About that time, Daisy heard the kitten scratching at the wall.
“I’m going to look for them,” declared the boy.
“There might be some in the haymow,” offered the blacksmith.
“Huh!” snorted the boy. “The one I heard wasn’t in the haymow. And I’m going to find it!”
Daisy heard him approaching and very slowly and carefully reached out for the kitten. She hesitated. If the kitten made a loud noise now, they were liable to be discovered. But it was making enough noise anyway that she decided to take the chance. She made a quick swipe, and the kitten landed neatly in her lap. It immediately curled up and began purring. Daisy hoped it wasn’t loud enough to be heard. She listened as he stomped around right outside the wall. She hoped both the kitten and Simon would be quiet long enough.
Suddenly, the boy let out a scream. Daisy heard the blacksmith begin laughing.
“Your brave boy is afraid of a mouse! Ha! Ha! I wonder what woulda happened if he’d encountered an angry mama cat, ready to defend her youn’uns! Ha! Ha!”
“Charles! You get over here. I can’t believe you’re scared of a little mouse,” said the stranger.
“I’m not scared,” whined Charles. “I just didn’t see—”
“Oh, sure. Sit down here so a little mouse can’t get you. Maybe you’d better draw your feet up or a little mousey might get your toesies.”
Daisy giggled to herself. When the blacksmith started hammering again, she carefully lowered herself beside Simon with the kitten curled up between them. It wasn’t long before she was asleep, too.
The days turned into weeks. Daisy felt under constant fear that they would be caught. She had heard enough stories about what happened to runaway slaves when they were caught. She knew their life was in danger many times.
Simon was growing weary and often didn’t want to walk when they were told to walk to the next place. But he seldom let Daisy carry the gray kitten the kind blacksmith had let him take along. Daisy was afraid the kitten would be too much trouble, but Simon loved it so much, and she was glad he had this small joy.
Now they were walking toward a place where they were told to wait until dark and watch for a lantern lit on a post in the garden. “If the lantern’s not lit, don’t go near the house. It means the man of the house is home, and it’s not safe,” they had been warned.
The woods were thick with trees, and darkness was falling rapidly. They still had not found the house. Simon was so tired, Daisy could hardly drag him along anymore.
“Hurry, Simon,” coaxed Daisy, “or we won’t find the house before it’s too dark to see.”
“Hungry,” protested Simon.
As if on cue, Daisy’s stomach growled. The bit of bread they had been given this morning was long gone. “I know,” soothed Daisy. “Maybe they will give us something at the house. Let me carry Smoky a while.”
Daisy was surprised when Simon allowed her to take the kitten. She glanced to the left again to make sure the river was still in sight as they followed the path. She was so afraid of losing their way.
Suddenly, Simon sat down and started to cry. “I can’t, Sammy. I can’t walk anymore. I’m so tired. I want Mama.” His little hands covered his face as he cried.
Daisy sat down beside him. At the mention of mama, Daisy thought about her own Mama. Would she ever see Mama again? She struggled to keep from crying too.
Meow! Smoky leaped from Daisy’s arms onto Simon’s lap. She purred and wrapped herself around and around Simon.
“Stop, Smoky!” Simon giggled. “Your tail is tickling my nose.”
The smoky, gray kitten leaped from Simon’s lap and pounced on a grasshopper. In seconds the kitten had eaten the grasshopper.
“Oh, yuck, Smoky!” scolded Simon. “That’s not food.”
“It’s probably food for kittens,” said Daisy. “Kittens eat different things from people. They eat lots of things we wouldn’t like. Are you ready to walk again?”
Simon nodded. “Come on, Smoky. You can walk awhile.” Surprisingly, the kitten followed them.
Not long after that, Daisy saw a clearing ahead. “Dear Jesus,” she prayed. “Please, help us find the right house.”
As they neared the clearing, Daisy scooped up Smoky and motioned Simon to be quiet. Peering through some bushes, Daisy studied the house. It was exactly as they had described it. But she could not see any garden. Staying hidden in the woods as much as possible, they circled to the other side. In the dim light of the setting sun, Daisy found the garden. In a circle of flowers was an ornamental post. On the post was a lantern hanging, but it was not lit yet.
