Shades of Gray: A Novel of the Civil War in Virginia (63 page)

“Victory?” Andrea threw her hands in the air,
forgetting her former fears. “Victory or defeat, the price is the same—a
senseless effusion of blood! Tell me, when will it be over?”

“When the last man falls or peace and liberty
are restored … whichever comes first.” His voice was low and even. “We are
willing to sacrifice—and to lose—everything but our honor.”

“For heaven’s sake! Half a million of the
bravest men in the world have already shed their blood for honor! Where did it
get them? Where has it gotten you?”

When she stopped and looked up, Andrea noticed
Hunter’s countenance for the first time—tired, weary, like he had not slept for
days. His eyes looked strained under the weight of responsibility that rested
upon him. Yet he bore the burden with the confidence of one who is accustomed
to suffering, one who considers it so commonplace as to be unworthy of his contemplation.

“But Colonel, you gamble against great odds.”

“I am not good at arithmetic nor accustomed to
counting odds.” He pulled out one of his revolvers and checked the chamber.
“I’m an officer. My duty is to fight, not calculate the capability of the
enemy.”

“But the size and number of the enemy’s guns
generally have something to do with the end result, do they not?”

Hunter did not respond other than to raise his
eyes to hers and then lower them again. From that look she knew that fear, no
matter the odds, never entered his mind, just as the word surrender never
entered his thoughts. He was planning to accept an assault he had no chance of
surviving, simply in accordance with his habitual policy of withstanding
anything placed in his path.

“I do not wish you to come back a corpse.”

“I intend to do everything in my power to
prevent that,” he replied. “The task is difficult, but I trust not entirely
impossible.”

“You cannot win this battle based on Southern
resolve. All your men and your Maker cannot withstand that which is aligned
against you!”

“If you are asking why I do not surrender, I’ll
give you my uncompromising reply.” He paused and looked directly into her eyes.
“My honor forbids it.”

“But it is not up to you to vindicate the
South’s honor!”

“You yourself said honor is the most priceless
gift we can have,” he said, his piercing gray eyes still focused on her.

Andrea sighed in exasperation at the way he
always used her own words against her. Then she looked at him wistfully and bit
her lip, wanting to say something more but, for once, not venturing to do so.

* * *

Hunter read
the look of private agony and suppressed emotion on her face. “Where will you
go?” He took her hand in his and stared at its deceiving size. He knew well the
slender figure it belonged to possessed more fire and energy per square inch
than anyone he had ever met. Even now, dressed as a boy, she radiated a dignity
and nobility that was visible even beneath the low brow of her hat.

She took a deep breath and looked up, distress
evident in her troubled eyes. “The general knows I am here. I cannot go back.”

“I’ll have one of my men take you someplace
where you’ll be safe.”

“I do not wish to leave. With the Colonel’s
permission, I will share whatever fate awaits him.”

Hunter remained silent for a moment, his eyes
probing hers. Then he reached for her and pulled her to him, almost melted to
tears by the poignant complexity of her affection. Her struggle between
devotion to him and duty to country stirred his heart.

“Dear Andrea, I cannot accept such a sacrifice.”

“I have come this far. I will share your peril.”

“You will stand with Virginia?” He held her at
arm’s length and stared into her eyes.

“I promised you once I would not allow the war
to come between us. I did not agree to do one thing to your face, and expect to
do another behind your back.” Andrea placed her head against his chest,
clutching his coat. “I will share in your danger and glory, Alex. I must. I
fear you will not come back to me.”

“Of course, I will.” He rubbed her back. “I have
survived worse.”

“And we can go home? To Hawthorne?”

Hunter looked down and searched her face,
striving to understand the meaning in her words and the promise they contained.
Eyes full of devotion stared back at him. “Home?”

“If the offer still stands.”

Hunter closed his eyes, smiled, and pulled her
back to him. “Oh, Andrea, I told you how I care for you. I do so still.” His
voice was but a whisper. “I promise. We’ll go home.”

