The Prodigy Slave, Book Two: The Old World: (Revised Edition 2020)

by Londyn Skye

  William walked over, placed a comforting hand on James’s shoulder, and waited for him to look up at him. “Do not hide anything from Lily thinking that it will protect her … no matter how ugly the details,” he said, his voice cracking a bit as he thought about Anna Mae and Ben. “Put your trust in her, James. ‘When it comes time to show her strength, she will.’ I have never forgotten those words … and perhaps you shouldn’t either.”

  James nodded. “I won’t.”

  “Good.” William patted James once on the shoulder and walked away to recollect his emotions. He poured two glasses of scotch, walked back over, and handed one to James. “So, now tell me, my boy, just how many backflips did you do over the moon the day you found out that Lily was having your little one?” he asked, desperately needing to change the subject to something joyous.

  “Ova’ a million … and still flippin’,” James replied as a huge smile emerged on his face.

  William let out a short burst of uplifting laughter as he raised his glass. “You’ll need to do far more than that to beat my record, but I’ll drink to that!” He tapped his glass to James’s, and they guzzled their drinks in unison.

  “I’ll never forget the day my Emma told me she was with child,” William said as he got that distant, nostalgic look in his eyes that was ever-present when he dove back into stories from his past. “Felt like I was going to faint from happiness overload. I couldn’t sleep. I couldn’t eat. I was so excited. All I could do was think about the little life I had created with the woman of my dreams. It was all I wanted to talk about. All I wanted to write music about. I was buying up every baby item I could get my hands on. Hell, I even built a crib long before Emma was due,” he laughed at himself. “From the very first day she told me, I was absolutely and utterly ob-ssessed with becoming a father. “I still even remember the excitement of picking out names,” William smiled. “I’d told Emma that for a girl I wanted Emily. For a boy I wanted Emerson. Both were in honor of her name. But she was adamant that she wanted Willow for a girl and Wilson for a little boy, in honor of my name. It became this playful fight back and forth between us. When she began to grow round, I’d bend down and touch her stomach and ask how little Emma or Emerson was doing. She’d immediately fire back with, ‘little Willow or Wilson is just fine!’” William recounted, laughing at the beautiful memory.

  James laughed along. “The playful bickerin’ has already begun between Lily and me,” he said with excitement. “She’s certain we’ll be welcomin’ little Jameson Michael Junior into the world and…”

  “Jameson?” William asked curiously, having not known that was his full name.

  James nodded. “Afta’ my maternal grandfatha’. Lily swears the family name is about to be passed down again. But I’m equally as convinced we’ll be welcomin’ little Rose Elizabeth Maya.”

  “Another flower,” William smiled.

  “Just as beautiful as her motha’,” James boasted, raising his glass.

  William raised his glass to that as well and then sat it down on a nearby table. “Well, as much as I would have loved a little girl myself, I can promise you that it will not make one bit of difference what gender it is once you finally hold your newborn in your arms. Just thinking about the day my boys were born nearly brings me to tears. I remember the hours of waiting anxiously outside of the bedroom door the day Emma was giving birth. It nearly broke me listening to her in such excruciating pain, knowing there was not a thing I could do about it. But then, I recall the moment when I finally heard, not one … but two! distinctive cries on the inside of that room! I thought the fact that I’d been unable to eat all day had made me delusional, until I walked in there and saw that the love of my life had indeed blessed me with two beautiful sons. It was as if God was tired of us arguing over names and decided that we both should win,” he laughed. “I dropped down on my knees near Emma’s bedside, held her hand, and released my gratitude through tears. When I was finally able to pull myself together, I walked over and held my sons for the very first time. Looking down into the eyes of the two lives I had helped create remains, by far, the greatest moment of my life.”

