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Piety and Infamy	By : MarianTheBlackadder Category: M through R > Patriot, The Views: 2093 -:- Recommendations : 0 -:- Currently Reading : 0
Disclaimer: I do not own The Patriot, nor any of the characters from it. I do not make any money from the writing of this story.

Chapter List
- 17
- 18
- 19
It seemed like the shortest ride in history to Heather, and it only took
a few moments from leaving her husbands side to return here to Cornwallis�s
headquarters. Heather quickly dismounted from her horse before Wilkins had a
chance to try and help her down. There were just to many things about the man
that tended to turn people away. Usually, Heather was quite a open minded good
hearted and forgiving person. However, he managed to even turn her stomach.


An incredibly displeased General Cornwallis stood at his office window,
looking down into the courtyard. He glared at Lady Tavington; since this was the
second time she had left the fort without permission or escort. It simply had to
stop. �General O�Hara.� He said with his eyes still looking at Heather as
she started to approach the building. The General quickly walked up beside
Cornwallis and stood waiting for his order. �Make sure that my escort is ready
to leave immediately. I have a great many things to discuss with Colonel
Tavington before the battle tomorrow.� O�Hara gave a bow and turn to see to
his task. The troubled General still watched Heather, as she waited to see that
the animal was taken into it�s stall and attended to. �Why are you so
unpredictable, Heather? Can you not act in the same matter that other women of
your station do?� He sighed speaking to himself, but speaking to her as well
even though she couldn�t hear him. After everything that had happened and all
the trouble she had a tendency to cause, he found himself still captivated by
her graceful movements, beauty and charm.


Heather, could feel the eyes upon her back and the cold icy glare that
they held sent shivers up her spine. Turning around, she looked up at the
windows up above. And as she had thought, there stood General Cornwallis,
watching her like a hungry vulture would a meal. Taking a breath and collecting
all of her courage, she finally went into the building going to her quarters she
had been given. Once inside, Heather locked the door tight so she would not be
disturbed. Also, she wanted to be sure that unwanted guests could not simply
barge in, as she suspected they would judging by the look she had received in
the Courtyard.


Giving a sigh, Heather moved over to the mirror and picked up one of the
brushes from the vanity set and went to work. Still, she needed to bathe after
riding through all that dust and dirt before she could really do anything with
her hair. It was simply to dirty to manage. She gave up and took her clothes off
to wash up and get clean. Heather tossed her dress aside, noting that it was
ruined beyond repair even for her skilled hands. It was never meant to be a
riding dress, but hearing William was hurt pushed all rational thinking out of
her mind and didn�t take the time to change before riding off towards the
dragoon encampment.


General O�Hara made his way back to Lord Cornwallis office, �Your
escort is standing by awaiting your order, my lord.� The general gave a nod
saying nothing, since his mind was swimming in a sea of various thoughts on the
battle to come, and the battle that seemed to be ongoing in his own mind, along
with the one that was in his own headquarters. So many things weighed heavily in
the balance, he could not understand what it was about Heather that caused him
such frustration and anguish even over the war and it�s situation. General
O�Hara waited patently but couldn�t help but take notice of Cornwallis�s
hesitation. Finally, Cornwallis took a deep breath releasing it in an incredibly
annoyed sigh. �Between the pair of them, The Tavington�s shall be the death
of me.� He muttered under his breath. �Sir?� O�Hara said nervously.
Cornwallis finally pried himself from his thoughts and waved his hand, �Oh
nevermind, nevermind. Lets get on with it.�


Together, they began to walk down the main hallway but Cornwallis paused
a moment just outside Heather�s door. The General turned back looking at Lord
Cornwallis not sure why he stopped. �Go on head General O�Hara, I shall be
there shortly.� General O�Hara�s concern for this entire situation was
starting to rise, as there was no mistaking why Cornwallis had made such
extravagant means available to Heather Tavington. Either way, he gave a bow and
went on head as he had been ordered.


General Cornwallis stepped towards Heather�s door, and knocked to be
polite and keep up with etiquette rather then bursting in and scolding her like
he felt the desire to do. Heather sighed a little, and called out from the bath
before she even attempted to allow someone in. �Who is it?� She waited for
the answer, hoping that it was just a maid or a Stuart.


�It�s General Cornwallis. I need to speak with you in private at
once.� Heathers eyes closed a moment. The one person she had hopped it
wouldn�t be, and here he was at her door, waiting to speak with her. She
quickly finished rinsing her hair out and began to dry off.


