Lynna's Rogue (35 page)

             
Her aunt would be working round the clock on a tro
usseau for the bride to be.
Deirdre Chisholm would sew the actual wedding gown, she was sure. Only the best for the daughter of Silas Fletcher
,
and the bride to be of Captain Joshua Jordan. Mary would be ecstatic, bustling about
,
making wedding preparations. And Suzanne? Lynna prayed never to see her smirking face again. She recalled the glowing look of triumph Suzanne had worn when
she had slithered into her room after all the guests had retired
.

             
“Will you marry my dear brother
now
?’ she had asked ever so sweetly.

             
“No.” Lynna continued with her packing, hoping to hide her tear stained face. “I
will not
be marrying anyone.”

             
“W
ell, why ever not?” T
wisting the knife into Lynna’s heart a little deeper
, she added,
“We could have a double wedding. Would that not be a splendid affair?”

             
Lynna forgot her tears and spun around
,
wanting only to hurt her. To make her feel a small portion of the gut
-
wrenching pain she was feeling. Before she had the chance
,
Suzanne’s next words stopped her cold.

             
“Lynna, darling, I know how you must feel. But, honestly, you really must forget any misguided illusions you had toward my betrothed. I know all about that silly night the two of you shared in Judith’s cottage. However
,
you must realize an occasional dalliance with a besotted female means nothing to a man like Joshua. He has, or had, them on a regular basis.
I am
sure
he will
be quite content with what he has in his own bed now.” She smiled brilliantly for Lynna’s benefit. “Anyway, he told me about your little tryst and I was gracious enough to forgive him.”

             
“Forgive him? For what?” Lynna asked with disbelief written on her face. Joshua would never have betrayed her con
fidence. “What are you talking about
, Suzanne?”

             
“You
don’t
have to deny it, Lynna.
It is
nothing to be ashamed of. It was beyond your control. I, of all people, know what a desirable man my future husband is. Why do you think
I am
marrying him? Anyway, he told me he went to deliver a message from your aunt, after the Morehead fire, and how you cried so pathetically and begged him to stay the night.”

             
She watched Lynna closely for a reaction to her lie, but there was none. “I must admit I was furious when he told me, but then he does apologize so...lustily. He assured me you meant nothing to him, that
he had
only been trying to comfort you after your trying ordeal and things got carried away, so I forgave him.” Lynna must never know
she had
stood outside the open window
that night and heard every word.

             
“My…ordeal?”

             
“Yes, with your uncle. You poor thing! To have an uncle who… beats you. Why, I simply
cannot
imagine anything so heinous!”

             
A vision of Joshua and Suzanne together, laughing at her, him recounting to Suzanne how she had asked, no begged him to stay after being beaten by her uncle
,
sent a fresh wave of agony coursing through her. Oh God!
She had
been so blind, so stupid.

             
S
he was actually able to smile through her tears, as she envisioned the two of them growing old together.

             
Late that night, Lynna was a lone figure on the quiet streets of Charleston. Her carriage had busted a wheel and, rather than wait until morning, she had taken one of the horses and continued to her aunt’s house alone, against the stern wishes of the driver. Glancing up
,
she noticed that the moon had a bright ring around it. What were the superstitions Jasmine had warned her about concerning a ring around the moon? She wished
she had
listened more closely.

             
Suddenly
,
the horse slowed and pricked up his
ears, alert. She
gradually became aware of a tinkling noise, as if from gently ringing bells. That was odd. She searched for the origin of the sound but
could not
see anything unusual as the moon
chose that moment to
hid
e
behind the clouds. The tower of Saint Michael’s Episcopal Church loomed up ahead stately and proud watching over the sleeping port city.

             
With increasing alarm
,
Lynna became aware of a low, steady rumbling noise that seemed to come from underneath the ground, growing continually louder until it was almost deafening. And the church bells! All across the city
,
church bells began to ring in an erratic cacophony. Terrified, the horse reared and Lynna was thrown to the ground in a painful heap upon the suddenly shifting earth. In a blind panic
,
she ran down the street until she came to the welcoming doors of Saint Michael’s.

             
Across the sleeping city
,
eyes widened and fear took root in every citizen
as all around
,
chimneys crumbled and rained brick into the streets. As the thundering noise grew louder
,
people ran into the streets
,
consumed with terror. The roaring and crashing noises continued for just over a minute then the noise suddenly stopped.

