The Gilda Stories

Aurelia, a new character, is basking in the glow of a successful Church Circle she has just held in her parlor with the famous speaker Alice Dunbar in attendance. She is good friends with Gilda, who has bought a nearby farm in the prosperous black neighborhood of Rosebud, Missouri, and has been posing as a young widow like Aurelia for the past three years. As the two women clean up after the guests, Gilda delights in Aurelia’s enthusiasm but feels herself holding back—she is worried about sharing too much with a mortal. Meanwhile, Aurelia is full of plans to create a local program to help the poor.

Alone on the hunt that night, Gilda encounters two white men on horseback who try to attack her. Filled with anger, she kills one and almost kills the other after lashing him with his own horsewhip but decides to keep him alive after feeding on him. As she goes home, she regrets her fury and the taking of a life.

The next day, Gilda suggests Aurelia should seek the help of one of their neighbors in building her plans for the poor. Aurelia brushes off the suggestion, saying “Why? I’ve got you” (119).