Memphis

by Sara Orwig

  “There’s a world of differences between us,” she said, gasping for breath. “You’ll go and I don’t want to be in love with you when you leave.”

  “I don’t want you to go to a Federal prison,” he said, his voice deep and raspy, his hands clenched at his sides. “You print a paper that’s loyal to the Confederacy, and that’s what will happen.”

  She stared at his broad, muscular chest. Her gaze lowered, seeing the bulge in his pants. She yanked her gaze up to his face. If he touched her, she would be in his arms and she couldn’t tell him to stop again. He could break her heart so easily. “Just leave!”

  He stared at her and turned away, striding out of the room, and she felt as if all the strength went out of her. She clutched her middle, unaware what she was doing. She was falling in love with him and she didn’t want to love him. He would ride away and she wouldn’t see him again. And he was all the things her family disliked and didn’t approve of. Things she didn’t approve of. She leaned back against the wall and anger and hurt vanished as she remembered his kisses, his hands on her body. “Caleb,” she whispered, knowing it was best to send him away, wanting him back, wanting to be in his arms. I love him. Heaven help her, she loved him. How long would it take to get over this feeling for him? she wondered.

  Midmorning Caleb walked along Front Street. Uniformed men filled the Court Square and walked the streets. Colonel Fitch was in charge of the city and Union soldiers were everywhere.

  Will strode beside Caleb. “My family is going to stay in the city as long as there’s no danger. I’m able to return to fighting, so I’ll go soon. Father wanted me to wait and see if we have to get the family out of town. I worry about them, because Father is showing his age. He seems frail.”

  Caleb glanced at him. “I’ve been thinking about it, Will. There are other Confederates still in town, and they’ll have to leave. We could find a place and fight our own battles and still help the Confederacy.”

  “What do you want to do?”

  “We can raid Memphis, take Federal arms, and send what we garner to our men. We’d help the Confederacy and still be close to home.”

  Will stopped walking to stare at him. “We could join Bedford Forrest if that’s what you want to do.”

  “No. I want to be on my own, able to get back to Sophia if she needs me.”

  Will tugged at his earlobe as he stared at Caleb. “I’d be willing to try.”

  “I’ll find a place where we can camp, and we’ll have to get some supplies.”

  “My uncle Morton has a farm outside Germantown. He’d like to join the Confederates, but he can’t leave the farm. Maybe we can stay there and the men can camp on his farm. There won’t be Bluebellies on his farm. How long do you think we can stay in Memphis without drawing Union attention? The Federals don’t seem organized yet.”

  “I’d guess a day or two. Proclamations will probably be issued soon and every man who stays in town will have to take a loyalty oath.”

  Will shook his head. “They’ll have a time enforcing that. They don’t seem to take any notice of us.”

  “The town is still full of able-bodied men. Not everyone went to war. They may conscript the qualified.”

  They reached the corner of Main and Madison. “Father wants me to come to his office,” Will said, motioning toward the buildings of cotton factors. “Most of the merchants have closed their businesses rather than have dealings with Yankees. There might not be any open hostility, but there’s going to be a lack of cooperation.”

  “If Forrest attacks, there’s no militia to give him support.”

  “Bedford Forrest was wounded at Shiloh. He won’t raid anything for a time.” He paused. “We might have to leave town on a moment’s notice. Any Yankee discovers we’re in the Confederate army, we’ll be wanted. Caleb, I’ll make some discreet inquiries. I can think of four men who might ride with us. If we have to flee, meet at my uncle’s. It has a sign on the fence, MORTON STANTON. It’s west of the Germantown Road and south of the Wolf River.”

  “Good. I’ll draw up a list of supplies.” Caleb grinned, placing his hands on his hips. “We may have to ride back and steal them—if we do, we’ll get them from Yankees, not our own stores.”

  “I don’t want my family to know. I don’t want them to worry.”

  “They’re going to worry, Will, the minute you ride out of Memphis. I worry, because I know Sophia is going to print that damned paper of hers until someone forcibly stops her.”

