Souls Aflame (46 page)

“Yes, quite.” Major Fox got to his feet. “I find Julie’s company quite charming.”

“Well, if you care to wait awhile longer for one of the other girls—”

“No, we’d best be getting back.”

Opal turned to Jarrett. “And how long before I’ll see you again?”

“Hard to say,” he replied. “We never know when we can get leave. They’re bringing in more and more of those Yankee bastards every day, and the guards are griping about where to put them. We’re stacking them on top of each other.”

“That place is terrible, I hear,” Opal clucked sympathetically.

“Well, prisons usually are,” he agreed.

Julie’s eyes widened as she gasped, “Are you speaking of Libby Prison? You’re there…with the prisoners?” The words erupted from the depths of her anguished heart.

Jarrett laughed, but Gordon Fox was watching her in silent rumination.

“We’re in no danger,” Jarrett said, pulling on his woolen greatcoat. “Those Yankees know our men would just as soon shoot them as look at them—and often do.”

Julie made a whimpering sound as she turned away. Gordon moved quickly to grasp her elbow. “Has something distressed you, my dear? You seem upset.”

“I’m sorry.” She shook her head. “I just have a headache, that’s all. Excuse me.”

“Of course,” he nodded as she hurried up the stairs. “I will see you again.”

But she did not respond as she ran as fast as she dared, blinking back tears. It all seemed so hopeless, so futile. Myles was so near…yet so far.

Chapter Twenty-Two

Opal Bordine frowned as Major Fox swung his booted feet up to prop them on the cherrywood desk. He took out a cheroot and wet it with his tongue before lighting it, ignoring the way she wrinkled her nose in distaste. He lit it, inhaled, and watched the bluish-gray smoke swirl upward.

“Major Fox,” Opal exploded, “you are trying my patience. It’s enough that you have come here almost every night for two weeks, drinking my brandy and taking up the time of my hostess, all without remuneration to me, but now you have the nerve to demand my time as well. Get to the point of your visit, please.”

“If you wish to be paid for your brandy, I will be happy to oblige,” he remarked coldly. “As for remuneration for time spent, Miss Marshal has not offered her, uh, services to me…” he paused to smile, then added, “…nor have I requested them.”

“Get to the point,” she repeated.

He regarded her coolly, then said, “What I’m about to tell you is quite confidential, and should you reveal anything I say, you will be dealt with severely.”

She gasped. “Are you threatening me?”

He shrugged. “Take it as you wish.” He drew on the cheroot, then removed it from his lips and turned it around in his fingertips, staring at the red, glowing tip. Finally, when he was confident that Opal was sufficiently intimidated, he continued. “I am a member of the Intelligence Department of the Confederate Army. Part of my job is to ferret out what I consider suspicious situations that might be a detriment to the security of the Confederacy.”

She was unnerved, and he knew it, as she asked in a shrill voice, “Well, what has that got to do with me and my establishment?”

“I consider the fact that a beautiful young woman is being boarded here, by a man you will not name, to be highly suspicious. Miss Marshal is obviously a woman of intelligence and good breeding, so why would any man want her kept
here
? For what reason?”

He lowered his feet so quickly that they hit the floor with a loud thud and Opal jumped, startled. Leaning forward, his eyes stormy, he pointed the cheroot at her as he ground out the words: “I intend to have the whole story—now!”

“I—I don’t know why he left her here,” Opal stammered. “I mean, he didn’t give a reason, just said to make sure she didn’t run away. He said he’d pay me well when he returned. I thought he’d be back before now. So did she. That’s all I know.”

“You know his name,” he snapped. “You must also have your own opinion as to why he left her.”

She began to shuffle papers on her desk nervously.

“You’re wasting my time. You would save both of us a great deal of inconvenience if you would cooperate.” He leaned back in his chair. “Would you care to go to my headquarters and be questioned there?”

