Four years into his post, Abram was invited over to the mansion for the first time since arriving on the farm. As he walked over to the building, he witnessed a young African woman walk out of the entrance and sit on the porch. She appeared to be of a similar age to him and she was dressed in a black gown with a white pinafore. She held onto a white baby boy, feeding him from a bottle, before returning the child to the white woman who rocked in a chair on the porch beside her.
The African woman looked up and smiled at the visitor. Abram smiled back. Their eyes locked on each other. He lifted off his flat-cap and nodded at the servant. She hovered forward but a male voice inside the house called for her assistance. He recognised the voice; it was the same dominant noise he heard in the fields, shouting orders. The voice belonged to the owner of the establishment. The servant disappeared leaving a glum Abram standing longingly on the porch.
‘Ah, the help is here,’ a voice behind bellowed. Abram turned around and found another white man finely dressed in a suit, smoking a cigarette. Abram had learned a little English whilst on the fields and managed to mostly understand his new boss, who pointed at the faded white beams on the porch. ‘I want you to spruce this place up. Do not talk to Mrs Burns, do you hear me?’
Abram nodded and picked up the brush and the paint, which had been laid out for him beside the front door. Whilst he resented the expectation to offer free labour, he was excited for the change from the ploughing which had become quite monotonous over the years.
The African lady returned and served him iced tea. She introduced herself as Sojourner. She’d been on the ranch since she was born. Her parents had been dragged over from Sudan. As soon as Sojourner had the ability to walk, she’d been made to work. Cleaning from the age of three, after her mother died, she later took over the childcare duties of the Burns family. She was the only slave to be allowed to sleep in the farm house as she took care of the children at night.
While the ranch owners were out of sight, they talked for the hours and a fondness developed between the pair. They discussed how much they missed their families and how lonely ranch life could be. One night, Abram risked everything to sneak out of the outhouse to the main ranch. Sojourner met him and within the cotton fields they kissed and made love. Through their frequent encounters, she told him about this wonderful place called The North which she’d heard about on the radio. There, Africans were free to roam the streets and were paid for their work.
‘One day, I will get us out of here,’ Sojourner said. She’d had a plan up her sleeve for months. Abram wanted to do more, but he was watched like a hawk around the clock, whilst she was trusted amongst the family. She was the quiet little girl who did what she was told. They’d raised her to be that way. Or so they thought.
The night came for their one chance to escape. A house fire at the mansion caused the armed guards to run to the rescue of the owners. Sojourner woke the slaves in the barn and together they ran down to the forest and jumped onto a horse and cart, which Nat had saddled up earlier in the evening. Abram and Sojourner cuddled up in the back whilst Nat rode them out of the state.
Their journey took them to Ohio where they were welcomed with open arms on a farm not too dissimilar to the one they’d just left. The difference was they were allowed to leave and were paid for their labour. They lived and worked there for two years before the states became unsettled.
Tension between the northern Union states and the southern Confederate states was rising. Their new President, Abraham Lincoln, was threatening war on the southern states if they didn’t allow their slaves to roam free.
The North needed every man they could get, therefore Abram and Nat signed up to join the Union Army and trained hard to defend their right to freedom. During his training, Abram met Lincoln himself, who visited his regiment to thank the troops for their support. He shook Abram’s hand and said, ‘I leave you, hoping the lamp of liberty will burn in your blossoms until there shall no longer be a doubt that all men are free and equal.’
The night before Abram was called to go into battle, Sojourner broke the wonderful news that she was pregnant with his child. He was overjoyed and knew that now, more than ever, he had to ensure that the future of America allowed Africans to be free.
On their last morning together before the battle at Antietam, Abram kissed his wife and said goodbye. They shed tears, petrified that it could be their final moments together. He
