napowrimo - Emily

[ezekielsdaughter]

Emily

You are frozen there
Emily
one foot on the muddy gate to the American city
one foot raised over brick laced into concrete
between buildings higher than you’ve ever seen
On foggy March mornings, women wearing starched cotton stride 
by you into work you would recognize
If I keep you poised there, I don’t have to imagine what happened:
the cotton dealer who misplaced his child’s favorite playmate;
the brothel owner that thought you a charming whimsy for his parlor;
the errand that crushed you beneath a carriage’s wheels;
the race along the levee that ended with a tumble into the river.
You can see that I am kin
I can think of so many horrors.
A gift, I’ll imagine one more:
the man that recognized you
hid you beneath his cloak
and took you to live among the maroons in the swamp across the river.
Stay there Emily, 
a moment longer
I only live ten miles and two hundred years away
Your father is coming for you.

Prompt: