“After you took Miss Clarissa’s place, I checked you out. Learnin’ your father and uncle are officers and your brothers are soldiers in the Union Army convinced me you could be trusted. Your aid to us proved I was right. So naturally when Jacob Adams’s name entered into this situation, I figured you could investigate him without fallin’ under his suspicion. I told Grant my idea and he told the President, so they asked me to approach you about it.”
“This is why my father is being reassigned there? Does he know?”
“Nope, and you can’t tell him, either. Colonel Adams would never believe his only brother is capable of treason, so he’d resist our plans. I know you don’t want to believe it, either, and maybe it won’t be true; I hope not. Even if Jacob’s innocent, you might can get evidence against the others. I have the names of the Rebels you need to watch. Memorize this list and destroy it,” he cautioned as he handed it to her.
Laura took the paper but didn’t look at it. “What if I fail, Ben?”
“You won’t.” But if you do, maybe our other agent will succeed. Too bad you two can’t work as a pair, but if you’re seen together, you could jeopardize each other’s cover since you’ll be workingfrom opposite sides. “Just don’t let your personal feelin’s sway you. I know this’ll be hard on you, Miss Laura, but we—the President and Grant—are countin’ on you to get us the truth. If he’s innocent, that’s good for all of us, ain’t that right?”
“It will be for Father and me.” Arizona, so far away…“If you’re returning to Richmond, can you find a safe way to get a letter to Lily for me so I can let her know I’m safe?” So she can pass a message to Jayce…
“That wouldn’t be wise, Miss Laura; she could make a slip to the wrong person. You don’t want some Rebel agent bein’ assigned to get rid of you and your father in Arizona so you can’t interfere with their plans. That could happen if you’re exposed ‘cause there’s a lot at stake here.”
“You’re right. Is there anything else I should know?”
“Nope, just be careful, and I mean that from the bottom of my heart, Miss Laura. I’m sorry to drag you back into spyin’, but it can’t be helped. We hafta stop that gold and silver from reachin’ the Rebs.”
“What if it’s already reached them? Or will before we get there?”
“They’re collectin’ it now, but shipments haven’t started yet; the first one’s scheduled to head out of Arizona in late February.”
“The war could be over by then.”
“It could, but that don’t change what’s happenin’ out there. Whoever’s guilty hasta be caught and punished. Just ‘cause the war stops, that don’t mean ex-captives will be released or the stealin’ will stop. After an evil man gets his paws on wealth like that, he might be tempted to keep it.”
“Are you saying Father and I will be there until this mystery’s solved?”
“That’s about the size of it, but I doubt it’ll take you long to do it.”
That news did not sit well with Laura, but she ignored it for now. “Why are they waiting so long to transport the stolen money and metal? By the time they reach the South, it won’t do the Rebels much, if any, good.”
“That’s the good part, Miss Laura: they hafta collect enough to be of value to the Confederacy, and it takes time and the right targets to fill their needs. Payrolls go out once a month; gold and silver shipments, about twice a month, but they can’t risk strikin’ at all of them. The ex-Rebs didn’t get there until late October, and they had to be tricked into doin’ your uncle’s dirty work for him. We got wind of this plot from one of our agents who overheard it bein’ planned, but he died from a wound before he could give us all the names of those involved and all of the details. We figure the information is accurate ’cause we’ve got reports of those kinds of thefts.”
Laura absorbed those facts, then questioned in dread a point she had hesitated raising. “What did you mean about Aunt Mary and Johnny being killed?”
“I had your uncle checked out to see what kind of man he was and to see if he had a reason for gettin’ involved in this mess. He’s had lots of business problems before the war and he’s lost plenty durin’ it. Since they’re kinfolk, I hate to be the one to tell you such bad news, and don’t let on like you know it when you’re told later; even your father don’t know about these tragedies. His wife was at a neighbor’s house helpin’ to deliver a baby and tend sick folks when the battle happened at Carrick’s Ford in ’61; Mrs. Adams and the boy were killed by artillery fire from Union soldiers. His two older sons fell at Vicksburg in ’63 while fightin’ under Grant. One of their families was in the Adams home when it was razed by Union cannon fire, and they didn’t survive it. Adams learned about those things before he got to Arizona in November of ’63. Maybe he went crazy and thinks the Union owes him retribution for those losses or he’s out for revenge.”
