The Book of Night Women (20 page)

—Lord have mercy.

—How does the lass? he ask Homer.

—She do as well as the lord allow, she say.

—Maybe that’s not as good a thing as ye think.

—Sah?

—I’ve witnessed this in him before, that Humphrey Wilson. More than once and ’twas not a pretty sight. Not at all, but I’ve said too much.

—Lawd Jesus.

—Vicious thing, that temper of his. Quite mean. I’ve seen him unleash it on many in Europe, even those of the fairer . . . There was this time... Good God! I am remiss. Go now; I shall not discuss this with the likes of ye.

—She deserve it, massa, Homer say.

—Aye, ye’ll get no argument from me there. Couple estates in this very colony she would have been shot for what she had done. I hope the lass is made of strong stuff.

—Pardon me asking, Massa Quinn, but strong for what? Homer say.

—Because of this, this episode, woman. She brought out the absolute devil in Master Wilson and he’ll never forgive her for letting him show it. Alas, she has been whipped and disciplined by the driver and that should be enough.

—Whipped, massa?

—Well, what was the lass expecting, a wee spank on her little arse? A firm fifteen lashes she had coming for starters, maybe twenty.

—No, massa. They...

—What did they . . . ?

—Massa . . .

—Speak up, woman, what’s holding yer tongue?

Silence come between the two. Quinn jaw drop.

—Good God, certainly they did not...

—They do what one expect from a man, massa.

Robert Quinn jump up and march to Homer quarters. Homer rush behind, almost having to skip to catch up. Quinn march right up to Homer room and push in the door. Gorgon jump up and Callisto leap through the window. On the bed, blubbering, was Lilith.

—Jesus Christ, Robert Quinn say.

 

 

Morning sun come
and wake Lilith up. One eye open wide and the other just a little. Lilith not knowing where she be and start cry again. Nobody not there, so she make the breeze hush her. Lilith hear a screaming but see nobody in the room. Lilith hear again and see herself seeing the chaperone. Lilith shift in the bed and yelp as her shoulder burn. She start to cry again and see the dark woman in the corner of the room. Homer? Lilith whimper, but the dark woman don’t move. Lilith close her eye tight, then open them again. The dark woman gone.

Lilith see moonlight and think the day silver. She see sunlight and think the night yellow. Some morning she see Homer touching her face, some time she see Gorgon or Pallas or Iphigenia and flinch. The room close up and in the dark she think she see the dark woman but is only Callisto, looking up to the ceiling and whittling with her knife. She close her eye again and wake up to see Pallas.

—Is, is morning? Lilith say.

—Still night, Pallas say.

Lilith don’t say nothing.

—Is me did find you, Pallas say.—You lucky too, ’cause dem cum was all over you. Me clean you off and wash out you pussy before me call Homer. You remember that, Pallas say. She pull a green pawpaw out of her apron and cut four slice with a knife.

—Now eat this, she say.

Lilith don’t want to eat or talk or do nothing with she mouth.

—Eat it!

Lilith eat one slice and go to spit. She put back the rest.

—Listen to me. Plenty man rape you tonight. One of them seed must did get in you. So you goin’ eat the green pawpaw until up in that womb clean out, you hear me? Don’t have no dutty stinking white pickney.

Lilith eat the rest.

—You eat. And you goin’ eat for the next couple day. Week and month if you have to. And if anything leave you pussy, just catch it in a cloth and tie it up and hide it. Don’t look, girl, me talking to you! Don’t look at it, you hear me? Don’t look at it.

Lilith don’t say nothing. Pallas open her mouth then, like she ’bout to say something, then don’t. She turn away from Lilith.

—Fuckin’ backra bastard sons of bitches. Sometimes me think the only reason they give me this goddamn one-bullet musket is because so much of them deserve kill that me could never make up me mind.

Lilith try to look at her.

—Enough goin’ soon be goddamn enough, she say and gone in the dark before Lilith notice she stop talk.

Homer upstairs by
Massa Humphrey door, hearing Robert Quinn tell Massa Humphrey that most of the broke-up porcelain did stick through the chaperone clothes but never cut her flesh. But the soup did burn her skin raw, her neck and bosom something awful.

—And good show, Master Humphrey, how gentlemanly of you to act like a wild beast in front of your guests, Robert Quinn say.

