The Heavens Shall Fall (30 page)

* * * *

Jonathan walked in the entrance to Gabriel’s headquarters at New Castle. He looked forward to a warm meal and a good night’s sleep. He had finished his inspection of the lower half. He would return to West Point in the morning and wait further instructions from Tallmadge.

H
e halted in the entrance of the hall. Words echoed around him, harsh and resounding.

“
But Lieutenant Colonel Witherspoon, he is a spy!”

Jonathan recognized the man
’s voice. Paulding. He eased into the doorway. He couldn’t believe his eyes. Before him, Paulding had hold of Major John Andre! Despite his manner of concealing his identity, Jonathan would have known him anywhere.

Andre wore a light blue cloak, high black military boots and round brimmed hat, but it was
what he wore underneath his cloak that held his eye. He was dressed in dark breeches and a white shirt.

“
Paulding,” Gabriel commanded. “I have the information before me. Mr. Anderson has a pass from General Arnold.”

“
I tell you, sir, he had the papers hidden in his boots.” Paulding pointed to papers on Gabriel’s desk. “He told us first he was a British officer. It was then we detained him as was proper and found the treasonous papers.”

Gabriel sat behind his desk. Distressed, he picked up the papers and read through them.

“It is a misunderstanding only, Lieutenant Colonel Witherspoon,” Andre said. “As you can see, I’m a simple businessman with transactions that need to be addressed in New York. I tried to explain it to the gentlemen.”

“
By the method of bribery!”

“
Calm yourself, Paulding,” Gabriel ordered. “The man has questioned your intentions. He claims you intended robbery.”

“
By God, Gabriel, listen to the man!”Jonathan marche
d
unceremoniously into the room. He gestured toward Andre. “You have before you a British officer, a one John Andre. I know him well. He is the one who held me in Charles Town. Adjutant-General Major John Andre!”

“
Come, Jonathan.” Gabriel shook his head. “I fear there is more here than meets the eye.”

“
And I fear there is no more than what it appears.” Jonathan stared intently at Major Andre, who did not shrink from his gaze.

Gabriel rose and leaned over for Jonathan
’s ears only. “Do you not believe that it could be a trick of sorts to discredit General Arnold? You know the damage that could be wielded against the general with these claims.”

“
Gabriel, are you mad?” Jonathan countered. “What elaborate ruse would send their head intelligence officer? I tell you, Gabriel, no one in their right mind could question his intentions.”

“
You have not seen—”

“
I do not need to see the papers to know, Gabriel.” Jonathan glanced back at Andre. “I know the man. Can you not comprehend that fact?”

“
Perhaps I do,” Gabriel shot back at him. “I see an opportunity for my former friend to disgrace me. Do you not think I do not know you well, Jonathan? How easily you seemingly forgave me for my betrayal of Hannah? That is not the man I know only too well. Are you now trying to shame me?”

“
Gabriel, listen to me well. I am not trying to trick you. Upon my honor!”

“
What honor? You ask me to commit the gravest of sins against the most highly honored general in the army! You ask me to trust you…or my commanding officer?”

Jonathan
pivoted around to grasp Gabriel by the collar. “Damme, Gabriel. I will tell you only once. I was sent here for only one purpose. This…this you have before you has been feared. It is why I’m here. Why…why do you think I have been inspecting the area? I am a physician!”

Gabriel pushed Jonathan back. His eyes flashed with his own anger.
“Touch me again and I will have you detained! Do not dare attempt to tell me what my responsibilities entail! I will do what is correct within military rank. If that is sending all of this to General Arnold, then that is what I will do!”

Jonathan regained his footing and tried to control
the rage that erupted in him. While Gabriel claimed he knew him, he knew Gabriel and realized he was about to make a fatal mistake.

“
Don’t, Gabriel. You are making a grievous error. Think. Don’t let him go.” Jonathan pointed to Andre. “You can’t. Send for Tallmadge. He will settle this. He knows—”

“
Tallmadge. He is the one who sent for you? Oh, Good Lord!”

Gabriel looked at Jonathan, then at Andre,
and then back at Jonathan. He gripped his head as if it pounded. He rubbed his forehead, sat down and wrote hastily. “Rosen! Here, send a note to Tallmadge and Arnold. I will let them both settle the issue.”

“
Pray listen to me,” Jonathan pleaded. “Wait for Tallmadge before sending Arnold—”

“
Shut up, Jonathan! Another word and you will be alongside your friend in detention.”

Jonathan
’s chest heaved. He could hardly breathe. At least…at least Andre was detained, but panic seized him. Arnold…Arnold….Gabriel had sent him warning his treason had been revealed. Gabriel, in his ignorance, was about to help the British win the war!

* * * *

“Mr. Anderson has only requested to be taken to West Point in the greatest haste to clear up the misunderstanding.”

Jonathan watched Tallmadge
digest the briefing conveyed by Gabriel, but it was hard to decipher what the man thought. Tallmadge paced the floor and looked back at Gabriel.

To be honest, relief flooded Jonathan on the sight of Tallmadge
as he entered headquarters. Tallmadge had responded to Jonathan’s first message. In so doing, he was en route when he intercepted the message of the supposed spy’s capture.

“
Tell me, Witherspoon…tell me.” Tallmadge swallowed hard, expressing his frustration. “Why did you not listen to Dr. Corbett? But even beyond Dr. Corbett’s words, could you not see this with your own eyes?”

On the defensive, Gabriel shook his head.
“I’m unsure of your meaning, sir. If I did not send the transgression to General Arnold, I would be insubordinate. I followed protocol.”