  “She’s like her father. My father always said Thaddeus Merrick was the most stubborn, hardheaded man he had ever seen. You know where to find me if you need me.” Will turned and strode up the street and Caleb remembered that dark night in the rain. Thank heaven Will survived, but he would go right back into danger again.

  Caleb turned to walk back toward Sophia’s. He looked at the Federal gunboats along the wharves. The docks teemed with uniformed men. The Stars and Stripes flew over Memphis now and he wondered what changes would occur.

  Caleb changed course to walk past Court Square. He glanced at the statue of Jackson where Memphians had scratched out the words cut into the marble proclaiming the need to preserve the Union. Oaks gave cool shade as he looked at the clusters of officers, the Federals coming and going at the courthouse. He crossed the street, his thoughts shifting to Sophia. Lord, he didn’t want to leave her alone, yet each day he placed himself at risk. He didn’t want to fall in love with her, but he couldn’t stop thinking about her. He couldn’t remember any woman who had constantly invaded his thoughts.

  His lips firmed. Leave Memphis, he told himself. See how he felt when he was away from her.

  He strode across a street, pausing to let a buggy pass. A group of Federal officers stood on the corner, and one faced Caleb. Taller than all the others, the captain was bareheaded, the breeze tugging at locks of his wavy black hair. His blue eyes met Caleb’s and narrowed. Caleb’s heart slammed against his ribs and his breath caught in his throat.

  “Fortune,” he whispered, feeling shock course through him as he stared at his brother.

  Chapter 9

  Caleb realized he was staring and would draw attention to himself. The officer was coming toward him. Caleb jerked his head, motioning to the officer to follow. He rounded a corner behind a building, stopping in the alley.

  In minutes a tall, black-haired Union officer came around the corner. Caleb felt as if a fist clenched his heart; he moved forward, enveloping his brother in a hug, forgetting the Union uniform, overwhelmed by joy.

  “Fortune, thank God, you’re alive!” he said, squeezing Fortune, feeling a knot in his throat and tears sting his eyes.

  They moved apart and looked at each other and both grinned as they wiped their eyes. “Where the hell have you been?” Caleb asked.

  “Where have I been? Where have you and Rafferty been? Where’s Darcy and Mother?”

  Caleb’s smile vanished. “Mother died that night,” he answered solemnly. “The rest of us are fine and live in New Orleans.”

  “I really didn’t think she would survive the sea. And New Orleans! Lord, I placed ads in the paper there!”

  “The hell you did! So did Rafe. He placed ads for you, but somehow we missed each other. Come with me. I’m staying at a house here. I want you to meet someone and we can talk more freely without worrying about a Union officer coming around the corner.”

  “You don’t like Union officers?”

  “I’m a major in the Confederacy.”

  “My God, Caleb, why?”

  “Lord, you’re tall. You’re the tallest one of us,” Caleb said, grinning and studying him. “For that matter, why are you a Bluecoat?” He waved his hand. “Come home with me and we’ll talk.”

  Fortune fell in step beside him. “Why are you a Reb? You’re no slaveholder.”

  “No, but when we arrived in New Orleans, Ormonde Therrie gave Rafe and me jobs. The Therries are a second family, and now we’re related. Rafe married one of the daught
ers, Chantal Therrie.”

  “French and Irish? Why are you living in a home here if you’re from New Orleans?”

  “I was wounded at Shiloh. The hospitals were overflowing, so men were placed in homes. I’m trying to get my aim back before I return to fighting. Now where have you been since the night of the shipwreck?”

  “I was picked up by a ship headed for Brazil. When I got a ship back to the United States, it docked in Baltimore. I needed to work before I could do anything else, so I stayed in Baltimore. I met someone there and married—”

  “Married!” Caleb stopped in shock and turned to his brother. “Fortune, you’re nineteen.”

  “I’m not married now,” Fortune said, and Caleb felt surprised by the harshness in his voice. “We were seventeen.” They commenced walking again while Caleb listened. “Marilee Wenger was from a plantation south of Atlanta, Georgia. She was in Baltimore with an aunt who approved of me and we eloped. Her father had planned to wed her to an older man in Georgia.”

  “Lord, I hate that custom. What happened?”

