Northern Star by Jodi Thomas Read Free Book Online Page B

Perry’s shock, he headed to the door and added, “Good-bye, Cousin.”
    Just before he left, Captain Williams glanced at Perry. “Can the kid be trusted?” he snapped. “I can keep him in with the prisoners till you’re safely away.”
    “No!” Abram and Hunter responded in unison. “Perry goes with us,” Hunter said in a tone that left no room for argument.
    Frustration crossed Captain Williams’s face before he shrugged, mumbling, “Balloons…kids…hell of a bother in war.” Then to the men he said, “I’ll have the wagon ready in one hour.” Williams left no time for discussion as he disappeared into the darkness outside the threshold.
    Hunter glanced first at Perry, then at Abram, and said, “One hour and we move.”
    Abram nodded, resigning himself to the trip, and started collecting what they would need.
    Perry tried to sit calmly, hiding her overwhelming curiosity. Wade Williams’s feathers certainly ruffled when he was in Hunter’s presence. What lay between Hunter andWade, other than a shared bloodline? Perhaps in time she would know. Right now she had to adjust to the fact that in one hour she would be on her way farther north—with two Yankees.

Chapter 4
    The night was foggy and moonless. The three moved out of the Union camp onto a road that faded to invisibility only inches ahead of them. Abram sat alone on the bench seat, straining every muscle, alert to any danger that might spring out of the darkness. Hunter lay cradled among blankets and supplies, a new Union jacket folded over him. Perry rested against the sideboard as she sat curled up in the back of the wagon, her eyes fixed on Hunter. She could see the pain in his face each time the wagon swayed from side to side and wondered if he would survive yet another move.
    Captain Williams had made certain everything was packed and ready by the time Abram had dressed and carried Hunter the few hundred feet from the ruins to the wagon. The captain seemed to be pushing the mismatched threesome out of the camp. Yet at the same time he carefully saw to every detail. Perry wondered what lay behind the curt captain’s attitude and behavior.
    Now, with the jostle of the wagon, Hunter’s eyes grew heavy and he whispered, “Boy, better hang on. Hate for you to fall out when we hit a bump.” Then all she heard was his rhythmic breathing as he slept.
    Cuddling among the supplies for warmth, she longed for home. The fighting seemed endless. She’d been onlya child when it had erupted, yet the war had hastened her steps into adulthood. When Andrew left, Perry willingly assumed more responsibility at Ravenwood. By the time her father died, she was able to run the large plantation effectively by herself. Now, riding in a wagon with two men she’d only known a few days, she felt far from home and somehow like a child again…as if she no longer had any control over her life.
    Perry’s thoughts drifted to her grandfather. She remembered very little about him. Though he came to Ravenwood before the war, she’d never been invited to visit him. The old man had always seemed saddened in Perry’s presence. She was a painful reminder of his only daughter, who died giving birth to Perry. Andrew jokingly referred to him as “our crazy old grandpa,” but she’d seen a lifetime of heartbreak in the wrinkles of his face. If he did behave a bit oddly, perhaps it was because the pain of life had been too great for him.
    Now he was Perry’s only living kin except Andrew. He was her one hope of refuge. She wondered how she would be received when she turned up penniless on his doorstep. Times were hard, but he was her grandfather. Surely he would take her in. If he was dead, she’d find some way to stay at his home until Andrew found her.
    Perry turned her worried eyes skyward in desperation. The gold disk Hunter had given her moved between her breasts, and she felt oddly comforted by its presence. She wrapped her arms around her knees and fell asleep as the