�One moment please General!� She called out trying to straiten a few
things up before she let him in her room. She reached for a robe and wrapped it
around her and hurried to the door unlocking it, and walked around behind the
shade screen to get dressed. �It�s open General, please come in.�


Cornwallis made his way into Heather�s room with no hesitation at all,
still thinking about all the countless things he wanted to say to her. However,
when he entered, he looked about to find that she was nowhere to be seen. That
was a bit strange. �Lady Tavington?� He inquired.

�I beg your forgiveness
General, you caught me in the bath. It will only take me a few moments to get
dressed.� He stepped inside and closed the door behind him. She was dressing
and freshly bathed, and it only tempted his mind to wonder what was behind that
screen. His imagination that had filled in those blanks more then once, only
tempted him that much more to look and see. However, he quickly shook it off
knowing men of his station, that were Gentlemen didn�t even imagine such
things.


�Am I to understand that you have once again left the safety of these
headquarter walls?� He spoke bluntly, finding that it quickly grew deathly
silent. This is what Heather had been afraid was waiting for her when she
returned. �I have asked you countless times to remain here inside these walls,
My Lady. Furthermore . . . .� The Generals words that were becoming more
heated as each moment passed, caught in his throat when she stepped from behind
the shade. Her hair was not dry as of yet, and it was already curling
beautifully to frame the features of her face. Her golden skin was glowing from
the warmth of her bath, and she was absolutely breathtaking.

�My apologize to you General
Cornwallis, but my husband was wounded and the solider who brought this news,
failed to specify how badly his wound was. I had to go to him, I can�t tell
you how I felt when I heard that he had been injured.� She said with all the
sincerity of the world in her voice.

The General looked at her
regaining his composure, �Nonetheless, you could have Come to me and asked for
permission. Then you could have been properly escorted and kept safe from any
possible rebel attacks. You don�t seem to realize . . . .� His words were
cut off when Heather stepped forward and her heart jumping ahead of her mind
once more took over.

�Don�t you see? He could
have been dying! Those few moments it took to come and find you and ask your
permission, and then the hour it would have taken to wait for an armed escort .
. . . Well it could have meant the last few moments I�d ever have with my
husband. It was just to much for me to risk, all for the sake of protocols and
such.� Taking a breath, she realized that maybe she had spoken out of turn
once again. Finally, she looked up at him speaking softly. �Haven�t you ever
loved someone so much General, that they meant more to you then life itself? You
would do anything for them, despite the consequences that would come later, even
rush to their side through all the dangers in the world?�

General Cornwallis just looked
into Heather�s eyes, hearing the sincerity of her voice and seeing the extent
of her love for Tavington in those deep pools of blue. A man whom he detested
and despised more then any other living thing on the face of the earth, and
still, he had her. He wanted that look in her eyes for himself, Most certainly
not for Tavington. She couldn�t possibly have ever been meant for The Butcher
to find and wed. The secret desire that Lord Cornwallis held, was once again
thrown back in his face. Taking a moment to collect what was left of his
dignity, he spoke very plainly. �Ask me nest time before you decide to go joy
riding over the countryside regardless of the circumstances. I will not have
your blood on my hands, because you took it upon yourself to ride into a war
zone without a proper military escort.�

Without another word, or giving
her a chance to fight for what he considered to be a ridiculous cause, he turned
on his heel and quickly exiting the room. This woman had to be the most
stubborn, headstrong girl he had ever come across. And she had a will of steal
that could compete with his own. Perhaps that was one of the things about her
that irritated him the most. Yet at the same time, it made him lust after her
attentions even more. Taking a breath, he shook his head and made his way out to
the courtyard to start his journey to the Dragoon camp. After he mounted his
horse, he paused once again looking towards her window. Of course she wasn�t
watching him as he had watched her. The group of soldiers and officers left the
fort in a thunder of hooves and a swirl of dust.

Heather went back to brushing
her hair and getting dressed. All that had happened and been said in the past
two days filled her mind and replayed over and over again. There were so many
things amiss in a place that it shouldn�t be. Colonel Tavington was an officer
like any other officer, if not better then all the rest. Didn�t he deserve to
be treated accordingly? Her thoughts stopped when she felt a wave of nausea,
becoming dizzy, and her skin grew cold within a matter of moments. Slowly,
Heather stood from the bed, reaching for one of the four posts to steady
herself, but she lost her balance and fell onto the bed. Everything went dark
and she lay sprawled out on the quilt.

A while later, General
Cornwallis stepped into Colonel Tavington�s tent without so much as calling
out or giving notice that he was going to come in. Tavington sat on his bunk
holding his shirt up high, while a surgeon dressed his wound with fresh
bandages. �You will be missed tomorrow Colonel.� Amazingly, Cornwallis
managed to speak in a rather light and friendly tone. Apparently still wanting
to keep the appearance of being a Gentlemen.


