Her head throbbed, and her throat was parched. She wanted to reach up and feel her temple, but her instincts told her to stay quiet.

She could hear voices of several men around her. Her name was mentioned. How did they know who she was? Where was she? Who were these men? Where was Aiden…was he safe?

She felt her eyes well up and struggled to hold back the tears. Her head hurt. She tried to look through her lashes without opening her eyes but a crack, hoping she could figure out where she was. If she were lucky, no one would look her way. She saw men’s backs, and things were blurry. She eased her eyes closed and tried to keep her breathing low and even.

Ella stayed that way until the men’s voices sounded muffled. Her spine stiffened with fear at one voice. She’d know it anywhere. Opening her eyes slightly, she confirmed her fear. Jason!

He was here with two male slaves she didn’t recognize. All three had bloodstained clothing. And they smelled—blech! The stench wafted across the room. She tried not to gag at the gamey odor. Ella hated foul smells.

Jason was barking orders. He was furious and the other two looked nervous . Cold fear ran through her, and she trembled. He terrified her and now she was at his mercy. She wished Nolan and Jackson—if even just one of them, had taken her fear of the man seriously. Nolan had dismissed him as harmless. Jackson had expressed concern about him, but hadn’t felt he posed a real danger to her.

A clutch of panic hit the pit of her stomach. Get it together, Ella Grace. Calm down and think. She slowed her breathing down and focused on stopping the trembling. She had to let him keep thinking she was unconscious.

While her hands were bound, she noticed she still had some freedom within the bonds. Did she still have her gun? She always strapped it on her thigh. Had she lost it, or was it still on her? If they turned, she could move a little and find out. She couldn’t tell if it was in the holster.

Suddenly Jason drove his fist into one of the men’s faces. She heard the crunch and then swearing from the two runaways. Smothering her gasp, she remained still and acted asleep.

“I should kill you.” She knew him. He had a look that could terrify a person when he yelled. No one else she knew made her feel uncomfortable like he did. It was a menacing look and she could imagine he wore that look on his face now. “Why did you hurt her? I told you not to harm her in any way!” Jason unleashed his temper on his accomplices.

“Massa Jason, she walked up on us and had a weapon. We had no choice. Don’t hit me, Massa.”

Jason reached over and snatched up Aiden’s stick. He laughed. “You call this stick a weapon?” Jason slung the stick, not caring where it went. His voice mocked them.

Something landed next to her feet. The stick…that’s Aiden’s pirate sword. He and Bo…she tried to remember…Bo barked at her, and then everything went dark. She prayed they were safe. They had to be. I have to get away. Her hands were going numb from the position they were in; they felt cold. She needed to shift her body, somehow.

Slowly, she moved her hand to feel her thigh. Good! The gun was still there. They had not found it. She grimaced against the pain. Jason had no idea she could shoot, but he was fixin’ to find out.

The men’s voices were getting closer. Ella closed her eyes and relaxed, determined to appear still out of it.

“Massa Jason, we best get moving. Dis here cabin, well, it’s too close to da middle of da swamp. The big witch woman lives out here and she watches the family. And it’s still on her property, you know,” he said, nodding at Ella. “If we get caught, we won’t be able to run. We be stuck right here, and I don’t want to meet my Maker in this here cabin. That army man we seen there will be looking for her. He’ll have dem army men hot on our trail. Dey so many of dem.” The shorter man’s voice exposed his fear.

“Shut up, damn it! I need to figure out what to do. I’m thinking.” She hated Jason’s voice. His thick Creole accent repulsed and terrified her.

Ella didn’t have to work hard to keep her eyes closed. Her head throbbed. She focused on staying alert.

Her head hurt, and she wanted to sleep, so she focused on the voices, listening. Did they mean her property?

 “Damn! She has blood on the back of her head. I certainly cannot go into town after Doc.” Jason’s fist slammed the table near the fireplace. “I should kill you! Find someone who can help her.”

The arguing got louder, and Jason swore words she didn’t understand. No doubt it was more Creole.

Would anyone know what had happened to her? She didn’t know how much information Aiden could give…and to whom? Who would come for her? Her head hurt so much. It was hard to focus on anything. So tired. Her fists relaxed as darkness claimed her once again.

* * *

Jackson and his men were barely out of view when Lizzy called for Carter. He came running. “Carter, we got to help Miss Ella. We both know what our little man told the colonel. He says they was two stranger slaves and Jason. That doesn’t make sense. Do it?”

