by Ginny Dye
“What do you mean?” Carrie asked.
“Evidently Pope has decided it is his job to teach the inhabitants of occupied Virginia that secession is a rocky road to travel. I have seen a copy of his orders. Citizens of occupied territory will be held responsible for all damage done by guerillas. Any guerillas who are caught will be executed, along with those who aid them. If shots are fired at Union soldiers from any house, that house will be destroyed and the people arrested. Anyone they deem as disloyal will be driven outside the Union lines and will be treated as spies if they return. If they choose to stay, they must take an oath of allegiance to the United States. If they take it and then violate it, they will be shot!” Thomas’ voice had been rising steadily. It ended in a shout as he slammed his fist on the table. “The man is a monster!”
A long silence filled the room. Carrie ached for her father but knew there was nothing she could do. Except perhaps take his mind off it for a little while. It was he who had told her that in order to win the war all other considerations must be put aside and the total energy of the country concentrated on victory. Was that not what the North was doing? She was quite sure he would not appreciate an objective viewpoint.
She had decided not to tell him about her confrontation with Louisa today. She was also not going to tell him about her new work in the black hospital - not yet, at least. He would only worry about her safety and it would also bring up uncomfortable questions about how she knew Pastor Anthony. She searched for something to talk about.
Janie saved her by reaching for a letter beside her plate. “I received a long letter from home today,” she said. She opened it up and read through some of it then looked up with a smile. “This is the part I was looking for.”
“Heard from your sister in Alabama today. You know there is a strong Union presence in her area. She wrote and told me there has been great resistance by the people there. Guerillas have been firing into Union trains as they go along the tracks through the forests. The commander there finally got tired of it and ordered the arrest of ministers and other leading churchmen. He puts one a day on the train to try to stop the guerillas. Your sister says our men are wonderful shots, so they continue to shoot the Yankees while the pastors sit there unharmed. I’m sure the Union commander is frustrated that his wonderful plan isn’t working.”
Carrie smiled half-heartedly, unable to find any real humor in anyone else’s being shot. “How long has it been since you’ve seen your family, Janie?” she asked even though she knew the answer. She had watched Janie’s loneliness for her family grow in the last few months.
“Almost two years,” she admitted with a slight catch in her voice.
“Why don’t you go home for a visit?” Carrie couldn’t imagine not seeing her father for almost two years. “Raleigh isn’t really that far if you take the train.”
“It’s not that easy,” Janie replied. “I’ve looked into it.”
Carrie opened her mouth to protest, but her father spoke up, seeming to have gained control of his earlier anger.
“Janie’s right, Carrie. It’s possible, of course, but travel is becoming more and more difficult.”
“Why?” she demanded. “It’s not like she wants to go north.”
“She still has to have a passport,” Thomas responded. “I’m afraid the Confederacy has found it necessary to impose rather strict travel restrictions.”
“ A passport?” Carrie had never heard of such a thing. “That’s ridiculous!” she snorted.
“I’m afraid it’s not,” Thomas said heavily. “However ineffective it may be, it’s seen as a defense against spies carrying valuable information north.” He paused. “You can get them, of course, but there is a backlog of paper work. It is necessary to plan in advance. Then there is the problem of the trains,” he continued. “Our troops have first priority on every train. It is especially hard to get a seat on a train leaving Richmond. Most seats are occupied by soldiers.”
Carrie sighed with frustration. “Is there any part of our lives this war isn’t touching?” No one answered. No one needed to. She already knew the answer.
CHAPTER SIXTEEN
Moses pulled the boat ashore and turned away. He and June had come as far downriver as they could. They had managed to slip by the myriad of large boats in the river the night before, but it was getting too risky. He had spent every second of the long night wondering when a shot was going to blast forth from one of the silent watchdogs. He knew June was almost sick with fear, not to mention the heaving of her stomach as a heavy wind had tossed the little boat on curling whitecaps. It was time to continue on land.
Moses turned to June. “We’ll walk from here.”
June sagged with relief against a tree. “I’ll make it, Moses,” she promised. “I know we made good time in the boat, but if I never see water again that will be just fine with me!” she declared passionately. She held her hand to her stomach. “My baby agrees,” she said, smiling now.
Moses smiled back at her and tried to hide his concern. He just wished he had some way of knowing where they were. June had been wonderful - as brave and strong as he remembered her. But there was no denying she was soon to be a mother. She had experienced sharp pains the night before, which left him terrified she would have the baby right in the boat. The pains had eased, but his fear had not. He had to get her somewhere she would be safe - both she and the baby.
He turned to where she was resting, sitting on the ground with her back against a tree. “I’m going to look around. Maybe there is a road.”
June struggled to her feet. “I’m coming with you,” she announced calmly.
“You need to rest!” Moses protested.
“I need to be with you,” she corrected him. “You said yourself we might be near the fort. If you are captured by soldiers, I want to be with you. I am not going to be left in the woods by myself.” Her tone of voice left no room for argument.