Tavington was a bit startled not hearing him come in and looked back, �Missed,
My Lord?� Why on earth would he be missed? Who was going to lead his men into
battle if not him? It was a silly statement in Tavington�s mind.

Cornwallis still held the smile
and the cheery manner with which he entered into the tent and motioned towards
the surgeon who was diligently going about his work. �Your wound.� Honestly,
the littlest excuse to keep Tavington out of a battle that Cornwallis himself
was conducting was not an unpleasant prospect in the slightest.

Tavington knew exactly what the
General was up to and smacked the surgeons hands away from him and stood quickly
letting his shirt down to show that he was not weak nor bed ridden. He was fully
capable of holding his own. �It�s nothing, My Lord.� He was rather annoyed
that the General would even suggest that he wouldn�t be there tomorrow for
something as small as the scratch at his side.

Cornwallis�s expression and tone changed enough
for Tavington to realize just how serious the general was in this matter. �I
stand on the eve of the greatest victory of my career.� He said, his eyes
growing dark as he glared at the Colonel, �Don�t fail me.�

Tavington was still amazed that
he would hear such a thing, considering all he had done for their cause and for
his majesty these past many months. Including burning entire towns and the
occupants, hunting down each and everyone of those murderous rebels who dared to
attack their supply lines and take out complete garrisons and units. Tavington
thought it was a good time for a reminder of that little fact. �My efforts, in
no small measure, have brought you here.�

Cornwallis hated even standing
in the same presence of this man, but no matter what he wanted to believe,
Tavington was right. He had done more then his fair share of work in this war,
and would take the full mantle of blame and responsibility for it. �I�ll
grant you that small measure, in spite of your failure to deliver the Ghost to
me.� Tavington�s battle with the Ghost was not quite at an end as of yet,
and Cornwallis would still have the satisfaction of seeing him brought to his
knees if Colonel Tavington had anything to say about it. All of the raids that
Benjamin Martin and his band of rebels, only swelled Tavington�s legend a
heartless killer, and gave him an even worse reputation then the one he had come
over seas with. Oh yes, the Ghost would be delivered, and his and Heather�s
future in Ohio would be assured, �Thus Far.�

Cornwallis was annoyed, it
seemed as though his message wasn�t getting through to Tavington, so he
decided to make it quite clear so there was no room for misunderstanding, �I
will not tolerate a premature charge, born of your eagerness for glory.�
Tavington had much more to say to this man, but knew that it wasn�t the time
nor proper place for it and bit his tongue. �Wait . . .for my order.�
Cornwallis gave him one long and lingering look to make sure he was quite clear
in his words. He turned and started to leave the tent before giving one last
warning, �Or you may abandon any hope, of Ohio.� And with that, he
disappeared outside to return to inspecting the troops. Tavington�s eyes
changed at those words, he would have no choice but to do what was ordered of
him. If he had any hope of the life that he had planned for himself and his
bride after this God-Forsaken conflict was over, he had to wait for the
General�s order.

Hours after Cornwallis had left
the fort, Heather finally woke up coming to her senses. She still felt ill, and
was careful when she stood from the bed. Moving to the water basin, she washed
her face and hands feeling sick to her stomach. Heather looked at herself in the
Mirror and saw how pale and sickly looking she was. �I can�t tell him.�
She whispered to herself in the glass as she reached up slowly and touched her
face. She almost fell into her chair realizing why she had felt like this. It
wasn�t the first time, and now it wouldn�t be the last. �There is to much
on his mind without this.� She whispered.
Back in the Dragoon camp,
General Cornwallis completed his inspected finding the troops and equipment
satisfactory. He mounted his horse when it was brought to him and looked at
General O�Hara. �General, be sure that all is ready for tomorrow�s battle.
I want no mishaps that could serve as excuses for failure.� The General
saluted and rode away to fulfill Cornwallis request. He gave one lace glare
towards Tavington�s tent before he and his escort rode away heading back to
Fort Carolina.


Once he arrived, Cornwallis spoke to one of his servants,� Call Lady
Tavington, I would have her join me for Dinner this evening. I have a great deal
to discuss with her at this point in time.� They curtseyed and hurried off
quickly. General Cornwallis went to his office and closed the doors behind him.
He wanted to go over his plans once more to make sure everything was in order
for the battle ahead.

To Be Continued .
. .
- 17
- 18
- 19
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Piety and Infamy