Embers of Anger (Embattled Hearts Book 1)

by Anna St. Claire

  “Still, you two are putting your lives at risk. Do you know what they do to spies? It would be hard to explain my presence if we were found out.” He studied her.

  “I know. I hate…well, I hate these people being here. They have taken our home over, and I feel like I have become a boarder.”

  Seeing how upset he made her, Nolan backed off, changing his tone. “Well, I am still upset you have done this; however, I confess I cannot wait to see Sara.” He grinned. “When will she be here?”

  “There! That is the brother I recognize—smiling, handsome and confident. And healthy-looking again, instead of looking like a backwoodsman in rags.” She crossed her arms and regarded him. “Hmmm, you’ve gained weight. It looks good.”

  “You are stalling. When? When will Sara get here?” He walked around the table. “I need to clean up.” He grabbed up a straightedge and looked into a small mirror, allowing it to move around his chin as if looking for a whisker.

  “Where is Ol’ Indie?” Ella noticed her absence.

  “She left an hour ago. That old woman is great at getting in and out. She leaves through there.” He pointed behind him towards the kitchen entrance. “She and Carter are getting supplies ready and they are trying to be seen around so she seems familiar to the army folks. They don’t know everyone who lives here, or that she isn’t one of our slaves.”

  “Workers,” Ella corrected.

  “I know that you don’t like to call them slaves, but they are slaves, sister.”

  “Nolan, we will always disagree about this. Outside of you and Aiden, they are all the family I have here, and Lizzy is helping get Aiden’s party ready, so Sara can slip down here.” She folded her arms across her chest and tapped her foot.

  “Okay, okay. You win this round. I just want you to be safe. Now, when will she be here?”

  “Anxious?” Ella smiled at her brother. "I’m not sure. Sara plans to visit some shut-ins, first. Jack…err, Colonel Ross made her wait and ride with one of the men from his headquarters.” Her face flamed. “He worries that there are renegades out there. Doesn’t want us out alone. He has gotten so darn bossy.” She huffed.

  “He has gotten protective. You may not need me to come home.” He quirked a brow at her and smiled.

  “Nonsense. Anyway, we plan to have a small party in the dining room. I’m gonna try and fool them into thinking that Sara is helping with some clothing that I have been trying to sew. So that he won’t question her absence while she visits you, she will be in my room, until the coast is clear. Now, I have to go.”

  Ella leaned over and kissed her brother on his forehead and hugged him. She left the way she had arrived, listening to make sure there was no one near. The colonel was pretty noisy, and so was the lieutenant colonel.

  Hearing no one, she stepped out. The coast was clear. Fighting the impulse to run up the stairs to her room, she walked quick. Sara would be here soon. She needed to have the rest of the props. She also needed to see what Lizzy had accomplished.

  Chapter 16

  Ella had not seen Aiden all morning. Where was he? She had heard nothing out of Bo, either. The two were inseparable.

  Walking to the back of the house, she checked the closets, just in case. No Aiden or Bo. She would stay calm. He was in the house somewhere.

  She was in the dining room when she heard Jackson and Lizzy approaching, and picked up the pinned dresses that she brought down from her room, earlier.

  “Miss Ella, there you are. Your nice colonel has been good enough to help me this morning.”

  Lizzy’s choice of words gave her pause, but she recovered and smiled at both. “Pshaw, Lizzy! You know he isn’t my colonel, but he is a most accommodating and obliging man. Jackson, thank you for helping her. I’m afraid that Carter overdid it and has reinjured his back.”

  She held up her pinned dresses. “Lizzy, when Sara comes, please don’t let me forget to have her look at my dresses. I never took too well to the needle, and I am forever begging her help. Sara is a genius with the needle and thread.”

  “We were fixing the ballroom for Aiden’s party. I thought of what I plan to give him.”

  “Yes, Miss Ella, the colonel is making him a present. He’s gonna fix the young Massa a tent…a real tent for him.”

  Lizzy was pleased with Jackson’s contribution.

  Ella nodded and smiled in acknowledgment. “Thank you, Jackson. He will surely enjoy that.” She clasped her hands, wringing them together. “Speaking of Aiden, have either of you seen him and Bo? I am looking for them. I realized that he has been especially quiet. Is he in the house somewhere that you have seen? I’ve asked him to play in the nursery or in his room unless he goes outside with one of us.”

