Authors: Kitty Margo
“But what a way to go.” She smiled seductively
before climbing atop of him
. “Oh, Joshua, what a heavenly way to go.”
As the sun was beginning its daily ascent into the sky
,
Joshua was heading home. After an adventurous night
—
for Suzanne was definitely an adventure
—
they had slipped contentedly into a satisfied sleep under a brilliant moon with a chorus of bullfrogs playing their nightly
concerto in the background. Realizing
he was more tired now than
he had been last night,
he would get no respite today. He was eager to take his father on an inspection of the fields
,
and this wasn’t the first night
he had
forfeited sleep for the sake of a lady, or rather in Suzanne’s case, a willing female.
“One must keep the opposite gender satisfied,” he mused aloud as he urged his steed toward home. And unless he missed his guess
,
the one
he had
just departed was definitely that, for the time being at least.
At home
,
Joshua strode up the steps of
the verandah to find his sister Malinda
sitting in a rocking chair
,
sipping coffee. She glanced up, a frown wrinkling h
er pretty brow as Suzanne's
perfume assaulted her from several feet away.
“
You are
making a colossal mistake, big brother.”
“A mistake? Care to elaborate, Sis?”
“Suzanne.”
“Suzanne?”
“
Do not
feign ignorance with me, Joshua.” Her face flushed crimson
.
“I know where you were last night and
…
what you were doing. I can only hope
you will
have the common sense not to fall for her
…
feminine wiles.”
“I have the common sense not to fall for any female’s feminine wiles, especially Suzanne’s. You should have more faith in your big brother than that.” He grinned broadly, taking her coffee and draining the cup.
“Oh, I have faith in you.
It’s
Suzanne that concerns me. S
he has
made her purpose crystal clear to me and anyone else who will listen when she chatters, which
,
by the way
,
is constantly. She plans to marry you
,
Joshua and she confessed
that
she has no intention of waiting for the sanctity of the marriage bed to….um… to…well…you know.”
“Enough about me.” Joshua
could not
tolerate having a conversation about sex, of all things, with his baby sister. “Am I going to be allowed to run this plantation in peace or will I be too busy shooting eager young suitors from our door?”
“Joshua,” she cried and blushed prettily. “How you do run on. However, I, unlike my dear sibling, am particular about who I spend my time with.”
“Touché, dear sister.” Joshua hoped to set the record straight once and for all. “But, please,
do not
worry overmuch about me, Malinda.
I am
a grown man, no cataracts blurring my vision, and am fully capable of seeing the lovely Suzanne for who she truly is.”
“I must confess
I am
relieved to hear you say that
, because the
girl is tr
ouble waiting to happen, and she has
had her sights set on you
since the night of
the Christmas Ball. How I wish you
had
never even attended that ball.”
Joshua pulled his sister to her feet for a heartfelt hug. “I
have
missed you, Malinda. And
do not
be such a worrywart. Have a little faith in your big brother, would you?”
“
I will
try. You just be
careful.” Then she grinned,
returning
his hug
and retrieving
her coffee cup for a refill
.
After touring the fields with Joshua and being satisfied
that
Jake had contributed his best efforts to the plantation, Jeremiah was noticeably tired and ready to return home. They were discussing the rising price of cotton when Jeremiah shouted, “Stop the buckboard, son!”
“What is it?” Joshua was apprehensive as he pulled the reins and brought the horses to an abrupt halt.
“What has you so alarmed, Father?”
“I
don’t
rightly know
, son
.” Jeremiah was rubbing his eyes as if they were playing tricks on him, or he was having the hallucinations that most everyone accused him of. “I just saw a fleeting glimpse of white dart through the woods. At least, I thought I did.”
“I
didn’t
see anything…” Joshua began, before he was interrupted by the tinkling laughter of a child.
“You seen me!”
Both men could only stare in wonderment at the fairy
-
like creature that darted out of the woods to stand in the dirt road before them, arms akimbo. Her eyes were black; her hair was also as black as a raven’s wing
,
and reached down below her hips in a wild profusion of curls. Her skin was deeply tanned from many days spent outside, she was barefoot, and she wore a most unusual garment.
Jeremiah recognized her at once as the child
he had
shoved from the path of the massive oak that had severed his legs. He would never, as long as he lived, forget those captivating black eyes. Thank the good Lord above the child was very real and not some figment of his imagination. “What is your name, child?”
