Chapter 18
Lucy lay in bed that night thinking of Jesse. This time, however, it wasn’t fear keeping her awake. She found she couldn’t stop thinking of his face, his sad smile. She remembered the way she had felt when she was with him. Before she knew he was dead. No one had ever made her feel the way Jesse did when he spoke to her.
He’d called her his honorary yellow rose of Texas.
Lucy wondered if he really meant it, or if he was just bored and wanted a friend.
She also thought about Joel. Where was he? Was he lonely, too? Joel and Jesse were enemies, so they didn’t even have each other to talk to. What did ghosts do all day? Where did they go?
Lucy didn’t have to work the next day. As she drifted off to sleep, she wondered if she could find the two soldiers again. They knew she was afraid of them and would probably never come back to the tavern. It was up to her to go look for them.
* * *
Jesse sat,invisible, on the steps of the Pennsylvania Monument on Hancock Ave. The monument was off the main, busy streets of Gettysburg, but was a big tourist attraction nonetheless. Over one hundred feet high, it was the biggest monument in the historic town. It was made of granite and had stairs that led all the way to the top, offering an amazing view of the battlefields. Jesse sat somberly on the steps as the tourists, especially the kids, climbed up to the top. It was mid-afternoon on a weekday, so it was mostly mothers with little ones who were too young for school.
It was not uncommon for people to trample right over, or through, Jesse as he sat. It was a windy, somewhat cool day, so the shiver they felt was simply attributed to the weather.
Jesse stared out at the vast battlefield before him, contemplating his next move. He still couldn’t decide whether to concentrate on trying to cross over, which seemed pointless after all these years, or vanishing for a while to escape his sorrow.
As always, his thoughts were consumed with Lucy, so at first he thought he was seeing things when he caught sight of the woman walking in the distance, her long, brown hair whipping around in the wind.
Lucy.
Jesse would know her anywhere. He knew all her mannerisms; the way she walked, the way she brushed her long hair out of her face. He jumped up from his spot on the stone steps, carelessly charging through a tourist, a man in his sixties. The man zipped up his jacket, then continued on up the stairs.
Jesse stared at Lucy as she walked on the freshly cut grass. In all the time he’d known her, he had never seen her on any of the battlefields. Lucy was fascinated by history, but she’d lived in Gettysburg for several years now because she attended Gettysburg College. Jesse figured she’d toured all the battlefields when she first arrived, and had long ago seen pretty much everything the historic town had to offer. These days, she mostly concentrated on work and school.
Jesse walked a little closer, but was still a distance away from her. Lucy glanced around, looking a little scared, but nowhere near as frightened as she had been before.
Was it possible that she was looking for them?
Jesse’s heart surged with hope. He knew she had the day off, and she rarely came into town when she wasn’t working. He stared at her, afraid to let himself believe that she was searching for them. For him.
Jesse got his answer when he followed her to her next stop, which was just down the road. Gettysburg National Cemetery. Creeped out as she was by all things ghostly, there was only one possible reason why she would choose to go to the cemetery on her day off from work. She was looking for her dead soldier friends.
Jesse followed Lucy as she walked around the cemetery. She looked at the rows and rows of graves, many of which simply had numbers on them instead of names as they contained the unknown dead. Jesse’s heart ached when he heard her let out a shaky, nervous breath. How he hated seeing her afraid! He remembered how terrified she’d looked when her hand had sliced right through his ghostly body. He’d never be able to get the image out of his head. He knew he had to tread carefully when he approached her. She did seem to be looking for them, but that didn’t mean she wouldn’t freak out again if she actually found them.
Jesse watched in astonishment as Lucy walked over to grave number 495. She stood right over it, staring at it like she’d been drawn to that spot. She shivered a bit and hugged her arms around herself the way she did when she was feeling self-conscious. Or frightened.
There were no other people around, so Jesse became visible. He stood in front of Lucy a short distance away. She still stared down at grave 495. He watched her face and could pinpoint the millisecond when she became aware of his presence. She drew in a sharp, nervous breath. She moved her eyes slightly, from the grave to Jesse’s worn, dirty shoes. She swallowed hard and slowly raised her head to see his face.
Jesse looked into her soft, brown eyes. He didn’t say a word and didn’t dare move. Then he smiled at her.
It took Lucy a moment to find her voice. When she did, it was small and timid. “Hi.”
“Hi,” Jesse replied quietly.
She glanced down at the grave. “Is this you?”
Jesse nodded. Lucy’s eyes opened wide with astonishment. “I-I don’t know how I knew. I just knew!”
