4 - Saint County

The Secrets of Lettie Wilson

I'm six years old. Naked. Shivering. Knee-deep in the murky waters of Lake Hell. On the shore behind me my mother stands as an angry sentinel, guarding against the return to safety. Over my shoulder, just a few feet away, I can see the back door to the three-room cabin where we live.

"Milletta May," she says, her voice colder than the water and her eyes …