Disclaimer: I own nothing in regard to GWTW
Author's Notes: Thank you for all the many reviews and the feedback. Thank you for everyone reading my story and favoriting my story. I write because I am driven to write. Yet it makes my heart sing that I know people are reading my work.
The italicized words are from the canon.
Chapter Seven
The first of August Rhett came to call on Scarlett. He was spending a lot of time in Atlanta making money off the war. He had money for her which he knew would make her welcome him into her home. He knew he had given her enough time to cool off and her boredom would make her welcome him. He found the house deserted and empty. He couldn't believe how disappointed he was that she was not there. He went to Belle's and played cards and drank whiskey for the next several days. He slept with Belle during the next month many times. Yet he had not wanted to have sex. He had just wanted her to hold him and let him pretend that someone loved him. He would awake in the middle of the night, and he would listen to her breathing, at that moment in the dark he could pretend that he was in bed with Scarlett. He refused to acknowledge how very lonely he was without the green-eyed black-haired temptress in his life.
Rhett knew he should leave Atlanta and head toward Charleston. Once Sherman took Atlanta the war was all but over. He would see his mother then do what he needed to do. Get himself out of the country. He would not come back until he had gotten his pardon for his war crimes. Yet he couldn't make himself leave.
On August 20th when Ellen O'Hara left to go nurse Emmy Slattery, no one knew how that act of kindness was going to alter their world so completely. As far as the residents of Tara were concerned almost as much as the war would end up altering their world. When Ellen returned two days later Mammy knew immediately that Miss Ellen was sick. Even though Mammy had immediately got her mistress into the bed the disease still laid her low. Soon Suellen and Careen were sick in bed also. As much as Scarlett wanted to nurse her mother she had to stay away. She had to think about Melanie and Wade. If either one of them got sick they would not have the strength to fight the disease off.
When the Yankees came to burn the house, Scarlett's heart swelled with pride as Pa face down the Yankee sergeant with nothing more than bluster and steely determination. Pa had said, "My wife and daughters are on their deathbeds. My daughter-in-law is bed ridden because of being with child. We will not leave this house. If you must burn it down, then you will need to do that with us in it."
Scarlett had been standing in the doorway with Charles's gun. There were only five bullets in the gun. There had been six, but she had to fire it to make sure it worked. It had. She knew she would not be able to kill them all, but she would at least be able to kill the first one that dare to burn her home down.
The sergeant had said, "Let me go tell my captain."
The captain had come back, and the Yankee's had used their house as their headquarters. Scarlett had stayed hidden upstairs in Melly's room. She, Wade and Melly had remained in that room the entire time the Yankees had occupied the house. Scarlett had only left the room to get them food and use the privy. Not soon enough the Yankees had left the plantation but not before destroying everything of value.
Scarlett asked Mammy, "How is mother doing?"
"Miss Carreen and Miss Suellen should pull through. Their fevers have broken. They will be sick in bed for at least another two weeks."
"And Mother?"
"You needs to go see her."
Scarlett went to the sick room that night after Wade and Melly were asleep in Melly's room. Scarlett knew her mother was in another world nonetheless Scarlett held her mother's hand and spoke to her of her great love for her mother. When her mother turned to Scarlett and said, "Phillipe. Where is Phillipe?" It broke Scarlett's heart. Scarlett knew there was a story there but for now it didn't matter.
Scarlett calmed her mother by saying, "He is on his way. Just rest easy."
Later that night she joined her Pa on the porch and helped herself to a sip of his hooch. She said, "You need to say goodbye Pa."
"I will tonight."
She left him there. She never knew if he had or hadn't visited his wife one last time. When Melly went into labor the next morning, Scarlett soon forgot all about anyone named Phillipe. Scarlett was so glad Dilcey was helping with the delivery. She was glad she was not having to do it all by herself.
That evening Scarlett experienced a miracle and a tragedy all in one night. Actually, maybe two tragedies. Melly gave birth to a son but even Scarlett knew that it had almost killed Melly to bring that child into the world. Melly should never have another child. Scarlett could not believe the amount of fear and panic that encapsulated her when she thought her beloved sister-in-law was going to die. Scarlett rejoiced that Melly, and the baby were alive.
After Scarlett left Melly's room where mother and child were resting, she saw Mammy. The pain ripped through her. She knew by the expression on Mammy's face that her beloved mother was dead. That night she talked to her father. They had a glass of hooch together and toasted Ellen O'Hara. Gerald talked about what they needed to do in order to keep everyone alive. It would be the last sane thing he ever said to her.
Scarlett went and got Wade from Prissy. She had to hold him and hug him. She let him sleep with her that night.
At the same time Rhett was standing outside of Belle's watching the Confederate army leave the city. He had one too many drinks that night for he was missing the fair Mrs. Hamilton. He decided to join the army in the eleventh hour. He knew it was a lost cause but words and memories from his youth clouded his brain. Soon he said goodbye to Belle and join the men retreating from Atlanta.
