by Jerri Hines
“Katy Landor,” Sumner said and gave her a small smile. “You are not who I was expecting.”
Katy Landor returned his smile, bright and large even in the dark. He remembered her as an annoying little sister, trying desperately to follow Randa around when he visited. At a time, he had visited her home often. He had been told she was close friends with Rebekah, but he hadn’t sent for her. Where was Rebekah’s man, Jasper?
His face betrayed his thoughts. She glanced over her shoulder, then back at him. “I’m glad it is you that I am meeting. I will confess my nervousness even with Rebekah’s assurance of my safety. I was escorted to the town line by Ralph Deane. If stopped, I was to fend visiting his sick wife. I wasn’t stopped and no one followed.”
“That is good, but you are not who I was expecting.”
“I know,” she acknowledged. “I would not have come unless it was not absolutely a necessity. I will be honest, Sumner, I am scared, but I do this for Rebekah. I fear for her.”
Sumner hadn’t time for this. He asked bluntly, “What do you know of the situation?”
“I know she has lived in hell since the British siege. She puts on a front, but she is dying inside. She smiles, laughs and dances at social events, but her heart was broken the day Jonathan was arrested and threatened with death. I know she bargained with the devil for his life and has paid the price since that day.”
“Do you know why I am here?”
“I hope you are here to take her away.”
“Jonathan has requested I retrieve her. If I don’t soon, he will himself. I don’t think that will be the wisest of moves. Do you?”
“Jonathan is coming for her,” Katy repeated in wistful voice. “Rebekah believes she will never see him again.”
“Rebekah is my mission, Katy. Focus. I was told I was to meet her tonight.”
“It was an impossibility. I don’t know what she has done, but she fears she is being watched. She wanted me to tell you that Eli Smithson was arrested and faces the hangman’s noose. She does not doubt it will loosen his tongue. Others are endangered, also.”
“I know nothing about the others. I came only for Rebekah.”
Sumner didn’t like that the plans had changed, even with one he had known since childhood, but in these times, he had learned well not to trust anyone.
“Come now, Sumner, you sound like you don’t believe me. Do you not think if I had betrayed you the whole of the British force would have already descended upon us? I may not be involved in her venture, but I know Rebekah won’t last much longer. Durham has been upon her every movement. I believe he would have already made a move if not for Jane...”
Sumner’s expression altered. “What do you say? Has anything happened to her?”
“No,” Katy shook her head. “Not yet, but Durham’s attention has turned to her. He tried to get her to stay within Charles Town, Sumner, in hopes of catching you. He believes you will return to her. He expects it. For some reason, I sense you are his target more so than any other.”
“He is right. I do need to see her,” Sumner said, momentarily forgetting everything except his wife. “Have you met Jane? She is in Charles Town?”
“My heart is broken, Sumner. To marry another when I have been waiting.”
“If you were waiting, little Katy, it was not for me.” Sumner eyed her severely.
“True, I jest,” she said. Her smile returned. “I have met your wife. She is indeed lovely. Nervous somewhat, but she has reason. But no, she is no longer in Charles Town. Do you know of the Williamsons?”
Sumner’s face drained of all blood. “Have they harmed her? I sent her here to be protected from their reach...”
“Calm yourself, and I will tell you all I know. She is safe,” Katy went on. “The rumor whispered is that General Durham insisted she make an appearance. The evening was a disaster. William has returned and caused a scene. Bloody Benny made an unexpected appearance and then Jane disappeared, having left on foot.”
Sumner’s eyes hardened at the mention of William’s name, but fear for Jane overwhelmed him at the knowledge Bloody Benny was in Charles Town. With great effort, he held back his escalating temper.
“Damantion...on foot?”
“If you keep interrupting me, Sumner, I will never be able to finish,” Katy reprimanded him. “Only, someone was waiting for her back at the Peterson’s. Don’t.” Her hand went up to stop his question. “I will tell you everything I know, but I don’t know what happened at the Peterson’s. She left Charles Town in the middle of night and escaped with Caleb back to Elm Bluff. I understand she has taken him under her wing admirably and that he is taken with her greatly. But, Sumner, Bloody Benny tried again to come at her and Caleb. She is safe but...”
