20
Annie
For the next two weeks, Annie nursed Harriet night and day. The baby had been sent to a wet nurse in Peach Bottom, and then neighbors took Noah in so that he didn’t have to see his mother suffering. Kate helped care for Harriet as she could, but Cecil had been right. She was exhausted too. So much so that Woody stayed to help take care of her.
Only five soldiers were still at the house. Two had typhoid, one was still recovering from an amputated leg, one was recovering from a chest wound, and the last from a neck wound.
Woody helped with the cooking and also with feeding and bathing the soldiers. He helped George in the fields some, although he didn’t stay away from the house for long. In fact, he hovered over Kate until she convinced him she was all right. “I just overdid it.”
She did ask Woody if he would drive her to check in on her patients, and one night when she attended a birth, he stayed with her the entire time.
Annie was afraid Kate would come down with typhoid too, but thankfully she didn’t. Typhoid ran a course of about three weeks, and Harriet was in the second when Annie arrived. As Annie took care of her sister-in-law—forcing her to drink, cleaning her up and changing her clothes and feeding her soup and anything else she could keep down—she prayed, asking God to spare Harriet. For George. For the boys. For herself too. She couldn’t bear the thought of losing another sister.
Several times, usually in the middle of night, Harriet would hallucinate. A couple of times, she thought Cecil had died. One time she thought she’d literally lost the baby and couldn’t find him. Another time she thought Noah was off at war.
She rapidly lost weight, and her fever raged. Annie continued caring for her, fighting her own fatigue and despair. By the end of the third week, the two soldiers turned a corner, and a few days later, Harriet did too.
Annie kept diligent, fearful her sister-in-law might relapse. Harriet began asking for the boys, begging George to bring them home. He said he would, as soon as she was stronger.
Ira wrote his mother, asking if Woody could take the remaining soldiers who were staying at George and Harriet’s to Hanover Junction to catch trains back to their homes or to meet their units, if they were healthy enough. He added that he was doing well and told his mother that Dr. Carson hoped she’d return to Gettysburg. Kate paused as she read the letter aloud.
“Are you thinking about going?” Woody asked.
She shook her head.
“Not even for Ira?”
She smiled a little. “He doesn’t need me. And I have plenty to do here.”
Woody took the soldiers west to the train and then returned. Kate moved back to her house and Woody to his shack, but he came back to help George with the harvest. Annie asked him if he planned to return to Lancaster any time soon.
“No,” he answered. “I’ve decided to take a break from hauling cargo. I’ve done well over the last few months and saved everything I could. Besides, the need isn’t what it used to be.”
He certainly didn’t have cargo to haul for the Union anymore. Annie wondered if, since the Confederates retreated back to Virginia, not as many slaves were coming over the border from Maryland. Perhaps they hoped the war would end soon and they’d be liberated without risking their lives to gain freedom. She guessed that Woody was helping with that cause. She didn’t know for sure.
Many were disappointed that General Meade hadn’t attacked Lee’s army again before it reached Virginia. “Perhaps the war would be over if he had,” Woody said one night as he and George talked after supper.
George said he didn’t know anything about that, and the conversation turned back to the crops.
Harriet grew strong enough for the boys to come home, and gradually things returned to normal.
Annie received a letter from her mother, saying she’d seen Samuel recently and he’d asked after her. Daughter, don’t hold his concerns for you against him. He has a good heart and cares for you deeply. I hope when you return, you’ll be ready to move on with your life. He seems to regret words he shared with you in his worry—perhaps he, like so many of us, has changed through these difficult times. Annie folded the letter and slipped it into her pocket. She knew it was her duty to forgive Samuel, just as God forgave her. Surely his behavior was due to the stress they were all under. Her mother was right. War had affected them all.
It was now late October, and she felt she should go home. Jah, her mother had her sister and mother’s company, but perhaps she’d prefer to have her only living daughter home too. It was time to return to the life God had for her.
The first of November, after the leaves on the trees along the river had turned yellow, orange, and a brilliant red, she pulled her shawl tighter and broached the topic with Harriet. Her sister-in-law begged her to stay. “Just for a couple more weeks.”
