Chapter 13
Remy had finished her daytime tours and had a little time before her evening ghost tour shift started.
Just as she was closing up shop at the Blue and Gray Touring Company, a young man had called and said he had dropped his wallet while on the tour.
He thought he might have dropped it somewhere around Culp’s Hill, so Remy told him she would go look for it.
“A-ha!” Remy said as she spied a brown leather wallet around the base of the big metal structure.
She happily dialed the guy’s phone number and left him a message telling him that his wallet would be waiting for him at the tour company building in the morning.
Losing your wallet was such an awful feeling, and Remy was glad she was able to set the man’s mind at ease.
As she walked back to her car, she saw the familiar form of a man in a big black hat sitting among the rocks.
Ellis had his back to her and didn’t seem to know she was there.
It had been a while since Ellis had bothered either her or Lucy, mainly because Avery did his best to stay one step ahead of him.
Remy paused for a moment and watched him. A prickle of sympathy jabbed at her heart. He looked lost and alone, much like Avery looked sometimes when he sat by himself at the peak of Little Round Top.
I bet Ellis died right here at Culp’s Hill, she thought.
Remy felt only slightly anxious at Ellis’s presence. She wasn’t really afraid of him. Still, she couldn’t help but wonder what he’d said to Lucy to make her cry.
She walked toward him. “Ellis!”
Ellis whipped his head around, startled. “What are you doing here? Shouldn’t you be off strutting your stuff for that Irish soldier like the cheap slut you are?” he growled.
Remy rolled her eyes. He called all women sluts, whores, and harlots, so she didn’t take it personally. Besides, he was way off base. She’d had sex exactly once, and it was years ago.
Ellis seemed quite surprised to see her walk right up to him, then plop herself down beside him.
“You sure do like calling women names, don’t you? And you also like groping them, I hear,” Remy said, recalling Jesse’s fury when he told her how Ellis had touched Lucy’s breasts.
Ellis glanced down at Remy’s chest. “You don’t have to worry ‘bout me touching you. Your tits are too small.”
Not that she would ever want Ellis’s disgusting hands on her, but the criticism stung. She knew she was too thin, and she was sensitive about her chest size. Still, she would be damned if she would let him know he was getting to her.
“So!” she said brightly. “Do you wanna call me a slut a few more times and threaten my already dead boyfriend, or would you like to have an actual conversation?”
He eyed her curiously, as if not sure what to make of her.
“Why are you so mean?” Remy asked him bluntly.
Ellis laughed, clearly surprised at the question. “I’m bored. Gotta have something to do to keep me occupied.”
“You could talk nicely to people like most dead folks around here do.”
“But that would be boring.” Ellis scanned the battlefield area. “I see you don’t have your knight in shining armor here to protect you from me.”
The thought of Avery as her white knight made her smile. “I don’t need him to protect me. I’m not afraid of you.”
Ellis sneered at her, but she could see he was slightly impressed that she refused to run away from him.
“Why do you hate women so much?” she asked him.
He looked away and said nothing.
“I bet somebody broke your heart,” Remy said softly. Ellis narrowed his eyes, glaring at her. “I’m sorry if that happened to you.”
Ellis studied her like she was a strange new specimen of insect. “Why are you being so nice to me?”
“Because I have a soft spot in my heart for lost souls,” she told him.
It had always been in her nature to comfort others and put them at ease.
She understood that sometimes the most unlovable people were the ones who needed nurturing the most. Ellis seemed so vulnerable right now.
So different from the man who had boasted that he’d killed those men in the Railroad Cut.
“Were you married?” Remy asked him.
“That is none of your business!” Ellis shouted.
“You’re right,” she said quietly, determined to stay calm. “I shouldn’t ask you personal questions like that. It’s just that I can see you’re suffering, and I wish I could help. You know, my friend Theresa counsels soldiers around here. Maybe she could help you cross over.”
Theresa Hetty was fiery and strong. If anyone could handle Ellis, she could.
“Oh, yeah. I know all about Theresa. She’s that redheaded girl. The one that guy tried to take behind the Jennie Wade house.”
Remy swallowed hard and tried to keep her voice steady. “No, not take. Rape. He tried to rape her.”
Remy wondered how Ellis knew what had happened, then she realized he could flit around, invisible, and might have witnessed it.
