Elijah of Buxton (25 page)

I walked toward the church but went into the woods so I could come at it from the back and no one could see me eavesdropping. It was peculiar to see the church all lit up from candles on a Thursday night. Most times it didn't look like this 'less it was Sunday evening or 'less there was a service for someone that had gone and died.

It was also mighty peculiar 'cause there waren't none of the regular church sounds coming out of the place. There waren't no foot-stamping nor no hand-clapping nor no tambourine-shaking to make you happy. There waren't even none of the choir's singing to make the place seem so warm and comforted and cozy that afore you knowed it, some growned person was digging their elbow in your ribs to wake you up. But I knowed why the church was so different tonight, and it waren't 'cause of the full moon neither. Tonight folks waren't interested in nothing but straightening out my mess.

There were only a few folks there already. They were keeping their voices low inside the church and only once in the while could I understand somebody shouting out “Yessir!” or “Lord almighty!” Those were interesting things to hear but what was more important was hearing what had made folks call out so.

If I was gonna eavesdrop proper I'd have to crawl right under the church's floorboards. I 'membered what Pa said 'bout people that use to be slaves and how they never let a chance at being late get by 'em, so I knowed I was gonna have to wait out here for a while till the church filled up and all the stragglers had made it in.

I was
this
close to being out of the tree line when I heard a twig snap behind me. I did what every fawn in the woods does whenever it gets come up on by surprise, I froze right where I was at.

But it was too late, afore I could turn 'round to see what was sneaking up on me, a rough hand came 'cross my face from behind and I was getting squozed 'round the middle, lifted off my feet, and toted back into the woods!

I'd seen how when a mouse gets grabbed up by a cat, it won't fight or twitch or do nothing to try to get away. I'd seen that and never could get in my head why it happened. I use to think if it was me that got snatched like that, I'd fight and kick and make that cat earn eating me up. I always use to say that I waren't gonna go down that cat's throat without a fight, without at least getting me some good bites in on his tongue as I was getting swallowed. But I could see now that I was wrong, 'cause once this haint or this killer or this kidnapper or this slaver or this demon that had grabbed me lifted me up in the air light as a piece of straw and pulled me deeper into the woods, I knowed there waren't no sense in fighting or nothing. I was feeling just what that mouse must've been feeling. I didn't want to drag things out none by tussling. I just wished this getting killed would be over quick.

Whatever snatched me up was starting to get tired. The way it had me mashed up 'gainst it I could feel its heart flopping 'round in its chest like a fish that had got throwed up on the land. It commenced breathing hard and finally dropped me on the ground.

Soon's it let me go I forgot all that nonsense 'bout mice and cats and I tried to light out for the trees. I didn't get far 'cause a root seemed like it reached up and tripped me back to the ground.

You'd've thought with as many times as I been stumbled up and throwed to the ground I'd've learnt to keep my mouth shut once I was 'bout to hit, but that's another one of those lessons that don't seem to stick 'cause soon's I banged down, I got a mouthload of twigs and dirt and dried-up leafs.

I felt 'round to see if maybe I could get ahold of a chunking stone and go down fighting, but my fingers waren't running over nothing but more roots and twigs. I turned 'round to see what it was that had snatched me and saw a sight that terrorfied me to my soul!

'Twas Mr. Leroy!

And he looked just like someone that had died but didn't know it!

He was holding on to his left arm and breathing hard.

He said, “Elijah, I needs you.”

I spit the dirt and leafs out of my mouth and told him, “I'm sorry, Mr. Leroy, I didn't know he was gonna steal your money, I swear I didn't know, sir!”

Mr. Leroy held up his hand so's I'd give him a chance to catch on to his breathing.

He said, “Boy, I know you didn't know nothing … ain't no one's fault but my own and that thieving fool's. But I do hope … you gunn help me out. Elijah, I'm lost, I ain't got no one else what I can turn to.”

