Aaliyah, the story of a slave (©pretzel)

[pretzel]

AUTHOR'S NOTE: Uhm, this is really long. I'm sorry. Feedback is appreciated, as always.

ADDITIONAL NOTE: A lot of the names in this story come from traditional African heritage and each name has a certain meaning.
Aaliyah: female; the High Exalted
Cougan: corn
Benjamin: male; Son of my Right Hand
Malonge: male; He Sings Well
Kato: male; Second Born Twin
Karima: female; Generous
Quaashie: male; Born on Sunday
Ta'Ziyah: male; Passionate Soul
Valynda: female; Wise

Aaliyah
- - - - The Story of a Slave

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Their arrival was not quiet. Through the villages close to the coastline, tales were told of the pale-faces, who came into villages and stole all the occupants away.

Fear had seeped into the hearts of many.

We were with the Cougan when they arrived. The pale-faces crested a hill, ghosts more terrifying than anything we had ever seen. The birds we had been trying to scare from the crops rose into the air, escaping the danger they sensed was about to fall upon us.

The pale-faces shouted as they spread out around my family. My father yelled out, gathering the family close around him. My mother broke off from the group, sprinting back to the village in order to warn the others, though it was likely they already knew.

One of the pale-faces, shouting words in a foreign tongue, grabbed my arm roughly, pulling me away from my family. Instantly, my father was on him, ripping the man from me before he could do any harm. More pale-faces were on him then, pulling my father off the pale-face.
The pale-faces shouted more, yelling at my father before spitting in his face.

The warriors from my village arrived then, brandishing weapons and giving a war cry as they descended on the pale-faces. I was pushed behind the men along with the other women and children. The fight was vicious but short. Our warriors’ weapons were no match against the pale-faces guns. We had lost.

The pale-faces circled around us then, bindings and guns in their hands. In just a few minutes, they had tied our wrists together and chained us so that we could not escape. Before me, my younger brother, Benjamin, cried as we were marched away from our home. The pale-faces yelled more and I felt the barrel of one of their guns pushed into the small of my back, moving us forward in a uniform line.

Terror plagued my heart as we were marched westward, according to the setting sun.

A few days after marching, our feet sore and our hearts tired, we saw the coastline breaking before us. A ship was docked in the harbor, already crowded with others of our kind. Their languages were different, but similar to our own. One of the pale-faces spoke in our tongue; I learned that we were the last ones on the ship. After we were loaded, the ship was to take us to a new world, to new lives.

We had no idea what was really in store for us.

The days had passed slowly during the long journey. Aaliyah was only 14 years old when she had been taken from her home in Africa. She had lost track of her family in the journey to the ship and while they had been herded like livestock into the holds. Now, she sat in the middle of a group of people, others who had been taken from their homes like her. They were all from different tribes, none from her own. Through their stories, she learned that people had not only been taken by the pale faces, some had been captured and sold by members of their own tribes. Others were captured and sold by other tribes. And still others had been prisoners of war that were sold to the pale-faces.

Aaliyah did not know what the pale-faces wanted from them. She only knew that it could not be good.

As the days passed, the stench on the ship got worse. It had started out small and tolerable, but had steadily grown as there was no place for the occupants to relieve themselves. There wasn’t any man who was not sitting in his own filth; eventually, Aaliyah grew used to the smell, it no longer bothered her.

It was the first Death Walk that scared her. The pale-faces came down to where the prisoners were being held, brandishing their guns and yelling at them to stand. The few that understood followed their directions; the rest just followed their lead. They were forced to march to the deck, where they could stretch their legs and get some fresh air. A few were told to stay behind.

Aaliyah moved up to the deck, relishing the fresh air. Though the smell of too many people gathered in too small a space was still prevalent up here, she could detect the soft scent of the seawater beneath it. She took deep breaths, clearing her head and filling her lungs with clean air. Moving to the railing of the ship, she noticed how less crowded it was up here. The pale-faces had only permitted some of the prisoners to the deck at a time. The difference between the space on the decks and the space in the rooms below was a stark contrast. She could stand and walk and that alone was a relief.

Aaliyah wasn’t worried, until the others started bringing up the bodies of the dead.

Though she didn’t recognize any of those brought up from below decks, she was still disturbed by the sight. The bodies were tossed overboard, into the sea. Across the deck, she saw a mother, weeping over the body of her dead son. A man stood next to her, staring quietly down at the boy. He then moved away, pulling the woman with him before two more came and tossed the body into the sea.

