The Price of Freedom (26 page)

Yes, he was looking forward to
returning to Barbados.  He had paid his dues and he had learnt his lesson.
Never again would his father hear of him gambling, drinking and whoring; he
would be a lot more circumspect.

Richard’s eyes eagerly drank in
the sight of the Carolina coastline as the ship sailed towards Charles Town
Harbor. Suddenly a feeling of homecoming came over him, nudging away the
reluctance to return that he had felt on the voyage.

As the ship sailed into the Harbor
he saw with new eyes the similarity between Carolina and Barbados which wasn’t
surprising since the first settlers had brought a lot of Barbados with them.
Maybe that was why he had felt so comfortable there, as if he was home.

Thoughts of Barbados brought
Deborah to his mind; not that she was ever that far away. His uncle had been
right; it was hard to get Deborah out of his system.  It had been a
mistake to think that bedding her would have cured him. Now that he was back he
needed to focus on his goals again; marry Ann and run her father’s plantation.

Shouts of “Heave to” shook him
from his reverie and he soon felt the boat slowing down and minutes later the
anchor hit bottom. While the crew was busy throwing ropes and securing the
sails, he shook the captain’s hand and headed towards the gangplank that had
been lowered, eager for firm land under his feet.  If he didn’t have to
sail anywhere for a long time he would be happy, which was quite ironic since
they owned five ships.

As soon as his trunks were
unloaded he hailed a driver with a horse and cart to take him home. He feasted
his eyes on the familiar landscape as they made their way to the house. The day
was so beautiful that a feeling of wellbeing, such as he had not felt for a
long time, lifted his spirits.

He looked forward to seeing his
parents and his siblings and catching up on their news.  Absence really
did make the heart grow
fonder,
he smiled to himself,
and felt some hope that he would feel fonder of Ann as well.

He idly wondered how Anise was and
remembered his mother’s disapproval of her. If she had not approved of Anise,
she would probably have had a fit over Deborah. He smiled as he pictured the
two of them, both strong willed, meeting each other.  The realization that
it would never happen quickly sobered him up.

The door opened
soon after he knocked and a broad smile crossed Jackson’s face as he saw who
was at the door.

“Master
Richard! Welcome back,” he greeted taking his hat and jacket.

“Thank you
Jackson.  It’s good to be home.  Have my trunks taken up to my
room.  Is the family at home?”

“I’m afraid
only Master Charles is here.  He is in the office. Your father is out and
the Mistress and Miss Charlotte are shopping for the wedding I believe.”

Richard headed
down the hall to the small office just as the door flew open and Charles
appeared in the hallway.

“I thought I
heard your voice.  Welcome home.”  Richard hugged him, surprised at how
glad he was to see his boyish face.

“It’s good to
see you, little brother.  What has been happening while I was gone?” he
asked heading into the office and throwing
himself
on
a leather chair.

Charles spent
the next few minutes bringing him up to date about the business and filling him
in on the news about their parents and what was happening in town.

“And have you
been looking after Ann for me?” Richard asked him.  A flush came over
Charles’ face and he admitted that he had escorted her to a few parties when
her parents were not able to go. Richard eyed him thoughtfully, wondering if
that was guilt he observed.  Maybe they had become closer while he was
away. 

“I hope you’ve
kept your hands off my fiancée,” he teased and was rewarded to see Charles flush
again.  Maybe something had developed between the two of them, he thought
seeing Charles practically squirm under his gaze. As if he had any right to
question Charles’ behavior given how he’d spent the last three months.

“Of course!” he
spluttered.
“And what about you?
  Have you
managed to keep your hands off the Barbadian women?”  Richard grew
serious.

“I wish I had,”
he replied enigmatically and elaborated no further, even though Charles looked
at him curiously.

“And how are
Charlotte’s plans coming?”  He asked, deliberately changing the topic.
Charles saw it for what it was but obediently took his lead and filled him in
on the upcoming wedding.

“Tell me about
Barbados,” he insisted afterwards.

“Barbados is a
like a beautiful woman.  She draws you in and seduces you and before you
know
it, she has your heart and you never want to leave
her.”  Charles saw the faraway look in his eyes and wondered if he was
really talking about Barbados.

“The island is
very wealthy and much more developed than Carolina. After all, it was colonized
over forty years before us.  The planters live like lords.  They
don’t deny themselves anything it seems and I’ve never seen people consume as
much alcohol,” he added with a smile, remembering the party that had been held
for him.

“It’s amazing
how similar it is to Carolina, the buildings, the layout of the town, even some
of the food. I felt as if I belonged there.  Our uncle and aunt were very
hospitable and made sure that I felt right at home and that all my needs were
met.”

