Read Online Raising Cain by Gallatin Warfield - Free Book Online Page A

His throat was too dry. He gripped Jennifer’s hand. She gripped back.
    “God called Joseph to him, and Joseph went,” the preacher cried. “Yes, we’ll miss him! Yes, we’ll be sad when we see that
     empty chair! But understand, my friends, that he’s in a better place right now than we are!”
    “Amen!”
    “So we celebrate! We do not mourn! We praise! We do not despair!”
    The crowd quieted.
    “Joseph Brown was a good man, an honest man, a peaceful man! He was a family man.” The reverend pointed to the Brown delegation.
     “He was a kind man, a loving man, an intelligent man! Are you picking up the
word
here, friends? As we celebrate the life of Brother Brown?”
    “Yes, sir!”
    ” Joseph Brown was a
man
!”
    “Praise God!” a woman called.
    “He had some warts, like all mortal
men
…. Only one man in the history of the universe didn’t have
any
warts, and that was Jesus Christ. But Brother Brown didn’t have
many
, and that’s why he sits by God’s side, and the rest of us sinners still labor in the heat of the world!”
    Brownie looked at the preacher and tried to listen to what he was saying, but the words seemed to fade away as soon as they
     came out of his mouth. It was hot, but he didn’t feel the heat. It was bright, but he didn’t see the light. All he could see
     was his father’s face, alive, and strong, and in another time.
    When Brownie was fourteen, his dog died. The dog was only a mixed-breed, but he was gentle, and Brownie loved him. “Can we
     get another, Daddy?” he asked.
    “Yes, son, “ Joseph agreed.
    So they searched the papers for a give-away and found one: “Eight-year-old male collie. Free to good home.”
    His father maneuvered the old Chevrolet toward the other side of town. They crossed hills, meadows, and woods, and emerged
     on a development of stone ranch houses. SEDGEWICK ESTATES, the sign read.
    When they got to the right house, they walked to the door and rang the bell.
    “Yes?” A plump, fortyish white woman answered the door.
    Joseph removed his hat. ‘We’re here about the dog.”
    The woman hesitated, and a man suddenly appeared at her side. “These people are here for Pete,” she told him.
    Brownie looked into the yard. Behind the fence was the most beautiful dog he’d ever seen: a fluffed-up collie, just like Lassie.
     He smiled, and the dog wagged its tail.
    “You’re too late,” the man said abruptly. “We already gave him away.”
    Brownie looked up.
    “We called about it,” Joseph said.
    “Sony.”
    Brownie grabbed his father’s arm. “But… “ He was pointing toward the yard.
    “Wouldn’t happen to have another, would you?” Joseph asked.
    “No, ! don’t Not to give away.”
    “Daddy!” Brownie was still tugging at his arm.
    “Thank you anyway, “Joseph replied, replacing his hat and turning toward the car.
    “Daddy!” Brownie persisted.
    “Get in the car, son.”
    Brownie slammed the door and stared at the collie peering through the fence. “They had the dog!”
    Joseph kept silent as they drove back to the highway.
    “Didn’t you see, Daddy? They had the dog!”
    “I saw it, son.”
    “So why didn’t you do something?”
    “The man didn’t want to give it to us. That was his right.”
    “Why not? Because we’re black?”
    “Maybe. But it was still his right. He can give the dog to anyone he wants.”
    “As long as they’re white,” Brownie said under his breath.
    They were out of Sedgewick Estates now, in the countryside. Joseph pulled off the road and stopped the car. He put his hand
     on Brownie’s shoulder and looked into his eyes. “I want you to calm down, son,” he said. “You can’t go through life bein’
     a hater.”
    “But they were haters!”
    “Yes, they were. That’s their problem. We don’t have to be like them.”
    Brownie’s eyes filled with tears. “But we didn’t get the dog!”
    Joseph rubbed his son’s neck. “Plenty of dogs in this world, Joe, at least as nice as