Rebel Heart (Daughtry House Book #1) , livre ebook

Baker Publishing Group - Beth White

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177 pages

English

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Description

Five years after the final shot was fired in the War Between the States, Selah Daughtry can barely manage to keep herself, her two younger sisters, and their spinster cousin fed and clothed. With their family's Mississippi plantation swamped by debt and the Big House falling down around them, the only option seems to be giving up their ancestral land.Pinkerton agent and former Union cavalryman Levi Riggins is investigating a series of robberies and sabotage linked to the impoverished Daughtry plantation. Posing as a hotel management agent for the railroad, he tells Selah he'll help her save her home, but only if it is converted into a hotel. With Selah otherwise engaged with renovations, Levi moves onto the property to "supervise" while he actually attends to his real assignment right under her nose.Selah isn't sure she entirely trusts the handsome Yankee, but she'd do almost anything to save her home. What she never expected to encounter was his assault on her heart.

Sujets

Historical romance

Informations

Publié par	Baker Publishing Group
Date de parution	05 juin 2018
Nombre de lectures	0
EAN13	9781493410996
Langue	English
Poids de l'ouvrage	4 Mo

Informations légales : prix de location à la page 0,0384€. Cette information est donnée uniquement à titre indicatif conformément à la législation en vigueur.

Extrait

Cover
Title Page
Copyright Page
© 2018 by Elizabeth White
Published by Revell
a division of Baker Publishing Group
PO Box 6287, Grand Rapids, MI 49516-6287
www.revellbooks.com
Ebook edition created 2018
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means—for example, electronic, photocopy, recording—without the prior written permission of the publisher. The only exception is brief quotations in printed reviews.
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data is on file at the Library of Congress, Washington, DC.
ISBN 978-1-4934-1099-6
Scripture used in this book, whether quoted or paraphrased by the characters, is taken from the King James Version of the Bible.
This book is a work of historical fiction; the appearances of certain historical figures are therefore inevitable. All other characters, however, are products of the author’s imagination, and any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, is coincidental.
The author is represented by MacGregor Literary, Inc.
Endorsements
“ A Rebel Heart checks all the boxes on my wishlist for a satisfying novel. It brings a lesser-known slice of history to life and deals honestly with our national past. The characters are colorful and compelling, the setting richly painted, and the high-stakes plot carries the reader to the end without ever slowing down. Full of intrigue, grit, and grace, A Rebel Heart is Beth White at her finest. I can’t wait to read the rest of the series.”
Jocelyn Green , award-winning author of A Refuge Assured
“With great skill, Beth White combines intriguing history with inspiring romance, and then adds a good measure of mystery and suspense to her newest novel, A Rebel Heart . From the first page to the last, readers will be wrapped up in Selah’s quest to restore her family’s stately Mississippi home and charmed by the touching romance. Levi’s investigation to solve a series of robberies and find out who is behind the mysterious incidents that threaten Selah and her family will keep readers guessing and turning pages until the very end. Well done!”
Carrie Turansky , award-winning author of Shine Like the Dawn and Across the Blue
“Pinkerton agent Levi Riggins stole my heart, beginning with his valiant rescue of Selah Daughtry after a train wreck in the opening scenes of A Rebel Heart . Selah couldn’t help but lose her heart too, although she has more than one reason to be wary of the former Yankee officer. Beth White’s careful historical research shines throughout this novel, as do her wonderful characters. Highly recommended.”
Robin Lee Hatcher , Lifetime Achievement Award–winning author of You’re Gonna Love Me
Praise for The Gulf Coast Chronicles
“White’s carefully researched story, set in what would become Mobile, Alabama, is filled with duplicity, danger, political intrigue, and adventure. This unique book will appeal to a wide range of readers.”
Booklist
“A lush and highly detailed historical setting sets an atmospheric tone for this tale of love and life in New France. The well-researched story of the Pelican girls, so named for the ship that brought them, is an unembellished look at a slice of the human experience not often told. Recommended for fans of historical fiction.”
Library Journal
“This book is a must-have for any historical fiction collection; few stories are written on this time period and area.”
Congregational Libraries Today
Dedication
For Jan Johnson, who listens and makes me laugh and think harder.
Contents
Cover
Title Page
Copyright Page
Endorsements
Dedication
Prologue
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25
26
27
28
29
30
31
32
An Excerpt of Book 2 in the Series
Note to the Reader
Acknowledgments
About the Author
Books by Beth White
Back Ads
Back Cover
Prologue
April 20, 1863 Ithaca Plantation
Selah could hear the horses thundering closer, oncoming hell and destruction. Cowering in the darkness under the porch with her arms around Joelle, she felt her sister’s body heave with great, gulping, silent sobs. She had no idea how Mama had known they were coming, but thank God they’d had time to hide.
