A Promise for Tomorrow (52 page)
“Of course,” Lucy replied, her eyes still glinting tears. “If it means moving toward the release of those people, I will happily do whatever I can.”
“I have another request to ask of you, as well, Lucy.”
“What is it?”
Margaret glanced to Virginia and then back to her daughter-in-law. “No matter what happens, whether Joseph and I remain here or go abroad, whether the slaves are freed or kept on, I would ask that you allow Virginia and her children to make their home here for as long as they desire.”
“I would never consider it any other way,” Lucy assured Margaret, then turned to Virginia. “I mean that most sincerely. I know life has not treated you well, but I would not see you sent from your home, and neither would York. He’s already told me as much.”
Virginia’s expression reflected obvious gratitude. “I don’t know what to say.” She bowed her head and looked at the teacup in her hand. “I don’t deserve such goodness.”
“You deserve much better than you’ve had,” Margaret countered. “We have all sinned and fallen short of God’s glory. Not one of us here hasn’t been guilty of one thing or another, but no one deserves to live in fear for his or her very life.”
Carolina took this all in, watching her family with great love and admiration. She wanted to break through her reserve with Virginia and extend some sort of symbolic gesture that might prove once and for all that the past was forgiven.
“I once told you that you were welcome to come to Baltimore,” Carolina said, turning to her sister. “That offer still holds.”
“I think in the future I would prefer to live somewhere other than Oakbridge,” Virginia said, surprising them all. “Baltimore is so big, and, well, I’m not certain that I would be comfortable there. But perhaps some town not so very far away where I can raise my children in peace.”
“Do you mean to divorce your husband?” Carolina questioned before thinking.
“I doubt that would be possible,” Margaret said, eyeing Virginia seriously. “Unless Hampton agreed with such a move.”
“He never would. I don’t know what the future holds,” Virginia answered honestly, “but I know I’m tired of being afraid. And I’m tired of letting my children slip away from me.”
“Then stay here with us,” Lucy said softly. “Stay here and be safe. York won’t allow Hampton to hurt you anymore. He won’t be away as much as Father Adams had to be, and thus he will be able to keep Hampton in line.”
“Joseph longed only to do the decent thing,” Margaret replied. “He has a good heart. His way has always been to recognize a problem and then hope and pray that it will resolve itself. Just like this issue of slavery. He’d much rather it take care of itself than force him to choose sides.”
“There isn’t a one of us who can’t understand that sentiment,” Carolina interjected. “I weary of these issues. Let us be speaking on matters less depressing. I for one have had enough.”
Margaret chuckled. “Spoken like a true Adams woman. You may carry different surnames, my daughters, but you are Adams women. You, too, Lucy. You now bear the name and you have shared the family ways for many years. It’s in your blood and it will forever shape your life. Come, the day is beautiful. Let’s plan a picnic or some outdoor activity that will add a bit of merriment to our lives.”
Lucy and Margaret immediately linked arms and headed to the door. Margaret laughed at the fullness of her skirt. “With these new undergarments, I believe we shall find it difficult to walk arm in arm.”
“Surely it’s only the latest fashion. Next year will see us wearing something different,” Lucy declared.
“I fear it may take longer than that,” Margaret said as they disappeared through the door. “I heard it said . . .”
As their words faded, Carolina looked to Virginia. “Shall we join them?”
“I suppose so,” Virginia replied, getting to her feet.
“Before we do,” Carolina said, reaching out to halt her sister, “I want you to know that I was serious about offering you and the children a home. Divorce may not be possible, but no one would deny you a roof over your head should Hampton desert you and the children.”
“Thank you.” Virginia murmured the words and looked in the direction of the far wall.
“I would happily purchase a place, even in Greigsville. Or perhaps even give you our home if James finds that we must move yet again. I just don’t want you to live without hope. As Mother said, we are Adams women, and God made us strong. We need to help one another, and while you and I have never been close, it is my desire that we somehow find a comfortable place with each other for the future.”
Virginia turned. “I desire that, too. Perhaps more than you will ever know.”
