Chapter 2

CHAPTER 2 THREE WEEKS EARLIER LATE AFTERNOON KONX'S FARM, OAK RIDGE, VIRGINIA Thomas crept slowly toward the squirrel. It was fat and would make a fine supper. Just thinking about it made his stomach rumble. Times were tough on the farm. His owner, Mr. Knox, could barely feed his horses — or his slaves. Thomas was just about to snare the squirrel when his little sister's voice sang out. "Thomas!" The squirrel darted away. Thomas turned toward Birdie, fuming. She was only five years old, but she knew better than to

第二章三周前的傍晚，弗吉尼亚州橡树岭，康克斯的农场托马斯慢慢地向松鼠走去。 它很肥，可以做一顿丰盛的晚餐。 一想到这，他的肚子就咕咕叫起来。 农场的日子很艰难。 他的主人诺克斯先生几乎喂不饱他的马和奴隶。 托马斯正准备诱捕松鼠时，小妹妹的声音响起了。 “托马斯!”松鼠飞奔而去。 托马斯怒气冲冲地转向伯蒂。 她只有五岁，但她知道不该这么做

yell when he was trying to hunt! But then there she was, with her crooked grin and twiggy legs, rushing toward him. His heart turned to mush. "Look what I caught!" she said proudly, holding out her cupped hands. Inside was a little green snake, covered with mud. "Isn't it beautiful?" she said. Thomas had to smile. That was Birdie: Give her a grimy little snake, and she'd see a butterfly. Birdie held up her hands and looked at the baby snake, putting her face so close Thomas thought she might kiss it. "All right," she said to the snake. "I'm going to let you go now." She crouched down and released it onto the dirt. They watched as the creature streaked away, disappearing into the shadows of the forest.

当他试图狩猎时大喊大叫!但她就在那里，带着她那扭曲的笑容和纤细的腿，向他冲了过来。 他的心都要碎了。“看我抓到了什么!”她骄傲地说，伸出她的双手。 里面是一条绿色的小蛇，满身是泥。 “很漂亮吧?”她说。 托马斯不得不笑了。那就是小鸟:给她一条脏兮兮的小蛇，她就会看到一只蝴蝶。 伯蒂举起双手，看着小蛇，把脸凑得很近，托马斯觉得她可能会吻它。 “好吧，”她对蛇说。 “我现在要放你走了。” 她蹲下来，把它放在泥土上。 他们看着那怪物飞奔而去，消失在森林的阴影里。

Thomas wondered: Would he and Birdie ever be as free as that snake? They'd been born slaves on this farm. Their mama had died here when Birdie was a baby. And two summers ago their cousin Clem had been sold away to a plantation down in Mississippi, where slaves were worked half to death. Clem was only seventeen at the time, but he'd been almost like a father to them after Mama died. He'd watched over them, cared for them, protected them. And he'd taught Thomas about freedom. He said that not far from here, in the states up north, slavery was illegal. People there believed it was evil. Clem told stories about slaves who'd run away from their owners. They'd followed the North Star, the brightest star in the sky. They'd traveled for days and days and made it to freedom. They were brave enough to run through dark forests and snake-filled swamps. They were clever enough to outsmart the slave catchers, who

托马斯想:他和伯蒂会像那条蛇一样自由吗? 他们生来就是这个农场的奴隶。 他们的妈妈在伯蒂还是个婴儿的时候就在这里去世了。 两年前的夏天，他们的堂兄克莱姆被卖到密西西比的一个种植园，在那里奴隶们被工作到半死。 克莱姆当时只有17岁，但在妈妈去世后，他几乎就像他们的父亲一样。 他照顾他们，照顾他们，保护他们。 他教会了托马斯自由。 他说，在离这里不远的北部各州，奴隶制是非法的。 那里的人认为它是邪恶的。 克莱姆讲了一些奴隶从主人那里逃跑的故事。 他们跟着天空中最亮的星星——北极星走。 他们走了很多天，终于获得了自由。 他们有足够的勇气穿过黑暗的森林和充满蛇的沼泽。 他们很聪明，比抓奴隶的人更聪明

