All is Fair in Love and War

Chapter 18

Seline woke drowsily but warm and comfortable against Will’s side. He still held her in his arms. She could be very happy waking up like this for the rest of her life. She had been awakened by the bustling outside. Men’s voices were carrying through the fabric of the tent. Seline suddenly realized that it was morning and she should not be in still be in camp. She rolled over and shook Will’s shoulders. Will woke up with a smile on his face. He wrapped his arms around her tightly and leaned up to kiss her. She kissed him back but put a hand on his chest to stop him as he had started to pull her down to him again. Will froze, realizing that it was morning and the men were getting ready to move out. Seline should have already left. He had been told last night by his commanding officer when his brother and Mr. Glassman showed up that they needed to be gone by the time they were ready to move out in the morning, and that there were to be no women in camp. Mr. Glassman had bribed the guards at the gate with the money that Seline’s father had given Zeb to let the girls in with the promise that they would be gone by morning and no one would be the wiser. Now morning had come and Seline was still here. The commander did not care that it had been their wedding night, or that it was their only chance to be together. All the men in camp were leaving their loved ones. Their were no exceptions for any reason.

Will leaned back and looked at Seline. “We need to get you out of here without the commander realizing that you are a woman. I think I have a way. Stay here.” Will pushed out from under the covers and away from Seline’s arms. He quickly pulled on his clothes and his boots and went out the tent flap. Closing it tightly behind him so no one could see inside. Will looked at the men that were moving around him. He just saw some of the same men that he had seen last night setting up the tents and sitting around the campfires talking. There were no officers in the area that he had seen. He also was keeping an eye out for either of the two guards that they had bribed the previous night. No one stood out for him, so he started looking at all the camps to see if he could find what he had originally set out to find. He walked down the row of tents a short way to a tent whose occupant still had not woken up. In the chaos of the men around him beginning to take down their tents and packing things up he reached out and grabbed a smaller uniform complete with cap and boots, and walked calmly back to his tent.

As he went into the tent he handed the uniform to Seline. “Here. Put this on and pull your hair up under the hat. We will pass you off as one of the younger boys when we move out.” Will grabbed Seline’s underbodice and tore it into strips. Seline's eyes went wide. What was she supposed to wear under her clothes now? “Use this to bind your breasts so that they will be less obvious and won’t bounce when you are riding. As soon as we are near your father’s land split off and ride back to your house. Burn the uniform after you arrive there so no one will ever know. Otherwise they will suspect you of harboring a deserter and the penalty for that is hanging.”

Seline stared at him in horror. She knew that she was in trouble. Will saw the panic in her eyes and grabbed her shoulders and pulled her to him. His hug reassured her. "I wish that you were coming too." She said quietly. Will kissed her one more time "So do I." He said. She threw off the covers and began to don the uniform pants. Will turned her around to face away from him, and helped her use the torn pieces of cloth to bind her breasts. He made it tight so it hurt but she knew that it was in order to hide the fact that she was a female. Will slipped out of the tent again while Seline finished dressing. She picked up the coat, and undid all the buttons on the front. She hoped that even with her chest bound it would fit. It looked small. She pulled it on and knew that she would not be able to breath very hard or she would pop the buttons off the jacket. She finished putting the rest of the uniform on and then pulled her hair up under the hat. "How do I look?" She asked. Will gave her another hug. Pulling back he looked into her eyes. “You can do this. It won't be for long." Seline nodded her head and he pulled her into one last hug and then held the tent flap for her. "I saddled your horse. We are going to ride with everyone else and keep to the back so when you cut out no one will notice. Once you do, go slowly until you can’t hear us anymore and then ride like the wind. I packed your dress in your saddle bag." He said in a whisper before turning back to leave the tent. He stopped and looked back at her. The look of tenderness and concern nearly melted Seline's heart. "I love you.” He said as he leaned down and drew her into a warm and sweet kiss, "I love you too." She said. He kissed the end of her nose and pulled her hat down to cover her face more and then turned and held the tent flap open once more for her. They walked out into the morning sunlight to start their first full day as man and wife.