“It’s not good, Alex. We’ve got to get her some decent care.”
Sarah stirred, and Alex grabbed her small hand. He leaned close to her. “Sarah, it’s Alex. Can you hear me?” Her eyelids fluttered, and she stared upward. Alex pressed her hand tighter. “Look at me, Sarah. I’m here.”
Slowly she turned her head, looked into his eyes, and smiled. “Alex, I’m so glad you’re here.” Her words were no more than a whisper, and he leaned closer to hear her.
Alex wiped at the tears filling his eyes. “I came as soon as I knew you needed me. I’m here to take care of you.”
Sarah turned her head and looked to the other side of the bed. “Ellen, you’re with me too.”
Ellen leaned closer. “Yes, child, we’re all here. Edmund too.”
Sarah reached for Ellen’s hand and pulled it and Alex’s across her chest. “I’m glad you’ll both be here when I die.”
Terror ripped Alex’s heart. “No! You’re not going to die. We’re going to get you out of here, and we’re going home.”
Sarah smiled. “I’ve come home, Alex. I came home to Jesus.”
She closed her eyes, and her hands lay still. Alex jumped up from the floor. “Edmund, we’ve got to get her out of here so you can get her well. What should we do?”
Ruth had been quiet since they’d been in the room. She stepped up beside Alex. “I think you should go to Cameron House. Talk to the people there. You’ve seen what this place is like. Tell them they’ve got to get their friends out of here.”
“What’s Cameron House?” Alex demanded.
“It’s the headquarters for the pickets. It’s near the White House. Any taxi can get you there. Tell them these women can’t stand another night of terror like they suffered last week.”
“Night of terror?”
“The guards went on a rampage, beating and choking the inmates. Sarah had her arms shackled to bars above her head and hung there all night.”
Alex reached down and tucked a stray wisp of hair behind Sarah’s ear. His finger trailed down her gaunt face that blurred in his vision because of the tears in his eyes. “I can’t believe any human being would treat someone that way. Thank you, Ruth, for all your help.”
He started for the door with Ellen and Edmund right behind. Nothing mattered at the moment but getting Sarah away from this place before it killed her. “We’ll get her released. Please don’t let her die before we do.”
His mind raced as he rushed up the stairs from the infirmary and out the front door of the prison. They didn’t have a moment to waste if they were to save Sarah’s life. He hoped they hadn’t arrived too late.
Sarah’s head throbbed, and her body ached all over. She tried to find her way through the darkness around her, but it hurt to move. A weight crushed her chest, and she thought it might go away if she could just quit breathing.
She’d had a new dream while she was asleep, and she smiled at the memory of it. Alex and Ellen held her hands and told her they would take her home. She wanted to go home. Not back to Mrs. Simpson’s school, but to the little house at Richland Creek where she and her mother had lived.
She wanted to sit under the willow tree with Alex and watch him skip stones across the pond. She wanted to go to baseball games and dinners after church on Sunday and run through the yard without wearing shoes. That’s what she wanted, but she would only be going home to be buried next to her mother. Then they would both be with Jesus.
“Alex.” Her hand reached up, and someone clasped it. But it wasn’t Alex.
“It’s Ruth, Sarah. I’m here with you.”
Sarah smiled. “Thank you for being so kind to me, Ruth.”
She felt the darkness washing over her again, but she felt no fear, only peace. She was ready for whatever was to come.
Cameron House hummed with activity. Alex had never seen anything like it, and Ellen’s wide-eyed stare told him she agreed. Typewriters clicked; women darted about displaying signs on poles; and voices chattered throughout the room. The energy of the workers contrasted with the lines of fatigue on their faces and the weariness in their sagging shoulders.
Alex shook his head in bewilderment. “It’s hard to imagine Sarah being a part of this.”
Ellen nodded. “I know. When we saw those pickets at the White House before we came here, I wondered how she must have felt standing out there taking the insults like those women did today.”
Alex shuddered at the thought. “She tried to tell me how she felt about suffrage, but I wouldn’t listen. I was too caught up in my own feelings. I thought I could make her change and be like I wanted.”
