BooksBarbecue
Back When the Reckoning Comes
Chapters (44)
  1. Cover
  2. Dedication
  3. Epigraph
  4. They are coming.
  5. I.
  6. II.
  7. III.
  8. Once, they stole away.
  9. IV.
  10. V.
  11. VI.
  12. VII.
  13. VIII.
  14. IX.
  15. X.
  16. XI.
  17. XII.
  18. Those who stayed behind found their own ways to resist.
  19. XIII.
  20. XIV.
  21. They remembered the feeling of their beloveds sold,
  22. XV.
  23. XVI.
  24. XVII.
  25. XVIII.
  26. XIX.
  27. XX.
  28. It took the babies drowning for the rest to say, Enough.
  29. XXI.
  30. XXII.
  31. XXIII.
  32. Tools meant for work became seen as weapons.
  33. XXIV.
  34. XXV.
  35. XXVI.
  36. XXVII.
  37. XXVIII.
  38. When they were caught, punishment was swift and severe in its execution.
  39. XXIX.
  40. Soon it would be morning, and those left behind would prepare for another day.
  41. Acknowledgments
  42. About the Author
  43. Also by LaTanya McQueen
  44. About the Publisher

At Jesse’s prompting, Mira straightened. Unlike Celine, Mira wasn’t good at having people look at her, so used to tamping down how she was seen. Whereas Celine showed off, baring more of her body for the camera, Mira engaged in a futile attempt at covering what skin showed. Being reminded of her mother’s judgments about modesty, about respectability, made her pull and tug, but nothing else could be done about her clothes. She fussed a minute over her hair, her sweat and the heat of the day having frizzed up her press-out, but Celine quickly put her arm across Mira’s shoulders and pulled her close. She fixed her smile brightly at Jesse. Mira forced her own smile toward the camera, but instantly wanted to stop, afraid of having this photo document the way she looked. She resisted the urge to pull away and turned her head straight at the viewfinder. Celine shouted at Jesse to say when he was ready and he nodded back. Mira watched him as he focused the lens, shy and embarrassed, but with the camera hiding his face she was able to meet his gaze. This felt safer. He was careful and patient, willing to hold the camera as long as he could, as long as it would take, if it meant getting the shot he wanted.

Jesse continued to wait. A forever existed with the two of them sitting side by side, Celine’s arm feeling heavy and hot against Mira’s skin. The longer Jesse waited, the more uncomfortable Celine seemed; she shifted her body around. Mira loosened, enjoying the moment a little. She stared at the camera, knowing the longer she stared the longer Jesse was looking back at her. Soon she stopped noticing Celine. She wasn’t there at all. It was just the two of them. It gave her a small thrill.

Celine and Mira sat underneath the blazing sun and waited for Jesse to take the photo. Finally, when even Mira was about to say forget it, he hit the shutter.

“I wasn’t looking!” Celine whined.

“Trust me, it’s a good picture,” he said as he tucked the camera back in his bag. “You two could be sisters.”

“That’s because we are,” Celine retorted, giving a snicker as she pulled Mira close. Celine grabbed Mira’s arm and held it against her own. Because it was summer, Celine’s skin had tanned a light brown. “See?”