Chapter 26
There was a chill in the autumn air that night. Sid, Fred, Gregor, Dracos, Sebeson, Connor, and Barson were seated around the campfire; each staring into the fire. The smoke from the fire would occasionally blow in Barson's direction and his eyes kept tearing up. It was time to discuss the events of the day and to plan for the future.
Gregor said, "Thanks for your warning about Jameson."
"What happened there?" Sid asked.
"Jameson wasn't going to attack until he knew which way the battle was going. It looked to me like he was going to end up attacking us, so I beat him to it," Gregor answered with disgust evident in his voice.
"You're sure of that?"
"I sent orders to him to attack four times, but he kept sitting up on that hill watching our men dying below. If he had moved when I told him to go, the battle would have been over after an hour. Dracos would have only had a tenth of the casualties," Gregor answered. He tossed a small chip of wood into the fire thinking he would have liked to have thrown Jameson in there rather than the wood chip. It would have been much more satisfying.
Furious at learning of the treachery of a man who his father trusted, Dracos asked, "What did you do to him?"
"I went over to give the order personally the fourth time. When he ignored me, I cut his head off. There was a little bit of a ruckus, but my men gained control over the situation with the help of Jameson's second in command. It seems that the Captain of his troops was rather embarrassed by the actions of Jameson," Gregor answered watching the wood chip burst into flames. He was disgusted by the entire affair with Jameson.
"I thought that would be the case," Sid said shaking his head. He sighed and said, "I'm sorry to have put you in that situation."
"There's nothing for you to be sorry about. You warned me about the possibility as soon as you learned of it. If you hadn't, I wouldn't be here," Gregor said.
"Why didn't you tell me?" Dracos asked indignant at having been left out.
"How would you have reacted if the intelligence was wrong?" Sid asked.
"I'd have demanded that you apologize to him."
"Sid would have apologized to him without your demands. I guess the real question is if you would have confronted him with it prior to the battle," Sebeson said looking over at Dracos.
"I probably would have," Dracos admitted.
"You would have found that he would have attacked our forces rather than wait as long as he had. Instead of us sitting around here discussing his traitorous behavior, we'd have all been dead or slaves," Sebeson said.
"How do you know?" Dracos asked believing that they would have handled the situation.
"That's how Danny Sun was killed and I was taken prisoner," Sebeson answered.
News about how Danny Sun had been defeated sparked Sid's interest. Sitting up, he asked, "What did happen there?"
Shaking his head, Sebeson said, "Danny Sun had been approached by Holland to support his campaign. Danny agreed and the two groups seemed to be working together well. The two armies campaigned separately with Holland fighting in the West and Danny fighting in the East. They kept taking more territory. It wasn't long before the supply lines started getting rather long and Danny started to have supply problems.
"There were raids against his supply lines and he couldn't seem to prevent the raiders from knowing exactly where the wagons were. He set up caches and would return only to find that they were empty of goods. It seemed like an inside job, but Danny couldn't find the culprit. When supplies got too bad, he pulled back to regroup and re-establish his supply lines. That helped for a while, particularly when he started getting supplies from you.
"On a military front, things appeared to be going well. Every time Danny engaged the slaver army, we were very successful. Holland was reporting the same kinds of successes in his campaigns. The problem was that it seemed to me like the enemy had far too many troops. We'd engage the army and kill or capture thousands of men. Holland told us about engagements with the slavers and reported similar numbers. Still, every time we turned around there were thousands more of the enemy facing us on the battlefield.
"Danny was beginning to get suspicious and sent a man to watch Holland. I think that man was captured and confessed to Holland that Danny Sun suspected him of misreporting the body counts. As I said, I only think that. I don't have proof of it.
"It came down to a major battle in which the enemy was supposedly trapped between our forces and Holland's army. We took the field facing the slaver army. Holland's army was supposed to engage the enemy from their left flank. When the battle started, we found Holland's army was attacking our left flank. Somehow, he was on the opposite side of the battlefield from where he was supposed to be. From what I later learned, he moved his men behind the enemy we were facing to attack us from the other side.
"We might have been able to hold things together, but for one problem. Holland's army had been hiding another army behind his. When the battle started our right flank was being attacked by an army we didn't even know about."
Sid listened to the story and could see how the battle ended. Shaking his head, he said, "It must have been hell out there."
"You can say that again," Sebeson answered.
"Who was leading the fourth army?" Sid asked.
There was a long moment of silence while Sebeson considered the question. He finally said, "It could have been another part of the slaver army or it could have been Jameson. I never really saw who was in command. I can say one thing though; they weren't wearing slaver army uniforms."
Gregor swore and said, "There's no honor in this enemy we're fighting. They take slaves by drugging men in bars. They destroy villages to carry off farmers. They don't honor agreements or the honorable forms of battle."
Wanting to know the depth of treachery they were facing, Sid asked, "Do you think we should talk to the young Captain who took control of the army after Jameson was killed?"
With a look in his eye that suggested he was really interested in performing the questioning himself, Sebeson asked, "Who will you have question him?"