“You did what you thought best at the time. Now don’t you go blaming yourself for any of this mess.” Ellen grabbed his arm and gave it a shake.
“But if I had offered to help her go after her dream, she might never have left with Roger Thorne.” Alex’s pulse pounded at the mention of the man’s name.
“But if, but if,” Ellen echoed. “You can’t go back and undo the past. We gotta figure out what to do about the present.”
A young woman approached them from an office in the back. “Hello, my name is Marian Douglas. I’m sorry to keep you waiting. I was on the phone when you got here. Please come with me.”
They wedged between the busy workers and followed her into a small room at the rear of the room. She motioned them to sit and closed the door behind her. “I understand you’ve been out to Occoquan. What were your impressions of the workhouse?”
“It’s a disgrace and an abomination!” The words exploded from Alex’s mouth. “Sarah looked like a skeleton. One of the guards told us she had been force-fed with a tube up her nose, and she hung shackled from her cell bars all one night last week.”
Marian’s elbows rested on the desk in front of her, and she pressed the tips of her fingers together. “We’ve heard about the night of terror, as it’s being called. We also know about the forced feedings, food with worms in it, and the filth of the place.”
Alex shook his head in surprise. “Then why haven’t you done anything?”
“Mr. Taylor, you must remember that our pickets were sent to Occoquan because we embarrassed the president of the United States. Everyone he’s sent to investigate tell him all the reports of abuse in the facility are false.”
“Well, I’ve seen the place, and there’s a guard there who might be willing to testify. What can we do to get Sarah out of there?”
Marian sat back in her chair and stared at Alex for several seconds. “Since word leaked out about the night of terror, the newspapers have reported about the ordeal of the jailed pickets. Even though their sentences are almost up, we need to get them out right away. We’ve engaged two lawyers, Dudley Field Malone and Matthew O’Brien, to represent the women at Occoquan. I’m going to their office this afternoon. I’ll tell them what you’ve told me.”
“I called their office before I left Memphis. One of my law school friends works there. He was supposed to keep me informed about Sarah, but he’s away on his honeymoon. I know they’re working to get the women released, but it’s urgent we get Sarah out of there now. She won’t live much longer.”
“We want to get all our friends out. Why don’t you stay here while I’m gone? I should be back in about two hours.”
Ellen stood and extended her hand. “Thank you for helping our Sarah. She means a lot to us.”
The door to the room suddenly burst open, and a young girl rushed in. “Are you really Mr. Alex? Have you come to help Miss Sarah?”
Alex rose slowly from his chair. “Why, yes, I am. How did you know my name?”
The girl’s cheeks flamed, and she ducked her head. “Oh, I beg your pardon for flyin’ in here like this, but I just about burst when I heard you were here.”
Marian walked over to the girl and hugged her. “This is Dora Campbell. She came here with Sarah, and she’s been about to go out of her mind ever since Sarah’s arrest. I’ll leave her to tell you the story of how they came to
be here.”
Marian glanced at a watch pinned to the front of her dress and frowned. “I have to go, or I’m going to be late. Please make yourselves at home while I’m gone.” She grabbed a coat from the rack near the door and hurried from the room.
Ellen rose and motioned the girl to sit in a chair next to her. “I’m Ellen, Alex’s sister. Tell us how you came to be with Sarah.”
Dora edged closer and opposite Ellen. “Miss Sarah told me all about how good you were to her when she and her mama moved to Richland Creek. She said—”
Ellen smiled and held up a hand. “Dora, tell us how you came to be with Sarah.”
Dora grinned. “Oh, I’m sorry. I get carried away when I’m excited, and I’m just so glad you’re here. Well, you see, I worked as a maid at Mrs. Simpson’s school, and Miss Sarah was real good to me. When they decided to come to Washington, they brought me along too.”
The words poured from Dora’s mouth, and Sarah’s life in the sixteen months since leaving Richland Creek unfolded. Alex sat with his elbows on his knees and his hands covering his face. The more Dora talked, the lower his heart sank.
