Your Interest At Heart

Chapter 27

I was preparing lunch for Samuel and Clem when I heard shouting outside. We still live in the same house he had when I first met him. I looked out the kitchen window, which looks over the walk that goes into the street, and saw three men shouting at my husband. I ran outside to see what was happening and saw a bulge in one of the men's pockets.

"What's going on?" I demanded, standing beside Samuel.

"Go back inside." Samuel glanced at me. Worry was painted all across his face. I stepped back a little bit, but never went inside. Looking over the three men, I noticed that one of them looked about eighteen years old. He looks close to Clem's age.

"Seabury, you gotta marry that girl of yours off." One of the men told my husband.

"No." He shook his head. "If she wants to marry, she will."

"She don't know that she wants to." The man insisted. My eyes haven't left the object in his pocket.

"That son of yours is not worthy of Clem, good day." Samuel concluded, turning. At that exact moment, the man with the thing in his pocket pulled out a gun. My eyes widened. Upon seeing my reaction to something he couldn't see, Samuel froze.

"Go back inside, Bianca." Samuel said again in a pleading tone. 

"You sure Henry ain't good enough?" The man challenged. Even the other men were in shock.

"Now Warren, let's not get too out of hand." The older of the men started.

"Shut up." Warren hissed, pointing the gun directly at Samuel, who hadn't moved. "It's about time henry got his own life. He needs to marry into a rich girl."

"Clement is grieving the death of her cousin. She isn't ready to marry yet." I told Warren calmly. He turned the gun to me. 

"Fortunately, it isn't really her choice." Warren grinned maliciously. It's another feeling seeing the inside of a gun barrel when it's in someone else's hands. Samuel let out some air and whipped around. 

Just before my husband made a move to Warren, I saw a single bullet leave the musket seemingly in slow motion towards Samuel. Without thinking, I threw myself in the bullet's path, hearing it rip through my corset. I heard Samuel yell inaudibly as I fell. The three men ran away in horror and Samuel crumbled to the ground beside me. 

"I told you to go back inside." He said, voice trembling. His brown eyes had water filling in them.

"So you can get shot? No." I tried to say. I guess the bullet punctured my lung, because the sentence just came out in a series of rasps and ragged breaths. 

"Bianca." Samuel held me tightly. "Clem just lost her cousin and aunt. I don't think she can handle losing her mother."

I felt tears prick the corners of my eyes, but then heard a voice that I hadn't heard in over a year.

"She can." I looked up and saw Peggy. She was wearing a clean pastel yellow dress and her curly brown hair was falling on her shoulders. My late sister leaned down and whispered in Samuel's ear. Although he couldn't see her, he seemed to hear what she said.

"It's time for Bee to go." She murmured. Tears leaked from his eyes and he leaned down, pressing his head against mine. The dark blood was turning my green dress brown.

"Come on." Peggy smiled gently, taking my hand and pulling me up. I looked down to see Samuel's reaction, but he was still hunched over me. A wretched noise escaped him when my body went limp. I looked down and saw that I was wearing a bloodless green dress. Philip Hamilton appeared out of nowhere and hurriedly went into my-- Samuel's-- house. Undoubtedly saying something to Clem. 

"Y'know, Bianca," Peggy started. "I wished I had swooped in and gotten Samuel when I had the chance."

"What?" I looked at her shakily.

"That boy never stopped loving you. Since the minute he saw you, he wanted to marry you." She explained. "Not everyone can find somebody like him."