Ashes

Ruth is resistant to going back into the woods, fearing ghosts and missing Aberdeen. Isabel tries to comfort her with the thought of the wildlife they’ll see, but Ruth persists and says, “Ghosts steal souls” (219). As they walk, Isabel starts to smell blood. She brushes it off as the smell of a wounded animal, until Ruth spots a human body under a bush: a man who has died of smallpox. The girls aren’t frightened, as they both had smallpox as children. They agree that they should bury the man’s body, but the ground is too hard, so they simply cover him with fallen branches and leave a cross at his head.

They find even more bodies in a clearing further on. Smallpox is apparently ravaging the countryside. The bodies are those of enslaved people. Isabel wishes she knew who they were so she could say their names aloud, preserving some part of them. As the girls look on this terrible scene, they’re accosted by a young British soldier, who seems to be in shock. The bodies they’ve found here are people he knew, people who the British drove out of Yorktown when the smallpox epidemic became overwhelming. The soldier weeps, “Promised ‘em freedom and safety. Robbed ‘em of both” (225). He warns the girls against going to Yorktown, and tells them he’s on his way to surrender to the Continental army.

Isabel wants to settle down to sleep for the night, but Ruth is fretful, crying for Aberdeen and fearing ghosts. Each pushed to their breaking point, the sisters fight and slap each other. Despairing over their ruined relationship and their terrible position, Isabel hears cannons in the distance, and agrees to take Ruth out of the woods, away from the “ghosts” she fears.

As they go on, Isabel can smell smoke from the army cookfires, and flashes back to the time she was forced back into slavery in New York. She has a moment of clarity: “[M]y heart was indeed hardening” from all her suffering (233). She goes to apologize to Ruth for her insensitivity, and learns that Ruth believes that Isabel gave her away when she was a child for being stupid. Isabel, weeping, tells Ruth she’d never have given her away, and the sisters are reconciled. As they go to sleep that night, Ruth reveals that she heard all the stories Isabel told her while she was sick: “You my sister, Isabel,” she says, “I always listen to you” (237).

The sisters wake up the next morning feeling restored. They drink from a stream and change into fresh clothes that Isabel liberated from the laundry in recompense for the pay they’d never receive. The girls encounter some French soldiers, and one recognizes Ruth: She used to collect laundry from him. Though this soldier seems friendly, Isabel isn’t willing to trust the French: Because the girls don’t speak the language, they can’t tell if a Frenchman means them harm.

They see Yorktown from a ridge, and watch as a horribly wounded soldier is carried past them on a stretcher. They reach the place where the Continental army has set up its tents. They fall in with camp followers again here, carrying kindling. Isabel discovers that Ruth can identify the flags of different regiments, again from her time collecting parcels for the laundry. Isabel asks her about the flag of their old friend Ebenezer’s regiment, and Ruth knows: It’s a lion. Isabel is delighted.

The girls find Eben in the middle of his duties as a sergeant, ordering his men around. Eben is horrified to learn that the girls and Curzon have parted ways. Isabel doesn’t like to talk about Curzon for long, but asks Eben for help; Eben tells her that his boss won’t allow him to hire her, as there are strict rules about how many women can follow the army. He vows he’ll help them somehow, sits them down outside a tent, and disappears. A soldier approaches and seems to know them, asking if Isabel is Curzon’s wife. Deciding she must be, he goes on: “‘[T]hen this […] must be Miss Ruth! Our angels have arrived!” (252). Isabel is, naturally, flabbergasted.

Curzon appears, and he and Isabel greet each other as husband and wife, though Isabel is confused and can see that Curzon appears to be suffering as his fellow soldiers tease him. A white man, Sergeant Armstrong (Eben’s higher-up) cordially welcomes Isabel and Ruth, again indicating that he’s heard a lot about them. It transpires that Curzon has registered the girls as members of his family so that they can work in the army. The girls agree to stay and work for the soldiers. Curzon offers to fetch water for them, but gives no further explanation of these strange circumstances.

