Monthly Archives: October 2018

Chapter Ten
An Unexpected Blessing
June, 1863

The sound of birds chirping awakened me, and I lay still for a moment, wondering where I was. We had slept outside so many days, it was difficult to tell. Then I heard another sound, the snort of an animal. I rolled over and took my rifle before I left the shelter, crouching down in case it was an animal. We had bears in these parts, and I wanted to be prepared if this were a big one.
As I came out of the shelter, the sun was in my eyes, and so I could not tell who—or what—was there at first. Then I shaded my eyes and saw that what I heard came not from a bear but from a horse. And the horse was hitched to a wagon with all kinds of supplies to re-build our cabin, and I saw to my amazement, Virgil Dailey the blacksmith sitting on the seat as the wagon pulled up to where I was. Five men walked behind the wagon.
“Hallooo!” Virgil called.
“Why, hello, Virgil. I’m surprised to see you here.”
“Well,” he said, climbing down from the wagon, “word got around about your cabin, and a bunch of us got together and decided to come help you re-build it.”
I couldn’t think of what to say for a moment, but then I finally found my tongue and said, “Why, thank you, Virgil. That’s very neighborly of you.”
He shrugged. “You might have to do the same for me one day. You never can tell.”
“No, I can’t.”
Laurel came out of the shelter, shading her eyes from the sun as well. “Laurel, this is—”I started to say.
“I know,” she said. “Mr. Dailey the blacksmith. Thank you so much, Mr. Dailey.”
“Please, m’am, call me Virgil.”
“Well, Virgil, have all of you had breakfast yet?”
He climbed down from his wagon and stood there, twisting his hat in his hands. “About half of us have.”
“Well, then, why don’t I fix some for everyone. I’d have to do it anyhow, and it’s only a few more. I have Hiram to help me. He’s a good cook.”
“I don’t know any Hiram.” The blacksmith looked puzzled.
“He’s a young man we came across in our travels, and he decided to come with us.” Hiram came out at that moment.
“Look, Hiram, all these people have come out to help with the cabin. We’re going to fix them breakfast. Can you help me?”
Hiram, still sleepy, mumbled, “Yes’m.”
“All right. You wake the others up and all of you wash yourselves good. I left the soap and a washcloth out and you can get some water from the cistern. And wash good behind your ears, all of you!”
I had to smile at Laurel treating all the boys as if they were her own. I supposed she learned how to do that by having to deal with a number of boys when she was a teacher. She knew how they were.
And so, while the men unloaded the wagon, along with help from Andrew, Clinton and me, Laurel and Hiram fixed the meal. With the wagon unloaded, we fell on the breakfast, and ate as if we had never eaten before. Everyone agreed that it was an excellent breakfast. “That was mighty good, m’am,” Virgil said. We surely do thank you for it.”
“Well, I thank you for coming to help us. It will be so much easier to have a cabin. We have so many things we need a place for, that will give us the space for them. I can’t thank you enough.”
And so, we started on the cabin. Virgil had erected cabins before, and he started by dividing us into groups—one of bring materials from the wagon, another to lay out the walls while still others notched the logs. The last crew lifted the logs into place at Virgil’s direction. I was on this final crew, which was composed of the younger ones among us. Even at that, we struggled to lift the heavy logs.
“Be careful with those, “ Virgil called. “They’re heavy, and if one of the drops on your foot, you’ll surely know it.”
One of Virgil’s friends looked at him as he and another man finished putting a log into place. “Don’t you think we know that, Virgil? We’re the ones who know how heavy they are.”
“I know you know it, Francis. I was just making sure you knew what would happen if you dropped one of those on your foot.”
We continued working, and when the supply crew had unloaded all the logs and put them for the notching crew to do their work, the first crew joined the others on the walls. By that time, we were halfway up the windows, and so it took two men to carry the log to its place where they passed it to two other men who were standing on the wagon that Virgil had brought over. From that, they moved each log into position.
About then, Laurel came out to see what progress we were making. “You’ve done a lot already,” she said. “Lunch is almost ready. Do you wanted to stop for a break and eat it?”
At this she was greeted by a chorus of approval and cheers. These fellows must like to eat, I thought. I could have kept going, but thought I should stop and make the acquaintance of those workers I didn’t know, and there were several of them.
We went to where Laurel had spread out our lunch on some trestles and logs. “Who put together the trestles?” I asked her. I hadn’t noticed them as they were being built.
“It was Hiram and Andrew. I think they learned how by putting the shelters together.”
“They are amazing young men and learn so quickly,” I said.
She smiled and said, “I couldn’t agree with you more.”
Laurel and I waited while the others went through and got their food. Then we loaded our plates and went to sit with two of the workers I did not know. They put their plates on the ground and stood up as we came closer to them.
“Mr. Dillard, my name is John Sears, and this is my friend George Watkins. Thank you for the food. It’s really delicious.”
“You’re welcome, but my wife Laurel here is responsible for the meal. You should thank her. And call me Caleb. My friends do.”
“All right, Caleb,” said Sears. He turned to Laurel.
“Thank you for fixing all this food. As I said, it tastes so good.”
“It’s nice to meet you both,” Laurel said. “And I’m glad you’re enjoying your meal, but I had help from the three boys. May we join you?”
“We’d be honored,” Sears said. “Please sit down.”
We sat and started eating. The food was good. “What do you do for a living, Mr. Sears?” I asked.
“First of all, call me John, Caleb. I’m a mason. I’ve worked in towns all around here. It’s a good way to make a living.”
“I see. I’ve always admired anyone who can do what you are capable of. And what about you, George? What kind of work do you do?”
He finished chewing a bite and said, “I help out in the blacksmith shop. That’s how I found out about this—Virgil told me.”
“Thank you. I didn’t know what. Seems like Virgil knows a lot of people.”
“Yessir, he does. He can’t help it with his shop on the main street and a parade of people constantly going by. I don’t see how he gets any work done, but he does.
We sat and talked as we ate our lunch, and as we were about to finish, Virgil stood up. “This certainly has been a wonderful meal, and I think we should thank Mrs. Dillard for it.” Those gathered around broke into applause, and I saw Laurel blush.
“It is we who should thank you for all you’ve done,” she said. “We couldn’t have done it so quickly without you. Thank you. We will forever be in your debt.”
“You are so welcome,” Virgil replied. “And don’t worry— we’ll be sure to have something we need help on soon!”
This pronouncement was greeted by general laughter, and when it subsided, Virgil said, “I know you’re almost finished eating, so when you are finished, go ahead and take a half-hour break. Take a nap or play cards, I don’t care. Just be ready to get back at it in 30 minutes. I’ll tell you when the time is up.”
This was also greeted by cheers, and the workers dispersed all over the site. Some lay down for a nap while others talked, or, as Virgil suggested, played cards.
“What do you want to do?” I asked Laurel.
“I have all this to clean up,” she responded.
“Oh, come on and take a break. It will all still be there waiting for you.”
“I know. That’s why I want to do it now, but I’ll be glad to spend some time with you.”
“That’s what I want. Now, what do you want to do?”
“Let’s just talk.”
“All right, what do you want to talk about?”
“Well, after the letter you received from Eleanor, I’m worried about what she might do, or what people she might send to do us harm.”
“I know that’s worrisome, but I’ll be here to protect you. And the boys will help me, just as they did in Tennessee.”
“That’s right. They did well with that situation, as did you. Thank you, Caleb. I feel better now.”
“Good. Is that enough talk for you?”
“Why do you ask? Do you want to take a nap?”
“Frankly, yes. I’m tired from all the work.”
And so we both lay on the grass, side by side, and drifted off to sleep. It seemed like no time at all that we heard Virgil calling, “Up! Up! Time to get up!” and we opened our eyes to the men around us sitting up and rubbing the sleep out of our eyes.
“My,” Laurel said, “It looks like most everyone took a nap.”
“I’m not surprised,” I said. “We’ve been doing some hard, tiring work. Time to go at it again.”
With the amount we had done in the morning, we didn’t have that much left to do. We finished about 2:00, with the last log being laid at the apex of the roof. When it was lowered into play, everyone cheered and clapped.
“I’d say we’re done,” Virgil said to me.
“Yes, we are, and it looks great! Thank you for all that all of you did.”
“You know what I’ll say to that—”
I nodded my head. “Yes, yes, I’ll have a chance to help all of you at some point.”
“That’s it exactly. Now let us get our tools and we’ll be on our way.”
“I’m forever indebted to you and to everyone else.”
Virgil waved his hand, and went about doing his share of loading the tools. Then he climbed in the driver’s seat and waited for the rest to climb up into the bed. They waved and shouted their good-byes.
The four of us, not including little Caleb, who was asleep in the new cabin, stood and waved back. “Thank you,” I called. “God bless all of you.”
We watched them until they went out of sight, and then turned to each other.
“So what do we do now?” Andrew asked.
“I don’t know about you,” I said, “but I could use another nap.”
“I’m not sleepy,” Andrew said.
“I’m not either,” Hiram added.
“Why don’t’ you start moving our things into the cabin. I can sleep outside.”
“I’ll tell the boys where to put the stuff.” Laurel looked at them and they nodded.
“All right. You do that, and I’ll help you when I wake up.”
I found a soft spot to lie on and soon I fell asleep. It was a welcome rest.
***
I woke up, and, judging the time from the sun’s position, was surprised at how long I had slept. I looked over to the place where we had piled our belongings and was pleased to see that they all had been moved. I went into the cabin to find Laurel directing the boys as to where everything went.
“I see you’re awake,” she said. “Did you have a good nap?”
“I surely did, but I slept much longer than I intended. I see you have everything moved in.”
Laurel smiled. “Yes, the boys worked hard. Even little Caleb helped.” She tousled his hair. “He’s a good boy.”
“Let’s sit down and talk about what happens next,” I said. We went over and sat on some boxes the supplies came in.
“We’ll need some proper furniture,” Laurel said. “How much can we afford?”
“We won’t have to buy all of it. In fact, I can make most of it,” I replied.
“I didn’t know you could do that. You’re amazing.”
I shrugged. “You do what you have to do. Say, getting away from the task at hand, I just realized I haven’t read Alphonso’s letter. Do you mind if I read it to you? Then you can see what he has to say.”
“Of course I don’t mind. I do want to know what’s in the letter.”
I tore it open and started reading. It was good to see his wonderful penmanship. I could never write like that, even with centuries of practice.
June 15, 1863
My dear Caleb,
I have not heard from you in so long, and I pray earnestly that nothing untoward has happened to you. I will send this letter to your home address and pray that it will find you there and well, along with your family..
I am in good health and have very little to complain about. I am at present encamped with Lee’s army near Culpeper, the place where your adventure began, following our campaign at Chancellorsville, which went well for us, save the loss of General Jackson, who was shot by his own men and died shortly thereafter. The word is that Lee said, ‘I have lost my good right arm,” and indeed Jackson was that. We shall miss him sorely.
The rumor is that we will invade the North, going up the Valley to meet the enemy wherever God and Providence may see fit. We believe Lee’s plan is to defeat the Northern troops and then drive on to Baltimore and then down to Washington, where he aspires to negotiate a treaty bringing an end to the war and recognizing our claim to sovereignty and independence. I am for anything that would end this war in any way. I wrote that I have little to complain of, but among those things, this war and its brutality and bloodshed are chief among my complaints. I have lost too many friends and seen too many grievously wounded and crippled to wish this conflict would continue one second longer. I feel as if I cannot bear much more. We began with high hopes and aspirations, and those have been trampled in the mud and blood and broken bodies. It is hard to remember what we are fighting for, and I wish for the calm and companionship of home, although I am not sure it will be standing when this conflict is over. I pray to God that it will and I pray that the war will be over with soon.
I also pray that I may see you after not too much time has elapsed, and then we can be together as we were at the beginning of the war. I still think of those days quite fondly.
May God bless and keep you, my friend. You are in my thoughts and prayers.
Your friend and comrade who is longing to see you,
Adolphus
When I had finished, I gave the letter to Laurel so she could read it in case she had missed anything in the hearing. She sat down and perused it quickly (since she was a teacher, she read much faster than I), put it down by her side, and looked up at me, stricken. “Poor dear Alphonso. I can tell he has suffered as much as one who has not been injured or killed can, and yet he asks after you and all of us. I can tell from this letter what I learned from those you sent me that he is a fine man, and one I wish to meet one day. I wish there were something more we could do for him besides write him a letter.”
“If you will help me with the spelling of some of the words, I will write him back quickly. I know that he is anxious to hear from me.”
She got up and came over and slipped into my arms. “Of course, my love. You know I would do anything for you.”
I went outside to show the boys what I wanted done with the garden the next day, which would finish their projects for the moment now that the cabin was built. They would have to move some large branches and rake and cut out the weeds, as I had told them, but I wanted to be sure they understood what I wanted. I came back inside where I found Laurel putting little Caleb to sleep. She motioned to me to be quiet, and, in a few minutes, took the sleeping lad and put him on a pallet in the corner. We all would be sleeping on pallets until I could build the beds, but it was better than lying on rocky soil. She made certain he was sleeping and then quietly came over to me. “I’m ready to help you with the letter,” she whispered, and I nodded my head.
It took a while because we had so much happen to us since the last time I saw Alphonso, but she helped me with it all and I said, “I’ll take it to the post office tomorrow. I want Alphonso to know of our condition post haste.”
She regarded me with a smile. “You are such a good man, but I knew that before I married you. I’m so glad I did. I don’t know what I would do without you.”
“And I am glad I married you,” I returned. “I do not want to think what my life would be like without you, either.”