The sight tugged at her heartstrings, but Aaliyah didn’t dwell on the family’s loss for too long. The pale-faces were sending them below decks once more and her group passed another as they ascended towards the sky.

As she descended down the steps, Aaliyah caught sight of a small, filthy boy trudging up the stairs. It took her a moment, but she soon recognized him as her brother.

“Benjamin!” she cried, gathering the younger boy up into a tight hug. He slumped against her, having recognized her by her voice.

“Aaliyah!”

“How are you? Have you seen Mom or Dad? Malonge or Kato? Karima? Anyone?”

The boy shook his head. “No, but Quaashie from our tribe sits near me in our room. He said he saw Malonge and Kato. Our brothers are fine.” Aaliyah nodded. “That’s all I’ve heard,” Benjamin finished, shrugging.

“Well, at least we know they’re okay. I haven’t heard anything about anyone. You’re the first I’ve seen from the tribe, actually.” She glanced around wildly, crouching down to Benjamin’s level and looking the boy in the eye. “Listen, Benjamin. Don’t let anyone hurt you. Eat the food they give you slowly. Conserve your strength as much as you can. We will get through this, you hear me, Benjamin? We will get off this ship. We will survive this journey. We will find our family. But you cannot give up, Benjamin. Do not give up, you hear me? Never give up.”

Benjamin nodded his eyes wide at the strength of her words and voice. He hugged her again, speaking into his sister’s neck. “I promise, Aaliyah. I won’t give up. Will you?”

Aaliyah gave a short laugh. “Never, Benjamin. Never.”

A pale-face descended upon them then, shouting as he pulled the brother and sister apart. As Benjamin was dragged away from her and to the upper decks, she could see the tears that streaked down his face.

She felt tears stinging her own eyes as she was forced below decks again. Even so, she felt a spark of hope in her heart; her brothers were alive and well. At least some of her family was alive.

She was forced into her small space, surrounded by others. The day having emotionally exhausted her, Aaliyah quickly fell asleep, leaning slightly on the woman next to her.

The days slowly dragged into weeks, which dragged into months. More Death Walks were made and more were lost to the depths of the seas.

During another Death Walk, Aaliyah saw her father. He was being carried by a pale-face, too weak to walk on his own. Before she could speak with him, the pale-face threw him overboard. Too exhausted to cry, Aaliyah just watched as the waves swallowed him whole. That was the last she saw of her family.

Aaliyah had no idea as to how many days had passed when shouting was heard from the decks above. The pale-faces descended below decks once more, dragging their prisoners up with a sense of urgency their Death Walks never had. Aaliyah sluggishly stood and limped towards the entrance. The light from above was blinding; after emerging from below decks, it took a few minutes for her eyes to adjust.

Once they did, she gaped at her surroundings.

Around their ship, others were gathered, all more grandeur than the last. They were docked at a harbor, a deck coming up to their own ship. On the mainland, more pale-faces were shouting and giving orders, moving things about and directing prisoners off ships. Aaliyah could see that her ship was not the only one holding her countrymen. More Africans were disembarking from more ships; Aaliyah was shocked at how many were crammed onto each one.

The land before her was lush and full of life. Pale-faces rode on horseback, something Aaliyah had never before seen. Houses here were made of stone and wood, not hardened clay like back home. From her vantage point, she could not see any cougan, but she was sure there would be some further inland. These people could not survive without them.

Strange carts that were pulled by horses, pale-faces sitting atop them like kings. Aaliyah had only a few moments to take the strange sights in before a pale-face shoved her forward, pushing her into a line that was leaving the boat.

Surrounding the area where the prisoners were gathered was a tall fence, pale-faces in nice dress standing on top of it, watching the prisoners with eager expressions. Aaliyah found herself shoved near the fence. She strained to look into the crowd that was gathered before her. From a distance, she could see Malonge and Kato huddled close together, Benjamin and Karima at their side. She rushed over to them, shouting their names as she neared them.

“Aaliyah!” Kato shouted back, her older brother rushing out to meet her, Malonge, Karima and Benjamin close behind him. They huddled together, a family reunited. Almost.

