The Lieutenant's Promise by Aileen Fish

could, more each day, but he was nowhere near his old self. He grew tired so easily, and his head would throb after an hour or two in the sun.
    Jasper moved back into his room in the barn and did a majority of the heavy work. Levi was immensely grateful to him.
    As he sat in the shade one afternoon with Em and Billy, Levi asked, “What will you do about chickens and pigs?”
    “I’ll ask Mr. Harris the next time I’m in town. It’s possible some of the farms around weren’t raided. Some might have an extra couple of hens and a rooster they could part with, and by next spring we’ll have enough layers to sell eggs again.”
    “What about pigs?”
    “Same thing. We’ll ask around and buy a few. I’ll miss Cletus’ stud fees, but it can’t be helped until we have a good boar again.”
    They took the wagon to town the next day. It was the first time Levi had been off the farm since the battle at Oak Hill. They traveled in the opposite direction from the hill, which came as some relief. Levi hadn’t remembered how he’d been shot, or much of the battle itself, and feared seeing the location would revive those memories.
    Mr. Harris was relieved to see Em. “I heard they fought on your farm and took it over. I feared the worst.”
    She grimaced. “For the most part they were respectful, but our crops are ruined, and the chickens and pigs gone.”
    “I have some seed in the back room I can let you have. You can get a few fall crops in. With luck, we’ll have a late start to winter.” Mr. Harris thumbed through his record book. “You have some credit, still. What can I get for you? Did those soldiers leave you any food?”
    “Thank you. We have what was in the springhouse,” she said. “And there was a ham left in the smokehouse. Let me have some dried beans and we’ll stretch that out a while.”
    She looked around the store. “Flour, eggs if you have them, please. And baking powder. We have jam but no biscuits to eat it with.”
    Levi walked over to the display of candy sticks. “Let me have half a dozen of these. And some licorice.”
    “We can’t afford—”
    He held up a hand to stop her. “I have money of my own and I wish to treat you all. It’s the least I can do. “I shall pay for my purchases now, Mr. Harris. We need a few tins of meat and vegetables. Some coffee and sugar. Oh, and molasses.”
    “Give me a few minutes and I’ll have it ready for you.” Mr. Harris began gathering the items.
    “Would you know if anyone has a chicken or two they can spare? And piglets for sale?” Em asked.
    “Well, the Edwards and the Stonebridges are in the same shape you are. But most of the other farms were untouched. I’ll ask around and have someone send them your way.”
    “I’d appreciate it,” she said.
    Levi fully expected her to argue on the ride back to the farm, berate him for spending his money on them, but she kept silent. That was as it should be. Her family had taken care of him for so long, this made only a small dent toward repaying them.
    “Will you be able to plant anything he gave you before spring?” Levi asked, mainly to break the drawn-out quiet.
    “We can cut up some of the seed potatoes to plant, and the peas and carrots should be able to be ready to harvest before we get frost. If we get an early snow, we might lose them all.”
    “Let’s hope for a late winter.” He hoped they would have enough food to last them until next year’s harvest. They could hunt for meat, but stew and biscuits became dull after a while. He knew that from being in the army as long as he had.
    Early the next morning, he joined Em, Jasper and Billy in the field, where they walked the rows while hunched over, sticking pieces of potato into the dirt. His back ached, and having his head down that way made it pound. He straightened at the end of the row and stretched.
    A wave of dizziness hit him hard. Having nothing to grab ahold of, he staggered a few steps.
    “Are you all right?” Em asked,