“
What of your duty? Common sense should dictate, Witherspoon. The man you hold…did you not notice the way he carries himself, his boots, his manner! Let me see him.”

A hush encompassed the room. Gabriel turned scarlet and uttered.
“I sent him on to West Point…under guard. Mr. Anderson wanted only to—”

“
You damn idiot!” Tallmadge cried. “Lieutenant Allen, take Dr. Corbett and retrieve the prisoner. Immediately!”

Jonathan rushed out and mounted quickly. Behind him, he saw others follow suit.
He pushed his horse unmercifully. Jonathan slowed only when he caught sight of the detachment. His heart resumed a normal pace.

Andre
’s desperate attempt to retreat back to Arnold to see if they could escape together had been foiled. Andre was now under Tallmadge’s authority.

Despite Gabriel
’s stubborn insistence of Arnold’s honor, there could be no more denying Arnold’s intentions, not with the evidence in hand. At least, now, they had Andre under arrest. Tallmadge had sent off an express message to General Washington.

It left only Arnold…

* * * *

Jonathan walked solemnly toward the open door. The stillness of the night did little to alleviate his heavy heart. He had found no rest over the last days, not with the turbulence
that raged about him.

The darkest hour had fallen upon the Americans and yet the light had not been extinguished. General Benedict Arnold, the beloved war hero of Saratoga, had committed the vilest of actions—treason!

The army had been rallied at the discovery of the deception. The alarm rose, but no British offensive materialized. The Americans had time enough to unravel the hellish plot and defend West Point.

The knife that Arnold stabbed in Washington
’s back had been intended to be a fatal blow, a deadly wound to the cause of freedom. Instead, a common cry emerged, one that reminded the men of the reason they fought.

He had hear
d tales of Arnold’s effigy being burnt with utter loathing. His name replaced with demon and Satan himself. Had Arnold thought that there would be widespread desertion, he had greatly underestimated his influence. There had been none.

To the c
ontrary, there was a unity that Jonathan hadn’t felt in a long time…a yearning for vengeance because General Arnold had escaped.

The letter Gabriel had sent had given Arnold the warning he needed to escape. By the time Washington arrived
, Arnold had long since sought haven on board the
Vulture
. He left behind a hysteric wife and infant son.

From all accounts, Mrs. Arnold appeared a mad woman, ranting and raving that Washington was going to kill her and her baby. Despite the suspicion that the woman herself had been immersed in the deceit, Washington sent her to her family in Philadelphia.

Washington did not need the distraction. His eyes were set firmly on the conspiracy and the prisoner, Adjutant-General, Major John Andre. A tribunal had been called, fourteen of the Continental Army’s finest officers. Men Jonathan had not seen in years, including his friend, John Glover.

Jonathan passed through a low
-ceiling room with heavy beams opening into a small room with an open fire.

“
Come in, Dr. Corbett. Please have a seat.”

General George Washington gestured for Jonathan to sit in a high back chair across from the desk
where he was seated. Jonathan did as he was bid.

The general had changed little since the last
time Jonathan had seen him. The tall, big boned man imparted the same dignity and grandeur; his features still bore strong and commanding. It was only when his light blue eyes met Jonathan’s that he betrayed the weight he wore on his shoulders.

“
Take your ease, Dr. Corbett. I requested your presence to converse. You realize I know your history and have been told of your exploits,” Washington began. “If anyone has thoughts about this matter before us, I’m certain you do, having lost both your father and brother to the gibbet. Not to take away from your own personal experience only a few months ago.”

“
I’m unsure what you want me to say, sir.”

“
I do not want a report, Doctor. I want to know what you think. That is all.”

“
I have had personal dealings with Major Andre in the past, sir.”

“
In Charles Town, I assume. General Lincoln was detailed in his report on the animosity the British held toward you.”

Remembrances flashed before Jonathan.
“I will relay to you what I know of the man, which will be no different than most. He is a close aide to General Clinton. A capable and professional soldier. But I am certain he had a hand in manipulating my situation in Charles Town behind the scenes, which leads me to believe he had a hand in the whole of the scheme with Arnold.

“
Behind his façade of humility is an extremely intelligent and dangerous officer with a ruthlessness and cleverness that I would not underestimate.”

“
It is my intent not to do so. There has been much to decipher these last few days. I do not believe that Arnold defected so easily. It would have taken time and persuasion. Someone stroked Arnold’s ego with promises of glory and fame. He lost sight of the cause for personal reasons. It is a fear I have for all our men.”

“
Not all, General.” Jonathan lowered his gaze. “I can only speak for myself, but I stood before a court an innocent man. My accusers knew full well the charges were false. It made no difference. They used it to manipulate a situation to one that bettered themselves. They used my wife against me.”

Jonathan swallowed hard.
“I was prepared to die, knowing that my death like my father and brother’s before me was set to publicly humiliate my family and myself. Scorned and ridiculed.” He paused for a moment. He looked back up at the man before him. “But I never once questioned my belief in the cause, General.”

Jonathan rose and walked over to the fire. He stared at it,
and then turned back again. “Do you remember the reason the rebellion began? We could not get His Majesty to respect our position. Our
Mother
Country looked upon us only as subjects to do his bidding. We held no rights. Is that not what the British are doing now? Underscoring their actions.”

“
Do not think I have forgotten your father and brother, Nathan Hale, and others. The thought weighs upon me often. I believe in the rights of all men.”

“
As do I, sir. It is what riles me now,” Jonathan said fervently. “I have heard the rumors that the British say that you need to return Andre. That he was under a flag of truce because Arnold sent for him. A flag of truce given by a traitor that they were paying off. On whose logic does that make sense?