“I’ll help Papa.” Cory picked up her father’s medical bag and joined the group walking to the Town Hall.
****
Noah, Tess, and Adam were in one cell with Buck and Clyde in the opposite one. A single frame bed with rope supporting a straw-stuffed mattress was placed in each cell. A chamber pot and a stool were the only other furnishings. The municipal jail usually housed drunks and offenders of minor transgressions. The more serious crimes were tried at the county courthouse in Akron. If a county judge found Noah guilty of aiding a runaway, he’d face federal charges.
“I hope this helps.” Cory placed a cradle on the floor. “How is Adam doing?”
Tess put a clean diaper on him. “He’s scared. He’s old enough to know something isn’t right.”
“Poor little guy.” Cory soothed him with a smile. “You should be thinking of nothing but a warm meal and a big hug.”
Adam stopped fussing and stared at Cory’s face.
Noah sat at the foot of the bed while Sterling finished stitching a gash in his head. His wounds had been cleaned, his bruises leeched, and cuts sewn up. “I must look a mess.”
“I found you something to wear.” Tyler tossed him a shirt.
Noah stood. He grimaced as he put on the shirt.
Cory noticed he had no lash marks on his back common on slaves. It supported Tyler’s words about Noah never being treated like a slave.
“You men need me to take care of anything?” Sterling asked Clyde and Buck.
“You’re not putting a leech on me,” Clyde told him. “I’ll live with my bruises.”
Sheriff Carter allowed Maureen and Jess to enter the jail area and bring trays with plates loaded with chicken, cornbread, and pie for the prisoners.
“Looks good.” Noah handed a plate to Tess and took one. “Thank you for feeding us.”
“Plenty of extra food from the picnic,” Maureen said. “Would you like coffee to drink?” She turned to Jess. “Bring a pot.”
“Why are you treating them so nice?” Buck demanded from his cell.
“You don’t deserve to be treated any better than the animals you are,” Cory argued.
“It’s our job to capture runaway slaves.” Buck scraped his spoon against his plate and shoved food into his mouth. “We do whatever we have to do.”
“Assaulting a woman and threatening to kill her baby!” Cory turned away. She didn’t want them to see the tears threatening to spill.
Her mother took her into her arms. “Let it go, Cory, or the hate will consume you.”
“I want them to be punished for what they did.”
“Let the law punish them, but you have to forgive them.”
She was shocked. “Why?”
“Hate can eat a person up.” Sterling packed his bag. “I’ve seen it become an obsession that festers and spreads like gangrene. Forgiveness cleanses the wound. That’s one of the most important lessons we learn in life.”
She looked from her mother to her father. “I know you’re right, but knowing and doing is too difficult for me.”
“Doing the right thing isn’t meant to be easy.” Maureen collected the dishes. “Are you coming outside for the fireworks?”
Her father closed his medical bag and put on his hat.
“I think I’ll stay here.” She shrugged. “They don’t have much to celebrate. I don’t think I could enjoy it.”
“You can’t spend the night,” Maureen said. “Adelaide will be with us. Don’t keep her waiting too long.”
Cory hugged her parents. “Thank you.”
“Come along, Jessie,” Sterling told Jess. She filled Clyde’s coffee cup and followed her parents. “Leave the coffee pot with Sheriff Carter. He may need it tonight.”
After her parents left, Edward came in. He was wearing a clean shirt. His nose was swollen but his face was clean. He stopped and talked with the sheriff.
“I’m going to see what’s going on.” Tyler headed for Edward.
Chapter Twenty-Eight
The sheriff sat at a small table and guarded the door. He had a pot of coffee, a full plate of food, and two slices of pie arranged before him. A deck of cards was in the upper right corner beside a lantern. Edward argued with Lane about releasing his men.
“Are you still planning to bring charges against those two men?” Lane asked Tyler.
“They assaulted a free man.”
“Noah? When did you free him?” Edward demanded.
