by Jerri Hines
Flushed, a lovely smile emerged. “I didn’t want Caleb to be concerned.”
“Come, and I will walk you up.”
“Can I not stay down for a moment? Katy has prepared refreshments. I don’t want to offend,” Jane said softly. Sumner watched her. Her hand unconsciously went to her stomach. She leaned over to him. “I believe she wants to talk with you. She seems greatly troubled and with everything Careen has told me in the short time I have returned, I can tell you I am worried.
“I promise I will retire afterwards. I feel better…I do. I have become quite selfish and want to spend as much time with you as possible.”
“I will not argue with you on that.” His hand gently caressed her face. “Your color does seem to have improved.”
“I had the most delightful bath,” she said. “I feel clean again. I never thought I would.”
“It would do me good to have one as well,” he said, relenting. He wrapped his arm about her waist. “Come, let us make this quick. Where has Caleb run off to?”
“I’m certain Roscoe went to see his mother. After that, I’m afraid to guess,” she confessed. “But Careen won’t let them out of her sight.”
Sumner stepped into the drawing room with Jane by his side. The room had changed and not much to his liking. There was little he could do about it until after the war…confident that it would be his.
Katy seemed uncomfortable…withdrawn, not at all the Katy he remembered. She met his gaze with a slight smile, but it altered to a frown when Colonel Leckie walked into the room. Nor did it change when he sat next to her.
“I can’t tell you, Sumner, the relief I felt upon the news that you both were safe. Reluctantly, I will have to admit I had feared the worst,” Katy said, pouring a cup of tea. “And to be honest,” she turned to Jane, “it should be you pouring. I don’t wish to overstep.”
“Nonsense.” Jane smiled at her. “I find myself tired and enjoy being waited upon. Are you not my best of friends?”
Katy’s lips moved upward in a semblance of a smile. “I have heard it said.”
Sumner sat back. Jane did have the look as if she was enjoying herself. She seemed to be upon a mission of her own with her manner toward Katy. He wondered briefly what his wife was attempting to do.
To Sumner’s delight, General Durham had retired back to Charles Town. He hoped Durham kept his distance, for the General’s mere presence seemed to disturb Jane beyond measure.
He watched Jane while she sat in conversation, engaged and laughing. It was good to hear her laugh. His patience was worn with the realization that all he wanted was to be back within his home with her by his side. It would not be soon.
Even with Bloody Benny dead, the war still raged. There were other raiders…other dangers. Henry had sent most of his family to England. To have any peace of mind, Sumner would have to separate his family by the width of the Atlantic Ocean. He had to write Cathryn.
“Don’t you believe it is best if you rest now, Jane?” Sumner asked a short time later. Her eyes met his. She wouldn’t be able to deny the need. “Pray, excuse us. I want to see that my wife finds her bed.”
“Sumner...” Katy stood with them. She walked with them to the door. “Do you suppose you could find time for me? It doesn’t have to be at this minute…before you meet with General Durham?”
“Of course, Katy.” His arm rounded Jane. “Let me see her to bed. I’ll be back down.”
Ascending the stairs, Jane whispered to Sumner, “I hope Katy will be looked after. Careen said she overheard a huge disagreement between General Durham and Colonel Leckie.” She looked up at Sumner. “You didn’t tell me that Colonel Leckie and his men helped in my escape, Sumner.”
“It won’t serve the colonel well for that information to become common knowledge, Jane. It is enough I know and now you do.”
“For that, I will always be grateful,” she said softly. “But it is Katy that concerns me. Careen said that the colonel has taken her as his mistress. That he has placed her here as such! Sumner, we can’t have that.”
“My dear wife, first, it is not our concern. Second, I am not back in charge of my own home. I’m on reprieve only. I agree that…”
“No, it’s isn’t that I’m worried upon how it looks…” She paused. “It is in a way, but not for me. Careen says that Katy has nowhere to turn. Her family has all but turned their backs on her with her coming forward as she did. Careen says that her family has always shown favoritism toward Randa. They are maintaining the British are falsifying evidence against this William Peyton.”
