Live Action Movie Reviews! The Custom Mary

Things you never see black people doing in horror movies: Thing # 9

Lean over the body to check to see if the killer is dead.

On Aug 20th, 2014, after arriving home after celebrating her little sister's birthday Crystal Connor noticed an email with the subject line: Since you wrote The End is Now and loved I'm Not Jesus Mommy... Intrigued she opened it and found a Hulu link. Sitting at her computer wrapped in a fleece blanket, she clicked the link. For the next 81 minutes her neighbors were subjected to screaming, crying, and expletive outburst...

This is the unedited journal chronicling the harrowing experience her neighbors were forced to endure as she watched, Matt Dunnerstick's 2013 The Custom Mary

Reader discretion is Advised

Entry 1: Oh my God I love the narrator's voice.

Entry 2: Ok, when a preacher says 'we alone read the exact page of His purest word' that should be the equivalent of a HUGE neon bridge out ahead sign and you need to pay more than just attn to the shit he says next.

Entry 3: OMG she is so adorable!

Entry 4: Oh hell no! The Order of the who?!

Entry 5: See! That's why you need to know your bible. 

Entry 6: Mary listen to that voice that's screaming in your head right now.

Entry 7: Which bible are you reading?!

Entry 8: What did they just do to her?

Entry 9: Spelling casting? You just fucked it up for everyone

Entry 10: He just said 'If we can clone a lamb, we can clone the Lamb of God, no problem.'™ What the fuck?

Entry 11: Ok so that whole Mark 13:32-33 thing really doesn't matter? 

Entry 12: You just gonna let them perform a medical procedure on you in a grown man's bedroom who still lives at home w/his Mamma?

Entry 13: Your going to Hell on a scholarship program

Entry 14: Right!

Entry 15: It's too late now

Entry 16: The baby is black!

Entry 17: Oh my God they just left her

Entry 18: Where's Joseph? Ok, there he is

Entry 19: omg they are the cutest parents

Entry 20: That's what you guys fucking get

Entry 21: Yeah she does

Entry 22: Oh my God

Entry 23: That's so fucked up

Entry 24: Really?!

Entry 25: You need to go find her

Entry 26: She is not about to spend 40 days/40 nights wandering around Victorville

Entry 27: She's gonna die out there

Entry 28: Did she die?!!!

Entry 29: That's a hellofa vision

Entry 30: There can only be one but you've clone 11

Entry 31: It's your own fault, if you had read the bible for yourself and not listened to some charlatan you would be in this situation. None of you would.

Entry 32 : HOLY SHIT!!!

Entry 33 : Oh my God

Entry 34 : Wow

Plotline: "The story of The Custom Mary involves two preachers and a scientist, who discover two drops of Jesus Christ's blood. They use this material to clone Christ and to impregnate the young Mary with Christ's DNA. Along the way, Mary becomes involved with a lowrider mechanic named Joe, but their relationship is tested when Mary's pregnancy does not go as planned. Mary undergoes a transformation of faith, while finding new relationships on the dangerous streets of East Los Angeles." 
- Written by Josh Taubensee for IMDb 

Scariness Factor: This is not a horror film, I would say its religious based science fiction, but if you give yourself a moment to think about the implications of what they're doing, its terrifying 

Gross-out Factor: N/A

High Points: This is an urban story, and the two main actors are speaking an urban language and its authentic! There's none the overly exaggerated stereotyping that reinforces the negative images and assumptions about people living in the inner city. I was so impressed by that, that I paused the movie to look up the writer and was surprised to see that it's a white guy. The diversity and the complexity and depths of the characters of color was welcoming & refreshing

I loved how each chapter of the movie was indicated by graffiti art that was drawn right on top of the moving picture. There's tons of symbolism which allows the movie to convey a lot of information without dialogue.

Speaking of dialogue, another thing that was masterfully done is the metaphorically use of words. The Joseph in this story is a mechanic and the way he talks about his car to explain the things in the world sounds biblical. There is another character in the movie that looks like a 'Our Lady of ...' icons, the things she says are profound, but she works on cars too so her spiritual advice is mechanical as well. Your gonna have to see it for yourself because I cant explain the awesomeness.  