“No, no!” She slapped her palms down on the desk. “All right. I’ll tell you everything I know about him. His name is Derek Arnhardt, and he’s a blockade runner. He went to Wilmington to get money. I overheard him telling Julie something about that. As for why he’s afraid she’ll run away, I only know what she confided to one of my girls, that her brother is in Libby Prison, and Derek has gone to get money to hire men to get her brother out. He’s afraid she’ll try it without him, because she’s so desperate.

“Please,” she begged, “don’t let anyone know what I’ve told you. Derek can be quite mean, and he would be very angry if he knew I had told you all this.”

Major Fox smiled slowly. “You can be assured that our conversation will be kept confidential.”

He rose, nodded a curt goodbye, and left.

He returned that evening. He watched Julie’s every move, as usual. He found in her an ethereal charm, a beauty to behold with her shining black hair and shamrock eyes framed by thick lashes. She was what he wanted, all right, and while he felt she was quite vulnerable, he also had the feeling that she could be quite beguiling when properly motivated.

Julie Marshal would serve his purpose well.

Finally the room was empty except for the two of them. Julie, perplexed as to why he continued to visit nightly without engaging one of Opal’s girls for a few hours of sensual pleasure and frolic, faked a yawn and murmured, “I am quite tired tonight, Major. Would you excuse me if I retired for the evening?”

Quietly he said, “We need to talk, Julie, about your brother.”

Astonished, she could only stare at him.

“You heard correctly. I know all about your brother, how he’s being held prisoner at Libby. Shall we go upstairs to your room where we can talk privately? Be assured I do not have other motives in mind. I just don’t want to take a chance on being overheard down here.”

“But—but how did you know about my brother?” she stammered, allowing him to lead her upstairs.

“I have ways of finding out what I want to know. Don’t concern yourself with that. Just be assured I want to help you, if you will cooperate.”

Heart pounding wildly, she sank into a chair beside the fireplace in her room. Major Fox continued to stand, but she did not trust her suddenly weak knees to support her.

“Let me begin by saying that you may trust me implicitly. Now, I want you to tell me all about your brother and about this man Derek Arnhardt.”

Her brain was spinning. She was still stunned by it all. “I—I don’t know if I should tell you anything,” she gasped, her hand clasping her throat as she stared at him through blurry eyes. “How do I know this isn’t a trick? It may jeopardize Myles’s life—”

“As long as he remains in the Black Hole, his life
is
in jeopardy, my dear. Now do you want me to help you or not?”

Suspicion was a needle pricking along her spine. “Why would you want to help me?”

“I have my reasons, but I’ll want something in return.”

Her eyes narrowed. “And what might that be?”

“I work for the Intelligence Department of the Confederate Army. We have need of beautiful and sharp-witted women like you. If I help your brother to escape, then you will return the favor by serving your country in the manner I prescribe.”

“I don’t understand any of this.” She was completely baffled. “And if you have influence, why can’t you just process Myles’s release through normal channels? He was unfairly and unjustly put there to start with—”

He waved her to silence. “I don’t care why he was imprisoned. And you aren’t to start asking me a lot of questions. I will tell you that in order to get him out, it must be done quite secretively and made to look like an authentic escape. We can’t afford any repercussions.”

Julie stared at him intently, trying to absorb all that he was saying. She was already in a quandary over his frequent visits of the past two weeks—and now this. He was also an attractive man, though she still found that something about him made her apprehensive, almost frightened.

“Another thing,” he continued. “I can’t tolerate any questions, because my work is justifiably secret. You either cooperate with me, or we forget the whole matter.”

“And if I refuse?”

His smile was insidious. “I would hope you would not be so foolish.”

She shook her head slowly. This had all come about so quickly. “I don’t know. I can’t give you an answer. I have to think.”

“There’s no time for that. All you have to do is give me your word that you will work for me, and then your concern for your brother will be over. He’ll be freed.”