“I’m certain it is the reason she wants to talk with me.”
“I can’t sit back without some plan to help her, Sumner. Shouldn’t the colonel marry her?”
Sumner stepped on the landing and halted. “Jane,” he asserted. “I can’t tell another to marry!”
“I have thought upon it all and have come to the conclusion it is the best solution. You can see they are in love with each other. The British seem to take openly their mistresses, for upon my only dance I attended it was common knowledge that Randa was the general’s. If the colonel understood that Katy couldn’t live that way…”
“Jane, I would give the world to you if I could, but this isn’t something that concerns us. We can give to Katy our support and not abandon her, but no more.”
Her manner deflated somewhat, but he could still see she was determined. Sumner shook his head. If it diverted her attention away from her own problems, what would it matter?
“I believe I owe her, Sumner,” Jane said stubbornly.
He chose not to say more, but followed her to their room. He looked down the hall and memories resurged. It was as if Sumner could see his mother standing in the shadows. Oh, how he had missed her. She had been a strong woman to have raised him as she had.
The house held his past—his father, his mother, Cathryn, and Mary. A sudden, melancholy swept through him. All were gone from here, and he doubted if Cathryn would ever return.
Jane’s hand squeezed his, bringing him back to the present. He smiled at her, his wife and future. He had Caleb and, in that moment he had to acknowledge the child that was growing within the women he loved beyond all else.
Sumner pulled back the covers for Jane. He wasn’t leaving until he had her squarely in bed. He helped her unbutton the back of her dress. God, he wished he could lay with her now, but Katy waited for him…Caleb had to be seen to…then there was worry about Jane’s health.
He watched her pull the nightgown about her and climb into the high bed. Sumner leaned down and kissed her lightly. She clasped her arms around his neck…the kiss deepened.
“Jane, we can’t…” he said.
Reluctantly, she released her hold, but a smile stayed upon her lips.
“I will be waiting for you.”
He would return.
* * * *
Watching Caleb from the window, Sumner waited for Katy. He had talked to Careen and arranged for the boy’s care for the night.
“It’ll be hard, Master Sumner,” Careen said. “He liked to sleep in the Misses’ room. Listen to him talk. He’ll tell ya. He protects her.”
“I will tell him that I will do so this night,” Sumner said. He thought he would take Caleb to his mother’s grave in the morning before General Durham arrived. Caleb needed to know about her. How much she’d loved him. He wanted to visit the graves himself. “I will spend more time with him tomorrow.”
“Hate to see ya leave again, Master Sumner,” Careen said freely. “Ain’t the same without ya.”
“I hate to leave also,” he answered in an honest manner.
The breeze picked up slightly. With the days shortening, winter would not be far away. By then he hoped Jane and Caleb would be safely in England.
“Thank you, Sumner,” Katy said, entering the room. “I don’t mean to keep you from your family long.”
He turned slightly so he still kept an eye upon his son. Sumner didn’t mean to
stare, but he noticed her puffy, reddened eyes. “It isn’t too much to ask, Katy. I realize what you have done and what it has cost you.”
“It was the right thing to do.” She took a deep breath. “But, you must have heard that my actions have alienated my family.”
“I am sorry, truly, but if honest, I’m not surprised. Anything we can do for you, we will, Katy.”
“I was wondering…I wouldn’t ask if I had another acceptable option…” Her gaze lowered. “I have heard you are sending Jane and Caleb across to Cathryn. Do you think Jane could use a companion of sorts? I don’t know if I can stay…” She stopped. She could say no more.
Sumner said nothing for a moment. Jane’s words echoed in his mind. She had been right, but unlike Jane, Sumner understood they could only offer her help. “Is that what you want? You want to leave? Surely, Katy, it isn’t as bad….”
“I can’t face anyone now. I don’t want your sympathy. It’s hard not to have anyone to turn to. Rebekah isn’t here. If she was, I could go to her.”