Daisy coaxed Simon farther into the woods but stayed in line of the lantern. “We’ll rest here a bit,” she whispered. Surely, they would light the lantern soon.
Suddenly, Daisy was jerking awake. She had not planned to fall asleep. She quickly looked toward the house. But she did not see a light where she thought the lantern would be. Everything was dark. Maybe she was too far away.
Daisy carefully slipped away from Simon, hoping he would continue to sleep while she went closer to check.
Daisy stared at the garden in disbelief. It was completely dark. By the dim light of the moon she could make out the post and the unlit lantern. It was unsafe to go there. What were they going to do? They were alone in dark woods with no food and no place to go.
CHAPTER ELEVEN
Lost
DAISY HURRIED BACK TO SIMON. She could not keep the tears from falling. What were they going to do? She quietly slipped in beside Simon, who was still sleeping.
What was she going to tell Simon when he woke up? And Daisy knew she had to wake him. They had to move farther into the woods. It was not safe this close to the house. Daisy cried harder.
“There! There!” Simon’s little arm encircled Daisy. “We be okay. Jesus watch us.”
Daisy hugged Simon’s soft little body to herself, trying to stop the tears from falling. “You’re right, Simon. Jesus will watch over us. But we need to move farther away. That house is not safe for us now.”
Simon stood up and reached for Daisy’s hand. “Come on, Smoky Cat. We need to go.”
Daisy was not sure which direction to go, so she headed toward the river. After what seemed like a long time, she noticed an indention in the hill ahead. “A cave! Maybe we can sleep in there!”
As they neared, Smoky stopped and hissed. Her fur stood on end. Daisy caught her and held on. She saw movement in front of the cave.
“Puppies!” cried Simon, rushing toward them.
Daisy grabbed Simon. “Simon, those are wolves. They are dangerous.”
“No! Puppies!” protested Simon.
Smoky scratched Daisy, and she released her. “Look, Simon.” Daisy held onto him. “They look like puppies, but they are baby wolves. Their mama is probably close by, and she could kill us. See! Smoky knows, and she is running away. Let’s follow her.”
Simon ran after Smoky, but he still held onto Daisy. For once, Daisy was glad to follow the kitten. What if they met the mama wolf? As Daisy ran, she prayed to Jesus for protection.
Gradually, Smoky stopped running. Daisy knew they were deep in the woods. She could not see the river in any direction. Smoky was calmly washing herself. Did that mean they were far enough away from the wolf cave to be safe? Daisy sighed. Where could they spend the rest of the night?
“Look, Sammy,” said Simon. “Smoky found steps on a tree.”
Daisy went closer to the tree where Simon was pointing. There were boards nailed onto the tree. She looked up the tree, but could not see how far they went. The boards looked old, as if they had been there a long time. The trunk of the tree was growing over the center of the boards.
“Let’s go up, Daisy,” said Simon. He reached for a board and started climbing. Smoky climbed the tree beside him.
Daisy hesitated. Was it safe? It was probably safer than staying down here. She started climbing, too. Simon was so far ahead, she could no longer
see him.
“A house, Sammy,” Simon called down. “There is a little house up here.”
“Please, Jesus,” whispered Daisy. “Please, let it be safe.” She climbed, quickly, to quiet Simon. “Hush, Simon,” she said, as soon as she saw him.
“It’s a little house,” whispered Simon loudly. He disappeared from view.
Daisy took another step, and it broke away. She gasped as her foot dangled in midair. She clung to the board above her with both hands. Stretching her foot as high as she could, she found the next board. She cautiously made her way up until she could see the small shack with Simon standing at the entrance.
Simon hugged her as she stepped inside the tiny room. “Smoky and Jesus helped us find this little house,” he whispered.
Daisy surveyed the sturdy little shack. “Yes, they did,” she said. “We need to thank Jesus.”
