The Abandoned Child

By JANE PATRICK WALLS

Danielle Ferguson is a lonely nine-year-old little girl locked from her apartment by a man who, she thinks, is her father. She oftentimes sits in the darkened stairway listening for his footsteps and planning her escape into a darker part of the building where he cant see her when he leaves. She is afraid and makes herself as invisible as she possibly can from the man who visits her mother. Residents see her often sitting in the darkened stairway but mostly she is ignored She is so afraid that the bare flickering overhead light will go out leaving her completely in the dark but mostly she is afraid of him. Danielle finally seeks refuge from an elderly neighbor who showers her with attention and love. Danielle adores the little childless black woman who loves and cares for her. Her thoughts are never far from her mother, Suzanne, or the man who fathered her, but her heart belongs to the woman who took in the abandoned child.

• Language: English
• Publisher: AuthorHouse
• Release date: Jan 10, 2014
• ISBN: 9781491848517

JANE PATRICK WALLS

"The Abandoned Child" is my second published book. My characters are all fictional and come together with one common thread. My love of reading led to me creating stories which remain unpublished. With the encouragement of my husband, I submitted my first novel "The Lady in the Park," but was already writing "The Abandoned Child." I am the ninth child of ten children. My parents, John and Sallie Patrick, provided us a wonderful home with lots of love and laughter in the small town of Citronelle, Alabama.. My husband, who is from Ohio, and I have lived in Satsuma, Alabama, for over forty years. We have a married daughter, Misty, and a married son, Jeffrey. We have three granddaughters and three grandsons (one granddaughter is married and one grandson is married) and one great-grandson.

Book preview

PROLOGUE

Danielle Ferguson is a lonely nine-year-old little girl locked from her apartment by a man who, she thinks, is her father. She oftentimes sits in the darkened stairway listening for his footsteps and planning her escape into a darker part of the building where he can’t see her when he leaves. She is afraid and makes herself as invisible as she possibly can from the man who visits her mother. Residents see her often sitting in the darkened stairway but mostly she is ignored She is so afraid that the bare flickering overhead light will go out leaving her completely in the dark but mostly she is afraid of him. Danielle finally seeks refuge from an elderly neighbor who showers her with attention and love. Danielle adores the little childless black woman who loves and cares for her. Her thoughts are never far from her mother, Suzanne, or the man who fathered her, but her heart belongs to the woman who took in the abandoned child.

Chapter 1

The apartment door was locked again so Danielle Ferguson went to the creepy stairway to wait. The overhead light flickered and she was so afraid the bare bulb would go out. Their neighbors were kind to her as she was just a thin little girl who slipped through life mostly unnoticed. She was always afraid waiting but no one ever bothered her. Those using the stairs would mostly ignore her and a few would pat her on the head. She knew that when Daniel came that she would eventually be locked out.

After his visits, Danielle knew that her mother, Suzanne, would be happy for a while and then would spiral into depression until he called or came again. He always left money she thought as Danielle and her mother were never without food. The phone bill didn’t come to their apartment but it was never turned off. It seemed to Danielle that the only time it rang was when Daniel called. Occasionally she heard her mother talk to someone named Patrick, but didn’t know who he was. Danielle was not allowed to answer the phone.

Their apartment was hot in the summer and cold in the winter. It was in one of the poorest neighborhoods of Atlanta. The landlord never knocked on their door like he did others demanding rent; and Danielle was glad because there was a lot of cursing and hollering when the landlord asked for rent. Since she was almost ten, she had finally figured out that Daniel paid the rent as her mother didn’t work.

Daniel had coal black hair and brown eyes. Danielle had sandy blonde hair but her eyes were blue like her mother’s. Momma became so alive and beautiful when Daniel was around. She brushed her thick blonde hair until it shined and put on a dab of makeup. Danielle would come home from school to the smell of Popeye’s Fried Chicken and her mother would be fluttering around Daniel fixing him drinks. Daniel would say hey kid if he acknowledged her at all. Danielle was too afraid to answer him if he spoke.

