Disclaimer: I own nothing regarding GWTW

Author's Notes: Thank you for all the reviews and feedback.

While I was on my break, I worked on my quilts but what took the most time was babysitting my grandsons. Almost every day for one reason or another since I have been in Texas, I have had to watch at least one of my grandsons. Their ages are six, three, and eighteen months so there isn't much sitting while I am taking care of them. Enough about me, on with the story.

Prologue Part Two

The next morning Rhett woke up with a hang over, but his emotional pain was so much worse than his physical pain. He took his hang over cure-all and so physically he felt better. He went out and bought a horse. A fine horse. A horse of the finest quality. The price had not been important. All he had now was his money. Money that he had made to prove to his father that despite his father disowning him he had still triumphed. His money was cold comfort to him now. His money was all he had, and he would have the finest things until he died which he hoped was soon.

Rhett rode his horse to Rough and Ready. He found the place he had abandoned her. The place he had once again insulted her by asking her to have relations with him without marriage. The place he had dragged her away from the wagon not caring if he had hurt her. The place that he had thrown away everything of value once again. Scarlett, Miss Melly, Wade, and that newborn baby.

Rhett rode back into Rough and Ready. There was a general store that he went into. He asked the clerk, "Do you know where a plantation called Tara is?"

"Yes sir, but there isn't anyone there anymore."

Rhett took a dollar out of his wallet and offered it to the man. He then sadly said, "I am aware of that, but I need to go there anyway."

The man took the dollar and said, "Walk outside with me," After the men were outside the store owner said, "See that road there," With Rhett's nod the man continued, "Go down that road for about thirty-five minutes. You will get to a fork in the road. Go to the right. After about five more minutes you will be at Tara. After another five minutes you will be at the main house."

"Thank you."

Rhett rode along the road that was clearly marked. Not fifteen minutes later he knew where Scarlett had died. Fifteen minutes! Fifteen lousy minutes! He would come back to look for her grave.

Thirty minutes later he was at Tara. All together it was just forty-five minutes! He couldn't give her forty-five more minutes! Forty-five lousy minutes. Why? Why? Why had he abandoned her?

Rhett had abandoned Scarlett because he had felt guilt about not defending the South therefore to ease his guilt, he had abandoned her. The only person he had been concerned about in that moment was himself. The truth was the only person he had ever been concerned about was himself.

Rhett went back to the place that Scarlett had died. He walked around until he found what looked like three graves. He didn't know which one was hers, but he chose one and laid down upon it with his arm spread wide. He cried. He cried like he had when his father had kicked him out of their townhouse. He had once again thrown away everything of importance.

Rhett got on his horse and rode back to Atlanta. He once again called at the Hamilton House. He asked Pittypat, "Is Mr. Wilkes available to talk to me? I have a question to ask him."

"No, Mr. Kennedy gave him a job as a clerk at his store."

"I will go down there and speak to him. Where is Mr. Kennedy's store?"

"It is at 500 Main Street."

"Thank you."

With that Rhett left Hamilton House and went to Mr. Kennedy's store. As Rhett entered the store, he noticed that it was a nice little store, and he bet Kennedy was making a profit. That is if he wasn't giving out too much credit. After he saw Mr. Wilkes, he walked up to the counter he was standing behind. Rhett said, "Do you remember me?"

"Yes, you are Rhett Butler. The man it seems who had been right about the South's chances to win the war."

"Yes, I am. I loved Scarlett and I am going to pay some men to move her body to Tara after I buy it at the sheriff's auction. When I do, do you want me to have your wife and son's bodies moved to Twelve Oaks or to a cemetery in Atlanta."

"I cannot afford to move Melly and my son's bodies," Sadly Ashley said, "I don't even know what she named our son. I think it was Beauregard for my commander, but I was already in the prisoner of war camp by then. It could have been John for my father or even George for me. So, I just don't know."

"Just decide it was Beauregard."

"I don't know."

Scarlett said, "God's nightgown. Just pick one of them. You knew she preferred Beauregard so choose that one. How did you put up with him dithering like that?"

Melanie giggled and said, "I didn't. I would just tell him which way we were going to go."

"In other words, you stepped up and did what Ashley should have done."

"I guess so."

The spirits both laughed.

Scarlett then said, "Did you tell him that the two of you were going to get married?"

"Yes. He had come into Atlanta to get supplies for the plantation. He stopped by to have dinner with Aunt PittyPat and me. Charlie was at work. I said, 'Now is a good time for us to get married. I am healthy and the war hasn't started.' He said, 'Most of the miseries of the world have been caused by war.' I said, 'So we are agreed. We will announce our engagement at your birthday party.' He said, 'Yes.' Aunt PittyPat and I started planning my wedding right then. If the war hadn't started, we would have been married in the fall."

"Fiddle dee, that was why the man could not tell me to go away. He couldn't make up his mind which one of us he wanted."

"True, I was his intellectual equal while he wanted you on a more earthy level."

"That and he knew I would run his plantation for him."

"True."

"Now hush so we can hear."

"Mr. Wilkes, I am not going to leave the bodies out there without a coffin or a headstone. The only thing you have to decide is where you want your wife and child reburied."

"I guess here. I cannot afford to keep Twelve Oaks either. I have nothing now."

"Then when I moved Scarlett's body, I will move your wife's body also."

"Thank you, Captain Butler. That is kind of you."

