Queen (113 page)

    Queen thought she might fight back a little, so that this imperious woman

    did not get the wrong impression of her.

    "I c'n read," she said. The woman smiled, passed her the menu, and

    invited her to sit. She turned her attention to her own baby, and Queen

    sneaked a few glances at her, over the menu. The woman looked up, and

    caught Queen's stare. Queen dropped her eyes to the menu, and the woman

    smiled to herself.

"How old is he?" she asked of Abner.

"Ten months," Queen said.

"Is he weaned?"

    Queen was shocked. She thought it a very personal question for such a

    short acquaintance, and she shook her head. The woman nodded, and thought

    for a moment.

    "I don't suppose you're looking for a job?" she asked Queen, who wasn't

    sure how to reply. She could use the money, but she wanted to find Davis.

"I's going North," she responded ambivalently.

    "This would only distract you for a while," the woman said. "A few weeks

    at most, until I get back to Atlanta. I cannot feed my boy, William."

    She smiled at the baby on her lap, and put a spoon of warm milk to his

    mouth.

    "I have a wet nurse," the woman continued, "but she's uppity, and her

    milk's a little sour. Anyway, William doesn't like it. I pay quite well."

    Queen was astonished by her frankness, and found herself attracted to it,

    She was wary of employers, but the presence of the boy child alleviated

    some of her caution. Some, but not

    QUEEN 687

all. She thought about it for a moment. If the woman paid well, she could

save some money, and if she was only wanted for a few weeks, it would not

unreasonably delay her search for Davis. She was tempted to say yes, but had

to be careful.

    "'Scuse me for asking, maam," she said politely. "But is you very

    religious?"

    The wornan thought the question impertinent, but liked Queen's spirit.

"It's none of your business, but yes, I believe in the Lord."

That worried Queen.

    "Is you on a mission to black folk? Savin' their souls?" she inquired

    carefully.

    ne woman was incredulous. She stared at Queen for a moment, and then

    laughed, in open derision.

"I don't believe you nigras have souls," she said.

    That was a considerable relief to Queen. She understood people who thought

    like that-she had been brought up with them-and she preferred that attitude

    to Miss Mandy's missionary zeal. She laughed with the woman, but for

    different reasons.

    "That's all right," she said. "We could work for you. Fo' a little while."

    "Good," the woman said, puzzled by her, or at least by her laughter. "I

    think I'm pleased. I am Mrs. Benson. Can you start immediately? We are

    traveling to Beaufort, and have stopped for lunch."

    Queen agreed that she could, and gave her name. Mrs. Benson sent her to the

    nigra tables, telling Queen to order what she liked, she would pay for it.

    Queen was pleased, and as she walked to the back of the store, she

    whispered to Abner that they had just got lucky.

Mrs. Benson was pleased too; it solved a very difficult problem. She had not

told Queen the exact truth. A wet nurse, Plick, had been with her when they

started out from Atlanta, but she didn't have one now. Plick had a six-month

baby of her own, and was difficult, uppity, forever making speeches about

the new equality of blacks, and demanding her rights. William didn't like

her. Nor did Mr. Benson, who had demanded her dismissal. It had all come to

a head that morning,

688 ALEX HALEY'S QUEEN

and Plick had left in high dudgeon, leaving Mrs. Benson stranded in the

middle of nowhere with an eight-month-old baby to feed. The situation was

so desperate that Mrs. Benson thought she might have to desert her

husband, even though he needed her sorely, and return to Atlanta. She'd

come to the caf6 to be alone while her husband met with some associates,

and this white creature had come in with an unweaned, nigra child, and was

looking for a job.

    "The Lord moves in mysterious ways," Mrs. Benson said to William.

    William was completely satisfied with the new arrangement, and snuggled

    happily to Queen's breast before they resumed their journey. Abner wasn't

    jealous, Mrs. Benson was pleased, Micah was friendly to Queen, and Mr.

    Benson ignored her. The only unpleasant thing was the humidity, which was

    completely enervating. Shortly before they reached Beaufort, two days

    later, a blessed rain shower cleared the air, but it was still hot.

As they rode into the town, Queen began to share some of Micah's

apprehension, for there was an atmosphere of tension and potential

violence. Small groups of strikers stood on street comers, singing and

chanting, and shouting their grievances. Other groups of white men

harangued them, and once a scuffle broke out between the two groups. A

couple of armed sheriffs ignored the fray. Beyond that the streets were

deserted, as if the good citizens of the town were staying inside, to

avoid trouble, or perhaps the weather.

    Micah guided the coach to the hotel, which appeared deserted, but as soon

    as they arrived bellhops came running out to handle the luggage. Micah

    helped Queen and Abner down from the box, while Mr. Benson jumped out and

    went to greet a couple of businessmen who had come out of the hotel.

    Queen and Micah helped Mrs. Benson and William from the carriage, and

    Mrs. Benson looked at the town.

