Free Hear the Wind Blow by Mary Downing Hahn Page A

marker I'd made. "You spelled 'peace' wrong," she said.
    "I did not. I know how to spell just as well as you do."
    "You wrote the wrong word, then. It should be
p-e-a-c-e
and you wrote
p-i-e-c-e.
" With that, she started crying as if she never meant to stop.
    I stood beside her, feeling helpless. I knew it wasn't my ignorance that made her cry, but I didn't have any idea what to do or say to comfort her. Finally, I touched her shoulder. "We'd best be going," I said as gently as I could. "I'd like to get to Grandma Colby's house before dark."

    Rachel flung her arms around me, letting the doll clatter to the icy ground. "Oh, Haswell," she cried, "I don't want to leave Mama. What if she's not dead? What if she wakes up beside James Marshall in the dark and she can't shove the stones away and we're gone and there's no one to help her?"
    "Rachel, Rachel." I held her tight. "Mama's not going to wake up anymore than James Marshall is."
    She pulled back and gazed at me. "Are you certain?"
    I nodded.
    "Can we wait here a while and make sure?"
    I looked at the sky. Even though it was covered with thick gray clouds, I could see the sun like a pale spot rising up toward the meridian. I hated to delay. The roads were bad enough in the daytime with soldiers hunting one another in the woods and fields, but at least you could see them coming. After dark, there was no telling what lurked in the bushes or behind the trees.
    "Please?" Rachel tugged at my arm to get my attention.
    I sighed. "Well, just for a few minutes."
    We sat down side by side in front of the pile of stones.
    "Should I make another marker with the right 'peace' on it?" I asked Rachel.
    "No," she said softly. "People will know what you meant."
    I stood up. My rear end was cold right through my trousers from sitting on the ground. "We have to leave, Rachel. While I saddle Ranger, go to the root cellar and gather all the food you can find."

    She scowled as if she were about to argue, but she thought better of it. Getting slowly to her feet, she trudged across the muddy yard toward the ruins of our house.
    "Bring the blankets, too." I called after her.
    Rachel stopped and stared at me. "What on earth for? Grandma Colby has plenty of blankets."
    "We can't be certain of anything these days." I didn't want to worry her, but it was the truth.
    I went to what was left of the stable and fetched Captain Powell's fine leather saddle from the hitching rail. The big horse sniffed at the saddle, but he stood still while I threw it over his back and adjusted the girth. Every now and then he pawed the ground in an agitated way and rolled his eyes at me. I kept talking the whole time, soothing him with my voice, hoping he'd soon grow accustomed to me.
    While Ranger watched, I dumped what was left of the oats into the saddlebags. "See? I'll take good care of you," I whispered. "You'll never have to go into battle again. And I'll never use this." I showed him Captain Powell's whip and he shied away. While he watched, I broke the damnable thing over my knee and tossed the pieces aside.
    I stroked his side and told him he was a fine horse. To my relief, he let me lead him out of the barn. He had a graceful walk, and his neck curved in a way that showed his breeding. Yankee-born or not, Ranger was without a doubt a noble steed.
    After I boosted Rachel into the saddle, I wrapped her in a blanket and mounted the horse in front of her. She wrapped her arms around my waist, and I felt the doll's china face press into my back One touch of my heels against his sides and Ranger was ready to go.

    I looked back once at the ruins of our house. Somewhere in those ashes was the body of Captain Powell. His little daughter would never see him come riding home. Most likely no one would know what had happened to the man. Well, he wasn't the first soldier lost. Nor would he be the last.
    Then I turned my face toward the road and left my home behind.

8
    A T THE END OF OUR LANE , I turned Ranger toward Grandma