Moses nodded reluctantly then took her arm to help her through the undergrowth. “Let’s go, little sister.”
Twenty minutes later they broke out of the woods onto a road. It seemed to be well traveled. Moses did his best to remember the map he had pored over before leaving. He had followed the river southeast, careful to hug the western shore. He was sure he was somewhere near the end of the long peninsula that protruded into Chesapeake Bay. Fort Monroe perched on the very end of the peninsula. In order to reach it, he would have to travel northeast. Moses studied the road they were standing on. It seemed to head due east. He shrugged. At some point he would have to head north, but at least the road didn’t veer farther south. They would take it. It was better than crashing through the woods.
A sound in the distance caught his attention. Moses snapped his head up and listened closely. Grabbing June’s arm, he pulled her back into the bushes until he was sure they were invisible from the road. A few minutes later a knot of soldiers, laughing and talking, came riding around the curve.
“We’re going back North,” one man said joyfully.
“Thank God,” another growled. “If I have to breathe this wet stuff they call air even one more day, I think I’ll scream. I can’t wait to get off this peninsula with all its standing water just begging mosquitoes to multiply and eat me.”
“Yeah,” another man laughed. “I understand why these people want slaves to do all their work. You couldn’t pay me enough to farm around here. Give me my little place in upstate New York any day.”
Moses waited for their voices to fade into the distance before he pulled June out to the road again. “No talking,” he said quietly. “I have to be able to hear if anything is coming.” June nodded and started off in the direction he pointed. She was smiling. Moses knew she was just glad to be on dry land again, and he knew she trusted him to take care of her. He wished he felt the same confidence.
They had walked for nearly two hours before they heard another noise and dove back into the bushes. Moses was peering out of the bushes when he heard June
suck in her breath sharply. He spun around to stare at her. She was settled back against a tree with a pained expression on her face. “June?” he whispered anxiously.
“I’m okay,” she whispered. “It’s just...” another spasm of pain snatched her words as her face contorted in agony.
Moses tried to calm the panic rising in him.
Slowly, June’s face relaxed, and she opened her mouth to speak again. “It’s...” Another spasm of pain ripped across her sweating face. She raised her knuckles against her mouth and closed her eyes in a tortured expression.
Moses looked around frantically, panic-stricken at the thought of June having her baby in the middle of the woods. He should never have taken her from Saunders’ plantation. At least she was safe there. Had he rescued her only to have her and her baby die? The nearing clatter of wagon wheels made him spring behind his bush once more to peer out. He prayed June would not scream and reveal their hiding place.
Desperately, he began to pray for a way to get her to Fort Monroe. Even if she felt better, there was no way she could walk through this heat with him scavenging food along the way. He should have stayed in the boat, he realized. “God, help me!” he whispered.
Just then an approaching wagon slowly rounded the curve. Moses watched as the sturdily built conveyance, pulled by a handsome bay horse, drew nearer. His eyes opened wide when he realized the man and woman perched on the seat were black, their light skin evidence of a mulatto heritage. Two children sat quietly in the back of the wagon. As they almost drew even with him, Moses recognized the pinch of concern on their faces. Every few seconds the woman would peer around as if she were watching for pursuers. Runaways, Moses guessed. Should he ask them for help? He was wracked with indecision.
A muted scream from behind him made the decision for him. The wagon plowed to a stop as the man jerked back on the reins. “You hear that?” he asked in a deep voice.
The woman nodded, her eyes large with fright. “Just keep going, Wally. You know we can’t be stopping!” she cried. “There might be somebody after us.”
Moses spun around just as June screamed again. His decision was made. Taking a deep breath, he stepped from the woods.
The woman screamed when she saw him materialize in front of their wagon. The children’s heads disappeared in a flash.
Moses held his hands up. “Please. I mean no harm. I’m sorry to frighten you.”
The man she had called Wally glared at him suspiciously, his lean, lanky body coiled for attack if Moses tried to harm his family. “Who are you, man? What’s that screaming I hear?” He looked fearfully at the bushes as another scream rent the air.
“It’s my sister,” Moses said, knowing he sounded desperate.
“She hurt?”
“No - she’s pregnant. I’m trying to get her to Fort Monroe.” He didn’t care how pleading he sounded. “Can you help me get her there?”
Wally started to shake his head, but his wife stared hard at Moses as she lost some of her fearful look. “You say your sister is pregnant? What’s she doing out here like this?”
Moses shook his head. “We didn’t think she was due for another couple of months.” He decided to be completely honest. “She just ran away from a plantation upriver. I’m trying to get her to safety. There’s no way she can walk from here.”
Wally broke into the conversation. “How do we know you’re not just trying to trick us?”
Moses shrugged. “I guess you could come look at my sister.” He took a deep breath. “Please. I just need to get her some help.”
The wife was climbing down from the wagon, her stout form making her look awkward, but the care on her round face making her beautiful. Moses breathed a sigh of relief.
“Where you going, woman?” Wally protested.
