Giddy with excitement at moving into their new home, Coral hefted one end of her trunk while Josiah held the other. Together they carried it into the house and up the stairs. Josiah stopped at the door to her room and set the trunk down. She understood his hesitancy to go further. It wasn’t proper for a man to enter the bedchamber of an unmarried lady.
“Thank you,” Coral said. Her cheeks warmed. She told herself it was from the exertion of carrying things into the house, but she knew better. She had to fan the heat from her face nearly every time she conversed with the strong carpenter. Was that a blush she noted on his cheeks as well?
“You’re more than welcome, and thank you kindly for distracting that bounty hunter so Wilbur and I could hide Amos.”
“It was the only humane thing to do. Besides, what Papa said at the store is true; he heard it straight from Levi Coffin. Bounty hunters can’t search your property without first obtaining a search warrant.”
“You don’t know how much it pleases me to see you advocating for the freedom seekers.” Josiah swiped at a lock of blond hair that fell in front of his eyes and flashed a smile as bright as the morning sun.
A drop of sweat rolled down Coral’s temple. Half mortified, she cleared her throat and opened the trunk in search of a fresh handkerchief. The scent of lavender wafted up to tickle her nostrils. She paused before digging into her things. What was she thinking? She couldn’t unpack her unmentionables in the presence of a man, and it would be rude to tell him to leave.
Josiah coughed and tipped his head toward the ceiling and then to the floor. “If you’ll excuse me, Coral, I need to help your father plan the next leg of Amos’s journey.” He stepped away. His footsteps echoed in her ears as he clomped down the stairs. Then she heard him speak to Amos.
“We’ll be moving you soon. Until then, eat heartily and get some rest.”
“Thank you, Mr. Williamson.”
Respect for the weary freedom seeker flooded through Coral. How brave these people must be. They risked their lives for a chance at a better life. In that moment she knew she’d do anything to ensure the safety of those who knocked on her door for help.
At one point she had doubted her father’s decision to move to Indiana, but perhaps the Lord had brought her family here after all.
Days in Annapolis had been filled with parties, fancy dresses, and carriage rides through the city. She hadn’t realized how empty those days had been. But this place, this place, held something different. Something she hadn’t sought before. Something that stirred her spirit.
Purpose.
A chance to fuel hope in the oppressed, a chance to serve those in desperate need.
“What an honor, Lord,” she whispered. “Thank You for the opportunity.”
A flush crept into her cheeks again, and this time it had nothing to do with the kindhearted carpenter. Her heart beat a tad faster. She let out a giggle. Life in Indiana was going to be all right. She hummed her favorite hymn while unpacking.
Delighted with her new bedroom, she hung up her dresses and spread a heavy coverlet over her bed. Tomorrow she would sew the last few hexagons into her quilt and begin working on the trim. Soon it would be finished, although she didn’t know what purpose it would serve. She doubted she and Roland would ever be together. That wasn’t what she wanted anyway, not anymore.
“Please, God,” she prayed, “let this quilt be used to bring glory to Your name.”
Mama’s voice drifted up the stairs as she offered Amos a bowl of hot stew. A prayer for the man’s safety flew from Coral’s lips.
The tiny crawl space nestled behind a bookcase next to the fireplace wasn’t very big, but it provided a good place to hide if bounty hunters came looking for him.
Coral’s thoughts once again turned to Josiah. He had compassion and a willingness to serve that Roland didn’t. She harrumphed, her mind made up. “First chance I get, I’ll write him another letter and tell him I’m staying put.”
From the depths of her trunk, she pulled another bottle of lavender fragrance and a doily she had tatted. She placed the doily on her dresser and set the glass bottle on top.
Before she could admire the effect, the sound of hoofbeats thundered from the front yard below. A commotion resounded from the kitchen. Her heart jerked.
Hiking up her skirts, she rushed down the stairs. She rushed into the living quarters in time to see Papa and Josiah scoot the bookcase back into place. Amos was hidden. Good! She exhaled with relief, but who had arrived?
“Papa, who is it?” she cried. Fear skittered across her skin. She heard the rider dismount. Mama reached out and grasped her hands.
Bang, bang, bang.
“Martin, open up!”