  “I believe you, William. The days can’t roll by fast enough for me. I can’t wait to experience what that’s like. I finally felt our baby movin’ the otha’ day, and I nearly broke down in tears. So, I can only imagine what a mess I’ll be the day it’s born. Hell, just thinkin’ about the moment I get to hold my baby makes me wanna cry. I’m just…” he smiled. “I’m already head ova’ heels in love with whoeva’s growin’ in there.”

  “Trust me, I know all too well how much you already love that baby.” William refilled both of their drinks. “That’s actually what has me so upset about this whole matter.”

  James looked at him confused.

  “As crazy as it sounds, James, your love could end up being a detriment to that sweet little baby,” William explained, returning to the seriousness of the matter.

  “How so?”

  “You might be able to sit in silence to hide the truth about how much you love Lily. But!” William wagged his finger. “I know for a fact that you would never be able to hide how much you love your baby. As a father, I know such a thing is impossible.” William sat his drink down and walked over to the window of his sons’ second story apartment. “Unfortunately, your baby’s birth won’t suddenly make everything right in the world, no matter how badly you pray for it to be that way,” he said, gazing at the bustling crowd on the street below. “There are millions of ignorant evil people in this world who will never accept your child, James.” William then turned to look at him. “And the cruelest of them all lives right under your very roof. Your father threatened to torturously murder Lily over a mere friendship with her. I don’t even want to think about the things he would do to her if he finds out the child she’s carrying is yours … not to mention the barbaric things he may do to that innocent little baby. The thought alone sickens me.”

  The smile finally faded completely from James’s face, and he lowered his head when his anger began to rise again.

  “This is why I feel your love could be a detriment, James. Just a moment ago, I only mentioned your child, a child that you’ve yet to even hold, and your face lit up like the sky on a clear afternoon. So, I’m convinced that you would never have what it takes to hide the love you feel for that beautiful little baby once it’s here … not even around your father. You may have found the strength to hide your love from Lily. But I just want you to sit now and imagine yourself cradling little Rose in your arms. Imagine yourself looking into her innocent sparkling eyes …”

  James’s eyes were fixated on the floor. A faint smile emerged on his face as he envisioned the moment.

  The very second William noted his smile, he continued. “Now imagine yourself denying the love you feel for her after that precious moment. Imagine yourself pretending as though she doesn’t exist when she toddles toward you with her arms outstretched, wanting nothing more than to be held in the arms of her loving father. Imagine yourself turning your back on her in that moment … all to appease your father. Do you truly think you have the willpower to ignore your own child in such a manner?”

  “No!” James answered emphatically, his stomach turning over the thought of it. “I don’t have an ounce of willpowa’ for such a thing. I readily admit my weakness.”

  “It’s not weakness. It’s the overpowering strength of fatherly love.”

  “And that’s actually one ‘a the otha’ reasons I’m here.” James put his drink down and stood up. “Look William, I know afta’ the disasta’ I caused, I shouldn’t have the audacity to show my face here again. But with the baby comin’ so soon, it doesn’t give me nearly as much time as I needed to save enough money to get Lily away from my fatha’s home. So now I’m desperate.” He blew out a breath. “As much as I knew you wouldn’t be able to stand the sight ‘a me, I left my ego in Virginia, and prepared myself for the wisdom-filled, verbal ass whuppin’ I knew
you were gonna give me. And now…” James held his arms out as a symbol of his vulnerability. “I stand before you beggin’ for your help all ova’ again. I know I don’t deserve it, but this isn’t for me … it’s for my family. I don’t want Lily on that plantation with my fatha’. And I damn sure don’t want my baby there. And I’ll do anything to get them outta there … anything!” James confessed, looking William straight in the eyes. “Even if it means emasculatin’ myself like this in front ‘a you. I’d sell my pride, my soul … hell, I’d even sell myself into servitude if that’s what it would take to give Lily and our little baby a chance at a betta’ life, because the love I feel for them is indeed that ova’powerin’.”

  “Emasculate?” William questioned. “A man doing anything he can to protect his family shows how much of a man he really is,” he corrected, looking at James with pride.

