A/N: WHEW. This one was a long one, compared to the last few, and there is a bit of back history/filler, but I think you'll love it. Make sure to read the note at the end, as well.

Chapter 16: Rhett

"Scarlett isn't here. They left in the night. No notice." Suellen seemed irritated as she stood in the doorway of Tara. She hadn't invited him in, even after he identified himself. Rhett wondered if the irritation was directed at him or at the sudden departure of her sister.

"Do you know where she would head?"

Suellen looked him up and down. "What does it matter to you? You divorced her, didn't you?"

Rhett sighed. At least he had part of his answer. Her irritation was directed at him- or at least part of it. "Yes, but I need to speak with her, it's urgent."

"Well, I don't know where they all went- Carreen is gone too. And, of course, Colum."

The unfamiliar name brought Rhett's recollection back to the male walking with Scarlett in Atlanta when he'd seen her from afar. "Colum?"

"Our cousin, from Ireland. He followed her over here to help with Careen."

Rhett just bet he did. Scarlett always had a way of having men willing to do whatever it took for her while barely giving them anything but a smile and a fluttering of her eyelashes back to them. He found he was slightly less irrritated at the prospect of another man in her life, knowing that it was her cousin, but still- hadn't Ashley married his cousin, as well? It wasn't all that uncommon.

"Do you think she was headed back to Ireland?"

Suellen sighed. "I told you I don't know where they've gone or why they've left, Captain Butler. I'm afraid I can't be of any further assistance. Good day." Suellen closed the door she'd been holding in his face, and Rhett stood there momentarily.

No one had called him Captain Butler since he'd left Atlanta. He wondered why Suellen was so irritated at him and thought perhaps Scarlett had told her how he failed her in their marriage. The last he knew, the two sisters barely spoke to each other- Suellen having never forgiven Scarlett for marrying Frank Kennedy. Rhett placed the hat he'd removed back on his head and turned to walk away.

Frustrated, he knew his best chance was to head to Ireland- stopping in the towns along the way to ask if they'd seen there and hope to locate her there. Two things comforted him- one, that she seemed to have at least developed some mothering instinct if she willingly took a child with her and two, she appeared to be well known in Ireland, and tracking her down wouldn't be hard.

Rhett traveled back through Atlanta and Savannah before arriving in Charleston. No one has seen Scarlett, and he wouldn't tell anyone why he was looking for her, for fear news that his son might be alive and get back to his mother. It would be even worse if she found out and then it was determined that the baby Scarlett rescued was not his.

Eleanor Butler had loved Rhett Junior immediately. Before he'd been born, Eleanor had helped Anne decorate the nursery and pick out clothes to wear during her pregnancy. She'd doted on Anne in a way she hadn't had the chance to dote on Scarlett. After Anne had told Eleanor that she saw Scarlett walking to Ashley's hotel room with Rhett, she developed a deep hatred for his former wife and a deep devotion to Anne.

As he made arrangements to travel north and board the soonest ship to Ireland, Rhett had a lot of time to think about the past. Specifically, the years since he'd left Scarlett- and the time since he'd divorced her. He still remembered the unwelcome excitement when she arrived, unannounced and unapologetic, at his mother's home in Charleston. Scarlett had made no secret that she was there to win him back.

He'd made her the bargain- that he'd play the part of devoted husband to her throughout the season, and then she'd accept the divorce at the end- knowing she had no intent on keeping it. Secretly, he knew he'd enjoy playing the part with her- as much as he'd enjoy ending everything at the end. He was still bitter about their life together. The season passed, and even Rhett had to admit that he'd enjoyed their time together.

As they danced the last dance of the season, he felt a pain in his chest, much like the night that Scarlett moved from Mellie's death bed and straight to the side of Ashley Wilkes. The recent months had been almost a dream- a reminder of what could have been had circumstances been different when they met. It was also a cementing factor for Rhett, who refused to believe that their strange peace could last longer and that they could each give their marriage another chance.