“What if I talked to your parents? With everything that Randa’s put them through, you would think they would show you sympathy. You have helped many…Rebekah, Jane, myself.”
“I can’t talk of it, Sumner. I only need to know that you will let me do so. I would help Jane with Caleb on the voyage. I have heard that Jane is with child. I am certain she will need to rest without worrying about Caleb.” She looked away from him. “But I will understand if you don’t want Jane associated with me. I don’t want to embarrass you or your family.”
“Don’t talk in that manner,” he said. “We owe you, Katy, and will never turn our backs on you.”
He walked beside her and said in a low voice, “Others have faltered as you believe you have, Katy. They haven’t run away. In these times, I can give you several examples, your sister included.”
“I have no one here to help me do such,” Katy said in an impassive tone. “I have sent notes to ones I thought friends…to my relatives—every one has been sent back unopened. They believe I betrayed everyone, Sumner. They don’t know what William has done or that he blamed you. They believe I have sold my soul to the British.”
“If it is what you want, I know of no one else I would trust more with Jane. It would ease my mind greatly for you to be her companion.”
From the corner of his eye, he caught sight of Colonel Leckie, staring at the two of them. He seemed greatly put upon. Sumner looked back at Katy. He couldn’t imagine the colonel leaving Katy in this position. He wondered briefly if it was as Jane believed, that the British held that the colonists were beneath them, even the colonel.
* * * *
Sumner woke suddenly. His arm went out to where Jane should be sleeping…empty. Paralyzed for a moment, he couldn’t think. Where could she be?
Glancing around, he saw the tray of food he had brought up for her to eat still sat on the chest, untouched. She had been sound asleep when he entered and couldn’t bring himself to wake her.
Sumner was so proud of her brave attempt to put everything behind her, but now a fear gripped him. Where was she?
Turning, he saw Jane by the window, clutching the drape, and huddled on the floor. Her face hidden in the curtain she clutched so tightly.
“Jane,” he said. “Jane, what is wrong? Is it the babe?”
Looking up at him with her tear-stained face, she shook her head.
“Then what?”
“Everything,” she cried. “I can’t sleep. I see all of their faces…Grandfather, Troy, Reese… I hear their screams…their cries, and then I turn and see Joseph.”
Her body trembled uncontrollably. Slinging the covers back, he rose. A moment later, he sat in the floor and held her in his arms.
She sobbed and he let her. He talked smoothly to her, trying to erase the remembered horrors—telling her repeatedly how he loved her, needed her, and how Caleb needed her.
She fought to regain her composure, but he did not lessen his embrace.
“You don’t understand…” she choked on her emotions. “I’m not strong, Sumner…I won’t survive without you—I can’t. I am weak…” Her anguish poured forth. “Sumner, I am scared…I…I want this baby…I don’t know what I will do when I lose it….”
Gently, Sumner pulled her back and cupped her lovely face in his hand.
“Listen, to me, my wife, my love, my life. You will endure because I need you…Caleb needs you. I have survived much in this life, but I can’t lose you. I am making arrangements for you to go to England. I need to know you are safe…Caleb and the baby.
“Fate will deal to us what it will, and we will face whatever it brings…together. I want this baby, also, but I don’t want you to worry. Know I am fighting for a future for you and our children…you, Caleb and all the children we will have.”
He brought up her chin to look into her eyes. “Whatever happens, Jane, we have each other and no ocean, no war, is going to keep me from you. Remember that and live. I promise you I will come for you and my family. You do this for me…go to my sister’s, and I will bring you home.”
Her eyes met his. How he loved her! Sumner bent down and his lips met hers. A need rose within him as she leaned into him and returned his kiss. The same need as hers.
She breathed against his lips. “Don’t leave me this night, Sumner.”
Within the darkness, he picked her up and laid her on the bed. Their bodies responded to their touching, caressing, with the intensity of not knowing when they would be as one again, driving back the world outside. Afterwards, he held her secure in his arms.
Basking in the serenity of the moment, she whispered, “You come for us, my love. We will be waiting.”
