Against All Odds

by Marian L. Jasper

  She wasn’t going to visit Mark that day, but she would be going early afternoon the next day, then go and visit Bea or Ada or both and then return with the ‘forgotten’ book as it was nearing dusk.

  As Liza was feeding Meg and Zelma was chatting over the next days’ plans, the Cherokee scout suddenly appeared in the room. How he always managed to arrive with nobody knowing, neither of them could work out. He told them that everything was in order for the next day and there were several of them to create as many diversions as were needed to make sure that ‘the man’ got cleanly away.

  He came over and looked closely at little Meg saying, “She’s still with us then,” he shook his head and left as quietly as he came.

  “Are you as scared as I feel?” asked Zelma.

  “When you’re planning something like this, there isn’t time to be scared, but now that we have nearly got to that time, yes I feel really scared and wish there was nothing that I had to do and I want tomorrow to be over and done with. I’m still concerned about getting him out of the prison. I’m just hoping that it’s dark enough and that I can engage the guard on the gate to stop him looking closely at the buggy,” said Liza.

  Liza left Meg with Zelma and walked to the press office and was surprised to see not only Greg and Laurie there but Corporal Shaw was leaning against the new editor’s desk. He smiled at Liza as she walked in and told her that Lieutenant Webber had ordered him to bring a list of army instructions to be printed at the new printing press. Both Laurie and Greg were rushing around shouting at each other as they were not finding it easy to place the letters correctly backwards.

  “What are you going to be like when we have a twenty-four page newspaper to print?” asked Liza, which stopped them in their tracks. “Calm down and think about it for a minute. Panicking will get nothing done. When does Ben want them by?”

  “To be honest, Mrs Kelly, whenever they are ready will be all right by him. I think he and the colonel wanted to give some work to you to get the operation started,” said the corporal.

  “Have either of you thought about how much to charge for this work?” asked Liza.

  They both shook their heads. “Ah well,” said Liza. “I suppose that’s my job really.”

  Corporal Shaw was now laughing. “I can see that this is going to be a very happy place to work. Are you going to the fort today, Mrs Kelly?”

  “Not today, Corporal,” replied Liza.

  “You could bring the printing with you when you visit tomorrow then,” he said. “I know you are going tomorrow,” he said quietly and Liza looked at him with concern. “Don’t worry I’m not here to disrupt any of your plans, if anything I’m here to help.” He then moved towards the very front of the office and beckoned Liza to follow him. He then spoke to her in fluent Cherokee.

  “I know this is a surprise for you, ‘green eyes’. I may not look it but I am part Cherokee and my help has been enlisted. I can get the lieutenant out of the fort without anyone knowing as long as you can create a diversion at the gate,” he said. “Has Little Dove made her sleeping potion yet?”

  Liza was so surprised that all she could do at that moment was nod.

  The corporal carried on, “Good, I’ll make sure that it’s in his glass at the right time. If you were thinking of hiding him in your buggy, it wouldn’t work, but it would be useful if you could still bring it up to the prison door, presumably you were planning for around dusk. Our friends are saying that there’s a storm coming tomorrow, possibly around dusk and that could be useful. When he has left, I will help to confuse the patrol, as will the other Indian scouts. I know that you believe that he has a greater mission in life, and his children and their children, so I know that you must be helped.”

  “He is an honourable man and has only agreed to this because I managed to show him what was in his future, but he does have the overwhelming feeling that he should pay for his crime. So there still could be some difficulty in getting him to leave, although I know that, naturally, he is fearful of the firing squad,” said Liza.

  “Don’t worry; there are some things that I know that will persuade him that what he felt in the past was not worth his life. I would also like to say that I had no idea who you were when I gave you a difficult time at the meeting last year. You did give me a good put down though,” he smiled and the last was said in English.

  “Throughout my life, since my first husband died, he has held my hand and guided me through many difficult and life threatening times; he has now sent somebody to me to solve the most difficult part of the plan. I can assure you, Corporal, if I get caught in this, your name will never be mentioned,” said Liza.

