Onto The Third Generation

I

Deep in the woods of southern Vermont, one tragic story came to a nearly silent end, and one story had its beginning. Liza had attempted this escape several times before. This time, her escape had gone from northern Virginia through central Pennsylvania and central New York. She had smelled the free air that lured her from the other side of those green mountains. Three times like the dogs of hell, awful circumstances had caught her scent and had managed to track her down. She had been returned to that special hell on earth that she had been born into a mere fifteen years ago. Earlier, she had prayed this time would be different. As she had stumbled through the wilds of Pennsylvania and New York, she hoped to find a mercy that had so far eluded her. She certainly was shown mercy by countless abolitionists as she tried her escape this time. She was given food and shelter. She hoped that somehow the merciless slave hunters would not find her and remove any hope from her mind or the mercy she had been shown.

This time ought to be different. Each night along the journey as she would lie in some foreign place, she would pray that she would be sent some angel to guide her once and for all across the green mountains, and into Canada. No slave had ever possessed as much as Liza. She was indeed a very special slave to her owner. She hadn’t acquired any special skills, however what she did have was a very powerful secret. One that had the potential to bring shame to a very powerful family. It was a secret that was more than worth protecting. It was for this reason that upon her escape the highest bounty had been placed upon her to insure her safe return to Green Terrace Manor.

This time as she had escaped in the scorching mid-summer heat, she had hoped that her very appearance would be enough to elicit mercy, even from the coldest heart. Liza was pregnant, very pregnant. How she had made the trek so far was a wonder. It could have only been the very mercy of God that had given her the strength to make it so close to her freedom, and to a new life for herself and the child that was now growing within her.

She still had mixed feelings about her child. In many ways, her growing abdomen was a sad reminder of the hell that she had just managed to escape, but that same abdomen gave her great power and hope all at the same time. That child was proof of the horror she had suffered in her fifteen short years on Earth. Just as the evenings began to grow shorter and the winds chillier, she stumbled from the dense woods and into the barn of a young childless couple that held the smallest measure of hope that she had left in this cruel world.

George and Esther Hadley were a young Quaker couple. They had been married since they were seventeen and owing to their religion, had always been staunch abolitionists. Liza was not the first runaway to seek shelter in their home. Their doors had always been open. When Liza had appeared out of the wilderness, her case was desperate. She was very pregnant. She appeared as if she would give birth at any moment. Her travels had been particularly hard on her. Her face looked hollowed out, and her eyes were sunken. With the exception of her bulging stomach, she was nothing more that skin and bones. As George led her into the barn, she collapsed in a pile of straw that lined one of the empty stalls. Without a word, she drifted off into a deep sleep, and slept for nearly two days.

George and Esther had the luxury of a rural outpost. Their farm laid at the extreme edge of what could loosely be referred to as civilization. It made the housing and smuggling of runaways all the easier. Childless, the couple had devoted themselves to helping others. Their home had welcomed many other runaways. They would stop right before making the trek into Canada. Young widows, orphans, and the aged had all been provided hospitality in their home.

Liza had slept like a rock. It seemed as though she hadn’t slept in years. She barely stirred when Esther made her way to the barn the next morning. Esther carried a large bowl of water with a rag over her shoulder. She knelt quietly in the straw and began to gently wipe away all the grime that had crusted into the creases of her young face. Liza stirred, made a soft noise, but never woke. Esther continued to gently wash the poor creature. Esther was shocked at how fair-skinned this particular runaway was. Esther assumed she had to be part white. Under all the grime Liza was truly an amazing beauty. As Esther washed away the dirt, she was shocked at just how beautiful the young woman was.

She began to quietly wash the sweet angel’s feet. She thought with a smile of the story of Jesus washing his disciple’s feet. Her smile vanished quickly and she felt prideful for comparing the two acts at all. Liza had still not stirred. Liza could use a bath, but Esther believed her sleep was more important. When the young girl had gotten plenty of rest, Esther would give her a proper bath. For now she scrubbed the grime from her feet, and removed the dirt from Liza’s beautiful face.

