Buried Roots

by Cynthia Raleigh

  “Ugh.” Nina made a face.

  “Anyway. Because of the loss of his right arm, he had to eat one-handed. To simplify it, Nelson commissioned a couple of the knife/fork combinations. One of them had a formed case to carry it in. At least one of his knives was straight, rather than curved like the one you found, and it combined the right outside tine with the knife blade rather than the sharpened edge being on the opposite side.”

  “Why would there be one of them in the root cellar at that house?” Nina asked.

  “They were in some demand during and after the Civil War, for the same reason Admiral Nelson needed one. There’s really no way to know who put it in the root cellar. It was with a pewter plate and a silver spoon too, right?” Nina nodded. “It could have been a member of the Graham family who fought in the Civil War. Maybe they were stored there after the person passed away or simply got a newer set of tableware. Who knows?”

  “Whatever the reason, I’m glad they were there. I’m sure whoever put them on that shelf couldn’t have imagined they’d come in handy one hundred fifty years in the future.” Nina turned to Archer, “Not that I care, but how’s Valerie’s eye doing? Any permanent damage?”

  Archer replied, “I believe she is going to survive, but…”

  “Too bad.” Nina drew her lips into a pout.

  “…but her vision is going to be somewhat decreased in her left eye, mostly in her peripheral vision. The tines of the fork pierced the lid and did penetrate the wall of the eye. She had some damage to the part of the eye there, what is it?”

  “The retina?” Perri offered.

  “Yeah. Some damage to the retina, but it didn’t detach, which was something they thought it might do. The medical report just said she’d had some laser treatment to the retina, the punctures were sutured, and she might have some loss of peripheral vision in that area.”

  “I know it’s mean, but it couldn’t happen to a more deserving person.”

  “You’re a mean one, aren’t you, going for the eye?” Archer baited Nina.

  “Seriously? I would have chopped her head off if I’d had an axe, but all I had was a plate and the Nelson Knife thing but they did the job. That’s all that matters.”

  Nina reached for the side knife that had caused so much difficulty. She leaned back in her chair and settled it in her lap. “I still don’t get the big deal about this thing.” To Perri, she asked, “You gonna finally tell me what is special about this thing?”

  Perri looked to Archer for approval. He nodded and smiled. “Yes ma’am. I’ve been looking forward to this.”

  Holding out both hands toward Nina, Perri asked, “May I?”

  Nina handed the knife in its scabbard to Perri. “By all means.”

  Perri sat cross-legged in the chair and held the knife in both hands, resting her elbows on her knees. “Jasper Graham had the knife made by Thomas Leech. The collection of notes and memoirs from the library talked about the knife and the fact that it was customized by Leech at Jasper’s request. The notes even commented that it had at least one unusual feature, but didn’t go into detail about what it was. At least not there. The last letter from Elizabeth to Isaac, and again we don’t have Isaac’s letters, was apparently answering something Isaac had asked his mother about.”

  “By now, Isaac knew the knife had been buried with his father rather than held for him, because Elizabeth had apologized for overlooking it in her grief after Jasper died. In that final letter from the packet, she refers back to the time when Jasper was a child, when he and his family lived at Ft. Mims when it was attacked and his father was killed.”

  Tom interrupted to ask, “But the Ft. Mims attack happened in 1813, way too early for the history of the knife.”

  Perri nodded in agreement. “Correct, too early for the knife, but not too early for something related to it.”

  “Ok, sorry, go on.”

  “No, that’s ok, I had the same reaction when I read the letter. Elizabeth goes into a lot of detail relating the story of the night Edwin Graham was killed, but she started with Edwin’s father, Pleasant Graham. Pleasant is the earliest inhabitant I read about who lived in the house here in Virginia. He grew up having been taught not only about thrift and moderation, but with an appreciation of history and an awareness of preserving it, not just the history of his time, but what would become the history of the future.”