“I will kill him,” he stated harshly.
“I believe you might have to,” she said with a solemn face. “But, from what I understand, she and Caleb are safe now that the Colonel Leckie is back.” She paused. “The news was good to hear, Sumner, of the victory at King’s Mountain. It has rejuvenated hope.”
He shook his head. “I haven’t time to discuss the war, Katy. How can I get to Rebekah? I need to work quickly, Katy, but I need to see Jane first.”
Katy thought for the moment. “I will have Rebekah visit with me at the Peyton’s house on Bull Street. You can sneak her out easier from there and down to the Ashley. The patrols don’t bother with the house; Randa spends time in the General’s bed,” Katy said tartly and with venom.
“She is his mistress? I thought I heard William had come home,” he said without emotion in his voice. There had been a time when the thought would have gnawed within him. Now, though, he didn’t care, only if it held importance to his mission.
“William came back a poor excuse for a man. He is a drunk,” Katy said with distaste. “He is an embarrassment...both of them. It is as Randa does not care about anything and William cares less. It would have been different, Sumner, if she had married you or the babe had lived.”
“It was her choice, her decision. It is in the past. I have moved on,” Sumner dismissed the thought.
Katy studied Sumner for a moment. “Yes, I see you have. Randa does also. Not maybe when you married Mary, but I saw it in her when she laid eyes upon Jane. I believe she had held to the thought you still loved her until then, sad but true.”
“It was a long time ago, a lifetime,” Sumner stated. He said nothing about the rumor that Randa had taken Katy’s fiancé, Ernest Sherman, into her bed, also, and that was the reason Katy held her sister in contempt. Ernest had died in a skirmish outside of Georgia a year before the Fall of Charles Town. Sumner’s voice flattened. “My concern lies with my mission—Rebekah. I believe I can make adequate arrangements. How soon can you get her there?”
“Give me a couple of days to arrange it. At the most three days.”
“Then we will set it for three nights from now. What room will you be in?”
“Most of the time when I am there it is the far one at the right side of the house. The second window at the end.”
“Open the curtains and place a lighted lamp in the window after eleven. If it is not there, I will return the next night. Tell Rebekah I will meet her at the back gate at the garden’s end. It is the utmost importance she comes alone and tells no one. Do you have any issues with any of this? You can relay the information?”
“I will do so readily,” Katy promised.
Sumner felt confident in the plan. Effective and simple, but he was also aware that nothing was ever so simple at this moment in time. “Go. My friend will follow you back to ensure your safety.”
She said nothing else, but reined the horse back. Pulling the hood back on her head, she urged the horse back down the quiet lane. He watched until she disappeared out of sight. He saw Elijah emerge from the shadows. Sumner waved, and Elijah took off following Katy.
Sumner rode in the opposite direction and turned south. Elijah knew to meet him at the old Jenkins place. He, also, kn
ew Sumner wouldn’t be readily returning. He was going to see his bride. Devil be damn the man who tried to stop him.
* * * *
A long time had passed since Sumner last stepped foot on the grounds of Elm Bluff. The influx of British soldiers patrolling the grounds told he would not soon walk freely within his home. Now, he hid in the shadows of the trees.
In his view, Jane stepped out of the front door and glanced around the lawn. He watched, mesmerized. By God, she is more beautiful than I remembered.
“Caleb Jed!”
From the stables, a young boy ran up the path as fast as his legs would carry him, followed by a black child, laughing and giggling. His heart swelled at the sight. Caleb had grown so that he wouldn’t have known him.
He watched as the boy stopped abruptly in front of Jane. He couldn’t make out the words, but from the look of things, Caleb seemed to be trying to talk his way out of trouble of some sort.
“He is much as his father.”
Sumner turned to see Israel walking up beside him. Immediately, he gripped Israel’s shoulder and then clasped his other hand. “It is good to see you friend. You got my signal.”