Esther had been helping runaways for a while now. She always enjoyed talking to each one. To hear their stories would always strengthen her resolve. She was appalled at the cruelty of people. As if it wasn’t horrific enough that one human believed they could own another, but the vicious cruelty of the stories told to her by each runaway sickened her.

As she helped each runaway, she saw them as no one else ever did. She saw them as children of God, just like her. This made the idea of treating them as property even more upsetting to her. As she quietly watched Liza sleep, she began to imagine the tales she would tell of her captivity. Esther was sure that because of Liza’s fair complexion that she was certain to have an amazing story. She had no idea how she was about to be caught up in that story. Liza’s story would become her story, and would change her life forever.

George was up early and working at his work bench. The soft light of dawn landing across his bench. He was working quietly. He was trying hard not to wake his guest. She had laid silently in that stall for the last two days. He had never imagined someone sleeping so long, but he knew the pitiful creature had earned it. In the stillness of that early morning, her gentle breathing was the only sound he was able to hear. If he hadn’t been able to hear the soft cadence of Liza’s breathing, then he would have been sure she was dead. Two days without stirring, and without making even a sound. On that silent and peaceful morning, with a sharp scream, George’s life was changed forever.

George nearly jumped out of his skin. It had started as a tender whimper and rose quickly to a horrifying scream. The animals in the barn began to call out as well. George rose quickly from his bench. He darted toward the stall. For the first time in two days, he saw Liza’s eyes, a stunning blue. He could see nothing but fear in her eyes. His heart began to race in terror. He had no idea what was happening, but he was just as scared as she was. Liza’s screams gave way to tears and before long they blurred into a mixture of screams and pitiful whimpers. The look of complete helplessness in her eyes broke George’s heart. In a split second of clarity, George realized she must be having her baby. Without much thought, he darted toward the house. As he burst into the house, the look on his face was all Esther needed. She knew instantly the baby must be coming. He hadn’t uttered a word, when she blew past him. She raced across the yard toward the barn.

Liza’s screams sent Esther’s heart pumping as she stepped into the barn. She was heartbroken for the poor young girl. Liza looked completely terrified. The baby was coming. Liza looked at Esther hoping she knew what to do. Esther hoped her face wouldn’t give away the fact that she had no idea what to expect. She had no children of her own, and the extent of her birthing experiences had been of farm animals. She was going to have to deliver this baby. George would be there to help, but it would only be the two of them. It was too far of a ride to fetch a doctor, and even if they did they were unsure if they could trust the doctor with this secret. And so like cornered animals, they stood staring at the whimpering young woman, and hoped they would be up to the task. George knelt next to her. He was trying in vain to comfort Liza. Esther went to work removing the woman’s undergarments in preparation for delivery.

Liza would undulate from loud horrible screams to near collapse in exhaustion. As each contraction would reach its full strength and then its power waned away. Esther had no idea of what she was doing. How would she know when the baby was coming, or when to have Liza push? So many questions with no one to answer them, and so she waited. Esther’s whole body would seize up as the peace of a lull in contractions was broken by a scream from Liza. The lulls were growing shorter and shorter. Esther knew that the baby must be coming soon. She had sent George for rags and water. He had taken it upon himself to bring his grandmother’s quilt. They must have something to wrap the baby in, he thought. It seemed like an eternity as the three of them sat and quietly waited. It was Liza who knew when the time was right. Overcome with a crippling contraction, she felt an uncomfortable urge to push. As the contraction passed she relaxed, but almost immediately she was overcome by another contraction. It went on like this for some time. A powerful contraction, pushing and a split second of rest. Until at last, Esther saw the baby’s head begin to crown. It was quite possibly the most beautiful thing Esther had ever seen, but at that same moment the most horrifying thing also. As Esther gazed at the tiny head as it was exposed more and more with each additional contraction, she was thankful the baby was not breech. She would have been helpless. The majority of the baby’s head was in sight now, and