Summary

Chapter 1 opens in Virginia during the first half of the 1800s, although the exact year is unspecified. The protagonist is Hiram Walker, who is a slave. Hiram is the mixed-race son of a slave and a plantation owner. Hiram lives on a tobacco plantation called Lockless in an unspecified Virginia town. Hiram’s father is Howell Walker, the owner of the plantation. Maynard Walker, who is white, is also the son of the plantation owner, and is therefore Hiram’s half-brother. Hiram’s father sold Hiram’s mother when Hiram was about nine years old. One day, when Hiram and Maynard are traveling across a wooden bridge, the bridge collapses, and they fall into the river.

Chapter 2 suddenly shifts focus to Hiram’s childhood. Hiram states in narration that, for his entire life, he has wanted to escape slavery. Even when he was a...