Carolina smiled. “Then we have already started our journey.” She reached out to link her arm through Virginia’s. “To the future,” she added, as though proposing a toast.
“Yes,” Virginia half said, half sighed. “To the future.”
When the time came for James to make a brief trip to Baltimore on business, Carolina accompanied him to the B&O station in Washington. Newly constructed, and still not completely finished, the station was now located at New Jersey Avenue and C Street. Carolina liked the brownstone and stucco building with its Italianate style. A seventy-foot clock tower stood in ample view of the Capitol, and inside gas-lighting and rich wood paneling completed the depot in grand style. Plush cushioned seats and comfortable armchairs were promised as finishing touches, and Carolina thought it all very grand and lovely. Who wouldn’t want to find themselves awaiting a locomotive in such a beautiful setting?
“I shall miss you,” Caroline said, her voice full of emotion. She had promised herself she wouldn’t cry when James left, but the ordeal of the days now spent at Oakbridge were nearly more than she could bear. “Everyone is so tense and unhappy at Oakbridge. Poor Lucy seems on the verge of tears nearly every minute of the day, and while Father is doing better, he’s still so weak.”
“I know,” James told her and patted the gloved hand that held him so tight. “But all will soon be set to right. You’ll see. York is a fine man, and he will see the sense in adhering to his father’s council.”
“Then it will be the first time,” Carolina said lightly. “York is headstrong.”
“I can’t imagine that trait in
your
family,” James countered with a grin.
“Oh, go on and tease. Mark my words, however, this issue is far from settled. York seems to have some definite goals in mind for the future of Oakbridge.”
James glanced around at the growing number of people, and Carolina did the same. It seemed James would have a full load of companions to accompany him to Baltimore.
“Come along,” James said, suddenly maneuvering them through the crowd. He pulled Carolina along with him until they were well beyond the gathering travelers and nearer to the iron-roofed train shed behind the depot. Stopping here, James pulled Carolina into his arms and kissed her passionately.
Surprised by this display, but pleasantly so, Carolina wrapped her arms around her husband’s neck and melted in a most unladylike fashion against him. She knew her mother would have once frowned on such public behavior, but given her change of attitude, Margaret Adams would now not only understand but completely approve of Carolina’s actions.
“You make it hard to say good-bye, even for a short time,” James whispered against her ear.
“I didn’t start this,” Carolina replied, barely able to contain a girlish giggle as her husband started to pull away. She held him fast and added, “But if you hadn’t, I surely would have.” This time she initiated the kiss.
The blast of the train whistle startled them both and caused them to jump as though they were naughty children caught in the act of some mischief. They laughed heartily at the expressions on each other’s faces.
“Here we are at a respectable age in life, stealing kisses like youthful sweethearts,” James chided mockingly.
“I feel like a youthful sweetheart,” Carolina said, linking her arm with his. “I’ve very much enjoyed our time alone and I’ve determined that as much as I love our children, we should definitely have more moments to ourselves.”
“Why, Mrs. Baldwin, are you proposing we slip away from our family on a regular basis?”
Carolina grinned. “Yes, I am. And I further suggest that it be to some far-removed location where we have neither kith nor kin.”
James pulled her close and whispered in her ear, “I’ve always appreciated the way your mind works, Mrs. Baldwin.”
“I had a good teacher, Mr. Baldwin. A handsome, studious man who taught me to expand my thinking and stretch my imagination.” She glanced up at him, giving him what she knew to be her most inviting expression.
“Hmm,” he sighed against her ear, “I should like to further explore that imagination. Perhaps I shall shorten my stay in Baltimore.”
“I wouldn’t argue with that.”
They made their way back to the depot platform just as the final boarding whistle was sounded. James kissed her hand lightly in appropriate fashion, then threw her a roguish look that caused Carolina’s face to flush. Glancing quickly around to see if anyone else had noticed her husband’s wanton behavior, Carolina was rewarded with James’ hearty laughter.
“See you soon, my love,” he told her and then was gone.
