Box Set: The ArringtonTrilogy (64 page)

So, unhappily, I got down and painstakingly
repeated the process, until the sun rose high above the mansion,
causing the day to turn unbearably hot. I was uncomfortable,
exhausted, and ready to collapse. Hamilton came in and saw me
sitting against the wall, trying to relax for a moment. He
worriedly came over and nudged me to get up.

“I can’t,” I whispered. “I’m so tired.”

He lifted the bucket full of dirty water,
dumped it outside, and then returned. He tried to get back to me
before I was noticed resting, but he was too late.

“Get off the floor,” Grandmother hollered
from where she stood over me.

“I’m sorry; it’s so hot,” I stammered as I
guided myself up against the wall, but she wouldn’t hear it.

“You are as lazy and undependable as Amelia.
You didn’t do as you were told. You have disrespected me!” Without
warning, she struck my face with the back of her hand, sending me
barreling to the floor. “Get back to your room! You’re good for
nothing. Do you understand!”

I cried as I passed her and ran outside, not
knowing where I was running to. She called for me to return and
said that if I did not obey her there would be dire consequences.
But I didn’t stop running until I found myself down by the edge of
the river. I threw myself to the ground and beat my fists against
the dirt, demanding to know why I was put in such an awful place.
Though there was no one to answer me, I wanted to know what I had
done to deserve such punishment. Daddy needed to take me back; I
couldn’t wait any longer. Now that I had disobeyed Grandmother, I
would be locked away until he did come for me. She would starve me
for certain, probably take the key, and throw it away. I had to
keep running. So I stood, wiped my tears, and decided on the
direction I believed Savannah was. I heard her call for Hamilton to
hunt me down. Panic in my throat, I lifted my dress and sped along
the river, ducking under branches and around trees. Panic kept my
feet moving, the fear of being beaten and thrown back into the
bedroom for good gave me the energy to go faster.

The house fell into the distance, then out of
sight. I ran on, though my legs were aching, my side was splitting,
and I was in dire need of water, I wasn’t going to stop until it
was safe and far away from the claws of my wicked grandmother, and
no longer under the evil spell of Sutton Hall.

The heat of the day spilled into the night. I
found myself wandering aimlessly through the forest. The river was
still close, and I stopped and rested, drank some water, then sat
against a sweet magnolia tree when I believed Hamilton was no
longer on my trail, and it was safe enough. Then, after a short
rest, I got up and walked some more, hoping I was heading in the
right direction—towards Savannah. There I planned to stow away on a
train that would take me back to Maine. I could easily make my way
back to Jasper Island, even if I had to walk all the way to the
harbor that was once my home.

My plan was good; I was comfortable with it.
I had walked all of the afternoon and night, and as my legs refused
to move any longer, I found a spot in a dense marsh area on the
edge of the woods I had wandered into, lay down on the soft ground,
and fell into a deep, long-needed sleep. I dreamt of Momma that
night and saw her as the little girl that once lived in Sutton
Hall. She was lovely and happy, and when I woke, I missed
everything about her. My heart was melancholy, and I wished I
weren’t so alone and lost. I wanted more than anything to go back
in time and have my life intact. I wished Momma was still alive and
Daddy able to protect me from harm. But my reality was a slap in
the face, worse than Grandmother’s brutal slap. My mind wanted me
to rise and continue to walk towards Savannah, but my legs refused
to conform. My feet were full of sores, and my legs were heavy. I
didn’t think I would be able to move a muscle until a snake
slithered towards me. I screamed with fright and jumped up without
any trouble. It curled up and went to strike, but I moved away,
just before the bite. I backed off, hoping it would leave me alone,
but from behind me I heard the blast of gunpowder. I twirled
around, fearing Hamilton was shooting at me, but to my relief and
surprise, it was a man—a stranger on foot. He was as tall as Heath,
but years older, though not as aged as Daddy, and came to my rescue
wearing a Union slouch hat.

After the snake was dead, I hurried towards
the man that saved me from being bit and possibly poisoned and left
to die.

“What is a young lady like yourself doing out
here? This place is loaded with dangerous snakes and
alligators.”

