Souls Aflame (2 page)

She turned her head to take one last look at the Georgia shore before letting him lead her away. “I’m not going to stay below all that time,” she murmured absently. “And I won’t get in anyone’s way, I promise.”

“Well, that ain’t up to me. The captain makes the rules, and when he sees what a lovely thing you are, he’ll probably post a guard at your door. The crew, you see, gets excited over women, ’specially pretty ones.”

They reached the opening to the narrow steps leading below, and Julie suddenly halted. The thought of descending and not coming up for two weeks, even for a breath of fresh air, was not appealing. “I wish to speak to your captain,” she said sharply.

To her surprise, Shad Harky threw back his head and began to laugh. Julie felt rather foolish, wondering what she had done to cause such a reaction. Then, still cackling with glee, he told her, “Oh, lassie, you’ve got a lot to learn, you have. The captain, he don’t even mingle amongst the crew, much less with the passengers.

“You see,” he went on, “he hands down his laws like God did to Moses, and nobody hardly ever sees him, ’ceptin’ for his appointed few, like First Officer Edsel Garris, or Second Officer Grover Watson. Then there’s the Third Officer, Floyd Justice.

“So let’s just be on our way. Got to get you tucked away before the ship starts to sea.”

He gave her a gentle nudge forward, but Julie stood her ground, more determined than ever to confront the mysterious Captain Arnhardt. Her curiosity was aroused, but she was also concerned about her mother. Lately she didn’t have much color in her face, and she seemed wan, listless. If she were forced to stay in stuffy quarters for some time, it might not be good for her.

“I demand to see the captain
now.
”

He sighed impatiently. “I told you. You don’t see the Captain ’lessen
he
wants to see
you
. Captain Ironheart is a strange man…”

“Ironheart?”
She was puzzled. “I thought his name was
Arnhardt
.”

“Oh, that’s his real name,” he chuckled, as though he were the possessor of some secret joke. “But we all call him Ironheart ’cause it seems to fit him. If the man
has
a heart, it’s bound to be made of iron. See these scars you been trying not to stare at?” He touched a finger to his cheek.

She glanced away, abashed, wishing she had gone below with her mother earlier and not remained on deck to become lost in reverie.

“Ironheart did this to me.”

Julie could feel anger emanating from his whole being as he ground out the story.

“Had me keelhauled, he did. My face got tore to bits by the barnacles. Barnacles is little shellfish that hook on to the hulls o’ ships. They keep hooking on top of each other, and they’re like sharp rocks.”

Julie shuddered, and he rushed on in a torrent. “You don’t know what keelhauling is, do you? They tie you up and drag you under the ship’s keel, real slow, till you’re almost dead from drowning. The bastards what dragged me pulled me as close to the keel as they could, so’s I’d scrape the barnacles. It was a long time ’afore I thought I’d even have skin on my face again, and it grew back like this.

“And see this?” He snarled bitterly as he held up his left arm. Julie could see that it hung crookedly from his elbow.

“They broke my arm. It never healed right. And it was Ironheart who ordered them to do it to me. Remember that.”

“I—I’m sorry,” she whispered, waves of pain flowing through her as she imagined what agony the man must have experienced. “He sounds like a very cruel man. I won’t look forward to meeting him.”

“I’ll never forgive him for what he did to me, and there are plenty of others in the crew that hate him too. If you ever do get back up on deck in the daylight, when the sun’s beating down, watch when the men take off their shirts. You’ll see plenty with the criss-cross scars on their backs from the lash.”

They stood in silence for a few moments. Julie did not know what else to say, and she sensed that Shad Harky was caught up in painful memories. Finally she took a step forward and murmured that she would go below and talk to one of the other officers about deck privileges.

He took her arm. “The furnace force and the crew have been loading cordwood, so I imagine we’ll be moving out just about any time. I’ll see you to your cabin. Watch that fancy hoop skirt, now. It’s a narrow stairway. If I was you, I’d put them things away for the duration.”

