by Mikki Sadil
“Hmm. I see. Thee came from Woodford County, is that not right?” Adam blew a ring of blue smoke over his head.
“Yes sir, we started from the Tate Plantation. Mistress Tate is my grandmother.”
Adam walked over to the fireplace and knocked his pipe against it. Some of the tobacco fell out, and again Ben smelled the fragrance. He nodded to Ben. “I’m not sure where thee came out of the tunnel, or where these freed slaves are, but thee are no longer on the path to the north. Thee has swung northeast. We are in Montgomery County.”
Ben rubbed his face with his hands. “Oh no! We aren’t even near the Ohio River. I’ll never get Bess and Jesse to freedom.” He began to rock back and forth on the chair.
Adam walked over and touched him on the shoulder. “Now, now, thee must not despair. Thee will get to the Ohio. It will just take a little more doing than thee has thought of. Thee will stay here, as I said, whilst I meet with some people. Things will work out, I assure thee of that.”
“But what about the slave hunters? What if they come back and find out you’re hiding us?”
Adam smiled grimly. “Have no fear, the hunters will be back. They come often to the homes of all Quakers. But thee and thy friends are not the only slaves we’ve helped, so they will not find thee, nor will they find anything amiss with my family. All Quakers wish slavery to end, but not all feel it is right to break the law and help runaways. This is why we must be very careful whilst thee and thy friends are here.”
He walked over to the rack by the front door and took down a long black coat and flat-crowned black hat. He put them on and turned to Ben.
“I will go now to begin making plans. The woman of the house will have chores for thee and thy friends to help with. I will return before the sun goes down.”
He closed the door, and Ben wondered what would happen now. At that moment, Charity came in. “Ben, if thee doesn’t mind, my mother would like thy help. The others are out in the fields.”
“Out in the fields? Have you lost your mind? What happens if people come by, they’ll know Bess and Jesse and Josiah aren’t your slaves. What are you doing?” Ben jumped up and ran to the window.
“Hush now, Ben, thee must not be frightened. Josiah is here in the house, and Bess and Jesse have gone to our neighbors. They employ free blacks, and they come and go, so no one will notice two more working. Do not worry, thy friends are all safe.” Charity spoke quietly, smiled, and held out her hand. “Come, we have work to do.”
Ben took her hand and let her lead him out to the back porch. Her mother and two sisters were there, sewing on a large quilt. Along the railing that enclosed the porch were two dozen large lanterns. Charity flicked her hand at the lanterns. “If thee does not mind, the lanterns need to be cleaned and polished.” She set down a bucket of water, a bottle of dark oil, and several cloths, smiled, and went back inside.
Hours passed, and everyone worked without talking. When he finished with the lanterns, he put the last one down and walked over to where the younger girls were quilting with their mother. He stared at the quilt, whose designs looked nothing like the quilts at the plantation.
“What kind of quilt is that? It looks some different from the ones my mother and grandmother make.”
Faith and Mercy looked at their mother. No one spoke until Abigale said, “Yes, I suppose it is. Not all quilts are used simply for beauty and warmth. Some tell stories of journeys, of comfort, of safety. I suppose it depends somewhat where thee is from, as to what patterns thee is more familiar with.”
She glanced at him from the corner of her eye, but Ben knew from the look on her face that she was going to say no more.
Ben nodded, but he knew there was more to it than what she had said. He studied the patterns and thought the wagon wheel did remind him of traveling…
Adam returned close to sundown. He found Ben and asked, “Did thee finish the lanterns today? We will have need of some come darkness. Thee and thy friends will leave us tonight.”
“Leave?” Ben’s heart jumped into his throat. “I thought we were to be here several days?”
“Plans came about more quickly than I thought, with help from Bennet and John Paul. Thee will leave as soon as dark comes for another station many miles from here. It will be a rough journey in a wagon, but thee is young, thy friends are hardy. Thee will all do well.”
Ben was still worried. “Where are we going? Will we be heading north again, toward the Ohio River?”
Adam spoke quietly. “We do not pass along such information, Benjamin. Those of us who help escaping slaves have many unshared secrets, thus they remain secret. Thee need not worry, thee will be safe.”
