My Dear Sister,

I should have seen it coming. I was so stupid and oblivious. I am so mad at myself. I should have noticed how Jack and I were getting more distant after the day at Silver Lake. There was a weird vibe between us. It was kind of like he was trying to avoid me.

Then the unthinkable happened. This afternoon I was walking up to my bedroom. I was going to try to find my shawl for Natta. When I got to my room it was all torn apart. All the drawers were open and emptied onto the floor. The bedding was all over the place and the mattress was flipped up.

I saw my Father in the back of the room rummaging vigorously through a cabinet. "Father, what's going on?" I asked.

He stormed over to me. "You little bastard," he shouted at me and then he hit me so hard I fell to the floor on my knees.

It hurt very badly. "What did I do?" I asked. I tried to slowly get up but he smacked my back and knocked me back down.

I looked up at his scary face then down at his hands. I gasped. In his hands were all of the letters I wrote to you. "Did you read them?" I managed to squeak out. I knew this was the end. Father knew all about saving Keeya's sister. He knew all about Jack and I at Silver Lake. I threw up a bit in my mouth.

"Yes I read them," Father said. "And I don't appreciate you stealing a slave girl from the Bartholomew's and hiding her in the barn."

I cursed at myself in my head. How could I have been so dumb? I wrote down all my secrets! I should have thought this could happen.

Father raised his voice. "I also don't appreciate you telling Jack everything about France! There are reasons why I didn't want you to talk about it. William's been on my tail since we got here! He kept questioning my honor. I wondered how he knew some of the things he knew. I had no idea my idiot of a daughter was telling everything about our past to William's nephew!"

"Father... Please..."

"Shut up!" Father was screaming now. I was still on the ground in a ball. "I bet you thought that your beloved Jack would never tell anyone your little secrets. Well guess what. He told William everything!"

"But... He couldn't have..."

"You idiot of course he did! He never loved you. He was just using you."

"How do you know?"

"William told me. He said that Jack told him some 'interesting' things about me and that the police will be here tomorrow to check my papers and investigate me. I've been looking for those damn fake papers all afternoon! Instead I find a bunch of damn letters proving my daughter's a dirty little traitor!"

He smacked me again on the back. I cried really hard. How could Jack do that? How could he lie to me? How could I have been so stupid as to trust him? He must have been faking it the whole time. He never wanted to be my friend. He didn't care about me. All those hours spent learning English together. Lies. All those hours helping Keeya and her sister. Lies.

Father hit me again. My back stung. My eyes stung. I wanted to be in France right now in your arms so you can comfort me. He hit me again.

"Please stop," I whimpered. "I'm so sorry."

Father threw me up against the wall. "You've always been the stupid child. You never quite knew what to do without being told." He started to leave the room.

"Where are you going?" I asked.

"The barn to see what's hiding there."

"Please no!" I said. "Don't send her back."

"How dare you tell me that after what you did!" Father growled. "And I'm not going to send her back. At least not yet. I may have thought of a way to use her towards my advantage."

"Wha-"

"None of your business! You'll probably tell Jack! Now stay up here and don't do anything." He crumpled up my letters to you and threw them at me. Then he stormed out muttering under his breath "stupid stupid girl."

I tried to straighten up my room. I put everything back in its drawers and fixed the bed. I can't stop crying. I want to leave here. I just want out. I sat on my bed smoothing out all the creases on your letters. I want my sister. I want my sister.

I want my sister,

Your Sister, Azelma