The Heavens Shall Fall (35 page)

Their rage that the Americans had the nerve to execute Andre, crying foul, but the British played by a different set of rules—one for themselves and one for the ones they thought beneath them.

Hannah had heard of the dignity and honor that was given to Andre at his trial and execution. Moreover, Andre well understood the consequences of his behavior before he took off his uniform. He knew the rules of war. His intent was never questioned.

The British had prepared to stab the Americans in the heart. Their attempt failed and
Susanna paid the price.

So many memories assaulted Hannah
. She remembered seeing another soul, Nathan Hale, hung as a spy at the beginning of British occupation of New York. The British had tried to humiliate the Patriot.

She heard them boast they had taken his last letters and destroyed them. They laughed at his attempt to seek information against them and took pride in his desolation. She could only imagine what
Susanna endured…William and her father. The war had been long, but the reason for the conflict could never be forgotten. The deaths of those before them would not be in vain.

Hannah pondered the life she had lived. Her principals and beliefs had led her to where she was. She was not submissive and held true to her convictions. She knew her happiness lay with Giles and the life he had created for her. She would play her role well, giving to her children and husband the home they deserved.

Though, she wondered whether Giles saw the other side of her. For so long, he had protected her. He worried about Marcus, but did he know the truth? It was not Marcus he protected her from, but herself.

Marcus was a ghost that followed her. Try as she might to push him completely out of her mind, he would reemerge. In her dreams, he would come. In Seth, she saw him. In the way Seth moved, his eyes, his temperament.

But it was also Marcus who had told her to live…to fight for the life she wanted. In this, she had done and would continue to do so. A life without him. She had long understood the conflict that surrounded them would have never allowed for any other ending.

Though, his words would haunt her to her dying days.
Did you use me?

She had loved him. Her heart
had ached when she was ripped from his arms. She would have gone to England with him.
God forgive her!
In her weakness, she would have accepted what he had offered…knowing she would never have found any happiness or peace. She would not have deserved to be happy.

Did you use me?
She told him what he wanted to hear.

While in New York, Tepper had taught her to do what was necessary for her mission to succeed. Nothing came before her mission. The people she had used…Gannon. Grandfather. Lieutenant Fletcher.
Susanna.
Oh, God she would never forgive herself for drawing her cousin into the web of deceit.
They were all dead…dead because of their association to her.

Did you use me?
Marcus had risked everything to protect her. She had slung words at him that he had put honor and duty before her, but it had not been the truth. She would have faced the same fate as Susanna if he had not interceded. He asked only that she halt her spying. She had given her word.

Did you use me?
She had had a choice that night at Susanna’s home when she found the British plans on Saratoga. She had given her word…

Did you use me?
Yes…yes…yes…she had broken her word…she had betrayed him and wrote every detail down regarding the plans for Saratoga.

Giles told her the information had been priceless. Knowing the British plans, Washington had made crucial decisions to send his best men north…to victory. Nothing, nothing came before her mission…nothing…not even the man she had loved…who had trusted her.

“Hannah.”

She turned to the sound of her name. Giles. He had returned once more from his trip into New York.

“Martha told me that you had need of a walk. I thought I would find you here.”

He offered her his hand to help her down off her perch.
She slipped; he caught her in his arms. She sank against him and let go of her anger, her fears, her sorrow. He tightened his embrace.

“
Martha also said you visited the Arnetts. You know?”

Hannah nodded her head
, for she could find no words. She felt him stroke her head in a gentle manner. Oh, how she clung to him in his protective arms, wanting only for him to make the memories go away.

“
Do not let guilt gnaw at your soul. We have all done that which was necessary,” he whispered in her ear.

“
But it is on me, Giles. Susanna would never have spied if not for me,” she protested in a frail voice. “I want only for the British to pay for what they have done, but I know also she died because—”

“
Because she believed in the cause,” Giles interrupted. “Do not forget why we fight. It is not for revenge, but the cause. With war comes death, but in that death is hope for a rebirth. The words we have followed, life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness, are easy to proclaim, but much harder to attain.

“
We all have our own path to follow along this journey. We cannot question that path, but hold to it.”

“
But the price for some is so much higher than for others.”

“
Of which, we have no control. The best we can do is take each day as it is presented and worry about the things we do have control over such as our life together…our family.”

She stared into his eyes. In his arms, he made the world right.

“Oh, Giles, you do not know how much I need you…love you…”

Her words faded in the wind.
His lips touched hers, and he kissed her tenderly.

“
I know,” he uttered against her lips. “I see it in your eyes when I approach, in your laugh when you play with our children, in your step when you work…I feel it when you are in my arms.”

A silent tear fell from her eye. He wiped it back and smiled.
“I, too, have worries, but they ease with you by my side.”

In that moment, the doubts of herself vanished with the realization that Giles knew her better than she knew herself.

She pulled her cloak tighter and turned. The wind whipped about her, but Giles warmed her as he wrapped his arms around her. Her heart swelled with the emotions the man evoked within her heart.

There they stood in the reflection of the fading light and watched the sun set.

THE END

SET FIRE TO THE RAIN, Book Five, Winds of Betrayal- Coming 2015

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