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“MUST YOU DO THIS?”
“I want to do this. I want to proudly claim Hope as my daughter for all the world to see. I am not ashamed of her, or you.”
“Then why am I not allowed to come with you?” Soleil pouted. She had quickly learned the power of a well-used frown, especially if it was tinted with a bit of sadness.
Alex kissed her forehead as he pulled her into his embrace. “It is my greatest wish that this hearing will conclude with little upheaval, but I cannot be sure. Thus I cannot risk your safety, or Hope's. Knowing you are with Virginia will give me peace of mind.”
“As you wish, Husband.” Soleil allowed her hands to linger as she adjusted the lapels of Alex’s frock coat. Unease settled in her stomach and wouldn’t leave her. She needed the connection, needed to be reminded of his realness. “I will wait however long it takes for you to come back to me.”
The tension of the moment was broken as Charles rapped a quick knock on the bedroom door before entering.
“Well, that is a first,” Alex chuckled.
“Are we ready then?”
“Yes, I will be right out.”
“Thank you for your assistance,” Soleil added. “And for letting Hope and me stay here. Please bring my husband back to me soon.”
“I have no intention of doing otherwise.”
Alex planted a soft kiss on Soleil's lips before following Charles out the door.
~*~
ALEX STRODE INTO THE hall, ready to get the hearing under way. Charles had pulled a few strings to get them an emergency hearing before a judge who would decide if the case would advance to a trial before a jury.
The cramped room was abuzz with chatter as townspeople filled the pews, awaiting the beginning of the session. No doubt they had not had a piece of gossip this juicy in years. Whispers of the case about the town’s wealthiest plantation owner going to trial over the quadroon daughter of a former slave had spread like wildfire.
As he sat next to Charles, Alex saw the plaintiff, James Williams, stroll toward the table where his lawyer sat. At the last second, he changed course and came to stand in front of Alex. It took every bit of Alex’s self-control not to drive his fist into James’s smug face. He wanted to make the man pay for every second of worry and every ounce of pain he put Soleil through.
“I admit, at first I was just interested in the coin the pretty lady offered me,” James said, “but now I’m actually curious to see how this all plays out.”
Alex stiffened at James’s insinuation. Someone had paid him to come after Hope, and Alex had a feeling he knew who. “To which lady do you refer?”
“Well she said she was your fiancée, but I guess she was lying. Came to me blubbering about how she needed help keeping you from the clutches of Soleil’s voodoo spell or some such nonsense. Like I said, I just wanted the coin she offered,” James said as flippantly as if he were talking about the weather. With that, he turned his back on Alex and took his seat next to his lawyer.
Once Judge Lloyd had entered and taken his seat, Alex knew this was not going to be an easy battle. The deep scowl that cut his eyebrows into his forehead showed he wanted to be anywhere other than here, presiding over this case. His shrewd eyes peered over the rim of his spectacles as he looked between Alex and James. “I understand we are here on the matter of a quadroon girl named Hope. The plaintiff, one Mr. Williams, alleges that the girl is his apprentice and was taken without his permission. Let’s hear it, then.”
James’s lawyer scrambled to his feet. “Yes, Your Honor. The child’s mother, one Soleil, was the former slave of Mr. Williams’ mother. After the passing of the 14th Amendment, Soleil was unable to care for herself or the child, and thus stayed on to work for Mrs. Williams. As you well know, per state law, being found a vagrant or without employment is prohibited for the recently freed blacks. So upon his mother’s death, my client graciously allowed Soleil’s employment to continue, and took Hope on as his apprentice. Also as per state law, an apprentice is not allowed to leave their master’s employ until the master grants such permission. Mr. Williams did not grant such permission when Soleil absconded with Hope late in the evening a few weeks back. Now he is requesting that Hope be returned to his care as the law states she should be. That is all, Your Honor.”
Judge Lloyd listened intently as the lawyer gave his dry speech. Once the lawyer resumed his seat, his gaze shifted to Alex and Charles. “Whatever you did to make enemies with the plaintiff was a mistake on your part. This case is a sham and I can see it a mile away. However, the law is on his side. Unless you have a very compelling argument, I am inclined to grant his request. So what do you have to say?”
Charles stood to address the judge. “Your Honor, Mr. Williams has no claim to Hope now, because he should have never had claim to her in the past.”
“I’m intrigued. Go on.”
“The child’s mother is a citizen of France, and was born as free as you and me. She was abducted on her sixteenth birthday and wrongfully sold into slavery. According to federal law, the condition of the child follows the condition of the mother, and as her mother should have been free, so should the child. Moreover, all legal rights to the child, enslaved or free, belong to my client, as he is her father.”
The room erupted into a hive of noise as the spectators gasped and buzzed with the news just revealed. To publicly claim a child of African descent was unheard of. Yes, the fair-skinned children roaming some plantations were a glaring beacon of what transpired between white men and black women, but this declaration pulled back the rug, revealing the dirty secrets underneath.
“Order! Order. Quiet down,” Judge Lloyd demanded, red faced, as he banged his gavel to be heard above the roar of chatter. “Order I say, or you will be removed.”
