Just One Kiss (The Dream Catcher Series-Book Two) (18 page)

“I’m sorry, I’ve known them entirely too long. I can’t see them giving up. They’ve wanted this land for so long. And they aren’t good losers.” The doc pushed his cup towards a refill.

Hattie poured him another cup and eyed him, his bushy brows drew together giving him a harsher look than the man deserved. Yet his gray eyes seemed to carry sympathy. “I wouldn’t let my guard down just yet.”

Hattie nodded quietly.

“I’ll say this, the place looks good. As good as I’ve ever seen it. And it’s a darn good thing that Lee is back. Most people about here are farmers. And the one thing you can depend on is a farmer standin’ up for another farmer. So if you get into trouble, remember that. It’s a hard life but there are some rewards. The Jeffries are not liked, they’ve been bullying the people of this valley for years and it’s time to move on. Once they are gone, this valley can get to the business of farming and enjoy the benefits. So you take real good care of Mr. Lee, because I believe if anyone can outfox the Jeffries, it’s him. Thanks for the good coffee, I’ll be back to check on him at the end of the month. If you need me in the meantime, just send Joe to fetch me.” The young doctor smiled at her. He got up and put his hat on his blonde head and moved to leave.

“Thanks for comin’, doc.” Joe got up and walked him to the door.

“Be seein’ ya Joe, take care now…” The doc smiled and got into his buggy. He waved and was gone in no time.

Joe peeked into Lee’s room as he hiked his suspenders high on his shoulder. Lee was awake and just finishing his coffee.

“Well, you shore gave us a scare we didn’t need…” Joe laughed as he moved the chair closer to the bed.

Lee couldn’t stifle the smile. “Forgive me, Joe…”

“The doc said you took a few other bullets from the war…how come you never mentioned them?” Joe asked as though it were his business to know.

Lee rubbed his leg methodically. “That’s what happens in war. I couldn’t hide the arm from you, but no use going into detail about the bullets. War is like that, Joe. Yeah…I took a couple. No use worryin’ over it, I got better and didn’t die like they thought I might.”

“What happened…?” Joe asked.

Lee eyed him for a minute knowing he couldn’t hide from Joe long. “I took a bullet just below my ribs. I was rushin’ a cannon, trying to knock it out of commission as it was blasting the hell out of my men. I made it up the ridge, and was clogging it when I was caught from the rear. The bullet went through me. Spent a while in the sick ward for it. I guess that’s when they got my name mixed up with another and decided I’d died. I almost did, but there was this surgeon that was headstrong about keeping me going. I admired him so much, I began to study his work a little. He let me assist with a few of my men before I was discharged.”

“Now that sounds like you were a hero…” Joe laughed.

Lee frowned. “I just did what I had to do…Lots of others did too, Joe. It’s just the way war is. Full of killin’ or be killed.”

“And I’ll betcha if I went through your saddle bags, I’d find a medal in there for that one, wouldn’t I?” Joe mused with another sly smile.

Lee firmed his lips. “I didn’t want any medal…a lot of good boys died that day.”

Joe shook his head. “You’s bound and determined you ain’t gonna be no hero, ain’t ya?”

“I’m no hero, Joe, so let it lie…” Lee looked away.

“So what happened with your arm?” Joe scrunched up his face at him.

“I was trying to decide whether to attack or not. Sittin’ there with indecision clouding my mind and bullets flyin’ and Martin Fuller, a young kid, came up to me. He was barely sixteen. His brothers talked him into joinin’. He had no business in that war, Joe. He was still just a wet-nosed kid. Anyway, he came up to me, he was askin’ what to do next, and I turned to look at him, and blood rippled down his forehead and he fell dead at my feet. That’s when I decided to take the cannon on the hill. I didn’t even think any more, I just did it. It had to be done. I wasn’t gonna look at another Martin Fuller lying at my feet. So don’t go pinin’ no medals on me. If I hadn’t been worrying with what to do, the kid probably would have never died. A lot of men wouldn’t. After that, I knew what I had to do and I did it. I didn’t even think, I just did. But it wasn’t for a medal Joe, it was for the kid…” Lee’s voice broke and he looked away. “The canon was live and I didn’t know it when I rushed in. It blew my lower arm off, right there. All the way back to the hospital, I kept telling them about Martin. He was just a little dumb farm boy…like myself. He didn’t want to fight. He didn’t want that damn war at all. They fixed me up, and I mended. The doc, he showed me how to strengthen myself so I could do things without help. It took a while to learn to build myself up. But I did it. But–I don’t have no medal, Joe, I buried it with the kid.”