Simon folded his hands. “Thank you Jesus to help us find this house an’ thank you Jesus to keep us safe from wolves. You did good.”
“Yes, we thank you Jesus. Thank you for protecting us.” Daisy hugged Simon. “And thank you for brave, little Simon and a good, little kitten.”
Simon happily snuggled in beside Daisy with Smoky curled up on his lap. Daisy fell asleep praying.
The next morning, Daisy tried to find a trace of the river before they climbed out of the tree. The trees were heavy with foliage, and Daisy couldn’t see very far. She would have liked to just stay in the tiny shack, but knew they needed to find food. Where would they find any?
Simon was already scrambling down the tree. Daisy called down to warn Simon about the missing board.
“I found it, Sammy,” Simon called in a loud whisper. “Only one side is broken.”
Daisy followed Simon down. She anxiously surveyed their surroundings. Nothing looked familiar. How would they ever find that house again?
Again, Simon took off after the kitten. Smoky led as if she knew where she was going. Her tail was high in the air. Every so often she would stop and pounce on a bug of some sort. Daisy was glad the kitten could fill her belly, even if they couldn’t.
“Look, Sammy!” cried Simon, pointing at a tangle of bushes. “Berries!”
Daisy stopped to look. “Yes, they are wild black raspberries. Breakfast!”
Daisy and Simon both started picking and popping them into their mouth as fast as they could. “These are delicious, Simon,” said Daisy. “I’m so happy you found them.”
“I did good.” Simon’s happy face was already stained purple with berry juice.
“Yes,” Daisy laughed. “You did good.”
“Come, Smoky,” called Simon. “I’ll pick some for you, too.”
Smoky came out of the bushes carrying a little brown mouse. Daisy chuckled. “Simon, Smoky doesn’t like berries. She found her own breakfast.”
“Smoky, mice are yucky,” protested Simon. “Come eat some nice berries instead.” Smoky carried her breakfast back into the bushes to eat.
After a while, Simon sat back. “Done,” he announced.
“We should find some place to wash,” said Daisy. They started walking through the woods again. Daisy was praying they would find the river again, so she could hopefully find the house again. Maybe it would be safe to go on.
Suddenly, she saw something shining through the trees. “Let’s go this way,” she told Simon. “Maybe we found the river.”
But when they reached it, it was just a small stream. Daisy tried not to let her disappointment show. Simon was happy to see it and walked right into the shallow stream. Daisy walked in beside him and washed his face and hands and then her own.
Daisy let Simon play awhile, but she felt an urgency to keep moving. They had to find that house again before it got dark. Daisy wondered if the stream came from the river and decided to follow it in hopes of finding their way back.
It was not long until Simon was hungry again. Daisy studied the landscape as they walked, hoping to find something that looked edible. She slowed Simon when she saw a clearing ahead. She cautioned him to be quiet as they approached.
Slipping from tree to tree, Daisy hoped no one saw them. Finally peeping around a big tree, she saw they were on the edge of a huge garden. Seeing the carrot tops made her mouth water. Would it be stealing to take a just few carrots, as hungry as they were? Stepping closer, Daisy noticed some potato plants that surely had some small potatoes underneath. Even those would be good raw.
Simon tugged on her hand. “Someone’s coming.”
Daisy heard footsteps from behind. They were too far out of the woods to go back into hiding. They would probably meet at the edge if they tried to run back. She glanced around frantically. Where could they go?
CHAPTER TWELVE
Betrayed
AS THE FOOTSTEPS NEARED, SIMON’S hand tightened in hers. Daisy barely had time to murmur, “Jesus.” Then she saw something shiny. Stepping closer quickly and pulling Simon along, she saw that it was a hoe.
She could see where someone had recently quit hoeing. Hoping it was not the person coming upon them, she quickly picked up the hoe and set to work. “Start pulling weeds in the row beside this one,” she whispered to Simon.
Simon began, just as a voice called out to them from the woods, “Hello, boys!”
Daisy stopped hoeing, but did not turn to face him. “You’re doing a fine job, boys.”
