Defiant Hearts Read online

  Laura put small helpings on her plate: chicken with dumplings, green peas from a jar, stewed tomatoes from a can, and freshbaked biscuits with peach preserves and butter. During these difficult days, the chickens were locked in a new pen in the barn to prevent their theft, after being allowed to scratch and exercise during the day and under Alvus’s watchful eye.

  After eating for a few minutes and sipping coffee, Laura said, “I can hardly believe President Lincoln and General Grant are allowing Sherman, Sheridan, and Butler to do such horrible things as I read in the newspapers, even in the name of war.”

  Jayce lowered his fork. “The South is doing terrible things, too, my love, but it’s kept from the public.”

  Laura realized Jayce’s response almost matched the one Ben had given to her weeks ago. There was something she needed to know about him, so she gazed at him and asked, “Would you, could you, obey such an order?”

  “No, I’d have to be court-martialed and punished for defiance first.”

  Elated by his answer, Laura smiled and worked on her meal for a while before asking, “Is it awful where you are?”

  “War is awful anyplace, Laura, but let’s not talk about it tonight. Our time together is too short to spend on miserable subjects.” And I despise having to deceive you about what I do and where I go.

  “You’re right. Every time you leave, I fear I’ll never see you again. But every time you return, it’s as if no time has passed since our last meeting.” Laura gave a dreamy sigh. “This is so nice. It’s as if we’re locked away safely and peacefully from the rest of the world.”

  He caressed her cheek. “And we will be one day, I promise.”

  “Where?” she asked, eager to discuss their future.

  Jayce swallowed his coffee. “We’ll have to decide that later.”

  “You mean, after we see what happens with the country?”

  Jayce nodded. “It’s likely neither Virginia nor Missouri will be good places to settle down and raise a family or offer the right kind of work for me. There’s a lot of devastation everywhere in the South and where I’m from, and I can’t say for sure what things will be like in either state after the war.”

  Laura finished chewing her biscuit. “What kind of work do you like to do?”

  “I enjoy doing lots of things, but I haven’t had time to give it much thought lately. I want something that will keep me close to home, that’s for sure.”

  “No more adventurous roaming and dangerous challenges?”

  Jayce chuckled. “That kind of life no longer appeals to me. I’ll have a wife, children, and home to protect, so I can’t go far away from them. Besides, I’m getting too old to take risks.”

  “Thirty isn’t old, my beloved husband-to-be.” Husband, how glorious that word sounded, Mrs. Jayce Storm…

  Jayce rested his hands on either side of his empty plate. “But I might not be thirty when this infernal war ends. It’s costing us a lot of precious time together. Maybe that’s selfish, but it’s the truth. Now that I’ve found the woman I want, I’m ready to settle down.”

  “So am I, Jayce, so I hope it ends soon.” After he gave a loud and deep sigh, Laura clasped his hand and asked, “What’s wrong?”

  Jayce knew the fighting would go on for at least another few months. He also knew he could be slain in battle, executed, or imprisoned; if any of those things happened, he would lose Laura and that tormented him. “We said we weren’t going to talk about war, but it creeps into every conversation because it’s controlling our lives. I’m sorry, my love.”

  “There’s one place where we can ignore its reality and the horrors you face every day,” she hinted, rising from her chair. “I’ll clean this up later,” she said, motioning to the table. “Come with me, my beloved, and let us pleasure each other.”

  Laura saw his cheeks flush and his eyes brighten with agreement. He was trying to appear calm, perhaps to assauge her fears and worries, but she sensed his tension. He stood and grasped her outstretched hand, and she led him to the bedroom door and said, “I’ll join you in a moment or two.” She entered the water closet to prepare herself for a few hours of safe lovemaking…

  After she cast off her one garment and slippers and joined him, Jayce watched her tease soft fingertips over his arm as he relented to her potent allure. It was as if every inch of him had sprouted greedy fingers which were reaching for her, craving to touch her, ravenous to feed on her body.