As they walked the boardwalk by the ocean in Charleston, Scarlett looked up at him like Bonnie would have- when she wanted something from him and begged to take a boat ride on his small sailboat. Knowing that Scarlett would be returning to Atlanta the next day, with the agreement to sign divorce papers, made it easier to give her this one last request.

Rhett still carried guilt that he'd boarded the boat with her while dark and gloomy skies lurked on the horizon. He chastised himself that he had been so caught up in her laughter and smiles that he didn't see those same clouds moving closer until it was too late. His boat capsized in minutes, and the two were tossed into the choppy waves. He'd barely made it to Scarlett before the ocean had swallowed her- the water soaking into her gown and sinking her. Once they'd made it to shore, she was unconscious in his arms, and as he sat with her in a rundown shack on a local beach, he worried that she might never open her eyes again.

Scarlett's eyes had opened again, and the joy he felt throughout his whole body made him forget everything except his love for her. As he kissed and held her, he didn't think about what would come the next day. As he made love to her- in a way he hadn't since their honeymoon, he allowed himself to imagine that all was right in the world.

Still, the next day did come, and once daylight and reasoning came back to Rhett, he knew that nothing had changed. He ensured Scarlett was back at his mother's house and left a note for her- explaining that he wouldn't be returning her. He spent a month boarded up in a hotel room, ignoring everyone and everything as he buried himself in alcohol.

Then, he'd received news from his mother that Scarlett had been seen going to Ashley's hotel room. It was a sobering bit of information, and the rage that filled him made every other fit of anger he'd had in his marriage pale in comparison. The next day, Rhett had his lawyers draw up the divorce papers, and a week later, he'd had them delivered to Scarlett- who was now in Savannah with her family. Then, he swore to never think about her again.

Eleanor had barely batted an eye six months later when Rhett informed her that he would marry Anne and never once questioned the household staff's rumors about why Rhett had proposed. The night he spent in Anne's room, he'd been drunk- too drunk to perform any actions that he might have accomplished, but Rhett had kissed and touched her in those dark hours- half envisioning Scarlett, and when he woke the following day, he'd known what he'd had to do.

He and Anne never spoke about that night again. Anne knew that even though she was married, her reputation would suffer, and Rhett because he realized in shame that he'd used Anne as a poor substitute for Scarlett. Despite the reason for the start of their marriage, Rhett could, in good conscience, admit to having loved Anne. It hadn't been with the firey passion that he'd loved Scarlett, but he convinced himself it was better that way. After all, fires are destructive, and they kill everything around them. If that wasn't the epitome of definition for what he and Scarlett's relationship did, he didn't know what was.

Anne was easy to love as she was. She was soft-spoken and kind. Anne didn't argue with him or meddle in his business. She seemed unaffected by his wealth and spent her free time before the end of her pregnancy doing charitable work with his mother. She was, Rhett had to admit, as near to good of a woman as Miss Mellie, though he didn't think anyone would ever compare completely in his eyes.

Finally, a week later, Rhett looked up at the large steamboat carrying him and 800 other passengers to Ireland and England- the SS Celtic. As he boarded the ship, he felt the first bit of calmness since learning that his son might be alive. He thought that maybe- just for once, things would finally go in his favor.

A:N: Fun fact; the SS Celtic was a real ship, her primary route took her from Liverpool, to Queenstown (Ireland), to New York City. She was a boiler-fed steam engine that was actually in service during the time of this story. Side fun facts- she was owned by THE White Star Line (as in Titanic's owners), had several sea mishaps, including colliding with Titanic's sister ship, Brittanic, AND had a an interesting Fourth Officer- Edward Smith- the one day Captain of the Titanic.

Special Thanks to my readers and reviewers: Mistress, ScarlettGator, PrincessAlica, tutu3791, newreader2022, Truckee Gal, MissTricey, GuestMaryJ, and Guest(s)