“He might want me to go with him,” Julie pointed out. “We have no family left, only each other. He might not understand my leaving him.”

He raised an eyebrow. “And what was your bargain with this Arnhardt fellow? What did you promise him in exchange for helping you?” He saw her face color slightly and smiled in triumph. “I don’t think you have to tell me. I think I know. What do you suppose your brother’s reaction would have been to
that
?”

She had never really thought of it in that light, but now, looking at the situation, she realized Myles would never have approved of or accepted such an arrangement. There would have been trouble. Perhaps Derek realized that and had decided not to go along with the plan. Maybe that was why she had not heard from him. He might not be coming back, she realized with a pang of terror. Why, she could be forced to remain a prisoner here!

Suddenly Major Fox was kneeling before her, clasping her cold hands in his warm grip. “Julie, I need your help and so does your brother. I’m sure you’ve heard of the atrocities in that place, but you couldn’t know the reality, the true horror, unless you were to witness it for yourself. How can you even hesitate? Arnhardt offers you the demeaning position of a mistress. I offer you an honorable way to serve your country. And it won’t be forever, just until the war ends.”

He waited a moment for his words to penetrate, then continued. “I don’t plan to be in Richmond much longer. I have business elsewhere. Now, if you agree, I will go right away to make the necessary arrangements. We can have your brother out of prison by this time tomorrow night.”

Julie pursed her lips thoughtfully. Lord, this was happening so fast. There wasn’t time to think. “Will I be able to see him, if only for a moment?” she asked in a rush. “Can I let him know where I’ll be going, so he won’t worry?”

He sighed, rubbing at his forehead with fingertips. “Oh, Julie, you’re making this difficult for both of you. But very well. I know you’re concerned and want to make sure he’s well. I’ll make sure you see him—but only briefly. And you won’t be able to tell him where you are going.

“Besides,” he pointed out, “your brother will be a hunted man. I’ll see that he’s taken somewhere for the remainder of the war, somewhere he’ll be safe. You can arrange to meet later.”

Was there another way? Dear God, she didn’t know. Derek could have sent word, and he should have returned. Her first loyalty was not to him anyway, she reasoned. She had to save her brother’s life. And Major Fox was right. All Derek had ever offered her was the status of being his mistress. He had never offered love.

“All right,” she said finally, tremulously. “I don’t see that I have any other choice except to agree to what you offer, Major Fox.”

“Call me Gordon.” He grinned, patting her knee before standing. “We’re going to be good friends, Julie. You’ll see.”

He walked over to the window, and in seconds had the lock broken. “No one will notice this between now and tomorrow night. As soon as it’s dark and activities begin downstairs, come up here and lock your door. Open the window and wait. One of my men will be downstairs, and he’ll throw a rope up to you.”

He gave the bedpost a shake. “This is sturdy enough to hold you. Tie the rope around it and work your way down. My man will be there to help.”

“But what about Myles?” she demanded fearfully.

“You’ll be taken to a place where you can see him for a few moments.”

She closed her eyes, praying she was doing the right thing. But she had to be. It was the only way. “And then where do we go from there?”

“You go with me. It’s as simple as that. You’re not to worry anymore. Your brother will be free, and so will you. When the war ends, you’ll be together.”

The clock on the mantel chimed the midnight hour. It was the only sound in the room except for Julie’s anxious breathing. She was frightened of this man, and she was now in his clutches whether she wanted to be or not. There could be no turning back.

He walked to the door and nodded curtly. “I won’t let anything happen to you, Julie. Until tomorrow night, goodbye.”

She spent a restless night, and when dawn came, she had fearfully decided there was one other possibility to be faced. Gordon could be lying. What if he helped her escape from Opal’s only to whisk her away and keep her locked up somewhere for his own pleasure? She had seen the way he looked at her at times, eyes shining with desire. Perhaps he had no intention of getting Myles out of prison. It could be a trick, and she should prepare herself for that possibility just to be on the safe side.