"Normally I would send Masterson, but he's away helping Colonel Lee," Sid answered opening the door for him to volunteer.
"I had heard that you were working with my little brother," Sebeson said with a shake of his head. The announcement immediately got the attention of everyone around the fire.
"Your brother? He said that you were cousins," Sid said surprised by the revelation.
"He's always saying that," Sebeson said with a laugh. He added, "I think he believes that since everyone assumes that we're cousins that one day we'll have a chance to meet on the battlefield as opponents. It's not going to happen."
Barson asked, "You're brothers? How come he's called Masterson and you're called Sebeson?"
Sebeson burst out laughing and said, "My little brother used to call himself the Master of Battle and he called me the Second Best Son. After a while, all of the kids were calling him Masterson and were calling me Sebeson."
Connor shook his head and said, "I can't see Masterson running around like a kid."
"I take it he's still his normal arrogant self," Sebeson said with a grin.
"He's mellowed under the influence of Sid," Connor said gesturing in the direction of Sid.
"I find that hard to believe," Sebeson said.
Shaking his head at the revelation concerning Masterson, Sid knew that the news about the treachery of the enemy was the more significant problem. He said, "We have a major problem that has to be resolved and quickly."
"What?" Sebeson asked.
"Some of the men I sent to support Danny Sun are already working with Holland. I'm pretty sure that he's setting them up for a massacre. We need to stop his plans from coming to fruition," Sid said.
"Who's in charge?" Connor asked trying to remember who had been sent out to support Danny Sun. With so many men joining the army it had become impossible for him to keep track of them all.
"Hunter," Sid answered looking over at Connor.
"He's a good man. I'll never forget his battle at Hunter's Crossing," Connor said recalling the man.
"He's one of the originals," Barson said feeling a little pride that he was also a member of the original group who left the Jones Citadel with Sid. So far, ten of their number had fallen in battle.
"We've got a lot of our original force there. I sent Albert there to support him with siege weapons and to help set up their supply line," Sid said.
Barson knew that Albert was there, but hadn't thought about it until Sid had mentioned it. Olaf was providing some support in the rear and watching over the women that Sid had rescued. There were times when he really missed having Olaf around. He said, "I'll go with you when you are ready to take care of Holland."
"No, you'll head back to help Olaf set up a better supply line," Sid said.
In the morning, Hunter paced to and fro in front of the fire waiting for the patrol to return. They were a half an hour late. He glanced over at the man seated by the fire. He strode over to the fire and squatted down. Staring at the flames, he said, "Matt, it looks like last night's patrol won't be returning."
Looking over at the commander with an unreadable expression on his face, Matt asked, "Do you think they were ambushed or did they desert?"
"I don't know. I've lost close to a third of my men in the last three weeks under mysterious circumstances. I know the rest of my men are worried, but I can't believe that the missing patrols are deserting. I'm doubling the size of the patrols," Hunter answered. He looked up from the fire and over at Matt to see what the man had to say about it.
"Why?"
"I figure if they are deserting that it will be harder to talk twenty men into it rather than ten. If they are getting ambushed, I figure that they will have a better chance of surviving it," Hunter answered searching Matt's face for a sign of what the man thought about his decision.
"That's a start." Matt said fully convinced that the men were deserting. Men who died in ambushes left bodies behind, but they had not found any bodies.
"What else should I do?"
The other man pursed his lips and said, "You need to get a little harder on your men. A good commander knows how to put the fear of God into the men serving under him. I suggest that you really let the next patrol know that they are to keep their eyes open and come back. Let them know what happens to men who desert."
"Is that how Holland operates?" Hunter asked.
"You bet. He rules with an iron fist and his men love him for it," Matt answered with a smile. It would have been more accurate to say that his men feared Holland rather than loved him.
Shaking his head, Hunter said, "I guess I better send the next patrol out."
"Remember, put the fear of God into them," Matt said. He slapped Hunter on the back in a friendly fashion. It was the kind of gesture that a mentor would give his protégée before sending him off on a difficult task.
Hunter rose and walked over to where twenty mounted men waited for him. The men, almost without exception, were sitting in their saddles slumped over with frowns on their faces. None of them pretended to be happy to see their leader. The patrol leader grunted and said, "We're ready. We've been ready for thirty blasted minutes."
"Shut up!" Hunter shouted. He glared at the man and faced the rest of the men. In a loud voice, he said, "You're to keep your eyes open while you're out on patrol. Someone or something has been killing or capturing our patrols. I don't have to tell you that we haven't been able to find hide nor hair of any of the men who disappeared. You men fall asleep while on patrol and I'll take the whip to you. Do you understand me?"
In a half-hearted response, the men answered, "Yes, sir."
"Do you understand me?" Hunter shouted.
With a little more energy, the men answered, "Yes, sir."
"If I ever find a man who has deserted, I will flay him alive. I will rip off his skin with a whip one small sliver at a time. Do you understand me?"
Considering that all of the men in the patrol had been slaves, the threat of whipping did not invoke fear, but anger. With a little more energy, the men answered, "Yes, sir."
