His Lily of The Valley

Prologue

In this, the end of one life and beginning of another, I find bitter sweet. Horrific events are the cause of such changes being in my life. My first life started happily. My Mother and Father were loving parents. We had a comfortable home in Virginia, though we were on the outskirts of town. The small farm provided all we needed. Then one day, in 1850 when I was twelve years old, my mother went into labor. I was excited to finally have a baby brother or sister. The Midwife came and the day wore on. My Father kept me busy outside with chores. By the end of the day however, the baby still had not come. My father had me sleep in the loft in the barn that night, but I could still hear my mother's screams.

When morning came my Father told me that I would not have a brother or sister, and also I no longer had a Mother. After that day my father changed. He began drinking and at times would go into the nearest town. I would be left alone for days on end and had to learn very quickly how to take care of all of the chores I was able to do. After a several years, when I was sixteen, my father came home one night to announce that I was to marry Robert Thompson. I didn't know the man at all. The next morning we went into town, straight to the church. That day I became Mrs. Lilith Anne Thompson.

It didn't take long to know that my new husband, Robert, was not a kind man. As he beat me until I was unconscious on our wedding night. We lived at the farm where I grew up, and after only three months of marriage my father passed away. As time went on I had two children, Anne and Daniel. My husband continued to be hateful, hitting me when he drank. But for the most part he left us alone, for he would stay in town often and drink at the saloon. It was a hard and lonely life. The day that Daniel turned four in 1860, was the day life changed for us completely. Our old life had ended and our new life was just beginning. 

***This whole thing is a work in progress. I have never done this( on this scale) before. I do intend to add more details and historical facts. I will be updating on Fridays from this point forward, as long as I can.***