Lost Daughters Read Free Page A

Maureen had loved Mama Ruby from the bottom of her heart. Mama Ruby was gone forever, though, at least from the physical angle. Maureen knew that if she wanted a chance at a normal future, she would have to let go of Mama Ruby from the emotional angle too. “Uh, we’ll be stayin’ with Catty until I find us a place.” Maureen looked at Virgil again. “I have to move forward without bein’ haunted by anything that’ll remind me of Mama Ruby too much. She controlled every move I made. I can’t let her control me from beyond the grave. I hope you understand.”
    Virgil nodded. “I do. Once Mama Ruby got her hooks in you, you either had to sink or swim. If I hadn’t run off and joined the army when I did, there is just no tellin’ what kind of man she would have turned me into.” Virgil rubbed his nose and sniffed. “If I was you, I wouldn’t step back into that house no time soon either. Ain’t nothin’ but bad memories there for you. Mama Ruby gave you a lot of protection and spiritual guidance. She raised you to be strong, too, so you’ll do just fine on your own.”
    Maureen had no idea how far she would get without Mama Ruby’s “protection and spiritual guidance.” Mama Ruby had controlled Maureen’s life from the day she was born, and she knew that Mama Ruby’s influence would remain with her for a long time to come. Jesus was Maureen’s main source of spiritual guidance now, and she prayed to Him every day of her life, but Mama Ruby’s crude words still rang in her ears: “Listen, girl, ain’t nobody in this world, other than Jesus, can make you happy except me. You ain’t goin’ to do nothin’ unless I approve it. Otherwise, you will suffer like a mad dog.” It had been a while since Maureen had heard those chilling words. They continued to haunt her on a regular basis.
    Virgil’s chest tightened as his hands gripped the steering wheel during the ride back from the airport. He had promised himself that if and when Maureen returned to Florida, he would tell her that Mama Ruby had kidnapped her. She deserved that much from him. He knew that with Mama Ruby out of the picture now, he had a moral obligation to come clean. He decided that it was just as important for Maureen’s peace of mind as it was for his.
    â€œUncle Virgil, did you forget that today is my birthday?” Loretta asked as she bounced up and down in the backseat.
    â€œOh, that’s right! I been so busy lately it had skipped my mind!” he yelled, glancing over his shoulder and giving Loretta a huge smile. “Happy birthday!”
    Loretta waited a few moments for Virgil to reveal what he planned to do to honor her birthday. But he didn’t mention taking her to Disney World or even to a pizza parlor like he had done last year. That made Loretta angry. What was wrong with her family these days? Didn’t they realize how special she was? Well, one day they would....
    â€œI wish Mama Ruby was still alive. She would never let me down,” Loretta said with a whiny sniff. “She never let nobody down.”
    Virgil had more important things on his mind than celebrating Loretta’s birthday. But she was right about Mama Ruby. She had never let anybody down. For the first time in his life, Virgil knew that he was going to let Mama Ruby down in the worst way. He had to tell Maureen that she was not who she thought she was and that he was not her brother, or even related to her. The guilt was eating him alive. He had to tell her soon. Until then, his conscience would continue to torment him until he could no longer stand it.
    Unlike Mama Ruby, he was determined to not take the secret to the grave.

CHAPTER 2
    Five years later
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    V IRGIL COULDN’T BELIEVE THAT SO MUCH TIME HAD PASSED AND HE still had not told Maureen that she was the victim of a bizarre kidnapping. Every time he had thought the time