In the year of our lord February 3rd 1721
Dear diary
I had a interesting day today. First of all the young man to whom I had met yesterday turned out to have a awful temper I have a bruise on my left cheek to prove it however if Gabriel had not been there I would have been a lot worse. I always thought of Gabriel as someone that was just a friend but today I had never seen him like that. He was protective of me almost vicious. It was the first time I’d ever seen him truly angry. But that makes very little sense, at least to me. Maybe because the captain had been insulting him quite brutally, in fact. Gabriel has been having trouble at home maybe he’d been holding it until that point and it all just came out. Then of course there was dinner with my grand mama. She told me about how in her day girls and boys should not have been friends and it’s not proper, and now she has agreed to accompany us to church.
Juliet
I closed my diary and went to my window seat in my bedroom. I was looking out at the night sky and the garden when suddenly I saw a shadow running across the far of hill’s. I squinted to try to see what was going on when another figure came into view. They got down on one knee with what looked like a gun I cried out but my cry was covered by the sound of a gun shot in the night. I saw the first figure fall over and I saw the second figure disappear back into the trees. I grabbed my night gown and ran out of my bedroom, down the stairs and out the door I ran so hard my heart was racing and my mind. Half way there it started to rain and I skidded in the wet grass, and fell hitting my head on a rock . I got right back up off the ground and started running again. By the time I got to the hill I was out of breath and a complete mess. It was a young black girl, she looked my age and the front of her dress was covered in blood. I knelt down beside her, she looked at me “what happened to you” then thought this a silly question I had seen what had happened to her. “who was that?” she coughed and blood spilled out of her mouth. She said something that I couldn’t hear. “what” I said crawling closer, no longer caring what state my dress was in, it was raining hard now. “Kismet” she said then she started gasping for air. I held and tried to comfort her she coughed up more blood and kept gasping then her eyes closed and she went limp like Jim had all those years ago. I started yelling for help, I screamed again and again the I saw people coming men only. There was my papa, Gabriel’s father, Gabriel, Michael’s, father, Michael, Thomas the baker, Jacob the grounds keeper, Mr. peters the priest and dr. smith. When they got to me my throat was raw. they realized that it was me and then they saw the girl in my arms. “what happened” asked Thomas. I told them how I’d seen the two figure’s running then one of them shooting the girl and how she had fallen then the second figure ran off. The doctor looked over the girl and pronounced her dead, then I carefully pushed the hair out of her face. I stood up feeling rather num. I was covered in the girl’s blood the Dr. peter’s came over to me. “you should probably let me look at your head” he said. “my head?” I put my hand to my head and winced, I lowered my hand and it was covered in blood, I hadn’t realized that when I fell I’d cut my head. “let’s go inside now” my papa said “I want my daughter out of the rain and danger” I wasn’t listening I was staring at the girl. I was vaguely aware that I was being walked inside. We went up to the living room were Kia had set a fire. I was shaking at this point. “sit here Juliet you’re going to need stitches” it was Dr. peters. I sat down then the door opened. It was my mama. She took one glance around the room then she came to me and gave a little cry. “what happened to you my child?”. My papa stood up “there was a murder and Juliet saw it all. Don’t worry the blood on her gown is not hers.” Michael’s father was looking, at me and he asked her “did you mange to find out who she was” I looked at him then replied “no I asked her who shot her” then he sighed angrily “stupid girl you should of asked her who she was” then I replied “I’m sorry I didn’t ask the right question’s to the girl dying in my arms” then I winced at the pain in my forehead “almost done” said the doctor. “well what did she say to you?”. “look” I said “all she said was kismet.” My mama looked confused “kismet??”. I was next to speak “kismet means freedom”. My papa was nodding his head. “she was probably a runaway slave so it’s not that big of a deal.” I looked at him shocked “what do you mean it’s not that big of a deal. How could you say that, just because she had colored skin or that someone had taken ownership of her that her death doesn’t matter. If I was of colored skin but I was still your daughter would it matter if I got shot. Just because she was human and she wanted a life that wasn’t filled with work and slavery. So she did something about it, she tried to get her freedom back. So that means that her death means absolutely nothing.” I was quiet then letting what I just said sink in. then Michael’s father stepped forward. “yes” he said with no regret. He said it carelessly, without much thought. I looked at him shocked about how easy he found it to say such words. Then Michael stepped forward “well a runaway slave is a dead slave” then he walked out of the room with his father. I looked over at Gabriel and he looked just as disgusted as I felt. The rest of the men in the room looked fine with what was being said. First the doctor left. Then Thomas was next to leave, he shook hands with my father then exited the room. Gabriel walked over to me. “I agree with you. It’s disgusting the way they talk about that poor girl.” He said under his breath. “I’ve seen death right in front of me twice in my life. The first time everyone cared and the second time no one thinks anything of it, and it shouldn’t be that way Gabriel it really shouldn’t. we should be able to do something about it Gabriel, and we should”. I looked up at him and he looked at me then said quietly and with a great deal of regret “I’m sorry Juliet, I really am but there is no way that we can do anything. I mean look at us just two kids whispering in the corner in fear of our parents thoughts on what we were saying. How could we?. I’d love to help and I will in any way I can. But at this point in time we can’t do anything. And you’ve got to believe me. This is not me being a coward, I really want to help but right now we really can’t. I looked at him and slowly nodded I knew he was right. Gabriel would never do anything unless he thought it absolutely necessary, and if he thought that we really couldn’t do anything, then I believe him. My papa and Gabriel’s father walked toward us. They had finished their conversation. “so we going to not speak of this. Though everyone will know by morning with no doubt. Then I spoke up “and what of the girl how are we going to bury the body of the girl?” I asked with probably too much attitude for the situation. “well..” my papa said slowly “we will probably put the body somewhere quiet and out of sight” when he finished, I looked at him. This was not the man who had raised me so unkind and uncaring. “no” I said “let me and Jacob bury her somewhere quiet and peaceful. Let me have a tiny ceremony for her. Please papa it would put my mind at rest.” He looked at my pleading face “very well Juliet you may have your ceremony for the girl but not till after church tomorrow.” Then Gabriel spoke up “I would like to accompany Juliet father. So she is safe in the woods.” His father looked at him sternly. Gabriel will pay for this later on “that is noble Gabriel. Yes you may accompany miss Summers to the ceremony.” Then he started walking out of the room and then Gabriel turned to me and took my hand unexpectedly. “I told you that I will be there for you” then he let go and followed his father. I stared after him, trying to grasp what just happened. Then Antoinette walked up to me. “laisse vous obtenir prêt pour le coup manqué de lit”(let’s get you ready for bed miss). I wasn’t listening when I replied “oui l'accord d'antoinette (yes Antoinette yes).