Chapter Nine
Coming Home
June, 1863

The next town was Stephens City, which meant we weren’t too far from home. It turned out that we didn’t have to buy any whiskey because there was a doctor in town. A man came walking toward us, and I called, “Hello! Is there a doctor in town?”
He stopped and stared at Andrew. “What happened to him?”
“A boar attacked us, and we’re all lucky to be alive. Andrew here got the worst of it, so we need to have someone look at his wounds. They’re not that bad, but I’m not a doctor, and I want one to look at him.”
“He looks pretty bad to me. You’d better get him to a doctor quick!”
“We plan to. Is there one in town? Is he far from here?”
The man shook his head. “You’re in luck—Doc Stephens is about halfway down this street, to the right. He’ll be there unless he’s in the saloon next door. He has a kind of problem, understand? If he’s drinking, you will have done a better job patching this fellow up than the doc could do. It’s a shame, because he’s a good doc when he’s sober.”
I winced. The last thing we needed was a drunken doctor. “Thank you, friend.”
“You’re welcome and good luck. From the looks of all of you, you’re going to need it.”
I looked around at the others. It had not occurred to me with all that had happened how dirty and bedraggled we all looked, as I’ve heard people say, like “something the cat dragged in.” Because the boar was bigger and could do more harm than a cat, we probably looked worse that something the cat dragged in.
We went down the street and found the place the man indicated. The large front window had “Dr. James Stephens, M. D.” painted in gold across it. I looked in. No one was there, but I said, “Go on in and see what you can do to start treating Andrew’s wounds, all of you. I’ll go next door.” I had a grim expression as I went next door. I didn’t know what I would find, and I didn’t want to think about it.
When I reached the saloon, I went in and stood there for a moment as my eyes adjusted to the dim light. When they had, I saw an older man sitting in a chair with his head on a table, snoring loudly, an empty bottle of whiskey on the table before him.When I saw that, I knew we were in trouble.
“Can I help you, my friend?” The bartender stood behind the bar, polishing a glass.
“I don’t want anything to drink. My friend was attacked by a boar. I came in here to see what shape the doctor was in. My answer’s right there.” I gestured toward the doctor splayed out at the table.
He laughed. “That doctor ain’t doin’ any doctorin’ right now, as you can see. Even if he were stone cold sober, I wouldn’t take my best dog to him. He’s put more people in the ground than the undertaker. You’ve caught him in his habitual state.”
“But we need him.”
He shrugged. “A lot of people need him, but he doesn’t care. Go ahead and wake him up, but be careful. He usually comes out fightin’ when his sleep is interrupted. He’s even crazier when he’s drunk, and don’t say I didn’t warn you.”
“Thanks for the warning,” I told the bartender. I went over to the doctor, grabbed him by the shoulder and shook it vigorously.
“Now you’ve done it!” exclaimed the bartender.
I ignored him, and said, “Doctor Stephens! We need you! Wake up! Now! We have an emergency.”
He grunted and tried to take my hand off his shoulder. I shook it again, even harder. “Wake up, man! It’s important.”
He suddenly sat up and tried to punch me in the face, but he missed and fell on the floor. I stood over him. “Let me give you a hand up.”
He made no move, but continued to lie on the floor. Since he was a dead weight, as most drunks are, I wasn’t sure I could bring him to his feet. I grabbed him by the wrist. “Come on. Let me pull you up. I want you to come with me.”
He opened one eye. “Jus’ one more drink,” he slurred. “Jus’ one more before we go.” Falling to the floor seemed to have taken the fight out of him, but I didn’t know how long that would last. If I wanted to get him up and treat Andrew, I would have to act quickly. I bent down over him and said, “No! No more drinks right now! You can have another after you treat my friend. Come on! I’ll help you up!”
I got my hands under his arms and lifted his dead weight with great difficulty so that he stood on his feet, swaying back and forth. The bartender looked on, bemused.
“You could help me, you know,” I said to him.
“No sir,” he answered. “I tried helping to pull him up, and he broke my jaw. I ain’t anxious to repeat that experience. I’m sure you understand.”
“I’m not sure I do.” I slowly dragged Stephens toward the door. He wasn’t getting any lighter. Finally I guided him to the door, and we went out into the street.
I heard the bartender call from inside, “Remember what I said about him puttin’ people in the ground. And watch out. He’s usually sick to him stomach after he wakes up.”
“We’ll be all right, no thanks to you!” I told him, although I was unsure about what would happen.
Somehow I managed to drag him to his office and up the steps where we went inside to find Andrew lying on the examination table with his shirt removed.
“What took you so long?” Hiram asked.
“The doctor was drunk, sitting at a table. At first he wanted to fight me, but he took as swing and missed, but that calmed him down. The thing was, I had to drag him over here because the bartender wouldn’t help me.”
“I see,” Hiram said.
“If you’ll look at him, most of his wounds are on his upper body,” Laurel said. “Hiram has known exactly what to do. We’ve cleaned his wounds, put whiskey on them, and bound them up. I think he’s ready to go.”
I knew that Laurel would know something about what to do, but Hiram surprised me again. Apparently he knew more than she did. “How’d you know what to do?” I asked him.
He shrugged. “There were plenty of knife fights around the wharf. I just did what I thought was necessary, and when most of ‘em survived, I figured I must be doing all right. So I kept it up.”
“How many people like this did you fix up?”
He shrugged. “Maybe a hundred in the past two years.”
“That’s a rough place.”
Hiram shrugged. “I managed to get along, in spite of it all.”
“I’m amazed at all you were able to do—that you can do.”
He shrugged again. “You do what you have to when there’s no one but you sober most of the time. Or maybe that was all the time.”
Laurel looked at him hard. “You didn’t need to drink that whiskey.”
“Just think of it as my fee.”
I just shook my head and went over to Andrew. “How are you feeling?”
“Much better. I might survive. I had good doctors.” He grinned at Laurel and Hiram.’
“That’s good, because the so-called ‘doctor’ in this town is worse than useless. The bartender said he would take his best dog to him.”
“Oh. Well, anyhow, I feel like traveling again, so let’s get going.”
I nodded. “The sooner we leave this place, the better.”
During all this, the doctor had crawled into a corner and fallen asleep. I looked over at him. “Good riddance to that one,” I said. “Let’s get out of here as fast as we can.”
We loaded up again, glad to leave the doctor and feeling blessed that Andrew’s wounds could be attended to, but leaving us to wonder why we had come into town in the first place. If only we had known, we could have saved ourselves the time and effort, and been that much closer to home. But such was not to be, and we made our way out of town, walking slowly and thinking about what had happened.

***
We were blessed by good weather the rest of the way and had no more obstacles along our way. We didn’t even encounter a human being, much less a wild animal. That was all right with me, and I thanked God for our smooth passage. That evening, we came to a place I recognized, one near our house. I was excited to be home and prayed that nothing had happened to it. We had been gone a long time, after all.
We came to a long rise that led to the path to our home, and Laurel exclaimed, “I know where we are now! We’re so close! I could never forget what this looks like!”
We quickened our pace, and when we came to the last hill, we broke into a run in spite of our heavy loads. But when we topped the hill, we stopped when we saw what was left of our cabin. Actually, there wasn’t much left. It had burned to the ground. We had not left much there, but whatever little it was, it was completely gone.
Laurel burst into tears. “I can’t believe this! This is when you brought me home after we were married. This is where I gave birth and took care of Caleb. This is where we planted our garden and ate what we grew. And now it’s all gone! We were happy here until the war came and took you away. Damn you! Why did you go? Why did you go?”
I took her into my arms and tried to console her. “You still have all those memories, Laurel. By going to the war, I only did what I thought was right. We talked about it, remember? And we can build another cabin, and with Andrew and Hiram’s help, it will be better than the one that burned.”
“I don’t want another better cabin, no matter who works on it! I want our cabin!”
I could not her recall carrying on so about something that could not be changed, but then I thought, she had been through a lot—trekking for miles, being kidnapped, being in a flood and seeing someone attacked by a wild boar. I think all this had worked to strip her of whatever strength and optimism that she might have had left. I knew that she would regain both, eventually, but it was going to be hard for her and hard for all of us.
“All right, then, for now we’ll build a shelter like we did on the way up here and spend the night in it. In the morning, I’ll go to town and get supplies and see if anyone has any idea about who did this. We’ll be all right. I promise. We’ll be all right.”
She would have none of it, tearing herself out of my arms and sitting on the burned grass, a perfect picture of misery. Normally she would have not done anything deliberately to dirty her clothing, but such was the extent of her distraction. Hiram and Andrew had not said anything during this whole display, but they came right over to her. Andrew put his hand on her shoulder and said, “Caleb’s right. And you have me and Hiram to help. We’ll get it done. You know we will.”
“That’s right,” Hiram said. “Fixing all this will be easy compared to what we’ve just been through. We’ll all work together. You’ll see.”
Laurel turned her tear-stained face up to them. “Thank you, boys. I’m feeling a little better now. You just said the right words, and I’m so glad you’re with us. I love you as much as I love little Caleb.”
Hiram and Andrew both looked at the ground, embarrassed. There was silence for a minute, and then I said, “All right, let’s get started on the shelter. Pile all our belongings on that patch of grass over there that isn’t burned. I’ll look through the burned area to see if an ax survived the fire. I hope it did, because having one will make a big difference.”
We set to work moving our goods to the unburned grass, and then Andrew and Hiram and I scoured the burned area for any sign of an ax. Laurel worked on organizing what we had piled up, with little Caleb helping as best he could. He couldn’t carry much, so Laurel gave him some small, light objects to carry. He was happy to help, and he carefully placed everything he was given on the grass. He and Laurel made rapid progress, and so they finished their task by the time we had the corner posts put in. It wouldn’t take much longer to finish our lean-to.
“I hadn’t even thought of eating,” Laurel said. “I’ll start on our supper.”
We had found an ax, and I cut the poles we would need, while Hiram and Andrew moved them to the area of the corner posts. We attached the poles to the posts and then ran more poles across the structure so we could add pieces of bark for a roof. We did this the same way we had when we were on our way home, and worked more quickly since we were familiar with what we were doing.
We finished about the same time as our supper was ready, just as we thought. “Come and get it,” Laurel called as Hiram put the last piece of bark into place.
“There!” he said. “That’s done!”
“Good work, boys,” I told them. I don’t think I’ve ever seen a shelter built in so short a time. You learned quickly from our experience on the road.”
We enjoyed our supper. Laurel had done a marvelous job, as usual. After we ate, we quickly moved our belongings into the shelter and fixed places for us to sleep. We were all ready to start on the cabin the next day after I had gone to town and come back.
The boys, as usual, fell asleep quickly, so Laurel and I had time to talk before we did. “I would say we’ve made a good recovery from having our cabin burned,” I said.
“But we still don’t know who did it. Do you have any ideas?”
“The only person I know with cause to hate me would be Eleanor. I bet she did it.”
“I’d bet on that as well. What an awful, evil woman.”
“You’ll get no argument from me about that. Now kiss me and let’s do what we’ve been wanting to do every since we got here.”
“Well, you’ll get no argument from me about that as well,” I said, and then I was in her embrace.
***
The next morning, Laurel and I were up early, sorting some of our supplied. We let the boys sleep since we knew that they were exhausted from the journey and also from the previous day’s events.
“Do you want to eat now or wait and have something with the boys?” Laurel asked.
“I’ll eat now. I’m eager to get to town and come back as soon as possible.”
“All right. Ham and biscuits all right?”
“You bet. Just what I wanted, in fact.”
While Laurel fixed breakfast for us, I went over to the site of our burned cabin and tried to calculate if we could build a bigger one. After pacing off the distances I concluded that we could indeed. I went to tell Laurel the news.
She saw me coming and said, “It’s ready! Come and eat it all up!”
We sat on the ground, and Laurel brought me a plateful of food. Then she went to get hers.
“I’ve been out measuring,” I said, “and we have room for a bigger cabin.”
She nodded. “That’s good. We have two more boys now, and they’ll take up space.”
“I’m glad we have them with us. They’ve been a big help.”
“Yes, they have. The best. I don’t know what we would have done without them.”
We ate quickly, and I gave my plate to Laurel to clean although I didn’t know how she was going to since the well housing had been burned, along with the bucket and rope. I knew she would figure something out. I stood up.
I pulled her to her feet and took her in my arms. “It will be all right. I promise. I’ll be back as soon as I can.”
She nodded, smiling. “You be careful and come back to me. I don’t know what I would do without you.”
I stepped back. “I feel the same way about you. I need to go now.”
I started walking toward town, feeling the separation from my family with every step I took. I told myself I would be back soon, and that all would be well. It had to be.

