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"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