Surrender the Wind (42 page)

He stepped away and had not gone five yards when he noticed two sets of footprints in the ground leading up to the road. Crouching down, he studied them in the brilliant glare of moonlight. One set belonged to a man, the other a woman.

Swiftly, he stood and traced them up the hillside. When he saw the grooves made by coach wheels and the imprint of hooves, he stood stunned looking down the road, his eyes following the trail.

“He's taken her,” he whispered, distressed.

He swung around, raced down the hillside, through the grove to the stable. There he saddled a horse without saying a word to the family. It was best to leave them as they were. They’d been through enough. He’d bring her back, and none would be the wiser for it.

He jammed his foot into the stirrup, hauled the reins through his hands, and drove his heels into the horse's sides. It stomped its hooves, then shot off. Wind blew through Seth's hair, against his face, and struck him like an open palm. It grew colder, shoved a sea of gray clouds over him, blocked out the moon, and cast long shadows across the ground.

Long into the ride, his horse wearied. Foam lined its mouth and coat. Seth pulled rein and ahead of him was the crossroads and the gibbet with its gruesome contents that hung above it. The gibbet creaked in the wind, and the crows cawed nearby. He nudged the horse with his knees and hurried on.

Seth's heart raced like the clouds above him. He looked in vain for the house, and thought perhaps he had made a wrong turn. In his rising anxiety, he mounted a hill. From there, he stared down into a valley. Off in the distance sat Crown Cove, grim and gray in the mist, four chimneys rising against a stormy sky.

Juleah is there.
He was convinced of it, and it sent a cold chill that ran up and down his spine.

A gust of wind frightened his horse, and it stomped its hooves and snorted. Seth snapped the reins and pushed it into a hard gallop. He forced it through a belt of tasseled willows, along the thread of a meadow stream. Crossing it, he plunged his mount forward and struck it with his heels. He turned onto a narrow, overgrown lane lined with gnarled trees.

When he reached Darden's doorstep, he dismounted. Violently, he shook the locked handle and pounded upon the door with a heavy fist.

A side window grated open. He stood back and looked up. Habbinger stuck his head out. On his gaunt face a frown deepened. Slapping his hand on the sill, he leaned out.

“You again? What do you want? Away, or I’ll put the dog on you.”

Seth pressed his lips together hard and strode toward Habbinger. His stride alone was enough to give the man reason to shiver.

“I know my wife was taken here in the night. Open the door or I’ll break it in.”

Habbinger grimaced. “How many times must you be told she's not here?”

Seth raised his arm and pointed his finger at him in warning. “I’ll come for you as well.” He rushed back to the door and pushed against it with his shoulder. The lock bent. He rammed the door and kicked it in.

He went through into a dark hall. A shadow passed against the papered walls and streamed forward. Juleah appeared, her hair loose about her, her eyes anxious to reach him. She rushed down the staircase, and he met her halfway. She fell into his arms and he held her close.

As one, they turned to leave, then stopped short. On the threshold stood Darden, silhouetted by the misty light, pistol in hand. In his eyes leapt a strange fire, one that locked onto Juleah. That he loved her with a great and evil passion, Seth had long known and now saw.

“Let us pass.” He held Juleah close. With his other hand he drew out his flintlock. “If you refuse to move aside, I’ll shoot you where you stand.”

Darden's face twisted. “You broke my door in, and now you threaten to shoot me?”

“I do, and I will, if you do not do as I say.”

A spark of light glinted off the barrel of Darden's pistol and caught Seth's eye. He gripped Juleah tighter and moved her behind him.

“I never meant to hurt her,” Darden said. “I tried to protect her.”

“By causing others to believe she was dead and then abducting her, twice?”

“No, by saving her from the fire. I sacrificed the life of my mother for her. What have you sacrificed? What did you do to protect her?”

With an oath, Seth sprang forward. Juleah caught him by the arm and begged him to move back. “No, Seth!”

He raised his pistol and cocked the hammer, with his eyes fixed on Darden's heart. “In the name of God, man, stand aside. I don’t wish to kill you, but I will if I must.”

Darden's face darkened. “Spill my blood on my own threshold?”

“I have no doubt.”

Darden shifted his stare. “Juleah, do not leave me again.” He held his hand out to her. “Stay with me. We once loved. We can again.”

Juleah looked at him with pity and shook her head. “No, we cannot.”

His face stiffened. “If that be so, then he shall not have you either.” He raised the pistol and fired. The sharp snap echoed around the walls surrounding them.

The bullet cut through Juleah's sleeve, hit the banister, and splintered the wood. She let out a cry and fell against her husband. A cold chill filled Seth. Swiftly, he turned and gathered her up. A thread of blood oozed out onto her arm.

Seth jerked his head back to see Darden. Fury coursed through him, his body stiff with it. The pommel of his flintlock was hot in his hands, cocked and ready. His heartbeat raged against his ribs, and his temples pulsated with the desire to pull the trigger.

Darden, seeing what he had done, and that Seth meant to kill him, threw his weapon down as if it were a blistering firebrand. He covered his face with his hands. He raked trembling fingers over his face, begged, and turned his head side to side.

“Leave me!”

“I have no right to take your life, Darden.” Seth leaned down to him, his mouth twisting. “Men will be here to arrest you. No doubt, you’ll hang for kidnapping my wife, or spend the rest of your miserable days in a prison cell.”