“My heavens, Ben, so many tragedies for one man to bear! And to know the side he’s fighting for is responsible must have had an ill effect on him.”
“That was my thinkin’, too. In a way I can’t blame him for crazin’ out; on the other hand, that shouldn’t make him turn traitor and thief.”
Laura spoke her plans firmly. “I’ll go to Arizona and watch those men and try to gather evidence and I won’t reveal my secrets to anyone; but even if Uncle Jake is guilty, under the grim circumstances, I demand leniency and mercy for him.”
“You have a bargain, Miss Laura, on my word of honor.”
“Don’t break your promise, Ben, or I’ll make trouble; understand?”
“I understand. I hafta get goin’ before your father returns. When you dine with the President tonight, he’ll squeeze your hand gently for a moment and nod to let you know he’s been told of your agreement and to show his gratitude. Since you two can’t talk in public or private, that’ll be his signal to you I haven’t lied about his request.”
“I trust you, Ben, but that isn’t necessary.”
“Good-bye, Miss Laura; this’ll be the last time we see each other. It’s been good workin’ with you, so be careful, real careful, out there.”
“Thank you, Ben, and you be careful, too. Good-bye.”
After Laura let him out, she leaned against the door, tears rolling down her cheeks as she mourned for her deceased relatives. Her heart ached from anguish and from the heavy burden Ben had placed on it. Her aunt and cousins were dead, had been dead for a long time; and her uncle was in grave trouble. Yet, she soon forced herself to control her tormented emotions or her eyes would be red and swollen tonight. She hated to deceive her father, Jayce, and her uncle, but each of those deceptions seemed necessary.
As for Benjamin Simmons, she sensed there was more to this matter than he had disclosed to her, and she would be on alert for surprises. She would hold him to his promise to be merciful to Jacob after all he had endured and sacrificed for his country; perhaps he was suffering from an uncontrollable mental illness as a result of them.
Laura sat on a chair near the fire as she recalled the last time she had seen Jacob and his family when she was fifteen. Jacob and Howard had argued; Mary had wept with little Johnny in her arms, as had she herself; Jacob’s two older sons had looked sullen and angry; and their wives and children had held silent in the background. Jacob had blamed her father for halting the sales of diseased crops and animals, something Howard could not permit as an honorable and law-abiding man. Rumors had sprouted and grown fast about Jacob and his tainted dealings, but a lack of evidence had prevented criminal charges from being lodged against him. It had been the same about another rumor that Jacob had made a deal with a privateer to ship goods secretly to foreign ports to avoid the northern-favored high tariffs and taxes on them. To pay creditors, Jacob had been forced to sell almost everything he owned, including a large and beautiful plantation near theirs. A scandal had compelled him to move his family to Carrick’s Ford, part of what was now West Virginia. Jacob had declared he would not allow his brother to buy his forgiveness and appease hi
s guilty conscience by loaning him money to make a fresh start. Where he got the money to purchase his home and business elsewhere remained a mystery to her father. Then the Union, perhaps in Jacob’s eyes, had taken away his home and family forever.
Laura reasoned that Ben was right to a certain degree, as her father had been years ago when he’d stated firmly that a man can’t turn to crime and ploys because he feels he’s been wronged. Even if all of those charges were true, she could understand why Jacob, in his tortured mind, would blame her father, the Union, and the Industrial North for his grief and losses. She prayed that with the passage of time and distance, Jacob had changed for the better.
Laura looked at the paper in her hand, memorized the names on the list Ben had given to her, then burned it in the fireplace. She had thought perilous days were behind her, but another risk had quickly surfaced. She hated to leave without seeing Jayce, but she had to go to Arizona where, hopefully, she could prove her uncle’s innocence. There was no way she could get word to Jayce, or to Lily, or to Jayce through Lily. She must not imperil her best friend for selfish reasons, so she had to let the letter to Jayce speak for her until her return, whenever that might be. Please don’t stop loving me or waiting for me, my love; I shall return to you one day.
