Caul Baby by Morgan Jerkins (read any book .TXT) 📕

“Mm-hmm.” Hallow nodded.

“I met a white woman in that program with a huge guilt/savior complex. Those kinds of programs are full of them. Rowan was her name. Somehow we kept getting paired up together for group work, but I didn’t mind because she had her shit together. But I always thought something was strange about her, more than that complex I told you about. She was also just fucking reckless—falling out of chairs, getting kicked out of bars, ending up in people’s beds who she didn’t know, just . . . a lot, and she told me all about it. One day, we had to volunteer at a juvenile detention center, and one of the teens in there had a shiv. Stabbed her right in the neck and twisted. Rowan screamed and yelled, but I knew something was off. She didn’t pass out or anything, and she wasn’t shocked when the doctor came back to tell her that she would be okay. ‘A weaker person would’ve died,’ he said. But she wasn’t extraordinary. She ate terribly, drank a ton, and hardly worked out. She was given two weeks to recuperate, and I thought it would be okay to visit her and bring some flowers or soup. You should’ve seen her. She was up and walking, doing yoga poses in the living room. Not the slightest bit dizzy or in pain. When I made a comment on the miracle of her being alive, she opened the locket of the necklace she always wore and waved a piece of caul in front of my face and, God, Hallow, I wish I could have lunged at her neck and committed to not missing that time.”

Hallow said a long drawn-out “Shiiiiit” and leaned back in her seat.

Helena’s eyes widened, and she laughed. “You see that guilt? You’re old enough to feel it too. Do you ever stay up at night like I do, thinking about all the white people who have parts of our bodies hanging around their necks for protection?”

“Sometimes.”

“That’s one thing I didn’t account for when I left—something like that happening: actually seeing another person with the caul. I know that New York is big, but not that big, and maybe that’s part of the reason why Maman kept us sheltered, so we’d never have to reckon with what we’ve done. Who knows how many people have parts of me with them . . .” Her voice tapered off as she looked off to the side and scratched at her chest. “It was like the universe meant for me to see it, and I’ve been trying to do good since. Hell, before then—that’s why I went into the program. I wanted to help people since I can’t—you know.” She began caressing her bare right arm.

“Right. Do you still keep in touch with your mom?”

“Who, Iris?” Helena soothed the nape of her neck again and said, “Sometimes. You know she and I never had the best relationship.”

“I know.”

“Has she mentioned me at all?”

Hallow shook her head.

“Figures.”

“But you know she’s mostly downstairs. She doesn’t do that much talking to anyone. You should stop by and see her for yourself.”

“When I’m ready. I haven’t seen her since I graduated, and even then, I was moving my shit out. I’ll figure it out. In the meantime, if you want to help more women in the community, I’ll pool my resources together, but you have to stop testing Maman and Josephine. You know they crave money, so do whatever you have to do to keep the cash flow coming in while you do this work on the side. Then they won’t be up your ass the way that they are. Comply. Grit your teeth and just get it done, got it?”

“Got it.”

“Gimme two weeks or so. I’ll be in touch.”

16

Josephine lay awake in bed waiting for Landon to bring her news. He had been hinting to her for weeks that there was someone who was interested in the caul, though not in the way that any of them would expect. When Josephine pressed him for more details, he told her that in due time, they would come, but for the moment, she should think of the life that she wanted to live. She was excited by the possibility of finally leaving the brownstone once and for all. Her own daughter was an inspiration and proved that there could not have been a more suitable time to leave. Iris would be preoccupied in the basement as usual, Helena was gone, Hallow was the successor and still regenerative, and, best of all, Maman didn’t possess the physical strength to stop her. It was perfect. In the two weeks since Hallow met with Helena, Josephine was surprised that Hallow returned home with a new, pliant attitude. She stayed up late alongside Josephine to go over the expenditures and stayed still when Josephine cut her caul to give to white customers who came in and out. All the while, Josephine wondered when the day would come that Landon would tell her that it’s time. She had bought all kinds of Architectural Digest and Elle Decor issues to imagine her dream home. At night, if Landon were to visit her, they’d exchange ideas of the kitchen interiors and patios. The dream of having a single-family home with no neighbors in close proximity excited her.

Another two weeks rolled by and finally Landon called and asked all the women to dress in their Sunday best because an important someone would be visiting. Maman wore a long plaid skirt and tights, with a Swarovski gold-plated brooch. Josephine styled herself in a bold women’s cobalt-blue suit jacket with matching trouser pants, and Hallow wore a houndstooth tweed minidress in black, with a hint of rouge lipstick for a pop of color. Iris remained in the basement.

Per tradition for any guest, Josephine put tea on the stove and prepared a charcuterie board with the Dexter-Russell knife placed to the side of the cheese and