Promise Bridge by Eileen Clymer Schwab

Author:Eileen Clymer Schwab
Language: eng
Format: mobi, epub
Tags: Plantation life - Virginia, Historical - General, Historical, Underground Railroad, Master and servant, Virginia, General, Fiction, Fugitive slaves, Historical fiction, Female friendship, Plantation life, Virginia - History - 1775-1865, Fiction - Historical
ISBN: 9780451230034
Publisher: Penguin Group USA
Published: 2010-09-15T07:00:00+00:00

Chapter 23

The dawn of Livie’s wedding day brought with it my salvation from a sleepless night. I was terrified by the potential of the day. Possible outcomes played out in my mind, but I had yet to find a way to orchestrate them in Livie’s favor. I dressed without conscious thought and walked the upper hallway in a gloomy trance toward the stairs. My heart lifted when my ears were met by a familiar voice resonating from downstairs. I rushed down the steps and into the pleasantly surprised arms of Colt.

“Well, now,” he laughed. “I have never received a finer welcome.”

“When did you arrive?” I pulled away, not wasting a moment.

“I rode in by the full moon last night.”

“I need to speak with you.”

“Can it wait, Hannah? I had business to discuss with Augusta before meeting with my father this morning. He is holding breakfast for me. Winston was retrieving my hat and gloves when you came down.”

Winston lingered at the closet, giving me the chance to take Colt by the wrist and urge him to follow me. “Come with me to the sewing room, where we can speak freely and without notice.”

Closing the door, I told him about Lamond and Livie, and what had transpired while he was gone. His face flushed, then drained pale as he clutched the quilting loom and ran a hand through his dark curls.

“What are the odds of him showing up here after all this time?” Colt walked to the window and stared out, as if waiting for an answer to float down off the mountain. “This is very bad, Hannah. Not just for Livetta, but for us as well. I will do all I can to keep you out of the veil of suspicion, but everyone knows how close we are, so even if your involvement cannot be proven, I fear you will be made to pay a price one way or the other.”

“We must think of a way to keep Lamond from the wedding. If he has full view of Livie again, there will be no dissuading him.”

“From what you have told me, I suspect he will seek out another look at her today, wedding or not.”

“Perhaps if he has a weakness for liquor, as you told me, we can tempt him with drink.”

“He has remained steady in his reformed ways while he has been here,” Colt pondered outwardly. “It’s not likely he would chance even one toast without reason. For our purpose, anything short of stone-cold passed out would be pointless.” Suddenly, Colt spun around with eyes gleaming. “I have an idea.”

I clung to his arm like a child eager to hear the answer to an impossible riddle. With time running short, he was quick to oblige me. “It is risky,” he said, looking down at me to measure my resolve.

“Risk has been kind to us in the past,” I said, without wavering. “I trust your judgment.”

Colt told me about a powder he had in his medicinal bag, used to sedate someone in pain so treatment could be provided.

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