The sisters awake the next morning to a new reality: “We’re in the army, heaven help us” (253). A kindly camp follower named Sibby has introduced them to their new duties. They must look after a company of 45 soldiers, a job that involves cooking, cleaning, splitting firewood, and all kinds of other manual labor. Though the work is hard, the girls fall into its rhythm, and are friendly with the soldiers. Curzon is still behaving oddly, avoiding Isabel and staying quiet and remote.

An old soldier named Henry tells Isabel that the plan for the upcoming fight is less a one-off battle, more a drawn-out siege. In support of this plan, the Continental army is digging a huge trench to sneak their cannons closer to British encampments, and to protect the soldiers from return fire. He also tells her that as they’ve dug, they’ve discovered more smallpox casualties in the forest, and that he’s prayed over them. One morning, a cheer goes up around camp: The British have abandoned an important strategic fort at Pigeon Hill, an advantage for the Continental army.

One Saturday, Isabel is surprised to see Curzon running toward her, asking if she’ll go for a walk with him. His sergeant, he admits, has ordered him to spend some time with her (and his fellow soldiers seem to think this is all very funny).

Curzon and Isabel take a stroll, discussing Isabel’s changed relationship with Ruth and Curzon’s choice to register Isabel as his wife. He had meant to tell her, he says, but they fought on the very night he made his plan. He apologizes for signing her up without asking her, but defends his choice, observing that the army treats black soldiers and white soldiers equally. He also tells her that the men are ready to start digging the trench. Isabel is dubious about the wisdom of this plan, believing it’ll be too conspicuous and too time-consuming.

Curzon says, “I shall have to pretend to kiss you now, or we’ll never hear the end of it” (269). The other soldiers give him grief for his neglect of his “wife.” Isabel sets up her shawl as a screen against the leering soldiers, and the two stand behind it for the appropriate time, without kissing. As they look into each other’s eyes, Isabel gets some not-quite-pretend butterflies in her stomach. She makes Curzon promise not to get injured, and he swears he’ll obey her.

General Washington sinks the first pickaxe to open the digging of the trench, and the soldiers get to work. Ruth and Isabel, still dubious, shelter from the rainstorm that breaks out. Ruth is worried about reports of terrible conditions in Yorktown, where piles of rotting horses (shot because of a lack of food for them) are contributing to an outbreak of bilious fever. Isabel knows that Ruth is really worried for Aberdeen.

Curzon and some of his friends return from digging in the trench, and Isabel learns that Curzon has earned himself a new nickname for shoving other soldiers out of the way of an incoming shell: “Shellhawk.” Isabel reiterates her demand that Curzon not get injured by cannonballs, or shells, either. Meanwhile, Ruth has begun to act odder and odder, more distractible and irascible than Isabel has seen her in a while. Isabel observes that Ruth is setting aside her food, and suspects that she’s up to something. When she gets up in the night and takes her food with her, Isabel follows her, and finds her delivering food to none other than Aberdeen, who is hiding in a bush. Ruth leaves, crying, and Isabel confronts Aberdeen.

Aberdeen looks much the worse for the wear. While he eats, he tells Isabel that everyone’s having a hard time on the British side. He’s still working as a spy for the British, but nevertheless tells Isabel a British secret: A huge Redcoat force is coming to shore up the struggling armies in Yorktown. He also tells Isabel that he wants to marry Ruth, and asks if they’ll come away with him tonight. Isabel rejects this out of hand, but Aberdeen reminds her that no army is really on the side of black people in this conflict. Isabel considers this, but “Curzon’s habit of remembering the sunshine that waited beyond the clouds had begun to infect me” (285), and she argues that some of the soldiers in the Continental army are indeed fighting for the freedom of black people as well as white.

Isabel warns Aberdeen not to try to steal Ruth away, and Aberdeen tells her that he tried, but that Ruth won’t come without her sister. He also asks Isabel to give him information about the trench-digging. Isabel refuses. Aberdeen says, sadly, that he already knows everything he needs to: He just wanted to find out what side Isabel was truly on.