If Danielle made any noise, he would curse and tell her mother to get that kid out of my sight. He and her mother would eat at the small dining table and Daniel would talk about his business and politics. Danielle would eat standing by the kitchen sink where Daniel could not see her. Danielle knew that after the chicken was eaten she would be sent to the corner store by her mother and when she returned the door would be locked. Daniel dressed really well a lot better than Danielle and her mother. He would bring Suzanne presents of clothes, lingerie and perfume. Danielle thought he must give her mother money to buy Danielle clothes and shoes, but she never asked. Her shoes were usually scuffed and ragged, but when her feet started to hurt she would timidly tell her mother and a new pair would be on her bed when she came in from school.

The light flickered again and Danielle shuddered. Danielle crept to the bottom stair and tried to remember when she had first seen Daniel. It just seemed like he had always been in and out in their lives as far back as she could remember. Danielle thought Daniel was her daddy but when she asked her mother she would not answer at times and other times she would say, You will know one day.

One afternoon Danielle heard one of the neighbors Ms. Honeycutt call her mother a whore and Danielle a bastard child. Ms. Honeycutt was one of the few whites living in the apartment building. When Ms. Honeycutt had realized Danielle had heard her, she said, It is time the kid knew the truth. Mrs. Davis told her that she should be ashamed and took Danielle by the hand. Mrs. Davis asked Danielle if she would like some sugar cookies and a glass of milk. Danielle went willingly along with her. Mrs. Davis told her she was a beautiful little girl and her mother was a lovely lady and that is what she should remember.

Mrs. Davis said, Danielle, study hard and you can be anything you want to be. Books open doors that people would keep shut to you if they could. Never let your station in life now limit your future.

Danielle had looked around her apartment. Mrs. Davis’ furniture was old but really clean. Danielle thought these must be antiques they are so old. She had a china cabinet with beautiful plates and glasses. She had several book cases with lots of books. Her apartment had an air conditioner in the window with bars around it. Danielle didn’t have to ask why the bars were there she knew it was to keep the air conditioner from being stolen as Mrs. Davis’ apartment was on the ground floor. It was winter and Danielle was not cold like she was at her apartment.

Danielle asked, Mrs. Davis, how come your apartment isn’t cold?

Mrs. Davis said, I have a 5120 BTU heater and it warms the whole apartment. I make sure my windows are all sealed and have thick curtains, but in the summer I open them and just use blinds. You come see me any time if you are cold, hot, or hungry, Danielle. I get lonely or I wouldn’t talk to some people. Danielle wasn’t sure but she thought she was talking about Mrs. Honeycutt.

Chapter 2

Sitting in the stairway, Danielle decided that she would go see if Mrs. Davis was still up because she was cold and tired. She knocked on her door and Mrs. Davis said, Who is it? Danielle said, Danielle. Mrs. Davis opened the door and looked down at her, Child, what is the matter? Danielle said, I’m locked out and I am cold. Mrs. Davis closed her door and took Danielle to her couch, wrapped her in a quilt. She said, I’ll be right back.

Danielle was almost asleep when she heard Daniel’s voice, Look, lady, this isn’t any of your damn business.

Danielle was really afraid as Daniel was wearing only his pants, standing in Mrs. Davis’ doorway. He towered over Mrs. Davis and her mother was standing behind him wrapped in a blanket.

Mrs. Davis defiantly stood her ground and said, You should be ashamed a man of your stature treating your child this way. That apartment is cold in the winter and hot in the summer. Is that the way your other children live?

Daniel said, That is none of your damn business, lady.

Mrs. Davis said, It is the Department of Human Resources business. If you don’t see that apartment is adequately heated, insulated and cooled, I will report the situation to the authorities and newspapers. What you and the child’s mother do is none of my business, but you are not going to neglect this child any longer. Instead of locking her out, she can stay with me. If I had known she was being locked out, I would have already talked with you. Do you understand me, Mr. Wingate the second?

Daniel said, You know I have enough pull to have you evicted.

Mrs. Davis said, Try it Mr. Wingate and my voice will be heard in Washington, DC, and President Clinton might just be interested in a Republican senator who has a woman on the wrong side of town.

All of the anger seemed to leave Daniel and he said, Ok, keep the kid here tonight.

Danielle was afraid when he left but Mrs. Davis was smiling. She said, I expect you will be seeing some changes in your life. You know you don’t look anything like him, but you have your mother’s blue eyes.

Danielle said, So you think he is my father?