He put his arm about Ben’s shoulders. “My children are calling thee a freedom thief.” He laughed and patted Ben on the shoulder before he turned away to the fireplace.
Ben stared at him. “I don’t understand. What is a ‘freedom thief’?”
Adam tamped the tobacco in his pipe before he answered. “In my religion, we believe slavery steals not only one’s physical freedom, but the very freedom of one’s heart and soul. ’Tis the work of the devil. When slaves escape into the night, they steal their freedom from their masters. But thee had the strength of thy convictions to steal that freedom for thy friends. Thus, the younger daughters have deemed thee a freedom thief.”
He stood and knocked the ashes from his pipe. “Come now, get some rest before the evening prayers.” Without another word, he left the room.
Ben took a deep breath. So he was a freedom thief? He thought that was a strange way to think of what he had done, but he guessed it must be a compliment from the Quaker girls.
He stood looking into the fireplace. His throat was as dry as sawdust, and his heart began to pound. Adam had said they would be staying with the family for a few days, but now they were going to leave tonight. Why did the plans change so suddenly? Was this the beginning of the end for him and the slaves?
Chapter Twelve
When they finished the evening meal of the delicious soup Ben had seen simmering earlier in the day, Adam said, “Thee best get thy things together. We have some vittles and other goods for thee to take. Thee will be leaving soon.”
Once again, Ben felt the familiar thud of his heart. His fingers clasped and unclasped on the chair arms. When Adam looked at him, Ben said, “I mean no disrespect, Adam, but I’m still wondering. How is it that you were able to get some place else for us to go to so quickly? You had said it would be several days.”
Adam smiled. “Benjamin, I know thee is worried. I do not take it as disrespect. John Paul and Bennet have their ways of obtaining information. I cannot give thee any specifics. I ask only that thee trust me and my family and trust that we will do good by thee.”
Ben searched Adam’s face for a moment. He saw nothing that gave rise to any suspicion. He nodded, stood, and motioned to Jesse.
When Ben and Jesse had retrieved their jackets and gloves from the cellar, Jesse looked around at the mess of quilts and blankets. He bent down and carefully rearranged them so it would not look as though someone had been sleeping there. When Ben glanced at him, Jesse shrugged. “No sense bringin’ troubles to good peoples.”
Don’t know why, but at least he’s stopped complaining. Ben smiled to himself and followed Jesse up the stairs.
Upstairs in the kitchen Charity opened an old knapsack Abigale handed her. She coughed and wrinkled up her nose. “Oh, my, this smells purely awful!” She pulled out an old onion that had obviously been in the knapsack for some time. “Here’s the culprit, this stinky old thing.” She carefully wiped the inside with a cut lemon. When she finished, she put the lemon on the same plate as the onion, sniffed the inside of the knapsack, and said with a grin, “My, that is much better. Now thee won’t fall over dead from the odor when thee opens it.”
“Uh, are you saving that stuff?” Ben pointed to the onion and lemon.
Charity laughed. “Not exactly. I will add them to the vegetables in the ce
llar. Their odors will blend with the others.”
Her mother laid warm shirts for Ben, Jesse, and Josiah inside the knapsack, along with a dress and shawl for Bess. She put in several well-wrapped packages of food and two jars of water. On top of that, she squeezed in a large blanket until the knapsack was bulging at the seams. Still not finished, she handed a pair of shoes and warm stockings to each of them.
Abigale caught the look Jesse sent her. She smiled at him. “Jesse, I know thee is hesitant to wear shoes because of the dogs. We have some onions to put in thy pockets. Thee can rub them on thy shoes just as thee would on thy feet. The dogs will still not be able to follow thy scent.”
Jesse sat down to put on the stockings and shoes. He mumbled, “Iffen you says so, ma’am. No bodies ever give me somethin’ like this before. I be mighty grateful, just hopes onions work on shoes like on feets.”
Abigale nodded. “Thee is going to need shoes, the weather is getting colder and we may have snow. All will be fine, Jesse. And you are very welcome.”