The next day, Isabel can see that Ruth is heartbroken: She’s sitting sadly with the little cup-and-ball toy that Aberdeen bought for her during their travels. Isabel pulls Curzon aside to talk with him about what she’s learned. The two go for a walk, both distracted by their barely-concealed desire. Curzon asks if she’s planning to leave. Isabel, surprised, says no, and asks him if there’s a way to pass along what she’s learned from Aberdeen to the officers without getting Aberdeen in trouble. Curzon tells her that the information she got from Aberdeen is already common knowledge, and she shouldn’t worry. He also lets her know that he and a few other soldiers were called to attend on the high-ranking Colonel Hamilton—for reasons neither of them can guess. Curzon says, “Does no good to try to understand orders; we just have to follow them” (292).

The next day, the Continental army puts on a patriotic display to stir the soldiers’ spirits and taunt the British. All the women and children come out to watch, as well, as General Washington orders the firing of cannons and the raising of flags. Isabel finds herself patriotically moved: “To my surprise, my eyes filled with tears, and an unexpected lump rose in my throat” (296). The gentle-hearted Ruth, meanwhile, is just sad at the thought of all the violence to come.

The guns fire all night, successfully burning four British ships and giving the soldiers cover to begin the next part of their trench-building. This stage is more dangerous, as it puts the workers in range of British gunfire. The girls’ work also gets more dangerous and upsetting as they care for sick and injured soldiers and carry food and drink to the trench-diggers.

When Isabel comes to bring rations to Curzon’s company, Curzon is horrified, worried for her safety; Isabel brushes him off. As they bicker, a shell falls nearby, and they’re both rattled. In the aftermath, Curzon tells Isabel that he’s received a new assignment and won’t be returning to camp. He then makes her close her eyes, and whispers, “And I do love you, Isabel Gardener,” before disappearing (303).

The next day, Isabel talks herself out of believing that Curzon admitted his love, arguing to herself that the shell had confused her and muffled her hearing. She finds herself distracted by worry, not knowing what mission Curzon is on.

That evening, she questions Curzon’s fellow soldiers, and they admit to her that Curzon was sent to make a direct attack on a part of the British encampment that the cannon-trench can’t reach. The men will be fighting hand-to-hand. Isabel is horrified. The soldiers further admit that they know the whole true story of Isabel and Curzon’s relationship, but swear they won’t tell: “In this war for freedom the people who are able to liberate themselves and the ones they love deserve the praise and support of all of us” (308). Isabel is shocked, but Henry gently tells her that Curzon told them the story so that they could be a support to her if the worst happened.

Isabel asks the soldiers why they stay and fight for a country that is so unkind to them. The soldiers reply with the words of a preacher they once heard: “This land [...] which we have watered with our tears and our blood, is now our mother country” (311). 

Ruth and Isabel go out for a walk through the eerily quiet camp, and see many officers’ shadows projected on the inside of the General’s campaign tent as they discuss strategy late into the night.

Isabel reflects on her conversation with the soldiers, seeing it as a reframing of the old conflict between her and Curzon. While she interprets Curzon’s eagerness to fight as insane, she sees it now as a way of engaging with history on the grand scale, as opposed to her preference for looking out for the people immediately around her. She also reconciles those two perspectives: She sees that Curzon was not choosing between her and the army, but can fully embrace ideas of liberty and his close relationships at once: “His heart was so large, it could love multitudes. And it did,” she concludes (315). She admits to herself that she is restraining her own love, and absolutely must tell Curzon her feelings, or lose her capacity to love.

Energized by this resolution, she prepares to care for Curzon if he’s injured, gathering medical supplies and food. She lies down to sleep and is awakened by the sounds of celebration: The Continental attack in which he participated has succeeded, and the Patriots have captured a strategic position. Isabel looks around frantically for Curzon; Ruth tugs on Isabel’s skirt to show her that he’s been behind her the whole time.