“Where’s father?” Malonge asked, glancing between his twin, Kato, and Aaliyah. The former shrugged, while Aaliyah took a deep breath, remembering that day she saw her father swallowed by the sea.

“He’s dead,” she answered, a bitter sadness echoing in her voice. Benjamin began to cry, Karima comforting her brother as she wept too. Malonge stood a little taller, Kato shadowing him at his side. As the oldest male in the family, Malonge was now to take charge of them in this strange new world, with his younger twin at his right hand. Karima, who was not much younger than Aaliyah, was the first to recover and posed the question they all held in their heads.

“What about mother?” she asked, her voice small among the noise of the prisoners. Aaliyah looked up into her siblings’ faces, afraid of the answers she would see there.

None of them knew.

“Spread out,” Malonge ordered, “But stay together. Kato, you go with Aaliyah and Benjamin. Karima, stick near me. If she’s here, we’ll find her.” They nodded before breaking off, moving their separate ways.

Benjamin gripped Aaliyah’s arm tightly, his eyes wide as they searched for their mother. Kato kept a firm grip on her hand, determined not to lose any part of his family again after being so briefly reunited.

Not long after, they had patrolled the entire border of the small fenced off area. Having returned to where Malonge and Karima were only moments before, they found that the rest of their family had not yet returned.

At that moment, a sharp, high-pitched, short blast filled the air. Instinctively protective of his brother and sister, Kato pulled the two behind him, effectively shielding them from any danger. But the danger that was posed to them at that moment was not of the physical sort. Pale-faces rushed into the fenced off area, grabbing prisoners at random and pulling them together. Some had rope or string, rounding up prisoners into bunches within their ranks.

As a rope encircled Aaliyah, Kato and Benjamin, Aaliyah glimpsed Malonge and Karima pushing through the crowd towards them. But a second pale-face put a rope around them as well, halting their efforts to reunite the family. Behind Malonge, Aaliyah saw her mother, eyes shining with joy that quickly turned to horror. The family was being divided once more and there was nothing she could do about it.

Weeping, Aaliyah reached out a hand towards her mother, brother and sister. Her mother reached back, fighting fruitlessly to reach her. But her efforts were in vain. The ropes tightened around the two groups, separating them once more. The pale-faces that had roped them off from each other circled around them again, gathering up their prizes.

Aaliyah shouted as her mother was pulled from her, fighting to break free of the ranks. But Kato held her back, petting her hair to calm her down. The girl turned, burying her face in her brother’s chest. “They're gone, Kato,” she wept, feeling Benjamin take her hand. “Gone. We’ll never see them again.”

“Shh,” Kato calmed, soothing her. “We’ll see them again, I promise.”

Aaliyah shook her head. “You can’t promise that, Kato. You have no idea what will happen here.”

“I know we’ll see them again,” Kato said, holding her at arm’s length to look into her eyes. “I know.” His eyes flickered down to Benjamin, who was on the verge of tears beside them. “I need you to be strong, Aaliyah. For Benji.”

Aaliyah nodded, reaching down to take Benjamin’s hand in her own.

And the three children turned towards the gate, ready to face their future together.


Even as they saw their new home, they knew something was wrong. Africans, like them, were working in the fields, harvesting cougan, vegetables and fruits under the hot sun. A few Africans were standing in watchtowers, keeping sight over the workers below. Aaliyah, Kato, and Benjamin were brought forward before one such watchtower, along with the others they had been gathered with.

The man looked down from the watchtower at him, his skin as dark as theirs, darker because of the dirt covering. Aaliyah flinched as his voice rang out over them, booming loudly to silence the prisoners.

What surprised Aaliyah most was that he spoke in their tongue. “Welcome to the Reynolds Plantation,” he said, his presence commanding attention from the newcomers below. “You have been brought here to work under the Reynolds family. You will harvest food and crops for them. In return, the family has provided you with sleeping quarters. You will also receive a small portion of food every day from the Master.” The man smiled his grin almost devilish in his greed. “I am your Overseer, Ta’Ziyah. If you have any questions, you shall come to me for your answers. If you disobey, I shall have to inform Mr. Reynolds. He will decide your punishment.

“Now, all those with a talent such as blacksmithing, carpentry, or anything the like, stand over here. Mr. Reynolds will take a special interest in you.” Aaliyah felt Benjamin’s hand trembling in her own. “As for the rest of you,” Ta’Ziyah boomed, “separate yourselves by gender. Boys to my left, girls to my right.”

