Banks looked like a kid, all big-eyed and licking his lips, but he kept himself in check, waiting for Levi to give permission to indulge in the sweets. When Levi gave a nod, the corporal snagged a large cookie, grinning.
“Thank you, ma’am,” he said before he stuffed the entire thing in his mouth.
“I couldn’t help but overhear your comment regarding our blue porch ceilings.” She looked up, as did Banks. “Supposedly the restless spirits—haints, as some folks call them—see the blue color and are fooled into thinking it’s water. Haints, it is said, cannot cross water.”
Banks gulped down the cookie.
Levi nearly chuckled. He didn’t believe for a moment someone as sensible as Natalie Ellis fell for such superstition. “If the two of you are finished telling tales, I would like to get to the matter at hand.”
Natalie and Banks exchanged a brief look, and if he wasn’t mistaken, a small smile passed between them too.
“General Granger’s orders are clear. The Union Army will remain at Langford plantation indefinitely.” When Natalie opened her mouth, Levi raised his hand. “Hear me out, Mrs. Ellis. While the Union Army is occupying your land, you are to be compensated.”
Her fine brows shot to her hairline. “Compensated?” She blinked several times before a look of interest sparked in the blue depths. “Are you saying the Army will pay me to use my property?”
The hopeful tone in her voice was unmistakable. “I am saying the Army will compensate you in some form, but I would not expect a large sum of cash, if that is what you ultimately demand.”
“If not cash, then what could the Army possibly offer?”
Levi had anticipated the question. General Granger was tight-fisted when it came to Union funds, so handing over a fair amount of cash to a widow wasn’t something he’d expect to happen. But just as Natalie and other plantation owners could find creative ways to pay newly freed slaves for labor without cash on hand, the Army could do the same.
“While I don’t know what your plans are for the future, I believe we can help with your immediate needs.”
“And what might they be?” Skepticism rang loud and clear.
“Your fields are full of cotton plants that will require harvesting. The Army would hire free Negroes to bring in the crop. Some of my men are accustomed to farming and could oversee the endeavor, all the way to market if you so choose. By order of the president, all southern seaports will resume trade on July first.”
Levi watched as her eyes narrowed in thought. She glanced out to the emerald fields, which extended far beyond what they could see from the house. When her gaze met his once again, the gleam of interest he’d seen earlier had turned to one of eagerness.
“And you believe I will be able to sell the cotton once the blockades are removed?”
“I do. The price of cotton is at an all-time high. With so many southern plantations not producing, those with a crop in the field stand to make a decent profit. More, I believe, than what the Army would pay you in cash.”
A rooster crowed from somewhere nearby while Natalie contemplated the offer. After several moments, during which various expressions crossed her face, she seemed to come to a decision. She stood and faced Levi. “Very well, Colonel. I would like our agreement in writing, if you will. I would like to know how many men you will hire and how many soldiers you will provide.”
Levi bit back a chuckle. This wasn’t the first time she’d asked for something in writing. It probably wouldn’t be the last before it was all said and done. Considering she’d lived her entire life as a pampered daughter and wife, she seemed to have a keen understanding of business. “As you wish. I will have the papers drawn up and sent over for your signature.”
A pleased smile curled her lips. “Thank you. I would have never dreamed something good could come from having the Union Army camped on Langford land, but it appears I was mistaken.”
For a moment, Levi was captivated by the delight on her face. The same feeling he’d experienced when he’d given her the box of oranges washed over him. Pleasure. It was pure pleasure making this woman smile.
The screen door screeched open, and out bounded Samuel, covered in dried mud from head to toe. He ran to Natalie. Levi thought for certain she would keep him at arm’s length to protect her gown, but he was wrong. When Samuel reached her and wrapped his dirty arms around her skirt, she smiled down at him.
“Did you finish watering the garden?” she asked, using her fingers to comb his sweaty hair from his face.
“Yes, Mama. Harriet ’n Carolina are still working.” Samuel peeked up at Levi. “Is that the man that gave us the or’nges?”