  Laura lifted her hand and moved aside a stray lock of black hair from his forehead, brushing her fingers against his flesh as she did so. She loved and needed him without reservation, and she prayed nothing would come along to steal him from her arms and life, from her future at his side.

  He could see the passion in her eyes. “I love you, Laura, more than I ever thought possible to love and need a woman. I would die for you.”

  Laura knew she wanted this man with every fiber of her being. Right or wrong, she must have him. She slipped one leg over his hips and sat across him, their groins touching intimately, erotically, their combined heat enormous. Her hands cupped his strong jawline before she bent over and kissed him.

  Jayce’s senses whirled. His arms banded her waist and pressed her chest against his as his lips feasted in hot abandonment. He spread kisses over her face and the soft column of her throat before she pulled away slightly, still straddling him. As she rubbed her feminine region against his stiff erection, he ached to enter her, but he delayed that action. His deft fingers quivered as they kneaded full breasts before he nestled his face between them. His mouth wandered over each luscious mound and his lips teased at both pinnacles in turn as his hands caressed her sleek back and fondled her firm buttocks. He had no choice except to be with her as often as possible and he would never regret that weakness.

  Laura gave him the freedom to explore her torso at will, as she was loving every caress. Her fingers roamed his broad shoulders; they played in his dark mane; they drew his head closer to her taut peaks, encouraging him to ravish them with delight. She moaned and writhed atop him, aware of the hardness pulsing against her.

  Enthralled and tantalized, Jayce could not stop himself from rolling Laura to her back and sending his erection home. It sank deep into the core of her need and she gasped with pleasure at the sensation.

  It was unnecessary for Jayce to guide Laura to her pinnacle because she was so aroused that her body responded to his of its own volition. Her supple legs and eager arms imprisoned him. Sweet ecstasy coiled steadily within her pleading loins and prepared itself to unwind when she could endure the glorious torment no longer. She matched each thrust he sent into her receptive recess and coaxed him with murmurings and movements to continue his pace and actions.

  Within a short time after he entered her, both reached the brink of release. They labored as one until they were rewarded with rapturous climaxes.

  Laura gasped and arched her back as she clung to Jayce when her womanhood tensed and quivered. Pleasure licked its erotic tongue over her grateful body, and love sang in her heart.

  It was the same for Jayce, who relaxed with her in his embrace. He was so satisfied that he napped for an hour, as did she.

  When he awakened, Jayce watched her slumber for a while, savoring her beauty. This was the woman he wanted to share his life, to share such passionate moments and tender feelings. As if she sensed his potent gaze, he saw her lashes flutter and her eyes open.

  They exchanged smiles and looked at each other. They kissed and caressed, slowly and tenderly at first; then their desire turned swift and urgent as needs were reborn and spiraled. Within moments, they were lost again in the wonder of each other and the flames of raging passion…

  Relaxed in the golden aftermath of the exquisite experience, Laura cuddled in his embrace and sighed in peaceful tranquility. “Will it always be like this between us, Jayce? Will you love me and desire me forever?”

  “That’s a promise, Laura, and I’ll never break it; I swear.”

&
nbsp; They kissed again, long, deep, slow, because they knew it was their last taste of each other for a while, and the parting was bittersweet.

  Laura’s meeting with Ben the following day was a quick one since she had little to report. After he told her that Grant had opposed the burning of Atlanta, but had conceded to the action based on Sherman’s reasoning, she warned Ben such atrocities piled atop existing sufferings and hardships would only provoke more hatred and revenge. She related that Davis opposed the Georgia senators’ idea about seeking peace negotiations with the North, but she hoped he, like Grant, conceded to its necessity. She said that Governor Joe Brown of Georgia had issued a call for all men between sixteen and fifty-five to join the fight to oppose Sherman.