Carolina waited and watched, mindless of the soot now collecting on her peach-colored walking-out suit. She already missed him, and yet the train hadn’t even pulled out from the station. A part of her longed to motion the conductor to help her board—to just forget her family at Oakbridge and let them resolve their conflicts on their own. Her father would surely understand, as would her mother. Yet Carolina couldn’t just leave them without a word.
The steam whistle blasted long and mournfully, but even so, Carolina thrilled to the sound. She loved the railroad. Loved the sights and sounds and smells of everything to do with the massive iron beasts and their ribbons of iron and steel.
She waited until the lumbering locomotive had disappeared from sight before returning to her hired hack. The driver assisted her into the carriage, then asked her for her desired destination.
“Just take me around the city for a time,” she told him.
He seemed to sense her mood and nodded. The open carriage was exactly what she needed to promote her reflective feelings. They pulled away from the station, and Carolina found herself eager to memorize every sight they passed in this constantly changing city. The Capitol stood in its gleaming white radiance, an ever-present reminder of this city’s prominent purpose. Stretching out in front of this symbolic building, in angles between Pennsylvania and Maryland Avenues, was the parklike area known as the Mall, where an impressive structure of a monument was being built to honor General George Washington. It was to be a white marble obelisk, which would rise hundreds of feet to tower over the city as a watchful sentinel, though now it was little more than a white stony stump barely one hundred feet high.
The driver picked up the pace as they joined in with numerous other carriages and made their way down Pennsylvania Avenue. Passing the presidential home, Carolina’s mind wandered back to the days of Andrew Jackson. The wiry old man had treated her with great affection, even continuing their friendship after his departure from Washington and public life. He was dead now, having succumbed to his old age and a broken heart some seven years earlier. In one of his final missives to Carolina, he had mentioned that he had many accomplishments to be proud of but added wryly that he had two regrets: “I was unable to shoot Henry Clay or to hang John C. Calhoun.”
Even now it made her smile to recall the battles he had fought in his younger days with both of these men. Politics could ruin the best of friends and incite the worst of enemies. Had she not seen this herself? Yet this city that she held in great affection was the very birthplace of such affairs.
She sighed, wishing fervently that the old president might have joined her on this excursion around the city. She thought of the letter, still preserved with her other Jackson correspondences, that told of her friend’s passing. His final words still warmed her and left her with the satisfaction that he had made his peace with God.
“Do not cry. Be good children, and we shall all meet in heaven.”
Tears came to her eyes, but they weren’t tears of sorrow. No, Carolina felt joyous in the memory, for one day she would see her good friend again. They would meet in heaven, and knowing Andrew Jackson, he would already have God’s ear regarding the affairs of that wicked little city called Washington.
“Take me to the Potomac and Great Falls Railroad stop,” she instructed the driver.
“Yes, ma’am,” he said with a nod, then applied the whip to the back of the horse.
Carolina eased back against the leather upholstery and closed her eyes to the sights and sounds of the city. She had taken in enough, and now her thoughts were better put to use on her family and the few remaining days she had with them.
She thought of her wounded father and of his desire to leave the responsibilities of plantation life behind. “The wanderlust,” she whispered in a barely audible tone and smiled. More than anything in this world, Carolina wanted to see his dreams of travel come true. She wanted to see her father and mother happily together, with their greatest concerns and responsibilities centering around each other.
Whatever it takes, Lord
, she prayed silently,
please show my father the
way. Show him how to properly discharge his duties so that he might enjoy his
remaining days with my mother. They’ve known such heartache and misery,
but they’ve also had happiness and love. I only ask that you would deal with
them according to your merciful love. Give them the desires of their hearts,
even as you have given me mine
.
In that moment, Carolina had never known such peace. She truly was happy. She could see the future laid out before her. Her husband held her in highest regard and loved her enough to make her a part of his masculine world. Her children, although growing up much too quickly, were healthy, happy, and well adjusted to life. They knew the goodness of God and held a healthy respect and honor toward Him, as well. All that money could not buy, all that force and greed could not command, Carolina possessed because of the goodness of God.