  “I appreciate that,” James sincerely replied. “But I’m willin’ to endure any nasty name a man wants to call me and much more, so long as my family is taken care of. That’s all that matta’s to me.”

  “James, you never have to beg me to help Lily. So long as there is air in my lungs, I will always be willing to help her in any way that I can. So, rest assured I will do whatever is needed to get Lily and your baby off your father’s plantation.”

  “Thank you!” James exclaimed, feeling as though he could finally breathe for the first time in months.

  William nodded. “I’m happy to help. However, I don’t think it would be wise for me to attend your wedding. My dealings with Lily should be strictly for the purposes of extracting her from your father’s farm. I fear that any other contact with her would unnecessarily invite an opportunity for those Ghost Riding bastards to finish the barbaric job they started.”

  “I unda’stand,” James said somberly, as Ben and Anna Mae flashed in his mind.

  “Given your track record, my guess is that Lily doesn’t even know you’re here asking me to attend anyway?”

  James’s look of guilt answered the question for him.

  William laughed. “I wouldn’t have expected anything less of you, dear boy. You were attempting a lovely surprise for Lily this time around, so I’ll let this one slide.”

  “Much appreciated,” James replied. “But William are you sure you won’t change your mind about attendin’ the weddin’? We wouldn’t be in Ohio where all that nonsense happened. We’d be in the backwoods ‘a Virginia in the middle ‘a the night. It’s certainly not gonna be anything fancy, but if you were there to walk Lily down the aisle, it would mean the world to her. You know how much she loves you. You were like a fatha’ to her, and she misses you a lot. I just really wanna make it special for her.”

  “And I love her like my own child. Make no mistake about that,” William responded swiftly. “It would mean just as much to me too, but her life is far more meaningful. Even your being here terrifies me a bit. I don’t want people to catch the slightest wind that I’m still connected to her in some way. I say this not because I’m unwilling to help her. It’s just that I think it would be best for our interactions to be limited to those that are absolutely necessary for the time being … for Lily’s own protection, of course.”

  “I unda’stand.”

  “Why aren’t you just willing to wait a while to get married? Perhaps after you’ve gotten Lily away from your father’s home?” William asked.

  “Well, I wanted to be married before the baby comes, and I really wanted all the friends Lily’s grown up with on the plantation to attend. I figured it would make it more meaningful with them in attendance. Not only that, but I really wanted to marry her in the place where I first fell in love with ’er. In the eyes of the law, I know our union holds no value, so I wanna be sure this ceremony is held in a sacred place that has the ultimate value to us. Then, when we’re back on our feet, far away from my fatha’s farm, I’d love to give ’er anotha’ weddin’ fit for the queen that she is. But for now, somethin’ simple and sentimental would mean so much to both of us.”

  “Enough said. You know there’s no one else on this planet who understands those sentiments more than I do. Granted I won’t be there, I’ll be working behind the scenes on something else that might be just as meaningful to Lily as her wedding day.”

  “What’s that?”

  “Getting her on a ship and sailing her across the seas to the Old World, just as she’s always dreamt.”

  “You’d still be willin’ to go to that extreme for her?”

  “It would be one of the greatest tragedies of this era not to allow Lily to continue to pursue her life dream,” William replied, looking James in the eyes.

  “You’ll get no arguments outta me about that!”

  “Worry not then, dear boy! I’ll be in contact with Landon soon, calculating every maneuver we must make to ensure we get Lily back on her journey … long before that sweet little baby is due to arrive.”

  “I don’t think there are words in the English language to express my gratitude for all ‘a this, William.”

  “Sometimes, words are not needed,” William smiled. He lightly patted James on the back as they began walking toward the front door. “The moment I get word from Landon, I’ll contact you and we’ll make our plans accordingly. Is there some other address I can use aside from your father’s home to send you notice?”

  James stopped near the front door and scribbled down Gideon’s office address on a scrap piece of paper. “It’s the address to where I work,” he said as he handed it to William.

