TRIGGER WARNING: ABUSE

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Everyone mourned the death of the child. Abigail wore black for weeks after the traditional mourning period had ended.

Alberda and Nan did not have time to mourn. There were too many chores to do around the house and not enough time in the day to do them. Between the cooking, cleaning, and ironing they were both exhausted by the end of the day. But on rare days when she had a break, Alberda liked to talk with Willamina.

She had never really had a friend before, so it was nice to finally have one. However, Nan constantly voiced how strongly she disapproved of the friendship. She hated to go against her mother's wishes, but she needed someone her own age to talk to.

She stepped into Willie's room that morning with fresh sheets for the bed. The brunette was seated at her desk, practicing some sort of writing lesson.

Alberda envied her. As a slave, it was forbidden for her to learn how to read or write. She couldn't even spell her own name. Some of the other slaves could, but they didn't dare teach it to anyone else in fear of being caught. She vowed to one day leave this place, and when she did she would learn how to read and write. She wanted to read every book she could.

On lucky days when Theodore wasn't home and Abigail was busy, Willie would read to her. They were books about adventure mostly. Stories of great cowboys out west. It made her hopelessly dream about making a life for herself out there in the wilderness.

She was often tempted to ask Willie to teach her how to read, but new better than that. They would likely be caught. Their friendship was dangerous enough.

"Good morning, Alberda." Willamina looked up from her book to greet the girl with a smile.

"Good morning, Miss Willie." Despite their friendship, Alberda still insisted on addressing her properly. She moved to the bed and took off the old sheets so they could be washed. Nan had made a strict chore schedule for each day of the week and today was laundry day.

"Would you like to read with me today?" WIllamina asked.

"I'm sorry, but I can't today," Alberda replied. "I've got too many chores." Washing the sheets and blankets from every bed in the house would likely take her hours. She dropped the dirty sheets on the floor and began putting the fresh ones on. She'd clean the dirty ones and next week swap them again.

Her life was one endless cycle of one chore after another. For once, she envied the field slaves. At least they received a day off on Saturdays. The house always needed to be cleaned and there was always cooking to do.

"That's alright, another day then." Willie frowned, but only for a moment before she was smiling again. Her smile was infectious. "I got a new pair of shoes for my birthday." She stood up and lifted her dress just to her ankles to show off a new pair of shiny black shoes.

Alberda paused her work for a moment to look at them. "Those are lovely," she said. "I didn't know it was your birthday."

"Technically it was yesterday. I didn't want a party or anything. There's no need to make a big deal of it."

Part of Alberda wondered if it was because she would be celebrating without her parents. Willamina spoke of her parents, especially her mother, often and with great fondness. It was obvious that they had been close. As curious as she was, she never asked what happened to them.

She pulled the last corner of the sheet down and made the rest of the bed. She folded the blankets neatly and fluffed the pillows. "I wish you had said something. I could have made you a cake," she said.

"Thank you, but you wouldn't have to do that," Willamina responded with a soft smile.

"I'll bake you a cake tonight." Alberda wanted to return her acts of kindness with one of her own. "It's the least I can do," she added.

Willamina's smile grew. "Thanks, Alberda. You're a good friend."

Before she could respond or even move, the door burst open. Theodore stood tall in the doorway, his expression dark. She dropped the pillow she had been holding but picked it up and put it back in its proper place in a hurry.

"A good friend?" Theodore quoted the words his niece had spoken just moments ago. "Child, slaves are not our friends, and it is time you learn that." His voice was low. He stood there another moment before crossing the room in long strides.

He grabbed Willamina by the arm, holding it so tightly she cried out in pain.

"Stop, uncle, you're hurting me." She clawed desperately at his hand. 

"Good!" His voice boomed, drowning out her cries. "Maybe then you'll learn to not associate with such useless scum, you stupid girl!"

Alberda winced at the sound his hand made when it connected with Willamina's face. She was scared to admit it, but she knew the beating she would receive would be much worse.

Theodore finally released her and backed away. He then turned to face Alberda.

