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“Exactly,” another woman piped up, “pure and decent women who understand their role in society.”
I jerked my arm from Mrs. Stetson’s hold. “My daddy loves me! He’ll never send me away!"
They laughed, the sound high-pitched, like a pack of hyenas. I clamped my hand over my ears, charging through the circle of women, breaking free. Eyes and whispers of criticism followed me as I raced through the crowd, searching for the only person who understood me. When I couldn't find her, I ran into the crowded kitchen.
Benson, our butler, was there, directing servers who struggled to keep up with the demand for more food and champagne. People were acting like it was a New Year’s Eve party.
Bursting through the back door, I sprinted past the garden and towards the salt marshes behind my house. She had to be out here; she had to.
As I got closer, the ground softened, and my steps slowed. I didn’t usually venture into the bay at night. The trees protruding from the water seemed like skeletal fingers reaching for me. There could be alligators or deadly snakes, too. All kinds of things that could hurt me.
“Jibber babber, Jibber babber," I whispered, pretending I wasn’t scared. My mom had taught me the song for when I was nervous, but the funny sounding words were all I could remember sometimes.
It was just superstition, but the Gullah witches also sang it at weddings and funerals, so maybe there was something to its power.
In contrast to me, my mom wasn't afraid of the marsh at night—she would take my hand and wade straight through the water. We would sing the jibber babber song out loud and crinkle a bag of chips to get Ollie’s attention.
Ollie was a baby alligator who lived in the area. We knew we weren’t supposed to feed them, but he was so small and skinny. Since he was an albino, he couldn’t hide as well as the other ones.
I felt sorry for him. He was different, just like me and my sister.
We didn't like fancy parties or dresses like other people.
The girls in my class would giggle at the stains and tears on my clothes—from getting lost on my way to school while picking flowers or chasing after rabbits.
I could count all of Ollie's teeth on how many times I'd been told I wasn't "proper enough for my status.” Called a walking disaster. Reminded of how exhausting it must be just to be alive.
And now, my new nickname was even worse.
But Ollie was just like me. It was harder for him to blend into the swamp, and he looked pathetically skinny compared to the other gators in the area.
Although, I wasn't an idiot—he was still a wild animal.
I tried to be just like mom, strong and brave. If my sister was out here, I needed to find her. Taking a deep breath, I threw off my black flats and shoved my feet into a pair of abandoned muck boots.
“Jibber babber, Jibber babber," I said louder, “Jibber babber, Jibber babber."
The whisper of the water around my ankles was soothing, despite my fear.
I treaded slowly, careful not to step on anything that might move.
“Callie!” Even my own voice sounded haunting in the open night air. "Where are you?"
"Shh," she hissed from beyond. I gulped down my horror at the thought of her out so far in the dark.
I waded deeper, the feel of mud and water pressing into my boots. At the sound of an animal in the bushes, a shiver crawled up my spine.
"You're gonna get yourself killed," I chastised Callie.
"No I'm not." Even without seeing her, I could sense the spark of her anger. "Besides. Even if I did, it would be better than letting those boys find me."
“That's not true," I scowled, my stomach churning with each step deeper into the bay.
"Is so."
There. A flash of movement. A sway of the long grass. I headed towards it, trampling the cordgrass as I went. "Not compared to Ollie. She'll eat you if she thinks you're bait."
Something gripped my ankle. I screamed, fear seizing me. "Ahh!" Instincts kicking in, I vehemently shook my foot, hitting something soft.
