Riverbreeze: Part 3 (51 page)

Elizabeth blushed then. So, he had known all along what was on her mind. She pressed her face into his neck, smiling like a fool.

That didn’t last long though. She pulled back, her nose wrinkling. “What is that smell?”

“Pennyroyal…and lard, probably.” He answered casually. “’Twill keep the mosquitoes at bay. I have a pot ready for you.”

She became suspicious then. “Where, exactly, are you taking me?”

“I told you, a lovely little place.”

“Where?” She demanded.

He sighed, stopped and put her down. Keeping his voice under control, he said, “I want to take you to a private place, a sandy beach amidst—“

“I am not your Indian lover!” She hissed, crossing her arms across her chest. Tears welled in her eyes, she was so angry. “I do not want to go to a place where there are swarms of mosquitoes and I do not want to smear grease all over my body! If you want another one of them, then go—“

“No!” He interrupted her, putting his hands firmly on her shoulders. His eyes were intent on hers. “Lily, I am not doing this because I want another one of them. You are my beautiful wife and I want you! I thought we could get out of this sweltering room, away from Robin, away from Mistress Mathews. I thought we could go away to a private place and watch the sun set, setting the river and sky on fire. I thought you would like to feel the cool breeze on your bare breasts and the river lapping at your toes. And we could make love under the stars, but if you want to stay here…I see you’ve readied the room.” He added, glancing through the open doorway towards the bed, then he returned his gaze to her. “We’ll stay.”

His words were sincere, but the passion had gone out of them. What he described was indeed romantic, and she had never done such a wild and unconventional thing before. To make love outdoors? Under a starry sky? With the river breeze cooling her sweaty body? Actually, it sounded rather divine right about now.

She had missed him so very much and what should have been a glorious reunion after his weeks away had been prevented by his presentation of a son. If she allowed it, that reunion could take place now on a private, pristine beach, so different from what she had planned. Perhaps he didn’t recognize it, that he was replicating the times he spent with Makki, but to give him the benefit of the doubt, perhaps he just favored the outdoors, although he had never suggested it before.

And then she remembered something else that brought out her jealous nature. Ever since Evelyn had had her first horseback riding lesson and Jamie had taken her to a secret place, they had gone there occasionally to escape the confines of their bedchamber. And Evelyn always came back with a radiant glow to her skin. Perhaps rolling around in the sand wasn’t so bad after all.

And wasn’t the purpose of this reunion to conceive a child no matter where they did it? Two women had already given him children; now it was her turn. If she had to smear her body with grease and lie in the sand, she would do it, and gladly. The main point was that she loved him with all her heart and it was time to fulfill her dream.

“I’ve changed my mind.” She said, taking his hand. “Show me this place.”

A look came over his face that she couldn’t describe; a look so full of emotions, love, passion, joy, that she knew she had said the right thing. He scooped her up again and carried her clear out of Jamestown to a stretch of sandy beach where the river lapped gently against the shore and where he had already set up a camp of sorts. So, he had planned this all along while she had envisioned an evening spent in that stuffy room. Was this better? Begrudgingly, she admitted it was. The sunset, the cool breeze, a small crackling fire, cups of peach brandy, a cheese tart. (She was sure Mrs. Mathews had provided that.) What more could she ask for?

A child. So, after watching the sunset and partaking of refreshment, under the first star of the night, they consummated their love, and all of Elizabeth’s dreams came true.

Epilogue: Rivercrest Plantation: Christmas 1646

The newly built house was festooned, inside and out, with garlands of holly, pine boughs and bright red ribbons. Dozens of bayberry candles burned in sconces and on tables, illuminating the dining table groaning under the weight of so many holiday dishes and the eager members of both Bassett families ready to consume them. But not quite yet. Jamie stood up and faced his audience: his wife, Evelyn, their twins, not quite eighteen months old, his brother Robert, Robert’s wife, Elizabeth with their twins, not quite eighteen months old, his two older sons, Robin, now five years old and Alexander, now two and a half. Abigail was also present as was Dolnick and Nathan, standing along the back wall with six new indentured servants, four males and two females. A table had been set up in the hall for them.

He bowed his head and gave thanks to God for all their blessings: their continued health, their prosperity, their healthy children, their good friends, this brand new house for his family alone and peace at last.

Finally, in October, a peace treaty between the Indians and the English had been ratified by the governor and the General Assembly.

After the initial push to eradicate the Indians and capture Opechancanough, which failed, Captain Claiborne continued his attacks against the Pamunkeys in the fall and the Chickahominys the following winter of 1644. They also established new forts far up the rivers, pushing the Indians further and further from their homelands.

But Opechancanough still eluded them.