"Not at all. I will not allow Miss Melly to be buried in an unmarked grave somewhere between here and Tara. She was too fine a woman for that."

"Yes, she was."

"Did you love her? Or did you love Scarlett?"

"Of course, I loved my wife. Scarlett was just my friend."

"Mr. Wilkes, I overheard your entire conversation with Scarlett that day in the library at Twelve Oaks. I was lying on the couch trying to take a nap. Therefore, stop pretending to be something you aren't. An honorable man."

Ashley sighed and said, "I loved Scarlett but in an entirely different way than the way I loved Melly."

"In other words, you lusted after Scarlett, but you knew that Miss Melly was more compatible with you."

Rhett didn't wait for an answer. He just turned and walked away. He was so disgusted by Mr. Wilkes that all he could do was walk away. He, in fact, was mad at Mr. Wilkes for having made Scarlett stay in Atlanta to take care of his wife. Yet, his greatest anger was at himself. He was the one who had abandoned her at Rough and Ready.

As Rhett was walking back to the hotel, he passed a Catholic church. He decided to go talk to the priest. He walked through the church to the back. He found the offices. He even found the priest. He said, "My name is Rhett Butler. May I speak with you?"

"Certainly, Mr. Butler. My name is Father Bluett."

"I did a horrible thing, and it caused my wife to be killed."

"What did you do?"

Rhett stared at the priest. He could not say the words. The words that would let another human being know exactly what he had done. He stood up and said, "I'm sorry for disturbing you. I'm still not strong enough to talk about it."

"Maybe it would be easier if we sat in the confessional booth. That way you can talk like you are talking straight to God. He already knows."

"Alright."

Scarlett said, "Rhett is going into the confessional booth. That is odd. He doesn't believe in God."

"He doesn't believe in God. How can he not?"

"He says there is no proof of a higher power."

"There is proof in a baby's smile. In a sunrise. In a…"

"I get your point. Now hush so we can hear how he tells God the awful thing he did that got me killed."

After Rhett was seated, he said, "This reminds me of a coffin."

"Why?"

"It is small and dark. There aren't any windows."

The priest laughed. He said, "That is the point, Sir, so nobody will be able to see you. So nobody but God and I will hear what you are saying."

"I abandoned my wife in the middle of a battlefield with nothing but a gun to defend herself with."

"Go on."

"Not just her but her sister-in-law from her first marriage, her son from her first marriage, a new-born baby, and her servant."

"Why did you do that?"

"To go fight in the war."

"How did she die?"

"They all died because of me. Some deserters found them, robbed them, and killed them. It was only fifteen minutes after I left her. I could have taken her all the way to her parents but no! I felt a sudden feeling of patriotism for the South and had to go defend it."

"How long have you known you were responsible for their deaths?"

"I found out yesterday."

Rhett was quiet for a long time. Finally, Fr. Bluett said, "You want me to tell you to say one hundred rosaries and your guilt will go away. Or give so much money to the needy and your guilt will go away. Or help so many people and your guilt will go away. The only thing that is going to make your guilt ease is to accept that you made a bad decision for whatever reason. I am sorry Mr. Butler that I am not able to give you comfort in your time of deep pain."

Rhett walked out of the church and despite the priest words of not being able to lessen his feelings of guilt he was going to find some charities to give some of his money to. He stopped and turned around and walked back into the church.

When Fr. Bluett saw him, he said, "Mr. Butler?"

"Despite what you said about my giving money to the needy won't make my guilt go away let me give you some money for your widows and orphans charity."

"I will, of course, take your money."

The next week Rhett took the train to Charleston. If there was anywhere besides Rough and Ready where he needed to atone it was in Charleston. He had gotten a private car to sleep in but the rest of the time he was in the main cars looking for people to talk to. He didn't want to be alone with his thoughts.

The first place he went once he had arrived in Charleston was the cemetery. He hoped he would be able to find Caroline's grave pretty quickly. After about an hour of looking he finally found the Clarkes burial plot. Rhett got down on his knees and said, "I'm sorry."

Scarlett said, "I didn't think he actually knew the word."

Melanie giggled and shushed Scarlett by saying, "I want to hear what he is going to tell Caroline."

Rhett had paused after saying he was sorry. He had to get his emotions together. He said, "Refusing to marry you was a pretty awful thing to have done. I ruined you and the only thing you had done was go on a buggy ride with me. If I knew then what I know now, I would have married you and just lived my life the way I wanted to live it. Furthermore, you had to continue living in Charleston while I was able to leave. I was not forced to endure the shunning. I know that my saying I'm sorry doesn't change anything, but I had to say it."

"Scarlett, he does regret his actions. He actually apologized."

"He apologized to a dead woman without anyone around. He did that to make himself feel better."

"How can you be so skeptical?"

"Because that old man said he would send us back if we all learned from our mistakes. I have to be sure Rhett learned from his mistakes so he and I can have a bright future."

"I certainly learned from mine. Not to always obey another person. If I hadn't stayed in Atlanta and had instead gone to Macon with Aunt PittyPat then I would be alive right now."

"If you had gone to Macon, I would have gone to Tara. I was only in Atlanta because you were in Atlanta, and I had promised Ashley to take care of you. Maybe I would have gone to Macon also to take care of you."

"I also wouldn't have been so nice all the time."

"I wouldn't have been so stubborn."

"I wouldn't have always strived to do the right thing instead of the fun thing."

"I would have shown my son love and attention from day one."