Alas Richmond
A Civil War Romance
by
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Preview Colonel Hale took the paper from Giles, read it, and then asked, “Who is this man, Reilly Stuart? “My wife’s first husband,” Giles lied. Just then, Verity had a coughing fit, clearly heard through the closed door. “That’s my wife. She’s very ill. I’m expecting a doctor at any moment.” “What’s wrong with her?” growled the military man. “Could be pneumonia, the ague, consumption. I just don’t know. She’s burning up with fever. That’s why I’m so anxious for a physician to see her.” “It looks like you located the body.” The Confederate officer studied the paper and read, “Dueling. That’s unusual.” “We thought so, too,” Catesby said. “These hot-blooded young radicals,” said Colonel Hale, handing the paper back to Giles, who tucked it in his pants pocket. “You say you are her second husband?” Giles nodded. “Have you been married long?” “No,” said Giles, then lowered his voice and asked, “Colonel Hale, may I confide in you?” The officer’s stern visage softened as Giles tilted his head slightly, appearing earnest. “Do you know the story of David and Bathsheba?” Giles asked, almost in a whisper. “Yes,” was the whispered reply. “Well, that’s the story here.” Giles noticed the other two Confederates move closer to hear. “I’m David. Reilly Stuart is Uriah the Hittite, sent to his death so David could marry Bathsheba.” “You instigated the duel?” asked Colonel Hale as his eyes widened. “No. I have no idea what caused him to enter a duel. I only knew he was on the battlefront and she was home alone.” Verity coughed again. “Your wife is …” The colonel paused. Giles nodded and said, “Yes. The same as Bathsheba. With child.” He hung his head and sounded contrite when he added, “Like David, I am to be blamed.” Catesby looked over at Giles and then back at the Confederates to see if they believed this lie. Apparently, the colonel did. In a whisper, the military man said, “Poor woman. Take care of her.” He gave a single pat to Giles’s shoulder and went down the hall. His escort followed. Catesby and Giles waited until the sound of footsteps died before breathing sighs of relief. Clapping Giles on the back, Catesby’s deep blue eyes stared into Giles’s dark brown eyes as he said in a low tone, “Good work, King David.”
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About the Book
As the capital of the confederacy experienced its final days, Verity Stuart, a lifelong resident of Richmond, Virginia, was falling in love with an Englishman, Giles Tredwell, who was spying for the Union.
About the Author
Nikki Stoddard Schofield has been creatively writing since elementary school in Whitmore Lake, Michigan. Because her first novel, Bondage and Freedom, A Civil War Romance, met with much praise, she has continued her writing career. To write Bondage and Freedom, Nikki researched guerrilla warfare in East Tennessee, and to write this current novel, she researched the fall of Richmond. She is currently working on her third novel, Treason Afoot, A Civil War Romance, about the treason trials held in her hometown of Indianapolis from September to December 1864. Nikki’s inspiration for starting on this career of writing Civil War romances began when she was reading a genre romance that was so disappointing she said to herself: “I can do better than that.” With three requirements, Nikki began to write. The first requirement of the story was that the hero and heroine are always together. The second requirement is that they are always kind to each other. The third requirement is that the history is in the background not the foreground. She continues to maintain these standards. Ms. Schofield is the mother of two sons, Rob who lives with his wife Vicki in Cincinnati, Ohio, and Gaven who lives with his wife Christine and three daughters in Mosley, Virginia, south of Richmond. She has five granddaughters, Bridget, Stephanie, Abigail, Gabrielle, and Lily; one grandson, Nicholas; one great-grandson, Gonzalo “Gee” (Bridget’s son); and one great-granddaughter, Isabella “Bella” (Stephanie’s daughter). Since 1974, Nikki has been the director of the law library at Bingham McHale LLP, the fourth largest law firm in Indiana. When she entered phased retirement to work Monday through Thursday, she accepted a second job as Staff Genealogist at Crown Hill Cemetery on Fridays. Nikki has been a tour guide at Crown Hill, the third largest private cemetery in the country, since 1993. A member of Speedway Baptist Church since 1990, Ms. Schofield is an ordained deacon, moderator and adult Sunday School teacher. She serves on the Coordinating Council of the Cooperative Baptist Fellowship with which her church is affiliated. Nikki served two terms as president of the Indianapolis Civil War Round Table, where she has also been the annual tour director, secretary and newsletter editor. In period costume, she has given first-person portrayals of Civil War women including Confederate spy Belle Boyd, Lincoln conspirator Mary Surratt, Mrs. Stonewall Jackson, the second Mrs. Frederick Douglass, nurse Clara Barton, and Lucinda Morton, wife of Indiana’s Civil War governor.