Chapter Twenty-Seven: Caught

FIRST DRAFT



Crystal was pulled awake by the sudden absence of Joseph’s warm body. Slowly her eyes opened and she scanned the room, her gaze coming to rest on Joseph standing near the doorway. He was buttoning his trousers as he peaked outside, his eyes cautiously searching the surrounding woods. A soft breeze blew his hair, the howling wind had ceased along with the pouring rain and an early taste of fall was in the wet air.

She lifted herself up on one elbow and stifling a yawn said, “What is it?”

“Shhh,” Joseph whispered, holding a hand up to silence her. “I heard something.”

Crystal’s brow furrowed and she quickly grabbed the shift that lay a few feet away and began tugging it over her head. Joseph took a step back from the door and glanced at Crystal– his gaze lingering on her rumpled hair and skimming over her bare shoulders before darting back outside.

“What is it?” Crystal asked again as she reached for her petticoats.

He shook his head and grabbed his shirt off the floor and shrugged it on. “I don’t know. I thought–” he paused, listening intently, and his forehead crinkled. “I thought I heard someone coming.”

“Maybe it’s Liza?” she offered. The possibility was the least frightening she could think of. At least Joseph wouldn’t be hanged if Liza discovered them.

“She would be here by now.”

“An animal, then?”

“No.” He shook his head once more. “I heard a voice I think. Calling out.”

“Joseph, you’re scaring me.” Crystal snatched up the rest of her clothing and pulled them on as quickly as possible. Her fingers shook as she attempted to tighten her corset, the terror of being discovered was suddenly overwhelming. What would happen to Joseph? What would happen to her?

With a final glance outside, Joseph turned to her and gave a smile that was tinged with worry. “It’s probably nothing, but you’d better go to be safe.” He swept up her forgotten cloak from the table and swung it around her shoulders.

Crystal bit her lip. “I’ll be back tomorrow?” she said it like a question.

He nodded and tugged her cloak securely closed. Kissing her forehead, he said, “I’ll be waiting.”

She smiled but didn’t move, her thoughts straying back to less than an hour ago and the wonders she’d found in his arms. “I don’t want to go,” she said, leaning into him.

Joseph groaned and pushed her hair back with both hands before bringing her face to his. He kissed her firmly and she was surprised by the hunger in it. After she’d given herself fully to him she thought he would have lost his need for her, but it seemed only to be stronger.

He released her and there was a sharp gasp. Both their heads spun around and Crystal’s heart jumped in her throat when she saw Rose standing in the doorway, her eyes and mouth wide with horror.

Crystal reached out as if to stop her, her mind racing for something to say, to explain, but nothing came. She took a single step forwards and Rose bolted, her feet splashing across the ground as she ran back towards the house. Crystal caught Joseph’s gaze and wondered if her face was the same pasty white as his. They stood in shock for what seemed like hours, but couldn’t have been more than a few seconds, before Joseph finally broke the spell.

“Go after her. You have to stop her.”

Crystal nodded and dashed out the door as Joseph grabbed his boots and began jerking them on.

The grounds were flooded, three feet deep in some places and ankle deep in others. Crystal’s heavy skirts made running difficult, and the dozens of fallen branches rendered her attempt almost impossible. She could see Rose darting around trees in the distance and cried out for her to stop and listen, but her words went unheard or unheeded. Somehow her sister moved much faster through the wreckage of the storm. She could only assume that it was Rose’s thin muslin day dress that made this possible, because Crystal came closer to the end of her body’s endurance with every weighed-down step she took.

When Rose disappeared from sight completely, Crystal let out a cry of anger and glanced back in the direction of the cottage. She was only a third of the way home and she would never catch Rose in time. Terrified as she was of her parents finding out whom she’d been hiding and what she’d been doing with him, there was no way she could stop it. But she could save Joseph. His fate would be much more terrible than hers and she couldn’t allow it to happen. She wouldn’t let them kill the man she loved, no matter the consequences.

Her decision made, she quickly changed course and charged back towards the cottage. She stumbled into the clearing and spotted Joseph emerging out of the house with a grim look on his face, behind him a young man appeared, his expression exhausted. It took Crystal a moment to recognize him in the light of day as Joseph’s brother. The fact that he had suddenly appeared had her more afraid than ever, but she didn’t break her stride. Quickly she rushed towards them, their low voices growing more distinguishable with every yard.

“You could have stopped her,” Joseph ground through his teeth.