Ben grabbed his shoes and eagerly pulled on the stockings. He was about to push his feet into the heavy shoes when he glanced over at Josiah.
Josiah sat in the middle of the floor, holding his shoes with a puzzled look on his face. Ben smiled at his friend. Of course Josiah was confused. He’d never had shoes or stockings in his life. Ben went over and showed him how to pull on the stockings, and lace up the shoes. When Josiah stood up, he grinned. “Now I walk better. Even bad leg not so bad in shoes.”
Abigale handed the knapsack to Ben. “We would gladly give thee more, but we have no extra knapsacks. We do have jackets and mufflers that are heavier than what thee has with you. Thee should put them on now, as the wagon will be here momentarily.”
Ben felt the twinge in his stomach again as he eased into the heavy clothes, but there was no choice but to go with the plans.
Charity slipped into a long black woolen cloak. She opened the back door and motioned for Ben and the others to follow her. Outside, Adam had placed one of the lanterns on a corner of the fence, several others up the short road to the house, and another one on the porch. Ben stood still and listened, but other than the light shed by the lanterns, the night was black and completely still. After a few minutes, the clip-clop of trotting horses broke the silence and a moment later, a large farm wagon came up the road to the porch.
Adam hailed the driver. “Evening, Mister Lewis. I have that cargo thee was expecting. Both hardware and a bit of dry goods. The intended destination is number twenty. Are plans in order for transfer?”
Mister Lewis spit out a blob of tobacco. “I reckon so, Mister Westfall. Best we load up now, so I don’t have to run these hosses to get where I’m going afore sun up.”
The man jumped down from the wagon seat. He and Adam pulled off the large baskets and barrels sitting in the bed of the wagon and placed them on the ground. Bennet and John Paul helped pull out what appeared to be the bed of the wagon, but was instead a false bottom. The wooden sides of the wagon were roughly placed, leaving gaps between the boards that provided air to anyone lying there. Several heavy quilts covered the bottom of the wagon.
Adam turned to Ben and Jesse. “Thee must get in and lie down as flat as possible. When thee is settled, we will help Bess and Josiah in.”
Abigale came out with a small glass of liquid. She handed it to Bess. “Thee can give this to Josiah. It is laudanum and it will help him to sleep and be as still as possible through the trip. I have sweetened it with a bit of honey, so he will not find it difficult to swallow.”
Josiah drank the liquid without a fuss and crawled onto the quilts next to his father. Adam helped Bess up.
He turned to speak to Ben, “A long journey lies ahead, but thee will be safe. Trust in the Lord and those who prepare for thee. God be with thee.”
Ben thanked Adam and raised his head up to speak to Charity. “Charity, thanks for everything. I hope I get to see you again sometime.”
She came up to the side of the wagon and smiled. “Be safe, Ben McKenna. Thee has a good heart. Remember, should thee get lost again, look to the moss that only grows on the north side of the trees. If God is willing, thee and I shall meet again.”
With that, the four men strained and pushed and got the false bottom back in place. They arranged the baskets and barrels so everything looked natural. Mister Lewis and Adam exchanged a few words, and then the wagon began moving.
The wagon rumbled on into the night. Bess and Jesse fell asleep, but Ben lay awake and thought about how far they had come and how off-track they were. He wondered how long it would take them to get to the Ohio River. Or if they ever would.
Sometime later, he heard loud shouts and gunfire. Jesse’s body jumped next to him, and Ben laid a warning hand on his shoulder.
Josiah slept on, completely undisturbed by the noise, but Bess whispered, “What’s happenin’, Ben?”
“Shhh, mustn’t talk. Be still as you can be.”
Loud voices ripped through the silence of the night, shouting and booming with drunken laughter. Ben felt the wagon slow and come to a halt.
A man yelled, “Hey there, Mishur Lewis, we’s havin’ us a lil’ cel’brashion. Come on, hasza lil’ drink.”
They filled the air with their raucous laughter and bumped the wagon with their horses. Mister Lewis said loudly, “You boys are plumb crazy, but if it’ll make you shut that racket up, I’ll step down and have a drop or two with you. Can’t tarry long, though, gotta get this load to market.”