tracked them with ferocious dogs that could smell them from miles away. "But then they make it to freedom, just like we will one day," Clem would say, his eyes flashing like tiny torches. "One day we will run." He'd close his eyes. "Picture it, Thomas," he'd say. "Picture it in your mind. Can't you see us? Can't you see us all together?" And Thomas could see it, bright pictures that filled his mind and gave him a flickering feeling of hope in his heart. But then Clem was taken, and those pictures went dark. Just thinking about Clem gave Thomas a searing pain, even worse than the lash of Mr. Knox's whip. Now the only picture in his mind was one of Clem being dragged away in chains. "Are you sad, Thomas?" Birdie said, looking up at him.

用凶猛的狗追踪他们，几英里外就能闻到。 “但后来他们获得了自由，就像我们总有一天会获得自由一样，”克莱姆会说，他的眼睛像小火把一样闪闪发光。 “总有一天我们会逃跑。”他会闭上眼睛。 “想象一下，托马斯，”他会说。 “在你的脑海中想象一下。你看不见我们吗? 难道你看不到我们大家在一起吗?”托马斯能看到它，明亮的画面充满了他的脑海，给了他心中闪烁的希望。 但克莱姆被抓走了，照片就黑了。 一想到克莱姆，托马斯就感到一阵灼痛，甚至比诺克斯先生的鞭子还痛。 现在他脑子里唯一的画面就是克莱姆被人用铁链拖走的画面。 “你难过吗，托马斯?”伯迪抬头看着他说。

He put his hand on her head. "How could I be sad with you here with me?" he said. With Clem gone, it was up to Thomas to make Birdie feel safe. "I'm just thinking about how to catch us a nice supper," he said. He sent Birdie back to their shack to weed their garden. But just a few minutes later she was back. She was breathing hard, her eyes wide and scared. Was she hurt? "Those men are here," she whispered, grabbing Thomas's hand. "What men?" Thomas said. Hardly anyone came to the farm anymore. Mrs. Knox was dead. Mr. Knox's two sons were gone, fighting in the war. "Those bad men," Birdie said. "The ones who took Clem." Thomas's heart cracked open. "I heard them talking," Birdie said, her words choked by tears. "They've come for you!"

他把手放在她的头上。 他说:“有你在我身边，我怎能忧伤呢?” 克莱姆走了，让小鸟感到安全就靠托马斯了。 “我只是在想怎么给我们抓一顿丰盛的晚餐，”他说。 他让小鸟回到他们的小屋给他们的花园除草。 但几分钟后她就回来了。 她呼吸困难，眼睛睁得大大的，很害怕。 她受伤了吗?“那些人来了，”她低声说，抓住托马斯的手。 “什么人?”托马斯说。几乎没有人再来农场了。 诺克斯太太死了。诺克斯先生的两个儿子都去打仗了。 “那些坏人，”小鸟说。 “抓走克莱姆的人。”托马斯的心都碎了。 “我听到他们在说话，”伯迪说，她的话被泪水哽咽了。 “他们来找你了!”

Thomas heard voices from across the field; Mr. Knox calling for him. "Boy!" Mr. Knox was yelling. "I need you now!" Thomas stood there, frozen. He heard Clem's voice in his mind. Run! Thomas grabbed Birdie. And like that little snake, Thomas and Birdie disappeared into the shadowy forest.

托马斯听到了战场那边传来的声音;诺克斯先生在找他。 “小子!”诺克斯先生在大叫。 “我现在需要你!”托马斯站在那里，僵住了。 他在脑海中听到克莱姆的声音。 快跑!托马斯抓住小鸟。 就像那条小蛇一样，托马斯和伯蒂消失在阴暗的森林里。