Southern Beauty (2 page)

“I will ride out immediately, sir,” smiled Malcolm.

“Thanks private.  I am hoping to meet you and Miss Lee at our cottage before you leave.  Miss Lee has something in her possession that I must have before you go.  I have sent someone ahead to quietly bring in supplies and leave just as quietly.  If for some reason our plans are interrupted, go straight there immediately.  Here is a map I made for you to get there,” Lee handed Malcolm the map. “Johanna knows the way.  I have sent her a letter informing her of our plans.”

“
Yes, sir,” said Malcolm with a determined look on his face. “I won’t let you down.  I will do whatever it takes to keep her safe,” Malcolm assured him.

“
That is why I am sending you,” said Lee, “I know that I can trust you, especially with my niece.”

“Hello Johanna.  I came by to see if you were coming for tea this afternoon?” Patricia asked. 

“Oh, I’m feeling a bit tired, I think I need to rest, perhaps another day. Please tell the ladies I said hello, will you?”  Johanna forced a smile, hoping Patricia would just leave without asking questions. 

“Of course I will.” Patricia said while her eyes searched the foyer and the rooms that adjoined. 

“Goodbye then,” Johanna said as she began closing the door.

Patricia put her foot in the doorway to prevent the door from closing on her, “A lady should never answer her own door.  Where are all the servants?”

“They were giving me a headache,” Johanna answered.

“All of them?” questioned Patricia. 

Johanna sighed, “If you must know, some were sent to another plantation and I assume others fled. I will be leaving soon anyway my uncle is sending a soldier to escort me to Arlington today.” 

“Oh dear, we must have you over for dinner before you leave,” Patricia said.

“Oh, that is not necessary, really.  I have already said my goodbyes,” said Johanna.

“Very well then,” She gave up. Patricia though
t how terribly sad it was that just a few months ago when Johanna’s parents fled she had become so secluded.  “Maybe you won’t leave before the ball on Saturday hosted by the Beauregard’s. I heard it’s in honor of the cadets firing on the Union ship.  All those handsome young cadets from Citadel will be there!”

“Oh then, why I wouldn’t miss it for the world.”  Johanna mimicked Patricia’s thick accent with ease and rolled her eyes in disgust.  And then she watched Patricia stroll pass the iron-gate, nod to her driver, and step into her carriage.

As Johanna closed the door, her condescending smile disappeared.  As she thought about Clarice’s party, she felt nauseous.  She walked over to the mirror that hung on the wall.  She leaned in to get a better look at herself, tears began to swell up in her eyes and she watched them trickle down her rosy cheeks. 

It didn’t matter that Johanna was alone, she was used to it.  Johanna became a recluse since her parents’ financial ruin and their embarrassing escape.  She preferred to stay home and read.  It was a favorite pastime of her mother’s and she in turn enjoyed it herself.  Since her best friend Abigail wed in September to a lawyer from
Georgia and moved to be near his family, she had few friends.  She had no one really to be confidantes with except her matchmaking friend Mary Alice, who always tried to set her up to meet the most boorish of snooty men at parties they were expected to attend.  The men rarely fussed over her, which didn’t bother Johanna in the slightest.  She actually welcomed becoming another tapestry on the ballroom walls.  She did hate that when the General’s daughter, Clarice, came around, Johanna was but forgotten.

  Clarice
Beauregard was an auburn-haired Cajun-goddess.  She was extremely admired by young eligible men for her beautiful looks and her flirtatious nature.  Actually the whole family was extremely handsome.  Clarice’s twin brother, Rene, was one of the most eligible bachelors of the South.  During teatime at Miss Patricia’s there was so much gossip about Clarice and Rene, Johanna stopped attending them.  She only wanted to stay as far away from the women who gossiped, and the men who they gossiped about. 

Johanna’s heart ached for a new life in
Virginia.  She longed for the day she would unite with her family.   Johanna’s tears began to flow even harder now, and she ran up to her room and fell hard onto her bed.  At her beside she cradled the last book her parents had given her, an 1859 copy of Blackwood’s Magazine, all the way from London.  She had it book marked to her favorite novel, by a Miss Austen.  She liked it not for the romance, but the family’s closeness, especially that of sisters.  It was something she had always longed for.  

Romance was the last thing on Johanna’s mind.  She hadn’t had much luck with it in the past and she hated the drama that always seemed to accompany it. 
She had more important things to think on. 

Since December,
Charleston had become independent from the Union and while many celebrated others were fleeing in fear of Lincoln’s army.  This fear ran rapidly through Johanna’s plantation.  Many of the workers fled and the ones who stayed behind began to migrate to their new appointed employer a mile away.  Although being in the South slavery was legal, the Lees did not believe in it.  Therefore all men who worked were paid in some kind of form.  Johanna had many acquaintances who believed differently.  She believed no one should be someone’s property.  They were all handmade by God and should be treated alike.  There were several who felt like the Lees but would not fight against it.  Johanna just wanted to be away from all the turmoil and the extreme emotions that this controversy stirred up.  Virginia seemed like a safer place being near family and those who shared her point of view. 

#   #   #

Private Malcolm Graystone eyed his new dress clothes.  His commander had him wear a new Southerner’s uniform to ward off any trouble retrieving Johanna.  It seemed they just washed a union uniform many times with lye to turn it gray.  He laughed at his predicament.  Pretending to be someone he wasn’t was not new territory for Malcolm.  Ahead he spied a local tavern.  His stomach growled and he decided to stop for something to eat.  Only five miles down the road from his destination was Johanna Lee and if he wasn’t so tired and hungry he would have continued on, but his hunger pains began to make him feel weak.  He just needed to regenerate, and he would be on his way. 

