to own this plantation and all of the people that worked on it. A group of workers that included my ancestors!”
Breathing heavily, Webster moved closer to Ariane and whispered, “That’s why you’re here. To make up for their sins by giving us your lives.”
CHAPTER 35
AFTER leaving the announcement ceremony, Hakeem Ndjai checked on Payne and Jones. The guards assured him that neither man had put up a fight while they were being transported, and both of them had been switched from rope restraints to handcuffs, as ordered. The news pleased Ndjai. Because of the prisoners’ background, Ndjai realized that these two men would pose a special problem if they ever escaped from custody, a situation he’d rather not deal with.
Payne had been locked in the smallest cabin on the Plantation, one that was usually reserved for solitary confinement of the island’s troublemakers. It possessed a low-beamed ceiling, a rock-covered floor, eight square feet of living space, and the lingering odor of urine and vomit. All things considered, it was like the hazing room of a typical fraternity house.
Jones, on the other hand, was given the Taj Mahal of slave cabins, a room usually used by the guards. A narrow mattress filled the left-hand corner of the room, nestled between a sink and a small lamp that had been mounted to the thick wooden wall. A white porcelain toilet sat next to the basin, giving Jones a luxury that no other captive was afforded. To make up for it, though, they’d strapped an explosive to his leg, the same device used on the other slaves.
“Hakeem?” called a voice from behind.
Ndjai turned and was surprised to see Levon Greene approaching. He wasn’t used to seeing him on the Plantation. “Yes, Master Greene? Is there a problem?”
Greene shook his head. “I need to have a word with David Jones. Can you let me see him?”
The African nodded, inserting the key into the cabin’s lock. “I will be outside. Just call if you need me.”
“Don’t count on it,” he said dismissively. “This boy’s all mine.”
Greene pushed the door open with confidence and scanned the room for the captive, who was resting comfortably in the corner of the room, his hands bound behind him.
Sitting up on the makeshift bed, Jones spoke. “Levon, is that you?”
Greene nodded. “Are the guards treating you all right?”
“I’m still waiting for room service, but other than that, I can’t complain. How about yourself?” Jones paused for a second. So much had happened during the last couple of hours, he wasn’t sure if Greene’s presence was good or bad. “Oh, yeah! That’s right! You’re one of them, you bastard!”
He ignored the insult. “I came to get you out of here.”
Jones’s eyes widened in the dim light. “Excuse me?”
“You heard me. I came to get you out. Let me see your hands.”
This wasn’t something that Jones was expecting. When Payne had first warned him about Greene, he was skeptical. He couldn’t believe that the Buffalo Soldier was playing for the enemy. But after thinking things over, it started to make sense. The broken guns, Sam’s death, Greene’s escape. Everything fit into place. Greene had been pulling their strings from the very beginning, treating them like wealthy tourists in a game of three-card monte. And now this. One minute he’s Benedict Arnold, the next he’s a hero. “Are you serious?”
“You heard me. Turn around and let me see your hands. Be quick about it!”
Despite his skepticism, Jones leapt off the mattress and turned his back to Greene. “What’s going on? What are you doing?”
“This!”
With a quick burst, Greene forearmed Jones in the back of the head, sending him face-first into the corner of the cabin. Before Jones could gather his senses, Greene pounced on top of him, pummeling him with a series of vicious blows to his ribs and kidneys. Punch after punch, elbow after elbow, landed solidly on Jones’s back, causing him to gasp in agony.
“You have to be the most gullible brother I’ve ever met! Did you actually think I was gonna set you free?” Greene punched Jones again, landing another blow to the back of his head. “What good would it do if I let you go? As far as I can tell, you’ve already chosen a life of captivity. David Jones, house nigger for Jonathon Payne!”
Greene chuckled as he stood. “Of all the people in this world, I hate your kind the most. You’ve been given so many advantages that other brothers would kill for, yet you squander them