Natalie met Levi’s gaze, humor in her blue eyes. “It is. Would you like to thank him?”
“Thankee, sir.”
Levi turned his attention to the boy. “You’re welcome. Have you been working with Ebenezer to get him to obey your commands?”
Samuel shook his head.
“Well,” Levi said, glancing to where the dog lounged in the shade of the house. “If you want him to mind you, you’ll have to teach him his lessons.”
Carolina came through the door then. “There you are, Samuel. Don’t run off like that without tellin’ me or Harriet where you goin’.”
“I wanted to find Mama,” the boy said, eyeing the cookies on the plate. “Can I have a ’lasses cookie, Mama?”
Natalie nodded. “Yes, you may.” She glanced at Levi. “Why don’t you share one with the colonel, the way he shared his oranges with you.”
Samuel looked up at Levi then back to the cookies. With a pudgy finger, he silently counted the remaining cookies on the plate. Three were left. Apparently deciding that was enough to share, he carefully picked up the china plate with both hands and held it toward Levi.
“Want one?”
Levi grinned, wondering if his nephew Lucas was anything like Samuel. The boy had been born shortly before the war began. Levi hadn’t seen him in several years, but thankfully, his brother had survived the battles and was even now home with his family in Pennsylvania. Seeing Samuel’s cherub face looking up at him reminded Levi of his own deep longing to return home.
“No, but thank you. You can eat mine.”
Samuel’s eyes brightened. He wasted no time returning the plate to the table and reaching for a cookie.
“We will take our leave now,” Levi said to Natalie, tugging on his gloves. “Corporal Banks will return tomorrow with the papers. Once you’ve signed them, we can begin hiring workers.” He glanced at Banks. Instead of finding the corporal attentive to the plan, however, the young man’s gaze was fastened on Carolina, who, when Levi glanced in her direction, wore a shy smile, lashes fluttering as she snuck peeks at Banks.
Levi heaved a sigh. The last thing he needed was a lovesick corporal. There was still far too much work to be done in Texas to waste time on flirtation and silliness.
He cleared his throat, gaining Banks’ attention. That man drew his shoulders back and gave Levi a firm nod.
“Thank you, Colonel,” Natalie said, falling in step beside him as he moved to the stairs. “With so many changes taking place, I didn’t know how we would get the harvest in. I would have never believed it, but you and the Union Army are an answer to prayer.”
Her comment dogged him all the way back to Langford Manor. While Natalie Ellis might be pleased with the turn of events, he was not. He’d come to Texas to free Negroes still in bondage, not help the very people who had kept them enslaved.
CHAPTER EIGHT
“Miz Natalie, that corporal is here to see you. I told him to wait on the porch.”
Natalie breathed a sigh of relief at Carolina’s announcement. If she’d had to stay on her knees pulling weeds from around her mother-in-law’s prized rose bushes one minute longer, she was certain her legs would never unbend. All morning she’d labored over the fragrant bushes that bordered the house. First pruning and cutting away dead flowers and leaves, then pulling weeds that sprang up
overnight, it seemed, despite the lack of rain. The work was hot and tiresome, but she felt a measure of pride with her accomplishment, bleeding fingertips and weary muscles notwithstanding. She hoped Martha Ellis would be pleased should she be given an opportunity to look down from heaven and see how Natalie was faring as mistress of Rose Hill.
“Thank you, Carolina.” She unfolded her legs with a groan. Painful prickles filled her feet when she stood, and she nearly tumbled forward when she took a step. She grabbed hold of the kitchen porch post to keep her upright and flinched when the blisters on her palms from the previous day’s labor rubbed against the rough wood.
“You shouldn’t be down on the ground, Miz Natalie. Someone else can see to them roses.”
Natalie wiped perspiration from her brow with the back of her hand while wiggling her toes to get the blood flowing again. “You know as well as I there is too much work for you and Harriet to handle alone. I must do my part, although I fear I will never be very useful.” She held up her hands, which sported dried blood on several fingers. “I had no idea a rosebush could be so ornery.”