  Ben revealed that Hood and Forrest had united, creating a new force that was thirty thousand strong and preparing to attack Franklin, near Nashville. He promised to get more facts on the battles that would involve her family’s participation…

  After the major arms-making city of Griswoldville was captured and the Federals advanced steadily on Macon, the new state capital of Georgia in Milledgeville was conquered by Slocum on the twenty-second.

  Richmond headlines announced in bold print: “Georgia Powerless To Survive!” Newspapers revealed countless reports of burnings, lootings, confiscations, and “farms stripped bare,” as the encroaching enemy lived off land it was invading since its army had left slow supply wagons behind. A Rebel spy had gotten hold of Sherman’s pre-march order and it was printed: “The Army will forage liberally on the country during the march” and any resistance should be met with “a devastation more or less relentless,” and any needs they incurred should be “appropriated freely.”

  Carl Epps told Laura and her hotel guests at dinner that night that Davis had wired Georgia officers to stop Sherman’s advance by destroying bridges, felling trees, mining roads and targets, burning or removing anything useful like supplies or valuable like cotton, and decoying him away from towns. To oversee that awesome order, Davis had summoned Bragg from Wilmington to the besieged state.

  * * *

  On Wednesday, Laura realized Bragg wouldn’t reach his destination and Davis’s order couldn’t be carried out before more damage was done in that Deep South and crucial state, as Slocum’s forces looted and burned Milledgeville, adhering to Sherman’s “scorched earth policy.”

  On the first official Thanksgiving, when most dispirited Southerners felt they had little to be thankful for, Laura kept her schedule with Ben, but she told him, “There’s nothing to report today, so I should head back immediately to get home before dark. I appreciate you meeting me early, since daylight vanishes so quickly this time of year.”

  “You aren’t holdin’ back on me, are you, Miss Laura? I mean, you told me your place has been full and busy for the last two months; that’s why you ain’t needed no more loans, you said. Ain’t you learned anythin’ more?”

  Laura was surprised by his question. “I know I haven’t brought you much information recently, but my guests aren’t having private talks in their rooms for me to eavesdrop on and they’re keeping their pouches with them at all times, even at the gaming tables, so I can’t peek inside them to see what they’re carrying. I suppose, after they meet and talk war all day, they don’t want to talk about it at night or to the wrong person. It’s as if they’ve suddenly gotten tight-lipped, secretive. Everything I do overhear is public knowledge to both sides. I want this war over as fast as you do, so I wouldn’t withhold anything important that could encourage peace. Maybe you should have allowed Frank Powell to keep up his duplicity; in his position, you could probably learn more from him than you are from me.”

  “Frank Powell’s gone. He’s been—”

  “Please don’t reveal his fate to me since I played a part in shaping it.”

  “As you say, Miss Laura. One last thin’, Schofield is entrenched on both sides of the Duck River at Columbia, Tennessee. Hood and Forrest ain’t there yet, but they’re on their way. You know what that means?”

  Laura nodded, as she didn’t need him to explain that her family was with Schofield and soon would be battling those two awesome forces. “Does Father know I’m spying for General Grant and the Union?”

  “Nope, it’s too dangerous to pass along that news. But I do have a surprise for you, a message from him. Take it with you and read it later.”

  Laura’s trembling fingers took the letter and placed it in her pocket. She told Ben farewell, mounted, and rode toward home so she could read her father’s words, all the while praying it was good news.

  Chapter Thirteen

  Laura sat on the parlor sofa and read the letter from her father:

  My beloved daughter Laura,

  Tom, Henry, and I are fine and we’ve received no wounds to this date. I’m happy you’re well and still safe with Clarissa; she’s a good woman and a close friend of mine. I hope our beloved Greenbriar stands intact and Otis and our workers have remained loyal. I pray this grievous war ends soon so we can be reunited. I love you and miss you, my child, as do your brothers, who send you greetings. I’ll make up for the birthdays and holidays we’ve been unable to share since I was called away. If danger approaches Richmond, go to the Greeleys to await our return. I have money in their bank where I placed it before I left for its protection. Your letter made my heart soar, thanks to your friend’s kindness. He included a note saying he gives you news about us. Please don’t let that news worry you, my child, as we’re well armed and supplied to battle the enemy and winter. I must close now, but God willing, we shall be together soon.