  “In 1794, when Edwin was nine years old, a special coin was produced which today is thought to be the first one-dollar coin struck by the new United States mint. It was a silver dollar which featured the bust of a woman with flowing hair. Pleasant was a blacksmith. He was doing well in his business. He had an interest in metals as well as investment, thus his interest in coinage. He obtained at least two of them, one he gave to his young son Edwin and impressed upon the child its significance for the brand-new country.”

  “Edwin kept the coin throughout his life, and told his wife Polly it was his ‘good luck token.’ He kept it with him most of the time, including the day Ft. Mims was attacked by the Creeks. As evening came on and the situation became even more dire, he gave the coin to Polly. He told her he wanted Jasper to have it when he reached nine years old, as he had been, but he was afraid that, depending on what happened that night, the coin may be lost if he kept it himself.”

  “There was a two-sided edge to that event in the Graham family. Part of the family folklore described the belief that Edwin might have survived if he hadn’t relinquished his good luck token and the other side of that coin is the belief that had he not done so, Jasper wouldn’t have received the coin since it would have been lost in the massacre. And it would have been, because Edwin’s body was not recovered. It was mostly likely quickly buried days later by the few remaining friendly Creek Indians and soldiers, soldiers who came too late to help in the battle, along with the other hundreds of bodies strewn about the destroyed fort and landscape, many of which had been scalped.”

  “That’s horrible. I can’t imagine going through that, losing Tom and trying to survive with Aaron, just losing everything. It was hard enough to survive in those days, more so for a woman with a child.”

  “It was a truly horrendous thing for families. Most of the settlers and their families weren’t intent on ousting the native Creeks when they moved there, they were trying to take advantage of the opportunity to build a home and farm on their own land. But the Creeks didn’t see it that way, since their land had been usurped and they had been vilified. They viewed it as a hostile intrusion, which we would do also if it happened to us. At any rate, that’s what happened with the coin which was to become Jasper’s in 1820. Polly gave him the coin and emphasized what his grandfather had told Edwin when he gave him the coin originally.”

  “Jasper carried the coin with him his entire life. When he entered the service and left with his regiment in the Civil War, he remembered the story of his father leaving the coin behind. He decided he wouldn’t do the same but he was still concerned about losing it during a battle or the other rigors of outdoor life. He decided on a solution that would let him take the coin with him and keep it relatively safe. He couldn’t keep it in a place where just anyone could find it because he knew if he was killed in battle it would certainly be lost to looting. He knew that his own soldiers would not take his possessions from his pockets, but did request that if he fell they made sure the knife, this knife, was not left on the field for the enemy to take. He wanted it returned to his wife, Elizabeth.”

  “When he commissioned the knife from Thomas Leech, he sat down with him and worked out the features he wanted his knife to have. Most of the customizations were cosmetic: the braided wire-wrapped leather grip, the more pronounced cross guard, etc. The thing that was truly unique was the pommel.”

  Perri turned the grip end of the knife toward Tom and Nina. She pointed to the metal-worked edging around the base of the polished brass pommel. “You see this serpentine design?” The others leaned closer. “It’s very expertly worked,
because the serpentine design very effectively hides a small hinge.” Perri pointed to it with her pinkie fingernail.

  “I see it. I wouldn’t have noticed it before. It just looks like part of the pattern.” Nina said softly.

  “Right. The hinge is on the side of the pommel that is closest to the bearer’s wrist. There isn’t a visible clasp on the opposite side, but this does open.”

  Tom’s face flushed and he sat upright, “Are you saying what I think you are saying, or am I just getting carried away?”

  Perri’s eyes widened and she smiled. “You aren’t getting carried away.” She pulled the small table over in front of her and held the knife over it. With the scabbard tucked between her forearm and thigh, she pressed her thumb against the edge of the pommel on the blade side. There was no movement at first, but finally the oval end of the pommel popped up. Perri slowly opened the compartment being careful not to stress the hinge.