The room immediately quieted; no one wanted to be removed and miss a single second of what was to come.
Judge Lloyd snatched his glasses from the bridge of his nose as he leaned forward, boring a hole into Alex with his hard gaze. His blotchy red face was the model of righteous indignation. “Listen to me carefully, boy. If you go down this path it will not end well for you. Is this how you wish to proceed?”
“It is,” Alex declared, unwavering.
“Then you leave me no choice. This case is dismissed, as the defendant has full rights to the child in question. However, I must now bring new charges against you. You have openly admitted in court to engaging in acts of fornication, and more disturbing, you engaged in these acts with a Negro woman. For this crime, you are hereby sentenced to three years of hard labor to be served in the state penitentiary. The Negro woman in question is to be apprehended and serve the same sentence. Take him away.”
Again the audience broke into a frenzy of excited chatter. Some cheered, while others hurtled insults at Alex for being so audacious as to mix his blood with the African animal.
Alex shot to his feet, rage and fear surging through his body in a storm of emotions. He looked to Charles, who sat open-mouthed and stunned. Neither had seen the possibility of this outcome.
Charles snapped back to life as a guard converged on them, ready to drag Alex away. “Alex, I am sorry.”
“There is no time for that. Protect Soleil. Get her to safety. It is time to implement our contingency plan.”
With a curt nod, Charles left to do what needed to be done.
Alex didn’t struggle as the guard shackled his wrists and led him away. Everything would be well in the end. He had to believe in that. Charles knew what to do.
~*~
ALEX LAY ON THE COT in his cell, staring into the darkness. He was the only occupant of the building’s three cells, leaving him with utter silence and his thoughts. Worry over Soleil and Hope made sleep impossible. He trusted Charles with his life, but he would give anything to have confirmation that his girls had made it to safety. In the morning he was to be transferred to the penitentiary, and his heart longed to see Soleil's beautiful face once more before he left.
The crunch of dirt and gravel sounded from below the window of Alex's cell. “Alex? Alex my love, can you hear me?”
Alex came to attention as the soft voice reached his ears. Was he dreaming? It was impossible for him to be hearing what he thought he heard.
“Alex, please answer me.”
“Soleil?” Alex crossed to the tiny window to hear her better. It was too high for him to see her, but the mere sound of her voice was like a soothing balm on his aching soul.
“Yes! Alex, I...” Her voice broke on a sob. “I'm so sorry. This is all my fault. I should have returned to France and left you to live your life in peace.”
“Soleil, what are you doing here? Charles had specific instructions to get you to safety.”
“I know. We are to leave at first light, but I couldn't go without hearing your voice one last time.”
“It isn't safe for you here. You need to leave now.”
“I know,” she said with a weary sigh. “I just need you to know that I am sorry. And that I love you so much.”
Alex rested his head on the hard wood of his cell wall. He closed his eyes, imagining he stood before Soleil. “You have nothing to be sorry for. I would do it all again, given the opportunity. To have been your husband for even a day was the greatest gift this life has ever given me. I want you to...”
Shouts and screams in the small jailhouse cut off Alex's sentence. He walked to the bars of his cell to lean against them, listening intently to the commotion going on in the front of the jail house.
Fire! Men shouted the word repeatedly as their heavy footsteps raced through the building. A closed door separated the front of the building from the holding cells, making it impossible to see what was happening.
At first he saw nothing, but then the yellow glow of the burning flames roared to life as they squeezed beneath the bottom of the closed door, then climbed the wall.
“Help! Help! Release me,” Alex shouted.
No response greeted him. Not even the sound of footsteps. The building had been evacuated of its inhabitants. All but him. Soleil’s frantic voice reached his ears.
Alex ran back to the tiny window. “Soleil, move away from the building.”
“What is happening? I see smoke rising from the building.”
“There is a fire. I believe the guards have all fled the building.”
“You are there alone? I will get help.”
“No! Go find Charles. If you go around the front and they are there, they will arrest you. Please do as I say.”
“Alex, please! Don’t you dare leave me.”
Alex could hear the agony in each word she sobbed. His heart filled with sadness. Not for himself, but for the fact that he wouldn’t be there to comfort Soleil through the dark time ahead.
Heat licked up the back of his body as he stood flush against the wall. The flames had journeyed into his cell, consuming everything in their path. Sweat burned his eyes as it poured down his face. “Soleil, I love you!”
“No! No! No! Alex!” She sobbed.
“I have always loved you.”
~*~
“ALEX! ALEX! NO! NO!” Tears ran down Soleil’s face as the roaring flames consumed the tiny wooden structure before her eyes.
“Soleil, I love you!”
“No! No! No! Alex!” She sobbed.
“I have always loved you.”
Those were the last words she heard before the flames burst through the tiny window of Alex’s cell. She fell to her knees and rocked back and forth with her arms wrapped around herself. Pain like she’d never known ripped her beating heart from her chest and crushed it underfoot. Sobs tore through her body as she screamed her agony into the night sky. The world around her began to spin until finally everything went black.