Free A Piece of Heaven by Sharon Dennis Wyeth

together,” Shari pointed out with a grin.
    Jackson beamed at me. “What do you know? Must be destiny.”
    The lesson began, and I wandered back into the yard. “
Destiny
…” I murmured the word aloud. It was a word I liked.
    At home that night, I took a hot bath. Otis was out later than usual. I made myself an egg sandwich for dinner and put on my blue pajamas. Even though I was at home, I felt homesick. Homesick for Ma. I pulled the telephone over to the table and made my evening call.
    “Hi, Ma.”
    “Hi, sweetie.”
    “Are you better today?”
    “I think so.”
    “Did the medicine help?” I asked hopefully.
    “Yes. I feel different.”
    She sounded different, too. She wasn’t crying.
    “I got some Christmas tree lights from Jackson,” I told her eagerly. “I’m saving them for you. He gave me some candlestick holders for Mrs. Brown.”
    “He sounds like a nice man.” She wasn’t crying, but her voice was very quiet.
    “I can’t hear you very well, Ma.”
    “Sorry,” she said, speaking up a bit.
    “I did a lot of work on the yard,” I reported. “I made lots of money.”
    “That’s good, Haley.”
    “Hey, Ma, do you know who Mahalia Jackson is?”
    “She was a great singer,” she said softly. “Your father named you for her, don’t you remember?”
    My eyes welled up with tears. “You never told me that.”
    “Sure, I did. You must have forgotten.”
    Why did I feel like crying, when for once Ma wasn’t crying at all? I bit my lip.
    “Coming home soon, Ma?” I asked, changing the subject.
    “I’m trying, Haley. I’m trying.”

CHAPTER FIVE
    When I woke up the next morning, it was pouring buckets of rain. Otis had come in after I’d fallen asleep, but he was already up and standing over me waving a long white glittery dress. “What’s going on?” I asked, rubbing my eyes. “Where did that come from?”
    He grinned. “Like it?”
    “Who does it belong to?”
    “It’s yours, if you want it,” he said.
    I sat up. Otis let the dress drop into my lap. “I love it,” I said with a little gasp. The dress was fitted on top and had a full, swirling skirt, with lots of layers and sparkly white sequins. I stood up and put it on over my pajamas.
    “Not bad,” said Otis. “It’ll look better without your blue pajama sleeves showing.”
    I ran across the room to look at myself in the mirror. That’s when I noticed the rest of the clothes piled in Ma’s alcove.
    “What is all this?” I said in amazement. Dresses, suits, and jackets were stacked all over Ma’s bed, most of them still covered in plastic. The place looked like a dry cleaner’s. “Where did these things come from?”
    Otis shrugged. “From my partner, Reggie. I hate to tell you how much these threads cost,” he added, holding a suit up in front of himself.
    “You bought all this?” I asked in alarm. “With Ma in the hospital, we have to watch what we spend. I’m saving everything I make for a rainy day.”
    “Today
is
a rainy day,” Otis quipped. He patted me on the head. “Relax, Sis. I didn’t buy these clothes. I’m holding this stuff for Reggie. You see, we sell clothes like this at our incense stand.”
    “People buy clothes at an incense stand?” I asked in confusion.
    Otis smiled. “We branched out.”
    “Where do the clothes come from?” I asked.
    “That’s Reggie’s department,” said Otis. “I just sell them.”
    “Wow,” I said, sifting through the clothes. “These look expensive. You and Reggie must be making a lot of money.”
    “Making a little change,” Otis bragged.
    “So am I,” I couldn’t help boasting. I pulled up one of my pajama sleeves and flexed a bicep. “And look at my muscles! Working in Jackson’s yard is getting me into shape.”
    Otis beamed. “I’m proud of you, Sis. Me and you aren’t doing too bad on our own, right?”
    “I still miss Ma,” I admitted. “Don’t you?”
    “Yeah, I miss her. But it’s nice not to have her trying to check up