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Chapters (50)
  1. Cover
  2. Half Title Page
  3. Books by Elizabeth Camden
  4. Title Page
  5. Dedication
  6. One
  7. Two
  8. Three
  9. Four
  10. Five
  11. Six
  12. Seven
  13. Eight
  14. Nine
  15. Ten
  16. Eleven
  17. Twelve
  18. Thirteen
  19. Fourteen
  20. Fifteen
  21. Sixteen
  22. Seventeen
  23. Eighteen
  24. Nineteen
  25. Twenty
  26. Twenty-One
  27. Twenty-Two
  28. Twenty-Three
  29. Twenty-Four
  30. Twenty-Five
  31. Twenty-Six
  32. Twenty-Seven
  33. Twenty-Eight
  34. Twenty-Nine
  35. Thirty
  36. Thirty-One
  37. Thirty-Two
  38. Thirty-Three
  39. Thirty-Four
  40. Thirty-Five
  41. Thirty-Six
  42. Thirty-Seven
  43. Thirty-Eight
  44. Thirty-Nine
  45. Historical Note
  46. Questions for Discussion
  47. In 2021, look for Luke Delacroix’s story in
  48. About the Author
  49. Back Ads
  50. Back Cover

“If you hadn’t gotten yourself arrested for treason, I wouldn’t have had to!”

Caroline flinched. This cell was too small for the anger roiling between her brothers. “Stop it, both of you. Luke, we can get you out, but only if you cooperate. Will you let us help you?” She held her breath, barely able to hold on to her composure. It was made worse by the misery in Luke’s eyes.

“I’m sorry to let you down,” he said. “A thousand times, I’m sorry, but this is where I deserve to be. I won’t sneak away.”

“At least let us try to get you into an American prison. Conditions will be—”

He cut her off, grabbing both her shoulders and looking her directly in the eyes. “I need you to listen to me,” he said, giving her shoulders a shake, his voice uncharacteristically stern. “I am exactly where I need to be, and you need to leave this alone. Do you hear what I’m saying?”

“I hear you. I don’t agree.”

“Leave it alone, Caroline,” he warned again, his face hard. “I don’t want a transfer to an American prison.” He dropped his hands and looked away. When he turned to her again, his eyes were sad, but he summoned a smile. “I don’t want to drag you down with me,” he said. “Go back to Washington and set the city on fire. Do something amazing. Sail alongside the eagles and never look back. And, Caroline, as much as I appreciate your visit, please don’t come back. I don’t want you remembering me like this.”

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Caroline stood on the deck of the steamship, hands clasping the railing as the vessel plowed through the sea toward home. Gray stood beside her, silently looking into the horizon, his thoughts surely as dark as her own. Wind buffeted them with its salty tang and stinging mist.

“I’m not giving up,” she said firmly, but her voice was carried off by the wind.

“There may come a time when you’ll need to become resigned to it,” Gray said gently.

The words stung because they were true.

Twenty

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Nathaniel ordered the officer at the guardhouse to inform him the moment Caroline returned to the White House. It was nearing midnight, and he should have left his office hours ago, but knowing Caroline’s return from Cuba was imminent made sleep impossible. Besides, he still had plenty of work planning the cross-country trip the president insisted upon. They would stop at sixty-eight locations, and he needed to contact the local police at each stop. He dialed up the kerosene in the desk lantern and focused on the harbor of Natchez, where the president and his wife would enjoy a brief riverboat excursion.