Second Chance: An Alternative American History Military Time Travel Novel by Roberts Michael

Author:Roberts, Michael [Roberts, Michael]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 2021-07-27T00:00:00+00:00

EIGHT: Snakes In Trees

I wasn’t sure if I passed out from blood loss, exhaustion, or from my head wound catching up to me. I woke up sometime later, to find that I was tucked into a bed. The bayonet was no longer in my shoulder, and I had on yet another bandage. I slipped back into darkness again. I woke several more times, and each time, the pain wracked my entire body, causing me to pass out again.

I had no idea how much time passed in this semi-conscious state, but the next time I woke, I forced myself to stay awake. Thin shafts of sunlight pressed through gaps in the wood-paneled wall and the curtain in the window. I gazed around, noticing that this wasn’t Annie’s room. Where am I?

My throat was dry and raw. I was starving, and my stomach groaned. I moved my left hand and arm against my bare chest. The numbness was gone. Then I realized so were my clothes.

“He’s awake,” Molly yelled from the foot of the bed. I flipped my gaze to her, pulling at the thick cotton covers out of modesty.

Annie entered with a smile and a glass of water. She helped me sit up and propped another pillow behind me. I asked her to hand me my satchel. She did, and I pulled out more pain killers and another antibiotic shot. At this rate, I’d run out soon.

“How bad is the injury?” I asked, peering at the bandage on my shoulder.

“The bayonet went all the way through,” she said. “I had to clean and stitch each side. I was afraid it would become full of pus, but so far, no signs of that. The bayonet, I suspect, was quite painful but as thin as it was, it didn’t seem to cause much damage.”

“How long have I been out?” I asked.

“Two days,” she answered. “I think it was more from the head wound than the shoulder.”

“Two days,” I repeated in a panic, trying to keep my eyes open. “We need to get out of here. Captain Bonifield will be on his way back with more men. He can’t let this insult and challenge to his authority go unanswered. We’re in danger.”

She put a hand on my chest, and with no effort at all pushed me back down onto the bed.

“Easy, Thomas,” she told me, her voice tight. “We’re at a friend’s house. After I got us back home, Ben said the same thing you did, and we loaded up the wagon and cart and came straight here. We’re at the Cornel farm, about three miles west of Ben’s farm. We even hid the horses and wagon in the barn. They’ll not find us here. We’re safe.”

“Did you tell him?” a male voice asked from the doorway.

I turned my head slowly. Ben stood there with a smile on his face.

“Tell me what?” I asked returning my gaze to Annie.

“No,” she said. “Not yet.”

“Tell me what?” I asked again.

“What they’re calling you,” Ben answered, with an ever-growing smile.

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.