’s Able” came on, and Mateo could see how Sonic got crunk.

  “Man, you won’t believe this,” Mateo said as Sonic pulled off and got back on the Interstate. “That store clerk was making passes at me.”

  “CeCe?” Sonic smirked.

  “How you know her name?” Mateo asked. “I didn’t know you came off this way often.”

  “Yeah, I know CeCe. She used to be one of Turner’s girls.”

  The thought of that repulsed Mateo. It was a good thing he didn’t give into the temptation or else he’d have run up in something that had been around the block.

  “She lives near her parents’ farm a few miles out.” Sonic filled him in on her business. “Turner wanted her to get an abortion when she got pregnant, and she refused. Word on the street was that she put the boy she had by him up for adoption, and she stays out in the country because she knows Turner won’t come back this way to try to get her.”

  “Wow, Turner’s one sick dude!” Mateo exclaimed, pulling out his phone again once they crossed into Davie County. That left them getting to Greensboro in an hour.

  Mateo and Sonic spent that hour bobbing their heads to the beats and singing along with the WOW Gospel collection. Mateo also got into Brother Word.

  When Mateo looked up from his phone, he found Sonic on Battleground Avenue. He was amazed at how busy Greensboro was for an early afternoon. They turned into a ’70s-inspired thrift shop that promoted disco and world peace.

  Sonic and Mateo grabbed the clothes from the backseat and walked in to the checkout counter. A young woman who looked like she could’ve been on The Wonder Years greeted them. Mateo noted that her long brown hair was covered with a thick, neon orange headband. The matching polyester blouse and skirt were just as bold as the candy corn–decorated stockings that concealed her legs. Her head rocked and body swayed to a lesser-known Jimi Hendrix track playing in the background.

  “Sonic.” She smiled as she came from behind the counter and kissed him on the cheek. “I see you’ve brought a friend.”

  “This is Mateo,” Sonic said.

  “I’m Dandelion—but my friends call me Dandy.” She shook Mateo’s hand. Dandy reached for one of the pairs of leather pants Sonic had placed on the counter. “My God, these clothes look better than the pictures.” Her husky, British-sounding accent commanded attention. “I think you need to get a new camera. I’ll see if I can get you some more money.”

  Dandy thumbed the rest of the clothes, and then she pulled out her iPhone from her clutch.

  Mateo followed Sonic out to the car to get the rest of the clothes. “Where in the world did you find this place?” Mateo grabbed the clothes and made it back into the store.

  “I used to want to own a store,” Sonic announced as he held the door open while shuffling a lighter load to his right side. “A Vietnam era/Civil Rights Movement–themed store. Those were two major issues surrounding America in the late sixties/early seventies. I used to tell Turner all the time that if we could travel back in time, I would’ve gone back and fought with the Black Panther Party for Self Defense. I always found those men intriguing.

  “I also liked the soft rock and the disco that came from that time period. My mom was a big Janis Joplin fan. When I started researching gospel music in the seventies, I was amazed at how much the songs written during that time period had light disco undertones.”

  “Okay, soul man.” Dandy interrupted their conversation. “I got the old man to let go eleven hundred.”

  That brought a smile to Sonic’s face. Of all the tats he had to remove, getting rid of the T from his tramp stamp was one of the most expensive. Plus, Mateo knew that Sonic didn’t have any health insurance, despite the passage of the Affordable Care Act. That meant Sonic’s planned trip to the urologist was going to set him back a couple thousand.

  “Thank you.” Sonic acknowledged her. “And tell the old man thank you too.”

  Dandy nodded her head and smiled as she put the clothes in bags and labeled them. Sonic pulled out the Green Dot card, and Dandy went through the process of sending payment to his account. “If you got any more clothes like this, give us a call.” Dandy smiled at the customer who was coming in. “That way, I can make sure I get you fair value for the stuff you have.”

  “Thank you.” Sonic accepted the card with a receipt attached to it.

  Mateo smiled. He liked the idea of Sonic getting more money and having a secure place to unload his stuff. “So when do we come back?” Mateo asked when they got outside the door.

  “Give her six to eight weeks. That ought to be enough time to get rid of some of the clothes. I’ll look through what I have and see what else I can spare.”

  “Next time, let me look at the stuff first,” Mateo insisted as they got back in the car.

  “Okay.” Sonic smiled as he opened the door. Without another word, Sonic started the car and they were headed back to Asheville, North Carolina.