Before I got out of earshot, I called, “I don’t think you’ll get this far, but if you do, start working on the garden. It needs cleaning and weeding. Good-bye!”
I hadn’t gone far when Laurel called out to me, “Caleb, come back! I want to give you a list of what we’ll need.”
“All right! I will!”
I went back to her and watched as she wrote out her list. Her reddish hair shone in the sunshine, and I noticed again how small her fingers were and how quickly and neatly she wrote. She looked up at me, and I was lost in her beautiful eyes. “Here you go, Caleb.”
“Huh? What? Did you say something?”
She smiled. “I said, ‘Here you go, Caleb.’ You were somewhere else for a time. Here’s the list of what I’ll need from town.”
I took the list and looked at it. “Yes, I can get all of these, easily. I’m leaving now. Again.”
“Don’t be long,” she said. “I can’t get enough of seeing you.”
I smiled. “You may be sure that with all the time I was without you, I won’t tarry to see you again!”
I went outside where Andrew and Hiram were already starting to build the shelter. As I watched, little Caleb came out and started helping them carry small branches one at a time to where they would build the shelter. I had to smile at the little fellow doing what he could. I wish more people were like that.
I walked quickly to town, mindful of Laurel’s admonition, and eager to return to her. I walked carefully behind the buildings along the street to the post office, so as not to see by anyone who would want to have a lengthy conversation with me which could be anyone. I slid along the outside wall of the post office without having seen anyone, turned the corner and went inside, praying that there wouldn’t be anyone at all inside, although there usually was.
As it turned out, I was in luck. It was one of those rare times when no one was inside, and as I came in, John Green had his back turned, sorting mail by throwing it into a number of slots in a box that sat on a table. He heard me and turned around.
“Caleb Dillard! It’s so good to see you! Where have you been? Folks have been saying your whole family was dead, and you with them, but obviously I guess you aren’t. What about your family?”
“They’re fine, Fred.”
“Well, where have you been?”
“Laurel and little Caleb were kidnapped and I had to go after them. I had no choice.”
“Lord in Heaven, of course you didn’t. What sort of man would take someone’s family from them. I’m assuming it was a man.”
“In fact, they were taken twice by two different bands of men.”
“Two! One would have been one too many! I never heard of such! Where in the world were you when all this happened?”
“The first time, we were in Missouri, and the second, Tennessee.”
“What awful luck! What were you doing so far from home?”
“I’d rather not say specifically. I’ll just say that I thought we’d be in danger if we stated here.”
“And you ran into danger after you left. It seems there’s no place that’s safe these days, what with the war and all. Just knowing about it does funny things to people’s minds. I hear all kinds of stories. But you’re back safe and so is your family.”
“That’s right, we are.” I didn’t want to take the time to tell him about Hiram and Andrew. In our small town, he would find out soon enough.
“Listen, John,” I said, “I have to get back to her. I just stopped by to pick up my mail, if there is any and to get a few things from the store.”
“I’ve been keeping it back here. I’m supposed to return it after a certain time, and that time was up two weeks ago but I had a feeling you’d show up again. Here it is. There’s not too much of it.”
“That’s all right,” I said, taking the slim stack of envelopes from him. I looked through them. Most were from the army, wanting who knows what, and there was one from Alphonso that I put aside to read when I got home. The last one, however, stopped me cold. I recognized the handwriting on the envelope as that of Kathryn’s. I tore it open with shaking hands and read this:
I will find you or your family and it will not go well for any of you. Believe me. Setting your cabin on fire was only a beginning. Beware. You have made me very angry and all of you will pay for it in a dreadful way.
I read it over again. “John, when did this one come in?”
He thought for a second. “Last week, I think. Yes, that’s it. About four days ago.”
That meant that she had some idea of where I was. How she could have, I did not know, but it meant that, once again, I would have to be extra careful. I was growing tired of having to do that, and hoped the situation would come to an end, and quickly. I didn’t see how it could, but I could always pray for a change in my situation. I turned back to John.
“Nice seeing you, John. I’ll see you the next time I come into town.”
“I hope you will,” he said. “Folks around here are fond of you, so don’t go running off again any time soon, you hear?”
I laughed. “I won’t if I can help it.” I left the post office and went down to the mercantile. Fortunately there was no one I knew in there, either, and soon I gathered everything up on the list and brought it to the counter. “You need some help carrying that?” Peter Hill, the manager, looked over his glasses at me.
“I can manage it, Peter, but thank you for the offer.”
“You sure? I got a boy to help me here just recently. I know he’d like to get out of the store for a while, and he’ll be glad to help you.”
“Well, on second thought, maybe I will take some help. What’s the boy’s name?”
“Clinton Dailey. His dad runs the blacksmith shop.”
“I know him. He never talked about having a son, but then I never talked to him that much, so that’s not surprising.”
Peter chuckled. “Actually, he has five sons. Folks say he’s glad to come to his shop, between the boys and his wife. If you know what I mean.” He winked at me.
A boy about fourteen years old came down one of the aisles. “Clinton!” Peter called. “Help Mr. Dillard take his purchases home.”
“How far is it?” Clinton asked me.
“About three miles.”
“Aw, that’s not bad. Are these your boxes?”
“Yes. You take this one right here and I’ll take the other one.”
We picked up our baxes, walked out of the store and started down the street. “Are you in school, Clinton?”
“Yessir. I just finished eighth grade, but that’s as far as I can go around here. I’d like to continue and go someplace in Winchester if we can afford it.”
“What would you like to do?”
“I’d like to be a teacher or a minister.”
“Maybe my wife can help you with that. She used to be a teacher before we got married and had a son.”
“I’d like that. That would be very nice”
“You can meet her when you get to my place. She’ll be glad to see you. I should tell you, though, that, unfortunately, our cabin burned down when we were gone. I don’t want you to be shocked when you see it.”
“How’d that happen? Do you know?”
I didn’t want to upset him, so I said, “We weren’t there at the time, but it probably was a lightning strike. But we know we can rebuild it.”
“I’d like to help when I could. My dad says I’m good at building things like that. He can’t do it, even if he is a good blacksmith.”
“That would be wonderful if you would help us.. We’ll talk when we get to where I live.”
We talked easily about all manner of things as we walked along, and I thought how pleasant it was to be with this young man and to find out what he thought. Before I knew it, we came upon the rise beyond which my property lay. Maybe I should have said “home,” for that was where my family was. We topped the rise and started down the other side, and while we were aways off, Hiram saw us and waved. “Hello!” he called. “Come see what we’ve done.”
I was surprised to find that they taken up all the branches from the garden and had made a good start with cutting out the weeds. It wouldn’t take them that much longer to finish doing that. We came up to Hiram and Andrew. “I’m so pleased at what you’ve done!” I told them. “We can finish this shortly after lunch. This is wonderful!”
Andrew beamed. “Thank you, Caleb. And Hiram worked as hard as I do, even though he’s not as big as I am. I tell you, he is a wonder!”
Hiram looked down, embarrassed. Apparently, he was unused to such praise. It occurred to me that he had had much of it in his life.
I turned to Clinton. “Boys, I want you to meet Clinton. He wants to help us with the cabin, and he tells me that he is good at building such things.”
“Hello,” Hiram and Andrew said, more or less in unison. They weren’t much on the social niceties.
“Where’s Laurel?” I asked the two boys. “I need her to tell me what to do with what I bought.”
Hiram pointed to the edge of the clearing where I could see Laurel sitting with Caleb in her lap. “She’s over there with little Caleb. She’s trying to get him to sleep.”
“All right. I’ll leave the goods here and not disturb them for now. In the meantime, let’s keep working on the garden.”
With Clinton to help, we made more progress on the weeding than I had originally thought. We’ll finish before lunch, I thought, and then we can start doing some planting.
After bout half hour, Laurel came over to see us.
“Hello,” she said, looking at Clinton. “Who’s this?”
“It’s Clinton Dailey,” I said. “He’s one of the blacksmith’s sons.”
She shook Clinton’s hand and smiled. “Yes, I know of your father. Don’t you have four brothers?”
Clinton nodded. “Yes’m. And all younger than me. They give my mother a merry chase, as she likes to say.”
“I see.”
“Clinton’s going to help us with the cabin,” I said.
“That’s wonderful!”
“And he wants to go to Winchester and become either a teacher or a minister. I told him you would help him.”
“That’s very commendable. I’d be more than happy to help.”
“Thank you, m’am.”
“You’re welcome. Caleb.” She turned to me. “I’ll tell you where to put the things you bought if you’ll tell me where we’re going to rebuild the cabin.”
“In the same place, but it will be bigger. We can use the chimney since that wasn’t too badly damaged.”
“All right. I can carry something to the place, and I sure the boys want to help.”
“Oh, that reminds me . Wait a minute. I have something for these lads.”
The boys looked on curiously as I went through one of the boxes. I pulled out a bag and handed it to Hiram. “Take only one for now,” I told him.
“What is it?” He asked. Then he opened the bag and looked in. He wrinkled up his face. “What are these? “
Andrew came over and looked in. “You mean to tell me that you don’t know what peppermint drops are?”
“No. I never saw one before. They smell good, though.”
“They taste even better. Try one.” The two boys each took a drop out of the bag and put it in their mouths.
Hiram’s eyes grew big. “It’s so sweet and wonderful! I never tasted anything like this.”
I felt sorry for Hiram, who had apparently never had any candy of any kind, but I enjoyed watching his reaction.
Clinton took one next. All three boys sucked on the drops, closing their eyes at the sweetness. Apparently neither Clinton or Andrew had had much candy as well, so I was glad I’d gotten it for them.
Laurel smiled at the scene. “They certainly are enjoying the candy. I’m glad you got it for them.”
I smiled. “That’s exactly what I was thinking.”
Laurel looked over at me and asked, “Was there any mail?”
“Yes, there were some letters from the army and one from Alphonso. I haven’t read it yet. I wanted to save it.”
“That’s good. I’m glad you heard from him. I wonder what he’s doing now.”
“I’m sure he’ll write about that in the letter. Oh, and there’s one more letter. I’ll tell you about that message later.”
She looked at me with a puzzled expression, but said nothing. We walked a little way beyond where the boys were and I handed her Eleanor’s letter. She frowned when she saw the return address, but then read it quickly and looked up, stricken. “Oh, Caleb, when will we ever be rid of that diabolical woman? She’s always there, frightening us or worse. It was she who had our cabin burned, and I just don’t know what she will do next.”
I shook my head. “Neither do I. Her evil is beyond understand, but I want you to know that I will do everything in my power to keep you and our family safe. I lost you once for a space, and I never what to lose you again. Look, the lads are finished with their candy. Let’s go organized.”
We spend the rest of the day working on the shelter and the garden. Laurel fixed a wonderful dinner for us with Hiram’s help, whom she said was a remarkably good cook. “Where did he learn to do that, I wonder?”
“I don’t know for sure. Possibly from the ‘ladies’ who helped him.”
“You know, that makes sense. They had to eat as well, and there’s no reason to think they weren’t good at it.”
After supper, we relaxed by the fire, sitting under the shelter that the boys had built, talking and laughing. I looked around at their faces and thought, this is what I have missed so much. I am truly blessed. I can’t think of any place I’d rather be, or anyone else I’d rather be with.
Later, when all the young ones were asleep, Laurel sat beside me and I took her into my arms as we watched the fire die slowly. One thing led to another there, and then I led her to lie down where we had the sweetest consummation of our union I think we have ever had. I was happy beyond measure, even though, of course, I did not know what the morrow would bring.