    She didn't seem impressed by what she saw, but gave William to Queen,

    squared her shoulders, and organized the bellhops, calling out

    instructions for the luggage. There were some shouts from across the

    street, and another fight. Two black strikers were beating up a white

    redneck, and again, no one interfered.

    QUEEN 689

    Mr. Benson watched the fight, and seemed to be appraising the situation.

    As he turned back to his associates, he caught Queen's eye, and she

    shivered, for the look on his face frightened her. He said something to

    his friends, and then told Mrs. Benson to see the rooms while he talked

    with his friends. The men walked away, deep in conversation. Mrs. Benson

    told Queen to come along, and swept into the hotel, which was the best

    the town had to offer. Queen, carrying Abner and William, followed.

    Inside, the manager himself greeted Mrs. Benson, and the fon-nalities of

    checking in were quickly attended to. The manager led the way upstairs,

    Queen followed with the boys, and Micah, who was directing the bellhops,

    and Queen began to think that Mrs. Benson must be a very important lady.

    The suite was spacious, a sitting room and two bedrooms. Mrs. Benson came

    into it with the retinue of staff and the obsequious manager, who was

    telling her how splendid the rooms were. Mrs. Benson was not impressed,

    and the heat made her tetchy. Queen waited to be told what to do, and

    Abner began to cry.

    "If these are your best, they'll have to do," she told the unhappy

    manager, "but they're not what we're used to." She looked into the master

    bedroom.

    "Our finest suite, ma'am," he insisted, but Mrs. Benson ignored him and

    ran a gloved finger over a table.

    "Filthy," she snapped, "hasn't been dusted in weeks. I want maids in here

    now."

    She looked into the second room. "And my nigras?" she asked the manager.

    "Tolerable accommodations in back, ma'am," he said, wishing she'd go

    away. He had a headache from the heat.

    Mrs. Benson pointed to the room that was to be the nursery and turned to

    Queen. "Get William settled in there," she said.

    "Abner's hungry, Missy," Queen began, but Mrs. Benson wasn't interested

    in Abner's problems. Or Queen's. Or anyone else's.

    "Then Abner will have to wait," she said. "William comes first, at all

    times. You know that."

    She went into the bedroom, commanding the manager to follow her by the

    sheer tone of her voice.

690 ALEX HALEY'S QUEEN

    "I will need a baby carriage for my son, and good supply of clean towels"

    was the last Queen heard. She took the boys into the nursery room, and laid

    them on the bed. She changed William's linen, got him ready for bed, and

    offered to feed him, but he wasn't hungry. She did not dare feed Abner

    while Mrs. Benson was in her present mood.

    She ran to Mrs. Benson's orders for an hour, and then one of the bellhops

    showed her to her tolerable accommodations, which were intolerable, and had

    been the old slave quarters, tin shacks at the back of the hotel. The

    waning afternoon had not relieved the heat, and Queen's room was an oven.

    Like everyone else, Queen was on the edge of her temper, for the weather

    was unbearable, and Abner was still crying.

    She opened a tiny lid in the roof that was the only ventilation, grumbling

    about Mrs. Benson's commands, and then sat on the bed to feed Abner.

    "Bossy ol' bitch," she said to herself about her employer, as her son took

    his fill. She looked about the awful room.

    "Hotter'n Hades," she said. "How's a body s'pposed to sleep?" She rested

    her head back against the wall, and sang a little lullaby to Abner until he

    was done, and then she changed him, and settled him on a pillow on the

    floor. She thought she might feel better if she had a wash, and opened the

    door to find the black washhouse, when Micah came to her.

    "She want you, Missy Queen," he said. He looked tired and frayed, for his

    Missy had been difficult. "She gwine shoppin'. "

    Queen began to understand why the other wet nurse had left Mrs. Benson's

    employ. She wondered what to do about Abner, but would not leave him on his

    own, so, toting him on her hip, she went to find Mrs. Benson, who was in

    the lobby complaining about the quality of the soap.

The world, or the hotel, had jumped to Mrs. Benson's command. A baby

carriage had been found for William, and Abner was allowed the use of it.

Once the boys were comfortable and the matter of the soap resolved, Mrs.

Benson went out onto the street, with Queen following, pushing the carriage.

Micah went with them, although Queen wasn't sure why, but he helped her with

the baby carriage.

    QUEEN 691

    There were very few people about, just some strikers walking as if with

    some purpose to somewhere else, and three or four white bystanders,

    jeering them. Queen saw a couple of sheriffs, with their guns, moving

    quickly to someplace in the town, and there were shouts and cheers coming

    from that direction.

    Queen would have walked the other way, but to her surprise Mrs. Benson

    walked toward the distant noise, looking for a shop that suited her list.

    As they crossed the street, a black beggar approached her.

    "Spare some change, Missy," he pleaded with Mrs. Benson. "I ain't et in

    a week."

    "Then get back to work," Mrs. Benson told him briskly, without breaking

    her stride. "Lazy nigras," she said to no one in particular, and Queen

    flushed. Abner and William were asleep, side by side, in the carriage.