When she finally completed the story, Alex raised stricken eyes to his sister. “No wonder God kept telling me to pray for her.”
Tears rolled down Ellen’s cheeks, and she knelt in front of Alex. She cupped his face in her hands and looked into her eyes. “You didn’t know, but God did. Your prayers have gotten her this far, and they’re gonna git her home.”
Edmund dropped to his knees by his wife. He encircled her shoulders with one arm and placed the other around Alex. “I think we need to pray for the lawyers who’ll meet this afternoon. Let’s ask God to give them the wisdom to get these women out of that prison.”
Dora joined the group, and the four bowed their heads as they petitioned God to spare Sarah and reunite the jailed pickets with their families.
Chapter Twenty-Eight
The hands on the clock above the desk moved slowly. Alex paced the floor, his hands jammed into his pockets. Marian had said two hours, but it had already been over three. Where could she be? He froze at the sounds of shouts rising in the outer office. The door flew open, and Marian stood there looking as if she had just finished a race. Red splotches covered her cheeks, and her breath came in short spurts.
She raised her arms in victory. “It’s a miracle.”
Ellen and Edmund, who had dozed in their chairs, jumped up, and Alex ran to Marian. “What happened?”
Marian struggled to catch her breath. “I’m sorry I’ve been gone so long, but I rushed back as quickly as I could. I didn’t want to get your hopes up before I left, but I knew that Mr. Malone and Mr. O’Brien planned to meet with Judge Edmund Waddill in Alexandria today to request a habeas corpus hearing for the jailed pickets. I’ve been at their office waiting to hear from them.”
“And?”
“Judge Waddill ordered the White House pickets be brought to his court for a hearing tomorrow, but he released all of them into Mr. Malone’s custody. He’s making arrangements now for their transportation here to Cameron House.”
“Can we meet him there and take Sarah to a hospital?”
“The receptionist has called for a taxi. You’re welcome to go.”
Alex headed toward the door but stopped when Dora cried out. “Wait. Don’t leave yet.”
She ran from the room and returned in minutes. A locket dangled from her fingers, and she held it out to Alex. “Give this to Miss Sarah. I kept it safe for her.”
Alex’s fingers closed around the locket, and he clutched it in his hands. “Thank you, Dora.”
Ellen put her arm around Dora and looked into her eyes. “Why don’t you come with us and give it to her yourself?”
A smile lit Dora’s face. “You mean I can come see Miss Sarah get released?”
“Well, you can do that, and then I ’spect you’ll have to go to the hospital to help nurse her back to health. And then I guess you’ll just have to come back to the farm in Tennessee and help me get her good as new.”
Dora threw her arms around Ellen, and sobs shook her body. “Miss Sarah said nobody was kinder than you, and now I know it’s true.”
Alex looked over at Edmund as the two women exited the room. “Well, I guess Ellen’s found someone to take over my empty bedroom.”
Edmund threw back his head and laughed. “That’s my Ellen. Lord love her, there’ll never be another like her.”
Tears filled Alex’s eyes at the sight of his sister, brother-in-law, and a girl he’d never met before today. They all shared a bond. They loved Sarah and wanted to see her restored to health. He only hoped they weren’t too late.
What was happening? Sarah cried out and struggled to resist being pulled upward, but strong arms lifted her.
“Wrap this blanket around her. She’s burning up with fever.” A familiar voice whispered nearby, and lips brushed her forehead. Soothing words drifted into her ear, and she snuggled closer to the warm body that cradled her and offered security.
Her nose nuzzled soft fabric and inhaled the familiar scent of homemade soap she remembered from long ago. She opened her mouth and tried to call out Ellen’s name, but no sound emerged. The arms tightened around her. “It’s Alex, Sarah. You’re safe now.” She relaxed and felt the darkness washing over her again.
Sometimes Sarah felt something cool wash across her face and heard voices speak words she didn’t understand. “…fever…cold water…” Maybe they said more, but she felt too tired to listen.
