The black swan (39 page)

Then he was springing from the bed, pulling her toward him, forcing her to move to his rhythm. His mouth crushed against hers, hard and demanding. Melody laughed, deep and throaty, girlishly giggling at having a man take command of her. "Not yet, Cap'n. Not quite yet. Ah ain't ready yet."

He pulled her to the bed, caressing her, his hands, moving over her lush body, his lips and tongue touching her and titillating her until she cried out for him. "Now, Cap'n. Now!"

Chapter Seven

When Adam awakened the next morning, Melody was gone. All that was left to give evidence that the strange girl had been there at all was the blue cockade hat she had placed on the post of the bed. Slowly the memories of Melody's indefatigable body washed away, and he began to think of other things. He sat on the edge of the bed in numbed silence, to give the moment the respectful awe it deserved. It had happened. The secession of the South had begun.

The rest of the week Adam spent talking to every planter he knew, reaffirming their shipping contracts and gleaning whatever other information he could regarding the intentions of the other states either to follow South Carolina's lead or to remain in the Union.

He sought out Melody only once, just before he was due to leave Charleston. As he walked into her shop, she looked

up, saw him, and smiled broadly. With a wave of her well-manicured hand she turned her customer over to her shopgirl and led Adam to a small refined sitting room at the rear. She refused his invitation to dinner that evening in his hotel.

As sure of her charms as ever, she walked around the room as she talked, giving him full view of herself. "Ah cain't afford to come with you, Cap'n."

He laughed. "From what I've been told, it is I who am likely not to be able to afford your company." He took her hand, drawing her onto his lap.

"What you cain't afford is money. What Ah cain't afford is bein' spoiled by you." Her hands were busy as she talked, moving across the broad muscles of his chest. Then her hand slipped inside the soft material of his shirt front, her fingers twining in the hair of his chest and belly as her searching fingers moved downward. "Mebbe jes' once more," she murmured, leaning back and allowing him to carry her to the sofa.

It was a memory-filled farewell Adam bid to Charleston when the Ullah came into port. He returned to Wilmington on January 9, 1861, the day Mississippi seceded, Florida and Alabama followed suit. Then all eyes turned to Georgia: Her central location made her a vital link between the Atlantic Seaboard states and those of the Gulf. Of all the Southern states, Georgia possessed the greatest industrial strength, desperately needed for the economic and military well-being of a Southern nation.

Garrett, sharing news over cigars and whiskey with Adam, sighed heavily. "The whole bloody conflict may still be avoided, Adam, if Georgia refuses to secede."

"And if South Carolina, Florida, and Alabama refuse to reenter the Union, they'd bear the brunt of any reprisal alone," Adam retorted.

"What reprisal? Put yourself in Lincoln's place. Would you not be more than happy to see the Union intact once again?"

"What, then, about the questions of slavery and states' rights?"

Garrett shrugged unhappily. "Another postponement. Perhaps another compromise. Perhaps the Crittenden Compromise could be made into something, given the chance. My God, Adam, anything is better than secession!"

"I don't know what's good and what's better. On the one

hand, we are destroying the Union of a nation bom of a dedication to freedom. How can this be good? And yet, so long as that Union exists, the North will judge us morally and dictate to us legislatively. That cannot be better."

"That is why time is so valuable," Garrett said tensely. "If we regain our objectivity, surely Congress will recognize the desperation of our situation. We must pray that the people of Georgia listen to men like Alexander Stephens who speak for unity."

But there were other voices in Georgia. Senator Robert Toombs said, "Throw the bloody spear into the den of incendiaries!" Then, "Make another war of independence. Fight its battles over again; reconquer liberty and independence." TTiese voices the people followed.

Governor Joseph Brown ordered Fort Pulaski on the Savannah to be occupied on January 3, 1861. By January 19 the Georgia State Convention had voted 208-89 in favor of secession. Georgia left the Union. Governor Brown secured the surrender of the Federal arsenal at Augusta on the twenty-fourth.

A chain reaction began. By the first of February, Louisiana and Texas had seceded. Three days later representatives from all seceded states except Texas met at Montgomery, Alabama, to form a provisional government for the Confederate States of America. In the eyes of the secessionists a new nation had been bom.

