The Ember In The Storm

Part II

Maybe it had been an hour or two since sunset when it all happened, but it was earlier when Elizabeth Lamar was hiding herself in the barn with an old book of master Luke's... or had it been Jackson?

At this point, she had no idea, remembered nothing from whom she had slipped the old novel from the year before.

Perhaps it had been Jackson? Yes, she thought so.

She had borrowed—or rather stolen countless novels of sir Jackson's, enjoying his choice of genre every so often she read them. Mystery and thriller, they had been, especially history, which she seemed to rather enjoy more than the others. They gave her more knowledge on her, her people.

Elizabeth and the rest of the workers at the land had worked on the field for three days, finally having finished earlier that afternoon. She decided to celebrate the accomplishment by squeezing herself in the stables' corners to complete her book. (Not her book).

"Tomorrow morning you should all separate the tomatoes from the rest, I need them to be delivered the following day as soon as the rooster sings," Senior Anderson had spoken to them all.

It was a little kind of him to let them have a rest than separate the tomatoes that instant.

As hard as it was to believe it, Senior Anderson had been one of the highest and respected men in the town who had been fighting to abolish slavery in the country alongside many others, which were only a handful of men.

To everyone else, he had workers, not slaves.

Of course they were still prohibited from doing many more other things, such as education itself, but it was more than a privilege for them to work for such a man who at least knew when to hold his temper.

The farm had almost a two hundred negro staff. Many runaways ran to his field first, knowing they would live better there. Sometimes, others even offered themselves to him, knowing that if not him, others of different heart would grasp them.

Elizabeth turned her body comfortably, slurring out the word obfuscate on her tongue as it was a new word for her. She made a mental note to later check in the dictionary as to what it meant.

The night was dark enough to let the moon and stars shine brighter than ever, giving light to their surrounding, and for Elizabeth, her book.

The sudden sound of a stick cracking alarmed the woman before she hid the novel behind her back briskly, fear snaking it's way to her as she knew the consequences of being found with the book. She would be set as an example to the rest if they had dared to disobey the rules.

"Elizabeth?" She heard her mother call instead. 

"Mother?" She stood up from the small corner, finally coming into sight. A small wave of relief washed over them as soon as they laid eyes on each other.

"Dear, will you not join us for dinner?" Thandiwe walked over to her daughter with concern written over her face. Her heart rested upon seeing the old book sleeping on the hay behind her. Of course she was reading.

"I lack the appetite. But I will be down with you in a minute just before bed, first I need to see what happens next. I can't walk away at such a cliffhanger," she explained, causing a smile to find its way to Thandiwe's face.

"Alright, just don't be long," she kissed her forehead, even though she had to stretch far up to reach her.

It seemed like it was only the day before when she was carrying her in her arms, then now she had matured into a full grown woman. A woman too curious about the world for her own good.