Chapter Twelve
After completing his chores, David entered the house and sprang up the steps. He entered his room to see Anna standing with her back to him. She quickly turned to face him, her eyes as wide as a frightened deer’s. Pulling his ring from her finger, she quickly set it on the dresser where he’d left it.
He grinned. “Whatcha doin’, Anna?” he inquired.
With a sly smile, she replied, “Oh, nothing. I was just tidying up a bit.”
She walked toward the door. Before she could exit, he blocked her path.
“Does it fit?” he asked.
Still smiling, she replied, “Yes, quite nicely.”
She went down the steps, leaving him alone to ponder the coincidence.
Several days had gone by since they had been discovered. Both were reluctant to show their feelings for one another in front of Anna’s family, so they met for lunch every day. Patrick and Mr. Meyers observed with grins on their faces and relentlessly teased David after he had returned to work. In the evenings, the young lovers went for long walks, taking in autumn’s turning colors, or they sat on the porch holding hands. He wished this time in his life would last forever. Anna obviously adored him, and she meant everything to him. He was willing to sacrifice all to be with her. Still, he was insecure with his situation. He decided the only resolution was to carry out his intentions.
On the evening of September 15, while they were taking their usual stroll, he led her to a place he had previously selected. The full harvest moon rose up from the horizon like a tremendous, brilliant orange balloon. A warm breeze blew around them as he led her down to the riverside and stopped under a willow tree.
Turning to face her, he said, “Anna, I have somethin’ to ask you.”
She gazed into his eyes. “Yes?”
He drew a deep breath to gain confidence before proceeding. Taking both of her hands in his, he dropped to one knee. “Anna, my darlin’, I want you to know I love you with all my heart, and I can’t live without you. You’re my whole reason for bein’.”
She stood over him, waiting patiently, her blue-green eyes sparkling. The moonlight reflected in them, making them even more intriguing.
He blinked several times and took another deep breath. “Anna Elizabeth Brady,” he said slowly, “would you do me the honor of becomin’ my wife?”
Her eyes grew large. A smile spread across her face. “Oh, David!” She dropped to her knees and hugged him, knocking him backwards onto the ground.
He giggled. “Anna, you didn’t answer my question.”
“Yes, I did, silly.” She kissed his cheeks.
He chuckled at her reaction. “Now, sweetheart,” he said, sitting up, “I’ve been rehearsin’ this for days, so you have to indulge me.”
She smiled at him. He couldn’t help but grin.
“Please git back up.”
She giggled and did as he asked.
Propping himself up on one knee, he took her hand. “Anna Elizabeth B—”
“Yes. Oh, yes!”
She pulled him up. They wrapped their arms around each other.
“Yes, I’ll marry you, David Summers.”
They stopped laughing, both caught up in their amorous attraction for one another. He gently pressed his lips against hers. When their first kiss had ended, she touched her lips with her fingertips and smiled. They both chuckled.
“Wait,” she said, her expression growing serious. “We can’t get married.” She stifled a sob. “How can we ever be together without someone finding out?”
David hugged her. “I talked it over with your aunt.”
“You did?”
“Uh, huh. And I asked her for your hand in marriage.”
“She agreed?”
“After a heap of persuadin’ on my part.”
He smiled again and released her. She gazed at him curiously, waiting for him to continue.
“No one needs to know, Anna. We’ll keep our marriage a secret, except for your kinfolk, Patrick, the Meyers, and the Burrows. Oh, and Pastor Tully, of course.” He assuredly took her hand in his. “If word does leak out, well, I reckon we’ll cross that bridge when we git to it.” He slid his hand around her waist. “I love you, Anna,” he whispered. “I can’t wait for you to be my wife.”
She smiled. “Neither can I.”
Their lips met in another kiss. They tenderly embraced each other in sweet euphoria. Standing by the riverbank for nearly an hour, they held each other while listening to the rustling leaves and watched the swaying willow branches that encircled them. The breeze grew chilly, so they walked back to the house. On the way, they noticed a shooting star flash across the night sky, leaving a long white trail behind it.
“Oh! Did you see that?” Anna gasped.
