The Cellar Read Online Free Page A

to him of lavender.
    The soap smell reminded him of Emma.  He
closed his eyes and pictured her sitting on their bed after a bath brushing out
her hair.  His loins began to quiver as his mind’s eye wandered over the
delights of the young woman on his bed.  Ike opened his eyes and shook his head
to sweep the image of Emma from his consciousness; much more of this would just
be torture. 
    He tried to focus his mind on his
situation.  His squad had been ambushed while foraging at the woman’s house. 
He had accidentally avoided being killed by having gone for water to cool his
fever and had been grazed by a bullet that was meant to kill him and fell and
cracked his leg while seeking cover during the assault.  The homeowner had
taken him in and was caring for him and nursing him back to health.  Why was
she doing this?
    Something told him that the blow to his
head had affected his mind.  He remembered that he was married to Emma, but he
could not remember her maiden name or their wedding.  He remembered that he had
a brother who had died at Shiloh, but could not remember his face or much of
their childhood.  The scars on his hands and arms looked like they might have
been burns but he had no recollection of how they came to be.  Most disturbing
of all was the feeling that he wasn’t alone here and the snatches of laughter
that seemed to echo in his mind.  He sat still and listened for the voice that
seemed to call his name from time to time but there was nothing.  He finally
managed to focus on the reality of where he was at present.
    Ike was formulating questions he wanted to
ask when the door creaked open and he heard the woman’s voice.  “Are you
decent?”
    “Yes Ma’am.”  Ike responded, instinctively
standing up with the aid of the crutch as the woman appeared.  His head swam
again, but he managed to recover and remain upright.
    She came down the stairs followed by
Marcus, who was carrying another chair.  The second chair was placed facing the
one already present.  Marcus went back up the steps without speaking but did
not close the door. The sunlight relieved the gloom and warmed Ike’s body and
to a lesser extent his spirit.
    “Please sit down.”  The woman said
indicating the second chair.  “Your break was not bad, but you need to keep
that leg elevated for a while.  You lost quite a bit of blood from your head wound
and you will be weak for a few days”
    At that Marcus appeared again carrying a
small footstool in one hand and another tray in the other.  The footstool was
placed in front of Ike and the tray replaced the previous one on the small
table.  Marcus went back up the steps with the first tray after gently placing
Ike’s left foot on the stool.
    “Would you like some coffee?” she said,
pouring from a china vessel into one of the cups.  “There isn’t much real
coffee in it.  I have extended my supply by adding chicory, but it is the best
I have for now.”
    “Thank you, we’ve been out of coffee for
days since the…… since our supply lines were interrupted.”
    He took the cup from her and waited as she
poured her own.   He waited for her to take the first sip out of a sense of
decorum.  He also had a nagging fear that she might try to drug him.
    The ersatz coffee was not bad.  The
chicory added an earthy flavor that was not unpleasant.  Compared to the
outlandishly strong brew that he was used to being served up by his Sergeant
this coffee was excellent.  She watched him as he sipped the dark liquid.
    “I suppose you have questions about what
happened.”
    “Yes Ma’am I do.  Particularly about my
squad, did anyone survive except me?”
    “Your Sergeant and the big blond fellow
who was at his elbow escaped unharmed.  They were close to my house and weren’t
fired on.  Four of your men are buried next to my garden and several were
apparently wounded but were able to get away.  You were overlooked and indeed
Marcus and I didn’t notice you until