“Best to do as he says,” Kato whispered into Aaliyah’s ear, loosing Benjamin’s hand from hers. “We’ll find you later, okay?”

Aaliyah nodded, fear prevalent in her eyes. Kato touched her arm gently. “Be strong.”

Moving to take her place with the women at Ti’Ziyah’s left side, Aaliyah felt herself being jostled towards the center of the group. She wasn’t sure if the women had moved her on purpose or on accident, but either way she was grateful to be hidden from Ti’Ziyah’s piercing eyes.

They were lined up evenly, into straight uniform lines. Two men were at the front of each line, pulling a long stick out of a furnace. They pressed this against the slaves’ forearms, effectively burning a symbol into their skin. Each woman cried out as they were marked; the men did their best to stoically remain strong, but Aaliyah heard whimpers escape a few of their lips.

When it was her turn, Aaliyah pressed her arm forward, bracing herself for the pain that was sure to come. As the metal was pressed to her skin, a hazy smoke sizzled from it. The smell of burnt flesh was pungent in the air. Aaliyah was pushed roughly aside, left to nurse her wound silently.

She looked down at what had been burned into her arm. Two dark burns boldly declared “M.R.” surrounded by a circle. The burn itched and hurt, but she resisted the urge to scratch it, knowing that would make it worse. Instead, she pressed the corner of her shirt to the wound, the pressure helping to relieve some of the pain.

“Men, your quarters are that way,” Ti’Ziyah pointed to a small gathering of cabins behind the men. “Women, your quarters are there.” A similar grouping of cabins was pointed out to them as well, off to the right. A woman who had been standing nearby came forward then, gently leading the other women to their quarters near the fields.

“What is this place?” one of the women asked, her voice shaking.

“Hell,” the lead woman replied bluntly, keeping her eyes downcast.

A woman who had been working in the fields slipped from her ranks to join theirs. Aaliyah did not notice, craning her neck to look for her brothers among the men traveling away from them.

“Don’t bother,” a woman said to her, her voice nearby. With a small gasp, Aaliyah turned to look at the older woman beside her. She had to be near her mother’s age, perhaps older. “Whether he be a friend, lover or brother, it’s doubtful you’ll see him again.”

“My brothers,” Aaliyah confessed, staring down at her hands. “Kato and Benjamin.”

“And what’s your name, child?”

“Aaliyah.”

The woman smiled. “Well, my dear Aaliyah. If I hear of Kato or Benjamin, I will do my best to get a message to them. Will they be looking for you?”

“Without a doubt.”

The woman nodded. “Then they will find you. The Reynolds Plantation isn’t that big.”

Aaliyah nodded, walking in silence for a few moments before asking the woman a question. “What are we doing here?”

“We’re slaves,” the woman answered, her voice hardening. “Owned by the Reynolds family to work for them. We plant, take care of and harvest their crops, whether they be corn, grain, tobacco or cotton. Our wages are the food we get and the beds we sleep in, if we’re lucky enough to get beds. Never has anyone left the estate and lived, so far as we know of.”

“What does Ti’Ziyah do?”

“He watches us, makes sure we’re doing our jobs. He reports to the white man, who reports to Mr. Reynolds.”

“White man? Do you mean the pale-faces?”

The woman laughed sharply. “Pale-faces? Is that what you’ve been calling them, dear? They prefer to be called the white men, child. Though pale-face does describe them perfectly.” She smiled. “I like you, Aaliyah. You’ll do good here. Just listen to what I say; I know what I’m doing.”

“How?” Aaliyah asked, curious at the woman’s secret.

“Well, I’ve been here for a few years now. I’ve never been whipped or beaten, so I figure I must be doing the right thing.”

Aaliyah smiled. “May I know your name?”

“Valynda.”

Aaliyah greeted the woman traditionally. “It is an honor to meet you, Valynda the Wise.”

Valynda returned the greeting. “As it is an honor to meet you, Aaliyah the High Exalted.”