             
Inside the saintly structure
of St. Michael’s,
the bells were chiming without the rope being pulled. Not their usual enchanting melody, but a horrible
,
uncontrolled noise that vibrated through the church. Dropping to her knees
,
Lynna prayed harder than she ever had before, begging God to be merciful rather than just and allow her a quick death. She was sure this was her punishment for giving herself to Joshua without the sanction of the church. Joshua! Oh, to be held in the safety of his strong arms once more before she died. But that
would not
happen, for her life would soon be over. As if to verify that fact th
e earth beneath her feet
suddenly
heaved
upward. Holy statues broke loose from their pedestals behind the altar and crashed to the floor only inches from where she lay crouched under a pew.

             
The trembling became extremely violent
,
causing the beautiful stained glass windows to shatter and fall to the floor around her. She knew nothing of the destruction that was destroying the city and claiming many lives outside the church. Her mind was filled with the ringing of the bells and the horrible rumbling noise. She remained in her crouched position
,
too terrified to move until the trembling earth stood still.

             
When all was quiet
,
she crawled out from under the pew
,
not knowing which way to turn. The church was filled with thick, heavy smoke
,
making it difficult to breathe. In search of fresh air
,
she made her way through the rubble
,
falling every other step and cutting her hands and knees on the broken glass and other debris littering the aisle. She moved steadily forward toward the dim light filtering through the open door
,
fearing what she might find when she reached it. The full moon was bright, but the smoke and dust created a thick fog
,
hiding most of the destruction from her view until the stark morning light would illuminate it.

             
Her horse was nowhere to be found. She hoped
he had
survived the chaos, along with Leroy, her driver. She must hurry and reach her aunt
’
s hou
se and send someone back for
him. She looked around at the crowd that was beginning to gather in the streets, a crowd that had been roughly yanked from their beds.

             
Lynna was lucky she had
been in the business district when the earthquake struck the city of Charleston. Had she been in the residential section
,
she would have heard the screams as the bodies of men, women and children were pulled from the wreckage.

             
As she moved carefully through the crowded streets, fires burned out of control all around her, crackling sparks being carried high into the sky on the breeze that blew in from the river. Men
,
women
,
and children formed a human conveyor belt
,
carrying water to put out the innumerable fires. Her first impulse was to join them and help, but first she had to find her aunt and be assured that she wasn’t hurt, or worse.

             
She broke into a run as sharp talons of fear dug in, urging her forward. She ran until her parched throat and aching sides forced her to slow down. It was then that she saw her aunt standing on her front stoop and candlelight fli
ckering in her window. It appeared
to Lynna like a beacon guiding a ship in a violent storm and she followed the light. She breathed a heartfelt sigh of relief to find the house miraculously intact and rushed into her aunt
’
s outstretched, welcoming arms.

             
Many of the picturesque homes and stately mansions of Charleston were destroyed during the earthquake, but by far
,
the wors
t
tragedy was the loss of life. Many people were killed in their sleep, while others were trapped under the rubble waiting, knowing there would be no chance for a rescue until morning. Some died before the rescuers could dig them out, while many of the severely burned or injured prayed for the relief that only death could bring.

             
Over the destruction
,
the tower of Saint Michael’s could be seen as a reminder to the people of Charleston. They had survived disastrous fires, tidal waves, hurricanes
,
and tornadoes in the past.
T
he earthquake had proven to be a formidable foe, but the Holy City would not give up. She would come back stronger than ever.

             
Only her Aunt Gypsie
did not
have
the
courage to remain and watch the long process of rebuilding. Miraculously
,
her shotgun house sustained only minor damage, but no matter what room in the house she happened to be in, when she looked out the window
,
her eyes fell upon destruction.

             
Her once beautiful city, where her beloved
late husband had been born,
raised
and buried
, now more closely resembled a battlefield. A battle Charleston had lost. The downtown area still smoked from the raging fires that had swept the city. Now there were only ashes where a thriving business district had once been. Gypsie had lost two of her dearest
friends to the earthquake and the pain was almost unbearable.

             
The following morning, Lynna returned from a walk around the smoking city to find her aunt staring dismally out the window, a pathetic sight.

             
“Aunt Gypsie, are you ill?” This disheveled woman was a poor caricature of the effervescent
a
unt she remembered.

             
It was a long time before Gypsie could trust herself to answer. “No, Lynna.
I am
fine physically, however
emotionally,
I am a wreck. I cannot remain in Charleston.” She took a deep breath and continued, “After careful consideration
I have
decided to visit my sister Bertie and her husband Cliff in Jamaica.
”

             
Now where would she
go
, Lynna wondered
? Certainly not back to Magnolia House! To Cedar Hill! Perhaps she could borrow the needed funds from Samuel to return to France. “I think that
is
a splendid idea
,
Aunt Gypsie.
You will
feel much better away from this destruction.”