Chapter Nine

Paula Stone loved to gab and placed great value on being the initial bearer of any news. Tyler must have asked her about Glen Knolls, which led him and Edward here. Cory watched as the three men rode off before she stepped inside. Tyler closed the door and leaned against it. He didn’t look happy. “Do you enjoy torturing men? Why did you offer him a drink?”

“It would have been rude not to,” she excused. “He said he was from Vandalia. The same as you. How well do you know him?”

“Edward and I lived in Vandalia most of our lives. I’m the one who broke his nose.”

Adelaide sat in her rocker, the pistol in her lap. “Why did you ask Paula Stone about Glen Knolls?”

He looked at the desk near the window. “Where’s the flier I brought?”

Cory searched the drawers.

“You placed it your apron pocket,” Adelaide said.

Cory fetched the flier and handed it to Tyler. “Don’t you know what your own flier says?”

“I didn’t print this flier. Edward did.”

“Why?”

“To find Tess. Noah left Vandalia to find her, and Edward has been trailing him. He put a bounty on his head.”

Cory frowned. “Why not put a bounty on Tess?”

“He did, but people are sympathetic to a young woman with a child. They’re more likely to turn in a big, strong man like Noah. In fact, they did. He was smart enough to fight the Cassell brothers, and the sheriff arrested him last week.”

“That was a good thing?”

“The Cassell brothers could have taken him back to Virginia and sold him as a slave.”

Cory shook her head. “I thought he was your slave?”

“It doesn’t matter to chasers who are willing to kidnap and lie to make a profit. The sheriff threw him in the Akron city jail. I received a telegram from a lawyer named Sam Morris and came north to help Noah. But when I arrived at Sam’s office, he had already freed Noah with a writ of habeus corpus.”

“What’s that?”

“It required Edward prove he owned Noah. He couldn’t. So the sheriff freed Noah, but he disappeared. Now I need to find him before Edward does.”

“How did you know to come here?” Adelaide asked.

“Noah left me a message.” Tyler pointed to the flier in Cory’s hands. “Turn it over. He gave this flier to Sam with instructions to give it to me when I arrived in Akron.” He pointed at the carefully written letters.

“Glen knows the way,” Cory read. “That’s why you thought Glen Knolls was a person.”

“I thought the farm was named for the owner like Vandalia is named for the Vandals.”

“Your slave needs some help with his spelling,” Adelaide remarked.

“He didn’t want to be too obvious and reveal an Underground Railroad station.”

“Slaves can’t read or write.” Adelaide remained stone-faced. “You could have written the message.”

“Mrs. Yoder schooled Noah secretly.” He grinned at Cory. “He can read and write as good as any Northerner.”

Tyler’s charm wasn’t working on Adelaide. She stabbed a crooked finger at him. “He’s still your slave.”

“By Virginia law, he’s my slave, but I’m here to help him.”

“Can’t you help him more by letting him reach freedom?” Cory asked.

“I don’t plan on stopping him,” Tyler confessed. “I want to help him find Tess if he hasn’t already and reach Canada.”

“You’re an awfully good con man, Tyler Montgomery,” Adelaide said. “You sweet talk this young woman, and now you think you can convince me to tell you something that even threat of death won’t pry from my lips.”

Tyler reached into his trouser pocket and showed them a small metal horse. “When I was cleaning Nell’s stall I found this. Noah made it for his son. He left it in the stall for me to find. He knows I’m here. Cory spoke my name in the barn last night, and I think he heard.”

“If he knew it was you, why didn’t he show himself?”

Tyler hesitated.

Cory recalled the series of events. She had spoken Tyler’s name, followed by a noise in the stall, and the kiss.

“We didn’t stay long in the barn,” he excused. “This was the best way for him to contact me.”

“Are you saying you’re Noah’s friend?” Adelaide demanded.

“Is that too hard to believe?” Tyler retorted. “Can black men and white men be friends? The Northerners want to free the slaves, but do they want to live side by side with them in the same towns? Go to the same churches? The same schools? Even those who want to abolish slavery, don’t want to create an equal society.”

