The Sapphire Brooch by Katherine Logan (best novels to read to improve english .txt) 📕

Before she could retort, a small, birdlike woman entered the room in a rustle of silk. Charlotte recognized Elizabeth Van Lew from the history books. Dark ringlets dangled around her face and softened her sharp nose, thin lips, and aquiline jaw.

“I’m Miss Van Lew. How may I help you?”

“I’m Charlotte Mallory, and this is my brother, Jack. We have a confidential matter to discuss with you.”

Miss Van Lew waved her hand in a graceful, genteel gesture. “And it shall remain confidential. Please, have a seat.”

Charlotte settled onto a settee. Jack remained standing, slouching elegantly, broad shoulders wedged against the mantel. Miss Van Lew took a seat next to Charlotte, arranging her skirts.

“Our friend Major McCabe,” Charlotte began, “was rounded up a few days ago and incarcerated in Castle Thunder. I’m sure you’ve heard the news by now, although you may know him by a different name. We left Washington immediately to help facilitate his escape.”

Miss Van Lew smiled faintly and shrugged. “An acquaintance sent word I might hear from you, but I’m not sure why you’ve come to me,” she said with a hint of concern.

Jack stroked the bronze statue of a lion perched on top of one of the columns lining the sides of the hearth. Their hostess’s eyes followed his fingers while they familiarized themselves with the figure.

“We know the role you play in the Richmond underground and that you send coded messages to Grant,” Charlotte said. “We also know you keep the cipher in the back of your watch.”

Miss Van Lew’s eyes widened and her hand shook noticeably.

“We don’t have time to prove our allegiance to the Union or to earn your confidence,” Jack said. “We’re on your side. You have nothing to fear from us. We are most assuredly not here to betray you. A lengthy investigation would prove our loyalty, but we need your help immediately. Major McCabe’s associate Mr. Gaylord assured us you would do what you could.”

“The confederacy is doomed,” Charlotte said. “They’ll evacuate the city tomorrow, and Union troops will arrive on Monday.”

Miss Van Lew’s eyes were open and alert. She searched Charlotte’s face, then Jack’s. “How do you know this?”

“The same way we know about the crack in this creature’s head,” Jack said, patting the lion’s head. “We also know it’s been used as a depository for messages, and it regularly gobbles up Confederate secrets.”

Their hostess’s face lost all color.

More gently, Charlotte tried to reassure her by saying, “Your secrets are safe whether you help us or not.”

“The longer the major remains in prison,” Jack said, “the more likely his captors will discover who he is and hang him. He’s an agent for President Lincoln. He was captured last fall, and Charlotte rescued him from Chimborazo.”

“Why was he in Chimborazo?” Miss Van Lew asked.

“He was captured close to the hospital and shot during a scuffle. He was sent there because the Rebels needed him to survive so they could interrogate him. Thanks to my sister, they never got the chance.”

“From what Gaylord told us, Miss Van Lew,” Charlotte added, “Braham’s been back in Richmond for the last few months posing as a professor of philosophy wearing a disguise. I’m not sure I’d even recognize him.”

“Please, since we are destined to become much better acquainted, call me Elizabeth. And I would recognize the major,” she said on a hastily exhaled breath. “I’ve been to several of his lectures and hosted a dinner on his behalf. He’s brilliant, and very entertaining. He’s using the name Carlton Jackson.”

Charlotte smiled discreetly at Braham’s combined use of her name and Jack’s. “He is brilliant, but spying is apparently not his forte.”

“Avoiding capture is not his forte,” Jack said. “We haven’t had any news of him in three days. Have you heard about any trials or executions?”

Elizabeth clasped her hands so tightly in her lap her knuckles turned white. “No, and I would have heard.”

Jack moved away from the mantel and parted the lace curtains to study the street. “I know you were under surveillance at one point. Are you still?”

“I don’t think so.”

He dropped the curtain and sat in a chair across from the sofa. “The prisoners will be rounded up tomorrow night and transferred to points south, out of the reach of the oncoming Federal Army. The evacuation of Richmond will provide us with an opportunity to rescue him.”

Elizabeth’s eyes darted from Jack to Charlotte and back again. “Is the government evacuating, too?”

Jack nodded. “Jefferson Davis will catch a late train out of the city.”

Elizabeth clapped her hands. “I’ve waited four years to hear this news. But you said you’ve been traveling for three days. How do you know your information is current?”

Charlotte took a composing breath. “We can’t explain how we know. We can only tell you what will happen during the next forty-eight hours.”

Jack leaned forward in his seat, rested his forearms on his thighs, and clasped his hands. “Three of your associates, Hancock, White and Lohmann, are with Major McCabe in Castle Thunder. Is it possible to get a message to one of them?”

“It will be difficult. They’re in solitary confinement, often referred to as the dungeon.”

“Do you believe the major has been tortured?”

Elizabeth reached out and squeezed Charlotte’s hand. “The prison guards are known for their brutality. Major McCabe was captured at James Duke’s tavern. He was there to assist refugees escaping to Union lines through Fredericksburg. He was tortured to reveal the identities of other members of the underground network. He never broke, although I hear he has suffered.”

Jack’s brow furrowed with worry. “Braham knows he only has to hold on until tomorrow. He’s strong enough to manage it, I believe.”

“He’s not Superman, Jack. And I’m not sure he’s fully recovered from the gunshot.” If Braham needed extensive medical treatment when they found him, her small medical kit wouldn’t be enough. Would he go home with her? Yes. She wouldn’t give him a choice. Then she’d give her brooch to Elliott and ask him to lock