Three days later in Richmond, Jayce arrived at the Southern Paradise Hotel to make a shocking discovery. “What do you mean, she’s gone?” he questioned Lily in dismay.
“She left last Wednesday to join her father at home.”
“Laura told me her father was dead.”
“She thought he was, but the message she received was wrong. She got a letter from him saying he had been released from the Army and was going home, for her to join him there.”
Jayce was happy for Laura’s good fortune, but it was strange for the man not to come to get his daughter…“Where can I find her?”
“In Fredericksburg, if their home survived the two battles fought there; that’s where they lived before the war. If their home was destroyed, I presume, from what Laura told me, they’ll build a new one on their land. She said she would write to me later and give me her address.”
“Did she take the train?”
“No, she rode her horse. She wouldn’t leave him behind. She said there was a nice roadhouse between here and there where she could spend the night, and she had a weapon with her.”
These events were shocking ones to Jayce. He continued to question Lily. “What about her house and business?”
“Laura sold the house and hotel to me and Richard. We married last Tuesday. He was wounded in Georgia and can’t fight anymore, so he joined me here.”
“Did she leave a message for me, a letter? Anything?”
Lily was afraid to trust him completely after the mysteries surrounding the knife and the fact he was unknown in Petersburg. She had burned the letter in case he wasn’t who he claimed to be and jeopardized Laura, and imperiled her own life by exposing both of them as spies. “She didn’t leave a letter, but she told me you two had made plans to meet here after the war.”
Jayce suspected the nervous woman was being evasive. “You were her best friend, Miss Lily, so surely she told you more than that. I have to find her and fast; it’s important. Please tell me where she is.”
“I told you, Lieutenant Storm; she’s at home in Fredericksburg with her father. Although we’re good friends, Laura didn’t confide everything to me, but I’m certain she wouldn’t lie to me. I do know she has strong feelings for you, that much she did tell me. She left in such a hurry and was so distracted by her father’s summons, perhaps she forgot to write or leave a letter for you. When I hear from her, I’ll let her know you came to see her. Would you like to leave a message for her?”
“What’s wrong, Lily?” Richard asked as he approached from the passageway, having overheard enough to realize there was a problem.
Lily turned to Richard and smiled before she introduced her husband to Jayce and explained the lieutenant’s reasons for being there.
The two men nodded in recognition of their meeting last summer and shook hands over the counter; then Jayce repeated his questions and remarks to Richard.
“As my wife said, that’s what Laura told us. She was happy about going to join her father, but she didn’t leave a letter with us to give you.”
“That doesn’t make any sense,” Jayce murmured.
Richard said, “I’m sure Laura didn’t mean to upset you, but I can see you’re leaning in that direction. She’s a good woman. She was an angel to me when I showed up here wounded; she’s the one who tended me every day. If not for her skill and kindness, I probably woulda lost my leg and maybe my life. She did the same for plenty of our boys and hurt children in the hospitals. There isn’t a selfish or mean bone in that woman’s body.”
In hopes of extracting a needed clue, Jayce divulged, “I know, Major Stevens; that’s why I love her and plan to marry her, if I can find her. It was my understanding she loves me and accepted my proposal.”
Richard smiled. “Then you must be the sweetheart from Petersburg she told me about the day before Lily and I got married. She said you and I are much alike. Considering that glow in her eyes and on her cheeks when she talked about you, I took my comparison to you as a compliment, and I’d say your understanding of her feelings is right.”
Those words comforted Jayce. “That’s good news, but where is she and why didn’t she leave a message for me?”
Richard shrugged before he repeated Lily’s earlier assumption, then asked his wife, “Can you think of anything to help him?”
