Read Online The Wisdom of Evil by Scarlet Black - Free Book Online

bad here, imagine what Boston must be like now.” Michael sighed. The job was starting to wear on him and she feared for his safety. That was why she didn’t tell him about her concerns about their daughter. What if he was distracted out there and, consequently, let his guard down and was killed?
    Glory was silent. She knew she had to speak to Olivia soon, tell her she couldn’t go to Boston anymore. Between Sean’s problems and the crime, she was not safe!
    Times were most definitely changing, and not for the better.
    If she felt Olivia was in danger, she’d be forced to tell Michael, like it or not. Neither Glory nor Michael had been to Boston in years. After Glory’s mother died, there was no reason to go back.
    As for Mickey, he didn’t care about the situation in Boston one way or the other. Whenever Sean’s name was brought up, his only comment was, “What a waste.”
    In his spare time, when Mickey wasn’t tinkering with cars or hanging out with his friends, he visited his Nana Joan. Their relationship was a special one. She loved Olivia just as much, but in a different way. As far as she was concerned, the sun rose and set on him.
    He spent many hours after school and weekends at her home, helping her do little things, taking her for what she called “thrill” rides , commenting that Mickey had “a lead foot.”
    Sometimes , when Glory stopped in on her way home from work, they’d be having a lively game of cards, which she could never seem to win! Joan was an important member of the family.
    Having grown up in Boston, from an Italian Catholic family, it was imperative to her that elders were included, not ignored as she’d seen others do. Family was paramount to Italians.
    Even though her parents and brother were addicts and had hurt her in so many ways , they were not the norm. Still, her mother prayed to the statue of the Madonna and insisted they respect their elders. Nothing made Glory happier than sitting back and watching her own family.
    One lovely day in May; the kind one revels in after the seemingly endless Maine winters, Mickey came home with a peculiar look on his face. Glory couldn’t read it and he did not speak. He hovered around her as she prepared dinner, fiddling with utensils on the counter, shifting from leg to leg. He seemed restless, unsure of how to approach what was on his mind. The look on his face sent a shiver up Glory’s spine. Call it female intuition or just plain anxiety, she knew whatever he needed to talk about was probably not something she wanted to hear.
    “Okay, what’s up?” Glory put the paring knife down, her hands on her hips.
    “I …don’t know. I think something may be wrong with Nana.” He sounded scared.
    “Yeah, she’s got a cold she can’t seem to shake. I know that.”
    “Mom, it’s more than that . You haven’t been down there for almost a week. I have. I think you and Dad beddah go check on her.”
    “ Lemme call her first. Would that make you feel beddah?”
    “ She won’t answer the phone. She told me it took her two hours to get from the kitchen chair to the bathroom ‘cause she was out of breath.”
    “ What ?” Glory was floored! This was the first she’d heard of this, but she knew that Joan wouldn’t call anyone for help unless it was a matter of life and death, and even then she took pride in being strong willed, able bodied, and independent.
    A typical Maine Yankee, born and bred “Down East,” she’d grown up on a farm and was used to hard work and self-sufficiency.
    She could be extremely stubborn , refusing to accept help from even Michael and Glory.
    Coming from such a hearty family line, Glory could not imagine her really being sick. She’d outlive them all. Why, her father, Milton Grover, had received the Boston Post Cane three years ago, a New England tradition honoring the oldest living citizen in the county. He was one-hundred and one now! He still lived on his own and even picked blueberries in season.
    “