Her body grew stiff and her eyes darted around the room, but there was no way to escape. He stepped towards her, grabbing her head-wrap and pulling it off. Her heart pounded rapidly. He then grabbed her by the arm just as he had with Willie and dragged her from the room.

~~~~

Alberda winced as Nan pressed a cold compress against the bruise that had formed underneath her eye.

She was laying on her bed in the attic. Hours had passed since her beating and the bruises were now a mix of red and purple.

"I tried to warn you," Nan said. "I know you wanted a friend, but spending time with Miss Willie is dangerous. Her uncle doesn't like us."

"But you took food from her after the party, remember?" Alberda said. "Besides, we were just talking. We didn't do anything wrong."

"I took food from her once," the older woman replied sharply. "We needed that food. Bad." She paused for a moment before speaking again. "I know you didn't do anything wrong, Alberda, but in Mr. Porter's eyes, you did. Don't talk to that girl again unless it involves your chores."

Alberda let out a huff of annoyance and turned her head to face the wall.

Nan grabbed her chin and turned her head, forcing her to meet her gaze. "I mean it. Don't speak to her. Unless you want to end up like this again."

~~~~

Alberda hated it, but she followed her Ma's wishes. Besides, she didn't want Willamina or herself to be hurt by Theodore's hand again.
Each day she went about her chores. She didn't speak to or even look at Willie. It pained her, but she knew now that it was necessary. Her heart ached and she missed her friend dearly, but she kept her promise to Nan and didn't speak to her anymore.

Willamina had tried to speak to her a few times. The first time was the following day. She had come into the kitchen to bring Alberda her head-wrap.

She had accepted to head-wrap with a quiet thank you, but not another word. The look on her former friend's face had been enough to make her cry.

With a sigh, she picked up the heavy laundry basket and went outside. Water dripped from her hands and from the basket as she took the freshly cleaned clothes to the back of the house to be hung up to dry on clotheslines.

She dropped the basket onto the ground with a thud and took out the first item: one of Mr. Porter's fancy white button down shirts. She stared at it, tempted to rake it through the mud or tear it beyond repair. Instead, she pinned it to the line to dry in the sun

Alberda pinned each article of clothing to the line one by one. She was halfway through when she noticed Willamina crossing the yard. She pretended she didn't see her and continued her work.

It wasn't until Willie stopped in front of her and spoke that she had no choice but to acknowledge her presence.

"Why are you ignoring me, Alberda?" Willamina said with a frown. She stood on the other side of the clothesline.

Alberda hated to see someone so cheerful with a frown on her face, but she kept a stoic facade. "Your uncle doesn't approve. We can't disobey him." The words made her want to vomit. She hung up another shirt, putting a barrier between her and the other girl.

Willamina stepped aside so they could see each other again. "I saw your bruises. What did he do to you?"

Alberda released an exasperated sigh. "He beat me, Willamina!" With a shake of her head, she reached down and plucked another item from the basket. This time it was one of Abigail's fancy skirts. "He beat me senselessly just because I was friends with you."

Willie's expression looked a mixture of concerned and confused. "But why?"
Alberda couldn't help but roll her eyes. Willamina came from a different area and a much different family. They taught her different things, gave her different beliefs. It was obvious.

"That's just the way it works. The colored people do the chores and work in the fields," she explained, growing impatient and nervous. If Theodore saw them she would receive another beating.

"It doesn't have to be that way. It can change." Willie's voice sounded hopeful.

Alberda couldn't help but think she was clueless. "It won't. Not in my lifetime anyways. This is life. Now leave so I can finish." She looked over at the girl and finally met her eyes.

The sadness was evident in Willamina's expression but she left without another word.

Alberda sniffled. She hadn't even realized she had started crying. She wiped the tears from her face and continued on with her work. She didn't have time to cry.

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Word Count: 1695

Thank you for reading!

I hope I didn't do anything to offend anyone this chapter. I did a lot of research and did my best to accurately portray life for a slave in the 1800s.

If the way I phrased or wrote something is offensive, let me know and tell me what I can do to fix it. My goal is not to offend. I simply wanted to portray it in an accurate way.

I tried to not go into detail about the beating because I know it's a sensitive subject that may trigger some people.

Do you like the author's notes at the end of each chapter or should I stop doing them?

Again, thank you for reading.