Chapter Eight
Farther Along
June, 1863

We did come to a medium-sized town that evening, and asked around until we found someone who could tell us where the doctor’s office was to be found. When we came through the door, he looked as if he were starting to leave. He stood up. “I’m about to close. What do you folks need?”
I pointed to Hiram. “He broke his arm.”
“How’d he do that?”
“We were caught in a flash flood from the storm.”
“What in the world were you doing out in that?”
“We’re trying to get home.”
“I see.Where are you folks headed?” he asked.
“Near Winchester.”
He grunted. “You be careful. There’s a lot of troops from both sides in that area. Now let me have a look at this little fellow.
Hiram bristled at being called “little,” but he climbed on the examining table and let the doctor look at his arm.
“Who splinted this?”
“I did.”
He chuckled. “Obviously you had to improvise, but you did a good job. That worked to use a branch as a splint.”
“Thank you.”
“This is a simple fracture, so I’ll splint it with a real splint, and you can be on your way.”
He worked quickly and soon said, “There you go! Better than new. Does it hurt?”
Hiram shook his head.
“Off you go, then. I’m headed home to eat. Would you folks like to have dinner with us?”
Laurel looked at me, and I shook my head. “That’s a most generous offer, but we have food and are eager to be on our way.”
“Suit yourself. If you ever come back through this way, I hope you’ll take me up on my offer.”
“We will,” I said, thinking that we would never see him again. He was too far from Winchester for that to happen. “Say, I didn’t catch your name.”
He chuckled. “That’s because I never told you. I’m Simon Reed, M.D., but you already knew that.”
“I’m Caleb Dillard,” I said, “and this is my wife Laurel, our son Caleb in her arms, and these two fellows are Hiram and Andrew.”
“Is Hiram the one with the broken arm?”
“Oh—sorry I should have told you before. Yes, he is.”
Reed went over to Hiram. “Next time you’re in a flood, remember to stay out of trees.”
He laughed, but Hiram just looked at him. He didn’t seem to find it funny.
I paid the doctor, and we watched him go off down the street.
“I’m exhausted by all we’ve been through,” I said to Laurel. “I’d like to sleep in a real bed tonight, so if this place has a hotel, what if we rent some rooms?”
“I think that’s a wonderful idea,” Laurel answered. “I’m tired too.”
“We’ll do that. We need to clean up as well.”
We found the hotel and went in. From the way the desk clerk looked at us, we must have looked like something that got dragged through the mud, which we had, after all.
“I’d like two rooms for the night,” I told the man.
“And baths?” he asked, no doubt thinking of his clean sheets.
“Certainly,” I said. “We wouldn’t want to get your beds dirty.”
He put the keys to the rooms on the counter. “Bathroom’s down the hall, and check-out time is 10 AM.”
“We’ll be gone before that. Thank you.”
“Thank you for staying here. Have a good night.” I went with Andrew and Hiram into their room.
“Wow! Look at this!” Andrew cried. “I’ve never been in a hotel room before! It’s so nice!”
His enthusiasm made we wonder what the house his parents had was like. Hiram said nothing, but I knew he had never been in a hotel. He lay down on the bed and fell asleep.
“Let him sleep,” I whispered. “We’ll go out to eat in about an hour, and I’ll call both of you then.”
Andrew nodded. “All right. And thank you for letting us stay here.”
“I’d say we earned it, wouldn’t you?”
Andrew grinned, and I went out, going down the hall to the room Laurel, Caleb and I would share.
I found Laurel sitting in a chair in the room, watching Caleb fall asleep on one of the beds. “That’s what I want to do,” I whispered.
“So do I,” she answered, standing up, and pulling me by my hands over to the other bed. We lay on it, embracing and kissing each other.
“I still can’t believe you held on to Caleb during the flood,” I said, looking in her face.
“I had to do it. It were as if God reached down and gave me strength.”
“And as you said, a mother’s love is strong, and that love enabled you to do what you did.”
We were silent for a while, and then she said, “Do you think we’ll make it home?”
“I do. Do you think we won’t?”
“I don’t know. I was sure of it until the flood came.”
“That’s not likely to happen again. The storm was really unusual.”
“But there are other dangers.”
“There are always dangers, but we all have each other, and that will allow us to make it through.”
“I certainly hope so. I know you said you wanted to sleep, but stop talking now and kiss me.”
And I did.
***
The next morning, we gathered in the hall outside our rooms, carrying everything we needed to.
“Did you two sleep well?” I asked Andrew and Hiram.
“Yessir! Just great! Best night’s sleep I’ve ever had!” Andrew was obviously enthusiastic about his stay.
“And you, Hiram, did you sleep well?”
He nodded and said nothing. I was starting to think that he would only communicate with nods. That was better than shakes of his head, I supposed.
We went downstairs and put our keys on the counter. The desk clerk heard us and came out. “You folks sleep all right?” he asked.
“Yes, we did,” I answered, speaking for Hiram.
“Well, that’s good.”
“Would you tell us where we could eat some breakfast?”
He thought a moment. “There’s a boarding house about three blocks down. That’s where you want eat. You’ll come to a saloon before you reach that, but don’t eat there. Several people in town have had food poisoning after they ate there.”
“Thanks for the warning. Good-bye.”
“Good-bye. You folks be careful, now, or at least more careful than you’ve been before.”
We laughed at that, all except Hiram, who put on a sour look. Apparently he found breaking his arm was a sobering experience, and I supposed I didn’t blame him.
We ate quickly, and we set off, glad to make an early start, heartened by our stay and anticipating being home relatively soon as compared to the time we’d been away..
The weather was fine after the storm of the day before, and we made good progress. We stopped for lunch in an area of the mountain where there were large crags. We could see for miles from our vantage point, and I thought how beautiful this area was. I loved it through all the seasons, but I was glad we did not have to push our way through snow as some no doubt had had to.
We had almost finished lunch when Hiram sat up. “I hear something.”
Knowing that his hearing was better than that of the rest of us combined, I asked, “What does it sound like?”
“Grunting. But it’s not a person. It’s some kind of wild animal, and it sounds like it’s mad.”
How he could tell the animal was mad, I didn’t know, but when he said that, I knew what it was. “It’s a wild boar!” I said. “Everyone, get on top of the biggest rock you can find! Hurry! Quickly!”
We scrambled to climb up on the rocks, although Andrew moved more slowly than the rest of us, for some reason. His rock was further away, so it was from my vantage point on top of my rock I saw a gray blur coming toward him. “Andrew! Look out!” I called, but it was too late. The boar was upon Andrew, slashing at him with its tusks again and again.
I was frozen for a moment. My rifle was with our supplies, and I couldn’t get to it without endangering myself. I decided to take a risk and slid down the rock, skinning my hands and tearing the seat of my pants although they were made of a heavy material. I didn’t realize I had done either until later.
I dropped to the ground and ran over to where my rifle was. All this time the boar was busy with Andrew, having taken him down and goring him all over. He could die from loss of blood if I didn’t do something quickly.
I ran over to where my rifle was, checked to make sure it was loaded, and tried to train it on the madly charging animal. “Shoot!” Andrew shouted. “Shoot! Please!”
Of course, I had to wait until I had a clear shot, and it seemed like hours until I had finally had one, although I’m sure it was only a matter of a few seconds. I squeezed the trigger, and saw my first shot go into the animal’s abdomen. It squealed with pain and rage and turned, looking for its tormentor. It saw me and charged. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Hiram sliding down from his rock and coming over to Andrew. Hiram pulled him up onto a small rock with amazing strength for someone so small. I wasn’t sure they would be safe there from the boar for long. I shot the animal again. This time, as it was coming on, I caught him in the shoulder. He staggered and lurched, but recovered himself and kept coming toward me. At least he wasn’t coming for the boys, I thought, which was good since they weren’t armed..
I had heard that boars were notoriously difficult to bring down, particularly if they are enraged, and this one certainly must have been one of the hardest. He covered the distance between us far faster than I would have believed. All at once he was on me. I held up the rifle to try to keep him off me, and watched as he hit it with his head and fell to the ground. He seemed dazed, and that gave me time to raise my rifle and shoot him again. He moved just as I did so, and while I intended to shoot him in the head, the shot hit him in the other shoulder. He shook that off and leaped at me again. I ducked, and he missed me, sliding to a stop on the rocky ground still squealing with rage and frustration.
“Hit him in the head!” Andrew shouted. Apparently he had seen this sort of thing before or had hunted boar, but I wondered if he realized that was exactly what I was trying to do. A shot to the head would surely take care of him, I thought.
I chambered a round and got off a quick shot. This time the bullet did hit him in the head. I watched it as it exploded. The animal, finally, after a hard fight, was dead. A welcome silence descended on us.
“That was some shooting!” Hiram exclaimed. “I didn’t know you could handle a rifle like that!
“I wouldn’t say that,” I told him. “If you noticed, I had to shoot him four times before I finally got him.”
“I’ve heard of people using more shots,” Hiram said, leaving me to wonder how he knew that, unless there were boars along the wharves where he came from, which I doubted. But he did say ‘heard of’ and not ‘saw,’ so maybe somehow he knew what he was talking about . In any case, he was certainly a mystery.
The others climbed down from their rocks. Laurel handed Caleb to Hiram, came over to me and embraced me. “You amaze me,” she said. “Boars are so hard to bring down.”
“It seems like everyone thinks so. It was my first, and I’m glad I could kill him before he hurt any of us, but it was close. Come on, we need to see about Andrew.” I went over to him and checked his wounds. They didn’t look that considering what damage a boar could do.
“Laurel, tear one of your slips into about inch wide strips. We’ll use them to bind his wounds. They’re not very deep. We’ll have to get some whiskey to pour on them to prevent infection.”
The others watched as I bound Andrew’s wounds. “Did you learn to do that in the army?” Laurel asked.”
I nodded. “Yes. I had too many opportunities to do this.”
“War must be so awful,”
“It is,” I said grimly.
I finished with Andrew and put my hand on his shoulder. “Can you walk?” I asked him.
“I think I so, but I’ll probably need someone to help me.”
“Hiram and I can do that. We’ll switch off.” Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Hiram nod his approval of my plan.
“Don’t forget me. I can help as well,” Laurel said.
“Oh, of course. I’m sorry I didn’t think of using you for this, but that’s good. It’ll make it easier on all of us.”
I helped Andrew to his feet, and so we set out again, headed for the next town, wounded, dirty, tired, but still standing—and walking, I thought. Thank God for all that. Thank God.

Chapter Seven
Tales of the Flood
June, 1863

I opened my eyes. I hurt all over and there was no sound at all, and I wondered if I had gone completely deaf. Then I heard the flood rumbling somewhere below us, and suddenly the memory of what had happened rushed in on me.
I was lying in a tangle of limbs and dirt, and I didn’t know how I was going to extricate myself. I tested my arms and legs further, and they didn’t seem to be broken, at least not as far as I could tell. I could see, and my hearing returned bit by bit. That’s a blessing, I thought. That was very good. I looked around for the others, but didn’t see anyone for the piles of debris that dotted the mountainside. That was surely one mighty flood, I thought, but I knew that I would have to get out from where I was and call them.
With a mighty effort, I wriggled my way out of the pile, falling to the ground where I lay for a few minutes to recover my strength. Then I gingerly stood up. Checking myself all over, I noticed I had scrapes in every possible place. I hadn’t felt them because I was occupied with getting out and finding the others. That was most important. The scrapes didn’t hurt too badly right then, but I knew they would be much, much worse later.
I looked all around me and called, “Laurel! Andrew! Hiram! Where are you?”
After first no one answered me, but then I heard a weak voice say, “Over here, Caleb,”
“Where? I can’t see you,” I said. “Who is it?”
“It’s Hiram. Walk toward the sound of my voice. I’m stuck in a tree right behind you. I’ll need your help to pull me out. I can’t move.”
I walked slowly toward the voice, intent on finding whoever was speaking. There was so much clutter between me and him, I was no more than ten feet away from a fallen tree when I saw Hiram lodged in some of the branches. He looked about like I did, but he was holding his arm as if it hurt him.
“Hiram! Let me get you out of there!”
“Careful with my arm! I think it’s broken.”
“I’ll be careful. Don’t worry.”
I worked to free him from the branches. Like me, I did so with some difficulty. Then I had him sit down on a rock. I could tell just by looking at his arm that it was broken. I had seen several of those in the army.
“Are you in a lot of pain?” I asked him.
He nodded, unable to speak from the pain.
“After we find the others, we’ve got to get you to a doctor. There’s probably one in the next town we’ll come to. It’s a pretty good size. In the meantime, I’ll splint it as best I can after we find them. Can you walk?”
He nodded again, grimacing and bearing his teeth. I knew if he were doing that, it must have been painful indeed, since Hiram didn’t show much emotion or reaction to pain in general..
“Good. Let’s walk over here and I’ll have you lie down in a clear spot. Then I’ll walk around and call for the others.”
I gently lowered him to the ground at a place not too far off and then I started walking back and forth in ever widening arcs as best I could with all the branches in my way. I would also see if I could find a blanket for Hiram if I could, but it was going to be slow going.
“Andrew!” I called. “Laurel! Caleb!”
After about ten minutes, Hiram called over to me. “I think I heard someone calling you.” It was good that the pain apparently had eased enough that he could talk.
I went over to where he was and listened. The voice was faint, but I could tell it belonged to a young man. “That has to be Andrew,” I said. “Andrew! It’s Caleb! Keep talking! I’ll come over to you.”
I followed the sound of his voice until we saw that he was, like Hiram, stuck in a tree. I worked to pull the branches away from him, and finally moved enough of them that he could climb down the trunk. When he got close enough, I put out my hand and helped him the rest of the way.
“Are you injured?” I asked him.
He shook his head. “No injuries, thank God, but I’m sore and a little dizzy. I guess that’s to be expected after you’ve been thrown about in a flood.”
“I would say so. Now you rest here for a moment and when you feel like it, then you can help me find Laurel and Caleb.”
“Where’s Hiram?” Andrew asked.
“I found him, but I think he has a broken arm. He’s down the slope a bit, lying down. He was really shaken up.”
“I’m sure he is. I know how I feel, and I don’t have a broken arm.”
“True. I’m going to look for Laurel and Caleb now.”
“I hope they’re all right.”
“So do I. I’m going to look upslope for them. Join me when you’re ready.”
“I will. Good luck.”
“Thanks.” I left him and moved up the slope, pushing limbs out of the way and clambering over fallen trees and started calling for Laurel, hoping she could hear me. I had to move very slowly, so it took me a while to cover any distance at all. After about five minutes, Hiram said, “I hear a woman over here.” It turned out that he had found both of them, possibly because he was younger and his hearing better. And they were down the slope from where he was, so I had been going the wrong way.
I came back down toward Hiram, went past him, and came upon Laurel standing on a branch high in a tree.
“Laurel!” I called. “Are you injured? Is little Caleb all right?”
“No, Caleb. I’m all right. Thank God I’m all right.”
I noticed she had something in her arms. “Is it Caleb?”
She turned her bundle toward us. “Yes, it’s little Caleb. And he seems to be unharmed.”
I was amazed. “I’m so glad! How on earth did you hold onto him during the flood?”
She regarded me with determination. “I knew that a mother’s love is stronger than anything, and that thought gave me the strength to hold onto him. I just held him the whole time, and he didn’t make a sound. He’s a brave little boy.”
I felt my eyes tear up for a moment. Laurel had done what none of us could do, I thought, and because of her, our son was alive. It was a miracle of love, and I thanked God for it.