  “We had a baby boy, Michael. Shortly after Michael was born, Marilee’s father came while I was away. Trevor Wenger took Marilee and our son and started back to Georgia. Along the way, Marilee and Michael contracted pneumonia and they died.”

  “I’m sorry,” Caleb said, feeling solemn and realizing how much Fortune had changed. Tall and broad-shouldered, he had filled out. His face was broader than Rafe’s yet there was a strong family resemblance in their jaws and straight noses, their blue eyes and black hair.

  “I intended to go to Georgia to kill Trevor Wenger, but I received a letter from him from New York. He was on his way to England after the deaths. Then the war came along. Trevor Wenger is the South to me. That’s why when the war started, I enlisted. Every Southerner I face, I think of Trevor Wenger.” He glanced at Caleb and his eyes were cold. Caleb felt a twist of sympathy as he met his brother’s gaze. “Until now. If you’re a Reb, I guess I won’t be so eager to fire. I may face you across gun barrels.”

  “I hope not! I’ve had enough war to last me a lifetime. It’s senseless killing.”

  “It’s not really our war. I’ll get Wenger if I have to wait until the war’s end and go to Georgia. I don’t know if he’s sitting out the war in England or if he’s returned. I keep hoping I can get to Atlanta.”

  “The way you Bluebellies fought at Shiloh, you might do it.” Caleb took his arm, feeling the solid muscle beneath the sleeve of his uniform. “Turn here.”

  They crossed the porch and Caleb stepped into a cool hallway. Sophia was at the head of the stairs. “Come down, Miss Merrick,” Caleb said, “there’s someone here I want you to meet.” As he stared at her, he felt surprise.

  He studied her, momentarily forgetting Fortune. Her hair was a different style, curled over her forehead, fastened in a full, low chignon behind her head. The emerald necklace glinted against her black poplin as she moved, and the three top buttons were unfastened. He felt his pulse drum. He realized he was staring. She carried her bonnet in her hands and she placed it on the newel post as she stepped down into the hall.

  “Miss Merrick, I want you to meet my brother Fortune O’Brien,” Caleb said perfunctorily, still captivated with her new hairdo. Why had she made the change? She looked prettier than ever. Poised, smiling at Fortune as he greeted her, she glanced back and forth between them.

  “The brother who was lost at sea?”

  Fortune grinned with a flash of white teeth. “I wasn’t any more lost than they were. I settled in Baltimore and couldn’t find them.”

  “How wonderful you’ve found each other now,” she said, yet Caleb detected a solemn note. “You’re a Yankee officer.”

  “Yes, ma’am.”

  “He’s not the enemy,” Caleb said. Was she alarmed about her printing press? How deep would Fortune’s loyalties to the Union go?

  “Come sit in the parlor,” she said, leading the way. Both men followed her and she tugged the bellpull to summon Mazie.

  “Miss Merrick saved my life at Shiloh. She brought Will Stanton and me home from battle.”

  “Then I’m doubly glad to meet you, Miss Merrick,” Fortune said, smiling at her. “And I can’t acknowledge you on the street,” he said to Caleb. “You know what will happen if word gets out you’re a major in the Confederacy.”

  “As long as he stays here, Captain, you’re welcome to come call and see him here. No one will know what happens in my house.”

  “Thank you. We’re going to be deeply indebted to you.” He looked at Caleb. “Tell me about Rafferty and Darcy,” Fortune said as he sat down on the wing-back chair and stretched out his long legs.

  “Rafe is a cotton factor and has his own ships. Right now he’s running the blockade.”

  “For the Confederacy?”

  “For the O’Briens. I’ve put my money in his ship business and he’s sailing back and forth between here and England.” While he talked, Caleb glanced at Sophia. The open windows and sunshine were behind her, highlighting her golden hair. She looked beautiful and he yearned to move across the room and sit beside her.

  They drank substitute coffee and talked. Fortune looked at Caleb. “You’re going to have to leave town, Cal, or go into hiding. You’re the enemy.”

  Caleb nodded, glancing at Sophia and she looked down at her fingers locked together in her lap.

