"Your woman she never fix up your hair?" was clearly a question for sethe, since that's who shewas looking at.
"My woman? You mean my mother? If she did, I don't remember. I didn't see her but a few times out in the fields and once when she was working indigo. By thetime I woke up in the morning, she was in line. If the moon was bright they worked by its light. Sunday she slept like a stick. She must of nursed me two or three weeks — that's the way theothers did. Then she went back in rice and I sucked from another woman whose job it was. So toanswer you, no. I reckon not. She never fixed my hair nor nothing. She didn't even sleep in thesame cabin most nights I remember. Too far from the lineup, I guess. One thing she did do. She picked me up and carried me behind the smokehouse. Back there she opened up her dress front andlifted her breast and pointed under it. Right on her rib was a circle and a cross burnt right in theskin. She said, 'This is your ma'am. This,' and she pointed. 'I am the only one got this mark now.
The rest dead.
If something happens to me and you can't tell me by my face, you can know me bythis mark.' Scared me so. All I could think of was how important this was and how I needed tohave something important to say back, but I couldn't think of anything so I just said what I thought.
'Yes, Ma'am,' I said. 'But how will you know me? How will you know me? Mark me, too,' I said.
'Mark the mark on me too.'" Sethe chuckled.
"Did she?" asked Denver.
"She slapped my face."