Out From This Place by Joyce Hansen

Author:Joyce Hansen
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing
Published: 1988-11-09T05:00:00+00:00

Easter and Rose were ankle deep in marsh mud on the other side of the creek. Easter’s loathing of field work reached new depths as she threw a shovelful of mud into the oxcart, breathing in the scent of what seemed to be rotten eggs each time they lifted the mud. Rose stopped for a moment, staring at Easter’s unhappy face as if she were reading her thoughts. “Least we gettin’ pay,” she said.

“Rose, they ain’t payin’ us enough for this work.”

“Well, at least we getting’ our own land, then.”

“You sound like a Rayford echo,” Easter answered sarcastically.

They finished by the afternoon. Easter bathed in the tin tub and put on her one other dress, a blue and white checked gingham purchased from the cook. “One dollar too much to pay for that old dress. It ain’t new,” Rose had said. “The cook settin’ up there in the big house gettin’ rich, sellin’ everything the Yankee didn’t take.” After Easter removed the dirty scarf from around her head and braided her thick black hair, she felt better.

The women brought the bench out of the hut and put it under a shady tree near the cabin. They sat there working steadily on the quilt. Easter felt a kind of peacefulness come over her spirit as she listened to their talk. Rose related the week’s news, and Easter smiled slightly to herself, wondering how Rose could get so much information about folks’ business when she was in a cotton field all day.

Easter’s mind began to drift away from their talk. Once the winter came, she’d find a little more time to move around. Next Saturday she’d go to the town. She’d make sure not to promise to help with anything. She and Jason would go and look around for Obi. She’d also find out where every plantation on the island was located, and she’d visit them all in search of Obi.

They worked on the quilt until the sun started to slide behind the tops of the trees and the sound of the men’s chopping stopped. “Guess Jason and Julius be along soon,” she said as she and Melissa dragged the bench back inside the cabin.

They all helped to prepare supper, and Easter expected Jason to come bursting through the door any minute with a lot of talk and excitement. It was Rayford, though, who walked in. “Jason and Julius not back yet?” he asked. “Julius probably walked in the wrong direction. This is an island, so they can’t get lost,” he said reassuringly.

Jason and Julius hadn’t returned when the food was ready. “We eat now and save Jason his meal,” Easter said.

Easter took her plate and sat cross-legged on Mariah’s mat. “I hope Jason behave. Hope he an’ Julius ain’t get separated.”

Rayford took a long swallow of water. “Don’t worry. The town isn’t that big,” he said. “Brother Thomas took me there last week.”

Easter detected that even though Rayford tried to sound calm, he was somewhat worried. When another hour passed and Jason and Julius still hadn’t returned, Rayford walked to the door.

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