Evelyn's Promise by Betty Bolte

Author:Betty Bolte
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: ePublishing Works!
Published: 2018-09-01T00:00:00+00:00

Chapter 19

Jingo covered the rough road with easy grace, his hooves falling in a steady three-beat rhythm. Nathaniel had not been able to escape the print shop in more than a week. Desperate to see Evelyn, he pressed his horse into a gallop at the bend in the road turning toward her property.

The first time he'd approached the estate at the edge of the woods, the house seemed to loom over the surrounding landscape. He'd been part of the foraging detail searching for anything the troops could eat, to keep them alive and able to fight. He hadn't expected to find much, given the frequent raids of the homes and plantations by both sides in the bloody war. At that time, he'd been surprised to discover the young woman, clearly with child, and her overbearing husband. The man hadn't even tried to protect his property, merely stood by glowering as Nathaniel and several other soldiers ransacked his home. Of course, Nathaniel had told him not to resist, but to not even protest made him appear as a coward. Nathaniel had been pressed into foraging among the civilian homes out of sheer desperation. The war would not be lost for want of sustenance. His mission had been vital to achieving the peace they all now enjoyed.

He slowed and then turned Jingo up the lane toward the estate. Three white tents gleamed in the sunlight, nestled under a cluster of maples a short distance from the barn. The statue of the winged horse drew his attention to the new framed building on its stone foundation. A kiln had been built to one side of the work site and two men labored on making bricks from clay dug from along the river bank. Several others worked on raising the rest of the building, dragging planks from the lumber piled nearby. Stacks of finished brick waited to be added to the exterior of the structure. The brothers had said they'd accomplish the reconstruction as rapidly as humanly possible, but they'd done more than he'd thought they could even since his last visit. They had much more to do, of course, but before long the house would be fully enclosed against the weather, if not entirely finished.

Evelyn would move in and settle down to enjoy her new abode. Surrounded by her slaves and servants. Enjoy visits from friends and family, but she'd be on her own in reality. Alone among people forced to wait on her. What kind of life would that be?

One he'd never endure.

In fact, with each passing week, he wished he'd never made the promise to stay six months. He'd stayed four but the remaining two seemed as though they'd never end. His heart urged him to seek a place of his own where he could choose how to make his own fortune. Not be at any person's beck and call in order to earn a living.

Why hadn't he found a way to break his oath and move on? One simple reason: Evelyn.

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