“They want to ship them off to Africa,” Adelaide agreed. “What do you think the slaves want?”

“What everyone wants in America,” he answered. “An opportunity for a better life.”

Adelaide nodded. “My grandfather was a tenant farmer in England without any hope of owning any land. He sent my father to America as an indentured servant when he was nine years old. He worked as an unpaid apprentice but eventually became skilled enough to work as a baker. He bought his own shop and sent for his father and mother to come to America. You can’t escape the life you’re born into over there. England abolished slavery, but they didn’t abolish inequality. I can’t predict what sort of life blacks will have if they’re free, but we’ll never know until they are free.”

“I think we believe in the same goals.”

“Time will tell,” Adelaide said. “Now what can you tell us about Edward Vandal?”

Tyler waved the flier at them. “He’s the sort of man who would lie and imprison a man to find a runaway girl and her babe.”

“He asked about you,” Cory recalled. “He didn’t seem to like you very much.”

“You remember the first girl I kissed?”

“Reggie Johnston.”

“She’s Edward’s wife.”

Reggie had been more than a young boy’s infatuation. Tyler had been in love with her and heartbroken when Reggie married Edward. “So this is more than a runaway slave. This is personal.”

“What do you mean?”

“You were both in love with the same woman.”

Tyler shook his head. “Reggie made her choice.”

She caressed his shoulder. “You must have been devastated.”

“Any romance was over a long time ago,” he said. “But Edward thinks otherwise, and Reggie never did anything to discourage his suspicions.”

“Why not?”

He shrugged. “I don’t even begin to understand the workings of a woman’s mind. Maybe you would know why she would want to make Edward jealous by smothering me with attention when her heart was already set on him.”

She understood and smiled. “She wanted him to notice her, and a man covets what belongs to someone else, especially if he’s a rival.”

“Edward was the prize catch as far as husbands go in Vandalia and didn’t even notice Reggie until she made a big fuss over me.”

“Like making you a vest,” Cory guessed. “One like the vest Edward was wearing.”

“I only wear it to irk him.”

“But you didn’t know he would come here.”

“I knew I’d meet him at some point. We’re both searching for the same people.”

Cory studied Tyler. “But you’re a lawyer. Why didn’t Reggie marry you?”

“I’m a lawyer now. I was a poor boy with ambitions three years ago, and Edward was the owner of the Silver Pheasant.”

“What’s the Silver Pheasant?”

“The largest farm in Vandalia,” he replied. “It grows tobacco, corn, and slaves.”

Cory frowned. “You can’t grow slaves.”

“You can if you breed them. Old man Cyrus Vandal was proficient at it.”

Cory didn’t understand the implications of his statement. Did he only encourage procreation or did he actively participate in it. “He forced himself on them?”

“Some as young as fourteen.”

Cory gasped, and her hand covered her mouth. Did Edward follow his father’s example? “Edward said Tess’ baby wasn’t his.”

“No master admits he’s fathered a child from a slave, but for once, Edward was telling the truth. Noah is Adam’s father.”

“Noah must be out of his mind with worry.” Cory looked to Adelaide for confirmation. Adelaide gave her a warning look. “What happens if Edward finds them first?”

Tyler’s voice was firm. “That’s not going to happen.”

“You’d help Tess escape to get back at Edward?” Adelaide asked.

Tyler grinned. “That wasn’t the original plan, but I’d be happy with it.”

“What about Noah?” Adelaide asked. “Won’t it hurt you to lose him as a slave?”

“Noah isn’t a slave.”

“Edward said he was.”

“Edward is wrong.”

Cory wanted to believe him. She didn’t want Tyler to be a slave owner, but Edward had known him all his life. Edward would know if he owned a slave, wouldn’t he? Something deeper existed between the two men. A secret he wasn’t willing to share.

“Why is Edward here in person?” Adelaide asked. “Why not leave the work to his chasers?”

“The Cassell brothers are big and strong, but they can’t read or write. Besides, Tess is a valuable slave,” Tyler explained. “She’s a young woman who has proven she can bear children. She’s worth at least a thousand dollars. More to a breeder.”

