Spring Will Come (18 page)

             
It had been two long days since Ike Adams had shown up in camp.  It was almost impossible to believe his unit had not found him that night when they had come looking for him.  One second sooner and he would not have been able to conceal himself in the thick leaves of a large oak tree.  They had searched for over two hours in the dark until Palmer, disgusted and angry, had called them back to camp. 

             
From where Moses sat huddled in the tree, he could hear everything they said.  He listened as Ike Adams described him in detail.  He had groaned silently when Palmer put two and two together and realized a Union spy had been serving his every need and listening to everything he said.  Palmer’s anger would have been laughable if he had been somewhere other than thirty feet up in a tree with no way of escape.  It had been almost dawn before he had crept down from the tree, his muscles screaming from being cramped for so long.  He could barely walk when he had first dropped from the tree.  The guard had his back turned when Moses inched past the horses and prayed one of them would not betray his presence. 

             
Moses quit breathing again as a voice sounded just yards from where he lay.  “Get your gear ready, men.  I have the order for three days of rations.  This looks like it’s the real thing.  It will be dark soon.  We move in the morning.”

             
.  Moses breathed out again as the men moved away.  How long would his hastily erected camouflage of leaves and limbs conceal his hiding place?  At least he had the answer to one question.  He had waited in vain the last two days for the sound of battle.  Palmer had been so sure the order of three days of rations meant the next battle was at hand.  For whatever reason, it had not happened.  But now, if the fellow who had just spoken was right, the fighting would begin the next day.  He had until tomorrow morning to make his way back to the Union side. 

             
Moses forced himself to think calmly.  He had basically been hiding for two days, the knowledge of what would happen to him if he were captured as a Union spy immobilizing him.  The time for hiding was over.  For him to get out of this alive, he would have to take bold action and trust it would come out all right.  Slowly his heart calmed as planning overcame the fear that gripped him.  As the fear receded, words Rose had spoken to him before he left echoed through his mind and heart.   He had promised her he would come home.  She had put a finger to his lips and lovingly said,
“I believe you.  I know you have to do this thing.  I’m proud of you.  I believe you’re going to open up the way for many more black men.”  
She had paused and looked deeply into his eyes.
“One of the reasons I love you is that you’re a leader.  I’m sorry I let my fears get the best of me.”

             
Moses knew he had let his own fears get the best of him.  But no more.  He had been so overwhelmed with his situation, so paralyzed by the supposed inevitability of capture, he had hidden from his fears.  Another voice edged into his thoughts. 

             
“Why, boy, you know what you got to do when you be afraid.  You gots to act.  Dat be the only thin’ will make dat fear demon run away.  You gots to act and trust God will take you where he wants you.”

             
Moses smiled as Old Sarah’s voice rang clearly in his mind.  His time with Rose’s mama had been much too short, but she had told him many things he would never forget.   With a clear head he formulated his plans. 

Moses leaned wearily against a tree,
with mud pulling at his feet as water sloshed around his knees.  If he never saw another swamp in his life, it would be much too soon.  He wasn’t sure how many hours he had been surging his way through the stagnant, murky water. 

             
“Who goes there?” a voice rang out. 

             
Moses gritted his teeth and once more sank below the surface, just his head clearing the swamp.  He struggled to control his fear as he felt a snake slither by in the darkness.  Resolutely he kept his mind on his goal.  If he let his imagination take its course, he would bolt and run.  He would be captured within moments. 

             
“I know I heard something, Captain,” the same voice insisted. 

             
Another voice floated to him.  “There’s so many animals in this god-forsaken swamp you could have heard anything.  I don’t see anything moving now.”

             
Moses waited for what seemed an eternity before he dared to stand back up.  Staring into the darkness, he stood still until he had convinced himself there was no danger.  Slowly, he continued to move forward, praying he was headed in the right direction.  The cloudy sky made it impossible to use the stars for navigation.  It was also impossible to maintain a straight course through the swamp.  He had lost count of times he had to crawl over logs and move around tangles of trees and brush.  

             
Moses ignored the hunger and thirst racking his body.  As creatures dropped on him from the trees, he flicked them away, gritting his teeth to fight his fear.  Swarms of mosquitoes were simply to be endured.  Blood clotted on his arms where tree limbs slashed and ripped at him as he forced his way through tangles.  His legs ached from colliding with underwater stumps and logs.  None of that was important.  His mind was focused on a single goal - to reach the Union side safely.  Rose was counting on him.  He couldn’t let her down.  

             
Neither could he let his captain down.   He was sure Captain Jones had done some fancy talking to convince McClellan to send him over as a spy.  He wasn’t going to let him down.  Somehow he had to get back.  He could only hope his information wouldn’t be too late to accomplish some good. 

             
Dawn began to light the eastern sky as Moses felt solid ground rise up under his feet for the first time in hours.  He held his breath and wondered whether the ground would once more sink down into swamp land.  Had he finally reached the end of the murky death trap?  A wide smile broke onto his face as the ground hardened and began to slope upward.  He had done it!  He had crossed the swamps of the Chickahominy in the middle of the night and evaded capture! 