“I see that,” was all I could say.

“Have you gotten lost?” he asked, peering
into my eyes, which I kept hidden under thick strands of hair that
fell over my face. I didn’t want him to know I had run away; I
couldn’t have him take me back to Grandmother.

“I got separated from my daddy,” I said,
which after all, wasn’t a lie.

“What happened? Was there a wagon accident?
You look like you have been out here for a long time; you’re skin
and bones.” He stood before me and waited for my explanation. I
brushed my hair aside and gazed up at him. He had thick, wavy hair
under his hat. It was golden blond with thick platinum streaks, and
his sea green eyes were deeply mysterious.

“There was no accident. We were taking a
walk, and we accidentally got separated and I lost my way,” I said,
hoping he would believe me. After all, that is essentially what
happened.

The man frowned, looked closely at me, and
then said, “You look familiar. Do you live around these parts?”

“No. I think my daddy is in Savannah waiting
for me. Could you possibly take me there?” I hoped he would agree
to take me.

“Why would he be in Savannah waiting for you
if you were lost? Wouldn’t he be out looking for you?”

My heart began to race. I was afraid he knew
I was lying.

“I suppose,” I said.

“Well, then, why don’t you come with me, and
we’ll see what we can do to find him. I don’t live far. My horse is
over yonder.”

He didn’t wait for me to agree and walked
back towards the horse, expecting me to follow. Something inside me
told me not to go, that I needed to stick to my plan, and not be
sidetracked. The man would figure out I was lying and send me back
to the horrible mansion. He seemed kind, he appeared genuinely
concerned, but could I trust him? I stayed motionless, trying to
decide whether to run or go with him. When he noticed I wasn’t
steps behind him, he turned, and I decided to run. I wasn’t going
to take another chance; I had to get back to Daddy.

“Stop!” the man shouted, but not before I had
tripped on my dress and fallen hard. I screamed in pain, and he
rushed over to help me up.

“My leg,” I moaned. He lifted me and carried
me off. I clung to him and cried in agony.

“My place is not far; I will take you there,”
he said, carefully lifting me onto his horse. He mounted behind me
and said, “I will hold on to you so you don’t fall.” He pulled me
close, and just before we took off, a horse-drawn carriage flew
down the road. It was Hamilton and Grandmother.

“Please, take me with you,” I said before
they got to me.

“Why? I don’t understand,” I turned my head
and looked up at him. He saw the desperation in my face and the
pleading in my eyes, and he kicked the horse into a gallop and
headed off the road and into the woods. He held me tight against
him as we jumped thick logs and dodged tall live oaks until we lost
them. Then the man slowed the horse to a trot until we arrived at
what appeared to be his home. It was a small cabin hidden deep in
the woods. He dismounted, and I slid down the side of the horse and
into his arms. His arms were as strong as Daddy’s, and I felt safe
with him.

He carried me inside his sparse dwelling,
placed me in the nearest chair, and cordially introduced himself.
“My name is Warren Stone.” He extended his hand. “And you are?”

I didn’t want to reveal my name; I wanted no
one to know I belonged to Sutton Hall and the wicked grandmother
who ruled it. So I made up a name, the first one that came to
mind.

“I’m Clara Dalton,” I said, then shook his
hand. The pain in my leg was still excruciating, but my curiosity
about Warren helped relax me.

“Well, it is nice to meet you, Clara. I’m
sorry my place is such a mess. I wasn’t expecting company.” He saw
me wince in pain. “I better take a look at your leg, if that is all
right with you.”

I nodded. He lifted the bottom of my dress to
reveal my ankle. It was swollen and already starting to bruise. He
gently touched my ankle, keeping his eyes on my face to see how
badly it hurt when he tried to move it.

“Ouch!”

“I’m sorry, Clara. I didn’t mean to hurt you.
I think you only sprained it, though I am not a doctor.”

“I don’t need to see a doctor. I just need to
rest it for a while. Then I have to get to Savannah. Will you
please take me there, Mr. Stone?”

“Well, I don’t know, Clara. Those people—why
were they after you?” His eyes narrowed, and I looked away, afraid
he would see the truth—that I was running from them.