Chapter Six
For Better and Worse
June, 1863

I thought it would take us another six days to our place near Winchester. The distance was shorter than other legs of the trip, but we would have to climb some pretty good elevations.
About six hours out of Lynchburg, I loved over toward the west and noticed some heavy dark clouds gathering on the horizon. “Look!” I called. We’re going to have a gully washer! We’d better find shelter! Look for a cave or overhang among the rocks! Hurry!”
We looked, but try as we might, the best we could do was a small overhang that wouldn’t do much to protect us from the elements. We needed more, much, much more. We would have to build something, and quickly.
“Laurel, you stay here with Caleb. Hiram, Andrew, you come with me! We’re going to build a lean-to.” I had had a lot of experience building things with wood through the years since I lived on a farm, and the other two fell in with me and started felling small trees using their big knives. I found four trees equidistant from each other in a rough square that look like they would serve to anchor the rest of the construction. “We’ll use these to tie the poles to that will hold the roof,” I told them. Then we’ll put some other branches across and secure some pieces of bark to form a roof. It will leak some, but that will be better than being in a downpour. It’ll keep the worst of the rain off us.”
We hurried around, hacking at trees like madmen. When we had all the timber we needed, we secured the poles we had cut to the four trees I had found, and then placed more poles across the first ones. Lastly, we put pieces of bark on those poles. We had the lean-to put together in short order, much more quickly than I would have thought possible.. I looked back up at the clouds. “I think we will have just enough time to move everything in here. Hiram, run back to where we were quickly, and tell Laurel the shelter is done. And both of you carry as much as you can. We’ll be coming right after you and take the rest!”
Hiram took off at a run, as I had told him, and we followed more slowly. We met the other three as we were coming up to where they had been.
“Caleb, do you think this will keep the rain off?” Laurel looked worried.
“I’ve made a number of these and been in them in all kinds of weather. You’ll have to trust me.”
She looked in her eyes. “I do. And you’re a wonderful man.”
“Thank you, my love. I married a wonderful woman.”
They kept going down the mountain, and we toiled our way up to the overhang, stopping for a moment when we got there to catch our breath. We quickly grabbed all we would need in both arms, leaving the rest under the overhang. It would be all right there, and we would retrieve it after the storm. We hurried back down to the shelter, nearly falling several times in our haste to find Laurel and Hiram organizing what we had. We put what we had carried down the mountain where Laurel told us to. “That goes here, Andrew, and Caleb, you put that over there.” She knew exactly where each item needed to be.
I looked back up at the clouds building behind the mountain. As I watched, they spilled over the top and came down toward us. “Here it comes!” I shouted. “Hurry! Everybody in the center of the shelter. Hold on!”
I had spent a lot of time outdoors and witnessed so many storms, but this one coming up looked to be the worst once I had seen. The clouds were so black they looked blue, and they seemed to have a depth to them. The lightning flashed and the thunder boomed, sounding more like artillery than a natural occurrence. Then I heard a roaring, and I hoped it was not a tornado.
When the rain came, we could not see much beyond the edge of the shelter. The rest of the world disappeared not far from where we stood. A wind tore fiercely at the structure, and a few small limbs from the top flew away.
“Is this going to hold?” Andrew asked. “This is such a terrible storm.” I could barely hear him for the noise.
I shook my head. “I don’t know. I’ve never been in a storm like this. I hope we won’t be struck by lightning or wash away. And I think I might have heard a tornado.”
“Oh, I hope not,” Laurel said, and, although I could not hear what she said after that, I could tell she was praying. I bowed my head and joined her.
“Lord, we know that you are mightier than any storm. We pray that your mighty power will guard and protect us. That is what we ask for, Lord, in our time of need. These things I pray in the name of Jesus. Amen.”
I looked around when I had finished, and saw Andrew and Hiram were praying as well. I had thought Hiram was not religious, but maybe this would cause him to make a start on becoming so. I hoped so, anyhow.
In my experience, most strong storms like the one we were in had lasted fifteen minutes at the most, but this storm raged with the same intensityfor half an hour without showing signs of stopping.
Then, suddenly, it finally began to let up, so we could relax and let go of the trees we were holding.
“I’m glad that’s over,” Laurel said.
“As am I,” Andrew answered.
“And we’re all in one piece,” I added.
“Wait,” Hiram cautioned. “What’s that sound?”
A low rumbling came from the mountain above us, and I knew in an instant what it was. “Flash flood! It sounds like a big one!” I cried. “Get in a tree, as high as you can go, quickly!”
Hiram and Andrew would not need any help to scale any tree quickly, but Laurel had little Caleb, with her, and so climbed a tree would be more difficult for her. “Come over here!” I shouted, motioning her to two trees that were close together. “I’ll go up first and brace myself on one tree. When I’m fixed, then hand Caleb to me. After you climb above me on the other side, I’ll pass Caleb back to you, and we’ll work our way up that way. This is the only way we can do this. Let’s go!”
We went up as best we could in that fashion, which was harder than I thought it would be. Finally, after some struggle, we were at least 20 feet above the ground. The sound of the flood had grown so that we couldn’t hear each other at all.I hoped that wouldn’t affect our attempt. I kept motioning with my head to Laurel to go up! Up! Up! Go up, I kept urging her. And she responded, struggling mightily to take Caleb from me and then giving him back when I had climbed above her.
We had reached about 30 feet when the flood struck in all its fury. I looked over at it just after I had passed Caleb back to Laura. The water stood like a moving wall, 30 to 40 feet high, and I just knew we were going to be overpowered by it in only a few scant seconds. I looked at Laurel and found her eyes that I had looked into so many times before. “I love you,” I mouthed and then the dirty brown wall laden with rocks and branches struck and I knew no more.

Chapter Five
Northern Journey
June, 1863

Two days later, we were walking on a trail somewhere north of Chattanooga, bound for Lynchburg. We had bid farewell to Anderson, thanking for all he did for us. “Come back,” he cried as we left. “We’ll take another boat! Only this one will have treasure! Be well, me hearties!”
As we walked away from his, Laurel said, “My heavens but does he become excited.”
I looked at her. “He doesn’t have much that he can look forward to. This little adventure we had with him was probably the most excitement he had had since the War of 1812. All he does now is go up and down the same river. He didn’t have anything to distract him until we came along. And did we do that! And freed you and Caleb in the bargain. I’m about excited as Anderson is about that.”
Laurel smiled at me. “You really are wonderful, you know. You describe a situation in which you might have been killed as an ‘adventure.’ I just can’t get over you.” She shook her head.
“You don’t have to,” I said. I’ll be right there.
My plan was for all of us to walk north and see if we could return to our home near Winchester, if it were still there. I hope and prayed mightily that it might be.
We had gathered quite a little band in the chase to find Laurel and bring her back—Laurel, little Caleb, Andrew, Hiram, and of course me. We had asked Captain Anderson if he wanted to join us, but he refused. “I’m an old river boatman now,” he said, “and I need to be on the water. Thankee, though. You gave this old man the most excitement I’ve had in years.”
“Aren’t you afraid of what the Guard might do to you if you stay on the water?”
“It sounds strange, but I don’t think I would live very long if I left it, so it’s death one way or the other, a quick death or a slow one. And, of course, we all must die. I know that.”
I hadn’t expected to hear this bit of theology from the old man, but I said, “Thank you for throwing in with us. We wouldn’t have been able to free Laurel were it not for you.”
He smiled and his eye twinkled. “It was an adventure, wasn’t it? Now good luck to ye, and if we don’t meet on this earth, we’ll meet in heaven.”
“We hope to see you again.”
We all embraced him when we left, all except Hiram, who probably had done something he was afraid Anderson would remember and hold against him. Anderson turned to the boy. “Aren’t you going to give your old friend Captain Anderson a hug?”
Hiram frowned. “After everything I’ve done to you?”
“Aw, come on. That’s all forgotten now. Everyone else hugged me. Why shouldn’t you?”
“Well,” Hiram said, “All right.” He ended up hugging Anderson, but he wouldn’t tell us anything he might have done to him.
And so we set out. I figured we would move more slowly with Laurel and little Caleb with us, so I took that into my calculations. Hiram was an unknown quantity, but I was willing to bet he was quick. I had seen that during the fight. All told, I thought it would take us five or six days of good steady walking to reach Lynchburg. Compared to the amount of time we had been traveling since we first left our cabin, which seemed so long ago, six days on the road didn’t seem like much. I knew we could do it.
This part of the trip was easier since we didn’t have to shoot game for our food. I had grown heartily tired of venison and squirrel and rabbit when Andrew made his discovery of the coins in his coat lining. Although having that much cash made us liable to being robbed or having it stolen, we could buy food at some of the stores in the little towns we passed through. To lessen the impact of any theft or robbery, I distributed the coins among the Andrew, Hiram, Laurel and me. That should do the trick, I thought.
We did make it to Lynchburg in just over five days after all, and went to one of the larger emporiums in the city to stock up on what we needed. As we waited at the counter for the grocer to gather what we had ordered, I overheard a tall, thin fellow, apparently a peddler, talking with the proprietor of the store. “Yes, I’ve been on this route for five years now, and it’s the same towns in the same order.”
“People have gotten to know you,” the owner said.
“That can be both good and bad. Why, when I was in Chattanooga, I heard of one of the riverboat captains being killed.”
My blood froze, and I was afraid to ask the question I wanted to for fear of what I would hear. I stepped up to the counter. “Excuse me, sir, but we’ve just come from Chattanooga and might know the captain you just spoke of.”
He regarded me with interest, sizing me up. He apparently trusted few people. “There are a lot of captains on the river,” he said. “What makes you think you know him?”
“We were on one of those riverboats and got to know the captain. Do you know the name of the man who was killed? We grew to be quite fond of him.”
The peddler shook his head. “I do not. What I heard was that he was killed by the Home Guard because of theft or injury to several of the Guards. The person who told me wasn’t clear, even when I asked for more details. He only knew so much.”
It was Captain Anderson, I thought. It had to be. And he got his wish about dying on the river. He did what he did for us.
I went back to our group. “Caleb, you look like you’ve seen a ghost,” Laurel said. “What’s wrong.”
I took in a deep breath. There was nothing to do but tell them outright. “Captain Anderson has been killed by the Home Guard. I was afraid that that would happen.”
Laurel started crying, while the others stared at the floor. I was surprised to see the Hiram wiped away a tear. “Mommy, why are you crying?” little Caleb asked.
Laurel wiped her eyes. “Mommy is sad, just like you’re sad sometimes.”
He went over and she caught him up in her arms. “I’m sorry you’re sad. What can I do to make you happy?”
Laurel had to smile at that. “Just be my little boy. Do you think you could do that?”
“That’s easy. I’m your little Caleb.”
“That you are, and I thank God for that.”
The others were affected as well. “I’m thinking of what he did for us,” Andrew murmured, staring straight ahead..
“I know,” I said. “I am, too.I feel like he sacrificed himself for us. I wish there was something we could do to remember him, but he didn’t have a family.”
“I can’t think of anything either,” Andrew answered.
“We’ll have to think of something. Maybe you’d have some ideas, Hiram.”
“I can’t think right now,” the boy said. “I’m too sad. I treated him so badly until this adventure and then he forgave me. I don’t understand that.”
“I don’t think any of us understands something like that, unless it’s love that makes us forgive each other in spite of what has happened.”
He shook his head. “I’m sorry. I just don’t understand it.”
“We’ll talk about it some more later, and we’ll think more about what we can do in memory of Captain Anderson later on. In the meantime, let’s get our supplies and keep going.”
We divided up all we had, gathered it up and set out again, although our steps were heavier, and there was none of the joking and talk that had been characteristic of our trip since we had left Anderson waving to us on his boat. And so we walked on, one step after another, wondering what the future would bring.