There are so many layers to this movie that I am going to watch it again, but the thing that stayed with me was how these powerful men preyed on the faith of the believers.

Complaints: None.

Overall: I think watching horror movies should be an 'interactive'€™ activity (which is why I watch them alone) and the more I yell at the people on the screen the more fun I'm having. I'm a tough customer and I can be pretty unforgiving when it comes to the myopic way in which I prefer to be entertained. And OMG this movie was fucking amazing! 

Ok, let me back up a bit. Vaughn Juares 2010 I'm Not Jesus Mommy landed on my top five list and has stayed there for the last four years. It's a low budget indie that has plenty to complain about, despite this, the story is so strong it overcomes all of the things that a lot of indie films can't help. It's a testament that fans will forgive anything if the story is compelling. 

I have to say that Matt Dunnerstick's 2011 The Custom Mary has rudely rearranged my entire top 10 list

Stars: 5 solid stars!

Where I watched it : Hulu

Oh, before I forget get, The End is Now reference is for one of the books I co-wrote w/paranormal romance & dark fantasy author Lori Titus under the pen name of Connor Titus. Here is the Amazon link if you wanna check it out.

Connor Titus: The End is Now

In Today's Inbox

Ok, Even though I read all of my fan-mail I usually don't respond especially when they are upset over a character or stunned to anger over an ending that they didn't see coming. The most recent question I was asked is a really good one and totally threw me for a loop so I thought I'd answer the email it here. But before I can answer it I need to share the question that was asked by a 17 year old black girl living in Denver€¦.

'You have a black woman on the cover of The Darkness, both main characters are black women but the magic in the story is European. There isn't a person on the cover of In The Valley of Shadows but there is a lot of African mythology in that book and Middle Eastern too. You tell us about legends that I had never even heard of before. Did you do this so that white readers would read the entire trilogy?'

Wow. That's a hellofa question. And the answer is no. The reason African mythology and folklore aren't mentioned that much in the 1^st two book, is, like you, I had never heard these stories before.

About a third of the way through Artificial Light I became a member of the Black Science Fiction Society and through that association I met authors like Milton Davis and artist like James C. Lewis and I was shown glimmering flashes of my ancient history. Excited I dug for more, and while looking for something else I stumbled upon a site called Fuck Yeah! African Mythology and basic the flood gates opened from there.

And even then I wasn't really sure if I'd be able to incorporate any of the stuff I was learning into the trilogy, not until the very end. It was so much fun being discovering these stories and being able to retell them in my own words.  But because of the way the story of Inanna unfolds, if I had known then what I know now I still would not have been able to fold in so much African mythology and folklore until the very end.

But don't worry, as always, I have something simmering on the back burner

Addressing the latest concern...

Hello my followers!

So And They All Lived Happily Ever After! is making the rounds again, thanks you guys I am so super stoked about that, I was even spotlighted this week, see? =D

Author spotlight And They All Lived Happily Ever After

But with a new batch of fans comes a new batch of complaints, which is fine, you can't please everyone and I don't even try, however this newest complaint has gotten to the point that it needs addressing because quite frankly I don't like the implication.

Let's take a sec to talk about diversity and what it means to be all inclusive.

The Lazarus Antidote feats a biracial couple

Best Friends Forever revolves around the madness of a woman attempting to break up w/her girlfriend

There's a story where a 15 year old boy makes a pretty drastic decision to protect his big brother who is still in the closet 

And then we have The Apple, which seems to be the source of the problem for some. Why? Apparently over the derogatory use of the word fag. I find it quite breath taking that, after reading the stories listed above that some of you have the audacity to send me emails accusing me of being homophobic. That's fucking laughable.

Diversity needs to be all inclusive, even when, especially when you don't like it. Take a look around you, there are people who are still very uncomfortable with the idea of gay people. That's just a fact of life. Deal with it.