Tyler had said the wrong thing to the wrong man. “It was my mother’s wishes,” he lied. “Even if he was a slave, your men had no right to assault him.”
“They were defending themselves,” Edward argued.
“They admit to attacking first.”
“Only to seize Tess. If Noah hadn’t fought back, no one would have been hurt.”
“You don’t know that,” he argued. “Look at what they did to Noah once they had Tess.”
“You have to prove the assault in a trial,” Lane warned.
“It was two against one.”
“The numbers won’t matter when they see how strong he is,” Lane said. “I can tell you the outcome.”
“So they go free?”
“I can hold them overnight for disorderly conduct and disturbing the peace. The mayor will hold court in the morning. But the fines will only be a couple of dollars.”
“Because disorderly conduct is a misdemeanor.” Tyler knew he wouldn’t be able to convict them of anything more serious.
“Helping runaways is a federal offense,” Lane reminded him.
“Who decides that case?” Edward asked.
“The judge at the county court will hear the case. I’ll transport Noah, Tess, and the baby to the jail in Akron after mayor’s court,” Lane said.
“Why Tess and the baby?” Edward demanded. “They belong to me.”
“You’ll have to prove they’re runaways before the judge can charge anyone with helping them.”
“Then what?” Edward asked.
“If the judge finds Noah helped your runaways, he’ll be sent to Cleveland to stand trial on federal charges.”
“How long will that take?”
“Depends on the docket. I’d plan on staying a few days in Akron, longer if the case goes to Cleveland. Your girl will be securely locked up in the jail.”
Edward headed to Clyde and Buck’s cell. Tyler followed him and overheard their conversation. “You’ll admit to disorderly conduct tomorrow before the mayor then we’ll head for Akron to take care of him.” He nodded toward Noah. “I’m deducting your fines from your pay.”
Edward turned to Tess. “You’ve caused me more trouble than you’re worth. Don’t cause any more.”
Tyler stood behind Edward in the narrow hallway between the cells. “Don’t you have a rock to sleep under?”
Edward put on his hat and left.
“There are some law books on the second floor,” Lane said. “Might find something to help your case.”
“Couldn’t hurt,” Tyler answered. “Thank you.”
The sheriff jingled his keys. “Miss, Beecher, you’ll have to leave the cell so I can lock the door.”
Cory stepped outside.
“How good of a lawyer are you, Ty?” Noah asked quietly through the bars.
“I need to convince the local judge to dismiss the charges. If he sends you before the federal judge, it’ll mean jail time and a fine.”
“I can’t let Edward have my wife and son.” Noah glanced back at Tess as she placed a sleeping Adam in the cradle. “I might be able to rescue them from Vandalia, but if he sells them, I’ll never see them again.”
“If you go to jail, I’ll stay close to Tess and Adam,” he promised. “I’ll save them. Whatever it takes.”
Tyler knew what he was promising. He was willing to risk everything for Noah. He turned to Cory. “I’m staying. I might find something in the law books to help.”
“I need to take Adelaide home, but I’ll return in the
morning. Is there anything you need?”
“My bag from the Red Pony Tavern,” he said. “Looks like we’ll be going to Akron after the mayor rules locally.”
****
In the morning Cory found Tyler asleep in the mayor’s office on the second floor. His head rested on an open law book, and a quill rested between his fingers. His notes were barely legible, smeared by his hand. The glass inkwell was nearly dry, and the candles had gone out, leaving frozen wax waterfalls over the pewter holders.
She hated to disturb him. He looked so peaceful, but peace would be fleeting. A judge would return Tess and Adam to Edward and throw Noah into prison if Tyler couldn’t persuade him otherwise.
Cory had spent a restless night. She loved Tyler, but Noah and Tess needed him. She could never force him to choose her over his brother, especially in such a desperate situation. Marriage seemed selfish and silly compared to the struggle to escape slavery and reach freedom. She had her teaching to keep her busy, and her family to support her. She had to let him go.