Mrs. Davis said, Child, you don’t know who your daddy is? I can tell you right now his name is Daniel Wingate, II. He has money and lives in a fine house. He has two sons and one daughter by his wife. I was here the day he moved you and your momma in upstairs. He must have brought you straight from the hospital. He didn’t stay long just kind of dumped you and your mother off. Mrs. Webster was living next door to your apartment then and the talk was that Mr. Wingate paid her to help your mother with you for about three years then she moved away.

Danielle said, I think I remember her. She was really soft and sang songs to me.

Danielle listened to Mrs. Davis’ every word as she drank the milk and ate the homemade cookies. She had never had an adult talk to her that long about anything. Her mother never asked her any questions. As far as school, Danielle struggled with her schoolwork sometimes as she didn’t have anyone to ask for help. There were no computers or books at their apartment. Her own room had a bare overhead light just like the stairway and a bed and a dresser with a cracked mirror. They had a nice TV in the living room which had cable. Their living room was presentable and had comfortable inexpensive furniture. When Danielle and her mother were alone, they were like two strangers living in the same apartment.

Danielle had figured that since the power, phone and cable were never turned off that Daniel paid for that too. Suzanne’s bedroom had a beautiful bedroom suit with fancy drapes and bedspread, but Danielle was never allowed to sleep with her mother. When she had bad dreams, she had learned to pray really hard. Danielle believed in God as she had nowhere else to turn in the middle of the night. She heard the kids in the neighborhood talking about going to church, but her mother never went to church so Danielle didn’t either.

Danielle said, You have lived here a long time haven’t you, Mrs. Davis?

Mrs. Davis said, Yes, when Mr. Davis, Herbert, and I moved here it was a nice apartment and neighborhood. After Herbert died I stayed here as moving would have been hard to leave behind all of the memories we made here. This is an impoverished neighborhood but the crime rate is low and I feel safe. I don’t think it is safe for a young girl to sit in a dark stairway in the dead of night anywhere these days. You come here whenever Daniel Wingate comes and just stay with me. Tonight you sleep on the couch and tomorrow I will get the other bedroom ready for your next visit.

Danielle said, You are so nice. Sometimes I have trouble with my homework would you help me with that? Mrs. Davis smiled, Honey, I will be glad to. My Herbert was a principal and I was an English teacher so I think I can help you quite a bit.

Chapter 3

Danielle looked forward to Daniel’s visits as she could stay with Mrs. Davis. Mrs. Davis had been right about things were going to change. A heater almost like Mrs. Davis’ was installed in their apartment and when summer came an air conditioner was installed in the window. If her momma noticed a difference, she didn’t say. She didn’t seem to mind that Danielle was with Mrs. Davis.

Danielle gradually started staying more and more at Mrs. Davis’ apartment. Mrs. Davis had turned her extra bedroom into a dream bedroom for Danielle. It had a nightstand with a lamp, a double bed; drapes on the windows that matched the bedspread, an overhead light and ceiling fan, and a dresser with an unbroken mirror. Mrs. Davis had placed another lamp on the dresser. She had bought Danielle a new brush and comb set. Mrs. Davis kept fresh linens on the bed and during the winter Danielle slept snug under two quilts and the bedspread. She wanted to pretend that Mrs. Davis was her mother but she was white and Mrs. Davis was black. She asked Mrs. Davis if she could call her Momma Davis and Mrs. Davis with tears in her eyes said, I would like that.

Mrs. Davis would walk with her to the library where there were computers. Danielle’s school had computers for the children but not enough for all of the students. Danielle was not doing well as she had little experience, so Mrs. Davis said they would use the ones at the library. As long as the weather permitted they would go two to three times a week. Danielle was a quick study which pleased Mrs. Davis who praised her. Danielle had always been invisible to her mother and the praises from Mrs. Davis were much appreciated and rewarded with hugs and kisses. The librarians all knew Mrs. Davis as she was an avid reader. Mrs. Davis checked out books for Danielle and Danielle escaped into other worlds when she read. The two of them would sit in Mrs. Davis’ living room and read for hours. Sometimes Mrs. Davis would insist that Danielle ask Suzanne if she could stay. When Danielle asked, her mother would say, Just do whatever you want, so sometimes she stayed with her mother as she didn’t want Mrs. Davis to know that her mother didn’t care about her at all.

