The Price of Love

Chapter 28

Alex's PoV

Despite his words, I'm worried that he won't come back. But he said he will, and he says he loves me, he's bound to be back. Right? Of course he will. I think, sipping my coffee. Ahh, coffee. But yes, of course he'll be back. I walk over to the window and watch him walk away. Damnit Hamilton, you're too nice for your own good. It's going to get you hurt. Watch him not come back. I think bitterly. I drain the rest of my coffee and put the cup in the sink. I tuck a strand of hair behind my ear and stare out the window until John disappears into the crowd. I sigh and turn away. Okay, time to go get briefed then drink another cup of coffee. Then maybe another one. Then start planning. I walk into Dad's war room. Like I thought, he's waiting in there. And God, he looks awful. He has large purple bags under his eyes, not unlike the ones I constantly sport, he looks a bit thinner, and he looks like he's beginning to get sick. "Brief me, then go and sleep." I order.

"Alex-" He starts, a hint of warning in his voice. But I cut him off anyway.

"Dad. You need it." I say sternly. "You don't need to worry about me, you need to worry about you. You're not as used to running the war anymore, and that's fine, but now that I'm back, you need to brief me and go the hell to sleep."

"I'm not going to rogue with you. It's not worth it." He mutters under his breath. "We've only had a few battles here and there." He points to places marked with a red cross on the map. "They seemed to need time to recover after you took back Albany." I nod. Just like I thought.

"Have we lost anything?" He shakes his head.

"No, we've held onto everything we have, but we haven't taken anything either." He replies. "And we've sustained no heavy losses either. Everyone who's died has been returned to their family." He adds.

"Good. If that's all, you can go to your room and fucking sleep." I order. "And If I have to tie you to your bed to make you sleep, I will." He laughs.

"Looks like the roles have been reversed." I smile too. He ruffles my hair and walks out.

"Hey Dad?" I ask. He turns around. "How did you know about me and John?"

"I picked up on a few little things." He answers. "But you're both doing a good job of acting normal, don't worry. It's not that obvious. I'd just caution you to be more careful around men who've been fighting for longer. We tend to pick up on tiny details." He walks down the hallway, leaving me to my thoughts. I go back to the kitchen to get another cup of coffee. I chug it and then walk outside. If I'm honest with myself, I have absolutely no idea what to do. I don't know where I should be, what I should do. I could just walk around or something, boost morale some more. I think. Check damage again. Sounds good. I walk down the street, letting my mind wander as I keep an eye out for any damage that needs to be repaired ASAP. Fortunately, there is none. That's one less thing to worry about. I pull my hair out of its ponytail as I walk and rake my fingers through it a few times. Then I put it back up in a low ponytail, letting a few strands fall free and frame my face. I walk around for the next few hours until around three, lost in my thoughts. And then, guess who I run into? Eliza Schuyler. Just my luck.

"Terribly sorry ma'am, that was my fault." I apologize, wondering why she's here.

"Prince Hamilton!" She gasps, curtsying. I mentally throw up at the title. It sounds wrong. 'General Hamilton', now that's a good sounding title. And it suits me better anyway.

"Please, Alex is fine." I say, masking my discomfort. "It's um, g-good to see you Miss Schuyler." She smiles brightly at me.

"I was so worried when we heard you went missing." She says. "I'm so glad that you're okay!" I stop myself from rolling my eyes. We've talked for a few hours and she's all over me. Leave me alone, I'm not interested. "Do you need someone to patch up your jacket?" She asks, eyeing the tears in it. "I'd be more than happy to."

"No, that's quite alright. I can find a tailor later to fix it, if I want it patched at all. I kinda like it the way it is." I muse, inspecting the slashes. "Maybe I'll just get some of the bigger ones fixed. I'll think about it later." I shake my head slightly and look back up at Eliza. "What brings you to Manhattan?"

"Y-, a-a change of scenery." She says, reddening slightly.

"Well, Manhattan's about as different as Albany as you can get." I say, ignoring her slip-up. "We're much poorer here, no?" I ask lightly. "But that's okay. Richer families moved to Albany, built those grand houses, and poorer families stayed here. But I love it here. It's nice and simple. Lord knows I could do with some simple in my life." I laugh. I catch a look of disbelief cross her face when I say that I love it here.

"It's certainly quaint." She says politely, delicately walking around a puddle that I walk right through.

"My dear, we're not 'quaint'. We're tough. Hardy. We don't take any shit. We're almost as tough as Brooklyn. That's saying' something, 'cause there isn't anyone as tough as Brooklyn. We have to be, we live in the center of the war. The further away from Manhattan you get, the softer it is. With Brooklyn as the exception. If we weren't in the middle of a war, I'd probably live in Brooklyn. They're my kind of people." I fall silent, thinking. "Are you here alone?" I ask after a few minutes of silence.

"No, two of my sisters are here with me." She answers. I nod, feinting interest. Why John? Why must she come bother me only when you're gone?

John's PoV

I get back home without a hitch. My dad doesn't say anything, and I soon figure out why. He's drunk. And when my dad's drunk, he always comes up with really stupid ideas. Like the one he just came up with. Host a ball, and invite Alex. So basically, I'm going to be dumped in a few days. I run into my room, hyperventilating. "John? John, what's wrong?" Maria asks, already in my room. I sit on my bed and hold my head in my hands.

"I-I'm go-going t-to lose h-him ag-again." I gasp.

"Take a deep breath. Calm down." She orders. "Tell me what happened." I mange to get my breathing under control in a few minutes.

"Dad's drunk. He-he said he's gonna host a ball and-and invite Alex and Washington. Alex, he, he hates us Maria. You should hear some of the things he's said about South Carolina." Tears well in my eyes. "He's going to find out who I am. And then he's going to dump me." I start crying. "I-I can't lose him again! Not-not s-so s-soon!" I bury my face in my hands. Maria wraps her arms around me but I shove her off. She could get in a lot of trouble if Dad came in, or one of the other serv- Slaves John. Grow the fuck up and acknowledge what they are already. Your slaves. I think sharply.

"It'll be okay John." She says, rubbing my back. "I might have only been around you two more a little while, but I can tell he loves you very much." I shake my head. No. I know him. He's going to hate me. I hear footsteps approaching quickly.

"John?" I haven't heard that voice in years. It can't be. Is it? No. I look up.

"F-Francis?"

Five chapters left. Just a heads up.

-Bottomless