  Chapter Nine

  Train Them Up

  Amirah smiled when seven new crew members walked into the makeshift studio at Gospel United Christian Center. Four of the crew members were selected from a group of students who had expressed interest at Shiloh and came highly recommended by Pastor and Mrs. Ingle. The other three were students at Mars Hill University an
d came highly recommended by the school’s faculty and leaders in the community.

  The staff that had survived the massive layoff were finishing setting up the studio. Mrs. Slate was also assisting, as she had promised to stay for the day’s viewing.

  “All right, can I have everyone’s attention please?” Amirah called for everyone to gather and pointed to the seats up front. She could see Pastor Hughes opening the door and her guests, Donte Speaks and Rahliem Victor, peeking their heads in. She also saw a face she didn’t recognize, one whose sharp features bore a slight resemblance to Usher.

  “First, I want to apologize Pastor and Mrs. Slate and the rest of the Gospel United Christian Center for the misunderstanding we had during the filming of my last show.” She looked at each of them. She could see Pastor Slate sitting next to Pastor Hughes, and both men were smiling at her.

  “Next, I want to lay a few ground rules so that we don’t have that kind of misunderstanding again.” Amirah’s voice got firm, and she noticed that some of the new hires straightened up quickly. “First, my vision for The Amirah Dalton Show is one where we help people solve everyday issues out of love. We agree—we agree to disagree—and we settle things in the spirit of Christ.”

  Amirah stopped, giving time for her words to sink in, and then she continued, “The Amirah Dalton Show is a Christ-centered show. We don’t judge and condemn people like they do on the court shows. We don’t let random people who don’t know if they are the daddy, or if they don’t know who the daddy of their babies are, act crazy like they do on your typical talk show.

  “It is the expectation that I treat every guest that comes on this show with dignity and respect. I take God’s first two commandments very seriously. I love Him with all my heart, and I love my neighbor as myself. And let me tell y’all, I can’t love my neighbor if I’m directly or unintentionally setting him or her up for anguish.

  “So having said that, from this moment forward, everyone here has a clean slate. If you are a new hire, study the first shows and not the one that ended up being parodied all over YouTube or on the evening news. In the future, guests who can’t act right will be asked to leave voluntarily, or they will be assisted out.”

  Amirah saw the look of seriousness on the faces of the crew. She felt confident that from that moment forward, any missteps would be random and not feel like sabotage.

  “Now, before we leave, let us say a quick prayer.” Amirah grabbed the first crew member’s hand, and others stood up and followed suit. She led them in a spirit-filled prayer and felt peace within her soul.

  When she opened her eyes, the man who was trailing Donte and Rahliem was in her face.

  “I’m King Dunlap.” The man extended his hand and smiled. Amirah could tell he was dangerous just by the look in his eyes and the strong grip with which he shook her hand. “I do security work for Donte and Edris, and I just wanted to let you know that some of the misfits that were at your show last week will not be let in the building or get anywhere near the taping of your show.”

  “Thank you,” she responded. When King mentioned Edris’s name, she’d almost forgotten that was The Revelation’s real name. In the back of her mind, she made a mental note to make sure to add King to her list of thank you cards she planned on mailing after the show.

  “I’ll be in and out of the studio and around the campus making sure that everything is handled and that you have a productive show. We can’t wait for WorldStar to show clips of this episode like they showed clips of the last one.”

  Amirah thanked King again, and then she went on the stage and got ready for final preparations for her show to start. Once her music came on, she smiled at her cameraman and was pleased that the music team had selected an upbeat and encouraging song from Dave Hollister. Amirah looked out in the studio audience and was pleased to see a large number of members from her church as well as other congregations in attendance.

  “Welcome to The Amirah Dalton Show.” Amirah was excited as the song was ending. “Today’s guests are three young men who are changing the way we view gospel music and street ministry. What I like about these brothers is that they aren’t afraid to admit to past flaws and help even the most unlikely of souls find their way to Christ.

  “First up, we have Rahliem Victor, founder of Street Disciples Ministries, which just set up a branch of the ministry here in Asheville, North Carolina. To his right is Donte Speaks, former adult video star, community activist, and business manager for gospel singers and Christian rappers. Speaking of managers, one of his most familiar clients happens to be his younger brother, The Revelation.”

  “It’s good to be here.” The Revelation commanded attention.

  The audience seemed to be excited. Amirah made eye contact with Mateo and smiled. She was happy to see that he was sitting with Hammer and Sonic and a few other members from the local churches. She found herself drawn to him, but she couldn’t explain why.

