Little Black Girl Lost 4 by Keith Lee Johnson

be.
    Respectfully, Ibo, in French, said, “Captain Rutgers, if it’s okay with you, I’d like to see the prince now.”
    â€œShe speaks French?” Francois asked rhetorically.
    â€œThat and about four or five other languages,” Rutgers said. “It’s a gift. She’s a quick study. She could probably run this plantation better than Herman here inside of a month.”
    â€œYou don’t say,” Francois said. “I see why you expect a great deal of compensation for her. Tell me your price and I will pay it.”
    Rutgers cut his eyes toward Helen briefly and said, “I’ve already got a buyer in New Orleans. I can’t very well go back on my word, can I?”
    â€œNot even for a longtime friend like me?”
    â€œI’m afraid not. It would be unethical. Besides, how could I expect to continue doing business with the man if he found out what I did?”
    â€œYes, Joseph,” Helen said, glaring at Francois. “By all means, stick to your principles.”
    â€œA prince, huh?” Francois questioned, changing the subject to appease his jealous wife. “And who might that be?”
    â€œYes, Joseph,” Helen said, smiling broadly. “Don’t tell me we have royalty with us.”
    â€œIn a manner of speaking, I guess we do have royalty with us,” Rutgers said. “As a matter of fact, he’s a part of the cargo you paid for, Francois.”
    â€œReally?” Helen said. She looked at her husband. “Well, I’d like to see this prince. Wouldn’t you, dear?”
    â€œYes, I would,” Francois said. “But first, let’s have a bite to eat and some of our vintage wine.” He looked at Rutgers. “Herman can show your guest to the servants’ quarters.”

Chapter 28
    â€œIt’s the natural order of things.”
    â€œT he man you’re looking for ... is he really a prince?” Herman asked Ibo in French.
    â€œYes. The king had many sons, and Amir was one of them.”
    â€œSo what’s your story?” Herman asked as they walked along the path that led to the slave quarters.
    â€œMy story?”
    â€œYes. I’ve been on this island all my life long, and if there’s one thing I know, everybody has a story. So what’s yours?”
    She told him how she and Amir became the property of Captain Rutgers. She told him of all the things that happened on the ship and how she and the captain became friends. They weren’t actually friends, at least not in her eyes, but she would maintain the façade because it was necessary. Allowing Rutgers to think they were friends was useful for now.
    She didn’t know Herman and she didn’t trust him. There was no way she would trust a man who worked gleefully for a man who enslaved him and then called him a servant, as if he were being paid for the jobs he did. For all she knew, he could be trying to get information out of her. It would be a very long time before she would trust anyone other than Amir.
    â€œWhat’s your name, sir?” Ibo asked, even though she’d heard it when Francois told him to show her where the servants’ quarters were. It was a calculated attempt to get information out of him. She wanted to know what languages he spoke so that when she spoke to the prince, she would know whether she would have to disguise what she was really saying.
    â€œHerman.”
    â€œWhat’s your last name, Herman?”
    â€œTorvell.”
    â€œTorvell? The same name as the man I just met.”
    â€œYes.
    â€œNo, I mean your real last name. The one you were born with. What was it before it was Torvell?”
    â€œTo my knowledge, it has always been Torvell. We were friends when we were little boys. Monsieur Torvell’s father owned my father and mother, and his son owns me and my wife. That’s the way things are here.”
    â€œAnd your father never told you who you were? Your