Malcolm couldn’t wait to meet the woman his commander told him so much about.   He was 21 and ready to start a family.  The barmaid approached him and asked him his order. Malcolm decided to order a drink to calm his nerves. 

Malcolm didn’t realize how much rum he had until he stood up to walk out towards his horse.  His head began to spin.  He squinted as he scanned the town and noticed a small inn across the road
.  He decided that it would be best if he met Johanna in the morning.  He felt so good that he began to whistle as he staggered toward the inn.  He was interrupted by a sweet voice from behind.

“Hello handsome, are you a soldier here to protect little ole me?” the lady asked.

Malcolm turned to see a beautiful sultry woman in a pastel green dress, lace from head to toe, and his heart began to pound.  He smirked as his eyes traced her perfect body.  He could see the outline of her full breasts through her dress and was immediately smitten. 

“Wh
y, ma’m, you’re going to need someone to protect you from me,” he smiled.  The woman blushed as her hungry eyes inspected the handsome soldier. 

“Are you going to stay the night there?” she motioned in the direction he was heading.   “You must not be from around here. Why don’t you come with me, I know where you can find more comfortable accommodations.” 

“No thank you, Miss.” Malcolm declined.

“Well, no self respecting gentleman should stay there, my family owns the mansion on the next street over.  Let me escort you there.”

He leaned over and kissed her hand, and grinned.  “No thank you.  I must leave early in the morning.  I have a mission to accomplish.  Now what is a beautiful lady like you doing here without an escort?”

“Oh, I am shopping for a new bonnet.  There are so many now that we receive shipments from
London.  I always get the newest in fashion. It’s a way for me to feel pretty and of course to be the envy of all my dear friends,” she giggled.

“Well, I am sure even without the new bonnet you are envied,’ he said.

She smiled a strange shy yet seductive smile at him.  “Are you flirting with me?” 

“O
f course not, just observing,” his head seemed in a cloud.  He thought to himself that he definitely shouldn’t have had that last drink.  He had no idea where this was heading and wasn’t sure if he should find out. “I’ve never met a lady like you before.”

“And you never will.” She said with her seductive smile and slipped her hand into his as they made there way toward the inn.  It was now dark, but the inn lit up before them, a welcoming sight especially for Malcolm whose thoughts were getting fuzzier by the minute. 

“Thank you ma’am,” Malcolm was going to kiss her cheek, but she pressed her body to his and kissed him gently on the mouth. 

His lips tasted of alcohol, but they were warm, and her skin tingled as they made their way towards her bare shoulders. 

Chapter 3

E

arly in the morning, the fatigued David,
Preston, and Jacob came to an opening in the woods.  There lay a vast plantation and a Confederate’s home.  Jacob and Preston, who fought over the harmonica and the chewing tobacco throughout their trip, were speechless now.  Fascinated by the scenery, they deeply inhaled the exhilarating country’s fresh air.  David, confused at the sight, motioned the men to halt. 

“
What’s the problem McPherson?” asked Jacob. 

“There’s no one here.  It’s desolate.  No slaves, no soldiers, it’s not right
,” he replied in a hushed tone.

“Do you think it’s a trap?  Do they know we’re coming?”
Preston asked with concern. 

“Well, if it’s a trap, we’re going to be the mice.  Let’s go get our cheese.”  David said digging his heels into his horse. 
Preston and Jacob followed behind.

The men vigorously bolted through the front gate. 

“Let’s split up,” David ordered.

Each of the men entered from opposite sides of the house.  Jacob opened the servants’ entrance door in the back of the mansion.  He stepped into the kitchen and found stairs to the cellar and headed down. 
Preston stepped through the front door with David and made his way toward the stairs to investigate the second floor, while David continued his search on the main floor.

Suddenly, a woman’s scream echoed through the halls.  David darted upstairs from where the shriek of terror had come.  He grasped the oak railing with clenched fingers to pull himself up the stairs faster. 

“Keep your dirty Yankee hands off of me!”  Johanna cried recognizing the uniform as she fought to loosen Preston’s tight grip.  A glimpse of a handsome figure standing in the room’s doorway made her tremble, not with fear, more of delight that made her tender skin tingle.  Preston’s strong hold began to suffocate her; she gasped for air.

“Sure looks like you have your hands full,
Preston,” David grinned as he began to approach the defenseless Johanna.  Pulling her away from Preston, he drew her close to him, pressing her flawless texture next to his.  Her emerald eyes gleamed at him and filled his insides with a strong burning flame that ignited as he took a deep breath.  His mind helplessly searched for a sense of reality.  He could smell her sweet perfumed skin.  He felt a desire to taste her red lips upon his own. 

“Where’s Lieutenant Colonel Lee?”  Jacob interrupted.  “I’ve searched the whole premises, he’s not here, but I did find this nice aged wine in the cellar.  Anyone care to share it with me?”  Jacob asked as he held up the wine bottle.

McPherson looked back down at Johanna and pushed her away from him, keeping a tight grip around her arm.  Furious with himself for desiring Johanna, he stepped back away from her and stared her down.

“Where’s the Lieutenant Colonel, Miss?” 
Preston asked her as he undressed her with his provocative eyes. 

Johanna stood her ground, “Well, let me think, he could be milking our cow, having tea at Miss Patricia’s, or he might be at Fort Moultrie planning to kick your a…”

“That will be enough,” David interrupted her.  Johanna smiled sarcastically.