Lawfully Pledged

by Ginny Sterling

  Men were racing up the small hill nearby, stationing themselves for a better advantage point to fire. Gasping for breath, she ignored the pain in her side from the exertion. It would be nothing compared to if she was caught in the crossfire. They had to get to safety – both of them. As they got to the top of the hill, she watched as men were stuffing their muskets deftly and lying them on the ground beside them, moving to the next weapon and loading it.

  “I need a pistol,” she asked breathlessly.

  “Can you load one?” Alden questioned, looking utterly surprised. His dark eyes peered at her in fascination behind the glasses and she wasn’t sure if it was because he was seeing her clearly for the first time – or her demand for the gun.

  “Absolument,” she retorted almost defensively, “I may be a lady but I will never be one of the defenseless ones.”

  Stunned, Alden handed her his own pistol and powder horn.

  “Non! This is yours – you will need it.”

  Without answering, he pulled her into the woods, just in the shadow of the tree line, before turning to look at her once again. She saw the truth in his eyes; he was going back out there to fight unarmed and gave her the pistol to defend herself, if needed. She felt tears spring to her eyes in utter disbelief.

  “Alden, no!”

  “Madeline, I want you to listen to me. Stay here and remain low. I want you to hide and stay clear of the fighting.”

  “What about you?”

  “You know where I am headed,” he countered, a wry, sad smile on his face as he looked at her. “I will be back for you once it’s safe.”

  “You need a weapon,” she argued, trying to hand him back the gun. He only shook his head and pursed his lips.

  “Do be careful, that’s loaded.”

  “I know that.”

  “Then try not to shoot me before the redcoats get a chance,” he teased tightly. She looked up at his face and felt such an intense burning sensation in her chest.

  “Please don’t go.”

  “You know I have to.”

  “No, you don’t.”

  “Yes,” he countered, stepping towards her in the shadows. His hand cupped her jaw tenderly as he looked down on her. The spectacles he wore only served to make him look even more breathtaking – and the sheer awe in his eyes as he looked upon her for the first time was her undoing.

  “Please don’t leave me here.”

  “I will protect you with everything I am,” he pledged, just before he lowered his face towards hers. His eyes searched hers, waiting, and hesitated only a seconds before finally kissing her.

  For Madeline, it was like having everything around her suddenly snap into focus as she realized that this man had not only rescued her but captured her heart in the process. She couldn’t help the whimper as he broke the kiss, knowing that this might be the only time she would ever kiss him.

  “Don’t go.”

  “I’m coming back. I swear it.”

  “You had better,” she vowed.

  “That’s my girl,” he said tenderly, brushing a lock of hair from her face. “I must go and you need to stay hidden.”

  “I will,” she promised. “I will stay here until you come for me - and heaven help anyone that crosses my path.” Alden chuckled lightly at her words before kissing her tenderly on the cheek and nodding.

  “Just don’t shoot me when I come find you.”

  “Never.”

  Madeline watched as he turned and exited the woods. She was grateful to see him off in the distance with several other men, arming himself. She watched as he slipped a knife in his boot, tucked a pistol in his pants, and grabbed a rifle. He turned to look at the tree line where she was hidden away among the bushes and shadows.

  She raised her hand up as if to wave, knowing he couldn’t see her from her vantage point where she was hidden. In her heart, she knew he was looking to make sure she was camouflaged from view if the British took the hill. A hot tear streamed down her cheek as he descended the hill towards where General Washington and one of his regiments were waiting.

  Madeline sunk to her knees there in the shadows, laying the pistol in her lap as she clenched her hands together and prayed. She heard the roar of guns firing and bit her lip painfully to keep from screaming in protest. Her pulse roared in her ears as she wondered what was happening. Every blast, every shout, and every death knell that was cried out, carried on the wind, making her soul ache in a way that she’d never imagined.