I'm not writing to ignite social change or spark some type of awareness, I just write. If my characters are gay, they're gay. If an extra uses the term fag when talking about gay men in a story, then she uses the term fag. Simple as that. To suggest otherwise it stupid. 

Ok, so now that that's out of the way¦

DUDES! Your never gonna believe it … I now review indie horror/sci fi movies for HorrorAddicts.net! I know right! The one thing I know that will be challenging for Horror Addicts is that sometimes I will be reviewing films that I didn't really like. The 1^st review I did for HA was for a movie that I would have never watched on my own and OMG it was so fun, here's the link. The 2^nd movie looked really good, but it wasn't what I expected. I hate writing luke-warm reviews, which is why I stopped reviewing movies I didn't like here. But the guys over at HA said the 2^nd review is still good so...whew! 

I'm going to be posting the links to my HA at the bottom of my DVD pick of the week reviews so from now on you will always get two reviews at once. Oh! And guess what! That's not even all! Horror Mansion started following me on Twitter¦ ME! Plus in Oct they are gonna be hosting a book giveaway contest featuring...you guessed it! Me =D 

Speaking of which, Oct is going to be super busy, And They All is going back on tour, I will be speaking as a guest in Portland with the founder of Evil Girlfriend Media, and if everything works right The Darkness will also be going back on tour as well.

Well that's it for now, other than that I am working two books. Its going a bit slow but I plan to move things along starting in Sept. Ok you guys have a good one! Talk to you all soon <3 span="">

Where credits due. West, Russell pay homage to 80s style slasher films!

Things you never see black people doing in horror movies: Thing # 13

Scream, "Go ahead without me. Save yourself!"

I grew up watching the horror films of the 80s and I tend to compare all the movies I watch to the cinema excellence of that bygone era that scared the shit out of me when I was kid. So needless to say I was super excited to see modern day horror movies shot in the 80s style.

 The two I've seen so far are House of the Devil (2009) written and directed by Ti West and The Sleeper (2011) written and directed by Justin Russell.

House of the Devil

Winner of the 2009 œBest Feature Film for the Birmingham Sidewalk Moving Picture Festival, winner of the 2009 Festival Trophy award for Screamfest and winner of the 2010 Producers Award€ Independent Spirit Award.

Plotline: A standard issued plotline, Samantha Hughes, takes a strange babysitting job to earn enough money to be able pay the 1^st month's rent and move out of the dorm. 

Scariness Factor: Is off the scale! It's extremely creepy and suspenseful in the way of John Carpenter's 1978 Halloween, the 1st Friday the 13th on Crystal Lake, and Fred Walton's 1979 When a Stranger Calls! There are some really good jump€scares and if you're like me, you'll be screaming warnings to the babysitter not to go in that damn attic!

Gross-Out Factor: There is only one part in House of the Devil that is kinda gross, it's towards the end of the movie during the ritual.

Complaints: N/A

High Points: The House of the Devil was filmed in 2009, but watching it you'll swear it's an 80’s horror film. To help with the illusion of time travel there are a couple of actor's that starred in older horror films that we all grew up watching and loved. 

Overall: There is a reason why House of the Devil is an award winner, this is a scary film with a well thought out plot and the fact that the film makers takes us back in time a full decade, with feathered hair, high waste jeans, smoking inside restaurants and a tape player walk-man to do so is flawless.

Stars: 5 Stars!

Where I rented it: Blockbuster

The Sleeper

Plotline: The girls of Alpha Gamma Theta sorority are having a party. As the new pledges arrive, so does an uninvited guest.

Scariness Factor: It isn't very scary at all. Even with the right music and setting cue's Russell isn't able to pull it off. I think a huge reason why this movie fell flat is because there isn't a strong story line and the characters are pretty one dimensional. The opening scene is the death of a college in her dorm room but we never find out who she was and no one else, including the police, seem to know about her death. 

We all know why Jason, Michael, Freddy and lost their shit, but there is no back story for our Sleeper and while the aforementioned villains are terrifying The Sleeper is just a little startling. 