“Relieved to have seen it,” Israel said. “I wouldn’t let Miss Jane know that I myself had become worried. All has gone well, I hope.”
“It is a start,” Sumner said. His eyes turned back to the house. Jane had retreated back within with Caleb. “I need to see them, Israel.”
“I wouldn’t try to go within the grounds, Mister Sumner,” Israel said dryly. “Mistress Meador has been warned they have you in their sights.”
“That is what I have heard, but I haven’t long and I am not going back without seeing her. How is she?”
“I had thought at first, Mister Sumner, she was a meek and complaisant woman, but have found she has strength within her. She is comfortable at Elm Bluff, but shies away from people she doesn’t know.”
Sumner grimaced. “I’m afraid I did a rather poor job of explaining my life here at Elm Bluff...but more so I’m afraid I have misjudged much, including her safety.”
“But, Master Sumner, where else would she go? She has a way with your son that no one else has been able to see. She seems comfortable running the household. She is kind,” Israel said, glancing back over his shoulder. “She has already instilled loyalty within all the servants. You would be proud. She was so brave when Bloody Benny descended upon us. She was determined to get to Caleb. She didn’t run away from him, but tried to get around him to get to Caleb.”
“That is the issue. Why is Bloody Benny allowed to inflict terror in these parts? Moreover, I can’t understand why the British supports one such as he? He defies their authority by trying to raid a British occupied home!”
“He walks to the beat of his own drum, Master Sumner. Evil lives within him. It has taken force over his being, but it was his brother that thwarted his plan, Joseph. He informed the British about his plan.”
“Which was to kill my wife and son?”
“I believe it was what was in his mind, but given what I heard he has been warned by the general there, Durham. I hear he is a hard man, but I hear Mistress defied him also when she returned to Elm Bluff.”
“Do I need to send them to England?” Sumner said his thought out loud.
“That I don’t know, Master Sumner. It may be for the best.”
Wincing as if the thought pained him, Sumner shook his head. “I need to think upon it, but now I have a strong need to see my wife. I need to get within my home without detection.”
“In that, I may have a plan, Master Sumner.”
* * * *
Jane finished her meal, but her gaze never left Caleb. He sat in deep conversation with Roscoe. The two had become inseparable. As most nights, she ate with the young ones in the kitchen.
To her dismay, Joseph had taken one of the rooms at Elm Bluff. That alone greatly upset her, but she couldn’t let anyone know how deeply it affected her. It was bad enough he knew.
Why couldn’t he leave her alone? She had discovered that she accepted his explanation, but it did little to change her feelings toward him.
Joseph had let his desire for revenge dictate his actions. In turn, her family lost their lives. Though, the guilt she felt for the murders of her family eased somewhat understanding that it wasn’t Joseph that caused the carnage. She hadn’t lied to him, though. Any feeling she had for him died that day her family had.
Then there was Sumner. Sumner, her life, her hope, lived within her heart as Joseph never had.
“What are you two planning?” Jane asked, pausing for a moment.
She heard footsteps running down the hall and then a slight knock. Not waiting for a response, Careen entered, whose manner did not invite panic, but obvious exasperation.
“I’m sorry, Mistress Jane, but Moses came up from Widow Hanson’s again. Lordy! She claims once more to have the fever and is calling for you. I tried to tell him you went the other night, and she kept you there until dawn.”
Jane exhaled slightly. The old woman believed she was Sumner’s mother, Juriah, who had been well known for caring for the ill. The whole of the night had been exhausting, for the sweet old lady was greatly confused, not ill. Not only did Jane have to deal with the sweet old lady, a British sentry had been assigned to escort her.
That night, Colonel Leckie instructed her to find someone else. Jane would have loved to have had someone else to send, but there was no one. Widow Hanson lived on the grounds of Elm Bluff. Her late husband had been the overseer before Sumner.
Colonel Leckie yielded, but assigned a British sentry to escort her. Bedlam ensued. It sent Widow Hanson into a dither. The soldiers swarmed the farmhouse, scaring the old woman so that Jane thought she would die of fright.