George, with Woody’s help, finished the harvest, and they all relaxed a little. The Rebels were long gone. Harriet was gaining her health back. Cecil, as far as they knew, was well. Nathaniel was a healthy baby. The corncrib was full, and the calves were growing. The cellar was stocked with squash, turnips, cabbage, and onions. George and his little family had survived.
Tears welled in Annie’s eyes. She missed Sophia, and going home would be hard, but she needed to honor her parents. They’d honored her, allowing her to do what she believed God had called her to do.
Both Woody and Kate visited often. It was as if they’d all gone through a fire together and survived. They’d all been bonded.
One day, Woody stopped by, saying he’d heard at the Peach Bottom store that the National Cemetery would be dedicated in two weeks. “November 19,” he said. “There are rumors that the president will be there.”
Annie thought of Ira and hoped he’d still be in Gettysburg for the ceremony. He’d be honored to see President Lincoln. If anyone deserved to, it was Ira.
The next week, Annie began to prepare to go home. She helped George dig the last of the potatoes in the garden and added them to the stores already in the cellar. She cleaned the house from top to bottom and washed all the bedding. She dried the rest of the apples and made kraut from the last of the cabbage. She started cheese and stored it in the cellar to finish.
On November 17, as she dumped the dishwater out in the backyard, a wagon turned into the driveway, coming from the west. She shaded her eyes from the setting sun, realizing it was Woody. Someone was with him, and it wasn’t Kate.
She squinted. It was Ira. He waved.
“What are you doing here?” She started toward him, the basin in her hands.
“I have a proposition for you.” He sat tall on the bench. “There’s a dedication for the National Cemetery in two days. Ma is considering going, but she suggested I ask you too.”
Annie lit the lamp, and George and Harriet joined Woody and Ira at the table. Next, she poured tea for all of them and served the apple pie she’d made for the next day—the day she’d planned, God willing, to leave. She’d hoped to find a ride at the store in Peach Bottom to Lancaster. Or that perhaps Woody could take her, but she doubted that now.
Ira explained that those at Gettysburg planning the dedication of the National Cemetery were inviting all sorts of people to the event: soldiers who survived, but also nurses who’d come from all over the state and pitched in to care for the wounded after the battle. “Ma is hesitant about going,” he said. “But she said she would if you’d be willing.” He looked kindly at Annie, his blue eyes sparkling. “I wanted to extend the invitation, if going wouldn’t bring too much heartache for you.”
Her nightmares had subsided, although they weren’t entirely gone. But the truth was, she wanted to see Gettysburg again without blood in the streets and the stench of death in the air. Without mangled horses and decaying soldiers.
Annie believed that it might bring healing to herself to go, and she wondered if Kate felt the same. She’d been so adamant about not going back to Dr. Carson’s, but this would be different.
George rubbed his brow. “Do we need to go through more of this? I thought you were heading home—not traipsing west again.”
“I could escort her home after the dedication,” Ira said. “I’m going to ride the train to Philadelphia right after the ceremony and will be going through Lancaster on the way.”
“Why Philadelphia?” Annie asked.
“I’m going to work in an army hospital there, to be trained as a surgeon. Doc arranged it for me.”
Annie sensed Woody bristle, but he didn’t say anything. She turned her attention to George. “I’d like to go back to Gettysburg.”
“Will your mother go for sure?” George asked Ira. “I need to know Annie will be well chaperoned.”
“I’m sure she will go if Annie does.”
Woody shifted in his chair.
Ira seemed oblivious to Woody’s anxiety. “We’ll need to leave tomorrow. We can stay at Doc’s house while we’re in Gettysburg and then head to Lancaster on the twentieth.”
“Is your mother all right with that?” Annie asked.
“I think so,” Ira said. “Doc sent a letter apologizing for his behavior last summer.” He lowered his voice. “He hasn’t had a drink since Ma left.”
Annie glanced at George, but he didn’t protest again.
