Besieged

have to get rid of her, and the sooner the better!'

'I can't find a buyer to take her bond,' Kieran admitted to his wife when pressed about the situation that evening.

'The wench is lying on her back for any and all, Rois tells me,' Fortune said angrily.

'I know,' he admitted unhappily. 'That is why I can't get anyone to take her bond. No decent woman will have the wench in her house. I'm sorry, sweetheart. I only meant to give you servants as you have always had. I didn't want you to be unhappy in Mary's Land.'

Shaking her head ruefully Fortune cuddled her husband on her breasts. 'What a coil,' she said. 'Well, there is no other choice. We will have to send her back to England with a purse to keep her. I cannot have her whoring from our home. It will bring us into disrepute if we appear to be allowing it, and how can we stop her short of shackling her?' She paused. 'Perhaps we should so she can't run off all the time where we cannot find her. I think we should have her whipped, and put in the stocks. That will show everyone that we do not condone her bad behavior. Then we will shackle her ankles so she cannot roam.'

'It's harsh,' he said, 'but I agree. The Cardiff Rose is back one final time this year. When she sails for England Comfort Rogers will be aboard her, I promise you, Fortune. We can't be bothered with such a wayward wench.'

Fortune called her servants together the following morning. 'I am well aware,' she began, 'of the bad behavior of some of you. You are put on notice that I will not tolerate it any longer. I will sell the bond of any whose behavior is not Christian, or proper.' She looked sternly at the four bondmen, who, though they professed the Puritan faith, had been as dissolute as anyone else. 'Comfort Rogers, you are not to leave the house without my permission. Do you understand me?'

Comfort glared sullenly at her mistress, but was silent.

Fortune did not press the issue. The decision had been made concerning Comfort's fate.

'About time,' Mrs. Hawkins said to Dolly, the nursemaid. 'I wouldn't be surprised to see her gone, and sooner than later.'

'Do you really think mistress will sell her off?' Dolly asked.

'If they can find someone to take the jade,' Mrs. Hawkins said. 'I'm sick unto death of hearing how master looks at her. The wench needs a good beating, I tells you.'

'She probably wouldn't mind if master administered it,' Dolly giggled. 'Owww!' She rubbed her arm where Mrs. Hawkins had smacked her with a hard wooden spoon. 'What was that for?'

'You mind yer tongue, Dolly,' the cook warned. 'The mistress loves her man dearly, and he, her. I'll not listen to such talk, and shame on you who are in charge of the little ones.'

'I didn't mean anything,' Dolly said, stricken.

'I know,' Mrs. Hawkins soothed her, confident she had restored order. 'Now be a good lass, and run along. I've a brace of ducks to clean and stuff for tonight's dinner.'

Standing in the shadow of the keeping room's outside door, Comfort had listened to the two women. Mrs. Hawkins was an old cow, and Dolly too soft and stupid. When I'm mistress of this house, Comfort thought, I'll send them both packing. I'll be the one selling their bonds. Master Kieran will never send me away. He loves me except he can't admit it because of her. His hoity-toity lady wife with her flaming pate, and white, white skin. Ihate her! What is it the Indians call her? Touched-by-Fire. That's it! I wonder if some big buck with his red-brown body would like rummaging between her milky thighs. Ohhh, she'd scream, she would. If she weren't around Master Kieran would turn to me. Iknow he would! Says I can't leave the house without her fine ladyship's permission, does she? I'll show her! I'll go where I like, and when I like. I'll have no bitch like my old mistress back in London ordering me about. I showed that one, and I'll show this one!

She needed to get away from the house. She needed a man stuffing her full with his want, but now the menservants would be chary of her, Comfort realized. Damn her ladyship! What difference is it to her that the men were swiving me? I wasn't hurting nobody. Ohh, it's all right if her, with her belly, gets serviced, but not poor me. Well, I'll fix her soon enough, the bitch!

***

'Mistress Fortune.' Prosper, one of the bondmen, was speaking.

Fortune looked up from the chair before the house where she and Rois were sewing infant garments. 'Yes, Prosper, what is it?'

' 'Tis Comfort, yer ladyship. She's going off into the woods again. We saw her from the fields.'

Fortune jumped up. 'That damned girl! She'll get lost again.'

'Nay, yer ladyship,' the bondman said. 'Comfort knows the woods hereabouts better than any. Every bit as good as the Indians.'

'Does she?' This was rather interesting news. Was it possible that Comfort had deliberately pretended to be lost the day they arrived? 'Show me where she is,' Fortune said. 'Rois, go and tell Kieran I have gone after the troublesome bitch, and that tomorrow she goes into St. Mary's to the stocks, and for a whipping.'

'She'll come back, m'lady,' Rois said. 'Don't go after the wench.'

'She's deliberately disobeyed me, and in front of the others,' Fortune said. 'If I do not fetch her back myself, I shall lose control of my household.' Turning Fortune followed the bondman.

He led her to the edge of the tobacco fields, pointing out the path that Comfort had taken. 'I'll go with you, mistress,' he said.

'Nay,' Fortune replied. 'She will not have gotten far, and I want to bring her back myself. Cut me that switch, Prosper.'

He obeyed, handing it to her with a small grin.

Stepping into the woods Fortune followed the barely visible path. About her the leaves were brilliant with their late October color. They fell silently around her, and yet the path seemed clear enough for a distance. Ahead of her she could hear Comfort singing a little ditty, and recognized the tune as 'The Miller of Dee.' Fortune increased her pace, but she could not seem to catch up with the serving girl. Then she suddenly realized that she hadn't heard Comfort's voice in the past few minutes. Where had the damned girl gotten to? Fortune wondered.

Comfort could hear someone following her. Was it one of the men? she thought excitedly. She hid herself in the brush long enough to discover her pursuer. Seeing Fortune picking her way through the undergrowth Comfort felt a surge of disappointment. Then an idea struck her. She began to sing again, leading her fine ladyship on deeper and deeper into the forest. She crossed a small stream, and hid herself again, watching as Fortune forded the small watercourse, and continued onward. With a smile of triumph Comfort turned back. Her rival had chosen her own fate. She would soon discover herself lost, and she would not be able to find her way back out of the forest. But I will be there for the master, Comfort considered, smiling to herself as she walked out of the woods, and across the fields to the house.

Fortune suddenly realized she couldn't hear Comfort's voice anymore. She also could not hear the sound of footsteps padding ahead of her. She stopped. All around her the forest was thick with trees and other growth. I have to go back, Fortune thought to herself. She turned about, and attempted to retrace her footsteps, but while the path had seemed so obvious going into the woods, it was not as definite now that she needed to find her way out. Ahead she heard the sound of water. The stream she had crossed! But as she came upon it she wasn't certain it was the same stream. The one she had crossed was silent-running. This one