Chapter Four
Prepare for Boarding
May, 1863

I somehow managed not to run us aground during the hour I had the tiller by keeping us in the middle of the river, as instructed. Anderson came back up to take the helm from me. “I see we’re still in the wet part!” he exclaimed.
“Yes, but only by the grace of God.” Actually, compared to some other things I had had to do, sitting there in the sunlight and seeing the natural beauty all around me, I found it rather relaxing in spite of the situation we were in. And I would need all the relaxation I could get, given what lay ahead of us. I prayed that all would turn out well.
I went back on the deck to where Hiram and Andrew lay asleep, both of them snoring, and, perhaps inspired by their example, or just worn out by our adventures in the past several months, I lay down. It felt good no longer to be on my feet, and I soon joined them in slumber.
***
“Up! Up! Up!”
Someone was shouting somewhere. I opened one eye to see Anderson standing over me. “We’re getting close! Get up and get ready!To arms! Or, as the French say, “Aux armes! Aux armes!” He winked at me. “They were our allies in the big war.”
I wonder what he thinks the present war is, I thought, and I struggled to sit up. Judging from the sun, I had been out for over four hours. I certainly was tired, but I had to get up quickly since we were drawing near to the other boat.
Anderson came over and handed me a rifle. Then something occurred to me. “Who’s steering?”
He laughed. “That little wharf rat. He’s an amazing little fellow. He can barely reach the wheel, but he’s doing a good job. I don’t see how he sees, but he does. I’d better watch out or he’ll lead a mutiny and take over the vessel!” He laughed some more at that and then said, “I wasn’t sure he would know how to use a rifle, but he says he has a slingshot and a supply of stones. I suppose that was good enough for David, so it should be good enough for us.”
“I believe it will be,” I said.
Andrew had been awakened by the clamor and sat up, groggy-eyed. “What’s going on?” he slurred sleepily.
“We’re almost on the brigands!” Anderson shouted. “Here’s your rifle!” He thrust it at Andrew, who took it and regarded it quizzically. He looked up at Anderson.
“What’s a ‘brigand,’?” he asked.
“Them what are on the other boats are brigands of the greatest degree. We will give them horrible deaths!”
It occurred to me that it was too bad Anderson was not in the army. H e certainlyhad the fire for it.
Now that Andrew and I were awake, Anderson said, “I pray all of ye will be good shots. In fact, I’m depending on it! I’m going back to take the helm. Line up on the starboard side. I’ll tell ye when to fire.”
We continued to make our way down the waterway, and about fifteen minutes later, we came around a bend and saw the other boat ranging about 500 yards ahead of us. “I don’t know what they’ll think of us,” Anderson called. “There’s no way to tell that. They’ll see that we’re with the company, which we are, but our coming the other way might make them suspicious. We’ll find out in a few minutes, but we need to be cautious.”
My stomach knotted as we crept closer and closer. I had tried to avoid fighting for a while now, but I would do anything to have Laurel and Caleb back, so I was willing to jump into this fray with everything I had. The three of us knelt behind the railing, holding our guns down so as to have the element of surprise on our side. Anderson called out, “Steady…steady…steady…that’s it. When I give the command to fire, kneel behind the railing, take your best shot and then drop down again Keep doing that but make sure you do so at irregular intervals so they can’t time their shots. Do you all understand?”
“Yes,” I said, and the others nodded. We kept our positions huddled behind the railing, awaiting his order to fire.
I could see there was one person in the wheel house of the other boat, the captain I assumed, and as I watched, he hailed Anderson. “Captain Anderson!” he called, “Yer going the wrong way! Is something wrong?”
“Aye, Captain Hughes. I have a sick crew member, and he fell ill when Chattanooga was the nearer of the two cities. I pray he doesn’t have the cholera, although it looks like it.”
“We’ll steer well clear of ye, then. God be with all of you.” He crossed himself.
“Thankee, Captain. Do you have any unusual passengers?”
“Aye. There’s a woman and a boy on board, and I have an idea they don’t want to be with the men who brought them on board.”
“I see.” Anderson took his Colt from his belt and fired a single shot into the air. “That’ll get ‘em up here,” he said.
He was right. Four of the Home Guard came bounding up the ladder, rifles held ready. I guessed one of them stayed behind with Laurel and Caleb. One of the guards dropped his rifle and went over to a small cannon I had not noticed before on the bow of the ship and shoved a charge down the barrel, followed by a cannonball. He lit a match and lowered it to the vent. We hadn’t counted on this.
“Fire!” screamed Anderson, and we let loose. Andrew was unaccustomed to rifles, and his first shot went high.
“Lower, Andrew,” I called. “You’re shooting high. Be sure to aim.”
We were concentrating on the man at the cannon, allowing the others to shoot at us without distraction.
“Fer God’s sake,” Anderson. “Don’t shoot at just one man! Take the others! Take the others!”
Hiram whirled his slingshot around and loosed a rock that struck the cannoneer in the head. He went down.
I remember this battle as salvo upon salvo aimed at the men on the other boat. All was confusion, but we managed to disperse our shots as Anderson ordered, and soon had the other three down. I did not know if they were killed or wounded, but they would not impede us further.
“We have them, boys! Prepare to board!” Anderson seemed to relish this action on the water. It reminded him of his actions during the war, I am sure. We were fortunate that he had such experience because he knew exactly what to do.
We jumped on the deck of the other boat. Hughes, who had hidden behind the railing of the wheel house, poked his head up, white as a sheet. Apparently he was unaccustomed to such actions. “They’re on the first deck down,” he called. “That is if he hasn’t moved them.”
“Anyone else on board?” Anderson asked.
Hughes shook his head. “They took over the boat. There was nothing I could do since they were armed and I wasn’t near my gun.”
“Do you know where on the deck that are?” Anderson looked grim.
Hughes shook his head. “They could be anywhere, or not even on the deck, as I told ye.”
“All right. We’ll have to trust to luck to get this done. I don’t like that, but we have no choice.” Anderson. He looked at me. “You have the most experience with this sort of thing, and you also have two dogs in this fight, so you lead the way. Tell us what to do.”
I thought quickly and said, “Do your best to keep to the sides of the ladder, and when you reach the deck, drop down and try to find the man holding her. Then shoot him.” I did not think it was necessary to add that, but I wanted to be sure they knew what I wanted. “Do you understand?”
They all nodded and I said, “Andrew, you follow me, and then Hiram. You’ll have to move fast!” I looked at Hiram. “Nice shot on the cannon, boy.”
Hiram grinned. “I usually kill rats. This was a much bigger target, so it was easy.”
I didn’t want to ask him what he did with the rats. Some things I don’t want to hear about.
I asked the boys, “Are you ready?”
“Ready!” they called, and I jumped for the ladder more sliding down the sides rather than using the rungs. It was totally dark below decks, and my eyes were assaulted by a blast of light. They Guard was shooting at me, but the muzzle flash told me where to point my gun. I fired, and heard someone shout with pain. In the brief light that my gun provided, I had seen the Guard holding Laurel by the arm, blood running from his arm. It looked like I only grazed him, and I had taken the chance that I might hit Laurel by firing blind. I would have to be more careful, if that were possible.
I dropped to the deck and rolled over behind a box. Andrew and Hiram piled in, so it was three against one. I liked those odds.
“Drop your guns,” the Guard shouted, “Or I’ll shoot her! I swear I will!”
I answered by firing another shot in his direction and had the satisfaction of hearing him scream. It was another hit, but I didn’t know how badly he was wounded. I decided that I would have to go to him and take him down. I had been lucky with two shots, and I didn’t want to risk another.
“Cover me!” I whispered to the boys. “I’m going to tackle him!” I gathered my strength and then launched myself through the space between us. As I did so, it occurred to me I hadn’t seen Caleb. Of course, there was little light. I could only pray that Laurel had put him some place safe, although I didn’t know where that would be.
I was expecting to grab the Guard by his arms, but I only slammed into the side of the hull. I had missed him! I lay there, trying to recover from the blow I had received. I heard Laurel scream, and the Guard shouted, “I know you can’t see me! I have your wife by the arm and I’ll kill her unless you stop!”
“Caleb, do as he says.” It was Laurel’s voice. “I’ve seen them do some things to people that are too horrible to describe. He will kill me in an instant unless all of you put down your guns.”
I had no choice. I knew that when we dropped our weapons, he certainly would kill all of us. It was my fault for trying to take Laurel and Caleb back by force but I was blinded by my need to have her with me. Then I thought, I had now choice. There were no other options open to me
I dropped my rifle, and Andrew followed suit. I heard his weapon clatter on the deck. I wondered where Hiram was since I hadn’t heard anything from him since the attack started.
“All right,” said the Guard. “You shot me, and now it’s my turn to shoot you, but I’m a better shot than you are, and I can see you well. You’d better say your prayers!”
Oddly enough, I was doing just that, praying that God would make my death as painless as it could be and asking forgiveness for all the wrong things I had done. I prayed quickly, and then I closed my eyes and waited for the final shot.
Instead, I heard the Guard cry out and fall to the deck. I immediately leaped on him, as did Andrew. We soon had him down, and Hiram found some rope so we could tie him up with since our eyes had finally accustomed themselves to what little light there was. We bound him as securely as we could, and then Laurel fell into my arms, and I was overjoyed to feel the warmth of her beautiful body.
“I have missed you so much, my dear love, and now you have saved me from these awful men.”
“These brave lads and the captain helped me,” I said. “But where is Caleb?”
“I left him asleep in one of the cabins, with I doubt he is still so with all this commotion. He has been a brave lad during his captivity.”
“I want to see him as soon as possible, but first I knew I had to ask Hiram something.” I turned to him and said, “Did you do something to bring him down?”
“Yep. Used my slingshot.” This had truly been a David and Goliath situation.
“Thank you so much. I owe you everything.”
“I’d be glad to take it, but I don’t have any place to put it.”
We laughed at that, but the Guard snarled, “There are more like me, and it will go badly for you when they hear of what has happened.”
“I’ll worry about that when it happens. If it happens.” I said that confidently, perhaps with more confidence than I felt.
“Halloo below decks! Are ye well?” It was Captain Anderson.
“We have the brigand tied up, Captain. It’s safe to come down now.”
He clambered down the ladder, moving gingerly since his eyes had not accustomed themselves to the dim light. He looked around. “I can’t see ye well, but I’m glad all of ye are safe. For a moment there, from what I heard, I thought you were all dead. That was a horrible feeling, all right.”
“We’re fine, Captain, thanks to Hiram and his slingshot.”
“Well, I never heard of such a thing. What do you think of that?” He turned to Hiram. “You’re a brave lad, and maybe this makes up for some of the awful things you’ve done in the past.”
I thought, I don’t want to know what Hiram has done in the past. I only know that without him we would all be dead.
“We all owe our lives to Hiram,” I said. “I’m glad I ‘hired’ him to go with us.”
“I was glad to do it,” Hiram answered. “I think I need a bonus for what I did.”
“We’ll talk about that later. Right now we need to get moving.”
Captain Anderson looked at me. “What do we do now?”
“I’ll need your approval for this, but I think we should leave this desperado tied up on the boat. Someone might find him before he starves or bleeds to death, but I hope not. That sounds cruel, but I’m sure he has done some terrible things as well.”
“I’ll show you some more terrible things when I get loose from this.” The Guard gave all of us a look of pure hatred.”
“I doubt you’ll get loose from those bonds. And if you do, we’re all armed now and you’re not>” Anderson spoke confidently.
“My comrades will be looking for me when I don’t show up in Chattanooga in a couple of hours, and then they will come looking for you, and we are numerous!” The Guard spat out these words, and I had no doubt there would be more like him as he said. We would have to hurry to get away from him and his fellows, I thought, but we would have no problem doing that.
I ignored what the Guard said, and continued to speak to Anderson. “If you’d take us to Chattanooga, we’d be much obliged, Captain. You can take Hiram back with you, if that’s what you want to do. And what he would like.”
We all turned toward Hiram. “I’d like to come with you,” he said, smiling, one of the few smiles I had seen from him. “I never have had a real family.”
Laurel came over and took him in her arms. “You saved all of us. Of course you can come with us.”
“It’s settled, then, I said. On to Chattanooga!”
Laurel went and fetched Caleb, and I had a joyous reunion with him. As we climbed the ladder to return to our boat, I thought, I bet not many men are as lucky—and as blessed as I am. I hope we can continue to be lucky, I thought, but I am certain we will continue to be blessed. That much I am sure of.

Chapter Three
Take the Hindmost
May, 1863

As we steamed down the river, I still marveled at how fast we were going. The trees and fields on either side seemed to blur, although I knew that was because of my lack of experience with such speed. They were in reality the same as they always had been. Of course, I was used to boats either rowed or carried by the current, and since we were moving downstream, the efforts of the engine were added to those of the river itself. That was wonderful, since our velocity meant we would catch up with the boat carrying Laurel more quickly. I kept having that thought, but I could not keep myself from it. And what we would do when we came upon them, I do not know. I would have to think of something, but I knew I was determined to have her back, no matter what it took on my part and whatever it cost me.
With the boat underway and Anderson commanding, there was little to do until we encountered the other boat. Andrew and Hiram came to me from their stations, and we sat on the deck together. Hiram, still kept a sharp lookout for anything that might be a danger to us. I found myself still curious about the boy.
“You say you don’t have any parents. What happened to them?”
“I don’t know. I never saw them.”
“How could that be? You had to have been around them at some point, or someone must have told you about them.”
He looked at me sternly. “I came to awareness when I was about three, on the wharf. No parents, no home, no nothing.”
“How did you survive?”
“Some ladies who lived near the docks took some small care of me and made sure I didn’t starve. It was the most they could do, given their station They also taught me to talk, but that was about it. They were too busy to teach me to read and write.”
“What was their occupation?”
“You have seen enough of the world to know what women do whole live near the docks and wharves of the world.”
“Ah, yes I do.” I thought for a minute and then said “So you don’t’ read or write?”
“I know a few letters, and I can recognize words by their shapes, if I’ve seen them enough, but otherwise, that’s all it amounts to.”
“It’s remarkable you’ve survived. How do you eat?”
He shrugged again. “Sometimes people give me what they don’t want. It’s amazing what they throw away. Other times I simply take it.”
“You steal food, then.”
“That’s what it’s called. It’s either that or starve.”
“Why did you come with us? You didn’t have to put yourself in danger. There’s no sense in it!””
“I like a good fight, and I have a feeling that’s what this one is going to be, for sure, like none I’ve ever seen before. I’ve been in plenty of fights, but it was with other wharf rats, and it was with fists or sticks or rocks. I’ve never fought where there were guns involved.”
“It’s an entirely different matter. Here’s some advice: try not to get shot.”
“I gather that’s the general idea. I’ll do my best”
“Anyhow, I appreciate your help more than you’ll ever know.”
“Yes, well, you’re missing your wife and son, so you don’t have a family right now, and I never had a family, so we’re alike, except you’ll get your wife back.”
‘You sound certain of that.”
“I know certain things. It might sound odd, but I think it’s a gift given me to make up for not having a family.”
“I surely hope you’re right. It would be wonderful if you were.”
“I know I’m right. You can count on it.” With that, he lay down on the boards of the deck, pulled his hat over his eyes and fell asleep.
“I wish I could do that,” Andrew said softly. “I’m really nervous about what’s going to happen.”
“That just shows you have some sense, but you heard Hiram. Nothing’s going to happen, and we’re going to have Laurel and Caleb back and all go home.”
“Yes, to your home. I don’t have a home or family any more.”
What Andrew said caught me up short. It had never occurred to me that he, like Hiram, was an orphan. Except now their little band was a kind of family with me.
Andrew looked doubtful about our chances in the upcoming fight. “I wonder. There’s six of them and they’re all men. We have you and me and a kid and an old sailor and someone who’s not right. I’d say those are not very good odds.at all”
“Yes, well, it’s funny, but I really do believe Hiram when he says he has a gift. There were people near where we lived who had that, and they were almost always right.”
“You said ‘almost.’ It seems to me that leaves room for doubt.”
“You can doubt if you want to. I choose to believe.”
Andrew lay down and pulled his hat over his face, “I choose to have a nap,” he said from underneath the brim. And that’s how he finished out discussion about the fight.
I knew I should have tried to try to rest before the upcoming encounter, but I went back to the wheelhouse where I found Anderson relaxed and whistling a tune I did not recognize.
“You’re awfully happy,” I told him.
“Yes, the thought of seeing some action takes me back to when I was a lad. It’s exciting.”
“What song were you whistling when I came in?”
“It’s ‘Buffalo Gals.” Have you ever heard of it?”
I shook my head. “Can’t say as I have.”
“We’ll have to work on your knowledge of music. It’s sorely lacking.”
“Maybe we can do that later, if we have time. How long do you think it will take us to catch up to them?”
He studied the shoreline, I suppose to gain an idea of our speed, and then he said, “I’d say about five hours. Plenty of time to get ready.”
“Do you have a plan? Because I know I surely don’t.”
He nodded. “I do. We carry about ten rifles, in case of trouble. I take it you know how to use one.”
I nodded and he smiled. “Yes, a man your age would be in the military on one side or another. I won’t ask you which. It doesn’t matter to me.”
“Actually, I’ve been on both sides. And in the Confederate navy.”
“Now, that sounds like quite a story. You’ll have to tell it to me some time when this is over.. After we rescue your wife, I mean.”
“Yes, yes. So what do you intend on doing?”
He seemed lost in thought for a minute or so, and then he said. “I figure we can come up on them in the middle of the river and rake them with rifle fire to try to force them into the shallows with the idea that they’ll run hard aground.”
“All right. And then what do we do?”
“We board her and it’s every man for himself. That’s the dangerous part.”
“You know I don’t want my wife or son hurt.”
“I can’t guarantee anything at all. If you want her back, you’ll have to take that risk.”
“Yes, I suppose do. Say, you still have a military mind, don’t you?”
He smiled. “Yes, I do. It’s been years and years, but there are some things you never ever forget. Say, would you mind steering for a while? I’m not as young as I used to be, and we left my second in command back in town.”
“Surely I can do that.”
“Here you go. It’s pretty simple. Do you think you could keep it between the banks in the wet part? Ha, ha, ha! That’s good! ‘Keep it between the banks in the wet part!’ I am so amusing, even if I do say so.”
He went over to the hatch and disappeared down the ladder, probably to take a nap, I thought. He was different, but I was glad he was on my side.
Steering down the center of the river with the sun out and the temperature balmy, I had a chance to think for the first time in a while. I did not know what we would do once Laurel and Caleb were freed. There seemed to be no good options that I could see, but maybe Anderson knew what he was talking about. If he didn’t, something would turn up.