“How? Tackle her? Besides, how was I supposed to know she wasn’t in on all of this? I’ve been gone nearly a week!”

Joseph didn’t reply, his eyes widening as he caught sight of Crystal plowing towards them. He bounded of the porch to meet her and she collided into his solid chest; he only just caught her before she fell to the ground.

“What happened?” he asked urgently, his sharp eyes scanning the woods over her shoulder.

Crystal tried to catch her breath but she couldn’t stop panting. “I couldn’t . . . she’s almost . . .” She sucked in a lung full of air. “You have to leave. I couldn’t stop her. Father will be here soon.”

Joseph stared at her for a long moment and started to speak but she interrupted. “Please, Joseph! You have to go. They’ll hang you if you’re caught.”

“I can’t leave you here.”

“I’ll be fine.” She looked passed Joseph at Michael who was nervously eyeing their surroundings. “What’s he doing here?” she asked.

Joseph glanced at his brother as if he’d forgotten he was there. “He came to give me a message.– Crystal, I can’t leave you here alone.”

She leaned into him and breathed in the musky scent of him, thankful for the soothing effect it had on her. “You have to. Please, go with Michael. He can take you somewhere safe.” She looked to Michael for confirmation, he shrugged and then nodded his head in answer. “You see? It’ll all be fine.”

Joseph shook his head. “You don’t understand. I can’t leave you. You’re not safe.”

“Joseph, please! I don’t want to lose you. If my father catches you, he’ll kill you! You have to get off this property and as far away as possible before Rose tells him.”

Joseph’s gaze flicked in the direction Rose had gone and then back to Crystal’s face, his expression torn. Finally he crushed his mouth over hers in a kiss that was frighteningly final and left Crystal near tears.

“I’ll come back for you,” he assured, his eyes boring into hers. “Before the wedding, I promise, I’ll come back.”

She nodded and bit her lip to stop from crying. “I’ll be here– I’ll wait for you.”

He nodded in return and pulled her to him for one last kiss. “Stay safe, don’t go anywhere alone,” he said, and released her.

They both turned to Michael who was staring at a tree insistently as if it held the secret of life. “Got a horse?” Joseph asked.

Michael’s head snapped around and he glanced at both of them curiously. “By the creek.” He gestured towards the west.

Joseph nodded. “Then we better get going.”

Michael nodded and stalked off the porch. Joseph glanced at Crystal and doubt suddenly clouded his features.

“Go,” she whispered before he could speak. “Hurry.”

He grabbed her hand and kissed it before jogging after his brother. Crystal watched them disappear in the cover of the trees feeling a sob building in her throat. She pushed her emotions down and clamored up the porch and inside the cottage.

Determinedly she got to work, first stomping out the last embers of the fire and scattering the hay that had been Joseph’s bed, then gathering the few items that he’d collected from her and tossing them in his box. Clothes, books, blankets, food, she dropped it all in the little crate until it was piled high and then lugged it outside. Her eyes darted towards Oak Alley every few second as she carried the box deep into the woods behind the house and hid it all in a cluster of bushes. Once the crate was fully concealed by leaves and moss, Crystal returned to the cottage and skimmed the room. For the most part it looked as before Joseph had occupied it: old and crumbling. She made a few adjustments, throwing hay out the door and stamping the ashes in the hearth a few more times before rushing out of the house and running towards home.

It was only a few moments before she heard the barking of dogs and the pounding of half a dozen footsteps. She glanced around, hoping there was somewhere close enough to hide but found that she was surrounded by thin birch trees. Heart pounding, she looked towards her coming doom and raked her mind for an explanation, a solution, anything! But all she could think of was Joseph and how long she could stall her father’s hunting party.

She could see her father now, his broad shoulders nearly blocked Rose who sat behind him on his giant thoroughbred, Bourbon. Behind him trekked five of their strongest male slaves, Ben among them. Crystal’s heart twisted as they all caught sight of her and her father kicked Bourbon forward. He came to a halt a few yards away and stared at her in surprise, as if he hadn’t expected to find her at all. Crystal was baffled as well, for her father didn’t look at all angry as she’d suspected, only confused.

“I told you she was out here, Father,” came Rose’s quiet voice. Her face was half hidden by the thick wool of Father’s jacket and her cloudy blue eyes were wide and ruddy as if she’d been crying.

Father glanced over his shoulder at Rose and then back at Crystal, his gaze perplexed. He sighed and straightened himself before addressing his elder daughter. “Rose claims that she saw you with a young man in the overseer’s old cottage. Is that true, Crystal?”