Julie paused one last time to look at the Georgia river bank. A cloak of impenetrable yet lovely silence had closed about the ship. She saw a single riding light hung high at the stern. Somewhere a bird chirped drowsily as the moon, high now, burnished the entire surface of the cove, flinging great shadows from low bluffs and trees across the shining river as it swept out of sight in a silvery, misty cloud.

One lantern hung from a hook in the ceiling and cast a yellowish glow in the hallway. Julie saw that there were three doors on each side of the hall, and wondered which led to her mother’s cabin.

Shad gestured to the dusty oil paintings that hung on the walls. “This used to be a fine ship before the captain got hold of her and turned her into a runner. It used to carry a lot of passengers, I’m told. Tomorrow, if I get a chance, I’ll slip out and show you around. Maybe I can take you down to the boiler deck so’s you can see what makes her run.”

“That would be nice,” Julie murmured, trying to be polite even though she was starting to feel unnerved by the way the man was staring at her. His gaze kept shifting to her bosom, slightly exposed in the yellow muslin dress she wore. With a quick movement, she jerked her shawl tightly around her, completely concealing the bodice.

He gave her a knowing smirk before reaching to open a door to their left. “This is your cabin, I suppose. It ain’t much, but it’s not like you plan on living here.”

Anxious to move away from such a close encounter, she stepped inside the tiny room and glanced about at the sparse furnishings. There was a wooden chair and a small desk on which sat a bowl and pitcher. The bed, nothing more than a thin mattress upon a board, was held in place along one wall by chains attached at each end. A round window, which she knew was called a porthole, afforded the only view to the outside world.

Shad, sensing her reaction, leered. “I reckon this just churns the stomach of a fine lady like you, don’t it? Well, it’s better’n what the rest of us got. We sleep on canvas stretchers in a space so crowded and hot the gnats have trouble breathing. I can look at you and tell you’re used to real nice things, like having oils and perfumes rubbed on that lily white skin o’ yours…”

Abashed, Julie could only stare silently at him as he moved quickly back into the hall to extinguish the overhead lantern, plunging them into darkness. She stepped backwards as she heard his footsteps approaching. For some reason she did not yet understand, she was frightened of this man who had seemed so solicitous at first.

“We can’t have no lights now,” he was saying. “Maybe you’d be interested in knowing just how we’ll slip through the Federal blockade. You see, this steamer is painted a light lead color. Makes us blend in with the horizon. We got the smoke pipe lowered, and we’re using just a single mast.

“When we came in,” he continued, “we took precise compass readings of their fleet at sunset. They don’t change positions after dark, so all the captain has to do is steer by compass back out to the open sea.”

Even though she found what he was saying to be interesting, Julie was filled with a sense of foreboding that made her dizzy. She felt her back pressing against the wall, and the boatswain was so close his warm breath touched her face.

“If you will excuse yourself, Mr. Harky, I would like to retire.” She tried to keep her voice even, her apprehension hidden.

“Of course,” he murmured. “You’re scared, though, ain’t you? No need. I’ll look after you.”

The hinges squeaked as the door opened, then slowly closed with a click. Julie groped her way across the tiny cabin and leaned against it, washed over with relief. At last he was gone. As much as she hated to admit it, she was afraid of him.

Still feeling her way, she found the bed and sat down. It was silly, her being afraid of the man. He meant her no harm. He probably sensed her uneasiness over the voyage and was only trying to be friendly. Since he was from a different background, it was easy for her to mistake his intentions. That was something she would have to get over.

It was no wonder, though, that she was unnerved in the face of all that had happened. Everyone in Savannah had panicked when the Yankees moved their squadron of steam-propelled vessels to the entrance of the sound between the two Confederate forts on Hilton Head and Bay Point in early November. They had fired a continuous broadside onslaught, and caused the Rebels to abandon both fortifications. Just a few days later, Port Royal, on the mainland, had fallen. Everyone said that with the Yankees in sight of Cockspur Island, they were making ready to strike at Fort Pulaski.