“That’s good to
hear.  And what have you learned about keeping slaves?”

“I’ve learned
that it’s not always easy,” Richard said smiling reminiscently as he thought
about his clashes with Deborah, earlier in their relationship. Charles was
burning with curiosity. “In fact it can often be very hard,” he grew serious
remembering
Jacko’s
hand being caught in the mill.
“And sometimes very heart wrenching,” he added as the face of the slave woman
whose daughter had been wrenched from her arms flashed into his mind.

“Heart
wrenching?” Charles repeated in disbelief. Surely this was not the same brother
who had left Carolina three months ago.

Richard nodded.
“I’ve discovered that slaves are more than just assets to be bought and
sold.  They are people with emotions and hopes and dreams.”

“So does this
change what you plan to do with the Carlisle’s plantation?  Are you still
going to use slaves to cultivate rice?”

Richard thought
for a long while and finally answered, “To tell the truth, Charles, I just
don’t know right now.”

Charles was
stunned. Once again he was struck by the fact that Richard had changed. He
didn’t know what it was that had changed him but he was going to find out.

Later that day

Richard felt much better after a
good meal and a rest in his own bed.  He knew that he had probably raised
some questions in Charles’ mind, who had barely managed to keep
himself
from trying to pry any information from him. 
He didn’t feel like confiding in him anyway and it was best that he never knew
about Deborah, because he would never understand their relationship and would
disapprove of it. Anyway it was all in the past now.

He made his way downstairs, noting
how their house, although well furnished by Carolina standards looked plain and
functional compared to the grandeur of his aunt’s house in Barbados. He
silently stood in the doorway leading to the patio and had a few minutes to
observe his family before they noticed him. They were laughing at something his
sister had said and looked happy and content.  He wished that he felt the
same.  He hadn’t felt happy and content since he had left Deborah asleep
in the bed in Barbados.

“Is this a private party or can
anyone join it?” he asked by way of announcing his presence.

All eyes swung around towards him
and his sister squealed in delight and she and his mother launched themselves
at him, laughing and crying all at once.  His father was more controlled
but embraced him in a surprising hug that told Richard he was glad to see him.

“You’re finally awake!  We
had to restrain ourselves from waking you up!” his mother admitted.

“I’m so glad you’re back. 
Now I can get married,” Charlotte said.

“I’m delighted to see you too,
Charlotte,” he replied wryly.

“How was Barbados?” His father
asked.

“We were so worried about you,”
interrupted his mother. “We were beginning to wonder if you would make it out
alive. 
First the stomach ailment and then being kicked
by the horse and suffering from smoke inhalation.
  Did anything
good happen while you were there?”

“Many good things happened. It may
not have sounded like it but it was a wonderful trip. Life changing! 
Uncle Thomas and Aunt Elizabeth treated me like a son and made me feel very
welcome and I learned a lot more than I thought I would. I’ll share the stories
with you some time, like when one of the slaves got his hand caught in the
sugar mill and it had to be cut off.”

“Richard!  You’re joking.
That’s not the kind of story I want to hear,” his sister protested while his
mother looked shocked.

“OK, that may be a bit too much
for you,” he agreed. “I’ll tell you about the party that Aunt Elizabeth threw
for me that lasted almost twelve hours. Half of Barbados must have been
there.  Well, at least the planters, their wives and all their delectable
daughters.”

“Well Ann will be glad to know
that you didn’t fall in love with any of them and that you’re
back
home in one piece,” his mother asserted.

Richard acknowledged that while he
was indeed back home, he wasn’t so sure if he had not fallen in love with a
Barbadian girl after all or if he was in one piece, for he felt as if he had
left an important part of himself in Barbados. He was also becoming
increasingly concerned that the thought of marrying Ann, even with the
incentive of her father’s plantation, was now becoming most unappealing.

Richard knew that he should go and
see Ann. He could not return to the country and not seek out his fiancée, even
though he was reluctant to do so. His reluctance was because he didn’t know how
he could pretend to be delighted to see her when, in truth, he wasn’t.

Putting these thoughts aside, he
got into one of their boats the next day and rowed to James Island to the
Carlisle’s plantation.  The physical exercise felt good after having very
little to do on board the boat.

The servant who opened the door
greeted him warmly and showed him into a small sitting room while she went to
let Ann and her parents know that he was there.  In minutes the door
opened and Ann practically flew into the room, followed by her parents. Ben was
leaning heavily on a cane and looked
more frail
than
when he had last seen him.

“Richard!”  She exclaimed in
delight and threw herself in his arms. Well absence seemed to make her heart
fonder for him, he thought in bemusement, and certainly less shy.