Chapter Two
Wilderness
May, 1863

I plunged the rusty can into the murky water in the bottom of our boat and tossed it over the side and then did that again and again without letup. We had been underway for about two hours without seeing anything or anyone on the river or on the banks either.
“It’s about my turn now,” Andrew began and then said, “I think we’re coming up on the first place Murphy told us about.”
I would be glad to take the easier task. “You mean Kingston?” I asked. How can you tell?”
“I see smoke over to the right, and that’s usually a sign of disaster or civilization, either one.”
“They’re about the same thing these days,” I said. “But I think you’re right. So keep on rowing, but be alert for anything that looks like a place where boats come in.”
“You can do the looking,” Andrew countered. “Like I told you, it’s time to switch.”
“Oh. You’re right. I should have known that.
We exchanged places, and as we went around a bend came upon what had to be the town, although it didn’t look like much. The buildings by the river looked like Murphy’s place with their aged, unpainted wood, except there were more of them. The riverfront proper extended for about a hundred yards, and we only saw one steamer tied up. I had no way of knowing if it were the boat that Laurel were taken on, but there was only one way to find out. I hoped it was her boat, but doubted that we had caught up with a steamboat with our need to bail and row at the same time. So we came up to the dock and tied up. I couldn’t see anyone around.
The dock was built for larger boats, and we couldn’t see any way to climb up to it. We sat there for a moment.
“So, what are we going to do?” Andrew asked.
“We need to get up on the dock, and unless you have a rope or have learned to fly recently, we’ll have to wait until someone comes along to help us out. At the very least we can ask when this boat came in. That will tell us if Laurel is on it.”
“I hope she is. I guess we have no choice but to wait.”
“We’ll see. I’m afraid we will have to wait. I’ll try to think of a way to get up there.”
Try as hard as I might, I couldn’t think of any way to get up on the wharf, so we sat there for fifteen minutes, and then I decided this couldn’t be Laurel’s boat, and so we started to make ready to go down the river again. “We might as well keep going,” I told Andrew. “No one’s here, I guess. Get ready to keep going.”
Andrew started to push us off, and I prepared to pull on the oars when a head appeared above the wharf. It was that of a boy about twelve years old. “Hello!” he called. “Who are you?” He looked at us curiously.
“Some travelers in need of assistance. Will you help us?”
He wrinkled his nose. “I meant what are your names? I asked you that already.”
I was irritated to think he wanted our names, wasting time while Laurel went further and further down the river, but I pushed down my ire and said, “I am Caleb and this is Andrew.”
“I’m Hiram. Where are you from?”
“Virginia.”
“What are you doing here?”
“Looking for my wife. She’s on a boat like the one tied up at the dock. When did it come in?”
“About two hours ago.”
I turned to Andrew. “That has to be her boat!” I went back to Hiram. “Can you find a rope or something you can use to help us get up there?”
“How much will you give me?” He grinned mischievously.
I sighed. “A dollar.” We could afford it, and I really wanted to get up to the boat. I wonder if he made a lot of money from travelers this way.
“Wait there,” he said, and disappeared.
As if we were going to go any place, I thought, but I said, “We’ll be here when you get back.”
Andrew made a face. “Isn’t that obvious that we’ll be here?” he asked.
“Well, it is, but I wanted to say something to him after he asked our names and wanted money. He was wasting our time.
Hiram came back in about a minute with a short ladder that looked as doubtful as the buildings along the wharf. I hope it’ll hold, I thought. I held up my arms to take the ladder.
“The money first,” he insisted. “You don’t pay, you don’t get the ladder.”
I sighed and lowered my arms. “Andrew, throw him up a dollar coin.” He rummaged in his pocket and tossed the coin up. Hiram grabbed it and clamped down on it with his teeth.
“It’s real.”
“I can never be too sure. I’m thinking of the kind of people I have to deal with.”
“Are you always this difficult, Hiram?”
He shrugged. “I have to be. It’s a difficult life.”
“I’m sure. Now please put the ladder down.”
“All right. Here it comes. Watch out for splinters.”
“So now you’re concerned for my safety.”
“You bet. I might make some more off you.”
And you’re quite the philistine, I thought, but said nothing. He lowered the ladder, while I made sure I had my revolver. “Andrew, you stay here. This shouldn’t take long.” I had no idea how long it would take, but I felt I had to say something.
“All right, Caleb. Be careful.”
“I will.”
I clambered up the ladder and took off running toward the ship. Hiram ran with me. He was surprisingly fast for someone who has such short legs.
“Don’t come with me,” I said. “This might get dangerous. I don’t want you getting hurt.”
“Are you a robber?”
“No, but I was robbed. I have to get my wife back.”
“I think you’re a robber.”
“Think what you want. You’ll see what’s happening.”
Hiram matched me step for step, and as we drew near the ship, we saw a man in a grayish uniform that didn’t look like a soldier’s wear standing at the rail we came up to. “Hello there!” I called, and I saw the uniform was that of a captain of ship. We were in luck. I hoped.
“Good afternoon to you, sir. Captain Anderson of the Tennessee River Steamboat Lines at your service. How may I help you?”
“My name is Caleb Dillard and the young man I am with is named Andrew. I have a question for you. Did you get in about two hours ago from Chattanooga?”
He pushed his hat back on his head. “Aye, it’s for certain we came in about eleven, but we are headed the other way.”
I felt my heart sink. This was not the boat Laurel was on. He saw my look and said, “Is there something on the other boat you wish to see? We passed her about an hour ago, headed downstream.”
“Yes,” I said wearily. “My wife was taken from me and is on that boat.”
“Oh! I am so sorry. I fear I cannot help you since I have to keep to my schedule or else suffer for it. The company is quite strict about these matters.”
“Thank you for the information.” I started to walk off, and then thought of something. I turned back to Anderson. “Captain, how much would it cost to hire your boat long enough to catch up with the other one?”
Anderson considered for a moment. “I’m not sure I would do it for any price. The consequences to me would be dire. I see that you are armed, and suspect that those you took your wife are as well. Your encountering them would result in a dangerous situation that I want no part of. I’ve grown too old for armed confrontations, so I’m sorry, sir, but you’ll have to find another way. I wish I could help you.”
A great sadness overtook me, followed almost instantly by rage at this development. Something changed deep within me, and I drew my gun and held it on Anderson. He held up his hands.
“Now hold on a minute there, fellow. You be careful with that thing. Someone might get hurt if you don’t put it down.”
I held the gun steady. “I’m desperate enough that I don’t care if I’m careful with it or not. You will take us down river or I will do it myself, if it comes to that, and if you catch my meaning. I will give you a fair price and endeavor to be sure no harm will come to you if you will cooperate with me.” I turned to Hiram, who stood open-mouthed at these developments. “Hiram, go tell Andrew to get up here and bring our supplies. We’re going down river!”
“Can I go, too?” He looked eager.
“No. It’s too dangerous. You might get hurt. What would your parents say?”
“I don’t have any parents.”
I was incredulous. “You don’t have any parents? How can that be? ” I looked at Anderson for confirmation.
“He doesn’t,” He said. He’s what we call a wharf rat who hangs around the docks and tries to get money by any means from people who are passing through.”
I grimaced. “Yes, I know about that. Again, tell me how could he not have parents?”
Anderson chuckled. “That’s what we say, but what we mean is that he never knew who his parents were. They left him in the care of others.”
“Relatives, I assume?”
Anderson shuffled his feet and lookeduncomfortable. “Not exactly. I can’t explain it now.” A look came over his face and he shouted, “We need to get going! Speed is of the essence. Damn the Guard! Full speed ahead!”
The old man was certainly becoming agitated about the matter. I was shocked that he had changed his mind so quickly, and wondered what had caused that. I would surely find out later.
I turned back to Hiram. “You can go with us, but it will be dangerous. Do you understand that you might be hurt or killed.?”
Hiram nodded. “Yessir. How much will you pay me?” I had to smile at the idea that, as serious as the situation might become, he was focused on how much he was going to make out of the experience.
“How about a dollar a day, collectible when this is over, if you’re still alive? Is that fair?”
“No. I got a dollar for bringing you the ladder. And that wasn’t dangerous. I want five dollars.”
“No. Those are the wages for a working man for a week. I’ll give you two. As I was involved in this exchange, I thought, Laurel and Caleb are getting farther and farther away, and I’m standing here arguing about what to pay a twelve-year-old. I never thought I would do that.
“I want four.”
“I’ll go to three. Final offer.”
“Three-fifty.”
I gave in. “All right, I’ll do it. It’s still too much.”
“I’m glad you saw the light. That’s fair enough,” he said. “And I’ll be alive when all this is over!” he exclaimed, and ran off to fetch Andrew.
I went back to Anderson. “Can you get this boat underway by yourself, or will we have to wait for the crew to return? I hoped we would be able to get underway with just Anderson and the three of us.”
“Well—” he hesitated and thought for a moment. “The crew’s all gone into town, and I hope they don’t get drunk. They’re the worse bunch I’ve ever had for that. There is the stoker, Brenner, who’s down below. He’s not entirely right in the head, so we make him stay on the boat for his safety—and that of the towns. It takes someone like him to put up with shoveling coal endlessly. It’s a boring, thankless job, but he doesn’t’ know the difference, so it’s a good job for him.”
“In that case, can you and Brenner get this thing going?”
“No, we can’t. Not by ourselves. You and the boys will have to help, but I’ll tell you what to do.”
“We can do that, but can we trust you to take us in the right direction?”
“Just a minute,” Anderson said, and a different sort of look came into his eyes. “I have something in my cabin I want to show you.”
He went back to his cabin before I could say or do anything. I was thinking this was another delay and that Anderson could run off or alert someone, but he came back shortly with what looked to be an old naval officer’s sword hanging from his belt and equally ancient hat that might have fit him years before. Instead, it just perched on his head. He tried to pull the hat further on his head, without much success. He then gave me a salute, which I returned by reflex. “Former Ensign Arthur W. Anderson reporting for duty, sir! What are your orders?”
I was so surprised, I couldn’t say anything, but stood there with my mouth open. I looked over at Andrew and Hiram, and they had the exact same expression. We’re going to catch some flies, I thought, if we keep standing here like this.
I finally recovered and asked Anderson, “You were in the Navy?”
“Yessir. I was a midshipman first, under the command of Captain David Porter of the Essex out of New York in the summer of 1812, right at the beginning of the war. The whole crew was greenhorns, like me, but we soon learned what we were about and what we needed to do when we ran up again our first British ship. We gave them Britons a right hard time, capturing ten of their vessels during that campaign. And during one of those engagements, I saved the Captain’s life, and he promoted me to ensign! Right on the spot! I couldn’t believe it! I served the whole war, but on different ships as one after another either sank or was captured. I thought I was jinxed. I sure was lucky to be alive when it all ended.”
For a while I could think of nothing to say about this. Finally I recovered my wits and said, “That’s a remarkable story.”
“I’d say it is.”
I looked at him and asked, “With all you’ve just said and done, are you declaring with us, then?”
“I surely am! I cannot bear scoundrels, and anyone who would take a man’s wife is the worst of all scoundrels in the world. I was the handiest of men with sword and pistol both, and I pray that I still am.”
“Do you think you still are?”
“I do believe it, but there’s only one way to find out, isn’t there? Engage the enemy board to board and face to face to see who comes out the better. Now let me ask you another question. From the way you returned my salute without thinking, I surmise that you are a member of the military.”
“I am. I was.”
“What do you mean by that?”
“I was in the army.”
“For which side?”
“Both. It’s quite a long story that we don’t have time for now.”
He made a face. “We will have to untangle the mystery of your military career at a later date. I suspect it is an interesting one, full of twists and turns. Now we must be about it!”
“First, I must ask one more question. What will the owners of your boat say about your putting in with us? Will you be in serious trouble?”
Anderson swore a colorful oath that reddened Andrew’s face, cursing all owners of enterprises and wealthy men back to Noah and then forward again. “I say hang the owners if they do not see the necessity of what I do. And they would be hard pressed to replace me. It should be obvious to you that an old man such as I am is the last resort of any employer. There would be none to come after me since those who are able are in the war, with the apparent exception of yourself, who has other matters to attend to, or so I believe. I believe I have them right where I want them. Damn them all if they don’t understand!”
His swell of words made me dizzy, but I said, “Well, you are a fine and brave man, Ensign!”
“Hardly! I’m just an old sea dog who hopes he has one more fight left in him. But let’s get to it! Brenner! Brenner! Brenner, I say! Topside! And hurry!”
We heard someone dragging up the ladder, and then a rail-thin man came into view. He was two heads taller than I am, and I am considered to be above the normal in height. I might have met a taller man before, but I don’t think so. How he shoveled coal or chunked wood or whatever they used to make steam was beyond me because he seemed so frail. His arms and legs were extremely thin, and I wondered if he got enough to eat or what he ate or how much. He must have been able to do his duties, or he would not have been in the station he was in, although more than likely the steamboat company was desperate for anyone who could do the job. I don’t know.
“Yessss, Captain,” he half croaked, half hissed. He had an odd way of speaking, as well. I could not place his accent, and finally decided it was a combination of several, and such that I could not tell from whence he came. All that didn’t matter: he would be part of the effort to return Laurel to me. “What is it you require?” he asked. He looked more ancient than Anderson, if that was possible.
Anderson let fly with a volley of oaths this time, and Andrew looked as if he wanted to be any place but where he was. I am used to such language from the army, although I do not hold with it myself, but I was amused at Andrew’s reaction. He was receiving an education of a different sort since he had come to be with us. Hiram made no sign that I could take note of, giving me to think he had been around plenty of people with foul tongues and minds, some of whom no doubt raised him. He was used to it, and simply stood there, not speaking.
“What in the blazes (a term which he most decidedly did not use) do you think I ‘require’? I require you to do your job, your poor excuse for a sea monkey, and do it quickly! Now off with you!” He unloosed a further stream of invective, which had no visible effect on the gaunt fellow before us.
Brenner blinked slowly and said, “Aye aye, Captain.” Then he slowly turned and made his way back down below. A few seconds later, we could hear the scrape and clang of metal on some hard substance from there. I supposed the poor old Brenner was indeed, somehow, shoveling coal. I would have liked to seen him at work, but I had more important things to attend to.
We all followed Anderson to the pilot house, but he turned on us and cursed us soundly again. I do not know if he was in the habit of doing that, or if he was excited by the prospect of military action. “Do you suppose that you can do your part sitting in here?” he asked.” By the gods and all that’s holy, get to your stations!”
At least he didn’t curse us with that, I thought. We stood there, not knowing what to do. I had served aboard a ship, but that one had sails. I had no experience with this sort of vessel.
“Excuse me, Captain,” Andrew said. “I think we don’t know what to do!”
The Captain struck his forehead with his hand. “What a bunch of lubbers are ye! Go on! One of ye to the front to cast off, one to the back to do the same, and you, Mr. Dillard, or whatever your name really is, watch for errant vessels or other obstacles marine, terrestrial and celestial! Step lively, now!”
I had to smile at the idea that anything could come from the sky, save cannon shot, but he must have seen my expression and said, “Don’t be smilin’ there, mister. I once was aboard a ship that was nearly hit by a meteor! It sizzled as it came toward us, but missed the tops’l by a good three fathoms, if my reckoning was correct. It caused a huge splash and a towering cloud of steam. The cloud that the Children of Israel followed must have looked the same. I bet the fishes were surprised. Or parboiled! Hah! But I don’t know that even seein’ it in time would have helped us much. A good twenty feet lower and we would have joined the fish in their fricassee. But enough talk! Cast off fore! Cast off aft! And keep a sharp eye for all manner of things and creations, Mr. Dillard! You know where to look now!”
I found myself smiling again at the way Anderson keep telling us we had to get moving while he made some other comment or told another story. But he had finally gotten down to business.
By this time Brenner had gotten steam up, and Anderson put the wheel over smartly, setting us on a course from the dock to the center of the river. Anderson pulled on the whistle, three long blasts of sounds that rattled my teeth as I was so close to that infernal machine. Anderson laughed madly. “It’s just a little noise!” he called. “We’ll see and hear much worse before this day is over!”
He advanced the engine telegraph to “Full ahead,” and it felt like we were flying on the water. Since we had been on rafts and rowboats, any greater speed seemed more than it was. But I was glad of it. It meant I would have Laurel back sooner.
At the same time, I thought, what have I gotten myself into? Then I thought again, if this crazy menagerie can give me my Laurel back, I am for it. I would sail with the Devil and all his imps to have my wife back at my side. Inspired by this line of thinking, I shouted, “Course on! And the Devil take the hindmost!”
I could see Anderson’s open mouth and hear his laughter over both whistle and engine. My time in the navy was not particularly pleasant, but I could hear myself think under those circumstances. Still, it would be worth a little noise if it enabled me to be with my Laurel again.