Cory placed her hand on his shoulder and rubbed his back to wake him. He groaned in response, and she could feel his muscles ripple beneath the taut fabric of his cotton shirt. He had discarded his coat and tie in the middle of the night.
She leaned down and whispered his name. His eyes flickered and slowly opened. He was so handsome. Even the bristle on his face did not mar the perfection of his features. It only added to a masculine ruggedness.
“This is a nice way to wake in the morning.” His voice was gravelly from sleepiness.
“How much rest did you get?”
Tyler stretched his arms overhead. “What time is it?”
“Eight. The mayor’s court begins soon.”
“I think it was about five when I fell asleep.”
Cory looked around the room at the law books, some stacked, some open, and others discarded in his search for an answer. Cory placed a basket on the table and unloaded it. “I brought you something to eat.”
He picked up a burnt biscuit. “How are Noah and Tess?”
“They’re eating now. All the abolitionists are rallying for them. Then there’s the other side, which supports Edward and his property rights.”
“The only person who matters is the judge.” Tyler stood. “A sympathetic one. The Fugitive Slave Law requires a slave be returned to his master, and anyone helping a slave escape is the criminal. I can’t find an exception.”
“We could help Tess and Adam escape like they did in Wellington,” she proposed.
“That could result in a lot of innocent and well-meaning people being arrested,” he said. “I’d like to keep the case from going to federal court, but I’d have to prove Noah wasn’t helping Tess and Adam run away, which is exactly what he was doing.”
“He didn’t help them escape,” Cory reminded him. “He only came to find them.”
“It’s a small point but one worth noting.”
“What about Tess and Adam?” Cory asked. “What will happen to them?”
“Under the law, Edward can do whatever he wants with them. He owns them, and we can’t do anything about it.”
“I have some money I’ve saved. It might help buy Tess and Adam.”
“I have some money, too, but knowing Edward, he won’t sell them. He’ll want to punish them.”
“As an example to the other slaves at the Silver Pheasant?”
“That’s why I have to return to Virginia, especially if Noah has to serve jail time.” He ran his fingers through his hair. “Edward would never sell Tess to me, but if he sells her at public auction, I have a few friends who can buy her for me.”
“After her punishment?” Cory didn’t want to say the word rape. “Did you see Buck pawing her? How can a man force himself upon a woman? How can he justify violence like that?”
“Not all men are like Edward and his men,” he said.
“You were right about him,” she admitted. “He wears fancy clothes and talks like a gentleman, but he only thinks about himself. Why can’t he let them go?”
Tyler put his arms around her. “I’m supposed to be the vengeful one when it comes to Edward.” He kissed her temple. “You’re my rock of reason and tolerance. I need you to be level-headed so I don’t lose mine and do something foolish.”
“I’ll do whatever is necessary,” she vowed.
Tyler lifted his suitcase to an empty chair. “I better wear my good suit.”
“What about Reggie’s vest?”
“You want me to wear it?”
“Only if you want to make Edward angrier than he already is.” She recalled her conversation with him. “He has to be the one others admire in Vandalia. It’s his role. That vest made him notice Reggie and made him want to beat you by marrying her.”
He removed the vest from his bag and examined it. “I wonder what he’d do to keep me from wearing it?”
“Do you think he’d consider a trade?”
“I doubt he’d agree to it.” Tyler put the vest back in the bag. “Tess is worth more than a vest even if Reggie made it.”
“My mother says I have to forgive men like Buck and Clyde, but I don’t blame Noah for wanting to defend his wife. Any husband would do the same.”
Tyler stared at her with his signature lopsided grin.
“What did I say?”
“Husband,” he repeated. “The law recognizes the sanctity of marriage.” He grabbed a law book. “Noah has rights as a husband to protect his family.”
“Does Edward recognize their marriage?”
“He had to approve it,” Tyler recalled.
“Did he give her away?”
Tyler stopped turning pages. “What do you mean?”