It isn’t a happy reunion: Curzon is injured, and he’s being carried on a blanket between a few friends. Isabel fears he’s dead, and is overjoyed when he opens his eyes. His friends tell her that he’s not too badly hurt, but the hospital tents are overwhelmed, and Isabel is relieved that she thought to prepare for just this eventuality. As Curzon’s friends carry him to her camp, she tells him that she loves him. Curzon replies, “Then we have indeed finally won” (323).

As Isabel tends to Curzon’s wounds, his fellow soldiers tell her the story of their attack on the British strongholds. The attack was a great and surprising success, with only 24 deaths among the 800 soldiers who attacked. Over the next days, the battling continues as Curzon heals. One day, an eerie silence falls. Curzon, supported by Isabel, tries to set out for regimental headquarters to find out what’s going on, but before they get far, their friends arrive with news: “The British have surrendered!” (329).

Isabel tells the story of the ceremony of surrender (during which the Americans, despite looking much the worse for wear, are very cheerful indeed), and reflects on the changes in the army: At first forbidden from enlisting, black soldiers by the end of the war made up a quarter of the Continental armies. She also reflects on her new relationship with Curzon. The two are simultaneously at ease with each other and nervous. Isabel is happy to have both Curzon and Ruth safe and by her side. With other camp followers, Isabel and her friends watch the defeated British forces march by. They pay special attention to the women and children, otherwise ignored, who follow: “We understood their sacrifice” (335).

In the aftermath of this surrender, the army still hangs together for support as the winter comes in; this war isn’t altogether over. The spoils include a lot of heavy woolen cloth, which Isabel and her friends work to turn into warm winter clothing. Curzon, injured, does some work for the armorers. Isabel finds him becoming strangely distant again. When the Continental forces march into Yorktown, they find a terrible scene of carnage there. Meanwhile, opportunistic landowners turn up to try to enslave black soldiers, and Isabel and her friends are told to travel in twos and threes to avoid being snatched.

In this uncertain climate, Isabel’s friend Sibby, who’s now pregnant, invites Isabel and Ruth to come and live with her and her husband at her mother’s house. Isabel is heartened by this idea, which will either give her and Curzon a good start or help her and Ruth to recover if Curzon decides not to come with them. She’s worried that their shared confessions of love were driven by the heat of the moment, and that Curzon is now avoiding her in embarrassment. She reflects, “Turned out that having choices could be nearly as prickly and upsetting as having none” (342).

Ruth insists that they go to watch captured British prisoners being marched past. Isabel knows that Ruth is looking out for Aberdeen, but does not share her suspicions that Aberdeen must be dead. Ruth, watching geese fly past, draws her and Aberdeen’s initials in the dust, and consoles herself with the thought that she and Aberdeen, wherever he is, can watch the same birds as they migrate. Isabel is about to try to disabuse Ruth of this idea, but decides just in time that Ruth’s story is important to her to keep loving all the people and creatures she’s lost.

Isabel reflects on how weary she is of change, longing for stability. She shakes herself out of this longing by sorting through her collection of seeds, removing the ones that have spoiled, and trying to figure out what to say to Curzon while she works. Conveniently, Curzon appears. He has a black eye, and explains that he got his recent injuries in trying to search for Aberdeen among such prisoners, getting into a fistfight with the guards, who then tried to lock him up as well. Only the intervention of the white Eben kept Curzon from imprisonment. He’s deeply disappointed that the promise of the army is falling through for black prisoners from the British side, many of whom were recaptured or given up to slavers.

Curzon looks over Isabel’s seed collection, scoffing at its muddle; he wonders how Isabel will know what she’s planted before it grows. Isabel says, “’Tis a fool-headed way to grow a country, too, but that’s what we’re doing” (354). Where Curzon has in the past given Isabel hope, now Isabel tells Curzon that freedom will be won slowly, bit by bit. She wants to begin building her own life in this new world. Isabel and Curzon agree to marry. The happy couple are married in camp, and begin to plan their new life together. As the book closes, Isabel sends up a message to her lost mother: “‘We’re free, Momma,’ I whispered. ‘We’re free and we’re strong’” (356).