The next day her father was lost to her. Scarlett knew that his body was still alive, but Pa was dead to her and the rest of the world. Scarlett needed to be alone. She needed to think. Her mother was dead. Her Pa was lost to her. Her sisters were still in their sick beds. She had four servants she needed to take care of for a while. Melanie was going to be in her sick bed for a long time. She had a small child and a baby that she was going to have to take care of. A baby that she was going to have to find a wet-nurse for. Melly was too weak to nurse him herself. There was no food. There was no cotton. There was nothing.
Scarlett had walked to Twelve Oaks. She had looked at the ruins that once were that magnificent manor house. She had dreamed of being the mistress of this fine plantation. She knew in that moment that Ashley and Twelve Oaks had all been part of the pomp and ceremony she thought she would have. When she thought of Ashley it always filled her with anger. He had just been trifling with her affections. He had always been committed to marrying Melanie whether he loved Melly or not. She wondered if Ashley loved Melanie. She didn't know if he could love anyone. He was a milk toast. What she did know was that Melanie loved Ashley so she would continue to pray that he survived the war in one piece.
She looked through the garden for anything to eat. She found a radish and ate it. She immediately threw up for the radish was rotten. She stood up tall and looked up at the clouds overhead. She vowed, "As God is my witness, the Yankees aren't going to lick me. I'm going to live through this, and when it's over, I'm never going to be hungry again. No, nor any of my folks. If I have to steal or kill – as God is my witness, I'm never going to be hungry again."
She walked back to Tara. She was just nineteen years old and was woefully ill prepared for the task in front of her but one thing she knew, they were going to survive. She just had to figure out how they would survive until the war was over.
As she walked back to Tara, she heard a cow mooing. It had gotten itself stuck in some bushes and didn't know she had to back herself out to get free. Scarlett made a noose out of the last of her petticoat lace. While overcoming her fear of cows, she tied the noose around the cow's neck and took her back to Tara. It was the first good thing that had happened to her in a long time.
When she got back to Tara, she remembered that Dilcey had a son nine months ago. She talked to Dilcey, and she was willing to nurse the baby. Dilcey said, "Yes, I have enough milk for both my son and this little boy."
As Dilcey walked away, Scarlett thought, "If we can keep getting these blessings, we might make it until the end of the war."
Over the next eighteen months she and her little family had done what they had needed to do to survive. Sometimes willingly. Sometimes not so willingly. There had been so much crying and complaining that at times Scarlett had wanted to scream. If it weren't for Pa's hooch, she would have gone insane. A sip of the hooch made the world not seem so bad.
She had willingly killed that deserter. She had known the minute she had seen him that she was going to kill him. It had so enflamed her anger that the disgusting man had his filthy hands in her sainted mother's sewing box. She had kept telling herself, 'Just point and shoot.' She had waited for him to get really close. She had not had to fake the fear on her face. When he was close enough that she didn't think she could miss, she shot him in the face.
She had been so proud of Melly for coming with Charles's sword that she couldn't even lift. Even prouder of Melly for telling that lie so quickly. And proudest of Melly for thinking about going through the man's pockets. She had laughed at Melly for being so embarrassed to take her nightgown off. No, she had no regrets about killing that man. The money they had gotten off of him had probably saved their lives. Not to mention the horse. Scarlett laughed when she thought about the fact that nobody mentioned the horse that had suddenly showed up in the barn.
Frank Kennedy and his little group had showed up asking for food or money to help the troops. When Frank had gotten off his horse and told her they were looking for food for the army. Scarlett had said, "We barely have enough food to feed ourselves, but we can share with you."
It had made Scarlett sick to watch Suellen gush over Frank Kennedy. Yet Suellen genuinely seemed to love the man.
They had hidden the horse from him because they were afraid, he would confiscate it for the army. Even Suellen hadn't said a word about the horse. Everyone knew they needed the horse a lot more than the army.
In April, the veteran started showing up. They made a pot of soup and fed all of them. She sent them on their way. All except Will Benteen. He had been a hair's breadth away from dying but Careen had nursed him back to health. Careen was really a good person. She was so much better than Scarlett and Suellen.
Ashley had returned. It was soon apparent to Scarlett that he was useless. He was a broken man. She had wondered why but she had not spent much time thinking about it. It didn't matter to her. At that point he was just another mouth to feed. His only importance had been that he had made Melly so happy that he was still alive.
Scarlett remembered how optimistic she had been at Christmas that they were going to survive. They had harvested the cotton and sold it for a nice price. They had paid the taxes and had a little bit left over. Yet disaster had still befallen them. Two days ago, Will had brought her the news that Jonas Wilkerson had gotten his Yankee friends to raise the taxes on Tara. She needed three hundred dollars more for the extra taxes.
Scarlett was on the train to Atlanta with Mammy to try to get three hundred dollars to save Tara. She thought back over the last eighteen months. They had gotten little blessings after little blessings until Will brought the news about the taxes. Maybe she would get one more little blessing. Although considering who she was going to see she wasn't very hopeful. She was going to have to make a deal with the devil himself.