Chapter One
Keeping On
April, 1863

I turned from the river where I last looked at Laurel and had my last sight of her for a while. I felt the deep sadness of the loss, as if my heart would break. At the same time I felt and intense and glowing anger toward the men who had taken her. I would catch up with them, and it would not go well for those who had kidnapped her and Caleb.
As I meditated on these emotions, Andrew cried, “Look! Over there! “There’s a building, further down river.”
I looked and, being intent on trying to get my shot earlier, had not noticed what looked like a trading post of some sort, and, I surmised, a depot for steam ships. “Let’s go see if they might have any formation on where the Guard might be taking Laurel. It’s worth a try. Come on!”
We made our way up to the building, which was made of weather beaten boards that looked like they had never had a coat of paint. Some of them had pulled loose completely, and others hung by a single nail so that a strong wind would pull them off entirely. The dock was likewise in bad repair with what looked like rotten and missing boards. It also looked as if it had never had any maintenance. “Careful how you step,” I told Andrew. “Some of these board might be rotten.”
“Don’t worry,” he replied. “I have no desire to take a swim. Besides, I don’t know how to.”
“You really ought to,” I told him. “It might save your life someday.”
“Next chance I have, I will. I don’t know when that will be, though.
Andrew and I picked our way to the door and went in, stumbling on some of the planks that had worked their way loose. I don’t know what else I would have expected, I thought. There’s nothing that has been done for a long time both inside and out. I couldn’t see anything for a moment because of the beams of sunlight coming through a grimy window right into my eyes. When I recovered myself and could see, I noticed a short man with bright red hair wearing an apron standing there. “Hello there,” he said. “What can I do for you?”
I wanted to tell him he needed to fix his building before someone was drowned or killed by a fall, but then I saw cans of food and some other things we might need. “I need to pick up some supplies,” I said, “but I want to find out about that boat that just left. Do you know where it’s going?”
He thought a minute. “Well, let’s see, it’s Tuesday, so that boat is going to Kingston, and then on to Knoxville.”
“Did you see a group of men with a woman and child get on the boat?”
“Yes, I did.”
“Do you know who the men were?”
“Yessir, they were the Home Guard, and judging from your questions, you have a decided interest in that situation, but I’ll tell you right now you want absolutely nothing to do with them. They’d as soon shoot you as look at you. Or maybe shoot you before they had a good look at you. It’s all the same to them.”
“I figured as much, but the interest I have is that the woman is my wife and the boy my son. They were taken from me and I want to get them back!”
He blinked and looked down. “In that case, God bless you sir. He is the only One who can help you now. No one around here is going to stand up to the Guard.”
“Is there a sheriff in these parts? Somewhere close?”
“The law? You just saw the law around here take off with your wife and boy a few minutes ago. If you have plans to follow them, and I hope you don’t and if you wanted to do something about that situation, you would need a dozen or so well-trained soldiers, but again, all the soldiers anywhere near here are on that boat. I wish I could give you better news, but I’m just telling you how things are. I can’t change them.”
“Well, thank you for that information. I will tell you what I want from you.”
He indicated what he had on the shelves and in the bins, and I had him put some cans and other supplies into a sack, and Andrew paid him with some of the same money he had discovered at the worst possible time. “I’m sorry I distracted you when you were taking your shot,” he said. “That let them escape with Laurel, but I got so excited, knowing we were short on cash and awfully tired of eating dried venison.”
“What’s done is done and we can’t change it,” I told him. “We’ll catch up to them. I just know we will.”
The storekeeper put his hands on the counter. “I wish someone would do something about the Guard. They don’t care who they hurt, and folks around here are tired of the war and everything connected to it. More good people have been killed than I care to think of, and that’s just awful. Awful, I tell you! Since you seem determined to get your wife and son back, I want you to be careful. I don’t want to hear about another shooting.” He shook his head. “We’ve had too many deaths already.”
“We’ll be careful,” I said. “Thanks for the supplies and the information.”
“Can ask you a question?” he asked.
“Certainly. Go ahead.”
“If you don’t mind my asking, what’s a healthy young fellow like you doing down here away from all the armies and battles?”
“Trying to get my wife back.”
“I know that much.” He looked at the counter. “Let me rephrase my question. Why aren’t you in the army?”
That was blunt enough, I thought, and I hesitated for a bit.I then decided that, given the way he felt about the Guard, I could probably trust him. “My wife and son and I were trying to get away from the war.”
“And the army.”
“Yes. And the army.”
“Which side were you on?”
“Both.”
“Both? How’d you manage that?”
I sighed. “It’s complicated. Let’s just say that I was in the Virginia militia, but then I was captured and forced to take on the identity of a Union lieutenant.”
“You’re right. It is complicated. But you’re a deserter right now.”
“That’s one name for it. A man trying to keep his family safe is another. I knew my family was going to be killed if I didn’t cooperate with a certain woman.”
Cooperate how? Cause you to break your wedding vows?”
I shook my head. “No, no, no! I was to spy for the South.”
“So? There are a lot of spies.”
“I was to assume the identity of a Union soldier, the woman’s brother, who looked like me.”
“I see. So you have been a traitor to both sides.”
“I never thought of it that way, but yes, and that is why I took off, taking my family with me.”
The storekeeper lifted his chin toward Andrew. “What about him?”
“We ran across him when he had been separated from his family. We never found them.”
“So you were traveling with a woman, a child, and an orphan.”
“That’s right.”
“Forgive me for saying so, but you were just asking for any of them to be kidnapped. That was risk to begin with.”
“I can’t help what happened now. What’s done is done, and I just want to find my family and have them back.”
“Well, I wish you well, although you’re going to need more than my good wishes to do anything about your situation.”
“I have prayed to God to help me.”
“That’s fine if you believe in God.”
“You don’t?”
He shook his head. “I’ve seen too many cruelties in this world to believe. If there were a good and loving God, he wouldn’t have let your wife and son be taken.”
“God didn’t take them. Men did, and men can be evil and sinful.” Had I not been so pressed to find Laurel, I would have debated the matter with him further. Adolphus would have loved such an argument, but I didn’t have the time right then.
“I’m sorry you don’t believe, but we have to be on our way.”
“In spite of what I said, I wish you well. I also hope I helped you somehow. Good-bye, now.”
We bade him good-bye, picked up our supplies and started out the door. Suddenly I turned back and asked, “When is the next boat?”
“Not until tomorrow about this time.”
I thought for a moment, and then said, “Do you know of a boat we might borrow?”
He looked at me for a while and then said, “I have a little rowboat you can use. I hope you’ll be able to bring it back, but if you don’t, I don’t care. It’s old and leaky and you’ll have to bail as much as you row. You’re fortunate there are two of you. A man alone would either go nowhere or drown. Those would be his choices, but you won’t have to decide on that. It’s yours id you want it.”
“Yes, we’ll use it. Thank you kindly for the offer.”
We went outside with him following us and showed us to the boat in question, tied to one of the pilings and hidden under the dock. He was right about its condition. The wood looked like that of the building, and I couldn’t see how it managed to stay afloat.
The store owner helped us get into the boat and then handed us our bag. He stooped over and picked up a can and handed it to Andrew. “You might as well start with this,” he said. “You’re already taking on water.”
Andrew took the can from him and started bailing, while I unshipped the oars and started pulling for the middle of the river.
“Good-bye! I hope you get your wife and son back,” the man called.
“We hope we’ll see you again,” I returned. Then something occurred to me. I shouted louder, “Say, I don’t know your name.”
We were nearing the middle of the river again and it was becoming difficult to hear him, but I think I heard him shout, “Murphy! My name is Murphy!” It was hard to tell, but I think that’s what he said.
Figures that he’d be an Irishman, I thought, and called back. “Mine is Dillard,” and then I knew he wouldn’t hear anything further that I said, so I couldn’t say anything more to him. I turned to Andrew.
“We’ll switch off every fifteen minutes or so. I have the easier job since we’re going with the current.”
“All right.” Andrew grunted with his exertions, dipping the can into the water in the bottom of the boat and throwing it in the river.
I looked down the broad expanse of river as if I might see my family. I’m coming to get you, Laurel, I thought. You have to know that. I’ll catch up with the boat and free you and Caleb from those dastards. With that, I pulled even harder on the oars accelerating our pace.