She spun on him, her eyes flashing. “How would you have liked it if I had been out here like this having one of our fine babies? Lord, Wally, I can’t just leave her out here.” With those words she turned to Moses. “Where is she?”
Wally was climbing down from the wagon to follow them as Moses led her back through the woods. June was huddled against the bottom of the tree, her face glistening with sweat, her breath coming in quick gasps. She stared up at them, her eyes wide with panic.
“Lord of mercy!” the woman breathed as she dashed to June’s side. Squatting down in front of her, she said quietly. “It’s gonna be all right, honey. You just try to breathe a little easier. Squeeze my hands when the pain comes.”
June locked her eyes on the lady’s kind face. “Who are you?” she gasped.
“My name is Deidre. What’s yours?” Her voice was calm and soothing.
“June,” she managed to say, her face twisting again.
“Well, June, you just keep on squeezing my hands. Looks like your baby might be coming a bit sooner than you expected.”
Moses ground his teeth as he clenched his fist. This wasn’t the way it was supposed to happen. June was supposed to be safe at Fort Monroe when the baby came. He stepped forward. “What can we do?”
Deidre looked up with a calm smile. “How about bringing a blanket from the back of the wagon?” Now that she had decided to help, it was obvious she was going to be in control. “Wally, best be moving the wagon off the road. We’re going to be here a little while. Send little Carla over here. She can help. She may only be ten, but she’s seen babies born.”
Moses sprang into action, glad to have something to do. He was just coming back with the blankets when he heard June.
“My baby... Will it be...?”
Deidre patted her hands. “There no way of knowing what the good Lord has in mind right now. But I’d say our coming along when we did is a good sign.”
Moses took hope from her words.
“Hurts...,” June mumbled.
“There’s never been a baby born that didn’t make their mama miserable in the process. This one seems to be a little more determined than most, but that doesn’t necessarily mean trouble.” Deidre looked over her shoulder as Carla ran up, her pigtails bobbing behind then turned to the men. “I’ll call you when you’re needed,” she said firmly.
Moses opened his mouth to protest, but Wally grasped his arm firmly.
“Diedre has been a mid-wife for years. Your sister couldn’t be in better hands.”
Moses allowed himself to be led away, but he felt sick inside. He glanced back for one final look at June. She was watching him. She managed one quick smile before she doubled over in pain again. He knew she was trying to make him feel better, but he also knew he was to blame for the fix they were in.
Wally had pulled the wagon deep into the woods. A little boy about six years old was sitting on the driver’s bench. “This here is Andrew.”
“How do, mister,” Andrew said shyly.
Moses nodded but couldn’t speak.
Wally looked at him closely. “You’re headed to Fort Monroe?”
Moses just nodded.
“Look, man, it ain’t gonna do you any good to stand around and torment yourself. You said yourself the baby was early. Well, it ain’t nobody but God can tell a baby when it’s time to be born. Stop beatin’ yourself up. You done the best you could.”
Moses stared at him, the truth of his words finally penetrating his guilt. “I don’t know what I’ll do if something happens to her,” he said roughly. He found himself telling Wally the whole story - about their being separated, just finding her, and trying to spirit her away to freedom. “I’ve got to get there soon!” he added with a note of desperation.
“You sound like you got somethin’ more on your mind than just makin’ it to freedom,” Wally observed perceptively.
Moses hesitated for a long minute then decided to be completely honest. He took a deep breath. “I ran away from slavery last fall. Been living up in Philadelphia. I’m working as a spy for the Union army.”
“Say what!” Wally exclaimed, skepticism loading his voice.
“It’s true,” Moses said
. “My commander knew about my sister and gave me the time to help her escape. But I have to rejoin my unit in just two weeks. I promised.”
Wally must have believed him. “I reckon you can still make it,” he said calmly. He looked at Moses more closely. “You mean they’re lettin’ blacks serve in that Union army?”
“There’s only a few of us right now,” Moses said. “We’re not allowed to carry guns. But I believe that is going to change. The North needs us. This is the black man’s war, too!”
Wally nodded. “I heard they’re takin’ men on the ships.” He paused then evidently decided Moses could be trusted. “I’m headed for Fort Monroe to get on board one of those ships. I’m goin’ to be in the United States Navy.” There was no mistaking the pride in his voice.
Moses’ heart quickened with hope. They were headed to Fort Monroe! Wally must have read his mind.
“When my wife finishes helpin’ your little sister in there, I reckon we’ll all just keep goin’. We’ll make it in time.”
Moses took a deep breath, searching for the words to express what he was feeling. “Thank you,” he finally said, knowing the words were woefully inadequate.
“We got to stick together, man,” Wally said with a quick grin.
Suddenly a sharp cry sounded from the brush.
“June!” Moses exclaimed, leaping up.
Wally grabbed his arm. “That weren’t June, Moses.”
Moses was bewildered. “Then who...?”
“I reckon the Lord done dropped another little baby in our world. I guess he ain’t givin’ up on it just yet.” A smile played across Wally’s lips.