             
The smile lasted for only a moment.  It was much too soon to celebrate.  He had escaped the swamp, but now he had a wide open space he would have to cross.  It was sure to be carefully watched by both sides.  Gunmen, both Union and Confederate, would be waiting for any unusual movement.  They would shoot first and ask questions later. 

             
Moses’ heart sank as he watched the brightening skyline.   He would no longer have the cover of darkness to camouflage his movements.   Advancing to the edge of the clearing, he crouched down behind a thicket of blackberry brambles and stared out.  The smell of fresh fruit tickled his nostrils, reminding him of his hunger.  Mindless of the prick of thorns, Moses tore at the clusters of lush blackberries.  As he stuffed them in his mouth, he felt a new strength surging through his body.  The moisture exploding in his mouth was like manna from heaven. 

             
With his hunger somewhat abated, Moses leaned forward again and stared at the opposing line of trees.  How many Union troops were stationed there?  Would they start firing immediately when they saw a man moving toward them?    Moses sank down on the ground.  He was not at all confident bullets would not start flying from every direction as soon as he broke into the clearing.   Searching the land as far as he could see, he looked for a place that would offer him at least a little covering as he tried to sneak across, well aware the sky was getting brighter each minute he delayed. 

             
A sudden movement on the Union side grabbed his attention.  As he watched, a small unit of soldiers rode out of the clearing.  Moses leaned forward to watch what must be an advance group of light skirmishers.  There was not much chance he would recognize anyone, but hope kept his eyes locked on them. 

             
“Captain Jones!” he whispered in amazement.  A wide grin split his face as his captain, Joe, and several more men probed forward, evidently trying to determine if there was a Confederate presence. 

             
Bang! 

             
Moses jumped as a gun sounded less than a hundred yards from where he lay. 

             
“Get ‘em, boys!”

             
Moses’ heart sank in dismay as he realized a Confederate unit was stationed directly to his right.  He knew he should slink back and look for another place to cross, but curiosity over the action taking place right before his eyes held him where he was. 

             
Captain Jones raised his gun to his shoulder and fired off a round then waved his men back into cover and turned his horse.  Joe matched his action and then spun back toward the woods. 

             
“I got one!” a triumphant yell rose from the Rebel side. 

             
Moses groaned as he saw his captain slump in the saddle and then begin to fall slowly sideways. 

             
“Finish him off!” 

             
Moses didn’t even realize he was up and running until he was part way across the clearing and there were bullets whizzing around his head.  Zigzagging in a crazy pattern, he dashed across the clearing.  He ducked instinctively as a bullet sounded just inches from his head.  He felt another rip through the loose sleeve of his shirt, but he kept running.  He had only one thought:  To reach the captain.   From somewhere in his consciousness, he realized his name was being called from the woods.  Ducking his head more, he ran even faster.

             
Suddenly bullets erupted from the Federal side.  Joe must have recognized him and was trying to provide cover.   Bullets spit over his head from both sides now as he pressed forward.  It seemed like an eternity before he reached the captain, scooped him up in his arms, and sprinted into the woods. Moses’ starved body avoided collapsing under the extra weight of the wounded man. 

             
“Keep going, Moses!  Get out of here!  Here they come!”

             
Moses heard Joe, managed to nod his head slightly, and then kept running.  Or at least he tried to run.  Within moments he was stumbling, cursing his own weakness.  A tree root rose up in front of him and reached out to snag his foot.  With a groan, Moses tripped under his extra burden and fell forward.  The ground rose up before him then crumbled away as they crashed down.  Moses tried to shield his captain as they tumbled and slid down a brushy bank into a steep ravine.   

             
Moses lay still for just a moment, pain piercing his body from the fall.  Gingerly he moved his legs and prayed they would still work.  Even though every particle screamed in agony, everything obeyed his commands.  He took a deep breath, stood, and reached down to once more pick up the captain.  He didn’t know whether Captain Jones was still alive.  All he could do was get him back to a hospital tent as quickly as possible. 

             
“Don’t move!” a sharp voice commanded.  “I’ve got you now, you dirty nigger!”

             
Moses froze as the familiar voice sounded above him.  His mind racing, Moses straightened slowly and stared up into Ike Adams’ raging eyes.  Adams must have been in the advance group of Rebels.  Was this how it was going to end?

             
Adams kept his gun trained on him and laughed nastily.  “I could hardly believe my luck when I saw you dash across that clearing.  I reckon God is on my side, all right.”

             
Moses took a deep breath, suddenly resigned to his fate.  There was nothing he could do.  He had no protection and no way to put up a fight.  Even if he tried to run up the side of the ravine, it was much too steep.  Adams would have plenty of time to fill him with lead. 

             
“I wish I had time to watch you cower down there like the cornered animal you are, but things could get hot around here pretty quick.  I reckon I’ll have to have my fun quick like,” he sneered as he lifted the musket to his shoulder.

             
Moses wondered just for a second where the rest of his unit was.  It made him sick to think they were all dead or wounded.  How had Adams gotten through all those men?  When he heard the click of the hammer on Adams’ gun, life seemed to split into slow motion.  He watched the man who had caused him so much misery prepare to kill him, Adams’ sneering face taunting Moses as he looked down the barrel of the gun.  Then Rose’s face appeared before him - almost real enough to reach out and touch.
“I love you, Moses.  I’m proud of you.”