by Kitty Margo
Every eye in the room watched her toss and catch the bandalore.
“I have never seen anyone other than Joshua do that,” Patricia whispered. “Joshua and now… Clara.”
Jeremiah’s heart pounded against his ribs as he suddenly recalled the many coincidences over the last few days. “Joshua had to teach her how to use it. There could be no other explanation.”
“And he only began playing with it just before he left…” Malinda’s voice trailed off as she met her mother’s eyes. “Could he have taught Clara to play with it?”
With an unusual sparkle in his eyes Jeremiah wheeled his chair to the fireplace and tugged on Clara’s skirt to gain her attention. Opening his mouth to speak, he stopped himself short. Afraid to ask. Afraid to get his hopes up. The fall was too great. If it was nothing more than another false lead he wasn’t sure his heart, or Patricia’s, could withstand the pain. When she turned toward him he somehow forced the words through lips suddenly gone numb. “Where did you learn that trick, Clara?”
Clara was so focused on how to solve her problem that she offhandedly pointed toward Joshua’s portrait.
“Clara,” Jeremiah’s gasp echoed around the room as he clutched his hands in his lap to still their trembling, “do you know my son?”
Finally! Recognizing the understanding in Jeremiah’s crystal clear green eyes, so like his sons, Clara nodded her head slowly as a huge smile brightened her face. Yes! Yes! I do.
“Clara,” Jeremiah asked softly, trying in all the excitement to keep his voice steady and not frighten the child, when in truth he wanted to shout to the rooftop. “Do you know where Joshua is?”
Yes! Yes! Clara bobbed her head up and down. Yes, I do!
Patricia clutched her hammering chest and rushed to Clara. Wringing her hands nervously, she pulled her wedding band off and on as she did during times of intense stress. “Clara, is my son well?”
Patricia’s relief was profound when the child nodded her head yes. “Jeremiah!” she cried. “Joshua is alive. Oh, my dear sweet God above. Thank you! Thank you! Thank you for answering my prayers! My son is alive!” Patricia’s excitement was impossible to contain as she grabbed Clara and Malinda’s hands and danced around Jeremiah’s chair.
“Joshua is alive,” Malinda cried, brushing a flood of tears from her cheeks.
“Clara,” Jeremiah held up his hand motioning for them to be still before he got dizzy and waved Clara over to bend down beside him. “Clara, my dear sweet child. Would it be possible for you to take us to Joshua?”
Clara vigorously nodded her head and took Patricia’s hand trying to pull her to the door.
“Mother,” Malinda whispered, out of breath. “She wants to take you to Joshua now.”
Clara nodded her head with jubilation.
“Well, I’ll be damned,” Jeremiah murmured. “Patricia, have Sally pack some food for the journey. Malinda, send someone to fetch Big Jim and tell him he is going on a trip immediately and we don’t have a second to spare. Clara, go pack your belongings. You are going home, child.”
Before she began making arrangements for the trip Patricia had to know one thing. She was afraid to ask, but she knew in her heart that if her son was physically capable of returning home, he would have done so by now. “Clara, was Joshua hurt?”
Clara nodded sadly, remembering the horrible moment when her grandmother had advised her to dig Joshua’s grave. Fortunately, she had not listened. Over the mantle, under Joshua and Malinda’s paintings, hung an old powder musket that had been in Jeremiah’s family for years. She didn’t want to tell them their son had been shot, but she wasn’t going to lie to them either. She pointed to the gun.
“Joshua was shot!” Patricia felt faint, but with one hand at her heart she held on to the back of a chair with the other. “Where was he shot?’
Clara pointed to her chest.
Oh, dear Lord! Her son had survived a gunshot wound to the chest? Thank goodness he must have been in a place where he could obtain the best medical care available when the accident happened. “And you are sure he is alive and well?”
Clara nodded happily.
“And he told you about Lynna and the baby?”
Clara nodded and bounced, so excited it was impossible for her to remain still.