  Before anyone could answer, a loud knocking sounded at the front door. Ella hurried towards the front of the house in time to see Marshall hang Sara’s cloak in the front closet.

  “I just got here. Let me see where everyone is,” Marshall looked up and saw Ella, Lizzy, and Jackson approaching. “There they are. Miss Sara, can I help you with the cake?”

  Tittering, Sara glanced at her friend and then up at Marshall. “Oh, yes. Thank you. This is Aiden’s birthday cake. His party will give me the opportunity to spend time with Ella.” Sara handed Marshall the cake and untied her bonnet. “I’ll just hang my up bonnet." She opened the entry closet door and laid the bonnet on the top shelf above her cloak.

  “Hello, Ella!” She walked to her friend and hugged her.

  “What flavor did you decide to make the cake?” she asked, pretending that she didn’t already know. Ella grinned. Marshall, and then Sara, had each gone into the closet. She wondered if Nolan was standing near the top of the safe room stairs but dismissed the concern.

  “Chocolate, his favorite.” Sara nodded, smiling. “The lieutenant colonel kindly took it for me. I believe he took it to the kitchen.”

  “Excellent. Welcome. We are arranging the ballroom. I plan to join everyone, but Aiden is missing, again. I want to look for him. He’s probably outside playing ‘pirates’ somewhere I’ve asked him not to go out alone. I will be back soon. I hate to ask, but I wonder if you could look at a couple of things for me?”

  Lizzy understood her signal. “Colonel, would you be able to help me with the chairs? I think one is broken, but I believe we’ll need about ten. We should have enough.”

  “Marshall and I will both help you. If you have a couple of broken chairs, we should get them seen to. We are happy to be of help.”

  The two men followed Lizzy down the hall to retrieve chairs from the dining room. As soon as they were out of sight, Ella relaxed.

  “Whew!” She nudged Sara. “I didn’t realize that espionage in my home could be so complicated.”

  “Ha! You are a sly one. I need to keep an eye on you, my friend.” Sara hugged her again. “I cannot wait to see him.”

  “I will take you to him. Wait for me to come back for you. Or Lizzy. I’m taking you to a special safe room. Swear secrecy to me.” She smiled at Sara. “You are my friend and almost my sister. I know you would never share this information. Quick. Come.” She led Sara back to the entry closet. Pulling her in, she put her finger to her lips, signaling that they needed to be quiet, and closed the door.

  Sara’s eyes widened in surprise as Ella pushed on the secret panel and opened the door leading to the safe room. Wall sconces and candles lit up the passage down the stairs, but Sara was gazing at the illuminated body at the bottom of the steps. It was Nolan.

  Ella noticed he was wearing clean clothes and his hair was slicked back, still wet. Thank goodness he bathed. She wanted to pinch herself to make sure that this was happening. It made her happy to see her brother and Sara together.

  “Sara, I’m gonna leave you two down here. Will that be okay with you? Ol’ Indie and Carter may come in from the back entrance. Nolan knows their schedule. Will you be comfortable being alone with your betrothed down here? I cannot stay. I need to be upstairs.”

 
“Yes… oh yes! Ella, thank you.” Without another word, Sara dashed down the steps as quickly as she could.

  As she started out, Ella turned once more to see her brother holding Sara. She felt really good about this. She just hoped that everything would work out as she planned.

  Once up the steps and back in the closet, Ella listened before opening the door a crack. She made sure that no one was around when she stepped out of the closet. I should think about using the back entrance occasionally. Using the pantry would make it a little easier to get past the men. I have to find Aiden and Bo.

  Ella walked back to the ballroom where Lizzy had the colonels working. The three of them were cleaning and arranging the tables and chairs. Her heart warmed at the sight. How she got the men to help clean, she couldn’t fathom. She took a deep breath, pleased that her plans were going as she wanted. Lizzy had opened the drapes to clean the windows, allowing more light than usual into the room. Peeling paper and cracks in the plaster drew her attention. Things had not been repaired outside of the main rooms since Nolan left. Perhaps she would be able to get this repaired before the chandelier fell. There were some dangerous looking cracks near that.

