Chapter 29

"Oh, Shenandoah, I long to see you,

Away, you rolling river…." Michaela's voice sang out as her fingers glided over the keys sending the crisp notes out to the air. Closing her eyes, she swayed back and forth on the piano bench, dancing with the music. Behind her, Rebecca and Thomas danced as well, swirling and swaying in the shadow of the flickering flames.

Rebecca's face shone with the exuberance of a young woman as she smiled up at her husband. Gingerly, Thomas lifted his arm across his chest, spinning Rebecca away from him before bringing her back to him. Tommy and Randy, rather subdued from their day of playing squealed with excitement, batting at their mother's skirt as it fanned away from her and crouching down, waited for the next time their mother swung around. Rebecca just smiled, enjoying having her husband as well as her children close. She enjoyed being able to do things she loved, feeling pampered with her husband's attention without neglecting her children's needs.

"You're getting good at moving with them underfoot." She whispered through a white toothed grin. Thomas merely smiled proudly before spinning her, this time more quickly from one end of the room to another. Rebecca laughed, a sound joined in with by her boys.

Marjorie, sitting by the window, by herself, rolled her eyes. Were they trying to prove something? Oh, look at how happy we are despite the fact that you seem to be miserable Marjorie. So sorry about that, it is rather unfortunate. Marjorie's breath momentarily stole away from her as she huffed.

If she closed her eyes, perhaps she could be somewhere else. She could hear Sarah's laughter and feel Benjamin's hand as he guided her to the dance floor. She tapped out a little rhythm with the tip of her shoe. She could dance like Rebecca, and laugh with that hearty joy. It was doable, Marjorie knew because she had done it. She could be happy. Although, right now she's having a difficult time remembering what it was like.

As the song came to a close Michaela started the final chord, rolling it up the keyboard ever so slowly before allowing it all to fade away.

"Yippee!" Randy exclaimed clapping his hands together and jumping up and down. "Dat was purdy!" Randy dished out the compliment with enough time before Tommy took him out head first, knocking him under the sofa. After a while, the boys lay still, out of breath. Michaela blushed at the compliment and hastily made to move the music from the stand, as if trying to erase the evidence of her talent.

With a glance between each other, Rebecca and Thomas split ways both heading toward the piano.

"May I have this dance?" Thomas knelt next to the bench where Michaela sat and offered his hand. He looked like a knight in shining armor and immediately Michaela recoiled into her shell.

"Oh no that's alright."

"Nonsense." Rebecca sounded from her left, sitting on the bench and scooting over until Michaela had no room left. Thomas took her hand and pulled her to her feet.

"It will be fun… I promise."

"Oh… all right." Michaela glanced back at her sister before moving to the center of the floor.

"What should we dance; a round, a reel, a waltz?"

"Ummm…." Rebecca shuffled through music until she found one suitable. "Let's do a reel."

"Sounds good to me. Are you ready?" Thomas wiggled an eyebrow and Michaela making her giggle. "No ma'am, no smiles in a reel. This is serious business. What? I'm serious. There should be no laughter in the reel. No… no… no." Thomas laughed as he tickled her, making her squirm away from him as she laughed.

"Are you two ready?" Rebecca turned from her seat and eyed the two with mock irritation.

"Ready." Thomas replied, face dropping all hints of humor and becoming serious, but he couldn't fool Michaela. His eyes flashed with excitement, making it more difficult for Michaela to calm herself.

"Ready." Michaela echoed, licking her lips in attempt to banish her smile. She placed her hand in Thomas' and reached her arms up is shoulder, waiting to hear the first note.

As soon as the first cord struck, Michaela was swept off her feet quite literally as Thomas swept her into his arms and twirled around before setting her down on the other side of him. Shocked by the unexpected movement, Michaela screamed with surprise before laughing. With a slight pause to regain their composure, Thomas led them on a continuous bouncing path up and down the room. There was just movement, no consideration for the beat of the melody that Rebecca played as they hurdled over the floor. At one point, they got so off beat that their bouncing didn't even match one another. Thomas moved on the beat while Michaela was left to catch up on the offbeat, but it didn't really matter, she couldn't do much more than laugh at the absurdity of it all and Thomas was left nearly dragging her down the pathway he set for them. It was entirely void of all the seriousness Thomas had so carefully stressed. By the end of the song, Thomas had resorted to twirling his sister in law round and round until the final note hit.