Cory’s jaw dropped. “One slave is worth so much? A person would have to earn twenty dollars a week to make the same amount in a year.”

“In the last few years, the value of a slave increased along with the price of cotton and talk of emancipation. Why do you think the South would rather go to war than free the slaves? What man wants to give away thousands of dollars?” Tyler looked out the window. “That’s the reason slavery still exists. It’s become a way to finance crops, obtain a loan, and hold status in the South. A man with one slave is richer than ten men without slaves.”

“Then all the talk about state rights is a lie?” Cory asked.

Tyler turned and looked her in the eye. “War is always about money, whether it’s in the form of land, minerals, or human lives, but no common man would risk life and limb for a soldier’s pay. They need a cause, an outrage, and the rhetoric of politicians to promote a war.”

“Doesn’t Edward have enough money? Why does he need to take Tess and her baby back to the Silver Pheasant?”

“Edward can’t let Tess run away. Besides the monetary loss, it makes him look weak. The other slaves might try to run away if he doesn’t take her back and punish her. He’ll have to make an example of her. He’ll hurt her to teach all the slaves a lesson.” His voice was hard and cold. “It won’t be pretty if he finds her first. She won’t have it easy like she did.”

“Easy?” Cory scoffed. “What do you mean?”

“Tess worked in the house instead of the fields. She was Reggie’s personal maid and wet nurse to her son, Eddie.”

“Reggie has a baby?”

Tyler shook his head. “Not anymore. Eddie died a few months ago.” Tyler smacked his fist against the palm of his other hand. “Edward should be comforting Reggie instead of chasing after Tess and making trouble for Noah.”

Cory searched his face. “What are you going to do?”

“Edward said he was staying at the Darrow Falls Inn.” Tyler ran his fingers through his hair. “I need to return to my room for my belongings. I have some papers. If he gets his hands on them, it would cause trouble for Noah and me. Something Edward would love to do.”

“Well, you can’t retrieve them,” Adelaide concluded. “Cory will have to go.”

Tyler shook his head. “It could be dangerous.”

The three stood in the parlor staring at each other. It was Adelaide who broke the silence. “Cory will run my errands. I have several dishes that need to be returned to Paula. She can retrieve your bag,” she suggested. “If Cory keeps the visit sociable and lighthearted, Edward won’t suspect anything.”

Cory felt as if Adelaide was giving her instructions on how to deceive the enemy. Adelaide was not only a supporter of the Underground Railroad, she was an active participant. She felt a new admiration for her and realized she had never backed any of her ideals with action. “I’ll do it.”

“This isn’t a game,” Tyler warned her.

Cory put her hands on her hips. “I’m a Beecher.”

“Which you proudly proclaimed to Edward. You might as well have painted a target on your chest.”

Cory caught him staring at her breast and crossed her arms.

“Men always underestimate women,” Adelaide excused. “I’m sure Edward will underestimate Cory. How much money do you owe for your room?”

“About half a dollar.”

“Give Cory the money and write a note to go along with it.”

“For what?”

“Don’t question your elders, young man.” She pointed at the desk. “There’s paper in the drawer.”

Tyler removed a sheet of plain paper and sat at the desk. He dipped the quill in the glass ink well in the corner and looked at Adelaide. “What should I write?”

“Mrs. Stone,” she began. “Thank you for your hospitality. I have been called away to Cleveland on urgent business. Enclosed is payment in full for my bill. Sincerely, Mr. Tyler Montgomery.”

“Cleveland?”

“Isn’t that where a slave would head?” Adelaide asked. “Don’t you want to throw Edward off the trail?”

“But what if Noah is headed for Cleveland? I could be helping Edward.”

“Trust me.”

“Trust works both ways.” Tyler finished the note. He blew on the ink to dry it and folded the paper with the payment inside. He lit a candle and added a drop of wax to seal it. He pressed the ring he wore on his pinkie finger to leave a mark.

Cory studied the impression. “What is that?”

“When I graduated from law school last July I had the ring made. It’s the scales of justice. Edward will recognize it as mine.”

“Go hitch Nell to the buggy, and we’ll gather the dishes,” Adelaide ordered.