He sat again, stealing a glance at Twyla, who gave a slight nod of approval. He was following the planned scenario perfectly.
Anjele stared down at her hands and nervously twisted them in her lap. Not about to admit the truth, she murmured, “It’s like I told you. I wanted to go for a walk, and I knew if you-all heard me going down the stairs, you wouldn’t let me go, because it was so late.”
He glanced at Twyla again, gratefully indicating it was her turn. Dear Lord, he hated this.
Twyla began gingerly, “Anjele, we don’t believe you, and we don’t think you realize what a serious thing you’ve done. If Raymond ever found out, he’d never marry you, and neither would any decent man. You must tell us who you were meeting, so your father can ensure he never says anything about it.”
Anjele was silent.
With an exaggerated sigh, Twyla turned to Elton. “Well, when she stops meeting him, he’ll realize she got caught and no doubt be afraid to say a word. There might be hope no one finds out.” She turned to Anjele with genuine tears and cried, “How could you do this to us? How could you shame your family this way? You’re a sinful, willful girl, Anjele, and you’ve broken our hearts.” She lowered her face to her hands.
“I’m sorry,” Anjele whispered—and truly was. “I never meant to hurt you.”
At that, Elton roared, “And what were your plans if you hadn’t been found out, for Christ’s sake, girl? Are you such a trollop you’d cavort right up to the eve of your wedding?”
Anjele saw no need to confide how she’d fallen in love and dared to dream of a future with her Cajun. Her world had just collapsed around her, and she desperately needed time to think. As long as they didn’t know who he was, he was safe, at least, but adding to the nightmare of the moment was the wonder and worry over why he hadn’t appeared the past two nights. “How long have you known?” she asked bluntly, something needling inside. Perhaps it was all a trick, and they knew who she’d been meeting and had gone to him and warned him to stay away.
Twyla had been waiting for doubt to surface and was ready to exclaim, “Why, this very night, of course. Do you really think we would’ve known such a thing and allowed it to continue?”
Elton angrily chimed in. “I wish, by God, I had known. I wish I’d been there to see you crawling down that trellis, because I’d have been right behind you with a gun to shoot the low-life bastard who’d entice you to meet him in the shadows like some whore!”
“Elton!” Twyla gasped.
“It’s what it looks like,” he said savagely.
“Why did you do it?” Twyla asked. “Whatever enticed you to do such a wicked, wicked thing?”
Miserable and ashamed, Anjele could think of no response.
Twyla rose to cross to where her daughter sat and knelt before her. Clasping Anjele’s cold, shaking hands, she told her, “Your father and I had a talk while we were waiting for you to come back, and we’ve reached a decision.”
Warily, Anjele lifted sad eyes to meet her probing gaze.
“We’ve seen no enthusiasm in you for your wedding, and frankly, we’ve sensed rebellion growing since the engagement was made formal. You’ve treated Claudia terribly. You’re obviously unhappy. So your father and I think it would be in your best interest to send you away for a while.”
“No!” Anjele cried, jerking her hands away. No matter that she was in deep trouble, her own anger boiled over. “I don’t want to go and live with Ida Duval. Not now. Maybe I don’t have a say after I’m married, but for God’s sake, don’t make the misery begin a day sooner than necessary.”
“We aren’t talking about sending you to Ida’s.”
Anjele looked at her father, but he would not meet her tormented eyes. She turned once more to her mother in bewilderment. “Then where—”
“England. To a nice girls’ school outside London. You’ll be well educated, and you’ll mature into a fine young woman, and when you come back, all this will be forgotten.
“And don’t worry about Raymond.” Twyla managed an encouraging smile. “I’m sure he’ll be pleased to think of having a wife so gloriously learned. And he can go abroad to visit you. It’ll be an adventure. Meanwhile, there will be no shame or scandal involving the family name.”
Fiercely Anjele shook her head. “No. I won’t go. And you can’t make me. I’ll run away. Tonight, if need be.” She stood, trembling from head to toe, hysteria rising. Later, she’d deal with the situation, but for the moment, nothing else mattered except to find out what had happened to Gator. She’d believed him when he professed to love her, and only something terrible would keep him away. Why, he’d gone to the willow tree every night she was on the riverboat, hoping she’d be there. If he hadn’t given up on her then, she told herself she owed him the same trust.