Mr. Leroy leaned up 'gainst a tree and kept having a hard time finding his breathing. I stood up and went over to him, and said, “Mr. Leroy, I don't care what you and Pa say, I know it's 'cause of me that all this happened, and I'll do anything you want to try to help, sir, anything. All you got to do is tell me.”

What Mr. Leroy said made my blood run cold and my legs get shake-ity.

He said, “I got to go to that village in Michigan and see if any of that money's left. And if it ain't none left, I'm-a find Zephariah and shoot him down for stealing my dreams of getting my family out. I'm-a look him in the eye and make sure he die a terrible death.”

I'd heard tell 'bout people that you could look at and see death was walking right next to 'em and when I looked at Mr. Leroy and heard the hard, cold way he was saying those words, I knowed what that meant. Some of those words might be freed people prettifying things, but some of it was real! It was easy to see that death had its arm 'round Mr. Leroy, propping him up, taking its time, waiting to walk with him into Michigan to grab ahold of the Preacher.

Mr. Leroy put his hand on his side and I saw he was wearing the Preacher's fancy holster and mystery pistol. All the sudden I didn't feel so brave.

“But, sir, I caint help with that. I don't know where he's at.”

Mr. Leroy said, “I needs you to come with me 'cause I caint read, 'Lijah. Plus I ain't comforted dealing with white folks like you is. I ain't got the intention of letting no man, not even no white man, pull me off from what I got to do, and I need you to help.”

“But, Mr. Leroy, there're slave catchers over in Michigan. How we gonna stop someone from trying to kidnap us?”

“Boy, the way you talks, no one in the world gunn think you ever been no slave. All they got to do is look at you, they know you born free. And if we got to use this pistol, then we got to use this pistol.”

“So does that mean you're gonna
force
me to come with you, sir?”

“I'm terrible sorry, Elijah, but a ball done started rolling downhill what ain't gunn be stopped. We both going to Michigan.”

“Then that means I ain't got
no
choice, sir?”

“I'm afeared not, son.”

I told him, “Great! I was just making sure, Mr. Leroy. I know if Ma and Pa found out I went to Michigan on my own accord, they'd skin me alive once I got back! This way I can tell 'em, and tell 'em true, that I got kidnapped and I ain't gonna be in near as much trouble! Thank you, sir.”

Mr. Leroy said, “I do hope you ain't gunn be talking no spools of nonsense whilst we's going. I really caint take that, Elijah. I think it be best if we goes along being quiet.”

“Yes, sir!”

Mr. Leroy said, “I borrowed a horse from the barn. We gunn make good time.”

We walked deeper into the woods. Jingle Boy's reins were tied to a tree. Mr. Leroy climbed on his back and reached down to pull me up.

I began seeing that Mr. Leroy hadn't done no planning 'bout this. It was like Pa had said, he waren't seeing things the way they were, he was still seeing things the way he wanted them to be.

I said, “Mr. Leroy, we caint just go right off to Michigan like this, sir. Cooter's ma's expecting me to go to her house tonight.”

He turned 'round and said, “So? If things go good, you's gunn be back tomorrow, day after, at the most.”

“Well, sir, if I don't show up tonight they're gonna think something happened to me, and I ain't meaning to be disrespectful, sir, but folks are saying you lost your mind and are out in the woods wandering 'bout chunking axes at the moon. If they put those two things together they're gonna figure you grabbed me and we're heading to Michigan. And Pa likes you a powerful lot, sir, but if he thinks you kidnapped me he's gonna come ripping out after us like his hair's afire. Then there's gonna be some big problems and we ain't gonna be able to catch ahold of the Preacher.”

Mr. Leroy reined in Jingle Boy and said, “That makes sense. What you think we should do?”

