1824: The Arkansas War

CHAPTER 43

By the time Sheff got into his uniform, Mrs. Johnson helping him with the coatee, and made it out into the boardinghouse's salon, he discovered that the whole room had been rearranged. Lyle Wiedeman had an easel set up to one side, with a large blank canvas, and paints of various kind on a small table next to it. The divan that normally occupied pride of place in the room had been moved against one of the walls. The boardinghouse's owner, Susan Wilson, was perched on its edge watching the activities, with her grandchildren-all six of them-filling the rest of the divan.

Fortunately, it was one of the crudely made but sturdy pieces of furniture produced by the McParland Furniture Company in Fort of 98. The young children were rambunctious, climbing all over the thing, and Mrs. Wilson was not being her usual stern taskmistress self. The widow's dark eyes were bright with interest at the unusual goings-on in the rest of the room. Clearly enough, she was giving only a small part of her mind to the matter of the youngsters.

Sheff thought that might get sticky before too long. Literally sticky, what with all the paint bottles on Wiedeman's little table-which was not sturdily built at all. He hoped that nothing disastrous would happen before the children's two mothers and their uncle got back from work.

That would be a while yet, though. Susan Wilson's daughters worked for one of the larger of New Antrim's garment manufacturers, which, like all such, had long hours. The uncle, a partly disabled veteran since Second Arkansas Post, enjoyed one of the secured jobs set aside for such by the army's commissariat. His hours of work were not particularly long, but he was sure to dawdle after work in one of the military saloons before finally wending his way home.

The husband of the younger of the Wilson daughters wouldn't be returning for two weeks at the earliest, since his unit was on patrol somewhere in the Ouachitas. The husband of the older daughter would never be returning at all. He'd died at Second Arkansas in the fighting at the wall, not more than fifty feet from the spot where Sheff had been struck down.

But Sheff didn't give the matter of the children much of his mind, either. First, because he was too fascinated and puzzled by everything else. And second, because Imogene was in the room and wearing a fancy dress he'd never seen on her before. It looked brand-new and store-bought.

She was grinning at him and seemed to be on the verge of jumping up and down with excitement like a girl half her age. Sheff wouldn't have thought much of it a year ago, when he'd first met her. She'd seemed so young, then, that the difference between a twelve-year-old and a six-year-old would have been minor.

But he couldn't help notice it today. It was odd, really, the way the girl seemed to age, since he'd been moved into the room upstairs and got to see her all the time. As if she were a month older for every day that passed. Sheff would swear that was true, except he was pretty sure it was just his mind playing tricks on him.

He'd asked Cal about it, just the week before.

"You wish!" had been the unkind response.

Mrs. Johnson clapped her hands. "All right, everyone take their positions! Mr. Wiedeman's time is valuable, and we can't waste any of it."

She pointed imperiously to one of the three chairs lined up in a row. "Captain Parker, you take the seat on the left."

No sooner had he done so than Mrs. Johnson took the seat next to him, in the middle. The other seemed destined to remain vacant.

"Mama!" Adaline exclaimed. "Cal's not here yet!"

For the first time, Sheff noticed the twin. It might be better to say that her presence registered on him. He realized now that she'd been in the room all along, wearing a dress very similar to her sister's except in small details of color and trim. But, as often happened when Imogene was there also, he simply hadn't paid any attention to her.

And there was another oddity. Sheff kept hearing people comment on the identical appearance of the two girls, leaving aside whatever clothing they might have on. Sheff would have thought they were insane, except he had a vague recollection of having once thought the same thing himself.

That was hard to imagine now. He could tell them apart instantly at any distance, rain or shine. He'd never had to test the matter, but he was just as sure he could tell them apart in pitch darkness, just from the sound of their voices. For that matter, just from listening to them breathe.

But he forced that last thought aside. Best not to dwell on the thought of listening to Imogene breathe, in the here and now. He had time to do that-and did, and would-every night that passed. In a bed covered by a blanket, where he didn't have to worry about the possible indelicacy posed by the tight-fitting trousers of his dress uniform.

"Hush, Adaline!" her mother scolded. "Lieutenant McParland will be along soon enough. Something must have detained him. In the meantime, we can get started. Mr. Wiedeman tells me he'll be concentrating on one part of the portrait at a time. So he can start with Sheff and Imogene. Be still, I say!"

Imogene came to stand behind him, and just to one side. A moment later, he felt her hand coming to rest on his shoulder.

He stiffened slightly, casting a nervous glance at Mrs. Johnson. He'd been careful-very, very careful-not to engage in any sort of physical contact with Imogene. That would get him pitched out of the house in an instant, he was quite sure. And as much as he sometimes found the temptation difficult to resist, he managed. Whatever else he was, Sheffield Parker was patient and methodical. If it took him longer to get somewhere than it might take someone else, he'd get there all the more surely.

But, to his relief-and surprise-he saw that Mrs. Johnson was simply giving the hand on his shoulder a calm assessment.

"Not so close to the neck, Imogene. And keep your fingers still."

That was it. Sheff had to tighten his jaw to keep it from dropping altogether.

"Begin when you're ready, Mr. Wiedeman. Susan, I would recommend that you not allow that rascal to stand on the arm of the divan."

"Oh!" Mrs. Wilson tore her eyes away from the tableau in the center of the room. "Andrew, you sit down! Right now, or I'll smack you!"

"Everybody please be still," Wiedeman commanded.

"Where's Cal?" Adaline wailed.

Some part of Callender McParland felt like wailing, himself. The mission that the Laird had recruited him for as he'd been on his way to the boardinghouse-"recruited" as in "press-gang"-was now successfully completed.