* * * *
The sun rose, giving way to another day. Sumner glanced over at Jane, who lay content against his shoulder. Looking up, she regarded him as if etching his face into her memory.
“I don’t know what came over me last night,” she said. Her fingers ran over his bare chest. “I want you to be proud of me. I didn’t mean…”
“Ssh.” He kissed the top of her head. “I live for the day I can wake with you every morning. Remember my words.” He took her hand in his. “I don’t know what today holds. General Durham wants information I don’t know if I have. I believe he will hold to his word, but be prepared. I may have to leave immediately.”
“I will be.”
He smiled at her attempt to be brave. He went on. “How are you feeling? Your coloring seems better.”
“I’m always better with you,” Jane said. “My queasiness has lightened.” She no more got the words out of her mouth when the door sprang open. A young boy came running into the room and leaped on the bed.
“It is morning!” Caleb declared. “Careen said I had to wait until now, Father. She said you wanted to take me somewhere before you leave. I am ready. I have already eaten and—”
“I can see.” Sumner laughed as Jane broke from his embrace to allow Caleb access to his father. Her hand touched his unruly hair gently. “I have not risen yet. Give me a moment. Did you say good morning to…?”
Sumner stumbled on the word. The word Caleb used so freely, for he had known no other. He finished his thought, “Your mother?”
Caleb turned and wrapped his arms around her neck. “Good morning, Mother. Careen says, the day is going to be warm and we can play outside.” His little lips kissed her cheek. “I’m so happy you came back. Roscoe told me you weren’t. I told him you had to. I said my prayers. I told God not to let anything happen to you, because I wasn’t there to protect you.”
Sumner saw Jane’s eyes water, overcome with emotion.
“Caleb, son, run on down the stairs. I will join you in a moment.”
The little boy scampered out as quickly as he had run into the room. Sumner leaned over and kissed Jane, wiping back a silent tear. “We have much to be thankful for. Stay in bed. I won’t leave without seeing you. I will send Careen in.”
Sumner
dressed in silence. Walking to the door, he looked back. Jane had sat up and she smiled once more at him.
In that moment, the reason he fought came rushing back within him, clear and evident. Sumner had come to hate this war, but not for what it stood. If she could so valiantly fight for him, he wouldn’t falter in his mission.
* * * *
By mid-morning, Caleb had commanded all his attention without Sumner realizing that time had elapsed without a sign of General Durham. A silent hope rose that the general had postponed his trip out today.
The visit to the cemetery had not gone as planned. Caleb had shown little interest. He is young, Sumner excused his son, or perhaps Caleb didn’t want to dwell on what he had never known.
“Can we go riding now?” Caleb asked, walking back to the house. Looking up at his father’s solemn expression, he added, “I mean, Father, I say my prayers every night for my real Mama.”
Sumner didn’t tarry, but took his son’s hand and headed to the stables. Caleb had taken well to the black pony. Memories surfaced again of when he had bought it for his nephew, Philip. How Philip had loved the pony! He pondered for the moment that soon Caleb would get a chance to know his cousin.
Caleb’s impatience showed when he didn’t wait for his father and tried to mount the pony by himself. He promptly fell off as he bounded upon the back of the pony with too much energy. Sumner had to withhold a laugh for Caleb’s temper flared, but was quickly extinguished in looking at his father’s face.
“It would pay to listen, Caleb,” Sumner said firmly. “I’m to leave soon and you will be the man of the house once more. I don’t want you to cause your mother undue anxiety over your actions.”
Caleb eyed the pony. “He moved, you know. I could have—”
“I know,” Sumner said, laughing to himself. How much was the child like him! “Did you hear me, Caleb?”
The boy frowned. “Yes, Father. You have to leave again. Can’t you stay just a little while longer? Are you going back to fight?”
Sumner adjusted Caleb’s saddle, tightening the strap. He turned. “Yes, I’m going back. I have to. The war isn’t over. I was offered only a couple of days, but I have to do work as soon as the General appears.”