“Lynna,” Patricia whispered. If this child was telling the truth, how were they going to tell Joshua that his wife had disappeared without a trace?
Clara automatically looked toward the stairs for Beau and nodded.
Jeremiah whispered, “Clara darling, you are a Godsend!”
Chapter 20
Joshua sat on a stump by the side of the woodpile. He had split one piece of wood and could not summon the energy to lift his arms again. “Damn, these weak muscles!” he groaned. Swiping at the sweat streaming from his brow, he cursed his useless limbs. Would he ever get his strength back? Where was Clara? Did she reach Sea Grove safely? Did Lynna survive the birth of his child? How were his parents holding up? So many questions.
“Don’t fret so.” Lucille smiled patiently, leaning against the door jamb. “A few weeks ago you couldn’t even get out of bed, now you’re out here chopping wood. Your recovery is coming along just fine and you are getting stronger each day. You’ll be good as new in a couple more weeks if you can just be patient for a while longer. Now, you just stop worrying and start trusting in my Clara Mae.”
“It would be impossible for me not to worry, Lucille.” Joshua picked up the axe and tossed it from one useless hand to the other, hoping to build up his strength. “So much could go wrong. If anything happens to her…”
“Nothing is going to happen to my Clara. She has the veil to keep her safe and I don’t want to hear you talking like that again. Now, I’m going to clean that mess of crappie you caught this morning for supper. You have done enough for one day. You don’t want to overdo it.”
“I’ll just peel some potatoes and put them on to boil.” Joshua laughed morosely. “That shouldn’t be too strenuous.”
“Now don’t you go feeling sorry for yourself. The good Lord allowed you to open your eyes again after having your chest blasted open and I am of the opinion that you shouldn’t ever complain about another thing as long as you live or He might go rethinking how generous He’s done been to you.”
“You’re right, Lucille.” Joshua agreed with her wholeheartedly. “I should just quit feeling sorry for myself and count my blessings instead. I am almost well enough to return home to my family.”
“Amen to that.” Lucille raised her eyes to the sky and gave thanks where thanks were due. “The good book says ask and ye shall receive. I’ve asked the good Lord to return my Clara back home to me safe and sound and I believe in my heart that He will.”
Long after Joshua and Lucille had settled down for the night, Joshua was awakened by the sound of… carriage wheels. Finally! His family had come for him. Leaping out of bed as fast as his recovering body would allow Joshua shouted, “Lucille! Lucille! They’re here!”
“Clara!” Lucille breathed, slowing rolling her aging body off her side of the bed.
Joshua lit a candle and opened the door, watching and waiting with nervous anticipation as the sound grew nearer. Thankfully there was a full moon to guide them.
Before the carriage had come to a complete halt, a giggling Clara jumped down from the seat beside Big Jim and raced toward Joshua with outstretched arms. Throwing her arms around his neck, she laughed gaily as Joshua lifted her off the ground and swung her around. As soon as her feet hit the ground she rushed into her grandmother’s waiting arms.
“Girl, I’m gonna skin you alive for all the worry you caused us.” But Lucille’s eyes were filled with tears of gratitude for her granddaughter’s safe return. She held her close until Clara began to fidget, eager to witness Joshua and his mother’s reunion.
Joshua held his breath as the carriage door slowly swung open. Was Lynna inside the carriage? His mother emerged, placing a hand over her heart and
looking as though she might faint from sheer joy when their eyes met. Joshua hobbled to her as fast as he could under the circumstances to sweep her into his arms. “Mother, thank God you came! I have been going crazy with worry over Clara!”
“I know exactly what you mean, darling.” Stepping back to look into his eyes, Patricia ran her hand along the face that she knew so well. “For I have been going crazy with worry over my darling son.”
Joshua hung his head, ashamed of the pain he had caused his family. “I’m sorry, Mother. If there had been any way for me to return home, rest assured that I would have. Clara took the only horse and there are no neighbors to borrow from, so I was stuck here with no recourse.”
