Eliza has made up her mind. She can no longer stay here with no news of Alexander. She must do something.
She sits down at her table to pen a letter to General Washington.
It reads:
Dear General Washington
It has come to my attention that Alexander has been captured by the British. He is soon to be a father, yet he is not aware of this. I have been informed that a search for him has been ongoing for a period of two weeks. I can no longer sit here in hope that he will return. Please advise me on any course of action which I may take to ensure his brisk return to me and his unborn child.
Sincerely,
Elizabeth Schuyler Hamilton
Satisfied, Eliza seals the envelope with wax and stamps the family seal. She gives it a brief kiss before handing it to the maid for the next post.
X
Above deck, Lafayette and Hercules have drawn their swords. Having sent up a flare to potentially alert nearby ships and to distract the crew of this ship, they are now on the defensive.
Both are excellent swordsmen, and they are having little trouble defending against the ship's crew.
By Lafayette's and Hercules's calculations, the entire ship's crew is above deck, either engaging in the commotion or watching concernedly.
Suddenly, however, it strikes Lafayette. Benedict Arnold, who Alexander warned was a traitor and onboard this ship during a later conversation although Lafayette has not seen him himself, is not above deck.
"Monsieur Mulligan! We must get below deck!" Lafayette calls to Hercules, who looks confused but acquiesces without a word.
X
Alexander rushes into action, going into the next cabin over. He makes sure to step quietly, because although the others are certainly occupied above deck, anyone could come down at the sound of footsteps, and that would end the plan.
In the next cabin, there is a significantly larger window, and John is standing on the other side in a boat.
Alexander opens the window and John reaches out to help him into the boat.
Alexander has one foot in the boat when the cabin door is thrown open.
"Hey, you! Hamilton! You are not getting away so easily!" Arnold calls from the door.
Merde. That is the only word in Alexander's brain as he climbs more hurriedly into the boat. John is trying his level best to keep Alexander from falling into the water or back into the ship with Arnold.
Before either of them can accomplish anything meaningful, Arnold has crossed the cabin and drawn a knife. He makes a move to cut Alexander with it, but at the last moment John tugs Alexander forcefully and Alexander collapses into the boat, falling on Laurens in an embarrassing way.
As Alexander falls, he feels Arnold make his move. He yelps slightly as he feels the knife draw blood. Just before he passes out in John's arms, he vaguely sees Lafayette and Hercules rush into the cabin behind Arnold.
X
General George Washington is still pacing back and forth across his office. He knows he should be maintaining the camp or planning an attack. However, Alexander weighs heavily on his mind, and General Washington does not want to wage a battle without Alexander's presence, nor can he find the skill or strength to write to Congress for supplies that Alexander contains.
Suddenly, there is a knock on the door. Hoping it is news about Hamilton, George quickly summons the messenger into the room. When the messenger simply presents a tray of letters, George sighs inwardly.
He dismisses the messenger quickly, not wanting to show anger. He flicks somewhat carelessly through the letters, putting aside ones that he will need Alexander to reply to at a later date. He certainly needs Alexander back soon, if only to reply to Congress's insufferable correspondence.
Two letters catch his eye. One is written in the enthusiastic capital letters of General Lafayette, and the other in a very pretty hand, evidently a lady's. It is not Martha's, and George gets very few letters from ladies, so he decides to open both.
The first one is heartening. It denotes simply that the ship on which Alexander is held has been identified, and that if all goes well, the group of four will return on the 12th, which is two days following the next from the letter's writing, and later this evening presently.
George smiles. Much of his correspondence now comes from General Lafayette, since Lafayette has taken a particular fancy to informing General Washington of developments following the night they spent huddled under Washington's cape following the Battle of Monmouth. His capital letters are involuntary and somewhat amusing.
The second one is interesting and useful. Elizabeth Schuyler Hamilton has some very pleasant news to share with her husband, although it has been shared with General Washington first apparently.
With this, George is even more determined to bring Alexander home safely. Giving the excuse that several of Washington's generals and aides are involved in the matter, Washington instructs the stable boy to saddle a horse for him before galloping off in the direction of Alexander and Elizabeth's house.
X
"M'lady, a gentleman for you." The maid says quietly.
"See him in." Eliza adjusts herself so that she is sitting comfortably, not at all surprised when General Washington steps into the room.
He nods respectfully to her before sitting at her invitation.
"Mrs. Hamilton, we have word that the group will be returning today. I received your letter regarding help you may offer. Due to war strains, we do not have a carriage to bring Alexander and the three soldiers who went to find him safely back to camp. We hear that Alexander is mildly injured, and will not be able to walk back. Please send a carriage to the Harbor at three o'clock this afternoon. I am sorry to impose on your kindness, and have well-wishes for Colonel Hamilton's unborn child." George explains.
"Very well. But you are certain Alexander is not fatally injured or anything of the like?" Eliza asks for certainty.
"Yes, madame. We are very certain." George replies, smiling at Eliza's relaxed reaction.
"Thank you very much." Eliza responds cordially.
George stands up. "I bid you good day, madame."
"And you, sir." Eliza says as she rings the bell for the footman to escort General Washington to the door.
Once he is sufficiently out of earshot, Eliza rings the bell again. This time, the maid enters.
"Please send the stable boy prepare a carriage with horses and a few medical supplies that we have in the house. We need positions for four soldiers and myself."
"Milady, I do not wish to be impertinent. But with you so close to your due date…" The maid trails off, gesturing at Eliza's swelled abdomen.
"Never mind that now. Send for a prepared carriage." Eliza dismisses the maid's concern, picking up the skirts of her dress so that she may safely climb the stairs to get changed.
The maid nods and closes the door silently.
That's it for this part. Thank you very much to UnderlyingLiberosis for requesting some sort of action for Eliza. I hope this adequately covers the request. If not, please feel free to leave me other suggestions and I will be happy to add them.
My apologies for being slow with this story. Writer's block is quite a challenge to overcome, especially when it's so busy in other regards. There is maybe one more chapter and some sort of epilogue, but we will see about that later.
As usual, I do not own anything but the grammar and spelling mistakes. Please let me know if you find any. Please stay safe! Thank you to all the people who read, reviewed, and favorited between the last chapter and this one! Reviews are greatly appreciated!
-HamiltonAsparagus