Savage Summer (15 page)

On the train ride back to Philadelphia, Morgan was deep in thought as he pondered his future plans. He was oblivious to the crowded condition of the train, and was hardly aware when the train made a stop to take on more coal.

In searching his heart he found that he wanted to ask Skyler to be his wife. His head was filled with plans for their future together. He had received his orders to go to Fort Laramie in Idaho Territory to help put down an Indian uprising. If he could convince Skyler to marry him, she could go with him. Did he really want to stay in the Cavalry? He was a doctor, and a damned good one, but he’d seen so many wounded and dying in the war that he had been sickened by it.

As a field doctor he had been forced to operate under the most appalling conditions. Ofttimes he had removed an arm or leg simply because he hadn’t had time to save them.

He thought back to the battle at Fredericksburg, Virginia, in December of sixty-two. The Union forces had sustained heavy losses. In the four days of that battle, a continuous stream of boats brought the dead and dying down the Rappahannock River to the field hospital. The Union casualties had numbered twelve thousand after that battle. Morgan had gone for days without sleep. He thought of how he would have to stop every so often so the bloody table he had used to operate on could be washed down. He hadn’t felt like a doctor that day, but more like a butcher.

Looking back, he knew he could have done no differently. Time had been against him and the other three doctors who had fought the life-and-death battle. They had been forced to work with speed instead of compassion. Perhaps that was why he wanted to go to Fort Laramie, so he could redeem himself in his own mind.

Pushing the morbid memories out of his thoughts, he allowed himself to think back to the first night he had met Skyler Dancing. Little had he known that their meeting would change his whole life.

He smiled to himself. One would have thought that bells should have gone off and the sky should have become awash with bright colors when he first met her. He hadn’t had any warning that the mysterious niece of Taggart James would touch his life so deeply.

He wondered what it was about her life that she wouldn’t share with him. There was definitely something she was keeping locked inside. He leaned back and closed his eyes thoughtfully. What if she didn’t feel as deeply about him as he did about her? He was sure she felt something, but it might not be love. He thought of her soft smile and the haunting sound of her voice. It seemed to him that she could easily be the role model for what the perfect woman should be. Many lovely young women had moved through Morgan’s life, but at the moment none of them seemed to stand out. His whole heart was filled with violet eyes, ebony hair, and a voice so hauntingly sweet it sounded like music to his ears.

Never having been a man to wait until things came to him, Morgan was armed with self-assurance. He was confident that Skyler would one day belong to him.

Skyler stood in her Uncle Tag’s business office which overlooked the giant James shipping yard. There were huge wooden skeletons of ships, with dozens of men laboring to turn out the finished product. It was hard for her to imagine that one could get on a ship and sail to far-off places.

“How do you feel about all this, my dear?” Tag asked, gesturing toward the shipyard.

“It is all a little overwhelming. Is it true that James ships sail all over the world?”

“Yes, and right here is where we build the ships that are bought by countries all over the world. What do you think about that?”

“I am impressed.”

“I brought you here today so you would be aware that you own a part of this business. Yours and Little Hawk’s share comes to you through Joanna.”

“I cannot see that I would ever have any need for money, Uncle Tag. I was perfectly content with my life as it once was.”

Skyler stared out the window, watching the men climbing on giant scaffolds in the belly of the ships, without really seeing them. “I am confused about many things,” she admitted. “There is so much I do not know about. You and Aunt Alexandria brought me to your home and taught me many things about your way of life. But you forgot to tell me how this might leave a lasting effect on my life.”

Tag moved over to stand behind her. “Alexandria and I have sensed that you are troubled, but we passed it off as homesickness. Were we wrong?”

She turned around and looked at him with sad eyes. “I do not miss my home as much as I did in the beginning.” She looked past him and stared at the rolls of charts and papers that were piled on his desk. “I am so confused, Uncle Tag. I don’t know what I am feeling.”

He saw the troubled expression in her eyes and his heart went out to her. At the moment she reminded him of Joanna, and he wanted to comfort her if he could. “Do you want to tell me what is bothering you?”

