I have not had word of all the others who were injured but I understand most recovered from their wounds. I would be most grateful if you would advise me of the status of your men in Pennsylvania. I am asking Captain Braddock to keep me advised of the condition of the Ohioans who mustered out under his charge.
Several of our men have chosen to settle here in Culpeper and build new lives. In particular, Tarent and MacFarlane are working the stables here for me, and Jocko has chosen to remain as well. It surprised me that young Duncan Nailer stayed on, but then, he and Mrs. Carter seem to be exploring their common friendship through young Jeremiah. I would not be surprised to see them marry sometime in the future.
Richard Polk has taken over from Major Byrnes as the Military/Civilian liaison in the area. I would not be surprised if he resigned his commission and took up civilian politics in this community. As one would expect of Colonel Polk, he has managed to charm the ladies and make the gentlemen his cronies. We do expect him to be somewhat tamed in the coming months, as he and Dr. Walker will wed next month. I do not expect the good Doctor will allow our friend too much latitude in his personal dealings in the future.
I hope this letter has found you in good health, and happily reunited with your family and look forward to receiving word from you on the progress of our men as they return to civilian life.
Cordially,
Chas. Redmond
Brig. General, U.S. Army (Ret.)
Charlie looked at the letter he had written, one of almost a hundred sending condolences and inquiring after the health and status of his men who had been killed or injured in the last days of the war. He sat back and considered the events of the past month, since he had truly begun his journey to recovery.
The last part of May had been an interesting time on the farm. Many of the families who had been taken in had found their way to other things. Charlie and Rebecca had purchased another two dozen horses. This had resulted in Tarent and McFarlane hiring on another three hands to help take care of the rapidly growing herd.
Richard and Elizabeth set a date for their wedding. Rebecca considered it to be one of the things that had inspired Charlie to work harder to get better. He was getting stronger everyday and took getting out of the house very seriously. He had managed to avoid his own wedding plans, and, now that more plans were in the offing, was once again purposely making himself scarce. Wedding plans were a little more than Charlie could handle.
There had also been an incident, which helped Charlie and Albert get to know each other better. Shannon, in a fit of pregnant pique, bit Jack on the neck, removing a chunk of flesh about the size of a ten dollar gold piece. Charlie’s arm was still not serviceable enough to do the hard work, but he calmed Jack while Albert did the work of patching the horse up. It gave the two a chance to get to know each other and it gave Charlie a chance to thank Albert for taking care of the farm and Rebecca while he was unable to do so.
Jocko had managed to start formally courting Mrs. White and young Duncan had done the same with Jeremiah’s mother, Samantha Carter. Rebecca wondered if she would ever see Charlie in the house again if they all decided to get married.
Culpeper was slowly starting to recover from the horrors it had been subjected to, and people were starting to settle into the community once again. A few new buildings were being constructed, including the new schoolhouse. Someone had suggested Richard would make a fine marshal once his retirement was ratified, and he had been heard to be considering it, but he would have to see what the future Mrs. Polk would have to say about it.
Charlie and Richard had discussed the idea of building a clinic for Elizabeth as a wedding gift, but they were terrible at keeping the secret and she soon found out. A short time later she hired a young man who had recently returned home to draw up the plans.
Charlie had begun correspondence with Mr. Cooke about the possibility of opening a bank in Culpeper. The need for investment capital was great, and Charlie felt he would soon see progress in that direction.
Evenings were spent with their friends and with their children. Em was learning her alphabet, making both her Mama and Papa very proud. Little Charlie was starting to push himself up and hold his head up for longer amounts of time. Andy had a minor bout of colic, which kept Rebecca and Charlie up for three days straight, but they were more than happy to be tending to the youngest of their brood.
Bedtime had found Charlie and Rebecca settling into a new ritual. Rebecca first washed Charlie’s wounds with warm water, then applied a lotion Elizabeth had given them. She said it would help Charlie’s scars fade and while they would never be completely gone, would help to reduce them. Charlie loved the extra attention and his fears that Rebecca would be repulsed by his injuries began to fade along with the scars.
Of course Rebecca knew Charlie was getting spoiled rotten and she would still be applying lotion long after there was no further need, but she really did not mind. All that mattered to her was that Charlie was there with her.
--*--
Charlie smiled. It was good to be getting back into a routine, good to be able to walk upstairs under his own power. With daily exercise, he was beginning to regain use of his right arm, and to regain some strength in his right leg. The extensive loss of muscle tissue meant he would never be totally normal; but he kept working and exercising, trying to build up some flexibility and strength in the ravaged tissue. His right hand still ached, and Elizabeth warned him that he would probably feel the ghosts of those missing fingers for the rest of his life, but he could hold a pen, a knife, and a fork now, so he was spared the indignity of having to have his food cut up for him like a child.
The back door to his office banged open. Em had learned several new things, one of which was that Charlie’s office was always available to her when her father was in it.
"Papa, look. Fishy in rock. Why, Papa?" Tess trailed behind her impetuous charge.
Charlie looked at the rock clutched in Em’s rather grubby hand. "It is called a fossil, Em. When this fishy died a long, long time ago, the body lay on the sand at the bottom of the pond. More sand covered it up and over time, the sand turned into rock." Charlie and Tess exchanged sympathetic looks and then Charlie motioned for Tess to leave; he would look after his daughter for a while.
Em looked at the piece of sandstone and thought for a minute. "Why, Papa?"
Charlie rolled his eyes. ‘‘Why’ had remained Em’s favorite word and at times, he was hard pressed to come up with an answer he thought she might be able to understand. Finally, he had an idea. "Come with me, little one."
They walked down to the pond, where Charlie picked up a handful of wet, clay-ridden sand. "See, Em. It is loose sand, right?" She nodded as he pressed it into a compact ball. "Now, when I press on it, it gets harder." She nodded again. "When things press on it for a long time –– a very long time –– it will get even harder." He took the wet clay ball and walked with the child to the stone barn. "So, we will find a big rock and press it even more, then let it dry out. Then you can see it get even harder." Em watched, fascinated, as Charlie found a couple of stones and made a makeshift brick mold. "Now, we will come back in a couple of days and see what happens."
Charlie felt very proud of himself. He had started his daughter on the path of experimentation. Then it started again.
"Papa? Why are rocks hard?"
Charlie’s shoulders slumped. Then he had an inspiration. It was almost lunchtime. "Let us go ask your Mama."
Rebecca stood at the window of the back parlor and watched her oldest child and husband make their way up the lawn. Em was grubby, as she often was lately. That child could and would get into anything and everything. Keeping her grubby fingers out of her mouth was a major challenge. Charlie walked along steadily, leaning on one crutch to support his weight. Soon, she thought, he would graduate to a cane for good.