“We have to make a wish right quick,” he said, “but we can’t share it with each other till it comes true.”
He recalled a summer’s evening so very long ago when Jake and Callie had wished upon a shooting star in his presence. Sad remorse swept over him. He wondered how poor Callie was getting along without her Jake and without her luxuries.
Anna snickered before falling silent for a minute. “All right, I’ve made one. Have you?”
He grinned and thought of many wishes, but finally decided on the one he wished for the most. “Yes,” he replied, taking her hand. His wish, the one he knew could never be fulfilled, was to have his life back the way it was before the war but with Anna in it.
They decided to wait four days until Anna’s birthday to tell her sisters and aunt of their engagement. David felt both dread and exhilaration about the occasion, but consented to Anna’s wishes.
A few days later, he read in the Sunday paper that John Hunt Morgan, the Confederate raider who had been born near his home in Huntsville, Alabama, had been killed the week before. He also read about how General Hampton, the previous general of his regiment, the Jeff Davis Legion, and General Rosser had seized 2,500 head of Federal cattle from the Union stockyards in Coggins’ Point, Virginia. It was being referred to as the “Beefsteak Raid.” The war seemed to be teetering from one side to the other, but the Union army was slowly coming out victorious.
At least our boys will finally have some real food to eat, David thought.
According to the paper, several Confederates set New York City buildings on fire in retaliation to Sherman’s Georgia invasion. Only one Rebel was captured. Before his hanging, he was quoted as saying, “The people of the North can’t be rolling in wealth and comfort while we in the South are bearing all the hardship.”
David also saw an issue of Harper’s Weekly dated September 17. On the cover was an illustration of a Yankee soldier tearing the Confederate flag from a fallen Rebel. The picture angered and alarmed him initially. Then, a profound sadness came over him. He knew the Confederacy was dying, just like the man in the picture. Yet, another Confederate flag, the St. Andrew’s Cross, flew gallantly in the background. To him, it represented the spirit of the Southern people. Their resilience and perseverance would prevail, even over the darkest of days, but first they would have to endure more sadness, heartbreak, and death.
The next evening, September 19, he and Anna gathered with her family in the parlor, and prepared to make their announcement. She sat next to him on the sofa while quietly opening her birthday gifts: a crocheted blanket from Sarah, a new bonnet from Maggie, and Romeo and Juliet from Abigail, courtesy of Grace, who promised another gift to Anna when she saw her again.
“Where’s your present, David?” Abigail asked.
He glanced at her out of the corner of his eye. Bashfully looking down at the rug, he replied, “I already gave her somethin’.” He looked at Anna and said softly enough so no one else could hear, “My heart.” He grinned at her. Turning back toward Abigail, he said, “Patrick’s helpin’ me make a gift for her, but she won’t receive it till tomorrow.”
Anna smiled at him, taking his hand. “We have something to tell everyone.”
Gazing around the room at her family, she softly sighed. David felt his heart leap. Her eyes met his.
“David has proposed marriage, and I’ve accepted.”
With a squeal, Abigail sprang from her seat. Anna and David, who could not stop grinning, stood to receive her embrace. Sarah looked on with an apprehensive smile, knowing her efforts to dissuade David from his heartfelt intentions had undoubtedly been in vain. Maggie rose, approached the couple, and scornfully looked at her sister.
“Maggie,” Anna said, “please don’t be upset by this.”
She held her arms out to her, but Maggie resisted. Instead, she looked at David, her pained expression turning to one of pure hatred.
“How dare you!” she screamed.
She slapped him hard across the face. He staggered. The sting on his cheek shocked him. Awestruck, he held his hand to it and glared at her in disbelief with his mouth gaping open.
“I hope you rot in hell for what you’ve done to this family,” she blurted in pithy accusation, and burst into tears.
“Maggie,” Anna barked at her sister.
Ignoring her, Maggie ran out of the room, thundered upstairs to her bedroom, and slammed the door behind her. David heard her sobs through the floor.
Anna turned to her fiancé. “Are you all right?” she asked, pulling his hand away to expose his reddened cheek.
“I reckon. Jist a little stunned is all,” he said, still reeling from Maggie’s assault.