With the news of the appointment of Jefferson Davis and Alexander Stephens as President and Vice-President, Garrett stood in the entry of Zoe's house looking dumbfounded. To Zbe's eyes Garrett had seemed to age hourly since word of secession reached them two months before.

"Adam is in the study, Garrett," she said, then indicated the door as he gave no sign of having heard her.

Adam looked up from his ledger. He immediately rose, coming over to the older man. "Sit down, Garrett, I'll get you a drink."

Garrett fumbled his way to a chair. Adam, making him a stiff whiskey and soda, was seriously worried. His friend's face was pale and strained. He had seen men look so just before they collapsed. He handed him the glass, making sure Garrett had ahold of it. "Drink this, sir."

Garrett drank slowly. "I'm all right, Adam, as all right as a man can be amid so much wrong." He stared at the

wall and sipped his whiskey. At last his eyes rested on Adam's face. "What will you do now?"

"I don't know. We'll keep the Ullah running, but I don't know where that leaves us with Mr. Courtland. I doubt he's going to want much to do with a Southern vessel."

"I'd hardly given Rod's position in this a thought. His desire to free the blacks most likely will override his repugnancy to Southern trade."

"Perhaps, but I'd like to be prepared to buy him out should he decide to make things difficult for us."

"You don't like Rod?" Garrett suddenly realized the latent hostility in Adam's voice.

Adam shook his head, smiling. "I like him immensely. He's a fine man, and I admire him. I'm merely beginning to realize how much of a Southerner I am. This hatred of the damned avaricious Yankees is contagious. I find myself envious of the damned fools who parade in full dress uniform. I'm tempted to join the glorious fight for liberty and right!"

In spite of his talk, Adam did nothing. He and Ben and Beau tried to keep the Ullah to a regular schedule. The number of runaways Tom held for them in the Green Swamp declined, mostly due to the zealous activities of vigilante groups and patrollers.

Daily some new step toward war was taken until all eyes focused on Fort Sumter. To the North it was a symbol of the Union. To the South, Sumter was on their soil, a fort manned by soldiers of a foreign nation.

On April 11 General Pierre G. T. de Beauregard, commander of the Southern troops and a man with an eye to the way his name would look in future history books, demanded surrender. At 3:30 a.m. on April 12, Beauregard sent a message to Major Robert Anderson, commander of Union forces in Fort Sumter. He would fire on the fort in one hour if it was not surrendered.

A Confederate howitzer fired on the fort at 4:30 a.m., beginning a thirty-three-hour bombardment. Major Anderson lowered the American flag on April 14, 1861.

On April 15, Lincoln called for seventy-five thousand militia to be drawn voluntarily from loyal states. North Carolina seceded rather than fight against her sister Southern states. On the seventeenth President Davis issued letters of marque authorizing privateers to plunder under the

guardianship of the Confederacy. It was a remarkably bold move, for the United States was involved in international talks to outlaw the use of privateering on the high seas.

Lincoln's response was no less bold or- remarkable. On April 19 he issued a blockade of all Southern ports. Not only would that create the largest blockade ever attempted, over three thousand miles of coast, but it meant Lincoln was violating international law by preventing international trade in ports of his own nation. Since Lincoln did not have a navy anywhere near capable df blockading the territory, his blockade existed more on paper than on ocean waters. Ships continued to go in and out of Southern ports in these early days, somewhat chary, but mostly derisive of the pompous little navy that sought to guard so immense a coast. - With the blockade, however, Adam gained a special worry. The security of the Ullah became precarious. She was liable to capture by the North and confiscation by the South. Since President Davis had been issuing letters of marque for privateers, Adam had twice been encouraged by prominent planters to register his ship as a privateer. Each time he had evaded their questions. He did not want to spend his days seeking and capturing Northern ships for booty and bounty.

But there was no place for a neutral in the South. The pressure grew. He would have to come to a decision soon, or no planter would ship cotton or any other cargo on the Ullah. Their business was for the loyal. Adam had to start showing his colors prominently.

He called a meeting of the interested parties in the Ullah. Ben, Beau, Adam, Tom, and Garrett met in Garrett's parlor. "Ben and I have discussed our situation, Garrett. It seems our best move is to keep the Ullah running. There is pressure to register her as a privateer, but I hope that will die down. I think it is just another manifestation of war fever. Waiting seems worth the gamble."