Lily pretended to concentrate before she disclosed as planned, “I know Laura went to Petersburg last week and tried to locate you, and she was distressed when she failed. She said no one there seemed to know where you were or had even heard of you, which confused and worried her. I know she wanted to talk to you before she left, but it was impossible since she couldn’t find you. Perhaps she wrote you a letter but forgot to give it to us for delivery. If that’s true, she’ll probably send it to us soon.”
That revelation also worried Jayce who didn’t want to imagine what Laura must have thought about her puzzling discovery. To dupe the couple, he alleged, “I wasn’t in Petersburg; I was close to there; that’s why she couldn’t find news about me. Blast it all, we’ve lost track of each other!”
Lily was proud of her quick thinking when she reminded him, “Only until the war ends, which should be soon. Remember, you two made meeting plans for afterward in case Richmond was attacked and you got separated? Laura mentioned it to me, so I’m sure she hasn’t forgotten. But if you leave us your address, we’ll send it to her when she writes.”
Following the woman’s enthusiastic remarks and recalling how she’d assisted with romantic encounters with Laura, Jayce wondered if he had been wrong to suspect Lily of dishonesty. “I’ll be gone soon; I’m being reassigned far from here, and I don’t know the exact location yet. You said she lives in Fredericksburg?”
“That’s right, and it’s where she was heading when she left here.”
Jayce put on his hat and said, “That’s where I’ll search for her. A woman who looks like Laura Carlisle shouldn’t be hard to find. Right?”
“Not for a determined man,” Richard jested. “Good luck, Storm.”
“I’ll need it, because I’ve only got a few days before we pull out.”
As she observed his departure, Lily prayed that no one there had known Clarissa Carlisle or the dead woman’s connection to Laura Adams. Even if Jayce was trustworthy and sincere, it would be detrimental to the couple’s relationship if he discovered the Adams were Unionists…
Chapter Sixteen
On the night of January first after dinner with her father downstairs, Laura sat near a cozy fire in her suite and daydreamed about starting the new year of 1865 with Jayce. She tried to push aside worries about his safety and when they would be reunited. She gazed at the artist’s sketch of them and reflected on that wonderfu
l outing. Her fingers toyed with the dried flower, lovely in its pressed form but long dead. She read his note several times as she clutched the knife in her hand, hoping his had held it many times, but fretting over its reason for being in her cellar. I love you, Jayce Storm, and I miss you. Please stay alive and return to me.
Her mind drifted to an event last week. As Ben had said, President Lincoln had given her the promised signal last Monday night, had even found the opportunity to whisper, “Your country and I are proud of you, Miss Adams, and we appreciate all you have done for us and will do for us soon. You are a true and brave patriot; would we had more like you.”
So, Laura mused, why did she have doubts about Ben, believe he had withheld facts from her about her impending task for the Union? If her skepticism was rightly placed, how would those omissions affect her and her future?
She walked to the window, pushed aside the drape, and peered into the night. In the New Moon cycle, it was as dark as her defiant heart felt and her life seemed without Jayce in it. She didn’t want to go to Arizona or carry out the President’s troubling request, but her father and her country needed her. She had not thought of a way to contact Lily or Jayce. She could not go see Lily for many reasons: she lacked the time, it was too far, and it could be suspicious and perilous. She wished Ben had carried a message to Lily about her trip, and she hoped he would change his mind.
On January second, Jayce arrived at the Southern Paradise Hotel to speak with Lily and Richard Stevens once more. Deep concern was evident in his voice as he asked, “Any news from Laura?”
Richard frowned and shook his head. “No luck in Fredericksburg?”
Jayce took a deep breath and released it, wanting his disappointment and concern to be noticeable. “I couldn’t find any Carlisles living there or locate anybody who recalled any having lived there in the past. Since Laura’s aunt never married and was her father’s sister, according to what she told me, how is that possible? In towns that size, almost everybody knows everybody.” He didn’t give either person time to speculate aloud before he disclosed, “She did stay overnight at a roadhouse between here and there and told the innkeeper she was heading home to Fredericksburg. How could she just vanish? Why doesn’t at least one person know the Carlisles? She could be in terrible danger, but I can’t help her if I can’t find her.”
Defiant Hearts Page 31