  “Today’s show”—Amirah focused back on the audience—“is about moving past scandalous situations. As we all know, two weeks ago our show moved away from our usual platform and got mainstream.

  “As the past week went on, I was hurt, a little frustrated, and I felt betrayed by those who I thought were on my team. I took a tumble—I took a fall—but unlike Humpty Dumpty, I got up and with the help of Jesus Christ, I will continue rising and moving onward and upward toward the light He has for me.”

  The chorus of amens came from the crowd, along with a round of applause.

  Turning to the camera and facing her studio audience, she said, “Regardless of who may or may not have been at fault, I want to take a moment to apologize for Thursday Honesty Denyla Jackson, Armaad, and the other guests that came on the show last week. My intention was to provide a platform where you guys could seek healing and see how our Lord and Savior works. I did not mean to create or involve you guys in a circus. I should have had better control of my show, and I should have cut it short the moment I got uncomfortable with the direction the show went. I also apologize to my loyal viewers, who come to us because they want something wholesome that they don’t get on other television shows.”

  Amirah took a seat next to her guest. “Donte, I think I’ll start with you. Most people in this audience know of your past. I need help in moving forward. I’m not ashamed to say it. Given what you’ve seen and know of my situation, what do I do to move forward?”

  Usually, Amirah commanded the stage and kept the flow of the show moving forward. This back step was an effort on her part to move on. She saw no shame in asking other godly people for help and direction.

  “First, I think you have it easier because the majority of your audience has never seen you naked,” Donte pointed out.

  Amirah chuckled. At least they don’t know it’s me, she thought.

  “But in all seriousness, you have to decide that you are going to be about God’s business.” Donte pointed in the direction of the audience. “This is your ministry, and you affect a lot of lives with how you present your ministry.”

  “I want to add that so many celebrities have bounced back from worse,” The Revelation mentioned. “Everyone got to see you fall down, and the part of this journey you are going to enjoy is watching everyone else watch you get up.”

  “I definitely agree with that point,” Rahliem jumped in. “When I started Street Disciples Ministries, I heard about the work that Donte was doing to change his image while he was a student at Gilbert State University. I watched and studied him, as I knew he was watching me, being that I’d only been out of prison a few short years since starting this ministry.”

  “A lot of people think that you can’t change when you come out of prison or have a public fall from grace,” Amirah pointed out, “so that meant that you had an uphill battle getting men to join your ministry.”

  “No,” Rahliem quickly answered. “The opposite is true. I have a harder time keeping those who are interested in joining the ministry engaged with meaningful project
s to do in the community. I get requests all over the country to start ministries or partner with similar organizations to spread the word about picking up your cross, no matter what it is, and going into the streets to minister the Word as if we were Christ.”

  That made Amirah happy. She knew she could pull forward and get past the misunderstanding and the hoopla caused by her last show. She was convinced that her pastor, employer, and church family weren’t the only ones praying for her.

  Chapter Ten

  My Favorite Book

  Amirah made her way to her favorite restaurant, David’s Table, despite the heavy traffic coming off of I-40. She had left the filming of her television show. She was pleased with the more positive turn the show had taken and had faith that her new crew would not embarrass her like the last group did.

  Rahliem, Donte, and The Revelation continued giving her a boost and the support to move forward with her mission. The Revelation did an impromptu performance and surprised everyone in the audience with copies of his current CD, and Amirah got the exclusive that he was working on new material that he thought would be released before the end of the year.

  She thought about whether or not Thursday, Armaad, or the other guests would’ve accepted her apology, but she didn’t dwell on it. Moving forward meant accepting that the mistake had been made and moving forward and keeping a watchful eye to ensure that the same mistake wasn’t made again.

  Amirah had a decent commute to get from Gospel United Christian Center, which was on the south side of Asheville. The church was almost in Arden, one of the smaller towns in the metropolitan area. David’s Table was in downtown Asheville near the courthouse.

  Amirah stepped out of her 1992 Mercury Cougar wearing a brown, traditional-styled Alexander McQueen business suit with some white Reebok tennis shoes. She went to the trunk of her car and pulled out the brown pumps with two-inch heels she’d worn during taping. After changing her shoes, she walked into the restaurant and found the members of the local chapter of Essence of Prayer Book Club sitting at their traditional spot, the middle round table, with their copies of Let the Church Say Amen on the tables and various e-readers nearby.