Free Elysium: The Plantation Series Book IV by Gretchen Craig Page A

yesterday."
    Lily saw Major
Whiteaker’s shoulders move to take in a breath, reaching for patience she
supposed. She would like to shake the man herself for holding back the
news.
    "Elvin," he said
calmly, "what happened?"
    "Why, a bunch of men
came riding through late in the night calling out that rebel yell, waving
torches. Lots of people rushed out to see what the commotion was and seen them toss
torches through the schoolhouse windows and set the whole place ablaze."
    The major drew in a quick
breath. "Fanny Brown – is she all right?"
    "Oh yeah. All that
whooping woke her up and she run on out of her room there in the back. Like to
got run down by one of the horses, but she dodged him pretty good. She staying
up at Molly’s place now."
    Alistair ran a hand through
his hair and blew out a breath. He had been proud of that school, Lily thought.
First one in the area for the freed children. Built it out of his own pocket,
bought books and slates. Hired Fanny Brown to teach. It was a blow.
    "You go on back and
tell Mr. Hatfield I’ll want to see him first thing, please, Elvin. Get Mable
some water before you head back."
    The major turned around. "I’ll
need to get on," he told Lily.
    "Don’t go just yet,
Alistair," Garvey said. "You need your breakfast, and everything you
got to do when you get home will wait for you."
    "Yes," Lily
added. She touched his sleeve and then pulled her hand back. "You need
your coffee and some breakfast after being up all night."
    He nodded. "Coffee
would be good."
    Later Lily would fix
breakfast for everyone else when they got up, but for now it was quiet in the
kitchen, just the three of them talking. They were on their second cups of
coffee when Uncle Garvey said, "Well, it’s started."
    He nodded. "Yes, it
has."
    "Like you said. You
and Bertrand and Johnston. Think it’s going to be bad?"
    "If this is how
they’re beginning, it can’t do anything else but get worse." The major
nodded at Lily. "Garvey, you’ve got Mrs. Palmer, Rachel, and two children
in the house. I’m going to send some men to patrol the place for a few nights
if you’ll allow me."
    Uncle Garvey scowled into
his coffee cup.
    "Garvey," he said
again.
    "Yes, all right.
Thank you, Alistair." Uncle Garvey pushed his chair back and left the table
without looking at either of them.
    The major looked at her. "Garvey
Bickell is a proud man. I’m sorry to – "
    "He’ll come around.
We don’t have enough people here to keep watch, and I don’t know if our pockets
are deep enough to hire guards."
    "And you have two
little girls in the house."
    "Yes. Thank you, Major
Whiteaker."
    He sat back from the
table and looked at the napkin he fiddled with. "I’d like it if you called
me Alistair." When she didn’t answer right away, he looked at her with a
little half-smile on his face. "Now you’ve seen me in all my morning glory
and fixed my breakfast."
    "Alistair, then."
    He focused those blue
eyes on her and she twisted her napkin in her lap.
    He grinned at her. "And
may I call you Lily?"
    "Oh. Of course."
    "I’ve seen you in
your morning glory, too," he said softly.

~~~

    Musette and Mr. Chamard returned.
This time all was as decorous as a Sunday afternoon.
    Lily offered coffee. They
accepted. They sat in the sitting room and sipped for several minutes before
Musette cleared her throat.
    "How is your patient
this morning?"
    "Thomas has taken a
little broth. He’s awake."
    "And clear headed?"
Mr. Chamard asked. "A lot of people are depending on that young man’s mind
being clear."
    "He’s groggy and in
pain. I think it’s too soon to ask him to be clear-headed. That was quite a
knock on the head."
    "Alistair said last
night it was a pistol butt got him from behind."
    "A pistol butt and a
bayonet," Lily said. "As if the war had never ended."
    Musette had sat mute
through the conversation. Now she stood up abruptly. "I’ll see Thomas now."
    Lily blinked. She glanced
at Mr. Chamard, who was frowning.
    "Musette