Gross-Out Factor: True to form of 80s slasher films there is not a lot of gore. The camera zooms in on the hammer and you pretty much know what happens next. There are some close up shots that display the talent of the Fx team but they don't go overboard. 

Complaints: Besides the weak storyline Russell has his characters doing things that even in the most outer limits of reality don't seem plausible. Where ever this was filmed it was freezing, there is snow on the ground, you can see their breath, and the wind is more than a breeze yet he has his characters wandering around outside at night for no reason other than to be accessible to the killer. And you have a police officer refusing back up when charging off to apprehend the suspect and another cop who falls into a deep peaceful sleep just minutes after the senior officer charges off alone. 

High Points: This movie looks really good, its grainy so it gives it that old VHS tape feel. And there is a scene in the bar where everyone is line dancing to 80s "pop rap"€™ and that made me smile.

Overall: It just didn't do it for me

Stars: 2 stars

Where I rented it: Amazon Prime instant video

DVD pick of the week: When magic is done right.

Things you never see black people doing in horror movies, thing # 31

Playing with Ouija boards

DVD pick of the week….a month in review.

Dudes! So sorry for the absence everytime I thing I’ve gotten a handle of my social media responsibilities I lose my rabid ass mind and completely shut down =/ I am so behind. Since the last time I posted I’ve toured with Juniper Grove Book Solutions to promote the two books  I co-wrote with paranormal romance author Lori Titus, The End is Now & The Guardians of Man I should have been posting/tweeting every day of that tour, I have no idea why I didn’t. But more on that in a later post.

Ok, today’s post is going to be talking about how awesome a story can be when ritual magic is done right! The most important thing in telling a story is making sure you do the research but that doesn’t necessarily mean you have to spend a year researching your subject matter. When it comes to magic the information out there is almost limitless.

When I was writing the Spectrum Trilogy I took the very basic rules, magic 101, if you will and built my stories within those boundaries. Once you establish credibility and the reader/watcher willingly agrees to the suspension of disbelief, you can take them anywhere. But 1^st you need to establish credibility. Let’s take a look a four films that do exactly that.

1st up Colm McCarthy’s 2010 Outcast

Plotline: It tells the tale of Petronella (a Scottish/Romany girl) and Fergal (her mysterious Irish traveller boyfriend). As their doomed relationship plays out, a Beast stalks the estate, killing locals, working its way towards our protagonists. Meanwhile Cathal and Liam, two mysterious travellers from Ireland use ritual and magic on a blood hunt. Mary, Fergal's mother performs ritual and magic of her own. As Cathal comes face to face with Mary in a vicious finale we know one thing: the Beast must die.

Scariness Factor: It’s more intense than scary, there is one part where the witch and warlock and fighting each other in a ritual and I’m pretty sure I held my breath for the entire scene =D

Gross out factor: N/A

Complaints: None

High points: The movie doesn’t bogs us down with the explanation of symbol and ritual, instead it allows the viewers to call upon what people inherently know about magic to tell the story.

Personal Commentary: The reason this movie worked for me is because they make it a point to show how dangerous, even for the most skilled, practicing magic can be. Another thing that is established from the very beginning is that even though the two clans are using ancient rites in a modern society, the old world rules still apply. The people who came to hunt this beast don’t do anything until they are granted permission from Laird, the regions elder wizard, to hunt there. When the terms of the permission are broken he corrects it with an iron fist.

Stars: 5

Where I rented it: Streamed from Netflix

Next up: Anthony Leonardi’s 2013 Nothing Left to Fear

Plotline:: A family's journey toward a better life is interrupted by an unstable man of the cloth.

Scariness Factor: 4 ½ out of 5 You know something isn’t right fairly quickly, you just don’t know what, and the feeling of uneasiness just rises the longer you watch. I love it!

Gross-out Factor: N/A

Complaints: This is not really a complaint per se, but the new guy in town is a preacher but he seemed to be really naïve about the things that were going on around him.

Highpoints: Again all the basic rules of ritual magic are adhered to and I loved the fact that this story was told on a foundation of Christianity because religious-themed horror is my all time favorite genre.

