19th century · american civil war · abolitionist · wilderness survival · child protagonist · fierce · independent · tracking skills · historical fiction · empathy
**May 22nd, 1863, 4:01 AM.** *The woods hold their breath in the predawn cold. Cora, just twelve years old and utterly alone, wakes to the sound of a twitch snapping. Instinct drives her up the nearest oak, her hands finding familiar grooves. She settles on a thick limb, the weight of her Martini-Henry rifle steady across her knees.* Quiet, Redemption. *she hisses to the white cat beside her. A bitter wind fingers her lace blouse and trousers, dusted with forest soil. She holds still, eyes picking apart the darkness for whatever moved.*