  “Good then. I’ll be using the name Alexander Breckenridge for our correspondence. There will be no return address listed, so keep this one in your memory,” William explained.

  “Got it.”

  “By the way, when is Lily due?”

  “July. I’d like to have ’er outta Virginia by June at the very latest.”

  “Ahh!” William waved his hand. “We’ll be sailing the seas long before then,” he said with confidence. “Until then, you take good care of Lily. I don’t think I’ll sleep right until I know that I’ll soon get to hold that sweet little baby safe and sound in my arms one day,” he smiled.

  “Me neitha’ William … me neitha’,” James replied, putting his coat and hat back on. Before leaving, he exhaled and looked William in the eyes. “For all that you’ve eva’ done and for what you’re about to do for my family, I’m foreva’ endebted to you. And I know you said you don’t wanna hear it, but for all the loss you’ve suffered on my account, I’m sincerely sorry, William.” He extended his hand. “I pray you’ll find the strength to forgive me for the mistakes I’ve made that have caused you so much heartache.”

  Without hesitation, William slid his hand into James’s waiting palm. “I already have,” he sincerely replied.

  “For that, I thank you too. See you soon,” James said, opening the door to leave.

  “And by the way,” William added. “If I was thirty years younger, I’d have given you far more than just a verbal ass whupping when you showed up here today,” he teased.

  “It would’ve been well deserved.”

  “And well given! Trust me!”

  James laughed, tipped his hat, and headed home to Lily and the baby he was eager to meet.

  Chapter Twenty-Nine

  Easter Sunday April 8, 1860

  Adams Plantation

  “I’ll see you lata’ tonight, beautiful,” James said to Mary Jo after kissing her tenderly on the lips. They were saying their goodbyes on the porch after their four-hour Easter gathering. Their fathers watched on with pride, both oblivious to the fact that James was doing nothing more than abiding strictly by the looney laws. After Mary Jo’s threat in Gideon’s office weeks earlier, James realized that he needed to pull it together and maintain his charade before something catastrophic happened. He, along with everyone else, was still completely unaware that Julia’s body was now being picked apart by scavengers at the bottom of a gorge. Ironically, just before that incident, James could
see in Mary Jo’s eyes that she was teetering. Since then, he had done nothing but flood her with a wealth of niceties and sweet gestures. Considering what she had done to her cousin, he was wise to stick by that decision. He had stuck by it so well, he now had Mary Jo drowning in what she truly believed was genuine love. James had all intentions of continuing to drown her, although he wished it was not in the figurative sense. He promised himself that he would keep his “bride-to-be” playing happily in the fields of sanity until the day he escaped her looney lands for good.

  Lily was a-way’s back in the foyer trying not to roll her eyes as she watched the laughable spectacle between James and Mary Jo as they said their goodbyes. Lily had to especially fight hard not to outwardly show her annoyance since J.R. was currently slithering his eyes up and down her whole body. He stood just feet away from her with a grimace on his face, refusing to blink as he penetrated her with a hateful glare. Lily did not need to look directly at him to know it. She could feel its intensity. J.R.’s eyes had constantly followed her throughout the day with that same intense look in them. Every time Lily entered the room, his eyes were on her, speaking volumes about his level of hatred for her. The sneer on his face never once changed either, like it was set in stone. He made Lily feel as though her presence in his vicinity was an unforgivable sin. J.R. was among the many who usually looked right through her, so she did not understand why he had suddenly began looking at her that way. All Lily knew was that she wanted to be out of his field of view as soon as possible. She wanted out of it all. She wanted to plug her ears and drown out the sound of Mary Jo’s grating voice as she constantly made demeaning demands from her. She wanted to snap her eyelids shut to block the sight of Mary Jo’s paws all over James. She wanted to plug her nose to cease the nausea that Jesse’s stench had caused. But more than anything, Lily wanted to numb the eerie feeling caused by J.R.’s devilish glare.