Theresa had been traumatized by the attempted sexual assault by her ex-boyfriend.
She had told Remy how Lucy, Jesse, and Theresa’s boyfriend, Sean, had supported her through that nightmare.
Theresa had even confided to Remy that Sean had been especially gentle with her in bed at first because she found it somewhat frightening to have sex after being assaulted.
Sean had been patient and kind, just as she was when supporting him with his struggles with PTSD.
The two were fiercely loyal to each other and were very much in love.
“Talk about sluts,” Ellis said. “She’s a wild one. You just know she was asking for it.”
Ellis looked at her, waiting for her to react.
It took tremendous effort to swallow the rage that threatened to erupt from inside her.
Remy took a few deep, cleansing breaths, knowing that a lecture on consent would be wasted on someone like Ellis.
She wasn’t even sure if he believed half the garbage that spewed from his mouth, or if he was just trying to piss her off.
And he was. Pissing. Her. Off. But she somehow managed to keep her cool.
“Do you know why you’re still here? Why you haven’t crossed over?” Remy asked.
“Why? Trying to get rid of me?”
“You’re changing the subject,” she told him, looking him directly in the eye.
Remy got the feeling that Ellis really did want to talk, to be able to confide in someone, but he had so much anger in him.
And, if Remy wasn’t mistaken, there was fear in his eyes.
He was always trying to upset and scare everybody else, but what was he afraid of?
“Did you die here at Culp’s Hill?”
Ellis shook his head. “Nope. Wish I had. Got wounded here, though. Died after they sawed off my leg. They didn’t give you nothin’ for pain back then. So I felt ‘em cuttin’ into me.”
“I’m sorry that happened to you, Ellis.”
“Save your pity for somebody who cares, ya whore.”
Remy looked out at the battlefield and saw the sun sinking lower in the sky. She stood up.
“I have to go. Other ghosts are waiting,” Remy said, looking down at Ellis with a smile. “Ellis, I may not understand why just yet, but I know you’re angry and you’re hurting. And I really do want to help you.”
“You must be crazy,” Ellis muttered.
Probably, she thought.
“I don’t have a tour tomorrow night, so I’ll be visiting with Avery all evening. But on Friday, I’ll stop by here after my day tour and before my nighttime one. Be here if you want to talk.”
Ellis laughed and shook his head.
Still, Remy had a strong feeling that the man was going to show up on Friday. He had a look in his eye that told her he didn’t trust her. But he wanted to.
* * *
The next evening, Remy took a few moments to touch up her makeup and brush her hair before getting out of the car at Little Round Top.
She wore blue jeans and a black button-down blouse.
She loved this black blouse because it made the blue in her eyes stand out.
She wanted to look pretty for Avery, and she liked when he could see her in something other than her Jennie Wade outfit.
Remy eagerly walked toward where she knew Avery was waiting. She loved that she didn’t have to hide her feelings for him anymore. She could run toward him if she wanted to.
Her heart fluttered when Avery stood up as he saw her approach.
She couldn’t get over the way he looked at her.
He had such sweet affection in his smile.
Remy knew that part of his longing to see her was due to loneliness.
It wasn’t like there were that many people he could talk to.
Still, his expression was different than the warm smile he gave to Lucy or Jesse when he saw them.
It was like he had a special look reserved just for her.
Avery looked her up and down. “You look so beautiful, Remy.” His gaze lingered on her eyes, which she knew were her best feature. “I only wish I could change my clothes. I would love to wear something nicer for you.”
“Don’t be silly. There’s nothing sexier than a man in uniform,” Remy said, looking him up and down as well.
The gray of his Confederate uniform brought out the soft grayness of his eyes.
He looked so handsome that she actually sighed out loud.
“Do you want to go for a walk or something? No reason we have to stay here all the time.”
“I would love it,” Avery said.
Remy turned and started walking, and Avery fell into step next to her. She wished he could hold her hand as they walked down the street behind Little Round Top. Avery let Remy lead the way as they walked down a trail through the woods.
“Remy,” Avery began. “I love when you visit with me, but I hope you know I’ll understand if you have other things to do. I know you have a life to live even if I don’t.”
“Avery,” she said softly, “there’s no place I’d rather be than with you.”
“I do love hearin’ you say that! By the way, did you eat dinner?” he asked, his tone somewhat accusatory.