The days on the Reynolds Plantation were long and hard. They would wake up at dawn and, under Ti’Ziyah’s guidance, harvest the fields until midday, when they were permitted a thirty minute break in shifts, during which they could eat and rest. Aaliyah always chose to take her break with Valynda; the two had become very close friends over the course of their stay at the Plantation. After the break, they had to go back to work until sundown, sometimes later if the moon was full and the air was warm. And depending on Ti’Ziyah’s mood. The men and women didn’t work side-by-side like Aaliyah had thought they would; Ti’Ziyah believed very strongly in gender separation. He wanted to make sure that they didn’t form strong bonds with each other that would lead to escape attempts. Aaliyah wasn’t sure if it was because he didn’t want to whip any of them or if he enjoyed the power he had over them. She was betting on the latter.

It was a few months before Aaliyah had any sort of contact with her brothers. Valynda, having seen them in the fields working one day, had discreetly made her way over to them. After talking to them for a few minutes, risking a whipping from Ti’Ziyah or one of his henchmen, she returned to her own fields, speaking with Aaliyah about their brief conversation that night.

“Kato wants to meet with you,” Valynda told her, her brown eyes wide.

“When?” Aaliyah asked, unable to keep the excitement from her voice.

“Tonight, halfway between the cabins.”

“But what about the watchtowers?”

“They will not see you. Go, my child. You may not get another chance like this one.”

Aaliyah nodded before dashing from the cabin she shared with other women. She moved silently among the crops, knowing the landscape of the Plantation better than the Overseers. Hoping her dark skin would help her blend better in the moonless night, Aaliyah slipped easily past the watchtowers. She did not need light to see; she knew the terra better than she knew the back of her hand.

Her voyage was silent and flawless, her fears and tension eased as she neared the meeting point. “Kato?” she whispered, hoping to hear her brother’s voice among the silence of the crops. “Where are you?”

When a hand wrapped around her mouth, she almost screamed in fright. “Shh, shh,” a voice soothed in her ear. She easily recognized as her brothers.

She turned, pulling his hand from her mouth. “Kato!”

“Quiet!” Kato hissed, pulling her down into a crouch beside him.

“Oh, Kato,” she whispered, pulling her brother into a hug. “I’ve missed you so much!”

“It's great to see you too, Aaliyah,” Kato replied, returning the embrace.

Aaliyah pulled back, looking at her brother. She took stock of his condition, frowning at what she saw. “You’ve lost weight,” she observed.

Kato chuckled lightly. “As have you.”

Aaliyah nodded. “I know. But I was hoping you’d be unchanged.” Quickly, she changed the subject. “How’s Benjamin?”

“He’s doing as well as can be expected. A little worse for wear, but we’ve all seen better days than this.”

Kato continued, his voice taking on a serious tone it lacked moments before. “Listen carefully, Aaliyah. I’ve been working on a way to get us out of here, you, me and Benji. I’ve noticed slips in the guards posts, times when they aren’t looking. Mostly during shift changes, near nightfall. They sit and talk for about ten minutes before one takes up his post. I think that’s the best time for us to attempt any sort of escape.”

“What if we get caught?”

Kato grinned. “I won’t let that happen.”

“Where will we escape to?

“You just leave that to me.”

Aaliyah nodded, trusting her older brother to pull them through. “And when will we escape?”

“Soon,” Kato muttered, hugging her once more. “You’ll know when.”

It wasn’t until the next morning that Aaliyah realized someone had noticed she was missing the night before. Valynda cornered her as they were given their breakfast, her eyes filled with fear.

“They know!” she hissed, her hands vicegrips on Aaliyah’s shoulders.

“Who knows what?”
“They know someone left the cabins last night. The overseers. Someone must’ve seen you.”

Fear gripped Aaliyah’s heart. “Do they know about Kato?”

Valynda shook her head. “As far as I know, they do not. But today, after breakfast, Ti’Ziyah is going to find out who it was. They’ll be punished accordingly.”

Aaliyah flinched. “Does he know it was me?”

“No, but the others in our cabin do. Hopefully, none will give you up.”

It was only a few minutes later when she learned the true loyalties of her cabinmates. When asking for the woman who left her cabin last night, one of Aaliyah’s bunkmates shoved her forward, shouting, “it was her! She left the cabin last night! I saw her!”

A few others chorused in agreement.

Ti’Ziyah stalked forward. As soon as he was near enough, he slapped her hard across the cheek. Out of the corner of her eye, Aaliyah saw Kato move forward in anger. She cautioned him to stay back with her eyes; things would get worse if Ti’Ziyah knew they were related. So far, only Valynda knew that Aaliyah, Kato and Benjamin came from the same family.