Hot liquid poured into her mouth, and she cringed at the fire it ignited as it slithered over the rawness of her throat. More words drifted into her foggy mind. “…know it hurts…good for you…”
Gentle hands pushed and probed her body, and she winced in pain. She tried to fight off her attackers, but weakness prevented that. All she could do was lie still and endure whatever they did to her.
She had no idea how long she endured the torture, but it seemed to go on forever. She longed to sleep, but they kept waking her. Finally she opened her eyes and blinked. She lay in a bed in a darkened room. She ran her fingers over the crisp sheet and blanket that covered her. These weren’t the covers she was accustomed to at Occaquan. She inhaled, and a sweet smell of lilac rose to her nostrils.
Her eyes adjusted to the darkness, and she realized a small lamp burned on a table next to the bed. A chair with a sleeping figure slumped in it sat next to the table. She blinked to focus her eyes and rubbed them with her fingers.
She blinked again and concentrated on the person in the chair. Her heart thudded in her chest. Was it really him? Her hand reached toward him.
“Alex?” Her voice cracked, and her throat constricted in pain.
A snore drifted from the chair. Sarah swallowed and tried again, this time with more force. “Alex?”
His head jerked up, and he sprang toward the bed. Rumpled hair tumbled over his sleepy eyes, and the shadow of a beard darkened his tired face. He fell on his knees beside her and grabbed her hand. His gaze raked her face. “Sarah, you’re awake! How do you feel?”
“Tired, but you look awful. How long have you been here?”
“We brought you from the prison five days ago, but you’ve been very ill. We’ve been so worried.” His voice quivered with the words, and his hand gripped hers like a vise.
She rubbed her forehead with her free hand. “Where am I?”
“You’re in a hospital, and the doctors have let Edmund help treat you since we brought you here. Ellen and Dora have hardly left your side. I had to make them get some sleep tonight.”
Her heart skipped a beat. “Ellen and Dora are both here?”
“You’ll see them in the morning. Just rest now and don’t worry about anything. You’re safe with me now.” He released her hand and fumbled in his pocket. “Oh, I almost forgot. Dora wanted me to give you this.”
Her mother’s locket hung from his fingers. He gently raised her head and fastened the catch. She cl
asped the pendant in her hand and felt the indentions on the back. “Sometimes at the workhouse I would reach for this, and I’d remember how I’d lost it just like I lost everything else. I didn’t think I’d ever regain anything I threw away.”
“Well, you have the necklace and all of us back. We’re going to have a grand life together, Sarah.”
His lips brushed across her forehead, and she touched the necklace before she closed her eyes. She was tired but more peaceful than she’d been in years. She smiled. “Safe with you.”
Two days later Sarah sat in bed with pillows propped behind her back. The door opened, and her heart raced at the sight of Alex entering the room. He stopped beside the bed and planted a kiss on her cheek before he dropped down in the chair beside her. “You look much better today. The doctor said you may be able to leave the hospital in a few days if you continue to improve.”
“That would be wonderful.” Another thought struck her, and she bit down on her lip. “But I still have so many unanswered questions about what happened after I became sick.”
His eyes darkened, and he leaned forward. “I wanted to wait until you were better to tell you the rest of the story. Are you up to it now?”
She shivered and clutched Alex’s hand. “I am. I want to know about the other women.”
Alex took a deep breath and squeezed her hand. “After the night the guards went on their rampage, word leaked out to the newspapers about what was going on in Occoquan. Two lawyers took the story to a judge, and he released all the women into their custody.” He smiled at her and rubbed her hand.
“Where are they now?”
“The day after their release, they went to court. You were too sick to be there, but the others went. The judge dropped all the charges and freed all the pickets.”
“And Henrietta?”
“She’s fine. Her mother came from Boston to take her home, but Henrietta refused to go, even when her mother insisted. She said she meant to stay here until you recovered. I don’t think she had ever defied her mother before. Her mother was really impressed that Henrietta stood up for herself.”
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