—Oh, don’t you get all British with me, sir, Massa Humphrey say.

—I fear ye’ve driven them all away. I’m as British as ye’ve got left, Quinn say.

—Lord in heaven, I thought this sickness was gone. I swore t’was the result of some malodorous European air, Robert. I’ve been doing so well these few years, haven’t I? Haven’t I? Massa Humphrey say. Quinn nod.

—Goddamn!

—Humphrey.

—Robert Quinn, you’re here to save me from myself, he say.—I haven’t forgotten Venice, and that woman. This is why I have never whipped slaves, Robert. I swear to good graces, I don’t know what malcontent comes over me, he say.

—Nor I, Quinn say.

—Is my standing in society quite ruined?

—Oh please, sir, yer a rogue quite like meself and that ye shall always be. Yer no better, no worse than the Prince Regent himself. I daresay yer standing was quite awful to begin with.

Massa Humphrey look stern at Robert Quinn for a good while, then laugh a little.

—Goddamn, Robert, I feel this thorn is in my side for good.

—Well, thank heavens for virtuous women whom ye shall drive yer thorn into. And Miss Isobel? Robert Quinn say.

—Isobel! Isobel! Dear Isobel! She is furious, quite furious. At the slave and at me. Curious, she wants me to apologise for my . . . explosion but she also thinks the slave has not been disciplined enough. I shall endeavor to satisfy her as is in my power, Massa Humphrey say.

—There is another matter, Humphrey, Quinn say. Yer man McClusky figures into it. He figures into it very badly. Seems he and the others had a fair bit of sport with the lass. She’s near half-dead now from look of things.

Massa Humphrey don’t say nothing for a while. Then he look straight at Quinn.

—Her misfortune then, is it not? he say. Quinn stunned but he say nothing. Homer listening.

—She’d have wished herself dead had I gotten to her.

—Good heavens, man, hasn’t she had... a saving grace, I reckon then, that she’s not from Venice.

—You’d do well to remember who issues the bank notes around here, Robert Quinn, Massa Humphrey say.

 

 

Homer burst through her door
and light explode in the room. Ache fly up in Lilith head and she shut her eye tight. Lord have mercy, lord have mercy, Homer say. Homer run to the back of her room and pull open a trunk. She dig in and pull out a piece of red cloth wrap tight. She tear it open and coins fall out.

—Lilith, get up! She say. Lilith awake but she asleep.

—Lilith! Listen to me when me talking to you, chile, now get up, the devil waiting.

—Lilith!

Homer go over to the bed and pull Lilith. She bawl out little bit, but get up. She wobble. Homer hold her up by the door. Homer wrap the coins in the red cloth and shove it down between Lilith bosom.

—Now listen to me, chile, Homer say. Lilith start to blubber and Homer slap her. Lilith bawl out again.

—Shut you mouth and listen! Round the back of the mill be a passage, it don’t look like no passage sake of no carriage pass round there no more, but look good and you can still make it out. Go down that trail and turn at the river, you have to run through the river so that you lose you smell, so the dogs, Lilith listen! So the dogs can’t follow you. Then come back from the river, don’t cross it, come back and go south. Continue south and you’d soon see a hut. Stay there till nightfall when me send for you. You hearing me? Stay there! Stay there till we fix some other—

The door swing open and slam against the wall. Robert Quinn step in. Homer quiet herself and step back.

—Take those off, he say.

Lilith don’t know what he mean.

—Take those off at once! Robert Quinn say. Homer and Lilith never hear this voice before. Robert Quinn don’t wait. He go over to Lilith, grab the dress by the bosom and pull. The dress rip and Lilith two breast tumble out and coins sprinkle ’pon the floor.

—Lawd o’ massy, have mercy ’pon the chile, Massa Quinn. Have mercy, Homer say and run toward him. She touch Robert Quinn shoulder and Quinn strike her hard, so hard that she stagger back.

—Don’t assume familiarity with me, woman, Robert Quinn say. Homer touch her chin, her eye wide open.

Lilith pull down the rest of her dress. Her waist wrap with white cloth. Her neck have so much bruise that it look like a quilt. Lilith did turn into a full woman and nobody knew. Her body beat down and her eye still swell, but her breasts strong and pointed. The two stand up where her eye would have. Robert Quinn see. Robert Quinn get to see that nigger flesh will find even the slightest thing to stand up, even a maggot-full, rotten chop-off foot. Robert Quinn grab Lilith by the hand and push her out the door. He go to the doorway but swing around quick.

