My Confederate Soldier

Fort Nottingham, Mississippi

June 15,1862

Chapter One

Alice placed her smooth black shiny hair into a messy French braid. She gave her appearance a quick ran over. Her medium olive skin always seemed to have a glow to it. She licked her pinkish lips to remove the dryness she felt. Today was her eighteenth birthday.

Before leaving her room she kissed the small painting of her deceased mother.

Alice made her way to the kitchen. For the past year she'd taken on the role of a maid. It was only her and and an old former slave named James left to tend to the house and its well being. Everyone else left as soon as word came that Abraham Lincoln declared all slaves a free man. Many headed north. Alice didn't go. She had always lived her life as a freed slave. She may have looked white but she was colored in the eyes of those around her. She grow up in the comforts of her father's house since the day she was born. From what she knew of her mother was only that she was sold right after Alice's birth by her fathers former wife Jane. Alice cursed and hated Jane for what she'd did. Alice always thought that maybe her mother would still be alive today if it weren't for her.

Her father was away when the events happened. He would have stopped Jane from doing such a thing. Jane's actions led for Alice's mother to die at the hands of her new slave master. Alice's father never forgave Jane who he married only as a union to combine their wealth.

Nobody was happier then Alice the day Jane died from a terrible fever. Alice felt like it served her right. She always mean to Alice,slapping her when her father was away on business,threatening to get the over-sear to beat her if she told him.

Alice lived in fear for fourteen years. Alice knew most of the hate steamed from Jane's lack of ability to produce a child of her own. That wasn't her fault that Jane couldn't conceive a child.

"Good morning Alice,"Charles Monroe said as she passed the dining room. Alice stopped and turned to face her father. They both had the same rounded tip nose,circle shaped face,high cheek bones,wide set and light green eyes. Alice was tall and quite slender, with a swan like neck. Charles was heavy built in his late forties with graying hair. It was easy to see the resemblance between them none the less.

"Good morning,"she said as she smiled showing her perfect white teeth. He treated her as his but in the reality of it all she could never be apart of his world. Many people in there small town knew she was his child and who her mother was. It was the juicy gossip back then and still to this day. A lot of people, black and white, ignored those who were what they called Mulatto.

Alice was used to it. She didn't mind being a loner. She would find a book in her father's library and absorb herself in another place and time. Charles kept her sheltered from most of the hateful world around them.

"Happy birthday,"he said as placed a gift on the table."Come open it."

Alice laughed as she walked over to the table.

"But how?"she said as she ran a finger over the brown wrapping paper with a floral design.

"Don't worry about that. Now open your gift."Charles said as took a sip of his bitter coffee. Since the war had begun money had gotten tight.

Alice smiled and opened her gift. She tore the wrapping away. She squealed with joy when her eyes saw what it was.

"Thank you,"she said as she picked up the copy of Jane Eyre and held it to her chest.

"I take it you love it."

"Very much so,"she said as she did something that she had never done before. She leaned down and gave her father a hug. They had never shown affection towards one another. It would have been frowned upon and Charles wasn't one to show his love. Something that had rubbed off on Alice. Until in this moment when she gave him that hug for this precious gift.