Free Little Black Girl Lost 4 by Keith Lee Johnson Page B

life. He slid it back under the bed.
    He stood up and looked at Ibo again and said, “I suppose I owe you my life.”
    There was no change in her expression when she said, “I suppose I owe you my virginity.”
    Rutgers almost smiled when he heard her reply. “Tell me something,” he said sincerely. “Why? Why would you save the life of a man who snatched you from your homeland?”
    Ibo raise her left brow before saying, “Why would you snatch me from my land, yet allow me to have my clothing, eat the same food you eat, and not do to me what you did to the girl I saved you from? And why were you staring at me while you . . . ?”
    Rutgers sat down in one his chairs and ran his hand down his face and then fingered his beard. “One question at a time.”
    Ibo nodded.
    â€œNow, why didn’t you let her kill me, your captor?”
    â€œBecause if she had killed you, how would I know whether the man who replaced you wouldn’t do to me what you refused to do? With you, I was safe. With another, I do not think I would be.”
    â€œSo, self-preservation?”
    â€œI do not understand the word preservation. What does it mean?”
    â€œIt is as you said—to be safe.”
    â€œThen yes, it is as you have said—self-preservation.”
    â€œI suppose you think I owe you something. Your freedom, perhaps?”
    â€œYou do owe me something, Captain Rutgers. You owe me your life. The only question now is how do you plan to pay your debt?”
    â€œI’ve been thinking about that. I hate owing anybody anything, least of all my life. It makes people think they have something on you. That’s why I always pay my debts! And I pay them on time! I make darn sure I owe no man anything, and I do everything I can to ensure that he owes me.
    â€œUnfortunately, I do owe you my life, as you have said. So, tell me, what do you want?”
    She wrinkled her forehead, stunned that he would ask her that. The question truly puzzled her because the answer was so obvious.
    â€œWhat do I want?” she asked forcefully, on the verge of yelling. “I want what every hostage on the ship wants. I want you to turn the ship around and take us all back home where we belong.”
    Rutgers laughed loud and hard. “Forget about it. That’s never going to happen. You’ll never see your home again. Get used to it. Stop thinking about it, because it’ll never ever happen. Start thinking about building a new life in a new place—America. New Orleans, that’s where you’re going.”
    â€œAnd then you’ll set us free?”
    â€œUs?
    â€œThe prince and me.”
    Rutgers stood up and paced the floor. Then he stopped and looked at her again. “You’re so beautiful. You’re worth more money to me than all the others combined. I cannot let you go without getting something for you. That’s why I have taken good care of you, to answer your question. Your value will be high in New Orleans.”
    He quieted himself and thought for a few seconds. “How about this? Since I cannot let you go, I’ll do everything I can to make sure that the man who buys you is the kind of man that will treat you well. How about that?”
    â€œDo you have a family, Captain Rutgers?”
    He shook his head.
    â€œNo wife?”
    â€œNo.”
    â€œI see.”
    After a long pause, Rutgers said, “You see what?”
    â€œI see why you have no soul, sir. I see why you could do what you did to the girl you brought in here. I see why you can do what you did to us all. You can beat a man to death with a whip and toss him to the sharks. You can do the same to a woman and child because you have no soul, sir. You have no sense of family and the importance of it. You have no respect for others because you have no respect for yourself.
    â€œI’m just wondering why you sold your soul. What happened to you? Who destroyed you? What