Amethyst Quarters

I grew up in the Lower Pontalba Buildings on Jackson Square in the French Quarter of New Orleans, Louisiana. Despite the city's overwhelming charm, it was a humid metropolis of close-minded people; the torrid scandals ran high, remaining behind closed doors - for gossiping townsfolk spread word like a wildfire in a mossy oak forest. The town's eerie air of secrecy brought forth a wholehearted atmosphere like no other. I possessed beliefs of my own and I bore a heavy conflicting when it came to my views on religion, which was a rarity for any citizen. Unlike most of my female colleagues, I was headstrong and opinionated, yet, my mother and father held an unmitigated sense of subjugation over me. I continuously fought for my rights as a woman, but it was inevitable that a young lady of sixteen was irrevocably unheard. The scorching, sweet, spectral, southern summer of 1860 spawned my forbidden love affair, and that is when my chronicles commenced. Freedom: It's all I ever wanted; it's all he ever wanted. My name is Scarlett Loiacono and this is my story.