“Let me go back to Cooter's home and tell Mrs. Bixby that Ma and Pa changed their mind and that I caint spend the night there. That way Ma and Pa will think I'm sleeping at Cooter's, and Cooter's ma will think I'm sleeping at home. It won't be no big problem that I miss school tomorrow. Ma and Pa will figure I'm there. Then with tomorrow being Friday, I gotta do my chores at the barn right after classes and then they'll think I went fishing, so won't no one know I'm kidnapped till after eight o'clock tomorrow evening. By that time we'll be back. Won't we? We caint be back no later than Saturday, sir. I got a big examination on Latin verbs Monday and I ain't done the proper 'mount of studying yet.”

Mr. Leroy said, “I knowed it was the right thing to bring you 'long. You got a real keen mind, Elijah. I figure you can think us through near 'bout anything. I'm powerful sorry I got to drag you into this, son. You keep in mind you's saving me. But you gunn have to work hard on cutting down on some that talking you like to do.”

I showed Mr. Leroy the quickest way to get to Cooter's through the woods.

Afore I jumped off Jingle Boy's back Mr. Leroy turned 'round to look me hard in the face.

“You know if you was to take off, there ain't nothing I could do. You tell me now, Elijah, you tell me so's I ain't gunn waste no more time waiting on you. Is you gunn come back? There any need for me to wait, or should I just leave now, alone?”

I raised my right hand and told him, “Mr. Leroy, sir, I swear on my mama's head that I'm coming right back.”

I slid off Jingle Boy and ran out of the woods and down the road to Cooter's home.

The screen door was shut but the main door was open. I knocked.

Mrs. Bixby held the door open and said, “That sure waren't long.”

I tried to look sad and said, “No, ma'am, folks waren't too much in the mood for talking.”

She said, “So what they gunn do? They gunn try to run that thief down?”

Uh-oh! I said, “They made me leave afore I found out.”

She laughed and said, “That's good. I's kind of surprised your folks let you go to that meeting in the first place.” She looked over in the corner, where Cooter was still mashing his nose up 'gainst the walls. She said to me and him both, “But, Elijah, you's a whole lot more growned than some other folks your age.”

I said, “Ma and Pa changed their mind, ma'am, I caint stay with you all tonight. I gotta go back home and go to school tomorrow and go do my chores right after class and then go fishing. I'm-a probably be out of everyone's sight till near 'bout eight tomorrow evening, maybe a little later if the fishing don't go good, and judging by the way it went the other day I might even be later than that, so no one should think I got kidnapped and come looking for me till probably a whole lot later than most times.”

I tried to look sadder.

She said, “That's fine, Elijah, you can stay on some other night. Your bag's where you left it at.”

I walked into Cooter's room to get my bag, but I reached inside and got a paper and a pencil to write a note. I went over to the window so's the full moonlight would let me see.

I wrote:

 

DEAR COOTER,

HOW ARE YOU? FINE I HOPE. I'M DOING GOOD ACCEPT THAT MR. LEROYS GONE AND KIDNAP ME AND TOOK ME FIGHTING ALL THE WAY TO MITCHAGAIN. WE'RE LOOKING FOR THE PREACHER AND MR. LEROYS MONEY. HE AINT CRAZY NOR TRYING TO HIT THE MAN IN THE MOON HE JUST WANTS HIS FAMILY BACK. I BEGGED HIM NOT TO TAKE ME BUT HE SAY I GOT TO GO. WE GOING TO BE COMMING BACK TOMMOROW ROUND SUPER TIME. TELL MY MA AND PA THEY DO NOT GOT TO SEND NO MONEY AND THEY DO NOT GOT TO WORRY CAUSE MR. LEROY SWORED HE IS GOING TO TAKE GOOD CARE OF ME.

 

Cooter's ma called out from the parlour, “Elijah? What you doing? It don't take that long to get no bag.”

I said, “I'm sorry, Mrs. Bixby. I was writing Cooter a note to say I'll see him tomorrow since I ain't allowed to talk to him.”

She said to Cooter, “See? How come you ain't more like that boy?”

I had to finish quick.

 

S
INCIRILY, YOUR FRIEND

E
LIJAH
F
REEMAN

 

I read what I'd writ and figured I'd best put in one more part.