What Happens By Candlelight

Chapter Twenty-Four: The Cottage

~Still Third Perspective~

Gabriel stared at the letter. It was nearly lunch now, and he's done next to nothing. Part of him wanted to read it, but he knew it was confidential. What if it was something he didn't want to read? What if the girl was writing about the intimacies of married life?

But what if there was something else? Had Christina even written about him? What if there was advice for her? 

No. It was wrong to go through her letters. They were courting, he had to give her some space. Besides, it was from a female friend, not a male acquaintance. It would be wrong for a man to go through a woman's privacy unless they were married.

While he did love Christina, he knew deep down that she did not have mutual feelings. 

More often than not, she had a guilty look on her face when every time they spoke to one another. It was painfully obvious to Gabriel, who spectated her expressions as often as he could.  Over the last two months he came down to two conclusions; either she didn't know how to leave him, or she was hiding something.

Perhaps the answer was in the letter, but his resolve remained strong.

"Permission to speak, Sir?" Another young low ranking officer entered the room, standing at attention with a neutral expression.

"Granted."

Gabriel wanted nothing more than to not work, possibly even chase after the girl who often occupied his thoughts. Based on the presence of the young man, however, he doubted anything close to his desires will take effect.

"Sir, patriot General Francis Marion has caused a ruckus at Wando Landing. He has taken more than two dozen British officers as prisoners and has either damaged or destroyed British provisions and quarters. At this time, we don't know where the American Militia has gone." The man's face finally broke, showing the intense worry written across his features. 

Gabriel couldn't find it in him to really care at first. Then it dawned on him: Christina wasn't here. They don't know where the militia went. The General's entire family was out for the day, making all of them targets.

The chair fell back with a loud clatter as the Lieutenant Colonel stood. The boy cringed at the sound but quickly composed himself. "I only request to accompany you in retrieving the women and child, if you will allow me. Both of us have been granted access to the stables by the commander, as well as any other provisions we may find necessary."

Gabriel grabbed the letter and unconsciously tucked it away in the folds of his jacket. He didn't take his eyes off the boy and instead studied him. He recognized him from somewhere, but he couldn't quite place his finger on where.

Tristan was utterly terrified. He had seen the Lieutenant Colonel around Sabrina many times, and couldn't help but come to the conclusion that they were as close as siblings. Had he known any better, then he would have been perfectly calm with the knowledge that Gabriel was around the family more often for Christina's sake.

"Go fetch two horses, I'll handle the rest." Tristan saluted before scampering off, prepared to face a worst-case scenario. 

Gabriel stared at the work he needed to do, but ultimately decided to leave it be until his return in another hour or so. That was assuming they ran into no trouble in locating the cottage and the small party in attendance.

Then again, he was far more worried about his beloved. He prayed and prayed that she was safe and in good humor by the time he arrived.

~~ 

The horses began to trod after their long strenuous fast-paced sprint. From the plantation to this very moment the men had been forcing the horses to run as quickly as possible, for the sake of the women and child they needed to protect.

The cottage was now in sight, with its snow-covered roof and tall stone chimney that was emitting smoke into the sky. At least that was a good sign, that someone was inside tending to a fire.

The closer they got, the louder the chatter became. Timothy could be heard laughing and cheering, as well as Sabrina. The two stared up at a large tree, bare of all leaves and blossoms. Soldiers lingered about, unaware of the current situation.

It wasn't until they were much closer that Gabriel saw what the siblings were cheering at.

Christina hung from a high branch, laughing with mirth as she pulled her weight upwards. Her hair had come loose long ago, tumbling down her back and over her shoulders in dark loose curls. Even her eyes made her look younger, as they cheerfully observed the world around her.

All of it made Gabriel remember how terribly he had fallen for the girl.

To make it even worse, she saw him and smiled, her head tilting in such a way that her hair fell almost completely over her shoulder. To him, she looked like an angel caught in a tree.

Tristan had long since made his way to Sabrina, explaining everything to her. His superior hadn't noticed whatsoever. Then again, the girl in the tree was enough for any man to stare at.

It wasn't until Christina began her descent down the branches of the tree that the Lieutenant Colonel snapped out of his reverie enough to move forward once more. The bottom branches were high enough up as it was, and Gabriel could not fathom how she managed to get on those with her petite frame, to begin with.

He waited patiently on his horse, watching over her as she carefully found her way towards the tree limb he was beside. When she finally seated herself on it, her breath coming out in white puffs around them, he finally saw how wild she truly looked.

"Do girls usually climb tress in such a fashion?" He could see her smile, as well as giggle a bit. He couldn't remember the last time she made such a feminine sound, but he rather enjoyed it. "Honestly, what possessed you to do such a thing?"

"Timothy said that girls can't climb trees, and I felt the need to fix his falsehoods. Do you think I succeeded?" Gabriel still couldn't quite comprehend how the ever calm and composed Christina Evans ended up looking like a fiery untamed spirit of the woods.

"Yes, I'm sure you did, darling. Why don't you come down now?" Without warning, she flung herself at him, burying her head in his chest with her arms securely around his waist. The horse neighed in discontent, stomping his hooves.

"I like it when you call me pet names. Darling, dear, love, it makes me feel all warm inside. Will you use those more often?" She stared at him through her big doe-like eyes, making him instantly realize that she was under the influence of something. She never spoke so boldly or acted in such a way.

Unbeknownst to them, Madeline stood around the corner, waiting for Christina to blunder everything completely. It had taken time to acquire the tasteless herbs that had the same effects as many of the French narcotics her mother often spoke of in their letters. Yet, it seems that Christina was bewitching the Lieutenant Colonel even now.

Of course, Madeline hadn't expected the man to show up. Instead, she had planned to push a soldier her way and let the not-so-coherent girl make a reputation ruining mistake.

"I want to kiss you," Christina felt nothing. She wasn't even cold. For some reason, she knew her words didn't suit her right, but she couldn't think hard enough as to why. "But there are too many people around."

Gabriel should have taken her inside. He should have forced her to sleep. He should have told her no, or done something logical.

Instead, he whistled at his horse to move, leading the two of them away from the others.