  “Hi, you three! Thank you all so much for helping, Colonel. You too, Lieutenant Colonel.” Ella gave them both a smile. “I left Sara up in my room with my dresses. I need to go out and look for Aiden. I shouldn’t be gone too long. I’m gonna peek in his favorite spots. He doesn’t appear to be in the house, and that bothers me greatly.”

  Ella left them and hurried to the front door. The hair on the back of her neck was standing up, and she couldn’t account for why she had that awful feeling. She had a nagging concern that it might have something to do with Aiden. Scurrying around the back of the house, she found the shortened stick that he usually used as his pirate’s knife. It had the ribbon tied in a semicircle on the end, where he hung it from his belt.

  Ella grabbed up her brother’s stick and ran to the barn, calling for both Aiden and Bo. The only response she got came from Mason, Jackson’s horse. He snorted and stomped his feet. If she knew horses better, she might believe him uptight and rather unhappy about being in a stall. She grabbed a handful of oats from the bag Jackson had hanging in the stall and fed him. “Here’s a quick treat, Mason. “She gave his velvet nose a quick rub and a small kiss. The horse seemed calmer, so maybe getting some oats and the nose rub was just what he needed.

  Bess snorted from the stall next to her, demanding equal time. She took oats to Bess and rubbed her between the ears, her favorite place. Chuckling, she realized the source of Mason’s ill temper. He wanted to get over to Bess.

  “Okay, I need to keep looking for Aiden.” She said it almost to herself.

  She took another quick look in on the two horses and went scurrying outside to the wooded area where the tall grass grew. Aiden better hope I do not find him in here.

  “Aid-en, Bo!” Ella came out of the barn calling their names, as loudly as she could. No answer. The eerie silence fueled her panic.

  Walking around to the back of the barn, she heard rustling in the brush. “Bo, Aiden. Come out of there, right now.” Ella noticed the ground in front of her had large drops of blood. Terror took over and she ran mindlessly into the brush, slapping it out of her way. “Aiden, Bo! Are you back here?”

  A muffled cry sounded out and Bo barked. “Aiden! Is that you?” Ella fought her way through the snarled briars and brush until she finally saw them. Aiden stood behind Bo, who was barking fiercely in her direction, guarding his buddy. Is he barking at me? She started, unsure of what was going on around her. No, he is barking at something behind me. Before she could look behind, a heavy object slammed into her head. She tried to scream for Aiden, but her voice was gone. Blackness took over as she felt herself falling.

  “Ella! Ella!” Aiden screamed. “Leave my sista alone! Stop hurting my sista! What’d you do to my sista?” Wiping his eyes, he ran towards her, with Bo in tow. A man hit his sister with a large stick and flung it hard at his barking dog. Aiden pulled Bo close before the stick landed. Two large black hands grabbed Ella and slung her over his shoulder, then disappeared into the brush.

  A third man, the one that tried to grab Aiden, left him alone and ran after the others. His red shirt was flapping in the wind behind him and snagged on some brush, tearing it. Bo broke loose and sprinted after him, barking at his heels.

  Aiden followed screaming Ella’s name over and over. He tried to keep up with Bo, but broken limbs, briars, and rutted ground caused him to trip and fall repeatedly.

  “Ella! Bo!” Crying and nearly hysterical, he stopped running and stood there, hiccupping sobs and shaking. Terrified for his sister, Aiden knew he needed to get help. He turned and ran back towards the house, screaming for Colonel Ross.

  Rustling in the brush behind him startled him. He slowed down, hoping it was Ella. Bo came running through the scrub carrying a man’s leather shoe.

  “Bo!” The sobs got louder. The little boy and his dog ran to the porch. “Help! Colonel Ross, help us. They took my sista!”

  Jackson heard the crying and commotion and ran out onto the porch. “Aiden! Bo!” Waves of panic coursed through him at the sight of Aiden’s torn clothing and bloodied face and arms.

  Aiden was nodding, crying, and running. Loud hiccups and sniffles made it hard for the little boy to talk.

  The child ran up the steps and grabbed Jackson’s shirtsleeves, pulling hard and crying. “My sista, they have my sista!” Aiden tugged his arm to get him to follow.