  She said to Nina, “Hold out your hands, just cup them together.” Nina did so. Perri tipped the knife until the finial end of the scabbard pointed upward. Along with the shredded remnants of the lining fabric, a coin rolled into Nina’s waiting hands.

  Perri said, “This is why. This is the reason for the desperation to recover the knife.”

  Nina and Tom were speechless for a few moments. Nina looked at Perri. “This is the coin that Pleasant gave Edwin, and Edwin gave Jasper?”

  “I believe so.”

  Tom picked up the coin and examined both sides. On the face was the profile of a regal lady, her hair flowing about her shoulders and behind her. She was surrounded by stars, eight behind her and seven in front of her, representing the fifteen stars and fifteen stripes of the American flag at that time. Above her head, in bold letters, it said LIBERTY. The date, 1794, was beneath her. On the obverse was an eagle, wings spread, surrounded by a wreath around which appeared the words UNITED STATES OF AMERICA.

  “Lady Liberty.” Tom’s only words, spoken in an emotional voice.

  In a hushed voice, Nina asked, “Is this coin really over two hundred twenty years old?”

  Perri merely nodded.

  “What you have in your hand is the reason Dr. Graham was confident he would actually get away with this. The money he could have demanded from a serious collector for that coin would have been more than he would ever need,” Archer explained. “Which reminds me, before we go any further, I want to mention ownership and possession of these items.”

  “Sure, Archer, what’s the situation?” Nina asked.

  “The issue is that they were recovered in an unlawful manner. Had they been recovered in an acceptable manner, they would be the property of the land owners. But because they weren’t, the ownership of the knife, scabbard, and coin, are that of the State of Alabama.”

  “I see.”

  “Because of the notation in Felix’s database, and before Perri found the news article about the Alabama grave robbing and the letter from Elizabeth stating the knife had been buried with Jasper Graham, we had hoped permission had been obtained to metal detect on the property and that this is how the knife was found. Had all of that been the case, the State wouldn’t have outright ownership although they could offer to purchase the items. I have talked with a curator from the Alabama historical department. They definitely want the coin and plan to display it in exhibitions, along with a detailed story of the coin’s history, then finally place it in a museum. Its value is astonishing. As far as the knife and scabbard, they would like to exhibit them along with the coin initially. However, because of the help from all of you in uncovering the story and even the actual existence of the coin, they are willing to return it to you following that, say after an exhibit of about six months. Honestly, I think they are so ecstatic with the acquisition of the Flowing Hair Bust Dollar, as it is referred to, that they are feeling pretty generous with the knife. Take it while you can.”

  “Sounds good to me.” Tom agreed.

  “Me too. It’s been a source of a lot of trouble and pain, but in a way, I’m glad we get to keep the darned thing. The Most Cursed Dagger will have a new home and hopefully not be cursed anymore.”

  “I guess we’ll just leave it here with you then, Arch?”

  “Yes. I’ll make sure it is returned to Alabama, but probably not until after Mr. Graham’s trial. We may be using it as one of the evidence exhibits if it goes to a trial. He’s still insisting he doesn’t know anything about the kidnapping or did anything wrong. His story is he hired someone, meaning Roger, to find it on the old property with a metal detector and had no idea it was buried. Says he doesn’t know anything about Nina’s kidnapping, even though he spoke with her often enough. We also found the cassette diction unit he used to make the recordings for the phone calls. He refuses to acknowledge the evidence against him.”

  “How can he even hope to convince anyone of that when he made the deal with Valerie, paid the down payment to her, went to Alabama after the graves were despoiled, and all the other evidence?” Perri asked.

  “I know, it’s obvious to us, but I don’t think he’s used to being opposed. He’s a very intelligent man, but he has lived an insular life. In his world, he’s usually at the top of the food chain and expects his words to be believed without question. He’s having a difficult time adjusting to being questioned and the realization that he will most likely go to prison. He’s more like an intelligent, but spoiled child.”

