Summary

Chapter 2.1 recounts the beginning of Sapphira’s suspicion of Nancy. A slave called Lizzie sometimes has a cruel wit and likes to make jokes at Till’s expense. One day, Lizzie turned her attention towards Nancy and made cruel jokes that Nancy was having an affair with Henry Colbert. Sapphira secretly overheard these jokes and decided that they must be based in fact. From that point onward, Sapphira forced Nancy to sleep on the floor near Sapphira’s bedroom door. Sapphira again tries to relinquish Nancy of her cleaning duties at the mill house, instead tasking the young slave Bluebell with them. (Bluebell is Lizzie’s daughter.) However, Henry rejects this switch, as Bluebell is too disruptive in carrying out these duties. The narration states that Henry lives a rather lonely life, as he spends most of his time at the mill or in...