Halfway to Freedom
High School: Grades 9–12
Story
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Shepherd didn't return the next morning. He didn't visit that afternoon either. Despite her eagerness to see him, Hannah wasn't anxious. She had no real reason to expect him. "Maybe," she thought, "he's keeping away in order not to draw attention to the Jones's house."
John came home late, bringing bad news. At the barbershop that morning, Shepherd's father mentioned the young man hadn't come home the previous night. It wasn't unusual for Shepherd to spend the night at the hotel, however, and the family didn't fret. Then, early that afternoon, the hotel waiter came to the tailor shop to tell John that Shepherd hadn't reported to work.
Leaving his assistant in charge of the shop, John immediately called on one of his white friends, a Chicago attorney known for his advocacy of black people's rights. The attorney told John slave hunters had delivered a young man to the sheriff's office, claiming he was a fugitive. Together, John and the attorney walked to the jailhouse.
"As I feared," John finished, "the young man brought in by the slave hunters is Shepherd."
"But Shepherd isn't a runaway," Mary protested. "All he has to do is show the sheriff his freedom certificate."
"That's what I thought, too," John answered, "until I spoke with his father. You must never repeat what I'm going to tell you now! The family came here three years ago, remember? We assumed Shepherd was a natural son, but it turns out he's a foster son. No one will admit he's a fugitive, of course, but it certainly looks that way. He doesn't have freedom papers. Remember the reward notice the hunters had last night? Shepherd has a scar on the right side of his neck, but otherwise the description fits him."
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Hannah suddenly remembered one of the slaves on the farm in Missouri. He had a scar on his neck—a scar exactly like Shepherd's—made by an overseer's whip that missed its mark. Why hadn't she figured out she and Shepherd shared the same past? Would he be sent back to slavery again?
"What can we do?" Mary asked.
"Tomorrow the hunters will present their evidence against Shepherd before the judge. Of course, Shepherd won't be allowed in the courtroom to defend himself. The abolitionists of Chicago are organizing a protest during the hearing." John paused, as if deciding whether or not he could say more.
When she was certain her husband had finished speaking, Mary touched Hannah's arm. "Dear girl, I don't know what will happen to Shepherd. But with the hunters standing in the courtroom and the protesters marching outside, you'll have the perfect opportunity to escape." She turned to John, "Don't you agree?"
"A wonderful idea! The superintendent of the main railroad line has joined our cause. He might be able to get her aboard a train, if she doesn't mind a seat in a freight car."
"No sir, Mr. Jones," Hannah replied, "I don't mind, as long as that train is bound for the Land of Freedom."
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