Carter sat down at the news.

“Carter. What you know? You betta tell me.”

Miss Ella had always been his favorite in this house. Now, she was hurt and gone.

 “Lizzy, I does know sump’um but I cannot think what it is. It’s something that I heard from Jason. ‘Bout a month back, I brung some food to the field hands. Jason showed up and yelled. He took a whip and beat a young boy near to death. But it was what he said that I can’t remember. And I think it is important.” Carter’s head was down, and he tried to focus.

“Carter, she our family. You should have tol’ her. You never even said nothing to me. Miss Ella needed to know this.”

“I not say anything ‘bout the beating because he told me it be his word ‘against mine, but I see him beat dat young boy. He near killed him over a scrap of food. I know how Miss Ella feels ‘bout her people. She wants to give her people a home, but he be the Devil. The ones dat left, dey run because of him.”

Carter put his head in his hands, “I been notice’n him round Miss Ella. I don’t like the way he looks at her. He mentioned something ‘bout a place…he called it his place,” Despairing and wringing his hands tightly—Carter tried to recall more details about that afternoon. Jason hitting the boy was a scary thing, too. “I can’t recall what more he said, ‘bout his place.”

“I know what we need to do, Carter. Massa Nolan, he got to be ‘tol. Keep an eye on the little massa while I go tell him.”

Lizzy was out of the door before he could respond. Carter checked Aiden’s room. The littlest Whitford and his dog were curled up on the bed in front of the fireplace. It was still cold, even though it was spring. Carter rubbed his chin as he watched them. He wouldn’t let anything happen to Aiden and his puppy, not on his life.

It was good that Aiden was able to sleep. He looked so much like his older brother when he was asleep. He could remember Nolan at that age clearly and couldn’t help taking a moment to think about those happy memories.

“I hope you be dreaming sump’um good, boy.” Carter gently closed the door and went downstairs to find Cook.

* * *

Lizzy took her time. Making sure no one saw her, she opened the pantry door and stepped in. Closing it behind her, she moved to the back of the closet and pressed the wallboard in the upper corner. The wall opened slowly and she moved into the stairwell, closing the door behind her. The kitchen entry had been used a lot. There was no dust. Probably Carter and Ol’ Indie.

Knocking lightly on the inside wall to alert Massa Nolan she was coming, she made her way into the safe room. “Hello…Massa Nolan…Miss Sara…I’m coming down. I need to talk to you, Massa Nolan. It’s very important.” Lizzy hoped that she was doing the right thing, though she wondered what he could do to help.

Two whispering voices sounded rushed. There was rustling. She waited a minute then made her presence known. “Massa Nolan, yo sister is gone, and the colonel and his men have gone to find her.”

“Gone? What?” Nolan and Sara rushed to the back stairwell at her words. “What do you mean, my sister is gone?” Nolan thundered.

“She been afraid of that man, and now he—that no-count Jason—he took her. Carter, he witnessed bad stuff from that man. He and two slaves hurt your sister in front of Massa Aiden. They tried to grab Aiden, but he got away, he and Bo. You don't worry ‘bout them. But Miss Ella, she was taken.”

* * *

Terror filled him and he looked around for his weapons. “I have to help find her.”

“Now how you s’posed to do that—you being wanted yo-self? I just needed to tell you. You needed to know. The colonel and his men, they gone after the men that took her. They will bring her back.”

“I cannot just sit here. That no good Jason!” Anguished, he recalled an earlier conversation with Ella. “She was trying to tell me something about Jason, and I cut her off. If I had only given what she was trying to tell me a chance. I should have listened to her.”

“Nolan, you can’t go.” Sara pleaded with him. “You could be caught. The colonel is a smart man. He will find our Ella. He will bring her back to us.”

“Sara. This is Ella we are talking about here. I have to find her. I promise I will come back to you. But I have to find her.” Images of his sister wiping his brow and nursing him through the fever flashed through his mind. “She risked her own life to care for me. I will find Jason and if he hurt my sister, he will be a dead man.” He meant that. He needed to know as much as he could. No way did he want to get caught, but he would give his own life for his sister. He wasn’t staying here while she was in danger.

Nolan took a deep breath, trying to calm himself. “Lizzy, thank you for telling me. Aiden is okay?”

She nodded.

“Is Carter here? I need to see him.”