“Abigail, go fetch some ice,” Sarah instructed.
“No, I’m all right,” he said. “I deserved it, after all.”
“Oh, no you did not. She must get beyond this,” Anna scoffed and marched upstairs before anyone had a chance to stop her.
David sank back down onto the sofa, holding his hand to his cheek. Overwhelming regret swept over him. Maggie’s words stung far worse than the slap she had inflicted. He felt like his eyes might start to water. Fearing the hurt would sink down into his heart and make him cry, he swallowed back his emotion.
The two sisters argued upstairs while everyone sat in silence, straining to hear their conversation. Momentarily, Anna returned.
“Maggie will be down shortly,” she informed them. “All is resolved.” She smiled and glanced at David, who frowned at her skeptically. “I told her you would speak to her in private after we have cake.”
His frown turned to a scowl. He didn’t appreciate being volunteered for something that dreadful, but nodded reluctantly, nevertheless.
Just as Anna had reported, Maggie returned shortly, offering a meager apology. She sat with them while they shared a cake in honor of Anna’s twentieth birthday. When they had finished, Maggie motioned for David to follow. The two went out to the back porch. She seated herself and sat motionless. He forced himself to pull up a chair and sit down beside her.
Breaking the awkward silence, he said, “Miss Maggie, Anna wanted me to have a word with you.”
She glanced over at him, but quickly looked away.
He bit his lower lip. “It’s jist, well, I’m in love with your sister, and she’s in love with me. And regardless of what’s goin’ on in the world around us right now, we want to git married.”
She let out a little sob.
“The last thing we want to do is hurt you.” He sighed. His head started to ache. Searching for the right words to say, he stated, “I understand why you dislike me. I was a Confederate soldier before I met you. Things have changed since then.”
“You would go and fight again if you had the opportunity,” she snarled, still looking away. She wiped a tear from her cheek.
“No, I don’t reckon I would,” he said. “My fightin’ days are over. All I want now is for the war to end, and I want to wed your sister.”
She turned toward him. He could feel her loathing for him cut through the darkness.
“You could have been the one who killed Lila’s brother. Or any other father, son, or brother from around here, for that matter.”
Taken aback, he looked past her, trying to come up with a response. “But I didn’t,” he replied.
“How do you know, David? You said yourself that you—oh!” she covered her face with her hands.
“Miss Maggie, there’s a war goin’ on. If I killed anyone you knew, it was because I had to, and I’m sorry now for doin’ it. But you have to let it go. You can’t hold it against me forever. Heck, for all I know, one of your friends or relatives could’ve been the one who shot Jake or my pa.”
Maggie dropped her hands from her face, her expression twisted in awe and agony. “I don’t want anything bad to happen to her,” she whispered.
He shook his head. “Nothin’ bad will happen to her. I promise.”
Sneering at him, she asked, “Is it our farm you’re really after?”
“What?” he asked, appalled by the notion. “No. Of course not.” The thought hadn’t entered his mind until now.
Maggie stared at him for so long he became increasingly self-conscious, but he held his gaze on her.
“I don’t believe you,” she growled. Rising to her feet, she went into the kitchen. He followed her in and watched her ascend the steps.
Anna had been waiting for them. Taking his arm, she asked, “Well, how did it go?”
He shrugged, wishing he could go back in time to relive this day and make it a better birthday for Anna somehow. “You’ll still have to convince her that this is what you want,” he said. “She thinks I’m playin’ y’all for the farm.”
Her concerned expression turned to hurt disbelief. “Yes, I’ll talk to her. In the morning.” She gently reached up, turned David’s face toward hers, and kissed him. It was enough to bring him to his knees. Guilt rose up within him that even one second of Anna’s birthday could be shrouded in darkness. He vowed he would do everything in his power to make their married life a happy one, even if it killed him.
The following afternoon, she found him in the fields, and they shared the lunch she had brought along. After she left, he endured the same teasing he had grown accustomed to from Patrick and Mr. Meyers. That evening, David and Patrick rode up to the Brady’s house in Anna’s birthday present. Anna stepped out onto the porch, and her family followed.
