The woman continued to stand there, her gaze occasionally darting to the children as though she wanted to return to playing with them and Jane was keeping her from it. To be fair, Jane was detaining her, so she cut straight to the point.
“I took the liberty of bringing a side of bacon as a gift, thinking it might keep.” Though truly, how anyone could keep anything in one of these sheds was beyond Jane. If they accomplished nothing else in the next two weeks, they simply must do something to address that.
“Bacon?” Nkiruka studied Jane for a moment, compressing her lips. Then she turned her back on them and headed for one of the sheds to the side of the yard. “That good. Amey go lub dat.”
Jane had to struggle for a moment to understand the woman. She had thought that Louisa and Zeus sounded Antiguan born, but even these few words made it clear that she had barely heard the Antiguan accent. She frowned, trying to make the alteration in her understanding.
Louisa misinterpreted the frown and spoke in a low tone to her. “Please forgive her, madam. She is old, and as a field slave, has not learned to be around the master or any other white people. The manners of the others, too, may be coarser than what you are accustomed to.”
“I am aware that I am not in a drawing room.” Jane picked her way across the yard, glad that she had worn one of her shorter day dresses. The hem would still need attention, but at least it would not drag in the dirt.
At the door to the small shed, Nkiruka stuck her head into the dark interior. “Amey! Lady from de big house ya fu see you.”
A moment later, a woman of colour who was heavy with child emerged from the house. Though not so dark as Nkiruka, her skin was still deeper than any of the house slaves, with a dash of freckles across her nose and cheeks. She wore a ragged dress, and the swell of her belly lifted the front hem to the middle of her shins. She had a hand against her back and squinted against the sun as she stepped out.
Jane’s gaze was dragged back to the woman’s stomach. She must be very near her time. Perhaps it was only the threadbare frock that made her appear so large, but Jane could not help brushing her hand down the front of her own gown. Her stomach had not increased even half so much, and she already felt enormous.
If Amey had not attempted a curtsy, made clumsy by her condition, Jane might have stared for another five minutes before collecting herself. The social forms gave her an anchor. She returned the curtsy before remembering the difference in their stations. She hoped the young woman would not take it as a mockery. She quickly brushed past it by introducing herself and stating her purpose in visiting.
“That is kind of you, ma’am.” Amey turned to Zeus. “A table inside.”
He nodded and carried the basket into the dark interior.
Louisa called after him. “The little jar in the basket—bring it with you when you come back.” She murmured to Jane, “I brought a bit of candied ginger for the children.”
“Oh. Thank you, that was thoughtful of you.” In spite of the records that she had looked at, it had not occurred to Jane to bring a sweet. She waited, awkward in the silence, for Zeus to return. The children whispered to each other, all seemingly curious about her. Nkiruka, too, watched her steadily. Jane became keenly aware of the paleness of her own skin. She had not given her complexion much thought before, besides wishing that it were not quite so sallow. Clearing her throat, she offered the old woman a smile. “The spider you worked earlier was an interesting glamour.”
“Anansi?” Nkiruka shrugged as if that were no great thing.
“I was curious about what folds you were using to lay it. It seemed clever—”
At that moment, Zeus appeared with the little jar. Jane’s interest in candied ginger had never been lower, but the children who had followed them to the house all stared at it with something akin to awe. He handed the jar to Louisa, who in turn held it out to Jane.
Jane shook her head. “It was your idea. Please.”
“It is more proper coming from you.”
“Is proper really a concern?” Jane moved to the nearest bench, which had the dual advantages of being shaded by the shed and removed from the chaos of the children. She pulled her bonnet off, though they were yet out of doors. She was enough in the shade to prefer a breeze to the stifling closeness of the straw brim. “May I sit?”
“If you want.”
“Will you join me?”
With a shrug, Nkiruka settled next to her on the bench. Zeus and Louisa moved a few feet away and opened the jar of candied ginger. One girl reached out to touch the cotton of Louisa’s gown, but otherwise, their attention seemed fixed on the jar. Zeus smiled and held out a piece of ginger. She had not seen him smile before. It quite changed his face.