Carolina giggled.
“Please see that our guest has some cool water while he waits,” Natalie said, moving slowly toward the back door to the house. Her toes still tingled, but thankfully, the initial pain had subsided. “I’d like to wash up before joining him.”
“Yes’m.” Carolina’s smile broadened, and she hurried away.
Natalie shook her head as she made her way to her room. She’d seen the sly looks Carolina had exchanged with Corporal Banks yesterday. Colonel Maish had seen them, too, and hadn’t appeared pleased. She supposed his dislike for her colored his view of everyone associated with her. He’d made it perfectly clear how he felt about former slaveholders. That he now had to assist her with her harvest surely irked him further.
She entered her room and cringed at her reflection in the tall mirror near the window. Her long braid was a wild mess, several strands escaping the ribbon she’d tied to the end. Now that Carolina had taken on more household chores, Natalie dismissed the young woman as her personal maid. While she still required help into her corset and gowns, she declared herself able to bathe, arrange her hair, and finish her daily toilette without assistance.
Studying the bedraggled woman in the looking glass, Natalie wondered what George would think if he could see her now. Gone was the elegant and poised lady he’d courted and married. Four years of war had taken its toll on her, worry and responsibility weighing heavily. Yet not until the slaves were freed had she realized how much work went into the running of a plantation. And not just the fields, barns, and livestock. The grand house alone required hours of labor to maintain.
Going into the bathing room adjacent to the bedroom, Natalie came to a decision. She would close off most of the rooms in the house. There was no need for Harriet, Carolina, or herself to bother dusting and cleaning rooms that no one used. Perhaps she would talk to Moses about doing the same in the barns. Surely they could move all the remaining animals into one barn, thus eliminating the need to clean dozens of stalls and corrals.
With her face and hands washed in cool water and her hair freshly combed, she felt more herself as she descended the stairs and made her way to the porch. Male laughter floated through the open doorway, followed by soft female giggles. When she appeared on the threshold, she found Corporal Banks seated on a wicker sofa while Carolina stood nearby holding a plate of Harriet’s molasses cookies. Neither of them noticed Natalie until she cleared her throat.
“Oh, Miz Natalie.” Carolina practically jumped away from the corporal. “I didn’t hear you.” When Natalie’s gaze took in the cookies and the corporal’s apparent comfort on the sofa, Carolina looked guiltily down at the plate of sweets in her hand. “I … I thought the corporal might like some refreshment.” Her declaration ended feebly.
The corporal stood, his face bearing a little guilt as well.
“Thank you, Carolina,” Natalie said. While it was strange to come upon a scene that never would have occurred had Carolina still been a slave, times had changed. “Please, Corporal Banks, have a seat.”
He did. “I’m much obliged for the cookies, ma’am.” He glanced at Carolina but didn’t let his gaze linger. “Miss Carolina was good enough to bring some when I asked about them.”
Natalie appreciated his honesty. “Help yourself, Corporal.” She indicated Carolina could set the plate on the small table near him. Carolina did, then disappeared into the house, stealing one last peek at the corporal as she went.
“I take it you have the papers I am to sign.” She moved to the chair near the sofa. When Banks rose in a gentlemanly fashion while she settled herself, she once again realized how everything in her world was altered. She had never entertained a Negro man on the porch in all her days.
“I do.” He produced a folded sheet of paper from inside his coat. “The colonel made two copies, so you could keep one here at the plantation. That way, should anyone have questions when the colonel isn’t around, you’ll have proof of the agreement.”
Surprised, Natalie noted he did in fact have two sheets of paper. That Colonel Maish had thought of her well-being pleased her far more than such a simple act should. She took the papers and read over the terms. The Union Army would hire and pay thirty freedmen of color to tend, harvest, and bale all of the cotton on Rose Hill. If she required their help getting the cotton to market, she could extend the agreement. Two Union soldiers would accompany the workers to ensure her crop was properly handled and harvested in a timely manner. Colonel Maish’s neat signature already graced each of the documents.