“Happy birthday, me dear girl,” Patrick said with a grin from the driver’s seat, his woolen tweed cap propped on his head.
“A buggy! You’re giving me a buggy,” she said in awe.
Patrick stepped out. He handed the reins to David, who took his place in the driver’s seat.
“Your David and I constructed it for ye,” he informed her. “From now on, ye can ride in luxury on your evenin’ adventures!”
David grinned at her. “Come on,” he invited.
She climbed in beside him. He gave Erin a tap on the rump with the riding stick. The roan trotted down the lane. Anna laughed as they rode off. When they reached the road, they turned and trotted back. Arriving at the house, she laughed again and released David’s arm.
“My turn! My turn,” Abigail insisted, jumping up and down.
She eagerly took Anna’s place in the buggy. Giving the command, David tapped Erin’s back. The mare trotted off in the same fashion she had previously done. After they returned, Sarah had a ride. When Maggie’s turn came, she requested Patrick drive her. Once the entire group had enjoyed the new buggy, they went into the parlor.
“I hear congratulations are in order, me dear Anna,” Patrick said with a grin.
“Thank you, Patrick,” she replied, her face flushing slightly.
“Have ye set a date yet?” he inquired, glancing at Maggie to see her reaction, but he didn’t receive one.
“Not yet,” Anna replied.
“Some time after harvest,” said David.
He and Anna smiled at each other affectionately.
Patrick asked, “Will the farm fall to this young lad?” He stepped toward David and gave him a playful kick.
Dodging Patrick’s foot, he responded, “Not if I can help it.”
“‘Tis me understandin’ American legality works that way,” Patrick remarked philosophically.
“Well, it would certainly be convenient for you then, wouldn’t it?” Maggie said, snarling at him. “You’ll acquire my family’s farm and my sister and God knows what else.”
Everyone frowned at her. Patrick, who had been informed of Maggie’s outburst the previous evening, now saw for himself the antipathy she possessed. “No need to be cheeky, Maggie, me dear. I was only jokin’,” he said quietly.
“How is this a joke?” she snapped.
David sighed. “Miss Maggie, I told you last night I have no interest in your farm. I have my own land to tend to down in Alabama.”
Crossing her arms, she stated contemptuously, “So when the war ends, you’ll be whisking Anna off to Alabama, and we’ll never see her again.”
Abigail gasped.
“No. I mean, we ain’t really discussed it,” David stammered.
“Perhaps ye might consider doin’ that,” Patrick interjected. He accepted an offer of leftover cake from Sarah and followed her to the kitchen.
Maggie looked as though she might burst into tears, but David was reluctant to say anything, lest he provoke her into striking him again. He watched her follow Patrick and Sarah to the kitchen.
“Is it true, David?” He looked down to see Abigail gazing up at him, her bright blue eyes filled with dread. “Are you going to take Anna away from us?”
Biting his lower lip, he looked at Anna for support.
“Sweetheart,” she said, “if I do go, it won’t be for long. Have some cake!” She smiled and looked back at David.
“We’ll be right there,” he assured Abigail.
She walked off.
He turned to Anna. “We ain’t discussed goin’ down to Dixie,” he reiterated.
“There’s no need,” she said. “At least, not for now. We will when the appropriate time comes.” Taking his hand, she led him toward the kitchen. “We have a war to wait out first. And I want to concentrate on my wedding!”
“Oh! Your weddin’?” he responded.
“I mean our wedding.” She giggled.
He smiled, but in his heart, he hoped she realized all of the impending repercussions. To him, the looming situation seemed a bit precarious. He hoped she wasn’t merely caught up in wedding dreams and too distracted to notice the danger.
October consisted of working in the fields from pre-dawn until after dark. The men hurried to get the crops out before winter. It was another productive year. David couldn’t help worrying about his mother, though, and wished their farm could somehow have been as prosperous. Based on what Patrick heard in town and relayed to him, the South was in dire distress. The news concerned David deeply. He longed for a way to send some of the Brady’s harvest back home but had no way of doing so.