Michaela could barely contain her amusement. Collapsing onto the floor she struggled to catch her breath amidst the laughter as Thomas fell to the sofa. Even the boys, squirmed from where they had watched the merry scene beneath the sofa to tackle their father.

"That was fun!" Tommy cried.

"Oh you liked that, did you?"

"Do us."

"Maybe tomorrow. I'm tired now." Thomas looked over to Michaela who blushed deeply.

"I imagine you are. What on earth was that?" Rebecca laughed from her seat.

"That, my darling, was improvisation."

"Oh is that what it's called? It looked like something I saw at our wedding reception."

"You jest my dear!" Thomas feigned offence.

Marjorie couldn't take it much more. Such childishness. Adults were always commanding children to act properly and responsible and then they went and galloped about the room. She didn't see the humor in it at all, and if the rest of the night was suppose to be like this she wasn't sure she wanted to stay and watch. With a grand harrumph, she stood from her chair and flounced from the room, turning all eyes in her direction.

Like a straight pin to a balloon, the laughter seeped from the air and Michaela was left looking at her sister and brother in law before sighing.

"I suppose it's getting late. I think it may be bed time for me." Michaela whispered with a sad smile, pulling herself to her feet. She moved to hug her sister goodnight before turning to her brother in law. Bending over to kiss him on the cheek, she smiled at him, the humor from earlier still dancing in her girlish features, proof that he and Rebecca had helped her forget her troubles if only for a moment or two. "Thank you for my dance," she whispered before turning for the stairs.


"Ho o o o." Randy skipped around Michaela, bobbing his hand against his mouth to interrupt the constant tone emitting from his lips. Michaela watched him as he danced into her line of view before disappearing again.

"Arg matey!" Tommy suddenly appeared in front of Michaela waving the end of a broom handle in her face. "You chose to disobey me, the mighty Blackbeard, and now ye must walk the plank!" Michaela flinched as the broom thrust forward and knocked her in the forehead.

"Tommy, have you ever heard about the real Blackbeard." Perhaps she could salvage the morning after all. She watched as her nephew paused and shook his head before turning his sword on an invisible intruder. "He was the captain of a ship called the Queen Anne's Revenge." Tommy didn't even look up from his task. Michaela decided to try again. "Everyone was terrified of him, but they didn't really need to be because Blackbeard never actually killed anyone." Despite the fascination in Michaela's voice, neither Tommy nor Randy stopped to listen to her. In fact, Tommy promptly dropped his 'sword' and decided hand-to-hand combat was the best way to go. Michaela frowned. Well, she had tried at least.

The boys had started early in the morning with their begs for Michaela to play with them. In fact, they started before she was even awake, choosing that they would wake her instead. With a jump on the bed that sat Michaela upright. "What is going on?"

"Play with us, Aunt 'Kayla!" Tommy jumped up and down. Randy was much more subtle, flopping over into her lap and looking up at her. "Please." He whimpered at her. Not being able to see anything better to do, Michaela complied. Two hours later, she found herself tied to a tree.

Michaela couldn't move anymore now than she could five minutes ago. She stared down at the ropes that circled around her body, plastering her to the rough bark behind her. Sighing, she stretched her legs out in front of her, bouncing her knees slightly. Obediently she sat in place, as her nephew played around her.

"Hey… don't swing that." Michaela shouted at Tommy who had gone back to his makeshift weapon. Glancing at her over his shoulder, he defiantly swung the stick, slamming it into the side of the fence. "Thomas Blackstone!" Michaela tried to sound authoritative as she shouted her nephew's name. Again, he swung the weapon and again until a shrilled cry rang out. Randy, having been oblivious to all that was around him, wandered a little too close and had been hit across the top of the head.

Randy wasted no time alarming everyone to his pain.

"Oh, oh, oh, hold still." Michaela struggled against her ropes. She pushed and pulled until she managed enough slack to crawl from her restraints. "It's ok. It's ok." She cooed in the boy's ear, snaking arms around him and lifting the heavy body to her chest. "Let's see. I know it hurts, I know." She pressed her hand over the sore, welting spot. "It'll stop soon."