  “And neither will yours by any of us; although I have a feeling that many people will suspect your involvement,” said the corporal. Laurie was moving towards them and the corporal said, “So I can tell Lieutenant Webber that you will bring the posters with you tomorrow then, Mrs Kelly. How’s it going, Laurie?”

  “We’ve got it all worked out now and we’ll be doing a practise run shortly. I think we’ll soon be ready to do your twenty-four page newspaper,” she laughed. She had ink on her nose and hands and her blouse looked decidedly the worst for wear. Liza looked up and saw that Greg was in an even worse state. “If this carries on, the cost in ink will outweigh any profits that we may make,” she laughed but mostly it was a laugh of relief.

  The corporal saluted and left saying that he would probably see her the next day when she delivered what was being printed.

  Liza rushed home to tell Zelma what had happened and she was also amazed that the corporal was part Cherokee and had also been brought in to help. “I dare say nobody knows that he has Indian blood,” said Zelma. “He doesn’t look anything but white, and he’s in the white man’s army and not as a scout. Do you think you can trust him?”

  “I don’t have a choice really. He knew all that we had planned and didn’t question the reasons behind it, just accepted that it had to happen. He’s going to make sure that the guard has the sleeping potion in his whisky so I’ll have to take that to him early tomorrow,” said Liza.

  “It’s ready. Have you got the book you are going to take?” asked Zelma.

  “Yes, that’s organised. I’m going to have to create a diversion at the main gate; that’s all I have to do now. I don’t have to worry about hiding him in the buggy, which is just as well as it really wasn’t a very strong part of the plan. I don’t know what the corporal is going to do, but he has a way of getting Mark out of the fort. It’s probably a route that some use to get to their lady friends in town,” said Liza.

  Meg started crying and both Liza and Zelma rushed to her so that she didn’t cry for too long. “You realise Zelma, that no matter what happens with Meg tomorrow, you won’t be able to send anyone to get me. I pray that nothing goes wrong with her tomorrow. I’ll be here until at least lunchtime, I hope she stays well,” said Liza worriedly.

  “You know I will look after her as if she were my own. I will keep her as calm as I can and I’ll probably cuddle her the whole time you’re away. The boys will be home from school soon, I had better get their supper on the go,” said Zelma. Liza cuddled and fed Meg whilst Zelma busied herself around the kitchen area and Meg calmed down well, she looked up at Liza with bright blue eyes just like Patrick’s and Liza thought that she smiled at her and once again Liza cried over her daughter, she knew that she was losing her and it would be soon. Please keep her well for just a while longer she prayed, I love her so much.

  As always when the boys got in from school, the house was in uproar until they settled having been able to tell Liza about their day at school. The noise didn’t seem to worry Meg; she appeared to enjoy their chatter. They went outside to play in the garden, it was still very warm for the end of October and they didn’t need their coats.

  When the boys had been playing for a while, Zelma called them in for their supper. They washed and joined Liza and Zelma at the table. Once again Liza had no idea when Patrick wo
uld be back, so his supper would be kept warm for him. Gabriel arrived to collect Si and he was offered supper which he accepted, purposely the talk around the table in front of the boys was not about Mark, although he was mentioned in passing. Eventually Gabriel and Si left for home and Liza helped organise the boys for bed. Zelma held Meg while Liza went upstairs to read a story for the boys.

  When Liza went downstairs again, Meg was asleep in her cradle and she and Zelma cleared up and readied the table for the next morning. “I’m going to bed early tonight, I really would like to be asleep when Patrick gets home, although I’m not sure I’ll be sleeping much tonight.”

  Zelma nodded and made her way to her home saying that she would be in early the next day. Liza made her way up to bed carrying Meg in her cradle and got ready for bed. She had been in bed about an hour when she heard Patrick come in, she heard him stop and look into the living room and then he bounded up the stairs.

