Hear the Wind Blow by Mary Downing Hahn

the look of his bloody shirt, he'd been shot more than once. Not in the back but in the front, which meant he'd been facing those Yankees when he took the bullets.
    A note pinned to his shirt said, "This is what happens to Mosby's Bushwhackers and them that shelter them." It was signed, "Capt. Powell's men."
    A flock of crows winged their way across the sky and settled in the maple's branches. They cawed and scolded and jostled one another. It was clear they meant to make a meal of James Marshall as soon as I turned my back.

    As gently as I could, I dragged his body to the spring-house and laid him out on the stone floor. All was still except for the stream that cooled our milk. It gurgled through its channel, but not one milk jug blocked its path. The Yankees hadn't missed a thing. They meant us to starve or freeze.
    "I'm sorry to see you in this state," I whispered to James Marshall. "I was certain you'd get away from those Yankees."
    I smoothed his dark hair and set stones on his eyelids to keep them closed. I should have used pennies, but I didn't have any. I said some prayers for James Marshall's soul, which I hoped was resting over Jordan in the shade of the trees. He was a good man and he'd died a good death. But I mourned him with all my soul.
    "Later on I'll do my best to bury you proper," I said, "but you're safe here for now."
    I rose slowly to my feet and wiped my eyes. Though I hated to do it, I left him there and closed the springhouse door tight. No crow, fox, or wild dog would get James Marshall.
    With that sad task taken care of, I went back to the remains of the house and climbed down into the root cellar. Lucky for us, the Yankees hadn't taken time to look or they would have stolen Mama's preserves, as well as the fruit and vegetables she kept there. I filled my pockets with apples and made my way back to the gully.
    Mama and Rachel greeted me as if I'd been gone a week or more. While we munched apples, I told them the house and barn were both burned to the ground.
    "What about my doll?" Rachel asked. "Did you find Sophia?"
    "The house is still smoldering, Rachel. It's not safe to go inside."

    Her face collapsed and she started crying. "I hate those Yankees; I wish you'd killed them all."
    "Now, Rachel," I began, but she cut me off.
    "Why couldn't you have let James Marshall go on by, like Mama told you? If he hadn't come along—"
    "Rachel, Rachel," Mama pulled her close. "Don't say such things. James Marshall was a fine young man. Suppose our Avery was sick and wounded? Would you want people to turn him away because they were scared of the Yankees?"
    Rachel clung to Mama and wept. It was clear that Mama barely had the strength to comfort the child, but she did her best. At least she was acting more like herself. It must have been the first time since she'd killed the captain that Mama hadn't spoken of her guilt. Maybe she was getting over it.
    "Come on," I said. "Let's go back to the house. We can shelter in the root cellar, build a fire, dry ourselves out."
    Rachel let go of Mama and scrambled up the gully, her spirits already rising at the thought of a warm fire. I followed more slowly, helping Mama, who seemed to have lost her strength entirely. She leaned on me as if she were Grandma Colby's age, breathing hard and coughing deep in her chest. Her body felt warm, and her hand heated mine.
    By the time we reached the house, I was practically carrying Mama. She paused and looked at the ruins, still smoking in the cold damp air, and sighed. "When your papa comes home, he'll have a sight of work to do," was all she said.
    It seemed Mama was slipping away from us again. Surely her fever was affecting her mind. I'd had spells myself when I was sick, seeing things that weren't there, hearing voices in the dead of the night, crying out nonsense.

    Rachel tugged at Mama's hand. "But, Mama," she began, "Papa—"
    I squeezed Rachel's shoulder hard. "Shh," I whispered. "Let Mama think what she wants. She's not