“I have to tell someone. Help me understand what is happening to me, Uncle Tag.”

He took her arm and seated her in a chair, then bent down so he would be on eye-level with her. “If you should want to talk, I am a very good listener, my dear.”

Skyler lowered her lashes, at a loss as how to tell her uncle about her feelings for Morgan Prescott. “I don’t know how to begin,” she said with feeling.

He placed his hand on hers. “This concerns Morgan, doesn’t it, Skyler,” he said with a perception that surprised her.

“Yes, but how did you know?”

Tag smiled at her. “It wasn’t so hard to deduce. I could see that he was interested in you. Your aunt and I have noticed you moping around since Morgan has been away.”

“Uncle Tag, I don’t know what to do,” she said, tightening her grip on his hand. “I think I love him.”

“How does he feel about you?”

“I don’t know. He said we would talk about our feelings when he returns.”

“Honey, I have known Morgan for a long time. If he says he has strong feelings for you, then you can believe him.”

“I cannot allow him to love me, Uncle Tag. He doesn’t know that I must leave at the end of summer.”

Tag took her hand and pulled her to her feet. Leading her out of his office, he pointed her toward the town of Philadelphia. “This may be where your future lies, my dear. Your mother knew when she allowed you to leave your home that you might choose to stay here. Only you can decide where your life will go from here on out. You will have to ask yourself if you love Morgan enough to leave your mother and father. If you do, you must know what you will be giving up. Weigh the consequences before you decide.”

“Uncle Tag, if I tell Morgan about myself he may not understand. What would he think of me if he knew I was half Indian?”

“I don’t know, Skyler. I have to be honest with you. Morgan may turn away from you when he finds out. Many people don’t understand the Indian way; Morgan may be one of them.”

Tag turned Skyler around to face him. “I’d like to tell you Morgan would understand about you, Skyler, but I just don’t know. I can’t advise you on this; you’ll have to decide for yourself whether you want to tell him. I can tell you that people who aren’t willing to take a chance oftentimes miss out on happiness.”

Skyler looked over her uncle’s shoulder toward the west, the direction of her home. She could feel something tugging
at her heart. If she returned home without telling Morgan who she was, she wouldn’t have to face his rejection. He would be coming back to Philadelphia any day now, and she would have to make a decision one way or the other.

Tag patted her affectionately. “I don’t think the situation is as grim as you believe it to be. Nature and time have a way of solving many of our dilemmas. Would you like me to speak to Morgan about your background?”

“No. I will have to do it myself. I just hope I have the courage when the time comes.”

“If he truly loves you, it will not matter to him who your mother and father are.”

“Perhaps,” she answered with a faraway look in her eyes. “Then again I may have misread Morgan. It could be that he has no strong feelings for me at all.”

It was a lazy Sunday afternoon without a cloud in the sky. The warm breeze picked up the scent of wild honeysuckle, and a hummingbird flew through the air, moving from flower to flower. Skyler was in the summerhouse with her aunt and uncle as they enjoyed a quiet companionship. Tag was reading a newspaper and Skyler was helping Alexandria wind a ball of wool yarn. The usual pitcher of lemonade was sitting on the glass table along with a plate of honeycakes.

Hearing someone coming down the graveled pathway, they all looked up to see who it was. When Skyler saw the blue uniform, her heart skipped a beat. She had wanted to see Morgan, but now that he had come, she felt shy and nervous.

Tag caught her eye and gave her a wink. “Well, it seems Morgan has become partial to our company. Why do you think he pays us so much attention lately, Alex?” he asked, chuckling aloud.

“I believe he likes my lemonade,” she answered, smiling at her young niece.

Morgan slowly climbed the steps to the summerhouse. His eyes were on Skyler and he was thinking how lovely she
looked in her rose-colored gown. “Hello, ladies,” he said, smiling. “I came to rescue you in case Tag’s conversation is beginning to bore you.” His eyes rested on Skyler, and he smiled at her slight blush.

“How did you find Washington?” Tag asked, laying the paper aside and indicating the young doctor should join him on the window seat.