"Momma!" Tommy's voice yelled as the boy shot himself across the yard and burying himself in his mother's skirts. "I'm sorry, I'm sorry." He wept repeatedly.

"Oh whatever is the matter?" Rebecca knelt to Michaela and eagerly shifted her young son into her arms. Randy went willingly.

"We just bumped our head." Michaela whispered ruffling the boy's hair. He had quietened considerably now, but now just chose to be comforted in his mother's arms.

"Oh well if that was the case then I must say that you were in the best possible hands." Rebecca clucked, bending the boy back in order to wipe at his tears. Randy looked at her through curious eyes.

"Why Momma?"

"Auntie Michaela is going to be a doctor one day." Randy turned in order to see his aunt. He looked up at Michaela through big eyes.

"Nu huh." Tommy exclaimed, glancing between the two girls.

"It's true, she is." Rebecca shot a smile to her sister who was staring at her dress, smiling brightly.

"She can't be a doctor."

"Why not?"

"Because she's girl. Girls aren't doctors."

Rebecca turned blood red, embarrassed and ashamed at her son's reaction. Never had Tommy been exposed to the rigid structure of gender convention. He had never heard his father speak degradingly of a woman, and he had never heard his mother mention society's constraints on women. Yet, the boy still managed to create an understanding of the way the world outside ran, but it wasn't a proper understanding. It wasn't a frown of injustice. It was an admittance of agreement, regardless of his full understanding of what he was agreeing to. How had that happened?

"No." Rebecca stated harshly. This was a lesson that must be learned now. "Girls can be anything that little boys can be. Sometimes they just have to work harder to get there." The last was admitted with consideration to Michaela whose head had jerked up at the sound of her nephew's words. Slowly the furrowed brow dissipated and was replaced with a relieved grin.

"You wait and see Tommy. There'll be a woman doctor one of these days. Even if I have to be the first one."


The door swung open to the Mount Vernon Street home and Marjorie went straight in and headed for the stairs.

"Hello to you too, Miss Marjorie I hope you had a good weekend." Martha called under her breath.

"It was all right." Marjorie impressed her with an actual reply on her way up the stairs. Martha's eyes went wide.

"Wow, seems like Rebecca actually did some good for the child." She turned to Joseph who was just coming through the doorway. Her face immediately softened when she saw him. "Oh the poor darling."

Michaela was fast asleep in her father's arms, her head lying on his shoulder as he cradled her body against him like a baby. His coat was wrapped around her body for extra warmth but was slowly falling from around her shoulders. Martha stepped in to correct the fabric, pulling it tightly across the little girl's shoulders.

"Rebecca said she spent all morning with the boys. She didn't do anything all day but chase them around. She had sat down to read a book and wait up after the children went to sleep but didn't last ten minutes." Joseph whispered to her, a smile written across his face. It was clear that after an emotionally trying trip he was glad to be home, to have his little girl in his arms once more, and to know that she was safe.

Martha ran her hand across the little girl's forehead. "You go ahead and take her upstairs. Harrison and I will care for the bags."

In quite obedience, Joseph turned to the upstairs. Once in her room, he laid her across her bed and bent to light a lamp. Michaela never even rolled over. The one thing that always amazed Joseph when his girls were little was the ability for children to sleep through anything, including having someone undress them.

Bending over Michaela, Joseph managed to untie and unbutton all of the fastenings that kept her dress in place, leaving her in her knee length chemise and drawers. He pulled the covers over her little body, making sure that all was tucked in a warm embrace. Only then did then Michaela roll over and open her eyes.

"Father." She grinned, blinking in the lamplight.

"Hello my Mike."

"Your home."

"I am, and you are too." Michaela rubbed at her eyes, yawning.

"How was your trip?" She was struggling to stay awake. Joseph just chuckled and leaned in to kiss his daughter on the cheek.

"I'll tell you all about it in the morning, but now it's time to go to sleep."

Michaela yawned again, wrapping her arms around her pillow and pulling it to her chest. "I'll see you in the morning, Father," and she drifted back to sleep.


I hope you enjoyed the chapter! Guess what! We only have 17 left in part one!! Whoohoo!