Page 59 - Daphne Hart - 89 and Feeling Fine

abandoned kids from anywhere and bring them to her
home.

Without going into the details of the abuse, you can use
your imagination. I left one weekend, and by Monday,

he found me — dragging me back home, kicking and

screaming. I had nowhere to hide. Although he never
took care of me, at least, I told myself, I had a roof over

my head.

During that time, he went across the river and fathered

two children — a boy and a girl — with two different

women. Of course, he owned the boy, but not the girl.

There were two friends who I credit with my survival:

Winsome, the landlord’s daughter, and Jennifer, my
next-door neighbor, who was also having her own

problems. I got my niece to come live with me, help

with the children, and go to school in the evenings,
which worked out for a while. But he would go back

home during the day and use her to his convenience —
because he had a little record shop close by that I was

not allowed to enter. The reason was: I was just the
baby's mother.

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