He also learned from the papers the war was turning uglier. Not only was Sherman still on a rampage, but four of the “Gray Ghost,” John S. Mosby’s Partisan Rangers had been shot. Three were hanged after they attacked Phil Sheridan’s Yankee cavalry and derailed the Baltimore & Ohio Railroad outside Harper’s Ferry, making off with $173,000.
David read of a horrific massacre that took place in Missouri. “Bloody" Bill Anderson and his men killed over twenty unarmed Federals and ambushed one hundred and sixteen more. The crazed Confederates reportedly mutilated the corpses, cut off Yankees’ scalps, and tied them to their saddles. The scene was described by a witness as a “carnival of blood.” Even though David still desired the South’s ascent into victory, vile tactics used by the rampaging guerrillas with their blatant disregard for wartime regulations repulsed him. Such insane tyrants can only bring disrespect to our noble cause, he reasoned. He also read about how Sheridan was chasing General Jubal Early, “Old Jube,” through the Shenandoah, setting the valley ablaze as he went. The papers were calling it “Red October.”
On October 29, another community dance was scheduled to be held, and Anna expressed her exhilaration about going. The fields were now empty, and the corncribs were full. Wood had been cut for winter, and the machinery had been set aside until next spring. David looked forward to attending as well, for the opportunity to dance all night with his one true love was nothing less than enticing. The girls busied themselves with preparations by primping and laying out their woolen skirts. Deciding to recline in the parlor, David scanned over the newspapers he had already read. Sarah approached him.
“David,” she said. “I don’t think it’s a good idea for you to come along with us tonight.”
He folded the paper and set it on his lap. “Why?” he asked, disappointment seeping in.
“Because of the way you two behave when you’re together. The way you look at each other would make it apparent to everyone in attendance that you’re in love, and I’m not sure you want that kind of attention.”
He let out a sigh and slowly nodded. “Reckon you’re right. It is best if I don’t attend.”
Sarah smiled sympathetically at him, patting his arm. “I’ll ask Patrick to drive us. You go and tell Anna.”
Forcing a cordial grin, he did as she instructed. He found Anna in her room, perched at her dressing table, applying some kind of ointment to her face. She glanced at him through her reflection in the looking glass.
“What is that you’re smearin’ on your face?” he asked, quizzically raising an eyebrow.
“It’s benzoic, honey, and alcohol mixed. They call it virgin’s milk, and it will make my face smooth and wrinkleless.”
David snorted. “You don’t need that.” He chuckled.
“You’ll appreciate it when I’m old and beautiful.”
She turned to face him. He thought nothing could ever compare to her beauty, not now, and not in fifty years.
“Anna, I won’t be escortin’ y’all to the dance tonight.”
Her smile faded. “What? Yes you will. Don’t be silly.”
“I spoke with your aunt, and we both agree it would be downright awkward. People might figure out what’s goin’ on. With you and me, I mean.”
“Well, then, I’m not going either.”
Thinking she sounded like a pouty little girl, he stifled a snicker. “I don’t reckon your aunt will go along with that,” he said, leaning against the door jam.
“But I don’t want to go without you.” She fluttered her eyelashes like she was forcing back tears.
“It’ll be all right, honey. Patrick’s takin’ y’all. You can dance with him tonight. I’ll jist stay here and read or somethin’.” He frowned. “Stephen ain’t fixin’ to be there, is he?”
“No. I don’t think he’s coming back home until Thanksgiving.”
“Oh. Good.”
She smiled, amused by his jealous reaction, and reluctantly agreed to his request.
Later that afternoon, attired in a plain brown dress and draped in a shawl, she joined her family in the landau. Patrick took the reins. He winked at David before they rode off down the lane. Trying hard not to feel left out, David spent the evening riding Renegade around the perimeter of the farm. He shied away from the Montgomery property. All the while, he wished he could be at the dance with Anna. When they finally returned home, they found him waiting anxiously at the kitchen table. Patrick entered to bid them good evening before riding home on Erin.
“How was the dance?” asked David.
“Fine,” Abigail responded carelessly. “Somewhat boring.” She went upstairs to her room.
Ignoring him completely, Maggie followed.
“I’m retiring now, dears,” Sarah said before walking toward her room across from the parlor.