  Your devoted father, H. A.

  Laura took a deep breath of relief and mentally thanked Ben for getting both letters delivered. Ben had kept his promise; it had been wicked of her to think badly of him. Yet, his question about her not doing her best to help her country had seemed strange.

  She noted how carefully her father had worded his message in case it fell into the wrong hands. She hadn’t told him about Clarissa’s death, because she didn’t want to distract him during these perilous times when his thoughts should remain on protecting his life. She assumed he would be saddened to learn of that loss after the war. Now that she had Jayce and knew how special and powerful love was, she ached over what her father would experience later with the death of a second love. She was eager for her father and brothers to meet Jayce, and hoped it would be soon. She understood his hints about the Greeleys who lived in Washington, and she presumed’the bank would allow her to withdraw funds from Colonel Howard Adams’s account if needed, especially with the Greeleys vouching for her identity.

  Laura rested her head against the back of the sofa and closed her eyes to thank God for keeping her family safe and for allowing an exchange of their letters. In the midst of such evil darkness, she had been given a bright ray of hope to cling to. Now, if only God would be as generous where Jayce was concerned…

  In bold attempts to take the war to the North’s front door to let the Yankees experience it firsthand as Southerners were doing, Rebels set eleven fires in New York hotels and Barnum’s Museum; and others raided in Maryland. Laura decided that perhaps revenge for fires and assaults in the South was another motive behind those episodes, and she hated to see the two sides harming innocents while trying to outspite each other. Two additional triumphs were celebrated when “Beast” Butler’s headquarters was sabotaged and destroyed aboard the steamer Greyhound on the James River; and a Federal attempt to sever the Savannah/Charleston railroad lines failed.

  As November came to an end and December began, Carl Epps dined and played cards at Laura’s hotel for two days in a row and related facts he had overheard at the Ballard House where he was staying with his family. While listening to the offensive man on both occasions, she reminded herself to report those findings to Ben. Carl disclosed that Hood had been told to finish at Nashville posthaste so he could go aid Lee by flanking Grant, but Hood replied he couldn’t come anytime soon. Davis had stressed that
Beauregard find ways to thwart Sherman, as all measures taken so far had failed to halt or slow the Union’s advance. Carl’s final piece of information dismayed and elated Laura; the in-session Confederate Congress wanted to restore Joe Johnston over Beauregard, make Lee Commander-in-Chief of all forces, enlist slaves as soldiers, and make peace overtures to the Union.

  Laura read the newspapers with intense interest. Schofield had eluded Hood at Spring Hill, after falling back at Pulaski and at Columbia in recent days, and headed for Franklin: Hood’s next target. Hood and his reinforcements had battled Schofield’s there, with Hood claiming a Rebel victory because Schofield had once again slipped away, that time during the cover of night and with Nashville as his destination. Reports called the Franklin clash one of the bloodiest, most tragic, and fiercest battles fought to date. The South not only had seven thousand men slain, wounded, or captured; but it also lost six generals: Cleburne, Gist, Granbury, Adams, Strahl, and Carter.

  Laura prayed her family hadn’t been slain or wounded during any of those battles, especially the ferocious one at Franklin.

  When Laura met with Ben, he told her Hood had reached Nashville, but the weather there was horrendous, the heavy snow, sleet, and rain preventing any skirmishes. She hoped winter got so bad there and everywhere that men would be forced to sit around, perhaps cold and hungry and miserable, and have time to contemplate what they were doing to themselves, their families, their properties, and their country. Perhaps they would come to realize a truce didn’t look so terrible after all. Neither side wanted to compromise and their goals didn’t match, and might never do so. But, she reasoned, the war couldn’t go on forever; surely men, supplies, and arms would be exhausted one day, or both sides would weary of fighting and killing and hardships, and just go home.