Two Eagles slept against the wall, though he was always aware of his surroundings and never fully asleep. Could it be true? That Two Eagles and Edmund were twins? The idea was so fantastic, yet side by side, they were identical. Extraordinary how both had claimed they were aware of the other despite being raised a half a world away.
He had heard of the connection between twins but never so solid as between Edmund and Two Eagles. Was it possible two people could be so identical and not be blood related? Or had they somehow been separated at birth? Faulkner had been in the Colonies for a very long time and it wasn’t uncommon for some men to take advantage of the Indian women.
He rubbed his hands together as much as the weighty chains allowed, the grime slipping over his fingers. A horrendous stench wound the air from a bucket in the corner that served their needs, far from the refinements of his ancestral home and the cleanliness he was accustomed to.
The moon illuminated Ghost’s face. His friend who had warned him of Onontio’s attack at West Point. The old trapper was legend. Could disappear in the wilderness with no trace of his footsteps. Even the finest of Mohawk trackers were incapable of trailing him. “Why are you locked up?”
The trader raised his shackled wrists and tapped a finger to his temple. “Accused of thievery which ended in a brawl. A sum of money was missing and it was that bastard Captain Snapes who took it and has me swinging from the gallows to cover his pilfering.”
Joshua knew many men in the wilderness, and Ghost was one of the most honest trappers he’d met. Snapes had his hand in more people’s lives than he cared to hear.
The fort settled into its slumber. Soldiers had retired to their barracks except for a few guards on the parapets calling an occasional “All is well”.
Chains clinking, he slid down. The moldy uneven stone walls slicked his backsides. He cringed, his ribs and every muscle in his body sore where the guards had kicked him. He settled onto the filthy straw-strewn floor, lifted his head and gazed on the heavens. Death was the only star always lit. No matter where he traveled, he must ultimately turn toward it. Everything fades in the world, but death endures.
Colonel Putman and General Anthony Wayne would be wondering what happened to him. Certainly not enough time to get their help. Unfortunately, he’d be unable to report his findings of Fort Oswego.
He had not seen Juliet and prayed she’d not come to the lynching. As a spy against the Crown, soon he’d be damned in her eyes, a soulless wretch ready to be executed for the crimes he’d committed.
There was no need for her to remember him like that.
From the first moment he clapped eyes on her at the Hayes’ farm, he had wanted her. Somehow, they were tangibly connected and he should have taken her from the Hayes’ farm and hid her in the wilderness.
She awakened something that hadn’t been touched in him for a long time.
His wife.She had determinedly called herself,his wife.He had dared to unwisely dream…of pushing the war aside…of finding a normal life…a life with her. Yet the vagaries of his existence were as wide as they were severe. In a bid for that elusive idea of freedom, his chosen path to navigate the wide frontier as a spy had earned him his sepulcher.
Though fatigued, emotionally as well as physically, sleep eluded him. He lowered his head against his chains, letting the roughness saw against his forehead.
Two Eagles’ massive chains clanked as he shifted position.
“I’m sorry you were involved Two Eagles.”
Beaten by the guards, Two Eagles rose with a moan. “I am responsible for my choices and accept the consequences. I understood my determination could lead to success or failure or death.”
Joshua was envious of his friend, wishing he could accept his fate so peacefully.
Keys jangled in the outer room. There was the immediate scrape of a chair where the guard slept and no doubt stood at attention. The sounds of heavy footsteps pounded against the plank flooring. A lantern held high moved toward them, then hooked on the peg above the cell. Joshua’s eyes adjusted to the piercing light. Snapes pushed his face against the bars, his piggish mouth grinning like a gargoyle.
“I thought I smelled the shit of a bull,” Ghost spat.
“How does it feel to know you will not escape the rope round your neck, Joshua?”
“Come on in here, and I’ll show you.”
“I’ll second that with a knife plunked in your black heart,” said Ghost. Two Eagles snorted.
Snapes laughed and targeted his attention on Joshua. “I’ve come to gloat, enjoying every minute of your execution and feel cheated you were not disposed to suffer a thousand deaths, Lord Rutland.”
Joshua blinked. His intuition was correct. It was personal between Snapes and him. Why? “You know me?”
A muscle in Snapes’ cheek twitched. His hard bloodshot eyes bored into Joshua’s like gimlets. “I know the Rutlands—especially your father.”
“My father?” Joshua inched closer to the bars.Keep him talking.“So, what does it have to do with me?”
“Sarah Thacker. Does her name ring a bell?”
Cold crept up his spine. Dim presences gathered at the edges of his consciousness.