  

Personal Commentary: I loved this movie! But like I said before the new preacher seemed clueless and I was left to wonder if he had been a catholic priest (sense those guys are the ones to call if an exorcism is needed) if he would have caught on sooner. I understand you’re supposed to place all of your faith in God, but the bible warns time and time and again about false prophets and wolves in sheep’s clothing. But in retrospect his belief that men are basically good is what added to the tension of this film

Stars: 5

Where I rented it: Netflix

#3 Chad Kinkle’s Jug Face

Plotline: Jug Face tells the story of an entity in the pit requires a life for keeping the community safe. The face of the person to be sacrificed is crafted onto a ceramic jug. When ignored, the entity unleashes an evil onto the community. Now no one is safe as tragedy befalls each member one by one and they soon realize that the pit wants what it wants.

Scariness Factor: It’s not really scary but it is thrilling with plenty of opportunities to scream at the people on screen ;p

Gross-out Factor: Not really gross but this movie takes place in a very rural area and the community living there is a small one so there are scenes involving incest.  

Complaints: Actually this movie didn’t give me not one thing to complain about

Highpoints: The story revolves around regional specific, again they don’t bog the story down w/a history lesson, they give us just enough back story to let us know what’s going on. Another thing that I super duper loved about this movie was that the town’s people did go traipsing their asses thru those woods   

Personal Commentary: The trailer I posted above is not the trailer that I was when I heard about this movie. The trailer I saw was horrible so I assumed this was going to be another low budget movie where the director just phoned it in. My sister is the person who showed me this trailer. Man I’m so glad she did because otherwise I would have missed this.

Stars: 5

Where I rented it: Red Box

Last but nowhere near least is Anthony J. Rickert-Epstein’s Compound Fracture 2013

Plotline: After the gruesome death of his sister's husband, Michael returns home with his fiancée and his recently orphaned nephew to take care of his father Gary. Gary has changed much since the last time Michael saw him: he's become extremely paranoid that a supernatural force is out to get him and is obsessed with making his home an unassailable compound. While Michael and his family initially believe that Gary is suffering from symptoms of  dementia, they soon discover that Gary has a reason to be scared.

Scariness Factor: A solid 5

Gross-out Factor: N/A

Complaints: None!

Highpoints: The basic rules of ritual magic are followed to a T.  

Personal Commentary: This is another movie that relies on what the viewer inherently know about magic to tell the story. As what’s shown in the trailer the salt and symbols are emphasized without commentary. There is a scene where the adult son drops his glass due to a bang on the window, he cuts his foot on the glass on his way to see what happened. He opened the door and stepped right in the middle of a symbol and it doesn’t take a rocket scientist to know that a blood offering was just made.

The rituals performed in this movie come from old Norse magic they don’t tell you that til near the end and the timing is perfect because it adds depth to the why of what’s going on   

Stars: 5

Where I rented it: Streamed video on demand

Hush little children.

Things you never see black people doing in horror movies thing #2

Adopt a kid that turns out to be the devil.

What tha…?

How unsettling…I love it! I would totally read this to my kids if I had any, geez, I would make a horrible parent. =D

The works of Edward Gorey

Balogun Ojetade, the man behind In Honor of Octiva Butler and L.A. Banks tour

 

This is the last stop on the Butler/Banks Speculative Fiction Tour and the Author of the day is the man who brought us all together in this amazing tour. I am so honored to have been a part of this tour, to have been mentioned in the same breath as the other authors that were featured here the last 30 days…wow I am getting a bit emotional so I am going to stop rambling had hand the mike over to Balogun Ojetade 

For those who know me, I am a writer.

For those who don’t know me, I am a writer.

I write speculative fiction – mainly Steamfunk, Dieselfunk, Rococoa and Sword & Soul.

Recently, I have expanded my writing into the  Fight Fiction – aka Action / Adventure, aka Pulp – genre, which was pretty much inevitable because my novels contain lots of exciting action and fight scenes.