Ira turned to Woody. “Could you take us to Hanover Junction in the morning? And then pick Ma up in York on the twentieth?”
Woody crossed his arms but agreed. He didn’t look happy. Perhaps he worried about Kate seeing Dr. Carson again too. Annie wasn’t sure about the relationship between Woody and Kate, but they seemed to care for each other.
“It’s settled then,” Ira said.
“Go with them tonight,” Harriet said to Annie. “You’ll need an early start tomorrow.”
Annie wondered for a moment if she had the clothes she needed, and then realized it didn’t matter. She was who she was. A simple Amish girl. No one would expect anything more. She had her cloak to keep her warm. That was what mattered most.
She rose and excused herself to go finish packing her bag, and prepared herself to tell George, Harriet, and the boys good-bye. Life was about to shift again, but first she had an excursion to take, thanks to Ira. One she’d never expected.
A half hour later, Kate welcomed Annie into her home. It was the first time Annie had been inside. Kate took her bag and cloak and then led her to the fireplace in the parlor. Annie had never seen so many fine things. A velvet settee and two chairs. A cabinet filled with china and glass. A large mirror over the mantel. Thick rugs. It was nothing like the plain parlor back home.
Ira disappeared upstairs, and after Annie had warmed up, Kate called her down the hall. “You can sleep in here,” she said.
The room had a four-poster bed, a china pitcher and basin, and a maple wardrobe. On the bed was a woven indigo coverlet.
“It’s all so fancy,” Annie said.
“It’s our guest room,” Kate said. “The things on the first floor are from my past that I haven’t given away yet. My room is upstairs. So is Ira’s.”
The woman put her arm around Annie. “I’m so glad you’re here and that we’re going back to Gettysburg. I think it will be good for all of us.”
Annie nodded. “Thank you for inviting me.”
The next morning, Woody picked them up at Kate’s in a buggy with two benches, pulled by four horses. “I borrowed the team and buggy,” he said. “We’ll make better time, and hopefully you’ll all keep warmer.”
The day wasn’t freezing, but it was still cold. Kate had warmed bricks in the stove to put at their feet, and had packed wool blankets too.
She gave Annie a second cloak to wear and a pair of thick wool socks that made Annie’s boots too tight, but she wore them anyway. The two women sat on the second bench while Ira sat up front with Woody.
The teamster didn’t speak much as he drove.
Dr. Carson had finally succeeded in getting Kate to return to Gettysburg. Ira must have been right about the man changing, because otherwise Annie was sure Kate wouldn’t have agreed to go back.
The wind whipped the buggy as they traveled north. Woody stopped several times to feed and water the horses. Kate had brought along food, and they stopped to eat too. After they started on the journey again, Ira started singing. “Steal away, steal away, steal away to Jesus! Steal away, steal away home, I hain’t got long to stay here. . . .” The words and tune were simple. The others joined in. When they finished, Annie asked where he’d learned it.
He shrugged but Woody answered, saying, “It’s a Negro spiritual.”
She turned toward Ira. “Who taught it to you?”
“Felicity,” he answered, glancing at Annie. “I thought you’d enjoy learning it.”
“Denki,” she answered, thinking of the girl and her baby. Hopefully they were in Canada by now.
They reached Hanover Junction with just fifteen minutes to spare to catch the train. Woody assured them he’d be in York by the next day. Kate thanked him and told him they’d be there as soon as they could. The man seemed concerned, which wasn’t like him. Kate thanked him for the ride. He jumped to the ground and helped her down while Ira helped Annie.
The train was packed, but Annie still managed to sleep all the way to Gettysburg. When they arrived, night had fallen. The town was already crowded, and Ira asked the women if they minded walking, as he couldn’t find a driver to take them.
Both agreed they could walk. Ira grabbed both of their bags and set a fast pace, which warmed Annie but pinched her toes in her tight boots.
When they reached Dr. Carson’s, he greeted them all warmly, but he seemed especially pleased to see Kate. Meg had soup and warm bread waiting for them. After all those months of having her kitchen in a tent out back, she was happy to be back in the house. The rest of the interior was different than it had been in the summer too. Meg said the last soldier had left just two days ago for his home in New York. The house was spotless, and all of the cots had been moved out and the furniture—Victorian style, Annie believed—was back in place.