Ti’Ziyah then proceeded to beckon a man forward. He pressed a whip into the man’s hand, giving him quick orders before backing up. Before Aaliyah knew what was happening, a sharp burning pain sliced her back open. She let out a scream before gritting her teeth together, preparing for the next blow. The second was worse than the first. Aaliyah let out a whimper from between her teeth, flinching as she heard the whip whistle through the air once more before contacting with her back again. Biting her lip, she drew blood.

The whipping continued for five minutes before Ti’Ziyah told the man to stop. Her back burning with pain and blood tricking from it, Ti’Ziyah pushed her forward, back towards the women. “Now you see what happens when you sneak out of your cabins at night. Never go anywhere you aren’t ordered to go; punishments will be more severe next time.”

He lowered himself to Aaliyah’s level. “You were lucky, girl,” he said, before spitting in her face. He then pushed her back towards the women, who moved away from her like she was a disease. She stumbled, only to be caught by Valynda who glared up at Ti’Ziyah with disgust. “You’re a monster,” she spat before gathering Aaliyah and herself up and pulling the girl aside to tend to her wounds before the day’s work.

“You’re a brave girl, Aaliyah,” Valynda observed, carefully cleaning her wounds before wrapping them lightly in extra cloth. “Most wouldn’t have withstood that pain alone.”

“I wasn’t about to let Kato get hurt,” Aaliyah muttered, hissing in pain as Valynda pressed against one of the cuts. “I had the strength to take it alone and so I did.”

“Still,” Valynda said, tying off the cloth so that it wouldn’t move. “It was a brave thing to do.”

Aaliyah turned to her, smiling. “Thank you, Valynda.” She then hugged her friend tightly, noticing how cautiously the older woman hugged her back.

“Anytime, my dear child. Anytime.”


It took three more months before Aaliyah had contact with Kato again. He was whipped for leaving his cabin the next morning, but at least they had a plan now. On the next cloudy day, Aaliyah, Kato and Benjamin would all volunteer to work in the cotton fields. These were the furthest away from the guard towers but also the most strenuous and painful to work in. Few volunteered to work in the cotton fields and fights often broke out among those that were forced to work there.

Better yet, the day was hot. Tempers among the slaves were short and fights were flaring up all over the place. In the cotton fields, most worked separately, few working close enough to start fights much less pursue them.

For once, the cotton fields were quiet.

Valynda worked beside Aaliyah in the fields; she had been included in the plan as soon as Kato had seen her treating his sister’s wounds. A person with some sort of medicinal background would be useful on their journey to the freedom he had heard about in the North.

The escape went flawlessly. The family’s (as Valynda was now considered part of their meager family) trek North was not an easy one. They slept during the day, one of them on guard at all times. During the nights, they pressed on, following the stars to the North.

To freedom.

On their way, they met others who were trying to find freedom. These contacts never lasted long, however. The quest for freedom was one to be embarked upon alone, one that had a greater chance of success the smaller the group was. None of the other’s stayed around Aaliyah’s group for too long; with four of them, the risk of getting caught was just too high. And since all of them had been branded early on in their enslavement, they were sure to be returned to the Reynolds Plantation. And, ultimately, to Ti’Ziyah.

It had been weeks before they heard any rumors of the supposed freedom in the North. It was said that there was a place further North than the United States, a place where runaway slaves could live without fear of being returned to their masters.

Canada.

According to other runaway slaves, the group of four was only a few days away from freedom when disaster struck.

Valynda had been on guard at the time. Kato slept on the outside of the group, half awake as he was prepared to escape as soon as the alarm was sounded. Benjamin and Aaliyah slept peacefully, the sister curled around her younger brother protectively.

Valynda shook Kato awake urgently, hissing in his ear. “Someone's here! Hurry, wake the others and gather your things! We must be leaving!”

Aaliyah awoke to the noise; her movements jostled Benjamin awake as Kato began shoving their meager belongings and supplies into a dirty pack he had found. Sleepily, Benjamin stretched, not understanding the group’s urgency.

Valynda began to move out, scouting the area ahead. It was her scream that alerted the children to the true danger they were in. She was shoved back into the clearing, followed by a white man. The sunlight reflected brightly off his pale skin as he stared down at his capture, pleased.

