Uncle Silas went to town again before breakfast. He could not find any news about Tom. Uncle Silas and Aunt Sally sat at the table. They both felt very sad. They did not talk and they did not eat. Their coffee stayed cold on the table.
After some time, Uncle Silas asked Aunt Sally about a letter. He got a letter from the post-office yesterday. He forgot to give it to Aunt Sally. He found the letter and gave it to her. Aunt Sally said the letter was from her sister in St. Petersburg.
I wanted to leave the room, but I could not move. Before Aunt Sally opened the letter, she saw something outside. She dropped the letter and ran out the door. I saw it too. A group of people was coming to the house.
Tom Sawyer was there. He was lying on a mattress (a large, soft pad for sleeping). The old doctor was with him. Jim was there too. Jim was wearing the woman's dress. His hands were tied behind his back. I hid Aunt Sally’s letter quickly.
Aunt Sally ran to Tom. she cried because she thought Tom was dead. Tom moved his head a little. He said strange things because he was not in his right mind. Aunt Sally was happy because Tom was alive. She went into the house to get a bed ready for him.
I followed the men to see what they would do with Jim. Uncle Silas and the doctor went into the house with Tom. The men were very angry with Jim. Some men wanted to hang Jim. They wanted to show other slaves that running away was bad.
Other men said no. They did not want to pay the owner for a dead man. These men were only worried about money. So they did not hang Jim. But they said many mean words to him and hit him. Jim did not say anything. He did not look at me.
They took Jim to the same small house. They put his own clothes on him. They put heavy chains on his hands and his legs. They said he could only have bread and water. They put guards with guns outside the house. They also tied a large dog to the door.
The old doctor came to look at Jim. He told the men to be kind to Jim. He said Jim was not a bad man. The doctor told a story about the island. He said he could not fix Tom’s leg alone. He needed help, but he could not leave the boy.
The doctor said Jim came out from the trees to help him. Jim was a very good nurse. He stayed all day and all night. He worked very hard and he was very faithful. Jim risked his freedom to help the sick boy. The doctor liked Jim because Jim had a good heart.
The doctor said Jim was worth a lot of money because he was so good. The doctor stayed with the two of them until morning. Then some men in a boat came by. Jim was sleeping because he was very tired. The men jumped on Jim and tied him up. Jim was quiet and did not fight.
The men heard the doctor’s story. They felt a little better about Jim. They promised not to say mean words to him anymore. I was happy the doctor helped Jim. I always thought the doctor was a good man.
The men locked Jim up again. I wanted them to take off the heavy chains. I wanted Jim to have better food. But I did not say anything. I did not want the family to ask me questions. I stayed away from Uncle Silas all day.
The next morning, Tom felt much better. Aunt Sally went to take a nap. I went into Tom’s room. He was sleeping quietly. He was very pale. After half an hour, Aunt Sally came back into the room. She told me to be very quiet.
We watched Tom for a long time. Finally, Tom opened his eyes. He looked around the room. He asked if he was at home. He asked about the raft (a flat boat made of pieces of wood). I told him everything was okay. He asked about Jim. I said Jim was okay too.
Tom was very happy. He thought Jim was free. He began to tell Aunt Sally the whole story. He told her how he and Huck set Jim free. Aunt Sally was very surprised. She thought Tom was still sick in his head.
Tom said he was not crazy. He said it was a lot of work. He told her about the stolen sheets and spoons. He told her about the ladder and the hole in the wall. He said they did it all by themselves. He thought it was a great adventure.
Aunt Sally was very angry. She said the boys scared the whole family. She said she would punish them when Tom was well. Then she told Tom that Jim was not free. She said Jim was back in the cabin with heavy chains.
Tom sat up in bed. He was very angry. He told Aunt Sally that the men had no right to lock Jim up. He said Jim was not a slave. He said Jim was as free as any other person. Aunt Sally did not understand.
Tom said he knew Jim all his life. He said that Old Miss Watson died two months ago. Before she died, she felt sorry. She wrote a will (a legal paper that says what happens after a person dies). In that paper, she said Jim was a free man.
Aunt Sally asked why the boys tried to set Jim free if he was already free. Tom said he wanted an adventure. Just then, Aunt Polly walked into the room! Aunt Polly was Tom’s aunt from St. Petersburg.
Aunt Sally was very happy to see her sister. She hugged Aunt Polly. I felt very nervous. I hid under the bed. Aunt Polly looked at Tom. Aunt Sally called him Sid. But Aunt Polly said his name was Tom.
Aunt Polly saw me under the bed. She told me to come out. She told Aunt Sally that I was Huck Finn. She said the boy in the bed was Tom Sawyer. Aunt Sally and Uncle Silas were very confused. They did not understand the mystery.
Aunt Polly told the truth about everyone. I explained why I used Tom’s name. I said I had to do it when Aunt Sally called me Tom. I knew Tom would not mind. Tom liked the mystery and the adventure.
Aunt Polly said Tom was right about Jim. Miss Watson really did set Jim free in her will (a legal paper that says what happens after a person dies). Tom had worked for weeks to set a free man free. He did it only for the fun of the adventure.
Aunt Polly was also angry about her letters. She wrote two letters to Aunt Sally. She wanted to know why Sid was at the house. But Aunt Sally never got the letters. Aunt Polly asked Tom where the letters were.
Tom said the letters were in his trunk. He got them from the post-office, but he did not read them. He knew the letters would tell the truth. He wanted to finish the adventure before anyone found out the secret.