In June of 1645 Governor Berkeley returned from London, another failed venture. King Charles was too occupied with the civil war going on in England to give any aid to a remote colony, so, on his own, Sir William bought what arms he could and sailed back to Virginia rather than accept a commission in the king’s military.

Upon his return he learned of Claiborne’s progress and unhappy with it, took the lead himself. In July he and his troops went forth and pillaged the Indians’ cornfields and set fire to their villages. He set a trap on the natives which resulted in the capture or deaths of many chieftains, although Opechancanough was nowhere to be seen.

In July of the same year the Chickahominys lost their last town and moved north to the Mattaponi River. Many were killed and prisoners over the age of eleven were taken away to prevent them from rejoining their people.

But still no Opechancanough.

Over the winter, when snow covered the ground and freezing temperatures forced everyone inside, Berkeley gave his troops time off, but the next spring he met with the General Assembly and together, they came up with a strategy to capture the wily, old chief.

Another fort was built at the falls of the Appomattox River, interfering with that tribe’s fishing. This also became the staging point for raids against the Nansemonds, but at this time of year, all natives were out foraging for food, rather than sitting around their villages being easy targets. Realizing this, Berkeley tried a different tactic. Rather than waste his time searching through miles and miles of virgin forest, he sent emissaries out to the different tribes suggesting a peace, hoping to lure Opechancanough to a meeting place.

The clever leader didn’t fall for it, which prompted Berkeley to finally recruit a special force of militia for the sole purpose of capturing the paramount chief. Sometime in the summer, the troops led their final attack on the Pamunkey tribe, harassing and hounding them until they finally learned of Opechancanough’s whereabouts. A messenger brought the news to Berkeley, and he, along with a small party on horseback, marched to the village and surprised him in his quarters.

The great
mamanatowick
, nearly one hundred years old, was finally captured, and the war was over. A triumphant Berkeley took him to Jamestown, with the intent of shipping him to England for trial, but a jailor shot Opechancanough in the back while he lay in chains, killing him. Before that, though, he remained his feisty self, upbraiding Berkeley for putting him on display.

The Bassetts didn’t go to Jamestown when they heard the news. Robert, especially, didn’t care to view the old man. He always knew Opechancanough was a sly, but highly intelligent leader and he had led the English on a merry chase for over two years. But he was dead now and so was his chiefdom. His brother, Necotowance, who inherited his title, sued for peace and in October of 1646, the General Assembly ratified the first Anglo, Indian agreement, effectively bringing peace to the colony for the next thirty years and reducing the Indians to an inferior status. They were now required to pay tribute to the governor, a yearly gift of twenty beaver skins, and they gave up most of their homelands to the colonists, forced to live on specified land north of the York River. They were forbidden to associate with the settlers without special permission, required to wear identifying badges whenever they passed through English settlements. In essence, they were forced to now live under English law, not their own.

The people of Virginia were jubilant; they could now get back to their lives. Celebrations, like this one today in Jamie and Evelyn’s new home, took place all over the colony. The Indians had finally been suppressed and peace brought prosperity to this growing land.

The Bassett brothers looked across the table at their respective families, then at each other. In that look, unspoken words and feelings passed between them. They acknowledged their success; their hearts swelled with pride over their growing families; they were grateful for all that they had received. Robert’s dream of establishing himself as a prominent planter was coming true and Jamie’s dream of running a successful horse breeding operation looked promising. And seeing their young children and their wives swelling with child again…well, from the very beginning, hadn’t Elizabeth and Evelyn always warned them?

No matter. Now with peace over the land, following their dreams was a breeze.

The End

Footnotes:
Chapter Thirty-eight’s title is Heels over Head instead of Head over Heels. According to Facts on File; Writer’s Library Dictionary of Cliches, this expression began as heels over head and dates from around 1350. Four hundred years later an unknown poet turned the saying around to head over heels and this new version has been used ever since.

In Chapter Fifty, I use the term Benefit of Clergy as an option to clear Robert of a crime. This law was a law of Parliament which had come down from earlier ages of the church. Under the law, every free male who could read and write, upon conviction of a first offense might plead Benefit of Clergy and upon showing that he could read a verse of Scripture (the 51st Psalm) have the penalty remitted—he was then burned in the hand with a hot iron so that the scar made evidence against him if he should plead a second time.

Thank you for purchasing
Riverbreeze
Part III. I hope you enjoyed reading the three part series it as much as I enjoyed writing it.

I fell in love with the Jamestown and Colonial Williamsburg area of Virginia when my husband was stationed at Langley Air Force Base and we lived in Hampton, VA. Before that we lived in England for four years and that’s when history came alive for me.

This is my first novel and I currently live in Roanoke, VA with my husband. We have one daughter.