“Mariah.”
“You must be Jake Almond's daughter,” Joshua assessed, smiling down at her. “I recall Jake telling me he had a wife and daughter.”
“Yes
sir.”
Relief was evident on Jeremiah’s features. He knew all to
o
well what the slaves were whispering behind his back about angry spirits and other such malarkey. Huh! He
would
show them. But he had to admit the child was dressed in a most unconventional fashion. “Tell me
,
child,” Jeremiah
could not
resist asking. “Just what is that
you are
wearing?”
Mariah lovingly fingered the soft white silk trimmed with scalloped lace. “Ain't it just perdy? Miss Malinda said for me to leave it in a box until I growed up, but it fits me just fine now,
don’t
it?”
Malinda's hand me down chemise hung just below her knees
,
somewhat the worse for wear
, but no less treasured. “She ga
ve me some real perdy dresses the last time I was at your house, but they was all too big. This is the only one what fit right.”
Another great weight was lifted from Jeremiah as he listened to the child's gay chatter. He had
not
imagined the giggling, childlike laughter erupting from Malinda's room during some of the worst days of his recovery. He
had
simply chalked it up to hallucinations at the time, but it had been Mariah. Her appearance also explained the dream.
After the accident
,
he had
been lying in bed, tossing, turning
,
and imagining pain in legs and feet that were no longer attached to his body. He
had
been pondering the quickest way to end his miserable existence when someone
had
silently entered his darkened room. “Who’s there?” he remembered calling despondently.
“Why do you just lay in that bed all the time feeling sorry for yourself and making Malinda and the rest of your family suffer with you? If this is how you plan to spend the remai
nder of your days, why not
just shoot yourself and get it over with?
”
When he did not seem eager to answer her, she continued. “But
I
reckon what I
really come to say is thank you for pushing me out of the way of that giant tree that was about to fall on me. I
didn’t
tell Pa
‘
cause he would most likely take a switch to me if he found out I was in the woods when they was cutting trees after
he has
done told me time and time
again
not to go there. Since you done me a kindness
,
I will do you one in turn.” A mischievous twinkle lit her eyes. “Do you want me to bring you my Pa’s squirrel gun so you can put yourself out of your misery?”
“Get out of my room!”
he had
cried into the
still
night. “Get out, do you hear
? Leave me be!
”
Hearin
g his cry, Patricia had rushed to his side,
and after some time
,
convinced him
he had
been dreaming. But now, after hearing the child's voice
,
he knew Mariah had been the messenger that God had chosen to snatch him from the jaws of death.
“What were you doing in the woods?” Jeremiah questioned the little minx.
“Hunting dragons!” She shielded her eyes against the bright morning sun to peer into the dark forest.
“Oh, hunting dragons. Well, should you happen upon any
,
I am
sure my son here would be more than happy to slay the fire
-
breathing beast for you.” Jeremiah patted Joshua on the shoulder. “My son is a dragon slayer from way back. He hunted them quite frequently as a child
,
as I recall.”
“I shall slay my own dragons, thank you
kindly,” she was quick to inform
them. “My aunt says a girl must learn to fend for herself. She
is
very beautiful and very wise and I aim to be just like her when I grow up. I
won’
t
ever need a man to protect me.” She laughed and waved to them over her shoulder as she scampered into the shaded woods. “I can take care of myself!”
“I have no doubt that yo
u can.” Joshua laughed
and his father was quick to agree.
Chapter Seven
T
he sight of Magnolia House nestled among the fresh spring greenery brought a loving smile to Lynna's face. Sitting on a stump by the side of the woods
,
fragrant with pine, cedar, oak and magnolia trees, she was lost in thought until Suzanne's rather unladylike bellow from the balcony shattered her reverie. “Lynna, would you be a dear and come up here
,
please?”
Leavi
ng her daydreams of a land
far away behind
,
Lynna walked the short distance to the house
,
wondering what Suzanne wanted this time. She paused inside the door
where t
he
bright
morning sun reflected the labors of the household servants, who had waxed and buffed the floors until they shone. Running her finger along the edge of a polished, carved oak table
,
she knew there was not a speck of dust to be found. If there was the person responsible for leaving it would have to deal with the wrath of Jasmine, self proclaimed
ruler of dis heah roost
, and none of the household servants relished that prospect.