  “Aiden, talk to me. What happened? What do you mean they took your sister?” Jackson felt the hairs on the back of his neck stiffen. The small boy tried to hiccup a response, only frustrating Jackson more. “Where is your sister?”

  Bo dropped something at his feet. The dog backed up and barked furiously until he turned and ran into the brush at the edge of the yard.

  “Bo! Come here, boy!” Jackson struggled over whether to run after the dog. But a moment later the puppy re-emerged, this time carrying a piece of red fabric. The dog dropped the cloth and barked frantically.

  Not willing to believe Ella was gone, he called out over his shoulder, hoping this—whatever it was—was a mistake, and she would ‘round the corner of the house and come from the barn or anywhere, as long as she was okay. “Ella…Aiden’s here,” he shouted. Nothing. He scanned the front yard and then saw the leather shoe and the red fabric in front of Bo for the first time.

  “The pirates took her.” The small boy stood, sobbing and choking on his tears, and struggling to breathe. “They hit her on the head and kilt her.” Aiden hiccupped his words through bursts of tears.

  Bo wouldn’t stop barking. Again, and again, the little dog ran to Jackson and backed away, as if trying to get him to follow. The puppy nudged the old shoe and the piece of red cloth towards Jackson and backed up, still barking.

  Jackson reached down and picked up Bo’s offering. The puppy leaped in the air, barking. Bo was giving him a clue. Whoever had taken Ella had lost this shoe. Examining the footwear, he noticed that it was the same type given to field slaves, and it was very worn down. He clenched it, his stomach heaving.

  I need Aiden to tell me what he saw.

  “What happened, Aiden? I must know what you saw. Calm down and talk to me.” Jackson felt a chill fill his body. Ella.

  Marshall and Lizzy ran out onto the front steps. “We heard screaming. What’s going on?” Marshall looked from Aiden to Bo to Jackson.

  “Where is Miss Whitford?

  Jackson suddenly realized with sickening clarity that Ella Grace had been kidnapped—she may be dead. He was silent for a long moment.

  “Whose shoe is that, Jackson?” Marshall persisted.

  “Aiden said the pirates hurt her and took her.” Jackson was not sure who the pirates were, but he would find Ella if he had to move Heaven and Hell to do it.

  “Miss Ella? Oh Aiden, you are hurt.” Lizzy brushed past Marshall and picked up Aiden, hugging h
im.

  Jackson summoned his reserve of emotional strength. “Lizzy, please take Aiden and Bo into the house and clean him up. Keep an eye on him. Don’t let him outside. Marshall and I need to look for Miss Whitford.” Acting calmer than he felt, Jackson checked his gun, making sure it was loaded.

  He looked down at Aiden and Bo. “Lieutenant Colonel Jameson and I will find your sister, but I want to make sure you are okay. She would be very mad at all of us if anything happened to you and Bo here. Promise to stay put.”

  “We promise, Colonel.” Tears continued to stream down his small face.

  Jackson’s heart tugged. “Please go with Lizzy and stay in the house. Lock the doors and windows until I get back. We will alert the men to watch the house until we return.”

  What had happened to the guard he had posted there? Jackson just realized the man was gone. “Wait.” He reached for Aiden, taking him from Lizzy, and wiped away his tears as he hugged the little boy tightly to his chest. He put him down and patted his rear, urging him back to Lizzy.

  Marshall disappeared inside then stepped back outside, the screened door slamming behind him. “I’ve got my sidearm. Let’s go. You can fill me in.”

  The two men retrieved their horses from the barn and took off in the direction Jackson had seen Aiden running from. They circled the barn. It was obvious an animal or something had been in the tall weeds. Blood and scrub marks created a path to follow, and soon they could identify where it appeared someone had been dragged. They followed the tracks as far as they lasted. There were two sets of tracks for much of the way; one track was obviously a man’s foot. The third set of tracks joined them.

  “I see three sets of prints. One set gets heavier here.” Marshall pointed at the more substantial tracks.

  Jackson stopped his horse. He slid out of the saddle and pulled the shoe Bo brought him from his leather saddlebag. “One set of the footprints got heavier back there when the dragging stopped.” He kneeled and fit the shoe over the bare footprint. “This matches the size of the print next to it. These tracks are heavy. They are carrying her. They can’t have gotten far. Let’s keep going.”