Daisy gave a nod of acknowledgment, but continued to hoe.
“Can you boys keep a secret?” The man had lowered his voice. “I’m part of the Underground Railroad.”
Daisy instinctively jerked around to look at him at this unexpected statement.
The man smiled and nodded. “That’s right. I help slaves escape. They deserve a chance at freedom, I always say. I help them escape from their cruel masters.”
Daisy turned quickly to give Simon a warning look, hoping he would remain silent. She picked up the hoe again that she had dropped.
“I heard of a woman and her baby that were on the Underground Railroad and lost their way. I’m trying to find them before the slave hunters do,” the white man continued. Daisy continued to hoe.
“If you see her or hear of anyone who knows anything about her, I want to help her. Okay?”
Daisy nodded, without slowing her hoe down.
The man went on, “My house is straight that way.” He paused until Daisy looked up to see where he was pointing. “You head on that way until you come to the river. Then you follow the river, that way.”
Daisy looked up again to see which way he was pointing, then went back to hoeing.
“Keep watching for a clearing on your right. It’s a little gray house with a small barn beside it. Understand?”
At Daisy’s nod, he continued. “Wait until dark, and then knock on the back door. We’ll let you in and help you on your way. We have plenty of hot food for you, too.”
This time, Daisy didn’t nod. He was saying “you” instead of “them” as if he knew they were runaways. She continued to hoe on down the row, hoping he would not follow. She glanced up and saw a farm house a distance away.
The man had started to follow, but when he saw her looking at the house, he quickly backed away. “What I meant was them. I mean the girl and her baby. Or anyone else that wants to, of course. Just don’t tell anyone else I’m part of the Underground Railroad. I guess you know that.”
Daisy looked pointedly at the house again, but gave a nod that she’d heard him.
“Remember, I just want to help,” he added, before he turned and quickly disappeared in the woods.
“Sammy,” said Simon, very quietly. “Let’s go get some of that food now.”
“We need to keep working.” Daisy came closer to Simon, who was still close to where he had started from. “That man might be watching us in the woods. Let me help you for a while.” Daisy knelt down beside him and showed him which plants were turnips and which ones were weeds.
After a few more weeds, Simon asked, “Can we go in
the woods now? It’s hot.”
“Soon,” promised Daisy. She glanced at the farmhouse again. If someone saw them from the house, what would happen? Daisy hoped they would not find out. She prayed for wisdom and continued to work a while longer. Then touching Simon’s shoulder, they quietly slipped back into the woods.
They both breathed a sigh of relief to be out of the hot sun. Already, Daisy was wishing they had taken some of the vegetables. Surely that would have been a fair exchange for all the work they had done. But Daisy was afraid to go back, so she continued walking.
“Maybe we can find some more berries,” Daisy told Simon. She glanced down at him, surprised to see the smoky-gray kitten trotting along beside him once again. “Where was Smoky?”
“Don’t know,” answered Simon. “I like berries.”
“I do, too,” answered Daisy, as she continued to walk in the direction the man had pointed. They were beginning to walk downhill.
Suddenly, Smoky started hissing again. Daisy scooped her up before she could run away. Smoky clawed at her, trying to get loose. Daisy looked around carefully trying to locate Smoky’s fear.
Her breath caught, and she grabbed Simon with her free hand. They had come upon the wolves’ cave from the other direction. The pups were playing in front of the cave again. But coming from the other direction was a big wolf. They were close enough that they could see a rabbit dangling from the wolf’s mouth.
Daisy quietly started to back away, hanging on to Simon and Smoky. Simon looked at her fearfully, but remained quiet. As soon as Daisy thought it was safe, she turned and ran, pulling Simon along behind.
When they finally stopped to rest beneath a big tree, Daisy put the kitten down. Smoky immediately scooted up the tree.
“Look, Sammy,” said Simon. “It’s the tree with the little house. Let’s go up.”
He reached for the boards and started climbing.
Daisy followed him, relieved that they had found some place familiar. Once inside, she flopped on the floor beside Simon. “That was too close!”
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