“Yassuh. He is. I’ll send him to you, but you will want to know the rest.” Distress was evident in her voice as Lizzy continued to relate all that she knew. “Oh, Massa Nolan, there is one thing you need to know. The colonel added another guard to the house, here. They are now watching the front and the back of the house. He is very protective of Miss Ella and Aiden.” With that, Lizzy left to find Carter.

He looked for Sara and saw her sitting on the cot, her arms wrapped around her legs, drawn up under her neck. There was so much he wanted to say to her. What if he was captured and never got to tell her? He went over to her and dropped to his knees. “Sara, look at me.”

With the tip of his finger, he nudged her chin up and kissed her. “You understand, don’t you? I have to help. I could never live with myself if I didn’t try to find my sister.”

“We are both lucky to have you, Nolan Whitford.” Wiping tears, she smiled up at him. “I’m gonna be here when you get back.”

“I love you, Sara.” He started to say more just in case he got captured. But he wiped that thought away. He would be back, and he would see his sister home. He needed to get to his daddy’s guns, and he hoped they were still where he left them.

* * *

It wasn’t long before she heard Carter coming back to the kitchen. Lizzy was sitting at the table, waiting for him. His face looked grim. Cook had taken some scraps to the pigs and was out of the room when Carter returned. Lizzy needed to talk to him about being careful when he came in that pantry door. She also wanted to hear what he and Nolan had discussed.

“I remembered something—Jason said he had a place. He called it ‘de cabin.’ Do that make any sense to you?” He looked towards Lizzy. His hands clenched into fists by his side. “I let Massa Nolan know about it.”

The pantry door slammed open and Sara appeared, breathless from taking the steps so quickly. “Nolan took off to look for Ella. I couldn’t stop him. Took one of his daddy’s guns. The posted guard walked around the corner of the house, and he left in the other direction.” Fear colored her voice as she wrapped her arms around her middle.

Carter jumped up and helped Sara to a chair. 

“Miss Sara, you know he had to find his sister. Those two are closer than most.” Lizzy thought of Nolan and his antics when they were all growing up, and it made her smile. She and Carter were slightly older than Ella and Nolan, and the four had known each other most of their lives. “Massa Nolan will be back. Can I get something for you to do to take your mind off things? I know how you feel about this family. My mamma always ‘tol me that when you can’t do nothing more to change a bad thing that’s happening, find something to occupy your mind. Would you like to work on a sampler? You know Miss Ella has never been able to finish one.” Lizzy tried to laugh.

“Yes, she was always more interested in riding and doing things with her daddy.” Sara laughed and wiped at her tears.

“You are right there! She’d come in from the fields with her daddy and her dress be torn. The missus tried to change that, but she quit when she seen how happy Miss Ella was running around with her daddy and then, Nolan. She told me she figured Ella would find her a special husband one day—one that could do his own stitching.” Her voice weakened with a slight tremor, as she continued. “But her mamma also knew Miss Ella could do anything she set her mind to do. The missus adored her beautiful girl. They adored each other.”

“Well, I guess I could pick up one of Ella’s samplers. Yes, that would help. Your mother was a wise woman, Lizzy. I will do it. Wait. Ella said she has a dress she has already cut out. I’ll work on that. You are right. I need something to stop putting this wrinkle of worry on my forehead. Ella will wear her old dresses until they disintegrate on her before she will start another one.” She gently touched Lizzy’s hand.

“I’ll go get it. She cut one or two dresses out, but Miss Ella never worked any more on them. Shoved them in her closet. She doesn’t know, but I’ve been working on one in my spare time.” Lizzy reached into the closet and after rustling around pulled out a large brown package.

“Well, then. It’ll give us both something to do to keep our minds off this mess we are in here. We can’t do anything until we know more. I’ll meet you in the parlor.” Sara accepted the package from Lizzy and picked up her basket.

Nodding at Sara and Carter, Lizzy left to retrieve the stack of mending that needed attention.

Carter and Sara walked past the library, and Sara stopped and looked inside. The gun cabinet was still ajar. “Carter, can you help me fix this so no one notices the gun missing?” The two moved the remaining items around, and Carter took the key and put it back in the desk drawer.

“Reckon we should get on to the parlor, Miss Sara.”

Sara glanced back at the gun cabinet. “Oh Nolan, do be careful,” she said, softly, before the library door clicked shut behind her.