“I don’t know who they were.”

Warren placed his finger under my chin and
guided my face up so I would look at him. Our faces were only
inches apart, and he stared at me for the longest time, studying me
with such scrutiny that it made my heart skip a beat. His eyes
suddenly turned light to dark, then widened, as if he had just seen
a ghost.

_______________

After an awkward moment, Warren backed away
and cleared his throat, then said, “You must be hungry. Let me fix
you something to eat.”

I was famished and watched as he prepared a
simple meal. He knew his way around the kitchen; he obviously lived
alone. The one-room cabin was somewhat disarrayed. The bed wasn’t
made, the floors needed a sweep, and the table was covered in
plates that needed to be washed. I wondered why he wasn’t married;
he was certainly handsome enough to have a wife.

“Here you are,” he said, watching as I
devoured the food, then asked, “Clara, where are you and your
father from?”

I took my last bite of macaroni, wiped my
mouth with a napkin, and thought for a moment about the kind of lie
I needed to tell. He could obviously see I was a Yankee, so I
figured I wouldn’t lie about where I was from, but everything else,
from Momma to Daddy’s names and facts would all have to be made up.
I didn’t know if it was going to be believable.

“Daddy, Momma, and I are from a small town up
north. Daddy was here on business, though I’m not certain what. I
came because Momma was sick in the hospital, and Daddy had to bring
me.”

Warren folded his arms over his chest and
carefully scrutinized my story. I was vague, too vague.

“What is your momma sick from?”

“The doctors aren’t sure,” I said, which was
essentially true for all the years Momma was alive.

“And your daddy—what kind of business is he
in?”

“He is a fisherman.”

“What kind of business does a fisherman have
in Savannah, and not Charleston?”

I wasn’t good at telling lies, and my plan
was falling apart. My face turned red, and I shifted my eyes to
stare vacantly out the small window beside the table where we
sat.

“Clara, look at me.”

Warren was so much like Daddy. He had an air
of fatherly concern about him, but at the same time, he was just as
youthful and wise as Heath. I couldn’t face him as the tears of all
my fears began to stream down my cheeks. I was so afraid he would
see that I belonged to Eugenia Arrington, and take me back. Warren
came and knelt in front of me, placed his warm hand on my knee,
then said, “Tell me what really happened.”

“I can’t,” I said, trying desperately to hold
back my sobs. He turned my face, just as Daddy would, and made me
look at him. His eyes were soft and revealed genuine affection for
me.

“I am here to help you. You can trust me.
Does this all have to do with the Arringtons?”

He saw from my wide-eyed expression that he
was correct. Warren instantly saw my pain and wanted to comfort me.
Though he was a stranger, and Daddy had warned me never to trust
any man but him, I felt a connection with Warren, and I believed he
was going to help me.

“Why are you running from them?”

“My name isn’t Clara; it’s Lillian. Lillian
Arrington,” I cried. “That was my grandmother who was looking for
me.” My emotions flooded out like a broken dam, I needed someone to
talk to desperately. As soon as I started, I couldn’t stop until I
had not one more tear to shed, and I fell into his soothing
embrace. I told him everything. How we lived on Jasper Island with
the Daltons and how Momma went insane and was put away in an asylum
and Daddy began to fall apart. I mentioned Heath and Ayden, my two
very best friends, though I didn’t tell Warren how I truly felt
about Heath. I explained why we left the lighthouse station, why we
came to Savannah, and that Daddy had left me with a grandmother I
never knew existed. And as I exposed Grandmother’s evil plan to
keep me locked away until Daddy came for me, Warren’s face filled
with shock and disbelief and sadness.

“All I want to do is go home,” I sobbed onto
his shoulder.

“You poor dear,” he said softly allowing me
to cling to him. When I was finished crying, I pulled back and
again couldn’t look at him. Now that I had revealed the truth, what
would he do? Would he help me get back to Savannah and on a train
back north, or would he have no choice but to take me back to
Sutton Hall and leave me in the cruel hands of my grandmother?

Warren took the cloth from the table and
wiped my remaining tears away, then said, “You can stay here with
me, Lillian, until we figure out what to do.”