The Ocean’s City
Chapter 54

I made it to the kitchen. Every creak of the floorboards made me want to bolt off running, but the two couldn’t hear my escape over their brawls. I reached the door outside and was about to push it open when it suddenly swung open, and Ma looked me dead in the eye. She seemed twice her size, with her lips pressed into a thin line. There was danger glowing from her pupils. She grabbed my arm and pulled me along as she walked into the living room, yelling. The floorboards screamed for my lost escape at the steps she stomped.

“Yuh two bafoons, yuh bout lost hers!”

They both immediately stopped fighting. A look of confusion replaced their anger.

“hers was leavins?” Jr asked with a hint of pain in his voice.

“Yuhs leavins?” Dan asked, shocked, like he wouldn’t understand why someone would try to escape. Then, Jr grunted like an angry caveman.

“Nah uh Jr. Yuhs scared da poor ding. Ain’t dat right, garl?”

“r-r-right you two were fighting and—”

“hers can’t leave Ma!” he cried.

Ma let out a sigh. “We’s ties her up den.”

“Wait, what? You said you would take me to the fancy house to replace my sister? Please, Ma’am, I—”

“Eye is Ma and eyes says no such thang. Eye says eyes help yuh. Yuhs no leave’in here. Yuhs eats muh food yuhs stays here.”

“Stays wid muh, ladyuh,” Jr. elaborated.

“uh huh, yuhs bees muh suns wife! Dan… boy! Ties hers in ya room! Ain’t no escape’in dere.”

“yes, Ma.”

“Den yuhs two boys come tuh kitchen, eyes talks tuh ya two.”

“yes, Ma.” They both responded simultaneously.

I didn’t speak or fight. I’m unsure why I didn’t do more to defend my case as Ma handed me over to Dan. My mind was coming up with a plan even though I didn’t know yet, and I followed Dan to a ladder in the bedroom that led up to a hole in the wall. Dan guided me up to a small attic with a four-poster bed. The warm glow from the fire shined up into the attic through the floorboards, casting millions of shadows.

He grabbed my arm to direct me to the bed. I pulled away from his grasp and desperately spilled out words from my mouth like they were diarrhea. “I-I can’t be here. I’m already married. I just need to replace my sister and me—she can help me replace my husband. Something happened… I understand what happened. I think maybe I’m being punished for some things I said, and now I don’t even know if my sister is alive… if I stay here, I will never make it right and!” I bursted out in tears.

Dan hurried to shush me. “Silvie, I no bad guy. Eyes plans tuh helps yuh. Eyes no likes muh brodah. He’s uh no good man. No cries, Silvie. Eyes let yuhs rest and gets yuh to fancy house when times right uh.”

Surprised, I searched his brown eyes for any sign of deceit. I had no clue what his intent was, though; his eyes only reminded me of the color of murky swamp water, and I was beginning to feel helpless.

His hand went to my shoulder. “Eyes helps gals likes uh yuhs. Eyes helps purdy brown hairs gals bu fours.”

I managed to muffle my sobs long enough to understand what he was saying. Another girl has shown up unexplainable before.

“How long ago?”

“Uh month o so, hers crazy dough yuh no crazy, she says hers dies and goes the hells. I told hers no hells, just swamps.”

“h-how did you help her?”

“Eyes takes hers tuh fancy house. Broduh no meets her. Her kisses muh cheek, says thanks. Eyes helps yuh, yuhs kiss muh cheek, kay?”

I quickly nodded my head. “okay, Dan. If you take me to the fancy house, I will kiss you on your cheek.”

Dan’s cheeks turned bright red with excitement. “Lie down. Eyes says yuhs tied.”

I lay on the bed, and Dan searched the room for rope. He was quiet as he made knots. I sat nervously on the bed, worried it was all a lie to get me to comply, but then his murky brown eyes met mine, and he showed me how the knots moved, and then I willingly put my wrists in them.

“waits for muh,” he whispered before turning on his heal and headed down the ladder.

I sat in the bed, trying to control my shaking breath. I listened as the boards creaked, telling me he was headed to the kitchen. His chair scrapped across the floor, and there was a loud plop before. Ma spoke.

“yuhs boys be fight’in again, eyes feed yuhs to dah alleeegators.”

“yes, muh.” They spoke in unison like this is a daily practice.

“Nos fight’in yuhs shares hers.”

I nearly bit my tongue as I listened. My heart plummeted when Dan spoke with hope in his voice. “Eyes has her too?”

I silently pleaded with Dan that he wouldn’t change his heart about helping me.

Jr.’s voice got quiet, and I strained my ears to listen. “Her real purdy Ma. I’d like tah keep er. Nuh share’in.”

Then Dan spoke up angrily with his brother. “Eyes no share’in wid him!”

“Boys!” Ma scolded. “Dat deres enough! Papa will seddle dis. Now yuhs two goes replace him.”

“Yes, Ma.” They both spoke in unison, and the chair scraped the floor.

Their footsteps thudded on the floor as they headed outside and fought again. “eyes no with yuh same boat!”

“wells eyes no wid yuh same boat!”

“wells yuhs too slow!, Eyes no waits fuh yuh.”

“Eyes no slow!” Jr. defended.

“we’s uh race den.”

“Eyes beats yuh. I start now.”

“Oh nos yuhs don’t’s”

The sloshing sounds powered over their bickering as I imagined them taking off to do who knows what. Ma let out an exasperated breath before she flopped herself on the couch in the living room.

“Yuhs be fine, yuhs sees. We’s helps yuh replace yuhs sistuh. Her stays wid us too.” Ma hollered up to me, but I lay in the bed as quiet as a mouse, too scared to speak. Too frightened she’d come up here and see that I wasn’t tied up.