When Rebecca dropped her eyes to the expanse of skin before her, she did indeed find a great surprise. The Colonel’s back was covered with scars left by a sound thrashing by a whip. "What happened?" She asked as she ran her hand over the old scars.
"I took a beating many years ago."
"Why?"
"Someone was going to be beaten for something he did not do. They accused him of stealing food."
"And you said he did not do it?"
Charlie nodded.
"How did you know he did not?"
"Because I gave it to him. His family was starving and he just wanted a little food for them. I gave him the food and when he was accused of stealing it, I told them he had not. But my father said that someone had to pay for it, either the slave or me."
"So you took the beating for him?"
"He was a ten year old boy trying to feed his family. Anyway, it was a long time ago." She laid her forehead on her knees. Clearly, the subject was closed for now.
The thought that her own father had inflicted the scars on Charlie’s body touched Rebecca deeply. Carefully washing her back, tears stung her eyes. There was so much nobility in this person. As the lady watched the officer, she could see small hints of the toll all that nobility had taken on her body and soul.
Rebecca rinsed Charlie’s back then pulled her gently back so her neck was resting in her hand. "I will wash your hair."
"I can do that, Miss Rebecca. You have been so kind. I do not want to be a further burden to you."
"Let me." She whispered, moving closer to the tub. "Let me take care of you, Colonel Redmond. You need it, and you deserve it."
"I do not deserve anything, Miss Rebecca. I am just a soldier doing my job."
"You can tell yourself that all you want. You believe what you want, and I will believe what I want. I believe that you deserve it."
"Thank you."
"You are welcome." She answered sincerely as she poured water over Charlie’s head and lathered her scalp, giving it a good scrubbing. She was a little shocked at first when a single, deep moan escaped the Colonel’s chest. She felt her relax as she continued washing her hair. Soon she realized that Charlie was sound asleep once again. Carefully, she finished up, gently placing the woman’s neck back on the rim of the tub, allowing her to rest for what Rebecca was sure would be the first time in a long while.
Leaving the bathing room, she took the Colonel’s dirty clothes to the wet sink to give them a good scrubbing. Once that was done, the trousers where placed on the drying rack, while the shirt and the mending kit were taken to the parlor.
She settled down in her last remaining easy chair. It was her favorite and she had decided Lincoln himself would have to come get it before she would surrender it. Placing the kit on the table, she removed thimble, needle, and thread. She was amazed by how happy this simple act of mending the shirt made her. Certainly, she had been forced to tend her own clothes , but doing it for Charlie just made her feel useful again. It was a very comfortable feeling.
The tear actually required a small patch, but it was fixed quickly. Just as Rebecca was bringing the thread to her teeth to nip it, she looked up to find the Colonel standing in the doorway. She was bathed and dressed in the clothes that Rebecca had left for her. She gave a shy smile and tugged at the suspenders. "I look like a farmer."
"Indeed you do. It is a look that suits you."
Charlie gave a little snort. "I do not know how to be anything but a soldier. It is a good thing I do not own a farm."
Rebecca placed the shirt in her lap and considered Charlie as she stood there. "You are absolutely right, Colonel. A farm would not be the proper place for you. Now a fine plantation or an outstanding stud stable would do well to have someone like you taking care of it."
"You are very kind."
"No. You are very kind. Tell me, Colonel Redmond, what will you do after the war?"
He walked further into the room, taking a seat on the davenport. "I imagine I will be given a base command somewhere. They may ship me to a fort in the Western Territory."
"Is that what you want to do?"
Charlie stared at his hands as he considered it. "I really do not know anything else. I have been in the army most of my life. It is my home. At least the only home I know. I am sure it probably will be until the day I die.
For some reason, Rebecca had a vision of a casket being lowered in the ground with only a minister and the gravediggers there to pay their respects. It was not a good feeling, the thought that this very kind person would have no one with her in her final days. "It sounds lonely."
"It is. But it is the life I chose. I can never have a normal life, Miss Rebecca. I will always be Charlie Redmond. It is who I am, for better or for worse." He drew a deep breath then stood up. "Well, Miss Rebecca, thank you for the lovely bath," he gestured to the shirt in the woman’s lap. "And for fixing my shirt. I will go back out to camp now and get out of your way."
"You are not in my way, Colonel."
"Please call me Charlie."
A small laugh escaped as she quirked a brow. "It fits you."
"Yes, I know. Charlie always fit better than Charlotte."
"Maybe it is because you are so damn big."
"Could be," A small, quirky grin lit his face for a moment.
"Colonel Redmond," Rebecca started in a most shy fashion. "I have been alone here a long time. It is nice to have someone to talk to. Would you stay for a bit? Maybe you could tell me some news of the world."
"I am not sure you would want the kind of news that I have to offer. I have not had leave for sometime. I am afraid the only thing I could tell you about would be the battles I have been in and I would not dare offend your sensibilities by telling you such things."
Rebecca nodded. "Thank you, Colonel Redmond. Perhaps we could talk about other things. Where are you from?"
"Charleston."
"Charleston, South Carolina? How……?" She stopped, knowing that she had no right to ask how a southern woman ended up in the Union Army. "Me, I have never been out of Virginia."
"Virginia is a beautiful place."
"When we are not at war."
"Indeed."
Rebecca took a deep breath, looking up as if she were remembering a time very long ago. "Everything has changed, has it not, Colonel?"
"I am afraid so, Miss Rebecca. Things will never be the same again. The world you knew is long gone, left to historians and philosophers."
The blonde smiled. "You read philosophy, Colonel?"
"When I can get my hands on books. They are rare and very hard to come by when you are moving from one campaign to the next."
"When was the last time you had leave?"
"Two years ago."
"Why so long?"
"No sense in taking leave when you really have no place to go."
"What of your family? Your home, in Charleston?"
"I have no family. Not any more."
Rebecca’s heart knew the pain of losing everyone you loved. Her parents were long dead and her bother had been killed soon after eagerly joining the Army of Virginia. Her husband had died almost exactly a year ago in yet another senseless battle. And while she had never really loved her husband, she did mourn for the useless loss of life. To her, it was all so senseless. "I am so sorry, Colonel Redmond."
Charlie shrugged. "I guess it is too late to be sorry. I made my choices a long time ago. I have learned to live with them." He sighed, and then looked at the blonde. "Miss Rebecca, I think you should know. My men probably think that I have been in here……umm……well……"
"Having your way with me?"