The wagon moved a bit as he jumped off. “Hand me that bottle, and I’ll take a wee nip. Just a nip, now, boys, I gotta be movin’ along.”
Ben felt the wagon move again as Mister Lewis climbed back up on the seat, just as a bottle smashed on the ground. The men thought this was hilariously funny.
Another voice yelled, “Hey, Mishur Lewsh, hasz sh’more, we gots plenty.”
“No, boys, that’s plenty for now. Got to get movin’, so’s I can be where I has to be a’fore sun up. You best be beddin’ down soon, sleep some of that rotgut off.”
Laughter, another bump of the wagon. “Shure, Mishur Lewsh, we do that right soon.” With some more slurred words and a few gunshots into the night, the band of ruffians turned their horses and galloped off. Mister Lewis clucked to his horses, and the wagon began to move again.
Lulled by the gentle rocking, Ben became drowsy but there were too many questions without answers running around in his head for sleep to come. He had never met any Quakers before, but he knew Grammy thought a lot of them as a religious group. She had told him once that if you could trust anyone in this world, it would be a Quaker because their beliefs wouldn’t allow them to lie. He hoped she was right, and the Westfalls were as truly concerned about him and his friends as they appeared to be. Eventually, he fell asleep.
Loud noises and voices woke Ben. He felt Jesse and Bess stirring, but they didn’t speak. He took a deep breath. The wagon was stopping, and the voices were nearby.
What now? I guess this is where we find out if we’re really safe, or on our way back to the plantation. His nose twitched with the smell of body odor and smoke. He heard Mister Lewis talking, and the wagon rocked a bit as men removed the barrels, and pulled out the wagon’s false bottom.
With a loud crash, the bottom slid off and hit the dirt. Early morning sunlight splashed on the faces peering in, all of them with cigars hanging out the side of their mouths. Mister Lewis lifted off the quilts.
“We’re here. Get out, now. You gotta get into the barn and outta sight. No time to waste.”
The other men backed away from the wagon, none of them saying a word.
Ben jumped down and looked around. There was a large barn, and an even larger farmhouse. Cows lowed in a pasture close to the house, and farther out, a few rangy horses stood near a fence, watching what was going on.
“You, boy. Help them others outta the wagon. Quit dillydallyin’ around, we got no time for sightseein’,” Miste
r Lewis urged him.
Ben turned back to the wagon and helped Josiah out. Jesse and Bess stood up and stretched, trying to work the kinks out of their backs and legs. Mister Lewis gestured toward the barn.
“This here barn is where you’ll stay for now. I don’t know for how long, but you’ll be safe here.”
He led them through a long breezeway dotted on both sides with milk cows in stalls. Ben sneezed as the odor of cow manure, mingled with the aroma of fresh hay, tickled his nose.
At the back of the barn, Mister Lewis climbed up a ladder leading to the hayloft. He pushed aside several bales of hay and opened a small door.
He came back down the ladder and said, “There’s a hiding place up there. Not much room for four people, but it’ll have to do. This farm belongs to some nice folks, and they’ll be along presently. You stay here and be quiet ’til they come.”
Bess and Jesse went up the ladder, helping Josiah step carefully on each rung. Ben stopped and turned. “Mister Lewis, thanks for bringing us this far. What’s going to happen now?”
“I don’t rightly know, son. Mister and Missus Andrews own this place, and they help runaways. What happens from here on I don’t know, ’cause it ain't none of my business. Y’all take care, now.”
The hiding place was nothing more than an alcove beneath the timbers that held that part of the roof, and was small and cramped. Jesse spread his long legs out and Josiah sat between them. Ben stooped over to get inside the door and sat down gingerly, as Jesse’s legs covered the floor from wall to wall. When he was completely inside the tiny space, Mister Lewis closed the door, and they could hear him pushing the hay bales back against it.
For a while, no one spoke. They were all tired and stiff from lying such a long time in the wagon. Josiah kept yawning, but other than that, there was no sound.
Finally, Jesse said, “I’m powerful hungry. What we got to eat?”