Chapter 7 #2
“Custer is now on extended leave in the East. Certainly, he’ll hope to lead his men, but…
well, you know Brevet General Custer. President Grant is hemming and hawing about him right now.
George can be a flamboyant braggart, and I know you’ve disagreed with many of his tactics, but I think that even you would stand by him now, Major Trelawny.
He’s mouthed off about the graft and corruption going on at the Indian agencies; he’s made accusations against Belknap—and he’s gone so far as to implicate President Grant’s brother.
He may be in for a different kind of battle than what he’s become accustomed to fighting. ”
“Custer is not wholly rational at times, in my opinion, sir,” Sloan said.
“I grant you, Custer isn’t exactly my favorite officer, either, but beneath Terry, he is head of the Seventh Cavalry, and I’ve spent a great deal of time with the Seventh.
It is my command. In fact, sir—I intend to make more of a home at Fort Abraham Lincoln. I’ve recently married.”
“Well, congratulations, Major Trelawny.” Sherman puffed on his cigar. “You may have more good news coming your way soon. Colonel Perry has apparently expired of a heart attack in Texas.”
“Sir, I’m afraid that I’m not sure how Colonel Perry’s expiration is good news,” Sloan murmured.
Sherman grinned. “Perry was a good old soldier; he went quickly. His death has left a vacancy in the ranks. You’re up for promotion. Naturally, I’ll be the first to let you know if your promotion is approved.”
Sloan nodded slowly. He hadn’t seriously sought promotion; he was pleased with his direct assignment as a communications officer aide to Sherman—and the freedom it gave him. He hadn’t been permanently attached to any one regiment, and he’d been damned glad of it.
“Sir, my status—”
“Major—you report to me. And naturally, of course, owe your respect to the ranking field officers you come across in the line of your work. You’re damned lucky, Major.
You have to be one of the only men who has managed to retain for himself a hint of freedom in the military.
If you’re hoping to have a chance to persuade any hostiles into the agencies, you’d best get a move on.
To the best of my knowledge, the trains are still running through to Bismarck. ”
Sloan quickly rose, shaking Sherman’s hand, and started out.
Even if the trains were running, he still had a rough trip ahead of him.
And he realized with a sinking feeling that time was running out.
There was no reason why Sabrina couldn’t take her belongings and set up housekeeping at Fort Abraham Lincoln. Hawk and Skylar would escort her, and her brother-in-law would see to it that the move was handled smoothly for her.
But they learned in Chicago that Sloan was riding the river country west of the Black Hills, and in the winter weather, there was no telling exactly when he would return.
And then again, it was winter.
In all good conscience, she could hardly ask people to go running about for her in such wretched weather.
Then, of course, the truth of the matter was that she had now been apart from Sloan for over two months.
There were times when she felt incredibly anxious to see him—when she felt tremors, hot flashes, reminding her of what had been.
At those times, she felt like a moth drawn to a flame, and she reminded herself sternly that moths drawn to flames burned up.
There were other times when she could keep all of her memories of him in the back of her mind and pretend that none of it had ever happened.
She knew she wasn’t cut out for the West. She was glad to be with Skylar during her pregnancy and wanted to help her with the baby, but more and more often she wondered if perhaps Sloan had changed his mind about remaining married to her now that time had passed, and if she could convince him that an annulment would be the best course for them to follow.
She had promised him—in a moment of weakness—that she would come to the Dakota Territory with Hawk and Skylar, and she had honored that promise.
For the time being, she remained quite happily at Mayfair as the days and then weeks passed.
It was fun to help her sister plan for the arrival of her baby.
Occasionally, though, a fierce stabbing seemed to pierce her straight through the heart; she and Skylar should have been giving birth at almost the same time.
It had hurt her to lose the baby, in a way she had never imagined.
She had never felt life, but she had known it was there.
She didn’t begrudge Skylar her happiness in the least; she was delighted for her sister.
It was best to forget. And now that they were home, Scotland and her wedding seemed very long ago.
Her initial meeting with Sloan in Gold Town might have taken place during another lifetime altogether, except that sometimes, when the strange hot tremors swept through her, she could remember too much, in agonizing detail. It was best to forget and go on about life.