A knock on the door interrupted them and they
parted. “Sir, Gus just got back. Said it’s important.”

“Send him in.”

The scout soon entered, followed by Carter and
three other officers, including Captain Pierce. Andrea tried to remain
inconspicuous, walking to the back of the room, her hat pulled low.

 “What have you?” Hunter took a deep breath and
prepared himself for the worst.

“It appears all routes are closed. They are
massing in every direction.” He pointed on the map. “Looks to be at least a
brigade.”

Hunter stared at the map, a grave look upon his
face.

“Pretty heavy odds,” Carter said, “considering
we’re backed up to the river like this and down supplies.”

“If they wish
to fight, they will be facing the best the Confederacy has to offer.” Hunter
walked over to the fireplace, and leaned for a moment in silent meditation
against the mantel.

“Pierce, I
want you to dismount your men as skirmishers at the front. Carter, take your
men and place them here.” He walked briskly back to the table and pointed to
the map. “Jake and Boz, you’ll be here and here to protect our flanks. Gus and
Hank can hold some men in reserve.”

Hunter gazed up at the eager faces of his men
and then focused once again on the map and the business at hand. “If only there
was a way to bring in reinforcements and supplies, we could handle them easily.”

“I’ve been up and down that river,” Gus said. “I
have found no ford.”

Andrea began
to pace back and forth, her spurs clanking loudly on the floor. More than one
of the men looked back at her, irritated at the distraction.

“I see no choice but to proceed as planned.” The
men started for the door at Hunter’s words.

“Wait!” The room grew silent as each man turned
toward Andrea. Walking to the map, she studied it for a moment, trying to get
her bearings. “I know a ford.” Her voice was small and weak.

“You don’t have to—”

“I know a
ford,” she said, louder this time. “It’s deceiving. Its banks are steep. But
the water runs low.”

“Do you know this boy, sir?” Pierce stepped
forward as if he did not trust what he was hearing.

“Yes. He can be implicitly trusted.”

“Capital! We can send for reinforcements. Take
me there.” Pierce talked excitedly while starting again for the door.

“Wait!” Hunter’s voice froze everyone in the
room. “Are you sure it is passable?”

Andrea bit her cheek. “It will not be easy, but
I’ve crossed in similar weather.”

Again, everyone in the room fell breathlessly
quiet. Hunter ran his hand through his hair. “How far?”

“Mayhap a mile, probably less.”

Hunter nodded. “Very well. Take some men with
you, Pierce. If it’s in enemy hands, engage with anything less than twice your
number. If you can take it without firing a shot, all the better. I’d rather
not alert the Yanks that we are aware of its presence.”

Pierce nodded with obvious annoyance, apparently
more eager for the opportunity for a fray than to take the ford without a
fight.

“Post enough men to keep it in our control. We
must command that passage at any cost, whether we chose to stand …” He paused
and looked at Andrea. “Or not.”

He sat down to write another hasty dispatch,
never raising his eyes, even while giving additional orders. “Get this across
as soon as you can get through,” he said, handing the message to Gus.

He rattled off more orders with practiced ease
and walked to the door with his men as they filed out. He closed the door just
as Andrea reached it.

“Are you adequately armed?” His voice was low
and strained.

Andrea nodded, but wore a questioning look. “You
cannot believe I will use force against
your
enemy.”

“Damn it.
Your
enemy is all around you!
And if you don’t know that then I am reluctant to let you go.”

Andrea nodded
regretfully, seeming to accept that loyalty and treason had somehow fused.
“Still, I will not use my weapon save in my own self-defense.”

Hunter put his hands to his temples, trying to
decide whether to let her go. The battles fought during four long years of
bloody struggle were not half so hard as the decision that confronted him now.
“Do you understand the extreme peril you are undertaking?”

“I comprehend both the peril and the necessity.
Do not undertake to make a protest about it. I am going.”

Hunter looked into eyes that were both
uncompromising and decisive. “Return to me here as soon as Pierce is led to the
ford. Do you understand?”

