Free My Vicksburg by Ann Rinaldi Page B

wasn't she? I just flung him a superior look. "I may ride her tomorrow morning," I told him.
    What could he do? When it came down to it, nothing. I'd never pushed him to the edge to find out how far he would go. And I wasn't about to test his mettle, not here and now in front of Andy, anyway. He was too much of a gentleman to do anything in front of Andy. No one in my family ever displayed any unpleasantness in front of the servants.
    "We'll talk about this later," he said.
    All I knew was that I didn't want any Yankee blanket or saddle on Jewel.
    Landon went around to Jeffrey's stall. Jeffrey was Robert's horse, and Landon checked on a bandage on his right front foot. I hadn't seen it before. "Try to keep him quiet today," he instructed Andy. He stood up, patted the horse's flanks, and was gone without so much as a fare-thee-well to me.
    I felt a pang of panic. "What's wrong with Jeffrey?" I asked Andy.
    He shrugged. "That horse come up limpin' t'other day after prancin' 'round in the pasture," he told me. "Your brother wuz here couple of times, fixin' him. I been await-in' to tell you, Miz Claire Louise. That horse never gonna make it all the way to Jackson for that Confederate officer feller."
    I felt my face go white. Of course Andy was in on this. Hadn't he earned the money to give to Robert for his
escape? "How much have you told my brother about his plans to leave?" I asked him.
    "Ain't said nuthin' 'cept 'bout earnin' the money, Miz Louise. Kept my mouth shut since you told me you wuz plannin' on makin' off wif him soon."
    "Do you know why?"
    "No, but I 'spose you got your reasons. An' I think it's right he shud go. 'Specially since I heard your brother say he was thinkin' of turnin' him over to the 'thorities. Doan know what he done, but he seem like a powerful nice boy, and I think he shud have another chance. So I'm wif you. When you goin'?"
    "I had planned night after tomorrow."
    "Tha's good. Make it fast. Too much dillydallyin' gets a body nowheres quick. You need me, you know you gots me."
    "I need you to have both Jeffrey and Jewel ready here."
    His eyes widened. "You ain't gonna go runnin' off wif him, is you, Miss Claire? That would kill your mama. An' your brother, he have half the Yankee army after you all."
    "No, Andy. I'm only taking him as far as the creek."
    "I be ready, Miz Claire Louise. I be ready."

Chapter Thirteen
    I scarce slept at all that night for my plotting. When I did sleep, my dreams were fractured things, coming and going in broken flashes, elusive, cutting themselves off at the knees and disappearing just when I thought I had a purchase on what they were all about.
    Mama was sleeping, I knew that. So was Easter, in a small room next to her. Robert was reading. James was sleeping, and Landon was out on a mission of mercy, delivering Mrs. Rappaport's baby. I thought about how, when Pa was home and came in late from a house call, I would wait up for him with a pot of hot chocolate. I wondered what he was doing at the moment.
    From outside came the usual sounds of mortars, musketry, and shells, then, in between somehow, the sound of people screaming a dreaded word.
    "Fire! Fire!"
    Of a sudden it seemed like the whole world around me woke, like a sleeping tiger who'd been disturbed. Mama came looking for me and we met in the hallway. "What is it? Where is the fire?"
    She had in her arms her daytime clothes.
    Chip, who usually slept outside the entrance, had taken this night off. Now he came to alert us. "Ma'am, Washington Street is in flames. People all runnin' down dere to help. Captain Beggs of the fire brigade already be dere."
    "Washington Street. Oh! Claire Louise, isn't that where Landon went?"
    "Yes, ma'am."
    "I must get dressed. Chip, you accompany me. Easter, you stay with the children and Robert. Keep them safe."
    "Yes, ma'am," Easter said.
    "The whole street," Chip was saying, "from Brown and Johnston to Crutcher's store be burnin'. Captain Beggs tryin' to get as many people as he