“In a wedding the father gives the bride away. He hands her over to her husband, who vows to love, honor, and protect her.” Cory frowned. “Haven’t you ever seen a wedding?”
“I figured I’d wait until my own.” He tapped the cover of a law book on the table. “The bride is a possession to be handed from father to husband.”
“I wouldn’t say a possession,” Cory argued.
“Under the law she is.” He grinned. “And Noah is Tess’ husband.”
Cory didn’t hide her confusion. “So?”
“I need to argue my case.” Tyler took off his shirt and tossed it aside. He withdrew a clean one from his bag. “You must be a good seamstress. I didn’t break open the stitches.” He showed his side to her before dressing.
Cory was more interested in the way his muscles rippled than his wound but nodded as she handed him a tie. “You were explaining something.”
“The law recognizes the rights of a husband. Maybe more than those of a master.”
“Do you have a case?”
Tyler tugged on the ends of his tie after tying it. “It’s not much of a case, but worth arguing.”
****
The mayor was not happy to see so many people in his courtroom early in the morning, especially since he had drank too much celebrating the Fourth. He fined Clyde and Buck for disorderly conduct and accepted the “not guilty” plea of Noah for aiding Tess and Adam. He ordered the sheriff to transfer Noah to the county court in Akron on the morning train.
Sheriff Carter escorted Noah, Tess, and Adam out of the Town Hall and headed for the train depot. Edward and the Cassell brothers trailed behind. Tyler stayed close to Noah. A crowd had gathered at the depot.
“Anybody tries anything, the baby will be the first to die!” Buck waved his knife in the air.
“Tess screamed when Buck grabbed for Adam.
“Put your knife away, or I’ll take it away!” Lane looked around at the townsfolk. “No one is going to interfere with this trip. We’re going to the county courthouse. If you plan to go, board the train.”
“Stay close,” Adelaide said. “The Irish Rose will be waiting at Mustill Store.”
What did she mean? “Grandpa is in Cleveland.”
“He turned back in case he was needed.�
��
Cory looked around. “Who else is helping?”
“I can’t tell you, but if there’s trouble, we’re prepared to take Noah, Tess, and Adam by force.”
“Tyler doesn’t want a lot of innocent people arrested.”
“Then he better be a good lawyer.” The whistle blew. “We better board.”
Cory looked around. “I don’t see my family.”
“We only have one doctor in Darrow Falls, and with the Beecher name, we decided he should stay clear of the courthouse.”
“Do I have to stay clear?”
“I don’t think anyone could stop you from being with Tyler.”
“I think I’ll ride with Tess if they let me.”
“Would you let them say no?”
No, she wouldn’t. A few days ago all she thought about was marrying Douglas and living in a safe, secure world. Now, she was willing to risk everything for the freedom of a family and the love of a man. Cory watched Adelaide join the Reverend, his wife, and Beth. If the trial favored Edward, it wouldn’t matter what Tyler wanted. The crowd would deliver its own justice.
Chapter Twenty-Nine
Cory and Tyler watched the sheriff place Noah, Tess, and Adam in a baggage car. Noah stacked some grain sacks to make a seat for Tess and sat next to her. Buck and Clyde sat opposite them on some crates. Edward and Tyler looked at each other.
“You riding with them?” Edward asked.
“If the sheriff doesn’t mind.”
“The more the merrier,” Lane said. He took a position against the sliding door on the opposite side of the car.
Edward climbed aboard and sat near his men.
Tyler turned to Cory. “I’m going with Noah.”
“I’d like to help Tess with the baby.” It was a thin excuse to spend time together, maybe for the last time.
“It’s not going to be comfortable,” he warned.
“I’ve worked on a canal boat. I don’t need comfort.” He helped her into the car and made a seat from the sacks of grain.
The engineer blew several long blasts on the whistle, and the conductor closed the door to the baggage car. Everyone braced for the initial jolt of the train as it chugged out of the station before settling back for the short ride to Akron.
Impending Love and War Page 23