  “There’s no point in pretending to be asleep, Liza, I know that you’re not,” he laughed thinking that she was playing with him, so Liza went along with that thought and although she kept her eyes shut, she smiled and laughed. She sat up and said that she would get Patrick his supper. “I’m not very hungry but it would be nice to spend a little time with you without being surrounded by people.”

  Liza put her robe on and followed him down to the living room. She served him his supper and sat and watched him eating and asked him how his day had been. He said that he was a little concerned by the movement of a few Indians although they didn’t seem aggressive, just puzzling.

  “Are you tired, Liza, is that why you were already in bed? You normally wait up for me at this time,” said Patrick.

  “Yes, I spent some time at the printing press today. Did you know that the colonel had organised that some of your notifications for the men are printed? You should have seen the mess that both Greg and Laurie got into. They were exceedingly inky,” laughed Liza. “I’ll be taking what they have printed into him tomorrow.”

  “I could take it if you like,” said Patrick.

  “It won’t be ready until early afternoon,” said Liza. “I want to see Ada to find out if she has heard from her granddaughter’s father, or the Fullers. I’m not sure if I have to arrange anything for them.”

  “How’s Meg been today?” asked Patrick.

  “She was fine this morning, but this afternoon she was very fretful and had difficulty breathing, but she calmed down and looked up at me with your beautiful blue eyes and I’m sure she smiled,” said Liza and her lips quivered as she tried not to show how sad she felt, but it was no use, the tears just fell down her cheeks and she just couldn’t stop crying.

  “I know it’s very sad, Liza, but you are giving her a lot of love and in many ways, she is giving you lots of love back,” said Patrick.

  “It’s worse than when Jonathan died. It was awful then, but he left me in such a short time, I didn’t get the chance to truly cuddle and love him, but having her around for all this time is going to make it so hard when she goes,” said Liza and her tears kept falling.

  Patrick came and put his arms around her and said, “Come on, Liza, I know how to make you feel better and I know you can make me feel better. Let me put you to bed, my Liza.” He led her back upstairs, put her to bed and then made love to her. He then said, “Do you feel better now, my Liza?”

  “Yes Patrick, I feel very much better. You always make me feel good. Thank you, Patrick,” said Liza.

  Surprisingly Liza slept soundly that night and Meg didn’t wake once. Patrick was up and dressed before Liza woke and when she did she carried Meg down so that she could have breakfast with Patrick before the boys were awake.

  “Are you feeling happier this morning, Liza? You were very upset last night. We’ve had a few sad times in our lives, Liza but we get through them together, and we’ll get through this one together as well. I may see you later at the fort, I’ll be going out on patrol after lunch, so I may see you before that,” said Patrick.

  Patrick kissed her on the head and kissed little Meg and headed towards their stable for his horse. A few minutes later he rode off to the fort. Liza sat quietly for a short while and then heard the boys moving around as they were getting ready for school. Zelma arrived and both she and Liza organised breakfast for the boys.

  “I didn’t sleep well last night,” said Zelma.

  “I did, which was surprising,” said Liza as Matthew and John ran down the stairs, both kissing her as they sat down to breakfast.

  “Has Daddy left already; he’s gone early today,” said Matthew.

  “Yes, he has lots to do at the moment as does Uncle Sean,” said Liza.

  Whilst Liza washed and fed Meg, Zelma made sure that the boys reached school with Si. Gabriel came in to see how Meg was and how she felt as he had noticed that she looked worried these days.

  “It’s just that knowing that Meg is the way she is does make me quite sad at times, but I manage and so does Patrick. The boys are a great comfort; they just carry on with life as normal without any worries,” said Liza.

  “Will you be visiting Mark today? If you do, will you give him my regards and ask him if he’s changed his mind on a defence,” asked Gabriel.

  “I have to take our first printing order out to the colonel, although I think he did that just as a favour, but I promised Mark one of my books as he has nothing to occupy his mind. As far as a defence is concerned, he hasn’t mentioned it recently,” said Liza.