“My, it seems the colonel has thought of everything.”
Corporal Banks smiled. “That’s the kind of man he is, ma’am. Always thinking ahead.”
Clearly, the young corporal held his superior in admiration. “Were you with him during the war?”
He nodded. “We were in Virginia mostly, right up until the day General Lee surrendered.”
She heard the pride in his voice. He, a black Union soldier, had fought to free people of color like himself, and he no doubt had celebrated all the more when Lee conceded the Confederate Cause. Looking at Banks now, happily eating a molasses cookie made by a woman who had been a slave less than a week ago … well, it was most definitely a new and different world.
“Where is your home, if you don’t mind my asking, Corporal?”
“I don’t mind.” He grinned. “I’m from Massachusetts. Prettiest state in the union, my mama always says.”
Natalie smiled, his cheerful attitude contagious. “Well, if your mama said it, it must be true.”
His grin grew. “The colonel doesn’t agree. He and I argue from time to time which state is prettier. He, of course, says Pennsylvania is. Having never been there, I don’t know if he’s right, but I know I wouldn’t want to live anywhere but Massachusetts.”
“The colonel is from Pennsylvania?” she asked, oddly pleased at discovering something personal about the serious man without his knowledge. She thought he might have mentioned his home the day he and his troops arrived at Rose Hill, but many of the details of that day had been lost in the events.
“He is. Has a big family back home, from what I can tell.”
As Corporal Banks went on about his own family, Natalie sat in stunned silence. Why had it not occurred to her that the colonel might be married and have a family? It doesn’t matter, she reminded herself, ignoring the rush of disappointment that settled over her. His marital status had nothing to do with their business agreement, which was the only reason they had any cause to interact. But it made sense that he would have a wife, considering he was handsome and strong and—
“Ma’am?”
Startled, she found Banks looking at her. “I’m sorry. What did you say?”
“I asked if you were ready to sign the papers. The colonel is eager to get the men hired so they can begin tending the crops.”
Yes, he would be im
patient to get Natalie’s cotton harvested and wash his hands of her and Rose Hill.
She stood. “If you will excuse me, I’ll get a pen and ink.”
Corporal Banks stood politely. “Yes, ma’am.”
When she returned, she signed her name opposite Colonel Maish’s on both papers. After blowing on the ink to keep it from smearing, she handed one sheet back to the corporal. “How soon should we expect the men to arrive?” she asked as they both stood.
“Within the week, I would say. There are hundreds of freedmen looking for work, so it shouldn’t be too hard to round up a crew.”
How odd, Natalie thought as she watched the corporal mount his horse and ride away. The men who worked cotton fields as slaves would now work those same fields as freedmen, earning wages this time. She couldn’t help but wonder if they were better off or not. Rose Hill slaves had always had plenty to eat and a roof over their heads. Now they had to find work and pay for food, clothes, and housing. A pang of guilt washed over her, knowing her former slaves were woefully unprepared for life away from the plantation.
Carolina appeared on the porch, her gaze trained on the departing man. “Guess we’ll have more o’ them so’diers around once they tote them free Negroes back to work the cotton.”
“I suppose we will.” Natalie eyed Carolina. “I’m sure you wouldn’t mind if one soldier in particular spent time at Rose Hill.” When Carolina’s wide gaze met hers, she couldn’t help but laugh. “It is as plain as the nose on your face you’re partial to the corporal.”
After a moment’s hesitation, Carolina’s face melted in a gooey smile. “Ain’t he handsome? I ain’t never see’d a Negro man so sure of himself. And that uniform look mighty fine on him, even if it is a bluecoat.”
“My, Carolina, I do believe you are smitten.” A hint of envy tinged her words. Romance and flirtations, it seemed, were not her destiny.
The Widow of Rose Hill (The Women of Rose Hill Book 2) Page 7