East of Orleans by Renee' Irvin

from happening! I ain’t bled in two months.”
    Cool air blew in from the outside. Leaves of burgundy and gold skittered across the front porch. The sky was growing dark. Rain was on the horizon. Lila grabbed her shawl and pulled it tight around her shoulders. She slumped against a chair and then sat down.
    A shadow appeared on the front porch. It was Granny returning home. Livie and Henry had come to see how the cotton was coming along and Granny had taken little Henry down to the river to see the loggerhead turtle. Isabella and her mother sat in silence as they heard Granny saying goodbye to Livie and Henry. When Granny entered the cabin, from the corner of her eye, she saw Lila bent forward in a chair, holding her shawl around her with one hand and holding her head in the other.
    One glance at Isabella’s pale face sent a jolt through Granny. She knew that something was wrong, bad wrong. “What’s the matter with the two of you?” Lila lowered her eyes to her lap and then her head came up. She gave Isabella a sidelong glance. “You want to tell her or you want me to?”
    “It’s my disgrace, not yours!” cried Isabella. She got up, took Granny’s hand and led her to the kitchen where she sat her down at the long pine table. Isabella sat next to her. “Granny, you know I’ve been sick.” Granny studied Isabella’s face.
    “Go on, child.” Granny whispered, placing her hand on Isabella’s lap.
    Isabella turned to look at a shadow coming around the corner; it was Freckles. He jumped up on the table. “Freckles, shoo, get off the table!” Isabella said. She felt nauseous. She jumped up and ran to the back door, She opened the door hung her head out and vomited. Isabella moved away from the door and crouched down against the outside of the house. She spat on the ground. She put her head between her legs and started to rock. She felt Granny’s hand on her shoulder. She looked up and then closed her eyes. She wished she could disappear. No, she wished what was growing inside her would disappear. “I’m going to have a baby.”
    “Well, child, do you think you’re the first one? You know, that’s how I got you.”
    “But, it wasn’t that way, Granny!” She felt a warm hand on her arm.
    “Oh, and what way was that? Is there some new way that I don’t know about?”
    Isabella smiled a slight smile and then tucked her dress tight between her legs.
    “Look at me,” Granny said.
    “No.”
    “Why?”
    “Because I don’t want to.”
    “Why don’t you want to?”
    Isabella got up with angry eyes and swung around. “I am changed, I ain’t the same anymore. My innocence is gone! And, and just like daddy, it ain’t never coming back! I am ruined! There ain’t nobody going to ever want me!” She turned her face away and started to cry. Granny put her frail arms around Isabella and held her tight.
    “Your daddy is gone and, you’re right, he ain’t coming back. But, child, listen to me. What seems bad today can get better tomorrow. You have life, the greatest gift of all and with life, there is always hope. Someday you will know what your old wrinkled Granny meant.”
    “I don’t want this baby. Granny, please make it go away. I don’t want to have a baby!”
    “Of course, you don’t want to have a baby. You ain’t nothing but a baby yourself, but all of that will change. You remember what I say. Have I ever told you wrong?”
    “No.”
    “And I ain’t wrong this time.” Granny paused. “Tom Slaughter will make a fine daddy.”
    Isabella slowly raised her eyes and looked at Granny with a cold face. “This baby ain’t Tom’s.”
    Granny narrowed her eyes in disbelief. “Then who?”
    Isabella’s face was blank. The truth was she was not sure who the baby belonged to. It had been two months since Jacob had raped her and a month since Tom had made love to her. She knew that her breasts had just gotten tender, but they always felt that way before she started her period. She would say