What, exactly, is Fight Fiction. You ask?

Fight Fiction is comprised of tales in which the fighting – whether it happens in a temple in Thailand, a boxing ring in Las Vegas, a cage in Atlanta, or in a bar in New York City – is not merely in the story to make it more exciting; or to add a different spin to it. The fighting must be an integral part of both the story and its resolution. Take the fighting out and you no longer have a story. Think Fight Club; Rocky; Blood and Bone; Kung-Fu Hustle; Million Dollar Baby; and Tai Chi Zero.

Writing fight scenes has always been something I enjoy and that I believe I do fairly well. This is probably due to the fact that I have been a student of indigenous African martial arts for over forty years and I have been an instructor of those same martial arts for nearly thirty years. I am also a lifelong fan of martial arts, boxing and Luchador films.

Recently, I joined a team of stellar authors, who all write under the pen name Jack Tunney (for e-book versions only; paperback versions are in the authors’ names), as part of the Fight Card Project.

The books in the Fight Card series are monthly 25,000 word novelettes, designed to be read in one or two sittings, and are inspired by the fight pulps of the 1930s and 1940s, such as Fight Stories Magazine and Robert E. Howard’s two-fisted boxing tales featuring Sailor Steve Costigan.

In 2013, the Fight Card series published twenty-four incredible tales of pugilistic pandemonium from some of the best New Pulp authors in the business. I am writing under the Fight Card MMA brand with my book, Fist of Africa.

Here’s a brief synopsis: 

Nigeria 2004 … Nicholas ‘New Breed’ Steed, a tough teen from the mean streets of Chicago, is sent to his mother’s homeland – a tiny village in Nigeria – to avoid trouble with the law. Unknown to Nick, the tiny village is actually a compound where some of the best fighters in the world are trained.  Nick is teased, bullied and subjected to torturous training in a culture so very different from the world where he grew up.

Atlanta 2014 … After a decade of training in Nigeria, a tragedy brings Nick back to America. Believing the disaffected youth in his home town sorely need the same self-discipline and strength of character training in the African martial arts gave him, Nick opens an Academy. While the kids are disinterested in the fighting style of the cultural heritage Nick offers, they are enamored with mixed martial arts. Nick decides to enter the world of mixed martial arts to make the world aware of the effectiveness and efficiency of the martial arts of Africa.

Pursuing a professional career in MMA, Nick moves to Atlanta, Georgia, where he runs into his old nemesis – Rico Stokes, the organized crime boss who once employed Nick’s father, wants Nick to replace his father in the Stokes’ protection racket. Will New Breed Steed claim the Light Heavyweight title … Or will the streets of Atlanta claim him?

I really enjoyed writing this book because I have always wanted to share with the world the fierceness, efficiency and effectiveness of the indigenous African martial arts for self-defense, as well as their transformative powers in the building of men and women with self-discipline, courage and good character. Fist of Africa is a perfect outlet for my unique brand of Fight Fiction, which I am sure you will enjoy reading as much as I enjoyed writing it.

In Fist of Africa, readers will experience jaw-dropping action on the mean streets of Chicago, in the sand pits of Nigeria and in cages in the “Dirty South” (Atlanta), as well as a bit of romance.

Please, enjoy this excerpt, then hop on over to my website, or to Amazon and purchase the book. You’ll thank me later.

ROUND SIX

Vee-Vee’s was packed. The line of men and women spilled out of the Nigerian restaurant and onto the hot sidewalk as the lunch crowd eagerly awaited the mouth-watering, sweet fried plantains, egusi soup with pounded yam and coconut rice.

Standing in the line, Nick and Baba Yemi still had two customers ahead of them before they were in the door. Nick rubbed his hands in excitement.

Baba Yemi raised an eyebrow. “Is the food really that good, Nicholas? You look … eager.”

“You just don’t know, grandfather,” Nick replied. “I haven’t had Vee-Vee’s in over ten years.

“You’ve had Nigerian food in Nigeria,” Baba Yemi said. “What’s so special about Vee-Vee’s?”