“Buried it…but how…”

“Aww…I got it later…from General Lee himself, but I knew where I buried that kid and I went there after the war, and buried it with him. It was because of him that I got that medal. He deserved it, not me.”

“How’d you find his grave?”

Lee stared into Joe’s eyes. “I’m the one who buried him and I carved his name in the wooden head of his grave so I could find it. It was one of the bloodiest battles of the war, a lot of men died, and it took me a few days to find it. I’d almost given up findin’ him, when there he was just below the hill, where they attacked us. We buried a lot of them there. But I did find him.”

Joe frowned and hung his head. “I’m sorry, Mr. Lee. I guess you saw a lot of death there.”

“More than I wanted…I asked the doc how he managed to keep his head dealing with the smell of death every day. He said he didn’t deal with it at all, he didn’t think on it, didn’t put names to them, just did his job. Did what he had to do. And that’s exactly what I did that day with the cannon, what I had to do. The doc didn’t get no medals for all he did. It was his job, and it was my job to knock that cannon out the best way I could.”

“I see what ya mean…” Joe nodded. “I never looked at it like that, no sir.”

Lee thought of Josh now, dying in that cabin, and Chase and Katherine too. He missed them every day. Chase had taught him a lot of rules of survival and Lee appreciated it through the war, but no one prepared him for the dying of friends.

Then he smiled; he almost chuckled.

“What’s so funny?” Joe asked.

“That bullet wasn’t the worst thing that happened to me,” Lee admitted.

“What do ya mean?” Joe stared.

“Well sir, there was somethin’ worse than bullets goin’ on during that war. I almost lost my foot…and I wasn’t alone.” Lee chuckled. “Up in Arkansas, it was one of the worst dang winters you ever saw. Snow and ice, always freezin’ cold. And that country up there is full of hills and the hills are full of rocks and combine that with snow and ice. And the fact that our shoes and boots were comin’ unglued. Some made the mistakes of throwin’ their blankets away so when we marched it wouldn’t be such a burden, but then when it froze so did we. But it was the marchin’. So much marching…My boots, they almost fell apart although I wore them ‘til they just crumbled beneath me. We all did. When they did, I tried wrapping them with some of my clothes. But they took a beating, and then it froze again and we had to cross this river. The dang thing was nearly frozen, and they suggested we run rather than walk through it. But it nearly killed half of us. Most of us were barefoot. And we had cuts and bruises from all the marching. I guess we spent more time doctorin’ our feet than anything. Well, my feet turned black for a while, and I had so many sores…it wasn’t a pretty sight. But I’d seen enough of that gangrene that I wasn’t about to let them get that bad. They’d be sawin’ off. So I doctored and wrapped and rewrapped those feet. I babied them.”

“Good Lord, Mr. Lee…that had to be painful.” Joe shook his head.

“I worried over those feet more than any bullet. At least a bullet would kill you outright, losin’ a foot or leg would be a slow death if they got it in time. I saw too many get them chopped off. I was determined to take care of mine the best I could. I rubbed them. I hung them up on the side of a tree and rested them. I cleaned them every night. Gradually, they got better. Some of the others began to do the same as me, we had to do something…or lose them.”

Joe shook his head. “You’s all heroes, then, ain’t ya?”

“The ones that made it back alive are survivors, Joe. That’s all…”

Lee looked about. “Where are the kids?”

“Hattie, she got them working, pulling the vegetables out of the garden…why?”

“I miss them…” Lee sighed.

“I imagine they’ll be in directly. They were all wantin’ to come in, but Miss Hattie put them to work until you was feelin’ like company.” Joe smiled.

“Well, you tell her I could use a little. I ain’t gonna sit here and talk war stories to you all day. You got those taxes paid, didn’t ya?”

“I got ‘em. The banker was glad too.” Joe smiled.

“Good, now let’s see what happens. If this isn’t enough to stop them, then I’ve got one other angle I’m workin’ on.” Lee sighed and drifted down into the covers. “I think I’ll take a little nap, Joe.”

Joe started to leave and Lee peeked his head out of the covers. “Thanks, Joe…I owe you…”

“You don’t owe me a thing…” Joe shook his head and left. “Naw sir, you don’t owe me a thing.”

Chapter Eleven

“Sam, is that you?” Lee hollered from his bed.