  “What about Roger and Valerie?” Tom nodded when Nina asked the question.

  “Valerie is in for a long haul as well. She is an obstinate person and, fortunately for us all, she is not denying her involvement. It will help us with the case against Orcenith Graham. As for Roger, he’ll do some time but at a reduced sentence. He’s getting leniency for his cooperation. I’m happy with that because he is clearly making our job easier. I think he’s a guy who got in over his head and didn’t know how to get out. Doesn’t excuse what he did, but it does happen. He’ll be out of jail long before the other two. Maybe he can straighten his life out.”

  Nina set her empty glass down on the table, next to the knife. “Hey, I have another question.”

  “What’s that?” Archer asked.

  “Perri said Edwin’s father, Pleasant Graham, bought two of these coins when they came out. He gave this one to Edwin. Where’s the other one?”

  Perri’s face beamed with the enjoyment she got from an unsolved mystery. “That…we don’t know.”

  Chapter 41

  The drive home was long but Perri didn’t mind since everyone was together, alive, and well. Only a couple of days ago she hadn’t been too sure it would turn out this way. Tom was pulling her luggage out of the back of the Explorer in her own driveway at eleven thirty Saturday night. He carried them in the house for her, then they both walked back to the bug-spattered SUV.

  Perri went around to the passenger side, opened the door, and gave Nina a long hug. “I’m so relieved you are alright. Call me after you’ve had plenty of time to visit with Aaron and rest up.”

  “Will do. Thanks for helping straighten out this giant mess. And please, if I ever try to buy anything like that again, you stop me. That’s your job.”

  “I will unconditionally block any attempt on your part to purchase a stolen relic that was dug up from someone’s grave, I promise.”

  “You know what I mean.”

  “I do. But you know that once the horror of this situation has faded a bit, the jokes will start. Can’t let it die. Don’t want to bury a good source of material.”

  “Stop it! You goose. Take care. Say hello to Nick for me and remember you’re supposed to bring him by the house for supper while he’s here.”

  Tom added, “That’s right. If I don’t meet him in the next couple of days, he isn’t real.”

  “I promise.” Perri hugged Tom too. He climbed back into his seat, shifted into reverse, and eased out of the driveway. Perri waved, stepped into her living room, and shut the door with great relief. She had tal
ked to Nick for almost two hours on the trip home. He was planning on leaving Russellville in about eight hours.

  Perri scanned the living room; it was tidy but dusty. ‘Where does it come from?’ she sighed. She was suddenly extraordinarily tired. Nothing appealed to her but sleep, she didn’t check her answering machine, or look at the bundle of mail her neighbor had left in a plastic bag hanging from her doorknob, or unpack anything. She pulled on a giant t-shirt she had bought on one of her nursing assignments and crawled into bed, sleep overtaking her within moments.

  She hadn’t set an alarm, knowing she’d wake up as soon as it started to get light in expectation of Nick’s arrival. Except that she didn’t. She turned over, eyes still closed, and wondered what the pounding noise was. ‘Must be the neighbor working on his car again.’ Realization dawned abruptly and cruelly. She attempted to leap from the bed and grab her robe, but her foot tangled in the sheet and she drug it off onto the floor as she struggled to get her arms in the sleeves which she had, uncharacteristically, left inside out. She thought about running into the bathroom to at least pull a brush through her tangled dark hair. Perri had never understood how hair that was as fine as hers was could still tangle into a rat’s nest just by sleeping. There wasn’t time for that though.

  The knocking stopped just as her cell phone began to ring. Perri got her second arm into her robe and flung the door open to find Nick holding his phone to his ear. She had wanted to be dressed up and all ready when he arrived, but she smiled in defeat instead. Nick tried not to laugh, but the corners of his mouth curved upward and the dimples formed. “You can laugh. I know.”

  Nick put his arms around her waist and picked her up, walking into the living room. “I think you look just about perfect.”