The look the men gave him was not exactly one of respect or fondness. Hunter looked over his shoulder at Matt seated by the campfire. Looking back at his men, he said, "Blake has his orders. Follow them."
"Whatever you say, sir," Blake answered in an insolent tone of voice that carried over to the fire.
"You and I will have a little talk when you return from your patrol," Hunter said looking at Blake.
"If we return," Blake answered. Rather than waiting for a reply from Hunter, the man turned to his men and said, "Let's go."
The patrol rode off leaving Hunter standing there with a look of anger on his face. Frowning, he turned and returned to the campfire. Shaking his head, he asked, "How was that?"
"Perfect," Matt answered with a smile.
"Really? I thought they left angry rather than intimidated," Hunter said watching the other man.
"It's easy enough to mistake the one for the other," Matt said with a shrug of his shoulders.
"I wish General Sid was here. He'd know what to do," Hunter said.
Matt shook his head and said, "You've got one of the greatest military minds in this part of the world supporting you. Holland is just a week's ride away and will be more than happy to teach you a thing or two about managing your forces."
"I'd still like to send a message to General Sid. He needs to know that things aren't going all that well here," Hunter said. The last messenger he had sent to General Sid had been found less than a day's ride from camp with an arrow in him. Out of six messengers, five of them had been found dead within two days.
"Well, if you feel that strongly about it I could always arrange for my network of people to deliver a message to him," Matt said.
"You'd do that for me?" Hunter asked.
"Sure. We're allies in this war on slavery," Matt answered.
"Okay. I'll pen a message later and we'll send it out this afternoon," Hunter said wondering what he could put into the message to convey the situation to Sid. The fact was that he was worried and didn't want the enemy to know just how concerned he was about the situation.
"Great," Matt said smiling over at Hunter in an attempt to relieve him of some of his concerns.
Shaking his head, Hunter said, "I'm going to check the watch. Last night, we lost three men. We found the body of one of them, but two of the men disappeared."
"Sounds to me like your camp is being tested for weaknesses," Matt said. He had heard about one of the men being found dead, but hadn't seen the body and didn't know the details about the death. There was a rumor that one of the men in camp was responsible for the death, but that was just a rumor. He suspected that someone had killed the man while deserting. He noticed that Hunter didn't bother to mention the twelve men who disappeared from camp during the night.
"That's what I thought so I'm doubling the watch," Hunter said.
"Remember, you've got to instill the fear of God in them. Make sure that everything is just right and don't accept any excuses. If you find someone asleep on duty, make a good example out of them. You've been threatening them with a flogging for a week now. It's time to give the men one," Matt said fully convinced that Hunter would do exactly that.
"What if none of the men are asleep?"
"You'll just have to find another reason to flog one of them," Matt answered with a negligent shrug of his shoulders. There was always someone who was doing something wrong and could be used as an example.
Shaking his head, Hunter said, "These men really don't like the idea of being whipped. That was a common punishment when they were slaves."
"The reason they don't like the idea of it is because it is an effective punishment. Don't read anything more into than that," Matt replied wondering if Hunter had the stomach it took to achieve his mission.
"I'll think about it," Hunter said.
Matt rose from the log on which he had been seated and said, "I'm going to send a man out to Holland and let him know what is going on here."
"Any chance of having him send us some food?"
Matt frowned at the request before he answered, "I'll ask him, but we are all having supply problems."
"You've said that before. Maybe today's patrol will find one of our supply wagons," Hunter said. The loss of men from camp had actually allowed them to stretch what few supplies they had left from the handful of deliveries that had managed to get through to them.
"I'll ask Holland if he can spare some supplies," Matt said.
"Thanks." Hunter didn't bother to engage Matt in further discussion concerning his army.
Hunter went out to where his men were bunkered down in watchtowers watching for the approach of the enemy from the tree- line. To call them watchtowers was a bit of an exaggeration. They were basically small platforms raised four feet off of the ground and were intended to give the men a slightly better view over the tall grasses of the field. At each watchtower, Hunter talked to the men stationed there making sure that each understood their responsibility to his army.
It took Hunter an hour to visit all of the watchtowers surrounding the camp. When he had finished talking with the men in the last tower, his second in command came over and said, "This camp looks like hell. I don't like it."
"What's the matter?" Hunter asked.
"Send a couple dozen men out there to cut down all of that tall grass. The enemy can sneak up on us and we'll never see them," Dale said.
"I'll consider it," Hunter replied.
"The men are very nervous," Dale said with a frown. It was getting very difficult to control the men. The mysterious disappearances of their brothers in arms were making them nervous and suspicious.
"I know," Hunter said. He looked around the camp and said, "Matt has suggested that we make an example out of one of the men and whip him."
"You can't be serious? Doesn't he know what that will do?"
Hunter smiled and said, "I'm positive that he's very convinced it would be the best thing that I could do."
"That man is a fool," Dale said as he spat on the ground. From the
very first moment he had met the man, he had a bad opinion of Matt and
it was getting worse every day. It bothered him that Hunter credited
Matt with far more intelligence than the man deserved.