“None of that matters now, my darling!” Patricia cried, embracing her son. It felt so good to have him in her arms. But seeing the circumstances under which he had been convalescing, she was concerned about his wound and eager to return home where a qualified physician could examine him. “You are alive and that makes me the happiest woman on earth, but I have been so worried. We all have. If not for that precious child we might never have found you.”
“I am almost completely recovered now, Mother. I would have soon made my way home.” Joshua cast a meaningful glance toward Clara who was again smothered in her grandmother’s embrace. “The little minx should have stayed here and not added to the numerous gray hairs I have already accumulated.”
Joshua carefully set his mother aside and peered into the carriage, disappointment evident in his eyes at finding it empty. “Was Lynna unable to travel because of recently giving birth? Tell me mother, how is she? Do I have a son or a daughter?”
“You have a son, Joshua. His name is Joshua Beauregard Jordan. We call him Beau.” She couldn’t bring herself to tell him the truth about Lynna’s disappearance, not just yet, and ruin his happiness so soon. She could not forever dim the bright light that was shining in his eyes. “He is a tiny version of you.”
Clara left her grandmother’s arms when she heard Beau’s name, rushing to Joshua’s side nodding her head up and down happily.
“Did you get to hold Beau, Clara?” He laughed, already knowing the answer.
“Did she hold him?” Patricia smiled lovingly at the young girl. “You should ask if anyone else had the chance to hold him since the second she arrived on our doorstep.”
Joshua chuckled, pulling Clara close for another hug, assuring himself that his prayers had been answered and the child was safe and well. “I told her she could hold the baby for as long and as often as she liked. Apparently she took my words to heart. Didn’t you, Clara?”
Clara nodded her head dreamily. She could hardly wait to return to her Beau.
“A son?” Joshua whispered.
“Yes.”
“And Lynna? Was it a difficult birth?”
“It was a long and arduous delivery for her, but she sailed through it just fine. Fortunately Jasmine was visiting at the time and assisted during her labor.”
Turning to Lucille, Joshua motioned for her to join him. “Mother, I would like you to meet Lucille Harper, grandmother to Clara. They brought me from the brink of death and nursed me back to health. We owe them my life, for without these two I would not be standing before you now.”
Patricia moved to clasp Lucille in a warm, heartfelt embrace. “Thank you for caring for my son. You will never know how grateful my entire family is to you. How can I ever repay your generosity and kindness?”
“We will think of something, Mother,” Joshua promised. “For now, let us all return home to Lynna and Beau.”
Clara exchanged a worried glance with Patricia who shook her head urging the girl not to let on that Lynna would not be at Sea Grove when they arrived. Begrudgingly, Clara agreed, though she didn’t like the idea of withholding information from Joshua one bit. In her opinion, he should be told that his wife was missing so he could start looking for her as soon as possible.
“Could we rest a bit before we must return to that bumpy carriage, Joshua?” Patricia pleaded. “I don’t mean to be a hindrance, but I have never been so jostled in all my life as on the trail here when we turned off the main road. Why, I feel as though my brains have been scattered about in my head.” She massaged her temple with a trembling hand and laughed from pure exhaustion. “We have been traveling for days.”
“Of course, Mother.” Joshua was instantly beside her, taking her hands. “Please forgive me for selfishly thinking only of myself. You must be dead on your feet. Of course, we can leave in the morning after you have rested.” Joshua helped her to the bed where she and Lucille curled under the covers.
How his mother slept with Lucille snoring like a freight train was a puzzle to Joshua, but she did. He offered Big Jim a bowl of leftover stew, then Clara handed them each a blanket and they lay down in front of the fire, eager for the morning sun to rise so they could be on their way home.
