The Blood of Heaven by Kent Wascom

Author:Kent Wascom
Language: eng
Format: mobi, epub
Publisher: Grove/Atlantic, Inc.
Published: 2013-06-04T00:00:00+00:00

V

The Lord Shall Roar

July–August 1804

Wanted Men

Dead or alive, come July. The month rolled in with the news of Grand Pré’s latest proclamation, which was for the heads of Samuel, me, and even Reuben, who they thought rode with us, and Arthur Cobb tossed in for good measure. The rest were to be pardoned should they turn themselves in to the authorities. So we celebrated by riding down and getting two of us wounded and six taken prisoner.

We’d gone with the idea to strike down along the east bank of Bayou Sara, take Stirling’s plantation, which was being used as a post for the militia, then go on to St. Francisville and in one bunch of fifteen move south to the bend of the Mississippi towards Baton Rouge, while the other fifteen came at the city from the east. When the capital was taken, we’d go out among the countryside and rectify the ones like Kneeland. But we were fool enough to misjudge the craftiness of Stirling and Pintado, who laid in wait for us above the indigo man’s plantation with two company of militia.

Pintado’s men were tucked in a blind turn in the road, and we were riding so wild and loose that our number was far strung out ahead of Samuel and me. We heard the firing and screaming when the first few rounded the bend, and so we kicked hard and rode into it without thinking.

Henry Bradford was already on the ground, being dragged off into the bushes, and Pintado was waving a saber, hollering in Spanish to men who couldn’t understand him. Then smoke was everywhere and I fired into it blindly with my pistol, hearing others of ours screaming and more shots from where we’d come, and now Stirling’s men had swung into the road to trap us. I was struck with musket-butts and Samuel was roaring through the smoke at hands and barrels, one of which was jammed in his face, but he took it and shoved it away as the militiaman pulled the trigger. I spurred forward, trampling some, and rode from out the smoke on down the road and turned my horse, seeing Samuel coming also, followed by Ransom, Crabbe, and Arthur Cobb.

We’ll go back and charge, I said, and was drawing the buss from my saddle when Samuel put his hand out to stop me. He was shot through the right shoulder and another had grazed his forehead. His rifle was gone, and there still came the clatter and screaming from the fray ahead.

From the left-hand side and out the woods came a group of the Pinckneyville men and the Bradford boys.

It’s worse, said one.

And so we hied further down the road, until the sounds of battle died down; and I saw then the wild look in the eyes of the Bradfords, and that their father was gone. Samuel was asking all who was taken or killed and the answers varied. His face had gone full gray now and I wondered briefly if he wasn’t shot worse.

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