  She couldn’t look out thorough the branches because it hurt her too much to see the soldiers desperately trying to reload while taking cover. It was killing her slowly within her heart, wondering if Alden was okay. She couldn’t just sit here! Jumping to her feet, she shoved the gun into the waistband of her skirt, running towards the soldiers.

  “Give me your gun – I will reload,” she roared desperately, only to have four empty pistols tossed her direction. Immediately Madeline picked up the guns and began to load them. A rifle appeared, then another, and another – she deftly reloaded and tried to get a glimpse of what was happening below. A sea of red and white was staining the area where the troops were. It was easy to tell who exactly the enemy was - the colonists were in dark colors of blue, brown, and tan.

  Every chance she got; Madeline was scanning the melee down below looking for Alden’s face. There were so many blasted men with dark brown hair! It was infuriatingly hard to recognize anyone as quickly as they were moving during the close combat.

  At least the gunfire wasn’t bothering her as much now since her ears were ringing heavily. Her fingers were stained with gunpowder and she was running out of ammunition entirely too fast for her own liking.

  “Is there more gunpowder?” she hollered at the nearest soldier, yanking on his pants leg to get his attention from where he was aiming. He glanced down at her and she could see from his expression that with her running out of munitions, they were sure to be in trouble.

  Swallowing hard, she felt waves of nausea roll over her as they kept handing her their guns for reloading and saw the dwindling stockpile. The resolution in their eyes only solidified hers. She wasn’t going down without a fight. If they could fight, then she could too!

  “I need a dagger,” she hollered, “please?”

  “Miss, take this and head for the forest.”

  “No, I’m staying.”

  “Miss – they are headed this way and we are about to be overrun,” he said anxiously, looking towards the hill. Madeline saw indeed several colonists were retreating up the hill away from a certain fate. The red wave of death was stealthily attacking, stabbing with bayonets as they advanced. Horrified, she heard the sickening sounds of ‘retreat!’ being yelled out repeatedly.

  They were losing!

  “Miss! To the woods – NOW!”

  Nodding fearfully, Madeline ran for the woods, back to the nearby thicket she’d originally thought to take shelter in. Scrambling down into the empty den, she yanked her skirts out of viewing and prayed desperately, rocking slowly and clutching the dagger the young militiaman had given her for protection. She heard troops nearing and realized they were chasing the men.

  “Madeline? Madeline!”

  It was Alden!

  “I’m here!” she announced, scrambling out of the thicket quickly. “We’ve got to go – they are retreating.” Getting to her feet, she felt the world tilt suddenly as she saw Alden was covered in all sorts of grime and splatters of blood.

  “Are you injured?”

  “No – and I’d like to keep it that way,” Alden said grimly, holding out his hand, “we are retreating to Peekskill to regroup.”

  Slapping her hand in his, she raced through the woods beside him, heedless of the branches pulling at her clothing or hair that had now come loose from its loose braid that had run down her back. She didn’t care what she looked like right now because the sounds behind her were propelling her forward out of sheer fear. She didn’t want to know if it was the British or not �
�� she just wanted to hide away, find shelter, and for them to be safe. It was no longer about just her and what she wanted to do, she cared for Alden and his safety.

  Madeline didn’t know how far they’d gone nor did she care. It was a relief to catch up with the others and saw they were as weary as she was. The stench of defeat was overwhelming. Sweat, blood, tears, and gunpowder were so thick in the air she could nearly taste it. Numb, she was handed a rock-hard biscuit and a tin cup of water. Glancing up at Alden, she saw his sad smile as he watched her expression.

  “You didn’t stay put, did you little one?”

  “I couldn’t,” she whispered painfully, her eyes searching his. “They were fighting so hard and everything seemed to move so slowly. They were trying to load their guns and aiming, but it was…”

  “I wish you didn’t have to see any of that,” he said apologetically, smoothing her hair from her face. “You’ve gunpowder on your cheeks and nose.”

  “I must look a fright,” Madeline said regretfully, immediately reaching up to try and straighten her hair.