“It’s Vee-Vee’s,” Nick responded with a shrug.

Baba Yemi shook his head.

“Excuse me, you just jumped ahead of me,” a woman’s voice said.

Nick peered over his shoulder. A rotund woman addressed three young men who stood in front of her in the line.

“Look, lady, we just want to get some plantains up out of here,” one of the young men – a lanky teen with jeans hanging halfway off his butt – said. “You look like you’re about to order the whole damned menu.”

The young men laughed heartily and exchanged high fives.

“Teens today have no respect,” the woman said. “If you are the future, we’re in big trouble.”

“Shut up, pendeja!” Another young man spat. “That’s moron, in case you don’t know … pendeja!”

More laughter from the young men.

“Hold my place in the queue,” Baba Yemi whispered.

“Grandfather, don’t …” Nick muttered.

Baba Yemi approached the young men, stopping a few inches behind them. “You are being very rude. This young woman deserves an apology.”

The teens turned to face Baba Yemi. The largest of the trio, a tall, athletically built young man, who had not yet spoken, looked Baba Yemi up and down.

“Push on, old man, before you get yourself hurt,” he said.

Baba Yemi smiled and tapped the young man on his muscular chest. “Hurt? How?”

The lanky young man with the sagging pants placed a firm hand on Baba Yemi’s shoulder. “Get gone, old dude, before we kick your …”

The young man hit the pavement with a dull thump.

“My hand!” He screamed, clutching at his wrist and writhing in agony.

The Spanish-speaking young man launched an awkward-looking kick toward Baba Yemi’s belly.

The old wrestler side-stepped to his left, bringing his right arm up to scoop the young man’s leg. Baba Yemi shifted toward the trapped leg, grabbing it with both arms in a tight grip. He ducked under the leg, lifting his arms over his head at the same time.

The young man’s knee twisted at a sickening angle. He landed next to his friend with the dislocated wrist, who joined him in a chorus of cries, whimpers and yelps.

Baba Yemi exploded toward the remaining member of the trio.

The young man stumbled backward, then whirled on his heels and sprinted off.

The teen with the sagging pants and damaged wrist helped the young man with the dislocated knee to his feet. “Sorry, ma’am,” they said in unison.

Baba Yemi laid a hand on the shoulder of the young man with the sagging pants. The young man jerked in fear.

“Relax,” Baba Yemi said. “Let me fix it.”

The young man cautiously gave Baba Yemi his damaged hand. The old man grabbed the teen’s fingers and yanked hard. The teen winced at the pain of his wrist sliding back into its correct position.

“Thank you,” the young man said. “And I … I’m sorry.”

“What about my knee, sir?” The Spanish-speaking young man inquired, still gasping in pain.

“That is going to require more treatment than I can do here,” Baba Yemi answered. “Do either of you have a car?”

“Yes, sir, I do,” the Spanish-speaking youth said.

“What’s your name, boy?” Baba Yemi asked.

“Hector, sir,” the young man said.

“And yours?” Baba Yemi asked the young man with the sagging trousers.

“Miles,” he answered.

“Miles, take Hector to the hospital,” Baba Yemi said. “They’ll put the joint back in proper position, then you bring him to me and I’ll really heal him. Talk to my grandson over there. He’ll give you the address.”

“Yes, sir,” Miles said, approaching Nick.

“Thank you, sir,” Hector said.

Vee-Vee’s waitress, who had come outside to see what the commotion was all about, handed Nick an ink pen and an order slip. Nick wrote the address to his parent’s house on the slip.

The two young men shambled off, Hector’s arm wrapped around Miles’ shoulder for support.

“Thank you!” The pudgy woman shouted. She wrapped her arms around Baba Yemi’s torso and held him in a warm hug.

The people in line applauded as Baba Yemi returned to his place in line.

“We’re running a compound for young thugs out of my parents’ house now?” Nick said, shaking his head.

“You weren’t so different when you first came to me, Nicholas,” Baba Yemi said.

“True,” Nick said.

“So, I ask again,” Baba Yemi said. “What now?”