“Hot and noisy,” Morgan answered, sitting down and stretching his long legs out in front of him. “There is quite a stir over the Military Commission’s trial to convict the accomplices in the assassination of President Lincoln. The people are in a fever pitch and crying for blood.”

“I was just reading about the trials. What was the outcome?” Tag asked with interest.

“All eight were found guilty. Four were sentenced to hang; Doctor Samuel Mudd and two others have been sentenced to life in prison, while Edward Spangler received a six-year sentence.”

“I hope the hue and cry will die down now,” Tag said thoughtfully. “It’s time now to get on with pulling the country back together.”

“I agree, Tag, but it will be a long and painful process. If President Lincoln had lived, I believe he could have better accomplished reuniting our country. I’m not sure Johnson is up to the task.”

“Did you happen to see President Johnson while you were there, Morgan?” Alexandria wanted to know.

“Yes, I attended a White House luncheon, where I was introduced to him.”

“What was your opinion of him?” Tag asked.

“He is rather forceful and speaks more to the common people. I believe he is out of his depth with trying to run this country.”

“Let us pray that he finds his way,” Alexandria observed as she took the ball of yarn from Skyler and placed it in her sewing basket.

Skyler watched Morgan as he talked. He was highly
intelligent and knowledgeable. He talked of things that she knew nothing about. How could she have thought for one moment that he was interested in her? she wondered sadly.

“I received my orders while in Washington,” Morgan said, looking at Skyler. “I fear I have been sent to the end of the earth.”

“Where?” Tag asked, watching Skyler’s face.

“General Conners has been sent to Fort Laramie in Idaho Territory, and he has asked that I accompany him.”

“Why should you be sent so far away?” Alexandria asked.

“There is trouble with the Arapaho. They have been attacking the Overland Mail stations and stages. They have even started cutting the telegraph lines. Washington wants the raids stopped.”

Tag watched Skyler closely as he asked the next question. “How do you feel about the Indians, Morgan?”

He shrugged his shoulders. “They are savages. I suppose I share many soldiers’ views, that the only good Indian is a dead Indian!”

Skyler gasped aloud and felt the pain of his words in the depth of her soul. He could have said nothing that would have wounded her more deeply. Out of his mouth had come the words that had condemned her love to a slow death. He hated and despised all she stood for. Her mother had been right, the white race could never understand the Indian.

“Would you then want to kill all the Indian women and children, Colonel Prescott?” She rose to her feet and faced him with an angry sparkle in her eyes.

“I am told an Indian, be it man, woman, or child, would cut your throat as easily as you would take an afternoon stroll, Miss Dancing. But you shouldn’t concern yourself with such matters. You shouldn’t ever have to worry about anything past what lovely gown to wear.”

“You are wrong, sir. I am not some milksop that has no mind of her own. I have been taught to think for myself, and I will leave the choosing of what gown to wear to some weak-kneed ninny!”

Morgan frowned. What had he said that set Skyler off? How lovely she was with her eyes blazing and her black hair flowing in the warm breeze. No, she wasn’t the kind of woman who would think only of frivolities. One of the things he loved most about her was her strong will. “I can see that the Indians have a champion in you. I hate to disillusion you, but they are unworthy of your concern. We have tried to educate them, with little success. We have tried to teach them how to live, but they prefer to live like animals.”

“Do you think it so strange that a people would want to live as their ancestors did? What makes you think the way you live is so wonderful, that you should have the right to cram it down the Indians’ throats?”

Morgan looked at Skyler in amazement. Oh, yes, she was different from all other women. She had a brain and wasn’t afraid to use it.

Tag and Alexandria exchanged glances. They knew what this was doing to Skyler, but they didn’t know how to stop what was happening.

“Why do you condemn a whole people just because of a few renegades?” Tag asked hurriedly, fearing Skyler would say too much.

“You are far too generous, Tag. If I were a soldier instead of a doctor, I would have no qualms about doing my duty. I would much rather be shooting at the Indians than fire on my brothers to the south. But I am not a soldier—I am a doctor. My job is to save lives, not take them.”