She quickly realized that the British thought to find Sumner. She thanked God he wasn’t there.
With the morning light, Widow Hanson awoke to find British soldiers in her home. She took a broom to them. How Jane wished it was that easy to get rid of them at Elm Bluff! Now she was about to relive that night.
“Have Israel draw up the carriage again. Hopefully it won’t take as long,” Jane said, walking down the hall and straightening her dress. “I assume Colonel Leckie was notified. Lord help him if he upsets her once more. She may defeat the British single-handedly with her broom.”
“I heard that,” Colonel Leckie stood at the end of the staircase, waiting her appearance. “And I will confess only to you that she does strike fear into my heart.”
Behind Jane, peals of laughter erupted. The two boys had sneaked out of the room and followed her.
Caleb cried, “She’s an old lady.”
“You laugh, young man, but you haven’t been inflicted with the damage she can do with a broom!” Colonel Leckie declared playfully. His attention turned back to Jane. “I will ready a few of the men. Of course, it will be as it was the last time. I hate to inconvenience you, but it is necessary.”
“Of course it is,” she said. Her life couldn’t be simple. “Careen, can you care for Caleb tonight? I don’t know when I’ll be able to return. It is okay if Roscoe sleeps again with Caleb if he behaves himself. It doesn’t matter if they end up in my bed. I will take the cot.”
Jane took only a cloak besides a basket of food she had the cook fix for Widow Hanson. She so enjoyed the last Jane had brought. She thought to herself in all probability it was what brought on the recurrence of her fever. Jane walked over to Caleb and kissed the top of his head.
“Be good this night,” she said. “I will be back at least by the morning.”
Exiting the house, she descended to the waiting buckboard. She frowned. Joseph stood at the foot of the wagon and gave her a sly smile.
“No one else wanted the assignment. I volunteered,” he said simply. “My presence is unfortunate, but unavoidable”
He extended his hand out to her to help up to her seat. “Moreover, it wouldn’t be safe to let you out in the night without pr
otection.”
She sighed. “But a whole British sentry?”
“Do you want to go or not?”
Reluctantly, she accepted. The next moment, he was beside her with the reins in hand. Looking around, four other soldiers fell in beside them.
“Where is Israel?”
“There was no need for him to accompany you tonight.”
“I would feel better with Israel,” she said moments later, irritated that Joseph had taken an arrogant attitude toward her. He made no response.
To be honest, if it wasn’t for Joseph sitting so close to her, she would have enjoyed the ride. The night’s air was crisp and cool, but not too cold. A cloudless night held a full moon shining down upon the stillness of the plantation. The pasture was clear of animals down for the night, but if she watched long enough life within the night had wakened. Along the side of the road, a possum sat so still she thought if she didn’t know better he was dead. Eyes reflected back at her in the woods, a raccoon in all likelihood.
They rode in silence. She had to admit she was relieved to glimpse the large farm house in which Widow Hanson lived. At one time it had been the main house at Elm Bluff, lying only a few minutes away.
Widow Hanson lived alone except for a couple of older house slaves. There had been no children in her marriage. Jane wondered briefly why the British hadn’t occupied the house, for it was comfortable with many rooms, but then one would have to evict Widow Hanson or live with her.
Joseph pulled the wagon and reached across to halt her descent. “Wait until they finish their inspection of the house.”
She waited in silence. A reply would only invite him to talk more. She inched over away from him.
“Is it that bad?” he asked. “Can you not abide me around you still?”
“Why can you not leave me alone, Joseph? Do you take pleasure in torturing me so?”
His eyes met hers. “It isn’t that and you know that. I’m not going away, Jane. I told you I don’t care about this marriage you have found yourself in.”
“And I have told you that whatever we had is long over. I don’t want you and don’t know how to tell you any plainer.” Her voice rose louder than she intended. “It was over before I met Sumner, Joseph. Don’t keep holding to Sumner that he is at fault. Leave him alone. Hold it against me if you are angry or better yet your brother.”