  “No, not at all. Let’s sit down under the tree and rest while we can. I’ve found you a blanket to wrap about you.”

  They walked silently over towards the tree line and sat beside each other heavily in the grass. Leaning back against the bark, she unfurled the blanket and covered her lap, gesturing that he should use the blanket too.

  “Turn around,” he ordered softly.

  Madeline put her back to him instead and felt him begin combing her hair gently. He handed her a canteen and a handkerchief.

  “Wash your face sweetheart. You’ll feel better.”

  She wet the material without question and felt herself begin to start crying softly as the day’s events played again through her mind. Alden brushed her hair and braided it again for her, touching her neck gently and trying to rub the tension from it while she let out all the pent-up emotions that raged inside of her.

  “Shhh, you are breaking my heart,” he whispered, “come sit with me.”

  Madeline felt him pull her into his lap and immediately cradled her head against his neck. She did feel better but the sounds of battle, the cries of pain, and final gasps of breath would haunt her for years to come.

  “How can you be so calm?” she asked finally, sniffling, “I feel like such a ninny sitting here crying like a child.”

  “Shhh,” he crooned against her hair. “Don’t discount or discredit any of today’s events. I’m so proud of you and overheard the men talking about the angel who kept reloading the guns. Look around, little one. They are watching you and want to make sure you are alright. War is hard. Death is terrible, but today – today you were glorious in what you did.”

  Madeline looked around and saw that indeed several men were watching her from a distance away. They nodded silently their thanks, and a few saluted her. Looking up at Alden, she saw the pride shining in his eyes.

  “You look happy about what happened. Where’s Zeus?”

  “I’m happy to be here with you, little one. Zeus is grazing and having his shoes checked right now. Try to rest. We are leaving at dawn,” he murmured.

  Alden leaned down and gently kissed her forehead before encouraging her to rest her head against his neck again. She felt him pull the blanket over her, making her feel warm and secure. Her eyes closed of their own accord and she listened to the steady rhythm of his breathing before slipping into a deep slumber against his warm body. She barely caught his words and was certain she was imagining things.

  “Sleep well, my love.”

  Chapter Seven

  Splat.

  Splat. Splat. Splat.

  Madeline flinched as another drop of cold rain hit her directly on the eyelid, making her blink away the excess moisture. The sun was just cresting over the hills and the steady downpour of rain had begun. Things were already cool out; being wet would only make it colder. She was sick of death, being cold or hungry, and worrying about what event would happen next. She wanted to runaway somewhere and live peacefully.

  Somewhere warm.

  Somewhere her family was.

  Somewhere with Alden.

  Pulling up the blankets to protect herself from the rain drops, she heard him sigh heavily before snoring lightly. Grinning, she settled back down against him, relishing the feeling of warmth that he brought her – both physically and emotionally. He was such a good and kind man… and she was falling for him. In this crazy world around her, she was falling in love with a known spy.

  “How did you sleep?” he mumbled softly, smoothing her hair. She fought the urge to purr in delight. She couldn’t think of anyone else that would try to comfort her like he had. He’d wanted her to feel normal, to feel secure, and be proud of what she did. He didn’t berate her for leaving the woods after ordering her to stay there and hide – no – he’d been supportive of her decision.

  “I barely remember shutting my eyes,” she admitted. “I was worn out mentally and emotionally.”

  “Are you feeling better now?”

  “Yes. I don’t want to ever go through that again, but yes, I am feeling better. Thank you.”

  “Truthfully, I don’t want to go through that again either but I know I will have to before this is all over with. They won’t let us go and now they are bound and determined to punish all of us treacherous colonists,” he said softly.

  Madeline looked up at his face; his jawline was dusted with even more growth, giving him a dark shadow on his face. Suddenly, the quiet camp was coming alive with the rising sun. She saw General Washington off in the distance. The strain of command was wearing on him as she saw deep creases indicating stress on either side of his mouth and on his forehead.