All of Savannah went into an uproar, and those who could afford it fled to the interior of the state. People were even wilder with fear when Tybee Island was abandoned.

Virgil said it was an excellent time for Julie and her mother to leave for England, and he made immediate arrangements for the transport of Rose Hill cotton as well. There was a strong rumor going around that the Yankees were getting ready to move on the eastern part of North Carolina. If they were successful, they would not only gain control of the sounds on the coastal plain, with their important navigable rivers, but they would also control over a third of that state. That would pose a serious threat to the Wilmington and Weldon Railroad, which was the main line running South from Richmond.

Yes, there was much to be concerned about. Not only the war, but the other, terrible thing…

“Julie?”

She sprang to her feet at the sound of her mother’s voice calling from outside.

“Julie, darling, are you in there?”

She opened the door, relieved as her mother’s arms found her and they embraced in the darkness.

“I was so worried. I was escorted to my cabin and told to remain there until further word, and I didn’t know whether or not you had ever come down. Are you all right?”

She felt her mother’s cool hand touching her brow to push back the strands of dark curls that forever tumbled out of place.

“Yes, I’m fine,” she told her, “but it’s positively eerie being in the darkness like this. Maybe we should sit up together.”

“Nonsense,” came her mother’s chuckling reply. “You don’t need to be frightened, Julie. Remember what Virgil told us about Captain Arnhardt. He’s one of the best blockade runners there is. We have nothing to fear.”

She stiffened. “Julie, you’re trembling. What’s happened to unnerve you so? This isn’t like you…”

Julie quickly told her about Shad Harky.

“Oh, Julie, I’ve warned you about talking with men when you haven’t been properly introduced to them,” her mother scolded. “And I’ve heard about keelhauling. It’s a punishment inflicted for very serious offenses. This Harky fellow deserved his fate, I’m sure. I want you to stay away from him.”

Julie assured her she intended to do just that. “Besides, he says Captain Ironheart, as he calls him, makes passengers stay below during the entire voyage. He doesn’t like them about, particularly women. I don’t want to run into Shad Harky again, but I certainly don’t have any intention of hiding in this hole of a room all the way to Bermuda.”

“If the captain requests that we stay below, then we will abide by his wishes,” her mother said in her usually obliging manner. “I’m sure he has his reasons. While I don’t know much about ships and the sea, I do know that a captain’s word is law. I’ve no intention of questioning Captain Arnhardt’s rules, and I expect the same of you.”

She kissed her daughter’s cheek. “Besides, it won’t be so terribly long until we’re in Bermuda, and then we’ll change to a really nice ship, one that has proper accommodations for passengers. Let’s just be thankful Virgil was able to get us
and
Rose Hill cotton out of Savannah.

“Now, then. You go to bed and get some sleep, and when the sun comes up in the morning, we’ll be well out to sea. I don’t want you fretting.”

“That isn’t easy these days,” Julie said with a touch of sadness.

“I know, dear.” Her mother hugged her once more. “But life will be better. You’ll see. Virgil will be so good to you. He adores you so.”

“It isn’t that, it’s—”

Her mother spoke sharply. “I know what you’re thinking about, and all we can do is pray for Myles’s safety. The thing we both must do, child, is not look back. We have to look forward. Myles did what he had to do, just as we all must.”

One last embrace, and her mother left the cabin.

Julie slowly slipped out of her dress, making a mental note to discard hoops and heavy petticoats for the duration of the voyage. There simply was not room to move about in such attire.

The sheets of the bed were scratchy and uncomfortable, but the blankets were warm. Despite the apprehension that still held her in its grip, exhaustion took over and she felt herself slipping away into sleep.

Yet thoughts of Myles and the horror of the past kept dancing through her mind. Where was he? How was he? Was he even alive?

She bit her lip to hold back the tears. Tears made wrinkles, her mother said. Tears were useless, her father had often told her. But thoughts of yesterday’s anguish always made her weep, because in defending her honor, the brother she loved with all her heart had been forced to run away…a hunted man.