They had anticipated such a reaction, and Elton was ready with the concession, “Very well. We’ll talk tomorrow. Everyone is upset right now. Go to your room, Anjele.”
She ran all the way upstairs, not at all surprised to see Claudia standing at the landing, eavesdropping.
Her expression one of gloating triumph, Claudia giggled. “Well, well. Looks like Daddy’s little angel turned out to be daddy’s little whore. I don’t know why they’re so surprised. I knew it all along.” With a haughty flounce, she whipped about and retreated to her room.
Anjele didn’t care what she said. She didn’t care what anybody said. All she wanted was for daylight to come quickly so she could slip out of the house and find Gator.
Sleep eluded her till just before dawn, and Anjele was so exhausted she didn’t awake till midmorning. In a panic, she leaped out of bed to dress quickly, all the while wondering how she could get out of the house without her mother seeing and asking where she was going.
She needn’t have worried.
When she went downstairs, Kesia told her Twyla and Claudia had left earlier to go into New Orleans to welcome Master Raymond home. “Don’ know why they was in such a hurry. Seems to me, he’d a’ been headin’ out this way, first light, but they was already on the road for town.”
Anjele knew the reason. Her mother was afraid Raymond would sense something was wrong and wanted more time for things to calm down before allowing him to see her. Good. That meant she could be on her way to the cane fields.
Emalee spotted her first. They were standing at the edge of the fields, next to the large water barrel, where they’d been since morning. Workers were grumbling about having to come up to get their water, but they weren’t about to let Anjele slip up on them unnoticed.
“Here she comes,” Emalee whispered. “She’s getting off her horse now.”
“Keep your back turned,” Simona snapped. “Pretend to be filling the pails. Follow my lead. Agree with everything I say.”
“I’m so scared she’ll know we’re lying,” Emalee fretted. “Oh, I wish we didn’t have to do this.”
“It’s like Miss Twyla said, it’s for her own good. She should’ve known better than to get involved with him in the first place.”
Simona braced herself, then began in a loud voice, “That Gator, I swear, he fool us all, no? And so stupid, he was, to go messin’ with another man’s wife. It’s like every unwed girl in the bayou wasn’t enough for him. I guess he have to be greedy and sample them all, eh?” She forced a raucous laugh.
Emalee’s giggle sounded hollow and false even to her own ears, but there was no time to worry about it, because Anjele was upon them.
Simona whirled about, pretending surprise. “Why, hello, my friend, I can’t believe it is you. It has been so long.” She was surprised at her successfully cheerful tone. Giving her friend a quick embrace, she knew Anjele had heard, all right, for she was stiff, cold, and the look in her emerald eyes mirrored the confusion within.
“We jus’ talkin’ about the Gator,” Simona dared continue. “You remember him?”
Emalee, feeling a bit braver, decided she needed to add something to the conversation. “You know. He pull us from the water.”
“And he bring you to see me. Ah!” She slapped her forehead with her hand, as though forgetting her advice till now. “I hope you did not listen to my foolish tongue that day, when I tell you to go and make merry with him. But you a smart girl. I bet you saw him for what he was from the start.”
“I don’t know what you’re talking about.” Anjele tried to appear indifferent. “We were just friends, that’s all. I haven’t seen him in a long time. I thought I’d come by and say hello to all of you. Is he working close by?”
“Gator? Here?” Simona guffawed, slapped her knee. “Why, he probably miles away by now, as fast as he left with the bullets flyin’ over his head.”
Anjele, jolted, asked, “What are you talking about? Who was shooting at him?” Dear God, she screamed within, surely her father couldn’t have found out who he was.
“Carl Norville, ‘cause he found him in bed with his wife.” Simona pretended to be suddenly concerned. “Hey, somethin’ wrong? How come you look so funny? Face all white. It don’ be the first time a man tries to kill a man he finds with his wife. Won’t be the last. Gator, he was just lucky he got away, but he sure left lots of cryin’ women behind. Now that he’s gone, it all comes out. Boss Farrand, he told Frank, Gator stayed out every night, and by day, he’d almost always catch him in the woods ruttin’ with some girl.”
