Love in 1860 (An Easy English Story): Part 6
March 28, 1861
Dear reader,
Yesterday, I told David and Elizabeth, “I am going to pick berries in the woods.” I hid rice and meat jerky in my skirt. I began walking. I was going to walk to New York.
I walked for 45 minutes. Then, I heard tree branches cracking. Something was running. It was chasing me.
I found a large bush, and I hid under it. I prayed to God, “Don’t let me die.” Two strong arms pulled back the branches. It was David.
“You’re leaving us?” David asked sadly. His saw the rice that spilled out of my skirt. He looked at me with soft eyes. “You’re leaving us,” he repeated. He took off his shoe. Inside his shoe, there was money. “I have $92,” he said. “I was going to give it to you when I got $100.”
David held my hand and helped me stand up. “Grace, it’s dangerous for you here. I want to help you go north. Mother and I are saving money for you. I want to take you on a train to the north. If you walk, you might get lost. Or you might get hurt.”
I was thankful, but I was also confused. “But I’m black. Can I ride the train from Virginia?”
David sighed. “If I tell them that you are my slave.”
I look up at him angrily.
“But I want you to be my wife.” David’s green eyes looked deeply into mine. “And then we can live together in the north.”
I started to argue, but David stopped me. He said, “I know that some people will hate us. I know that Mother will have to move north with us. I know that the trip will be long. But I want to live my life with you.”
Finally. Finally I have a family. Finally I have a home. Finally I have David. My body shook with happiness. My legs became weak, and I sat on the ground. David sat next to me. He held me close to his chest.
“So?” he asked.
“Yes,” I said. “Let’s get married.”
The future is dangerous. We don’t know who will marry us. We don’t know where we will live.
But we will protect each other.
Yours truly,
Grace Miller
Part 7>
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