“Well, well, look what we have here. Runaway slaves.” He clucked his tongue in disapproval. “And you were so close to the border, too. Honestly, I’m a little disappointed.” He leaned forward, grabbing Kato’s arm to see his mark. “Ah, Michael Reynolds. The man guards you guys too loosely; I’ve heard of many of you escaping from his holds. But once you return, I hear he sells you to the Thompson family.” The man smirked. “They’re much harsher there.”

He turned to Aaliyah, his grin widening. “And you. You’ll make a fine house slave to Mr. Thompson. You’re the perfect age for the job.”

Aaliyah flinched, feeling Kato move to place himself between the man and herself. The white man laughed at this, the sound harsh to their ears. “You think you can protect her, boy? You think you can do something to stop me? Well, you can’t, son. You can’t do nothing to stop what’s going down here.” He snapped. “Men! Gather them up. I don’t want to lose these ones; they’ll fetch a hefty price.”

More white men emerged from the trees, bindings in their hands. The circled the small family. It was then that Aaliyah noticed they were badly outnumbered. There were seven white men and only four of them. The odds were not in their favor.

It was not long before Aaliyah and her family were bound together and had begun the march back South. The leader, whom the others called Trevor, rode a horse at the front of the group. The other six white men encircled the four slaves, either on horseback as well or walking beside them, brandishing whips and guns.

Any attempts at escape were futile.

They marched for the entire day and well into the night. It wasn’t until Trevor announced he was tired that the men stopped and set up camp. And that night, salvation came in a very unusual form.

Like ghosts, more white men descended upon the camp. Quickly, they had cut through the slaves’ bonds; when Trevor and his men awoke, only Aaliyah and one of her white saviors were left. The man pulled out his gun, shooting Trevor in the leg. The shot awoke the others, but the man and Aaliyah had already gone, using Trevor’s blundering curses and yelling as a cover to their escape.

The men guided the runaway slaves to a small building. “Rest here for the night,” one of the men told them, his eyes soft as he shut the door. “We’ll get you out of here tomorrow morning.”

“Wait!” Aaliyah called before he shut the door. “Why did you save us?”

“Because, we think slavery is wrong. We would like to free all slaves, but the task is too big. Instead, we just help runaway slaves, whether or not they’ve been captured by groups like Trevor’s gang.” He smiled. “We’re here to help.”

“What’s your name?” Aaliyah asked. “I want to be able to tell my children about the man who saved my life.”

“I haven’t saved your life just yet,” the man cautioned. “We still need to get you to Canada.” His features softened as he smiled lightly. “My name’s Jacob.”

The girl smiled. “I’m Aaliyah.”

Jacob reached out his hand to shake hers. “Nice to meet you, Aaliyah.”

“Nice to meet you, too, Jacob.”


It took another week, but with the help of Jacob and his Freedom Fighters, we made it safely to Canada. There, Kato immediately began to search for the rest of our family. His efforts were in vain. No one had heard of our mother, Malonge or Karima. Eventually, we learned to let go of the past and begin our new lives.

Valynda became a part of our family, almost as a second mother. She was by best friend in the New World, my confidant and advisor. When Benjamin was ill, she was the one to tend to him. When Kato was hurt, she nursed his wounds. She taught me to read and write, a luxury none of us could afford. We found it was useful in the New World, a trade that could help us survive and earn money.

Kato learned to be a blacksmith in order to earn money; Benjamin took up the trade of carpentry. We had settled easily into the grooves of our new lives.

Five years later, our family was reunited once more. Malonge and Karima had found freedom and through that freedom, they had found us. Our joy at finding each other again seemed impossible. I had thought both of them to be dead, as had Kato. But they, like us, had escaped their master and had found their way to freedom, with the help of a special friend.

But along with joy, Malonge and Karima brought us sadness. They brought news of our mother’s death; she had died of sorrow only months after being separated from her family once again. Karima had held her hand as she slipped into the afterlife, where she was to be reunited with our father.

I regret never getting the chance to say good-bye.

Even so, our lives in Canada were good. Times were hard and few were willing to hire Africans to work for them. But we still made a living as a family, raising each other and teaching others of our hardships.

I started an African school in Canada and for many years I have taught all that I knew to the children of runaway slaves. I continue to pass my family’s story along to younger generations, hoping that they will understand the hardships they have come from. If we can learn from the past, we can prepare better for the future.

And I know a brighter future is to come.

-Aaliyah

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