Cue is born on a large plantation to enslaved field workers named Sarah and Cuffee. In their brief reprieves from backbreaking labor, they care for him well. He grows up accustomed to slavery, and he never thinks much about escaping. As a young man, Cue works as a blacksmith. Unlike house or field slaves, he does not interact much with the overseers or the master’s family. Thus, their violence seems somewhat distant. When Cue’s parents die from an illness, he realizes that they worked hard all their lives and yet never owned anything for themselves. This opens Cue’s eyes to the injustice of his circumstances. He goes to visit Aunt Rachel, an older woman who knew his parents well. She tells him that his grandfather was descended from the Corromantee people on the Gold Coast of Africa, who are known for starting slave revolts in the Americas. Rachel tells him about the Underground Railroad, and she advises him to listen to the animals and trees before doing anything rash. The next day, Cue runs away. He is quickly found, and the overseer whips him. Rachel sends her granddaughter, Sukey, to tend to Cue’s wounds. She works in the big house, and she teaches him how to read and write. Once he is healed, he runs away again. The overseer shoots him, and he is sold to another plantation to work in the fields. Cue runs away, and this time he remembers Rachel’s advice. He makes it up north by following the Underground Railroad. Eventually, he ends up a free man in Canada. Cue changes his name to John H. Cue and finds work in a blacksmith shop. One day, he sees Sukey walking down the street as a free woman.