The dining room table, made from cherrywood, had ornate legs and a large, oval top. There were several others joining in for the meal because Dr. Carson had invited friends from Philadelphia to also stay in his house for the festivities. Although the supper was simple, Meg served it in the dining room.
“We heard every room in town is taken,” one of the men said. “Is that true?”
Dr. Carson nodded. “We’ve been planning for weeks for the dedication. Over ten thousand people are expected.”
Annie couldn’t imagine that number of people.
Dr. Carson seemed eager for his friends to get to know Kate. All were doctors in various Philadelphia hospitals, and a couple of them remembered Ira’s father.
Soon the conversation turned to Ira’s upcoming training. Kate seemed pleased that he was making connections with the men, and Annie wondered if that was part of Kate’s motivation for coming—to support Ira and see him off to the next stage of his life. After Meg cleared all of the dishes, she called Annie and Kate away from the table and showed them a room on the first floor. “Ira will sleep across the hall from the two of you in the room he’s been using the last couple of weeks,” she said. “And the others will sleep upstairs.”
Annie said she thought she’d go ahead and go to bed.
“I’ll be in soon.” Kate glanced toward the door. “I’m tired, but I should go back out with the others.”
Annie could still hear all of the men, including Ira, talking. Then there was laughter. She didn’t fit in, not at all. But this would soon be Ira’s life. She had far more in common with Samuel than she did with Ira.
She changed into her nightgown and crawled into the high bed. Everything was much fancier than she was used to, even more so than at Kate’s, but it didn’t take her long to drift off to sleep.
She awoke to shouting. It was Dr. Carson. “You misled me! All these months I expected you to come back.”
Kate’s voice wasn’t as loud as Dr. Carson’s, but it was definitely raised. “I never told you I would. In fact, I clearly said I had no plans to.”
“It’s that teamster, isn’t it? That uneducated, common man. What do you see in him?”
A crash launched Annie to her feet, even in her half-awake state. She grabbed her cloak and hurried out of the room and down the hall. She reached the dining room to find a mirror broken on the floor and Dr. Carson gripping Kate by the arm. He dropped it as soon as he saw Annie.
No one else seemed to be around. The others must have all gone to bed. Annie stood paralyzed for a moment but then found her voice. “Come with me.” She reached out her hand to Kate.
Dr. Carson stepped backward, and Kate grabbed hold of Annie. As they stumbled down the hall, Kate said, “Doc had too much to drink. We’ll leave first thing in the morning.”
As Annie drifted off to sleep, she wondered why Ira hadn’t come out to protect his mother. Was he that heavy of a sleeper? Or was he out, perhaps visiting a sweetheart he’d found in Gettysburg?
Before dawn, Annie awoke, washed with the cold water in the basin from the night before, and dressed quickly as Kate continued to sleep. She tiptoed into the icy-cold dining room to find Meg picking up the glass on the floor by lamplight. Annie bent down and helped her as the woman said, “I’ll get breakfast going and feed you folks as soon as this is cleaned up.”
“We should be on our way before then.” Annie intended to rouse Kate soon. “I just wanted to see if the doctor was in his room or down here.”
“Oh, you have time. From the looks of all this, he won’t be up for a while. And you’re not going to find anywhere else to eat around here, not with half the state in town.” The woman put another piece of glass in the bin. “I need to make breakfast for the others anyway.” Meg smiled at Annie, her face kind. “Besides, you’ll need someplace to stay tonight.”
Annie shuddered. “It shouldn’t be here.”
“I’ll handle Doc,” Meg said. “You enjoy your day and come back after the dedication.”
Annie didn’t know how they could after last night. It wouldn’t be easy to forget what he’d said about Woody, his harsh words toward Kate, and the force of his hand on her wrist.
Once Meg and Annie picked up all the glass, Annie carried it out to the trash heap by the washhouse, and Meg started fixing breakfast. Then Annie checked on Kate. She was awake and dressed, sitting on the end of the bed. “Is he out there?”