Ben added enthusiastically, "One thing is certain: the South is dependent on the North and Europe for manufactured goods, and Europe needs our cotton.- Why, we could make a bloody fortune if the war lasts long enough for England to use up her warehouse of stored cotton."

"More likely y'all land us in some pesky jail," Beau grumbled.

Adam's attention focused on Garrett. "The one question

we have is where does Rod Courtland fit into our scheme. I still cannot feel comfortable about him. The South is determined to win its independence; in that respect we're at war with a foreign nation. Mr. Courtland has an excellent business mind, but he's definitely a patriot—a Union patriot. Now he has a quarter interest in the UUah."

Garrett glanced at Tom. "What do you think, Tom?'*

Tom slumped down in his chair, vaguely uncomfortable in the confines of a proper house; he had grown accustomed to his rough life in the swamp. "Courtland knew conflict was comin'. He's gotten what he wanted from the Ullah's trade. I don't think he's goin' to start squawkin' now."

Garrett agreed. Ben stood up immediately, unable to keep still. "We had another thought," he began, then turned to Adam. "You tell them about it. It's really your idea. You deserve the credit. Or the blame."

Tom laughed. "Here it comes, Garrett. Hold fast to your pocketbook."

Adam laughed with Tom. "It would be only a temporary cost if I'm right."

"What'd I tell you, Garrett. It's gonna cost us. Do I know these boys or don't I?"

"Lincoln can foul normal shipping with this blockade of his, but if there were ships specially designed to outrun his cruisers and slip into river channels, the blockade would pose no threat. The longer the war lasts and the longer the blockade exists, the greater the market will be both for manufactured goods in the South and raw materials in Britain and France. There is already talk that shallow draft steamers are being built for the purpose in Liverpool and Glasgow. They sail under British registry and use Bermuda or Nassau as home port. We've got three captains and a golden opportunity. If we can finance three fast ships, we can aid the Southern cause, continue the slave hauling, and make our fortunes."

"Three," Garrett repeated. "Then this is not a new idea, Adam."

"Beau and I figure we can manage a quarter interest in one ship," Ben said earnestly.

"Among the five of us, we can raise nearly enough for two ships if we all stretch to the limit," Adam said. "Now, what about Courtland, Garrett . , . Tom? If he were Southern, I wouldn't hesitate."

Tom scratched his head. "You say we can swing one of those special-built steamers on our own? Doesn't seem to me it'd take much time to raise money for the second, seein' as how you claim we're all gonna make a fast fortune. What do you need the third ship for anyway? You've got the Ullah."

"We were hoping to keep the Ullah out of any blockade running, Tom. She's a good ship, but her best speed is just over thirteen knots. Mr. Lincoln's a determined man. He's rigging everything from whalers to river steamers to man that blockade. He's also building new ships—fast ones. I don't want the Ullah to become a prize of war.** Adam paced back and forth.

"You don't want to use her at all?" Tom asked,

"I don't want to lose that ship, Tom. Ben and I agree that for now she can safely make the New Orleans-Nassau run. But the new ships are being rigged for sail and steam. We'll be able to make sixteen knots or better with a favorable wind. There won't be much the Union can float that could outrun us in one of them."

"Then, it would seem that your solution is to deal directly with Rod, Adam," Garrett said. "I suggest you stop in New York, talk to Rod, then proceed to England. You will be ordering at least one ship, and with a little luck you'll be able to place the full order for three."

Adam had visited Rod Courtland's fashionable brown-stone house before, but he was no less impressed by the extravagant bachelor quarters this time than he had been previously. He liked Rod Courtland, though he found him a strangely aloof man who defied understanding.

Rod stood slightly over six feet, an inch or two shorter than Adam. His hair was iron gray, stark in contrast to his deeply tanned face. He had the most vivid blue eyes Adam had ever seen. But for all his charm, good looks, and business acumen, Rod Courtland remained a stranger to most people. By his choice, he seemed to attract acquaintances rather than friends. And he was unmarried. In itself that was not remarkable, but from previous visits, Adam knew the man's appetites. Rod liked and was liked by all manner of women, but he remained the charmed admirer or the occasional lover. "Each man is permitted one serious error in love, then he is expected to become