They'd found Sam Houston, missing since the night before. He was sprawled on a pew in the city's big Catholic church, just underneath the wall where the new painted carving of his wife was suspended.

Drunk as a skunk, as the saying went-except no skunk who ever lived would get this drunk. He was almost comatose.

The Laird took a deep breath. "What I figured," Cal heard him mutter.

Standing next to Driscol, Charles Ball shook his head. "Like old times, isn't it? Tarnation, he hasn't had hardly a drop of whiskey in:how many months has it been, Patrick?"

"Twelve," he replied stonily. "Exactly. God damn me for a fool, I plain forgot. His wife was murdered a year ago yesterday."

On the Laird's other side, Charles Crowell sighed. "Oh, Lord. I forgot, too."

He heaved his massive shoulders and moved toward Houston. "Old times, Charles, as you say. I carried him before; I'll do it again."

"Wait," said Driscol, putting a hand on the huge banker's arm. His eyes were on the carving.

"For what?" asked Ball.

The Laird didn't answer for a moment. Then he shook his head.

"No. The boy will have to deal with this soon enough. Not often, I'm hoping. Sam made it through a widowing, and moving his son to a new home, and fought and won a battle. But it'll happen again. You know it and I know it. So go to the Wolfe Tone and bring little Andy here. It's the best place to begin."

Ball nodded. Crowell hesitated. "Are you sure-"

"No, he's right," said Ball. "You stay here with Patrick and watch over him. I'll get the boy."

"Tiana'll have your hide, Patrick, when she finds out," said Crowell.

"No, she won't. She'll not say a word. Times like this, she's pure Cherokee."

Driscol turned to Callender. "Thank you for your assistance, Lieutenant McParland, but it won't be needed any longer. My apologies for detaining you."

Cal left with Ball. At a dignified enough pace, until they got out of the church and went their separate ways. Then he starting walking as fast as he could.

Adaline would have his hide, for sure. And the worst of it was, he still couldn't figure out exactly how he'd found himself in this fix. As close friends as they'd become, he understood what drove Sheff to his fixation on Imogene. But what was his excuse?

The girl was only thirteen! Cal wasn't any sort of Puritan, sure, but some things a man just didn't contemplate. And he wasn't looking for a wife of any age. Not yet, anyway. Most men didn't get married until they were ten years older than he was. He'd figured to do the same.

He still hadn't come to any conclusions by the time he reached the boardinghouse. Except the dim, growing, horrible sense that things just happened because they did. Whether a man planned them or not, or wanted them or not, they just went right ahead and happened all on their own.

Then he was ushered into the salon by Mrs. Wilson, and Adaline squealed the moment he came in, and the next thing he knew she'd raced over and was hugging him and-sure enough-her mother was fit to be tied.

" Adaline! You come back here right this instant! And stop behaving disgracefully!"

After about three seconds, Adaline obeyed. Cal was pretty sure that had been the most thrilling three seconds of his life.

The dragon's glare now got leveled on him. Tarnation, he hadn't done anything!

"Lieutenant McParland."

But he'd look on the bright side. Might as well, since it was obvious the world would toss him however it would.

"How nice of you to come."

An ice cream parlor had finally opened for business in New Antrim. Wildly popular, of course, with Cal as much as anyone. Whenever it was open, the line went around the block. But it wasn't open very often, because ice was so hard to come by.

"Sit. Here. Please."

Not any longer. Just bottle that voice.

When Adaline put her hand on his shoulder, he liked to fly out of the chair. But, to his astonishment, the dragon didn't say a word.

Of course, if you could bottle the look in its eyes, you could probably freeze the whole chiefdom of Arkansas. And whenever Adaline so much as twitched a finger, the monster's hiss was enough to freeze your blood.

Still. It was an awfully thrilling two hours, with that hand there the whole time. By the end of it, Cal was halfway reconciled to the inescapable chaos of existence.

"Mrs. Johnson," said Sheff, sounding a bit timid.

"Yes, Captain Parker?"

"Ah:If I might ask, what's the-I mean. What are we doing here?"

She bestowed on him a look that was a lot warmer than anything she'd given Cal in at least two months. Just another example of life's essential unfairness.

"Oh, that's simple. I told my husband I'd have a portrait of us made up. Since it may be quite a while before we see him again. Mr. Wiedeman assures me he can have it shipped safely to Kentucky."

"Oh, certainly," said the artist. "Might be a problem a few months from now, of course."

Cal almost choked. He leaned over a bit to get a good look at Sheff.

Sure enough. Amazing that a face that black could manage to look that purple at the same time.

"Ah:am I going to be in the portrait?"

"What a ridiculous question. Of course you are, Captain Parker. Why else would you be sitting here?"

"But:ah:"

" Imogene! I told you! Not so close to the neck! For that matter, the session is over. Remove the hand, please. At once."

All the ice cream you'd need for everyone in New Antrim, dawn to dusk.

"Is Daddy all right? He looks real sick."

Driscol shifted the boy a bit farther into his lap. "He's fine, Andy. A little sick, yes. But he'll be fine by tomorrow. It might happen again, mind. You needn't worry about it though, lad, because we'll take care of it. Your father has many friends."

The boy looked up at him uncertainly. Then, just as uncertainly, swiveled his head to look up at the carving.

"That's Mommy, isn't it?"

"Yes, it is."

There was silence for a time as the boy settled his head on Driscol's shoulder and stared up at the carving. Houston's gentle snores were the only sound in the church.

Antoinette really had done a splendid job. It was Maria Hester, almost to the flesh.

"Will she go away again?"

"No, lad. She will not." All the weight of the Ozarks and the Ouachitas was in that voice. Ireland, too, and the mountains of Spain.

"Not today. Not tomorrow. Not ever."