  “Let’s get moving,” Alden urged softly.

  Getting to her feet, the rain began to come down even harder. Alden took the blanket and put it over her head in order to cover her as much as possible. Only her face peeked out from the blanket and the heavy droplets caused her to blink repeatedly. With the cooler temperatures, they felt almost like great, fat, icy pellets slapping her in the face. Oh yes, if it got much cooler they would be in danger. She was almost able to see her breath.

  “Madeline, you ride Zeus in case there is any danger.”

  “You aren’t riding?”

  “Not right now,” he admitted. “We’ve got quite a distance to travel today and I don’t want Zeus too tired if we need to flee again.”

  Madeline looked down on Alden’s beloved face and saw that he had rings under his eyes. He’d removed the spectacles and tucked them in his shirt pocket reverently. With the heavy rain, the lenses were nearly impossible to see through. He looked so handsome with or without the spectacles, she thought, smiling down at his warm, dark eyes.

  “Knox, can I see you a moment?”

  She saw the instant hesitation in his stance, the wariness in his eyes as he looked at her. He was concerned that he was about to be told something he wouldn’t like at all. She stared at him as he walked over to where General Washington was standing in the rain. She could see their lips moving but couldn’t hear a word either was saying. They were talking about her, that much she could tell. The general kept nodding in her direction and glaring at Alden. Was he being reprimanded for her actions yesterday? Did they blame their loss on a woman being present on the battlefield?

  Alden walked back over with a strange look on his face. He looked almost relieved and concerned as he glanced up at her where she sat on Zeus, waiting. Swallowing hard, Madeline took a deep breath and tried to put on her most calm expression to keep her emotions in check. Right now, she was running through a gambit of them, ranging from fear to pride – all the way to shame. She’d done something no other woman would do and maybe they looked at her like she was a camp follower – not the gentile lady she was.

  “Is anything amiss?”

  “I have another mission assigned to me.”

  “I see.”

  “We are leaving at once,” Alden
said, grabbing hold of Zeus’ reins and leading her away from camp. Madeline put her nose into the air and tried to remain calm while on the inside she was screaming with betrayal and shame. They were sending the little helpless woman away so they could fight and win the upcoming battle. She felt guilty that Alden was being dragged away for something that obviously weighed heavy on his mind.

  Bedraggled and chilled, she tried to hide her shivering as they rode on for a couple of miles. The squish of Zeus’ hooves made great sucking sounds in the mud as the road nearly became impassable. Great rivulets of water ran down the sodden blanket and her clothing was now getting drenched, yet they kept moving on in silence – and it was killing her.

  “I’m sorry,” Madeline said quietly, staring straight ahead. Goodness she hated apologizing for who she was. She’d had to do it repeatedly when she acted out as a child or misbehaved. She’d been coached repeatedly as a little girl to ‘behave like a lady’ over and over again.

  Ladies did not sit in the grass loading pistols. Ladies didn’t have smears of gunpowder on their face, nor did they throw muskets into the grass to be reused. She was right there in the thick of it and her family would be beside themselves if they knew how she’d acted publicly. Thank goodness not many knew her name in camp. She’d behaved like a slattern and knew it. Loading guns, then crawling into Alden’s lap, and sleeping like a kitten. What on earth had she been thinking?

  “Why are you apologizing?” he said quizzically, pulling the horse to a stop and looking up at her. She could see his dark hair was curling on his forehead from the rains that were pelting them both.

  “For my behavior.”

  “What was wrong with it? Did I miss something?”

  “Isn’t that why I am being expelled from the troops like a misbehaving child?”

  “It’s for your safety, Madeline.”

  “I know – it would do badly for a woman to get shot in the midst of battle. Having a woman present puts a curse on the troops and affects morale…”

  “It would devastate me to no end if something happened to you,” Alden inserted hotly, staring at her in disbelief. His brown eyes were lit with an inner fire that made her realize he was bearing his most inner thoughts to her.