“It’s Wilbur,” Josiah exclaimed.
Papa flung the door open.
“I just heard from a stationmaster up the road,” Wilbur said. “That bounty hunter has obtained a search warrant and is on his way back into town.”
“How much time do we have?” Papa asked.
“A quarter of an hour, maybe, and this time he has bloodhounds with him. We have to get Amos out of here, now!”
Josiah let out a low whistle then smacked his fist into his palm. “God have mercy. Those bloodhounds will smell him a mile away. They’ll catch him for sure.”
“Well, we can’t sit here and do nothing,” Papa said. “I’ll hitch the horses and get the wagon ready.” He grabbed his hat and a lantern and hurried from the room.
“I’ll help you.” Wilbur followed Papa.
“I’ll pack some food.” Mama turned toward the kitchen.
Coral stood still, seemingly rooted to the floor. She watched Josiah pace the room. He stopped in front of the fireplace.
“Jesus, please spare Amos. Show me what to do, Lord,” he prayed.
“Oh, I have an idea.” Coral ran up the stairs, grabbed her lavender bar of soap and bottle of fragrance, and ran back downstairs.
“We can use these.” She held the items up for Josiah to see.
A perplexed expression covered his face.
She grinned at him and then explained. “Help me get him out of the hiding spot. We can wash him real quick with my lavender soap and then spray him with my lavender perfume. That should throw off the bloodhounds, shouldn’t it?” She hoped, prayed.
A smile creased Josiah’s face. He laughed aloud. “Coral, you’re a smart young lady.”
Together she and Josiah moved the bookcase. Amos stepped from the tiny space. A wildness flashed in his eyes. This man looked ready to fight for his freedom. Something flashed in Coral as well. If need be, she too would battle the principalities of darkness for the sake of this man.
“Don’t worry, Amos,” she said. “We’re going to take care of you. That is, if you don’t mind smelling like lavender.”
“Smelling like a lady beats a lashing from the whip.” Amos tugged off his shirt.
Coral splashed water from the kettle onto a few rags. She and Josiah scrubbed Amos. Agony throbbed in her chest as she wiped the cloth over the ragged scars on his back. A lump formed in her throat so thick it hurt to breathe. She had to look away.
The cruelty that blinded some folks both saddened her and made her angry. Coral gritted her teeth and continued to wash Amos’s back.
Papa and Wilbur burst through the back door.
“The wagon’s hitched. Is he ready?”
“Just a moment, Papa,” Coral said.
Josiah helped Coral rinse the soap off Amos and dry him with towels.
Mama appeared and handed a garment to him. “Here’s a clean shirt.” Amos wiggled into it with amazing speed.
“One last thing.” Coral yanked the stopper off her perfume bottle. She doused Amos with the fragrance. “Lord Jesus,” she prayed, “let it be enough.”
“If anyone asks you about the scent of lavender, tell them it’s from this.” Coral held up a lace-trimmed handkerchief to Josiah.
Their fingers touched when he took it. Warmth swept over him. Did she feel it too? The fire flashing in her emerald-green eyes told him it was possible.
“Now go, go!” She gave him a shove. He ran from the house and out into the backyard, by the barn.
“Hurry, man, hurry,” Wilbur implored. “I can hear the hounds.”
Josiah stuffed the handkerchief into his pocket. He helped Sam and Wilbur move hay bales over the secret compartment in the back of the wagon. Fear chomped at his heart, but he managed to wrestle it into submission. Never had he been this close to getting caught with a freedom seeker. He shuddered to think what would happen if someone wanted to search the wagon.
It wasn’t time in jail that frightened him the most. He was sturdy and could afford to pay any fines. It was the thought of the freedom seekers being dragged back to cruel masters that sent waves of terror coursing through him.
Josiah leapt onto the wagon seat. “I know where the next station is. You two hold off the bounty hunters.”
“I’ll keep them searching the house as long as I can. Godspeed to you, man,” Sam called over his shoulder as he limped toward the house.
“With God’s mercy, we’ll make it to the next station without getting caught.” Josiah prayed Coral and her mother had the sense to burn anything Amos left behind, anything that might point to his having been in the house.
Josiah snapped up the reins and called to the horses.
The animals took off at a gallop.