Chapter 21
Trinidad
March 1855
Lynna stood at the ship’s rail wearing her yellow day dress with the sweetheart neckline and three quarter length sleeves. A straw hat with a matching ribbon trailed behind her in the warm sea breeze. It was the prettiest of her new dresses and, for the first time in a long time, she actually felt somewhat pretty in it. She couldn’t hide the fact that she was still rail thin and her bosom was a far cry from overflowing the bodice of the dress as it once would have, but her face had healed and thankfully there were no scars to remind her of the most ghastly three days of her life. But that was just her outer appearance. Her insides churned with a constant ache for her husband and son.
Gulls circled overhead, swooping and cawing as she noticed the water rushing past the hull of the ship had changed from blue to a vivid jungle green color. As they drew closer to the shore, she saw lines of thick green foliage, what looked like huge fields of banana trees in the distance, and a few thatched roofs. They were nearing Sean’s home and she was eager to leave the confines of the ship and stretch her stiff legs.
Lynna had a desire to walk for miles and miles on the sandy shore, but doubted she would have the energy to walk from the ship to a waiting carriage. Still weak as water, the smallest activity totally exhausted her. Nonetheless she was grateful to be alive and gave thanks daily.
A precious thought suddenly stabbed at her heart as she noticed a father and his young son fishing in the nearby surf. How she would love to run on the beach chasing after Beau as he scurried along the powdery sand on his chubby little legs. She imagined scooping him up and tossing him into the air, breathing his fresh baby scent and kissing him until they both giggled with delight. Her heart gave a sudden lurch as she realized how far away from Beau she was.
How long had she been gone from him? Two months? How old was he when she left? She couldn’t even answer that question because she had been so sick, fading in and out of consciousness, that she’d had no concept of time. He could have been days, weeks or even months old. She had no way of knowing and it was a frightening feeling, not knowing. Would Beau be sitting up by now, perhaps crawling?
Since the night of the storm she had been thinking of her son almost every waking moment. During her long bout of sickness few thoughts had entered her mind, other than her own unrelenting misery. But now that her body was beginning to heal and she could think clearly again most of her thoughts were of her precious son.
And she wanted him back.
The island Sean called home was named Trinidad. From the deck of the ship, Lynna noticed a peach colored mansion with tall white columns sitting high on a hilltop. Sean had told her the plantation where he and his brother had spent their youth, belonged to his grandmother Lisbeth.
Sean tucked Lynna’s hand around his arm as he led her from the ship. She took one last deep breath and followed, mentally preparing herself for this next challenge in her life.
Lisbeth was a tall, striking woman with long white hair braided and wrapped like a crown around her head. Her skin was as tanned and wrinkl
ed as shoe leather due to her many days under the tropical sun, yet all you noticed when you looked at her were stunning lavender eyes.
“You have the most beautiful eyes I have ever seen,” Lynna exclaimed, unable to tear her gaze away from the woman’s arresting features.
“Thank you, darling.” Lisbeth beamed, taking an immediate liking to Michael’s widow. “They were a gift from my mother and her mother before her and so on. You see a daughter with lavender eyes has been born into our family every generation as far back as anyone can remember.” She smiled lovingly at her grandson. “Since Michael…” a sob caught in her throat and it was a moment before she could clear her throat and continue. “Since Michael couldn’t… is no longer with us… I’m certain Sean will have a daughter someday to carry on the tradition.”
Sean came up behind Lynna and slipped his arms around her, pulling her back against him. It was a tender gesture, one normally reserved for lovers, and one Lynna feared could leave Lisbeth with the mistaken impression that she might be the one to deliver this lavender eyed bundle of joy. Surely it was not Sean’s intention to lead his grandmother to such an erroneous conclusion when it was Lynna’s plan to purchase passage on the first vessel home. But she had no money. Therefore Sean would have to set sail again and return her to Sea Grove.
A frisson of alarm shivered down her spine as Sean and Lisbeth exchanged a secretive smile, her body freezing in place when Sean lowered his chin to rest on her shoulder.