Dishonoring Jack

Chapter Twenty

 "Jack, are you certain this is a good idea?" Minnie asked as she lifted Jack's carpetbag and set it in the backseat of Donovan's automobile. "Mr. Cartwright might demote you or fire you by the time you get back."

Jack strapped a straw hat to her head with a blue ribbon beneath her chin. "Oh, no he won't. I've been there longer than anyone besides you and we'll only be gone a few days."

"People will talk, Jack. You know that."

Of course, running off to an Indian reservation with Donovan would do little to improve her reputation, but Jack didn't care what Irvington thought of her. She cared about what was best for Donovan, and with the Slate brothers in town, he had to get out of Irvington for a few days. Besides, from the very moment she discovered that he was Powhatan, Jack had longed to visit Donovan's people. The circumstances were not ideal, but still--Jack and Donovan were taking a journey to the Powhatan reservation in King William.

"I know they'll talk, but they've talked before and they'll talk again," Jack said, tossing her woolen frock into the back seat.

"This is different, Jack, and you know it. People will think you're shacking up, and you'll never hear the end of it."

Jack's face turned crimson. "Well, we aren't."

"I should hope not," Minnie said, running the back of her hand across her sweaty forehead. "But heed my words, Jack. This won't improve your lot. Why don't you let him leave? You going with him is only going to make the gossip worse."

Jack was going with Donovan because he asked her to and because she wanted to; what other reason did she need? She merely ignored Minnie and turned towards the Bookers' house to find Donovan approaching them.

"Are you ready, Jack?" he asked, doffing his hat at Minnie as he started the Ford's engine.

"As always." Jack climbed in beside him, holding her hat to her head with one hand. "Bye, Minnie. Don't worry about us too much."

Minnie waved at Donovan and Jack as they departed, and Jack felt something jump in her throat. Had she lost her mind, running off with Donovan as soon as the Slate brothers appeared? Did this only make him look guiltier than he was? Even her nieces hadn't understood the reasoning behind Jack's sudden departure, and if her closest friends didn't understand, who would?

Nonsense, Jack told herself. No more regrets. You made your choice, and you'll enjoy it. Over the rushing wind and hum of the motor, Jack hollered, "Tell me about King William?"

Donovan turned to her, his black hair blowing across his face. "It's a troubled place, Jack. The Slate brothers and men like them have taken over and my people are poor. There's no future for us there." The gravity of the words struck a dark note in his tone but then he smiled, changing the subject. "I'm glad you'll be there with me, Jack. Soka will be pleased to meet you."

As Donovan drove the car onto one of the main roads leading northwest, the noise drowned out any hope for conversation. Jack embraced the rush of the road and the absence of talk and leaned her head back on the edge of the seat. She tossed her hat to the floor of the automobile and let the wind rush through her hair. The strong breeze and the hum of the engine replaced her anxiety with exhilaration.

Donovan.

While Jack certainly wasn't in love with the man, she liked him, perhaps more than any man she'd ever met, even more than Roy. Who would have thought that after all the years discarded on an abandoned shelf, her dusty heart was still capable of such emotion? Still, there were secrets to be uncovered and histories to be divulged. So much resided in Donovan beyond the surface and Jack's heart beat faster at the prospect of uncovering more about him.