Crystal bit her lip and then immediately released it thinking it would appear a sign of guilt. She could see the doubt in her father’s gaze. Obviously he hadn’t fully believed Rose’s story, which explained why it had taken them such a long time to come searching for her, but how could she possibly excuse the sorry state she was in? Or what she was doing out in the middle of the woods barely hours after such a gruesome storm. Was she mad?

She glanced around, hearing the seconds between the question and her answer ticking by. She had to say something! She had to–

That’s when she spotted it.

Lying three feet in front of her was the pretty poppy-blue bonnet that had been whipped from her head what seemed like days before, though it had only been hours. It was a lovely hat and she’d known that she must retrieve it after the wind snatched it away but she’d been too eager to see Joseph to do so immediately. But Mother would kill her if it was ruined and if she just got it out of the rain quickly it may be all right. She just had to try and find it. Even though it was pouring. Better face the wrath of a storm than the anger of their mother. No one knew that better than Father.

“My bonnet!” Crystal lurched forward and swiped the mud soaked bonnet from the ground and looked up at her father with the most innocent expression she could muster. “I lost it earlier when I was out riding and I just couldn’t bear to think of it ruined in the rain so I came out to search for it. I thought if I could just find it soon enough Mother would never find out what I’d done and Liza could help me clean it, but Liza wouldn’t allow it so I snuck out alone. Then it started raining so hard and the branches were falling so I hid inside the cottage until it was over. Forgive me, Father, I know I was being foolish. I was quite terrified by myself in there and wished I’d never left the house.” She glanced at Rose and noted the shock on her sister’s face, a tinge of guilt stabbed her as she continued. “I don’t know what on earth Rose is referring to. I was alone when she saw me in the cottage. Are you sure you’re feeling well, Rose?” Crystal asked her sister. “Did you have another nightmare?”

Rose’s eyes bulged at that and she opened her mouth to speak but their father broke in. “Well then, it could be that this was all a misunderstanding.”

“She’s lying!” Rose shrieked so loudly that everyone jumped. “I saw her! I saw her in there with that man. It was him. The man from the bank. She’s been hiding him!”

All eyes turned to Crystal, awaiting her reply. Rose was panting with anger and she glared at Crystal as if daring her to deny it; she didn’t have a choice. “Rose, are you sure you weren’t hallucinating? You’ve dreamed of that day at the bank many times. Is it possible that you just thought you saw us?”

Rose’s face turned red with fury and her mouth opened and closed but no words came out.

“You just need to rest, Rose,” Father said and a huge wave of relief spread through Crystal as she realized that he believed her. He believed that Rose was having some sort of fit and Crystal felt terrible and elated at the same time.

“No.” Rose shook her head, her voice returning to normal. “We have to go to the cottage. He’s there, you’ll see.”

Crystal couldn’t help but bite her lip this time as she waited her father’s answer, hoping desperately that he would dismiss her sister’s request. She felt the knot tighten in her stomach when he nodded.

Father dismounted and suggested that Crystal ride with Rose, but, though she was exhausted, one look at her sister’s narrowed eyes and she decided that she could walk a little longer.

At the cottage all three of them went inside, and Rose gasped in horror at the empty room. Her eyes darted around as if there were a place to hide or a layer of concealment to peal off. Coming up with nothing, her gaze fell on Crystal and, for all the fights they’d had, Crystal had never felt so hated by her sister in all her life. She lowered her gaze unable to bear looking at Rose a moment longer.

Father wasn’t paying much attention to either of them, his eyes nervously flickering to the groaning roof. “Well, it seems that you were mistaken, darling,” he said to Rose. “There is no one here.”

“No!” Rose shouted striding across the room. “They were here. Right here! I saw them.– they were kissing!”

Father shot her a sharp look. “Now that it quite enough, Rose. You will cease with this tirade and apologize to your sister for insulting her integrity at once!”

Rose stared at her father in shock, her lips trembling as tears pooled in her eyes. “I’m telling the truth. Why won’t you believe me?”

“I said enough! Apologize.”

Rose turned to her sister and Crystal saw a flicker of doubt cross her face and realized that for a moment Rose really considered that she had made up the entire story, but the doubt quickly disappeared and she regarded Crystal with hurt filled eyes.

“I’m sorry,” she whispered and then, ducking her head, she rushed out of the cottage.

Crystal stared after her guiltily, as relief coursed through her veins.

Joseph was safe.

*******

"Chapter Twenty-Eight:: Waiting"