Summary

Part Three, October 1818 – November 1820

Handful – Mauma has been gone for six years, and Handful is now twenty-five. The other slaves believe Mauma is either dead or a runaway, but Sarah doesn’t believe her mother has run off. A the market, Sarah overhears Jesse, a kind slave, talk about an African church. The African Methodist Episcopal Church, convened in a hearse house near slave burial grounds, is packed every night with free men and slaves alike. There, Denmark Vesey preaches about Charleston being Egypt all over again. Mrs. Grimke allows Handful to go, so long as it does not interfere with her work.

Sarah – Sarah and fourteen year-old Nina are called to the meeting room to see their mother and Reverend Gadsden. Nina has publicly refused to be confirmed into St. Philip’s. Even the bishop, during the service, cannot get Nina...