“Yes sir.” Sam trudged into the room and glanced about. He stood there looking at Lee with a hooded glance, wearing a pair of overalls and a straw hat. He was dirty from working in the fields.

“Good to see ya. I was beginning to think no one would ever come in the house. Where is everyone?” Lee asked.

“They’s in the fields workin’,” Sam said as he came into the middle of the room. “You need somethin’?” he asked.

“No…well, yes, I need my clothes, Sam. Where might they be?” Lee asked anxiously.

“Hattie washed ‘em. They’s on the line, I expect,” Sam said, looking at him strangely.

“Oh…I wondered where they got off to. Is there any way you could go get them and bring them to me…?” he asked.

“I cain’t do that…” Sam began twisting about nervously.

“Well…why not?” Lee asked, confused by his actions and words.

“‘Cause Hattie told me not to. She said you’d be up before you should be and wanting to help. But you ain’t that good with the cane Joe whittled for you, yet. You’re healing, but you ain’t ready to work in the fields yet. Joe and Hattie told me to leave you be, that you needed your rest and leave you alone. I ain’t even supposed to be in here.” Sam began to edge toward the door.

“For goodness sake, Sam. I’m fine. I been in this bed for four weeks now. I wouldn’t be getting up if I weren’t. I need to be out there with you and working. I need to use this leg before I forget how to. A man can’t lay in bed forever.” Lee frowned. “Would you please get my clothes for me?”

“I guess I could sneak them in off the line for you. You sure you are alright?”

“Of course I am,” Lee scoffed. “And I need you to do me a favor.”

“A favor?” Sam came closer. “Yes sir.”

“I want you to go to the telegraph office in town and deliver a message for me. I’ll give you the money.”

“What for?” Sam asked, his face looking amused.

“Just something I’m trying to work out. That’s all.”

“You get that off for me today, and it won’t be long before our troubles will be over…” Lee explained.

“Okay, I’ll get your clothes and run on in to town then…” Sam said.

When Sam returned with his clothes, he dressed hurriedly. “Sam…give this to the telegrapher operator. Now—I want to talk to you, first. I want you to listen, and then tell me what you think…”

“Alright.” Sam watched him and glanced out the window.

“It involves your sister. I don’t know if you know this but I-I’m in love with her, Sam…and I want your blessings,” Lee said quietly. “I wanted to talk to you about it for some time, but you’re the man of your family, and I respect you, Sam. Always have.”

Sam studied his words for a long moment, then sat on the edge of the bed. “I knew she was crazy about you, but I never thought you’d feel the same about her,” Sam admitted. “I cain’t believe you are askin’ me…how I feel about it. It pleasures me that you’d come to me and ask.”

“Well of course I would, Sam…” Lee nodded. “I want to know how you really feel. You’re her brother, her next of kin, and I want your blessing.”

“I guess you’d really be family if you and her was to…get together.” Sam smiled.

“Yes, but it will be hard, here…in Alabama. People here haven’t let the war go yet. They still harbor bad feelings for the Negroes and us livin’ together would be near on to impossible,” Lee admitted.

“Yeah, you could get both of you killed.” Sam frowned. “Well, you know I think a lot of you, Mr. Lee. And I guess I cain’t blame her for feelin’ the same. I knowed for a long time how she felt about you. She grieved ever so much when she thought you died. We both did. So I guess I’m alright with it, if you can manage to stay alive. But I shore don’t want no more dyin’.”

Lee nodded. “I’m working on an idea, Sam.”

“Mr. Lee.” Sam shook his head. “It ain’t that. It ain’t that at all I’m worried about. But there ain’t no place on earth that a white man and black woman can live together. My Pa used to say there weren’t no place on earth for a black and white to go. Maybe he was right, but I know how you feel about each other. And…I reckon God does too.”

“There might be, Sam…there might be a place. I know of one place.”

Sam stared at him. “And what if there isn’t?”

“I don’t know…honestly. I love her…do you know what I’m saying? You can’t hide somethin’ that strong, Sam. Sooner or later, people will know how it is. They won’t like it, but they’ll know. They’ll scorn us, call us trash. Like as not we won’t get any credit from the stores in town. We’ll be forced to live in sin. That’s not what I want.”

“Yeah, I know’d all along how it was. She’s gonna be your lady no matter what. Sooner or later. They’ll kill you both…It ain’t safe here the way ya’ll feel about each other. Any fool could see it.”