    Mrs. Benson stopped to look in the window of a provisions store.

    "I want good milk," she told Queen. "I don't trust that hotel. And fresh

    fruit-there must be some fresh fruit somewhere."

    Queen looked in the window. There was a display of fine peaches.

    "Here," she suggested, but Mrs. Benson glanced at the name on the sign

    above the store.

"No," Mrs. Benson said. "Not here. They are Semitic."

    She walked on. Queen glanced back at the sign, but the name painted on

    it meant nothing to her.

"What's Semitic?" she asked Mrs. Benson.

    "Jews," Mrs. Benson said. "Semites. We do not give them our business. I'm

    sure there's somewhere else."

    They walked on, and came closer to the shouting and cheering. Queen could

    see a large group of men gathered, having a street meeting. Mrs. Benson

    found a store that suited her, and made her purchases. There was no

    respite from the heat, and inside the store was hotter than outside.

    Shopping done, Mrs. Benson came out with Queen to check her list. Abner

    had wakened, and Queen picked him up and rocked him while she waited for

    Mrs. Benson. As she did so, she watched the men at the meeting, and

    wondered what it was all about. A black man had climbed onto a box, and

    was making a speech to the strikers.

692 ALEX HALEY'S QUEEN

    Sheriffs stood watching, guns ready. White workingmen jeered the speaker.

    "You all know our cause," the speaker told the strikers. "Decent pay fo' a

    decent's day's work."

The strikers cheered.

    "Cash money, instead of checks that can only be redeemed at plantation

    stores," the speaker shouted, and the strikers cheered again.

    Mrs. Benson glanced at the speaker, and then went back to ticking things

    off on her list.

    "They're the ones that should be shot," she said absently, to Queen. "The

    ringleaders."

    But Queen was not listening. She was fascinated by the voice of the

    speaker.

    "They promised us better things in better times, but those better days

    never come," the speaker proclaimed. "And I am overflowing with their

    unkept promises."

    It was Davis; Queen was sure of it. She could not see his face clearly, but

    his voice was as familiar to her as her own. She had found him at last, and

    her heart, was beating fast, while her shoulders sagged in relief. She

    listened to the words pour out of him, in impassioned oratory.

    "I don't care what they say they will do," Davis told his rapt audience. "I

    judge them only by what they have done. And until now they have done

    nothing. So from now, we take. But we take only what is rightfully ours,

    what is rightfully due to us, only what we have been promised."

    He was a beautiful and eloquent speaker. All the deep anger and passion

    that had churned within him for so many years had finally found its outlet.

    Queen's eyes sparkled with pride and pricked with tears. She moved a little

    closer, off the sidewalk, onto the road to see him better. She wanted to

    run to him, to throw herself into his arms, to tell him how much she loved

    him. But she could not do that here, in public. Her business with him was

    private.

    And there was something else, something more important, to do. She held

    Abner up, high in the air, as high as she could, so that he might see the

    man and hear his voice.

    Mrs. Benson looked up from her list, and was puzzled to see Queen standing

    in the road holding her son in the air.

    QUEEN 693

    "Come along, Queen, don't dawdle," she called, but Queen did not hear

    her, or if she did, she did not respond. Mrs. Benson clucked in

    irritation, and moved closer to Queen, to fetch her.

Queen had eyes only for Davis and mind for Abner.

    "It is now!" Davis cried, and the strikers cheered him louder than ever.

    Oblivious to everything but her boy and his father, Queen cried out to

    Abner. "Look, boy, it's yo' pappy!"

    Abner was not the only one who heard this news. Mrs. Benson heard it too,

    and smiled a small astonished smile of curious excitement. And the look

    in her eyes was triumphant.

    81

Oueen wanted to stay, to try to make some contact with Davis, but the

cheering strikers led him away, and Mrs. Benson was anxious to be gone.

As they walked back to the hotel, Mrs. Benson chatted happily with Queen,

and did not discuss what they had seen, or anything about the strike. As

they were about to go into the hotel, she casually asked if Queen knew the

man who had been speaking. Queen wasn't quite sure what to say. She

recognized that her actions with Abner must have been puzzling to Mrs.

Benson, and admitted that she thought she had met the man once, a long

time ago, but was mistaken. Mrs. Benson seemed satisfied, and they went

into the hotel.

    Queen's nerves were jangling, with anticipation because she was so close

    to Davis, and dread that he might not want to see her again. She tried

    to work out her feelings toward him, but she was too excited to be

    rational. She loved him stillshe was sure of that-loved him even more

    perhaps, for his speech had inspired her, and she was so proud of him it

    made her heart sing. She could not imagine what he would think of her,

    or of Abner, and she fretted that he might resent the boy.

694 ALEX HALEY'S QUEEN

She felt a spasm of anger then. Even if Davis did not want to accept

parentage, Abner was the reason he had left Huntsville and traveled on the

road to his true vocation, so he should be grateful for that, at least. Then

she remembered the courtesy and kindness that Davis had always shown her,