—Do not follow, Quinn say.

—Me remember where me place be, massa. Me and the tea, Homer say. Robert Quinn pause for a little, then step out.

Outside, three Johnny-jumper grab Lilith. One grab her two arms and the other grab for her foot. A third negro, short, fat and squat, move past her foot and grab Lilith pussy. Lilith kick him with her free foot. The squat negro go to thump her but a whip crack across him back and put a stop to that quick.

—Shall I be whipping one nigger this day or two? Robert Quinn say.

To the right of the great house be a cotton tree where all the negroes gather. This was three days after New Year’s Day, and white folk and nigger folk have different expectation. Massa Humphrey sitting on the terrace with Miss Isobel. The two negroes carry Lilith to the cotton tree. She struggling and she bawling and she screaming. Work stop and all the negroes gather to watch. Some of the womens don’t look. They bind Lilith hand tight with a long piece of rope. A Johnny-jumper throw the long end over a high branch and the other two pull her up. Lilith scream again. Homer don’t leave her room. Lilith muttering and chattering. Some of the negroes look at her like somebody they just remember to forget. Robert Quinn nod.

—This be for the uppity nigger who be thinking he or she can be hurting the massa and him folks. This be proper disciplining right here so, the fat squat negro say. Robert Quinn nod again. The taller negro curl out the whip like a long animal tongue. Bullwhip. Negro rather burn from the breath of Satan than get that. Miss Isobel looking. One or two nigger smile when they see Lilith back smooth for the last time. The tall negro swing and the whip lash Lilith straight cross her back. Lilith scream so hard that she cough. The negro lash her again. Lilith struggling ’gainst the rope and her legs swing wild like hanging man. Some people watch her face, some watch her breast, and some watch her arse and pussy. The negro lash Lilith again and her eye start to go back into her head. The new pain wake up the old pain that the massa done give her. She bawling like a girl, not a woman, and she screaming. The negro swinging the whip wide and it curl round her back and slice her breast. Robert Quinn go up to the tall negro and slap him head with the thick end of the whip.

—The back only, ye stupid coon, Quinn say. Some laugh as the negro thank Quinn for the lick. Lilith close her eye. Seven more lash and she stop scream. Lilith swing and the rope creaking. Thirty lash and they cut her down. She fall in the dirt and stain the ground with blood.

Lilith get ten lash every day Miss Isobel come calling, which be twice that week. Now that the ball be over, it didn’t seem proper for a lady to come too often to a gentleman house, not even a lady from the colonies. But as be the way of other things in the colony, some rules of Mother England get toss away like crinoline. Plus, she didn’t have no chaperoning as that woman take to bed even after the injury heal. She bawl ’bout her injury all the time as reason not to leave bed and Miss Isobel confess to Massa Humphrey that she was not a even a little sad to be rid of her.

Lilith know that each day getting darker and darker for her. After a week, negroes stop come to her whipping, even them that glad she get what was coming to her. Everybody just know the scream. The frighten wild beast scream that ring throughout the estate and the field and the boiling house and the kitchen, twice a week at around the two o’ clock hour. The negro scream that white people don’t hear because it never stop late lunch or early afternoon tea. A negro scream be like a pig scream. A negro scream be like a dog whistle. A negro scream be like wind. Soon she stop scream. When the time come for the whipping she don’t even need nobody to get her. She go to the tree early and raise her hands up. She stop cry and only wince when the lash too hard. She used to look in the sky, but by the third week she look straight at Robert Quinn and watch him look away. When they cut the rope, she drop to the ground and pick herself up. She stand and stagger a little, but still stand. Lilith raise her chin and walk over to her bundle of clothes. She put them on herself and Robert Quinn see fresh blood press through the old blood on the dress. Lilith don’t say nothing and go back to the cellar. Every three of four step she limp, and one time she nearly drop, but her chin still raise.

Two nights a week, six black womens go to Homer room and mix brine, comfrey and sinkle-bible to rub into Lilith back. Even Callisto. Homer and Pallas sing a song in a tongue that be known only to them. Then they sing like negro.