“Get under the porch, girls!” Mama had screamed, cloak billowing as she ran up the path from the gate.
Mama, who never ran, never raised her voice.
Dropping their books and sewing, Selah and Joelle ran down the steps and scuttled backward into the hidey-hole they’d loved as children. Their full skirts took up most of the space, and the thought of mice and spiders made Selah’s scalp crawl.
“Mama, aren’t you coming in too?” Joelle asked as their mother replaced the latticework and pushed at it to make sure it was secure.
“I have to warn the servants, make sure they get somewhere safe. Now back up out of sight, pray hard, and don’t make a sound no matter what you hear. If something happens to me, I want you to go to Grandmama and Grandpapa in Memphis.”
“Mama!” Selah burst out. “What—”
“Do what I say!” Mama’s eyes blazed. “Promise me, Selah!”
“Of course.” Selah wasn’t going to cry. She was nineteen years old—a grown woman, for mercy’s sake. But she wasn’t going to Memphis like her little sister Aurora had either. Papa had left her in charge of Ithaca, made her promise to watch out for Mama and Joelle.
Mama’s mouth relaxed a bit. “This will be over soon, and we’ll have a silly story to tell over tea this afternoon.” She stood, and her skirts had whisked out of sight.
Now the horses galloped closer until they pulled up at the hitching rail near the porch, snorting and blowing in the cold air. The riders dismounted, hooting and hollering, and Selah knew they must be drunk.
“We’re free, boys,” one man said, chortling. “Let’s see what we can find to juice a celebration.”
Through the lattice Selah saw butternut uniform legs and leather boots, heard the jingle of spurs and clank of sabers. If they were Confederate soldiers, why had Mama made her and Joelle hide? They’d entertained Rebel officers here before—two Christmases ago, in fact. Why would they hurt the women of this house, whose master had sacrificed everything to fight the Yankees up in Tennessee?
Maybe Mama was confused—
“These big plantations always have good whiskey.”
That was a different soldier, and Selah noticed something funny about his accent. He didn’t sound Southern at all. Come to think of it, the first one hadn’t either. Northerners in butternut? She’d heard about the spies riding with that devil Grierson. Tricking Confederate outposts into delivering false messages, and taking over rail depots and tearing up track.
Joelle whimpered, and Selah clamped a hand over her mouth. “Shhh!” They sat rigid, until Selah heard boots clomping across the porch overhead. She thought she counted four sets of boots going up the steps, then got confused. How many were there? Was it a whole unit? She let Joelle go and whispered, “Not another sound. They’re Yankees—no telling what they’d do to us.”
Joelle nodded.
The front door opened, then the voices and noise of boots faded into the house. Apparently they’d left the door open. Selah and Joelle sat there for a long time, cramped, sweating, shuddering, listening to the sound of glass breaking and furniture being dragged around in the parlor. If they found Papa’s liquor cabinet—
Where was Mama? Oh, God, let her be safe.
The men were laughing now, the voices growing louder and the jokes more off-color. Selah didn’t understand half of what they said and prayed Joelle didn’t either. “Jesus, have mercy,” she whispered into the top of her sister’s head. Maybe they’d get so drunk they’d pass out. Then maybe she could sneak out and get Papa’s hunting rifle from the office—
She jumped when a woman’s shriek ripped from inside the house. Seconds later, a gunshot cracked, and Selah pressed Joelle’s head into her shoulder to stifle her scream. What had just happened? That might have been her mother screaming, but it was hard to tell in the chaos of scuffling, furniture hitting walls, another gunshot.
“No, stop! Oh please, you cannot—” The frantic voice choked on muffled squeals.
The men burst into raucous laughter and cheers, while bumps and thumps shook the floor.
The noise went on and on, until Selah thought she might suffocate from rage and terror. Papa had taught her to shoot, and if she’d had a weapon she could have gone to her mother’s defense. But she didn’t, and anyway, she couldn’t leave Joelle alone. They had to stay here, listening to the horror above their heads. The tiny space seemed to shrink around them.
Eyes squeezed shut, breath caught high in her throat, Selah prayed for it to end, prayed for rescue.
God, where are you? Strike them dead. I know you have the power.
He did, didn’t he? Wasn’t God able to annihilate entire armies? Maybe she wasn’t praying in the right way. But Mama—or whoever that was, even one of the slaves—didn’t deserve this. It was horrid. It was demonic. And if Selah ever got out from under this porch, the first Yankee she saw, she’d shoot him dead without a thought.
“Selah,” Joelle whispered, “I hear someone else coming. You hear it?”
Selah listened. Horses galloping closer? “Maybe.” It was hard to tell with the racket going on in the house. The woman had gone quiet, but the men were still laughing and crashing around. She’d heard boots going up the stairs to the second floor too. “Yes, you’re right. Hush, honey, we’ve got to be quiet, so whoever that is won’t find us.”
In moments, the horses thundered to a stop, and the first rider jumped to the ground, followed by the rest. Selah saw the leader’s boots as he hurried past their hiding place. Blue pants this time, big spurs, clanking sword. An officer?
He ran up the porch steps, shouting, “Ho, you men! Form company! On the quick!” The voice was young, firm, with an edge of anxiety. He stopped