Anjele swayed, and Emalee, afraid she was about to faint, clutched her arm and advised, “Maybe you better sit down a spell in the shade.”
“No. No, I’m fine.” Anjele vehemently shook her head and held up her arms to ward off any consoling gestures, knowing she had to get hold of herself lest suspicion be aroused. So far nobody knew what a fool she was. Her parents only knew she’d been with a man, and that’s all they were going to know.
She started toward her horse.
“Hey, come back,” Simona called. “You jus’ got here. Stay and visit a spell…”
But she kept on running. Then, quickly mounting, she gave the mare the reins and rode away.
They stared after her, and finally Emalee lamented, “I still say it’s a shame. I was watchin’ her face, and I could tell she loved that man. Where he go, anyway?”
Simona said she didn’t know. Nobody did. Both the enigmatic Gator and his loathsome father had not been seen since the day before yesterday. She lifted the water pail, at last ready to head into the rows of tall, bushy cane stalks. “It don’t matter, Emalee,” she murmured. “It wasn’t meant to be, and we gotta forget it ever was.”
Emalee doggedly nodded and fell into step behind her.
Anjele was lying across her bed when she heard her mother come upstairs. She waited a moment, then got up and went and knocked on the door.
“Yes, who is it?” came Twyla’s apprehensive voice, for unknown to Anjele, she was expecting the visit.
Anjele opened the door and stepped inside.
Twyla saw the misery etched on her daughter’s face and knew the ploy had worked but wanted to ease the tension and offered, “Claudia and I went to visit Raymond this morning, to keep him from coming here, because I was afraid you weren’t up to facing him just yet. But he’s so anxious to see you, he insists on coming for tea this afternoon. If you don’t feel you’re ready, I can make your excuses when he gets here.”
“No, that won’t be necessary,” Anjele said with resolve. “I’d like to see him. I need to explain about the wedding being postponed.”
Twyla held her breath.
Anjele closed her eyes momentarily, then opened them to reflect inner anguish as she declared in a tone of calm finality, “I’ve decided I want to go to school in England, and the sooner I can leave, the better.”
Twyla’s breath caught in her throat. It was what she had prayed to hear but, in that moment, realized she felt no joy in triumph, though Anjele would never know of the deception. At that very moment, Elton was busy getting rid of Simona and Emalee, along with their families. He would see to it they were quickly and securely ensconced on the plantation of a friend of his, all the way in Alabama. It was the only way to ensure there’d be no one around to remember, or reveal, what had really happened.
Now, however, seeing the anguish and heartbreak mirrored on her beloved daughter’s face was almost more than Twyla could bear and, for one frozen instant, felt the impulse to confess all. But she dared not, instead yielding to the overwhelming rush of love and the need to comfort as best she could.
Quickly rising from the bed, she went to fold Anjele into her arms. “Oh, my darling, I’ll miss you terribly, but it’s all for the best, you’ll see.”
Anjele succumbed to the tears she’d been fighting against, and, responding to her mother’s embrace, clung to her and whispered hoarsely, “I love you, Momma.”
Twyla stepped away but drew her to the bed to sit down beside her. Then, holding both of Anjele’s hands in her own, she felt the need to assure, “Even though you might not think so at times, you’re my first love. Sometimes, I know it appears I favor Claudia, and maybe I do, because I’ve felt so sorry for her, and—”
“There’s no need, Momma,” Anjele interrupted. “I understand, though it’s been hard at times, but I’ve never doubted your love for me. I wish…” She paused to swallow past the lump in her throat. “I wish all this hadn’t happened.”
Twyla reached to tenderly brush a wisp of hair from Anjele’s forehead, then slipped an arm about her to pull her close once again. “You’re going to find as you grow older there will be lots of things in your past you wish hadn’t happened. It’s part of life. Just remember to look forward and never back, and one day, you’ll forget all about this unhappy time.