First Lady of Jamestown: A Historical Romance Based on the Life and Adventures of Anne Burras, the First Englishwoman to Survive the New World by Tracy Smith

Author:Tracy Smith [Smith, Tracy]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: de Tello Publishing, LLC
Published: 2024-02-10T00:00:00+00:00

I walked through the crowd toward Captain Smith with Jack and John right behind me. I clutched Virginia to my chest when I saw Captain Smith lying on the dirt, surrounded by a group of people.

“What happened?” I asked a man next to me.

“He’s been shot, miss,” he said.

“Shot! Shot by whom? The natives?”

The man shook his head. “Not, by whom, by what? The gun powder in the boat exploded.”

“They said it was an accident, miss,” a man with a long beard and tattered cream shirt said. His gray doublet jacket hung over his gaunt frame. “But I think it was no accident. Not by the look of him.”

As I pushed through the crowd of men, I saw blood oozing from Captain Smith’s leg. My stomach turned, and I had to cover my mouth to avoid vomiting. Half his leg was burned off or singed, the skin open and flopping around. I had to look away for a minute to compose myself before turning back.

A woman beside me gasped. “Poor Captain Smith! What is to become of him?”

“My boat,” Captain Smith said with a moan. “Someone tried to sabotage the skivvy and ignited the gunpowder.”

The crowd gasped, and the men began to argue among themselves.

“This is treason!” Sir Ratcliffe shouted, shaking a raised fist.

“Someone will pay for this!” the men began to cry. Their petition was silenced when Captain Smith spoke again.

“We are not in shape enough to last this winter. I need to return to tell the king. If I stay here with this leg, I will most likely die, and what would that do for the rest of you? Let us take up one of the ships and return for additional supplies and help. We will take four vessels, the Diamond, Lion, Falcon, and Unity, back with us; that way, we may be able to return with more supplies.”

“Here, here!” shouted some of the men.

“Is it true?” A man with shaggy brown hair and several missing teeth shouted next to me.

“Is what true, man?” Sir Ratcliffe asked.

“Smith, is it true that Chief Powhatan shot and killed the remaining Roanoke people?”

A gasp escaped my lips, and shouts were heard from the other men.

“Do you think he is the one who did this to you?” the same man asked.

“Men, men, listen to me!” Captain Smith pleaded, trying to breathe through the pain. There have been reports that the Roanoke people joined with the Hatteras people on Croatoan Island and then made their way up here. Powhatan himself told me that he had his men kill them and the tribe they were staying with. Do not underestimate the Powhatan forces nor their great chief.” He put his hands on his chest and took several deep breaths, trying to recover before going on. “I’m not sure if Powhatan said those things about the Roanoke people to trick us and stop us in our search or if it really happened.”

He then grabbed Sir Ratcliffe’s arm and pulled him in close. I was near enough to hear his whispers.

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