Chapter One: Tadpole Season
Lucie looked out the window at the sun fading to the West over the mangroves of the nearest swamp island. She was doing dishes at the wash table after dinner, with an oil lamp lighting her work. As the warm water ran over her fingers and the sponge, her determined scrubbing was accompanied by thoughts of the coming Autumn in Chokoloskee. The fire in the small pot-bellied wood stove Lucie cooked and heated dishwater on was fading with the Sun, as early Autumn in Florida was still rather warm, and wood for a fire wasn't the easiest to come by on what amounted to a small island in the Everglades. Little Will was sitting in his high chair, playing with a blue crab shell. He'd developed dark reddish-brown hair and pale green eyes over the past year. His gaze was intent on his toy, and force of will wasn't exactly one of his shortcomings. He was a good child, and smart, but also determined when he wanted to do something. That was maybe why she called him "Will" for sho