“You were missed,” Anna told him. “Many people inquired about you—Mary, Nellie, and Lila.”
“They did?”
“Yes. We told them you weren’t feeling well.”
He nodded. “Did you dance with anyone?” he asked.
She shook her head and sat down beside him.
“Not even Patrick?” He reacted in surprise.
“I had no desire to dance with anyone. The only one I wanted to dance with was you.”
A wide grin spread across his face. He stood and held his hand out to her. “Well then, m’lady, may I have this dance?”
She smiled, took his hand, and rose.
Reaching around her waist, he softly counted. “One, two, three.”
He persuaded her to move along with him. They slowly twirled around the kitchen. David started singing sweetly in her ear to the tune of “Blue Danube,” and made up the words as they rotated.
“Oh, Anna, my dear, my darlin’, dear. Now that you are near, so very near, let me whisper in your lovely ear, and make my intentions oh, so clear. That you are the one love of my life, and that I want you to be my wife. That we’ll never part, this is our new start, you’re forever in my heart.”
He dipped her at the last sentence. She wrapped her arms around his neck. He pulled her up, and she giggled, gazing into his eyes. They embraced in a passionate kiss.
The next day, Sarah asked if he would drive her to East Berlin to deliver some of their harvested grain. He agreed and spent the afternoon loading several dozen sacks of corn, oats, and barley into the back of the wagon. The following morning, he hitched Alphie, and they set out. The final day of October was mild. Remembering how he and Patrick had shared ghost stories a year ago, he chuckled at the thought.
“What’s so funny?” Sarah asked.
“Oh, jist somethin’ Patrick said is all.”
She smiled. “Yes, he is quite a character.” Looking over at him, she said, “When we arrive, I would like you to bring the grain into the feed store. We should receive a fine sum, but I’m not certain what to purchase with it yet.” She hesitated, putting her forefinger to the corner of her mouth. “Have you and Anna decided on a date?”
“We were thinkin’ November nineteenth,” he replied. “It’s on a Saturday.”
“The nineteenth. Let’s see. That’s—oh, my! That’s only three weeks away.”
David grinned at her.
“Well,” she said, “it seems I’ll need to find a gift for the newlyweds. And then there’s Christmas.”
He snickered, exuberant to see his fiancée’s aunt get so caught up in the celebration. “You don’t have to give us anything, Miss Sarah. Your consent is plenty good enough.”
“Balderdash,” she said. “If I want to get my dearest niece and her lovely groom a wedding gift, I will.”
Slightly surprised by the insistent tone in her voice, he smiled obligingly at her.
When they arrived in town, he unloaded the wagon, and Sarah received payment. As they rode back toward home, she pulled a coin from her handbag.
“Look at this,” she remarked, handing the bronze two-cent piece to him. “It says ‘In God we trust’. I heard they were going to start printing that on the coins.”
He observed the embossed lettering, laurel sprig, shield, and eagle displayed on it.
“The good Lord has truly blessed us,” Sarah commented.
Giving her a wry grin, he handed back the coin. “When I lost my pa and Jake, I felt like God had forsaken me. But I know now everything happens for a reason. Could be, God wanted me to suffer through my losses so he could lead me here to y’all. At least, that’s what Anna says.”
“Oh, my dear,” Sarah said. “God’s gift to us is greater than the universe and possesses a grand design. He has given us free will and wants us to be happy.”
He shrugged. Perhaps she was right, even though he didn’t think Southerners were feeling very blessed. All he knew was he was ecstatic about his upcoming marriage to Anna. “Miss Sarah, if it’s all right, I need to pull the wagon over for a spell.”
“Too much coffee this morning?”
He shyly nodded and led Alphie over to the side of the road. After handing her the reins, he climbed down and made his way into the underbrush. He heard riders approach. They stopped to exchange conversation with Sarah. David hurried to relieve himself before making his way back up to the road.
“Why, a little lady sich as yerself shouldn’t be out here all by her lonesome,” one rider was saying.
“I’m not alone. My nephew is with me,” Sarah snapped at him.
“Where? I don’t see anyone,” the other rider remarked sarcastically.
They both laughed.
