Ruby (Landry 1)

"And I'll go in to see Gisselle and tell her the

truth, but she won't believe me, Daddy. You'll have to

come up and speak with her, too," I told him. He

nodded.

"I will." He kissed me and held me for a

moment. "Gabrielle would be so proud of you, so

proud."

He straightened up, pulled back his shoulders,

and left. I gazed at Uncle Jean's photographs for a

moment and then I went to tell my sister who her

mother really was.

"Where have you been?" Gisselle demanded.

"Mother's been home for hours and hours. I kept

asking for you and they kept telling me you weren't

here. Then Mother came by and told me you ran

away. I knew you wouldn't stay away long," she

added confidently. "Where would you go, back to the

bayou and live with those dirty swamp people?" Because I didn't say anything immediately, her

smile of self-satisfaction evaporated.

"Why are you standing there like that? Where

were you?" she wailed. "I needed you. I can't stand

that nurse anymore."

"Mother lied to you, Gisselle," I said calmly. "Lied?"

I walked over to her bed and sat on it to face

her in her wheelchair.

"I didn't run away," I said. "Don't you

remember? We were going to the institution to see

Uncle Jean, only--"

"Only what?"

"She had other intentions. She brought me there