He stomped over to the table and drove his pen
across another piece of paper furiously. “That means you do not wait for him to
engage, or even to see if the ford is guarded. Turn around after showing him
the ford’s location no matter what you hear. Do you understand?”

“I understand, Colonel.” Andrea stood
impatiently with her hand on the door latch.

Hunter strode across the room. “Here. Take this
pass in case you get stopped by any of my men.” Then his voice turned softer.
“You’ve taken enough risks on your own accord. You need not take any more on
mine. I understand the sacrifice.”

“If you will use the ford to get back to
Virginia, it is well worth the sacrifice.” Andrea shoved the piece of paper
into her pocket.

“I’m not in the habit of choosing routes of
retreat. I leave that for the enemy.”

“I would hope that you’re not in the habit of
allowing your men to be needlessly slaughtered either. Your reputation as a
brave and gallant soldier is not worth that.” She reached for the door latch,
but he held firm.

“It’s not for my reputation or glory that I
fight. It’s for the honor of Virginia. You know that.”

Again she tried to remove his hand from the
latch. “There is no honor in fighting a losing battle. I’m showing you the
location of the ford so you can retreat with dignity—not get whipped with
honor.”

He frowned when he read the impatience on
Andrea’s face. “When the ford is in our hands, I will decide our course of
action.” He paused and stared at her intently. “I hope you fully appreciate the
risk of the venture. Your hand must be against them, as it has been for them.”

“Surely you do not believe I came all this way
without appreciating that risk. As for whom I stand with now, I am willing.”

One more look in her rebellious eyes caused
Hunter to concede. “Very well. Show Captain Pierce the way.”

Although he intended to give her a parting kiss,
he did not have time. By the time he passed through the door, she had already
leaped into the saddle and was holding in her skillful hands a large, spirited,
and impatient horse.

The massive beast beneath her snorted and pinned
its ears when her weight hit the saddle, providing more than a little
indication that it intended to try to remove the obstacle from its back at the
first opportunity. No need to worry about that, Hunter thought to himself. She
would ride a hurricane if someone dared her to, or attempt to jump a mountain
if someone told her it could not be done.

He watched in breathless silence as she whirled
the horse around, and took off at a gallop with a dozen men following close
behind.

Hunter closed his eyes and, for the second time
in his life, said a prayer. He could not believe he was entrusting the one he
loved with so dangerous an errand on behalf of his Command, nor that she was
willing to accept it on behalf of him.

Chapter
63

“So long lost and loved at last, too late.”

–“The Three Scouts,” J.T. Trowbridge

Colonel Hunter paced impatiently after hearing a
few shots in the distance, his heart and eyes weary of watching for her
arrival. When the sound of galloping hooves interrupted the silence, he
anxiously scanned the lane, waiting for the image of the horse to come into
view. But it did not appear where he expected.

The bay, lathered and blowing, came bursting out
of the woods not fifty feet away. He watched as she aimed her mount straight
for the fence that separated the lane from the pasture, watched men who were
lounging nearby scatter, and watched with his experienced eye, a horse that had
no intention of attempting flight.

Hunter turned his head when they were but one
stride out, seeing in the actions of the horse that it was indeed going to
refuse to jump. When he did not hear a crash, he turned back to see the duo
sailing over the obstacle with a foot to spare. Andrea’s spurs were deeply dug
in her charger’s flanks, and the horse’s eyes still bulged from the shock of
the perfectly timed action.

A hellcat on horseback. Hunter stared at her in
suppressed amazement as she drew the horse to a jolting stop, spraying clumps
of mud upon the porch step where he stood.

“Mission accomplished, Colonel.” She saluted him
in such a way that he knew it was instinctive rather than planned. “It was
occupied but did not appear to be heavily guarded. Gus is through and Captain
Pierce should be—”

Andrea sucked in a mouthful of air as she
dismounted. Although she made an obvious effort to land on her good leg, she
grimaced and cursed under her breath when she hit the ground nonetheless. “…In
control.” She finished her sentence, and straightened up with gritted teeth. “I
await further orders, sir.”