“Got any money?” the same voice inquired.
David scowled. He wished for his sidearm and decided to fake it. Walking onto the road, he said in as low and intimidating a voice as he could muster, “Can I help you fellers?” He pulled aside his coat as if to reach for his phantom pistol.
“Oh! Why, we was just makin’ sure your auntie wasn’t left out here all by herself,” one of the bearded men responded. He tipped his hat.
The two varmints rode off. David climbed up next to Sarah, who was visibly shaking. She handed the reins back to him.
“You all right?” he asked.
Wrapping her arm around his, she nodded. “I’m very glad you’re here,” she replied, blinking back her fright.
“Let’s git on home, then,” he said softly. Slapping the reins, he prompted Alphie toward the farm.
Over the course of the week, David watched his soon-to-be family prepare for the wedding. He wondered what they had so much to talk about, since it was expected to be a very private, secret affair with hardly anyone in attendance. Nevertheless, he shrugged it off and allowed Anna the special time in her life she’d always dreamed of. In his heart, though, he wished he had more to offer her.
Walking upstairs, he entered his room, opened the top dresser drawer, and picked up the one-hundred-dollar Confederate note he’d won from racing Renegade when he had first enlisted. Heaving a heavy sigh, he gazed down at it and wished he was more than just a farmer, so he could take Anna to foreign lands and experience the entire world with her. The only money he had in the world, the note he held in his hands, was worth nothing now. He felt inadequate and knew she deserved more, but he also knew he couldn’t do anything about it until after the war ended. More than anything, he hoped Anna wouldn’t come to regret their marriage and resent him later on for being nothing more than a pauper.
He heard a noise outside the window. Glancing out, he saw Mr. Montgomery ride up the lane, so he placed the Confederate note back in the drawer and went downstairs to greet him.
“Hello, all,” Mr. Montgomery said as he entered the house. “I wanted to tell you the grand news.”
“What would that be, sir?” asked Sarah.
“President Lincoln has been reelected,” he said. “It seems the war effort will progress without wavering, and victory will be ours soon. I’m sure of it.”
“President Lincoln won?” asked Abigail.
“By a landslide,” said Mr. Montgomery.
David gritted his teeth. The grim prospect of his beloved Dixie falling seemed even more likely now. That tyrant Lincoln had won. Although he’d felt admiration for him when he’d seen him in Gettysburg, he still couldn’t help thinking Lincoln was responsible for all of the suffering in the South. Somehow Lincoln’s reelection also amazed him because, from what he had heard in conversation and read in the papers, the Yankee president’s victory was an improbability. Yet it had happened, regardless. The president won over George B. McClellan, and Andrew Johnson, Lincoln’s running mate from Tennessee, was now vice president. A headline in Harper’s Weekly a few days later announced the election made “Long Abraham Lincoln a Little Longer.”
A few days later, Patrick came over for supper, bringing a bottle of bourbon with him. After their meal, the two young men hitched Erin to the buggy per Anna’s instruction. They sat out on the back porch, toasting David’s impending wedding, a week away. They toasted the bride and groom, the happy couple, the end of the war, Sarah for allowing the union, Abigail, Maggie, and everyone else they could think of. Once they had done that, they toasted the weather, the crops, and anything else they could come up with, giggling like school boys at their outrageous tributes. By ten o’clock, the bottle was empty.
“Now, Patrick,” David said. He could hear himself slur his words, but he didn’t much care. “I want you to stand up there with me when I takes my vows.”
Patrick grinned. “I’d be honored, and Anna has requested I escort her down the aisle.”
“Oh, she has, has she?” David’s head started to spin. He sat down on one of the wooden chairs. “Why, that’s mighty fine.”
He looked up at Patrick. The two of them burst into laughter.
“Say,” David exclaimed. “What if Stephen shows up?”
“Then I’ll give him an Irish hoist, that’s what I’ll do,” Patrick hollered. “Especially if that bastard refers to me one more time as a mick.”
“What’s an Irish hoist?”
Patrick kicked out his foot, nearly losing his balance. “It’s a swift kick in the arse.!”
The two giggled again.