She was really managing to do so quite nicely.
Except that now and then…
She couldn’t help but wonder where he was. And what he was doing.
Despite the winter weather, or perhaps because of it, Hawk and Skylar decided to throw an impromptu party.
Anyone and everyone in the vicinity who could make it was invited—of course, in the vast Dakota Territory, neighbors who lived a few days’ ride away were considered to be in the near vicinity.
A number of soldiers were invited, along with businessmen from Gold Town, their families and wives, miners, scouts—and even the household servants.
They were to take turns serving and enjoying the festivities.
The night of the party was beautiful. Getting ready for the party had been fun as well.
She and Skylar had chosen what to wear together, and they laughed and joked about how fashionable they were dressing.
Skylar had talked her into wearing a gown of royal-blue velvet—a dignified color, Skylar had assured her, yet a gown cut perfectly to the female form.
Skylar had chosen hunter green. They both opted to wear their hair down.
Stepping out onto the porch with Hawk and Skylar as the guests arrived, Sabrina breathed in the clean air and felt strangely rejuvenated.
It was one of those very rare winter evenings when the temperature had climbed remarkably, hovering very near fifty degrees.
Tomorrow, of course, it could plunge far below zero, but for now…
it was exquisite. A fluffy, new-fallen snow lay on the ground, and the sky was a clear, dark cobalt, streaked with the golden glow of the moon.
Henry Pierpont, her friend and Hawk’s attorney, arrived, and she greeted him warmly.
Hawk’s cousin, Willow, a Sioux, came with his pretty White wife, Lily.
Soldiers arrived with their wives, and some of the matrons of Gold Town arrived with their young marriageable daughters—eager to introduce them to the handsome young officers who were in attendance.
By early evening, the house was filled, and Sabrina found herself enjoying Hawk and Skylar’s eclectic group of guests.
The cavalry officers were wonderfully attentive, and she felt young and alive as she hadn’t felt in a very long time.
It felt good to flirt, to laugh, to feel the warmth of men’s admiration.
She danced with several lieutenants, all of whom were absolutely charming but well aware that she was Sloan’s wife.
“Ma’am, you are easily the most beautiful woman here,” said Lieutenant Blake, a tall young man with an earnest face, as they danced about the room.
“Lieutenant! You are an incredible flatterer. There are many lovely young women here.”
The lieutenant sighed. “Perhaps a few. Still, it seems that the really special women are always the married ones!” He smiled again good-naturedly. “But, I grant you, you’ve married a good man.”
“Thank you.”
“Major Trelawny is quite amazing, actually. When he sets out alone, he can cover in two days the same ground that it might take a company of men a week to travel. He knows this land better than any man I know. The major has a nose for an ambush, and it seems that no matter how fierce the weather becomes, he knows where he’s going.
He can keep men safe in the most severe storm.
There’s no man with whom I’d rather ride. ”
Sabrina arched a brow, wondering if the man might not be up for some kind of a promotion—one in which Sloan might have a say. “Yet Major Trelawny is half Sioux,” Sabrina reminded Lieutenant Blake, wondering why her teeth were grating beneath her forced smile.
Lieutenant Blake offered her a puzzled frown.
“Ma’am—you’re in Sioux country. Out here you’ll find lots of men who are Sioux or part Sioux.
And Cheyenne,” he added, then shrugged. “Lots more. We use Crow scouts, often enough. And Rees, though of course the Crow and Rees are traditional enemies of the Sioux. We all manage to get along in the military. Personally, I like the Cheyenne. ‘Human Beings,’ as they call themselves. They tend to have high principles of living, but then…”
He shrugged. “You have to live among them to see their principles, right?”
Sabrina laughed, realizing that she liked the lieutenant, and perhaps he wasn’t up for a promotion.
“I imagine. And not many White folks want to do that, right?”
“Right.”
“But you’re cavalry. You’ll have to fight them.”
He shrugged. “I’m a West Point graduate, Mrs. Trelawny. I follow orders.”
She frowned as they spun around the room. “I admit, I’ve talked to a lot of people who do agree that the only good Indian is a dead Indian, but a lot of the soldiers I’ve come across have friends among the Indians. It just seems like a rough way to wage war.”