The Ember In The Storm

Part III

Winter.
  It was the season of beauty and havoc. Beauty that you could catch sight of the snowflakes falling to the ground and the leaves and branches of trees hovered by white snow. Havoc due to the sixty percent that had harder means of keeping warm. It came as no surprise when a few people were reported to have frozen to death by the end of winter.

So it was no shock that Elizabeth hated the season. The food was scarce and the clothes not warm enough. If they were lucky, Senior Anderson would bring a few warm clothes and stockings from his trips in the South. If they were lucky.

Yet, this winter however, things would be different. She would not have to worry about the food or warmth, well she hoped she would not have to.

Elizabeth warmed her palms together in a rub, both from the cold and the anxiety running through her. She stood ahead of the attorneys table, switching from clasping her hands on her waist to shifting them inside the brown winter coat passed on to her from her mother. It was needed to give her that bridal feeling, or at least a feeling of beauty on her wedding day.

"You can sign here," the attorney directed Jackson Anderson to a blank space over a few words. Elizabeth could read even from her angle as it read Husbands Signature and it gave her chills.

She looked up at the young man in dark dressings; a winter coat and boots. He had not spoken to her ever since... well, had he ever spoken to her? His face held the same expression she expected him to have whenever he discussed legal matters for the town; Plain with focus.

Senior Anderson and Master Luke watched from across the room with weary smiles, trying to ease the thick tension in the atmosphere. Elizabeth watched as Jackson filled in his signature with the black ink. She had at least expected him to have hesitated, however, he did it in a swift move such that the attorney lawyer was asking for her print next.

"Print?" She asked confusedly as she stared at the white bearded man, he placed a small bowl of ink ahead of her. Of course, to them she was illiterate and could not even tell the letters P and Q from each other.

"Yes. Just let your thumb into the ink and press it against the paper. Easy. Is it not?" He seemed irritated enough. Senior Anderson had secretly and privately had this marriage arranged. The attorney alone was being paid a huge sum of silver and gold to keep it all in a closet.

John Laurens ensured the soon-to-be couple that as long as they let no one know about their marriage, they would be safe enough until he made things better. Whatever that meant.

Still, he could have at least paid the attorney a little bit more for some kindness.

"Oh, yes. Yes," replied Elizabeth before placing her thumb into the bowl and towards the paper, hesitating to fill in the blank space. She could feel the burn of Jackson's eyes on her hand, as if hoping it would rescue him from the day. Except, she too had to do this for the sakes of her family.

And so she did.

She could hear the cue of his sharp exhale, the long suspense being put out of him. Well, that was it, they had signed the marriage certificates and... they were married. Elizabeth had really married one of the Andersons. One of the most feared and respected men of the town... mostly feared.

"Well, you're now man and wife," the attorney spoke in what almost felt like utter surprise.

A white man marrying a slave? It had never been done. It had simply never been done in his offices in all his thirty-two years of working. He had witnessed people come and leave married to the strangest people. But here however, it was simply almost a stupid idea.