“Well, as a thank-you-kindly for standin’ up with me, I’m givin’ you this.” David pulled his tobacco pouch from his pocket. “There’s only one twist left, but I want you to have it.”
His friend took the pouch, pulled it open, and sniffed deeply. “‘Tis a splendid aroma. And when ye go back home, be sure to send me more of this brilliant weed.” He pulled out his pipe and filled it.
“I’ll be sure to do that,” David said, reflecting momentarily on Patrick’s words. He longed to go back home but wasn’t sure how Anna would deal with it or what would await him when he returned. All he could do was to speculate and hope for the best. He sat watching Patrick puff away. The smoke curled up around his head and floated off into the atmosphere like a specter.
Anna stepped out onto the porch. “It’s getting chilly out here,” she remarked, wrapping her shawl tightly around her.
“It is?” David asked. He looked at Patrick. “We ain’t.” The two snickered. David took Anna’s hand and pulled her close. “Come here, darlin’.”
She fell into his lap. They gazed at each other adoringly.
“Pastor Tully is available next Saturday,” she informed them. “I meant to tell you sooner. Oh, and the Meyers will be hosting us afterward.”
“Aye,” Patrick replied. “The dear old bird has been makin’ preparations already.”
Anna giggled, and David smiled at him. They turned their attentions back toward each other.
Observing them with amusement for a moment, Patrick happily puffed on his pipe. “Well, I’ll be off. ‘Tis only a week away till the end of your bachelorhood!” He chuckled, waving his hand as he walked out the porch door.
The couple bid him farewell and watched him ride off in the buggy. When he was gone, David wrapped his arms around her.
He whispered in her ear, “I can’t wait till our weddin’ night,” and playfully nibbled her earlobe.
“David!” She pushed his face away. “Shame on you.”
“Well, I can’t.” He kissed her cheek.
“Well, you have to,” she replied.
“I know. I jist love you so much, Anna.”
“And I love you.” She kissed him on the forehead. “I wonder if it will be awkward. Our wedding night, I mean.”
He smirked. “Why would it be awkward?”
“Oh, because we’re both virgins, that’s why.”
His smile faded, and a rueful expression replaced it. Immediately reading his contrition, she gawked at him in shock.
“You’re not a virgin?” she asked, staring into his soul.
He knew he had to confess, although he wasn’t sure what he was confessing. Reluctantly, he shook his head.
She sprang to her feet. “Was it Callie?”
“No, no. It wasn’t Miss Callie.”
“Well, who then?”
He hesitated.
“You must tell me,” she said insistently, almost to the point of whining. “I have a right to know.”
He knew he was hurting her. She stood over him with her arms crossed in defense. With a slow sigh, he proceeded to tell her.
“It was after Jake died,” he said slowly, suddenly becoming more lucid. “I was…distraught, so some of my comrades decided I needed comfortin’. We all got liquored up, and then they took me to a bordello.”
“You bedded a prostitute?” Anna gave him a sickened look.
“I…uh…reckon so.”
“What does that mean?”
“I don’t remember. I fell asleep.”
She glared at him for a moment. Stifling a snicker, she said, “Oh, David.”
“I was sad about losin’ Jake, and I jist didn’t…”
“You’re so silly.”
He thought he should stop talking before he dug a deeper hole for himself. “I’m sorry, Anna. I wasn’t in my right mind, and it was before I met you. Miss Charlotte was very nice, but I don’t recall much. I don’t even know if anything happened.”
“Miss Charlotte? Oh, David. I’ve heard enough.”
He gazed up at her apologetically. “I’m sorry, darlin’. Do you still want to marry me?” he asked, feeling his heart clench.
“Yes, of course,” she said softly and went inside.
So consumed with guilt he thought he should die, he staggered out into the dark barnyard and leaned against the fence rail. He looked up at the rolling cloud formations overhead and watched them change shapes. It wasn’t long before his vivid imagination took over. Above him, clouds molded into the profile of Abraham Lincoln and gradually morphed into what David thought was the face of Lucifer. The face slowly turned, its black eyes looking directly at him. He gaped in awe and shuddered. Terrified by the sight, he hurried into the house, unsure of the premonition it represented.