  “Miss Merrick, do you have a husband or father in the war?”

  “Neither one, Captain O’Brien. I’m not married and my father died shortly after the war started. He printed a newspaper here, The River Weekly.”

  “I know that government will require all editors to take an oath of allegiance if they continue to print their paper,” Fortune said.

  “I’ve closed the office of The River Weekly. My father is no longer alive, so now I’m out of the newspaper business.”

  Fortune nodded as he stood up. “I need to get back to headquarters, Caleb.”

  “It was nice to meet you,” Sophia said.

  “It was my pleasure, Miss Merrick. I can’t thank you enough for saving my brother.”

  She remained in the parlor as Caleb walked to the front door with Fortune where they stopped to face each other. “She said you can come call and see me here.”

  “You can’t stay in Memphis long without taking an oath of allegiance.”

  Caleb glanced over his shoulder and lowered his voice. “I worry about her. She’s alone except for two elderly servants.”

  “There’s no family?”

  “No. The brothers are fighting and her father is dead. One brother was killed in Shenandoah.”

  “You’re staying here and she has no family?”

  “Yes, but her reputation is intact. You’ll hear about her from someone if you’re in town long enough. The Merricks were the town eccentrics. I think the dowagers view her as a spinster already.”

  “Miss Merrick?” Fortune said, arching his brows and sounding so skeptical Caleb had to laugh.

  “She’s grown up with a father who preached temperance and fought saloons and she’s his daughter.”

  Fortune studied him. “She probably doesn’t approve of gamblers either then. I’m surprised she gave you shelter.”

  “Drinking, wild women, gambling, and railroads. Doctor Perkins made her take in some wounded.”

  “You’re not that wounded now. Are there other wounded staying there?”

  “Not any longer.”

  “Be careful, Cal. You can get hurt falling in love.”

  “I’m not in love,” he said, feeling a strange sense of lying to Fortune with his statement. “I worry about her because she’s alone. I’m leaving town, but I won’t go far. I’ll come back at times, so if you want to get in touch with me, contact Sophia.”

  “I thought it was Miss Merrick,” Fortune said, studying him.

  “It’s Sophia.”

  “I’ll try to call often and see if she’s all right.”

  “Th
anks, Fortune. That means a lot. She saved my life and she needs someone now. I’m writing Rafe about you today. Darcy will be overjoyed. You won’t know him when you see how he’s grown.”

  “I hate that we’re on opposite sides.”

  “You can change,” Caleb said with a grin.

  They looked at each other a moment and Caleb reached to hug Fortune again. “God, it’s good to find you!”

  “I’m going to try to arrange a trip to New Orleans as soon as possible. You take care of yourself. You’re running risks staying close in enemy territory.” He stepped back, his gaze sweeping over Caleb. “You would have to be a damned Rebel!”

  They stared at each other. “Take care of yourself,” Caleb said solemnly.

  “You do the same,” Fortune replied, and Caleb walked down the front steps with him.

  “This street seems quiet enough,” Caleb said, glancing around, “but I know it won’t do for people to see us talking. You’d get asked questions.”

  Fortune strode away, and Caleb watched him, still unable to believe they were finally reunited and Fortune had survived the shipwreck. He had grown taller. Caleb’s gaze ran across Fortune’s broad shoulders and down his long legs. He turned and Caleb waved to him. Fortune grinned and returned the wave.

  Caleb went up the walk and into the house, strolling into the parlor. Sophia was nowhere in sight. Mazie was in the kitchen with smells of peas cooking and ham baking.

  He turned and strode up the steps to the room with the printing press. The room was empty but he saw a paper with wet ink and he crossed the room to read, drawing a sharp breath.

  Anger stirred and beneath it, he felt a cold fear for Sophia’s safety.

  CITIZENS OF MEMPHIS—Memphis falls to Federal forces! General Van Dorn escapes with thousands of dollars of property! RESIST the Federals and their influence. The Loyal Memphian will take up the banner of free press and our Cause and carry it as long as possible while other papers have had to close or flee. Resist the tyrants, pray for our brave men, and know that someday we will once again see the stars and bars fly from Court Square!