By Jewel Blackwood

Muriel remembered her mother quite well. Especially her voice. Her songs were like a gentle breeze that caressed its way into sugarcane fields on a scorching day.

The melodies also gave Muriel the strength to make her escape. Whenever they fired muskets in the distance, she hummed her mother’s rendition of “All the Pretty Horses.” The barks echoed menacingly but were not a match for the tune “Oh Gar Almighty.”

She knew that her mother was somewhere in the mountains, singing for children of maroons who played all day. She also knew that her mother was waiting for her to join them and live a life free from the lair of cat o’nines and branding irons. Free like their ancestors.

As she approached the river, there was no turning back. It was her only way out, but she didn’t dare cross it. She could find no more hiding places. Soon they would pounce. She needed to cross the river, but she was caged by fear.

Rivers can’t be trusted. The last river deceived her eleven years ago when her mom tried to escape with her and her brother. It snatched her from her mother’s grip, wrapped itself around her, and with its strong deceptive currents, slithered its way into the sea. Fortunately, she had been rescued by missionaries who took her to another plantation. This river might deceive her as well, with its calm, unassuming exterior.

Will I survive this time?

And even if the river does nothing, who says the River Mumma will ignore the intrusion? It is, after all, her haven. Muriel’s mother shared tales of how the River Mumma would sit on the river bank and comb her beautiful, black hair on a fiery day.

When River Mumma shows up at midday

Do your best to look away

For if you dare to stare

While she combs her hair

She will put you in a trance

And drown you at the first chance.

Like the river, beautiful creatures can’t be trusted. Especially those who call the river their home.

The voices were much closer now. They must not take her alive. As she stepped into the shallow river, it hissed and rattled. It would strike at any moment.

Four more steps and the water was up to her chest. The hounds were out for blood, and she could feel their breaths on her neck. Her heart sank as shouts of “I see her!” edged closer to the river bank.

The river will soon devour me, but at least it’s more bearable than hooks tearing into my flesh.

As she took a deep breath and prepared to go under, a woman burst into song. It was the most soothing voice she ever heard! Muriel couldn’t see her, but the song emanated from the center of the river.

She didn’t hear the lyrics—clearly, this mystery woman had a secret to share. However, the once terrorizing hounds wanted no part of it. They howled, whimpered, and retreated like puppies. Even the birds in fruit trees close by seemed to give up their singing skills and fluttered away as if it was time to roost. But the men in the search party, arrested by her soulful song and perhaps captivating beauty, directed their undivided attention towards the center of the water.

All of nature, including the river, became still as the woman belted out high notes that put the men under a spell. Before she knew it, Muriel crossed the river and entered the forest once more. As the men made their way to the center of the river, Muriel skipped towards the mountains with a new song in her heart.