Read Online The Quaker and the Rebel by Mary Ellis - Free Book Online Page B
Authors: Mary Ellis
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twisted into a knot
“Excuse me, Miss Harrison. I forgot that the sight of a man’s chest is unsettling for a maiden.” He buttoned his shirt with deliberate exaggeration. “Forgive my imprudence.”
“I have seen men with their shirts off. That is not what I find unsettling about you,” said Emily, acutely aware of her own disheveled appearance. She didn’t remember Mrs. Bennington’s nephew being so handsome…for a rich, aristocratic Southerner. “I ask you again to release your hold on my bridle.”
“I’m reluctant to let you leave with the Gray Wraith prowling the valley. Would you be pleased or terrified if he crossed your path?”
“If I run into the Gray Wraith, I shall shoot him between the eyes and spare the Union Army the task. He is a murdering desperado that even a noose is too good for.”
“Goodness, you would shoot an unarmed man without benefit of a trial? Aren’t you a Quaker and a pacifist by nature?” He clucked his tongue in mockery.
“Times of war call for extraordinary measures. Some Quakers have enlisted in the Union Army. Anyway, the Wraith probably carries a hidden gun. How else could he accomplish what they say with only trickery and a saber?”
“A hidden gun, similar to your hidden derringer?” Alexander scratched his chin as though pondering the idea. “Women say they would swoon with undying love if they met him, yet you seem immune to his mystique. Ah, but you are a Yankee.”
With cheeks aflame, Emily tugged the reins from his grasp. “I have no more time for idle chitchat. Good day to you.” Giving Miss Kitty a small kick to her flanks, she took off from the dusty barnyard. Halfwayup the path, she stole a glance over her shoulder, powerless to stop herself. Alexander stood with both hands on his hips, laughing at her…again.
Blast it. Shoot the Wraith with my hidden gun? Of all the ridiculous things to say. If I had a hidden gun, I would shoot myself. Of all of the out-of-the-way, abandoned spots she had seen, this had been undoubtedly the most hidden. Now this oaf of a man had not only stumbled upon it, but upon her as well.
Emily rode hard for several hours, pausing twice to rest her horse. She needed time to collect her thoughts and to put some space between herself and the nephew from Bennington Island. Of all the luck to run into him! “What am I doing here, Miss Kitty?” she whispered to her mount. “An area even more loyal to the Southern Cause.” Miss Kitty had no answer as they rode down the brick streets of Martinsburg. But what choice did she have? She couldn’t have returned to Marietta because another family now occupied her childhood home. In their last letter, Reverend and Mrs. Ames gushed with relief that she had not been fired when the Benningtons moved east. Jobs were nonexistent in the Ohio River Valley, and the elderly couple hadn’t offered to take her in while she looked for work.
She was no different than Lila or Joshua or Matilde. Like them, she might be free to go wherever she chose, but an empty belly or thoughts of cold nights without shelter made her willing to move to keep her job. And Lila and her parents didn’t seem the least bit unhappy about relocating. Since their arrival, the Amites all but bubbled over with joy to be living in a city instead of on an isolated island. Emily knew she should count her blessings. She had no idea why Dr. Bennington invited her to accompany them after he sent the girls away to school in Paris. Mrs. Bennington had been apprehensive for her daughters, but Dr. Bennington insisted that the girls would benefit from the strict MaisonMuguet. For the sake of Margaret and the especially precocious Annie, Emily hoped it would only be for one term as their father promised.
Emily’s new role was companion to Mrs. Bennington, whose health had deteriorated during the trip. She seldom walked with her cane, preferring the wheeled chair to get from room to room. She tired more easily now and took
“Excuse me, Miss Harrison. I forgot that the sight of a man’s chest is unsettling for a maiden.” He buttoned his shirt with deliberate exaggeration. “Forgive my imprudence.”
“I have seen men with their shirts off. That is not what I find unsettling about you,” said Emily, acutely aware of her own disheveled appearance. She didn’t remember Mrs. Bennington’s nephew being so handsome…for a rich, aristocratic Southerner. “I ask you again to release your hold on my bridle.”
“I’m reluctant to let you leave with the Gray Wraith prowling the valley. Would you be pleased or terrified if he crossed your path?”
“If I run into the Gray Wraith, I shall shoot him between the eyes and spare the Union Army the task. He is a murdering desperado that even a noose is too good for.”
“Goodness, you would shoot an unarmed man without benefit of a trial? Aren’t you a Quaker and a pacifist by nature?” He clucked his tongue in mockery.
“Times of war call for extraordinary measures. Some Quakers have enlisted in the Union Army. Anyway, the Wraith probably carries a hidden gun. How else could he accomplish what they say with only trickery and a saber?”
“A hidden gun, similar to your hidden derringer?” Alexander scratched his chin as though pondering the idea. “Women say they would swoon with undying love if they met him, yet you seem immune to his mystique. Ah, but you are a Yankee.”
With cheeks aflame, Emily tugged the reins from his grasp. “I have no more time for idle chitchat. Good day to you.” Giving Miss Kitty a small kick to her flanks, she took off from the dusty barnyard. Halfwayup the path, she stole a glance over her shoulder, powerless to stop herself. Alexander stood with both hands on his hips, laughing at her…again.
Blast it. Shoot the Wraith with my hidden gun? Of all the ridiculous things to say. If I had a hidden gun, I would shoot myself. Of all of the out-of-the-way, abandoned spots she had seen, this had been undoubtedly the most hidden. Now this oaf of a man had not only stumbled upon it, but upon her as well.
Emily rode hard for several hours, pausing twice to rest her horse. She needed time to collect her thoughts and to put some space between herself and the nephew from Bennington Island. Of all the luck to run into him! “What am I doing here, Miss Kitty?” she whispered to her mount. “An area even more loyal to the Southern Cause.” Miss Kitty had no answer as they rode down the brick streets of Martinsburg. But what choice did she have? She couldn’t have returned to Marietta because another family now occupied her childhood home. In their last letter, Reverend and Mrs. Ames gushed with relief that she had not been fired when the Benningtons moved east. Jobs were nonexistent in the Ohio River Valley, and the elderly couple hadn’t offered to take her in while she looked for work.
She was no different than Lila or Joshua or Matilde. Like them, she might be free to go wherever she chose, but an empty belly or thoughts of cold nights without shelter made her willing to move to keep her job. And Lila and her parents didn’t seem the least bit unhappy about relocating. Since their arrival, the Amites all but bubbled over with joy to be living in a city instead of on an isolated island. Emily knew she should count her blessings. She had no idea why Dr. Bennington invited her to accompany them after he sent the girls away to school in Paris. Mrs. Bennington had been apprehensive for her daughters, but Dr. Bennington insisted that the girls would benefit from the strict MaisonMuguet. For the sake of Margaret and the especially precocious Annie, Emily hoped it would only be for one term as their father promised.
Emily’s new role was companion to Mrs. Bennington, whose health had deteriorated during the trip. She seldom walked with her cane, preferring the wheeled chair to get from room to room. She tired more easily now and took
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