Annie shook her head. “Meg cleaned up the mirror and is cooking breakfast. She said he won’t be up for hours, and we should go ahead and eat.”
“All right,” Kate said.
“Where was Ira last night?” Annie asked.
“Out,” Kate answered. “He said he had gone for a walk to clear his head and pray about some things. But I told him just now what happened, and he agreed we should be on our way after the ceremony.”
Ira joined them in the kitchen, and they gathered around the fireplace while Meg finished baking biscuits in the oven.
“Eat in here,” she said. “When the others get up, I’ll feed them in the dining room.” She directed Annie to get plates out of the cupboard and Kate to pour them all a cup of coffee from the kettle on the back of the stove. Ira took the plates from Annie and set them around the table while Annie collected the cutlery from the chest on the bench under the window.
A breeze blew through the bare branches of the trees in the orchard, and she was thankful for the warmth of the kitchen.
They ate quickly and then thanked Meg. “We should be on our way,” Ira said.
“Leave your things,” Meg said. “And stay again tonight, like I said. I’ll have supper waiting for you.”
Annie bristled, wanting to leave and never come back.
Kate glanced at Ira and he frowned.
“Thank you,” Kate said. “As long as you think it’s safe.”
Meg nodded. “I’m sure it is. Doc will have an outburst and then feel bad about it. I suspect it will be weeks until he has another one.”
Annie packed her bag, left it in the bedroom, and then put on her cloak and joined Ira in the foyer. Meg handed them a bag of sausage, cheese, and leftover biscuits for their lunch, along with a jar of tea for them to share.
“Denki,” Annie said. “You’ve been so good to us.”
Footsteps fell on the stairs, and Dr. Carson said, “Don’t you mean ‘Doc has been so good to us’?”
Ira winced.
Kate hurried from the bedroom to the front door and silently stepped onto the porch.
“Good morning,” Ira called out, his voice calm.
Dr. Carson came around from the staircase. “You’re all bundled up early.”
Ira nodded.
“Where’s your mother?”
“She already left. We’re going to meet her.”
Dr. Carson rested his hand on the newel post. “A little early, don’t you think?”
“There’s going to be a crowd,” Ira said. “She wants to secure a place.”
“Tell her I need to speak with her. I’ll join all of you there.” He glanced upstairs. “After my other guests are fed.”
Ira didn’t respond one way or the other. He simply said, “We’ll be on our way then.” He opened the door for Annie, and she led the way onto the porch and down the steps.
Ira caught up with her, and they hurried down the walkway to the street where Kate waited for them. It was hours before the dedication would start, but they headed toward the cemetery anyway.
“What did he say?” Kate asked Ira.
“That he wants to speak with you.” Ira took his mother’s arm. “I’m sorry I trusted him.”
Kate shook her head. “I trusted him too. Trusted he would take my word about how I felt back in August. And then last night he was so charming with the others around that I trusted him again.” She exhaled as she wrinkled her nose. “I never should have returned.”
“I’m afraid I didn’t understand your hesitation.” Ira slowed his pace and put his arm around his mother.
“I didn’t tell you everything because I didn’t want to harm your chances of a post in Philadelphia. I knew you needed Dr. Carson’s help—I believed if I just stayed out of the way, everything would be all right.” She leaned her head against Ira’s shoulder. “And then I believed that enough time had passed that Dr. Carson would have moved past his feelings from this summer.”
Annie felt awkward overhearing their conversation and fell behind them on the sidewalk. She’d read Dr. Carson completely wrong. She’d been sure Kate would be interested in him. He was smart and successful. He owned a beautiful home. He was respected and admired. But he wasn’t the man that she’d thought, even though she’d had clues about his character. Obviously, Kate had realized that months before.
Ira and Kate stopped and glanced back at her. “Come on,” Ira said, extending his free arm.
Annie caught up with them and hooked her arm through Ira’s. The three continued on up the hill, linked together, the cemetery ahead of them.