  “I know that General Maybury and the others are arriving later this week, so I wondered whether he needed some representation,” said Gabriel.

  “I’ll ask him again today, especially as his court martial is getting closer. I tried to convince him earlier to try some form of defence, but he just said that he did it and he has to pay the price. I know that he had a bout of madness at that time which surely is a form of defence. He did, however, make me promise that I wouldn’t plead for him as it would only be cruel to him to be in prison; he said that he would rather die. As I say, I will ask him once again, Gabriel,” said Liza.

  “It’s such a shame. He’s a good man and had a great deal to offer the army,” said Gabriel.

  “Yes, it’s all so very sad and seems as though it will have the inevitable outcome and that will be a very bad day. It could be Patrick who has to make sure the sentence is carried out. I don’t know how he will deal with that, but I do know that he will do his duty no matter how he feels,” said Liza.

  “Well, see what he says again, he may well want to fight now,” said Gabriel.

  Liza agreed and said that she would see him later.

  It took Liza over an hour to get ready for the day and as the time went on, she became more and more nervous. When she was ready, she went to the living room and picked up Meg and held her close. Zelma came in showing that she was just as nervous. “Should anything happen to me Zelma, you will see Meg happily out of this world won’t you, and you will make sure the boys are well, safe and happy.”

  “Nothing is going to happen to you, Liza; you have a great many people helping in what you have to do. I know you’re nervous, so am I, but that’s quite natural. I know you’ll be able to hide how you feel. All you have to do is visit all your friends at the fort. You have the printing to deliver and you have to see the corporal to give him this,” said Zelma as she handed Liza her sleeping potion. “Once you’ve given that to him, all you have to do is visit Mark and make sure he’s not going to back out of this, although from what you tell me, the corporal will make sure he doesn’t. I’m sure you are going to be able to create a diversion at the gate and once you’ve done that you can come home and forget all about it and let everyone else take over and worry about him.”

  “I wish today was over,” said Liza, “but soon it will be this time tomorrow and I can concentrate on my family only. I’m so concerned about how Patrick is going to react though, I’m sure he’s going to realise who is behind Mark’s escape. I’ve nev
er been able to lie to him; not that I’ve ever wanted to before now.”

  Liza slowly packed her bag with the book, which she had to remember to leave in the buggy, and Zelma’s potion which she assured Liza would only make the guard appear as if he had drunk too much alcohol.

  Just before lunch Liza set out in her buggy for the print shop. As she went in she saw Laurie sitting with her feet up and Greg sprawled on the desk. “Please don’t tell me that it took you all night to print twenty notices,” said Liza. Laurie looked up at her and nodded. “Do you think that you might get better at what you are doing?” she asked.

  Greg opened one eye and said that they now knew what they were doing but a twenty-four page newspaper was still beyond them.

  “Don’t worry,” said Liza, “I’m only planning four pages, which is just two sides of a double page. If you go home and rest now, we’ll spend some time tomorrow discussing and planning our very own newspaper, starting with what we are going to call it.”

  The colonel’s notices were wrapped and tied ready for Liza to deliver and she stayed in the office long enough to watch both her ink covered members of staff pick up their belongings and walk wearily to their homes. Liza smiled watching them and marvelled at how well these two got on at work. She picked up the notices, sincerely hoping that Laurie had checked all the spelling. She locked the office and climbed into her buggy and left for the fort. On the way she took out the book and pushed it to the back of the seat so that it could easily have been left by mistake.

  Leaving her buggy with the boy at the stable, Liza picked up the notices and as she did the book slipped a little further behind the seat. She made her way to the colonel’s office and saw Ben. As she was handing him the notices, the colonel called her into his office. “What do we owe you for the notices, Liza?” he asked.

  “Nothing, Colonel; it was good practise for young Greg and Laurie and if I were to charge you by the hour, you wouldn’t be able to afford it. They have learned a tremendous amount by having the job so we’ve both won. I look forward to your next commission and I can assure you that you will be charged for that one,” said Liza.