Jesse smiled again. “You’re sensitive. I don’t really understand it either, but some people are just sensitive to things like that. You know…paranormal things. I seen some tourists over the years go right to a grave and say they think it’s their relative or somethin’. I don’t really know, but I ’spect they’re right.”
“So it wasn’t just an act,” Lucy said, gesturing at his Confederate uniform. “You really are…”
Jesse touched the tip of his hat and bowed to her. “Private Jesse Spenser of the First Texas, at your service. Born May 26, 1839. Died July 2, 1863.”
Lucy went a bit pale.
“You all right?” Jesse asked, looking worried. “You’re not gonna swoon again, are you? I can’t catch ya, ya know.”
“I think I need to sit down,” she said, looking slightly woozy. She slowly lowered herself to the ground and sat just in front of Jesse’s grave. He sat down across from her, but still kept a safe distance. Lucy ran her fingers over the number 495, gently, and with great respect.
“Weren’t supposed to be any rebels in this cemetery, but a few of us goobers snuck in on ’em,” Jesse told her.
Lucy smiled, looking calmer. ”Yeah. I remember reading that there are supposedly nine or ten Confederates in here with the rest of the Union soldiers.”
They were both silent for a moment.
“Please don’t be afraid of me,” Jesse said softly, almost a whisper.
“I’m trying,” Lucy said quietly. She looked into his gentle blue-gray eyes.
“I can’t hurt you. I mean, I would never…but even if I tried…” He held up his ghostly hands.
Lucy nodded. Then laughed suddenly. Jesse looked at her curiously.
“Whut?”
“That’s why you wouldn’t pick up the silverware for me.”
Jesse laughed and nodded. He threw up his hands again. “I couldn’t.”
Lucy chuckled again. “Joel is such an ass.”
“That’s what I’ve been trying to tell you!”
“So, Joel…is he…?”
“Yeah,” Jesse said carefully, taking care not to frighten her. “He died in the battle, too.”
Lucy nodded. She glanced around the cemetery. “Where did he end up?”
Jesse winced, not knowing how to put the truth delicately. “They, uh…they didn’t find enough of him to bury.”
“Oh,” Lucy said, looking a bit nauseated. Then she just looked sad. “Poor Joel. So you guys really are enemies.”
“Yeah, you could say that,” Jesse said. That was a bit of an understatement. “At least now you know why I never take off my hat in your presence. I feel bad about that. It’s very disrespectful not to take off my hat around a lady.”
Lucy laughed. “You’re so sweet. I never noticed, really. But thank you. The world needs more gentlemen like you, Jesse.”
He grinned and nodded in thanks. He loved hearing Lucy say his name.
Lucy looked at him with wonder. “There’re so many things I want to ask you guys!”
Jesse’s heart sank. He enjoyed having Lucy’s attention all to himself and didn’t relish the idea of bringing Joel back into the mix. “You really want to see that Yankee Doodle again?”
“Of course! After all, I haven’t made my decision yet.”
“Ah. That’s true.”
“Is there somewhere the three of us could meet? You know, talk in private? I don’t want to blow your cover by asking about ghost stuff when I’m at work.” Lucy second-guessed herself for a moment. Perhaps she was being presumptuous. “I-I mean…not that you have to answer my questions about your personal life. I mean death. I-I mean…” She blushed as she stammered awkwardly.
Jesse found Lucy adorable when she blushed, but he didn’t want her to feel uncomfortable. “You can ask me anything you like, my lovely rose.”
Lucy bit her lip and looked at him shyly.
“We could meet tomorrow morning,” Lucy said. Jesse nodded, so Lucy asked, “Where do you want to meet?”
“Anywhere you like! Well, anywhere within the town of Gettysburg. We’re not physically able to go any farther than that.”
“Really? Wow.”
“Anyplace around here is fine—the battlefields or whatever. Just not… I prefer not Devil’s Den.”
Lucy nodded somberly.
“Okay. What about near the college? Is that too far to walk for you? I mean…”
“Not at all. We don’t get tired anymore. At least not physically. It’s easy for us to get there.”
“Okay. How about we meet at one of the gazebos?”
“Sure. The one in the main square or the one behind the athletic building?” Jesse asked. When Lucy looked at him curiously, he added, “We been here a long time. We know where everything is.” He remembered when the damn gazebos were installed.
“Yes, I suppose you do,” Lucy said. “How about the athletic building one. About nine a.m.?”
“It’s a date. Even if you do insist that I bring another man along,” Jesse said, making a face.
Lucy laughed. She smiled shyly and let out a nervous breath.