From the shadows, Habbinger crept forward, his face pale and drawn with fright. “I’ve had a change of heart, Captain Darden. After seeing you would have taken the lady's life, I want nothing more to do with all this. Your plan went too far for my stomach and conscience to handle.”

With a heavy tread, Habbinger stumbled past Darden, as Seth carried Juleah in his arms out the front door. Upon the dewy grass he set her down and dragged his neckcloth from around his throat.

“Here, my love,” he spoke softly to her, wrapping it around her arm. “This will stop the bleeding.”

She trembled. “It is only a graze, Seth… . Hurry… . Take me home, away from here.”

He lifted her and set her on his horse, then climbed into the saddle behind her. They rode off through the autumn moonlight that lingered through the trees and listened to the whisper of wind murmur among the branches.

When they reached the top of the hill, Seth paused and reined in his horse. He turned it around and they looked down upon Crown Cove bathed in the moon's glow. At first, it appeared smoke rose through a chimney. It grew black and twisted upward in a broad funnel. Below it, tongues of yellow flame grew. Then in its ravenous fury the fire spread.

Juleah let out a ragged moan, as they watched with startled expressions the old house transform into a pyre. Stones blackened as it ate away withered ivy and crumbled the mortar.

Crown Cove burned to the ground that autumn of 1785. Edward Darden was never found, and it was believed he had set the fire and perished within it. Or had he escaped?

Her nature being one of compassion, Juleah could not help but feel sorrow for a man she once believed was stronger. But there was naught she or Seth could have done to change the course of the Almighty's plans. For a man reaps whatever he may sow.

A
bove the stony shores of the Potomac lay tracts of green fields and lush forest. When the sun set over the mountains to the west, veils of magenta light spread over blooming meadows, over the mounting crests of the river. The north-born wind blew through the elms. Deer grazed in the fields, as they had for hundreds of years.

Overlooking the river stood Seth Braxton's house. Its rooms were vast yet gently furnished. The doleful chant of the Potomac droned, while the great horned owls answered, hooting in the pines one to another.

The years rolled on. Children came screaming into the world. Foals were birthed in the stable and suckled the mares. The land prospered, and so did Seth and Juleah, in their love, their faith, and fortune.

Content this twilight, Seth sat with the one he loved and watched her with love-lit eyes bounce their baby girl on her knee. They sat beside the clematis on the porch, listened to the hum of bees, and watched the moon rise above the treetops. His son raced about the green grass with his dog and caught fireflies in a glass jar.

He imagined, if his father-in-law had lived, he would have been content to lean upon a walking stick and lend gentle instruction to his grandson and his son Thomas on a day like today. Lady Anna, now a widow, and Jane, who seemed to have blossomed into a young woman overnight, sat nearby under the shade of Seth's tree.

In Seth's hand were letters from England. He opened them and read aloud to Juleah. Next month Caroline and Michael, with their two children, were due to arrive and settle on a tract of land near Braxton Hall. They’d bring Will and Claire and their daughter, one-year-old Ella, with them.

Ten Width had been let go. It was time to pass the old manor's woeful existence on to another and let the dregs of the past die. Henry Chase remained in Thomas's name, lent out to a retired admiral and his wife. It, too, would eventually pass into other hands.

And so, time descended through the misty twilight, while the sweet waters of the Potomac flowed year after year under the clustered stars, and those who loved it lived out the remainder of their lives in peace.

They now lie in dusty tombs long forgotten. Yet, their love is remembered in the Eternal.

Surrender the wind to one who holds its bands
Surrender the wind into His loving hands
Surrender the wind
Your burden lay down
Surrender the wind
Surrender the wind
—Rita Gerlach

Discussion Questions

1. How is the title of this novel symbolic? At what point in the story did the title
   Surrender the Wind
   have meaning to you? What does it mean to “surrender the wind”?
   
2. Discuss Ecclesiastes 2:18-19 and how this gives a prelude to the story.
   
3. To what extent does Seth's upbringing as an American patriot shape his character? What changes take place in Seth from the prologue to the conclusion of the story? What kind of man would you describe him to be? Dutiful? Kind? Heroic?
   
4. Why did Seth find it difficult to forgive his grandfather? Were his reasons valid? Have you ever been in a similar situation where you found it difficult to forgive someone?
   
5. What were the reasons Seth hesitated to accept his inheritance? What were the reasons that compelled him to go to England? How did this change his life? What made his inheritance a blessing? What made it a burden? Have you had times in life where you had plans, and then unexpectedly were faced with a major change? How did you deal with those changes?
   
6. What expectations did you have for Seth and Juleah when they first met? Did they fulfill them? What hopes did you have for their future together?
   
7. Seth was not expecting to fall in love with an Englishwoman. Have you experienced unexpected love?
   
8. In what way did faith help Seth and Juleah survive their trials? How did faith strengthen their relationship?
   
9. What are Juleah's strengths? In what scenes did she need Seth the most? Have you ever been in a situation where you realized you could not get through a trial alone and needed the person you loved the most to help you find your way back?
   
10. What was your first impression of Edward Darden when you met him in the prologue? What did his actions foreshadow? Did he ever gain your sympathy? What forced Juleah to change her mind about him?
    
11. For what reasons do you think the author left Darden's mother nameless?
    
12. Finally, how did you profit from reading
    Surrender the Wind
    ?