Chapter 4

The days became years and Danielle was sixteen and beautiful. She did not encourage friends as she couldn’t bring them home to her apartment and would have a hard time explaining why she basically lived with Mrs. Davis. The neighborhood accepted her as she had always been in the area and no one messed with Mrs. Davis’ Danielle. Danielle was also embarrassed that people knew her mother was a wealthy man’s mistress and she was their illegitimate child. She felt she had a stamp on her forehead that read I am the bastard child of Senator Daniel Wingate, II.

Danielle watched the news and read articles in the paper. She saw her half siblings when they were photographed with their parents. The youngest child, Sabrina, was the same age as Danielle. Danielle figured that Daniel had two women pregnant at the same time. Danielle studied their pictures. Sabrina didn’t have black hair but she had Daniel’s aristocratic nose and full mouth. She was really pretty. His oldest son, Daniel Wingate, III, was 21 and his younger son Doug was 18. Daniel III looked identical to his father but Doug favored his mother. Danielle was glad that she did not look like any of them. The only common thread was the blood line. In pictures, Daniel always had his arm around his wife, Isabel Cambridge Wingate, smiling and waving at the cameras. According to the articles, Isabel was from a prominent family in Austin, Texas. Danielle wished her name wasn’t Danielle as she figured her mother had taken the female version of Daniel to name her.

Mrs. Davis encouraged Danielle to study hard which she did, scoring the highest in her classes. The school was an integrated school with over 80% black and 15% white and the rest were Hispanics or Asians. Anna did not understand people objecting to going to school with different races. She did not get involved in the segregated groups and went through school with the goal of obtaining scholarships. Mrs. Davis encouraged Danielle to date but she did not want Danielle to date outside of her race as she said children from miscegenation relationships faced the hardest times in life. Danielle used her dictionary to find the meaning of miscegenation. Danielle was not interested in dating any one and certainly did not want to have children. Her greatest desire was to finish college and take care of Mrs. Davis as she was getting older. She also wanted to tell the world about Daniel Wingate.

Mrs. Davis somehow had bought her a computer and printer. Danielle spent her spare time searching sites for her father. Her mother no longer had any objection to Danielle staying with Mrs. Davis. She seemed to welcome the solitude. Danielle knew she was drinking more as Daniel’s visits were few and far between. Danielle would see him coming and going but she didn’t let him see her as she was afraid that she would not be able to hide her dislike and growing resentment. In fact she had not seen the man who fathered her face to face in at least four years.

Danielle knew that Daniel lived in a mansion, had fancy cars, chauffeurs, and yachts. He belonged to the country club and played golf with the elite. Her mother lived in a rundown building and lived on the droppings from his table. His children were in private schools and Danielle went to a public school. She did not feel that she would receive a better education by going to private school. His oldest son would be attending Northwestern. From what Danielle read, he was only accepted due to his father’s influence. Daniel III was often caught speeding and driving while intoxicated according to the local paper but the articles would be followed by recants from the editor with apologies to the prestigious Wingate family. Danielle thought that the paper kept reporting his arrests as it was good press for them and sold more papers as readers wanted to see how fast the editor would apologize and recant the story.

Chapter 5

Mrs. Davis took Danielle to her church. She was not the only white face in the sea of different shades of browns and blacks and was accepted as Mrs. Davis’ special child. She loved the gospel songs and sang them loudly. She was asked to sing in the choir and loved being a part of the choir. She could see Mrs. Davis dressed in her white dress smiling at her from the second pew. The church wasn’t air conditioned and during the summer all of the ladies had hand fans going, but the heat didn’t keep the ladies from feeling the spirit of the Lord and worshiping in song and dance.

One Sunday morning Pastor Johnson preached from Hebrews 12:5-9 regarding bastards. Danielle was really upset as she thought he was preaching about her. Mrs. Davis later explained to Danielle that the scripture meant a child of God would be reprimanded by God but one who was not a child of God, a bastard, would not be reprimanded. Danielle quietly accepted her explanation but did not fully believe her explanation. She wished the word bastard was not in the Bible at all.

She went to school with most of the kids at church and was more accepted by them than her own kind. Mrs. Davis was against Danielle dating outside of her race. She told Danielle repeatedly that children from miscegenation relationships faced more hardships, but Danielle stayed clear of males and maintained friendships only on the school campus.

Mrs. Davis would be waiting for Danielle after school unless it was raining then she would be waiting with a big umbrella. The school was not far and Mrs. Davis walked her to and from school until she was thirteen. Danielle