Chapter 4

Fort William Henry

When morning came, there was no doubt that Alice was ill. Her fever from the following evening was still present and steadily rising. They began traveling at first light and Alice managed to hide the cough from her sister until lunch, passing it off as something on the air or any other excuse she could think of. When one bout had her doubled over and struggling for breath, the pretense as up. Cora demanded that they stop and rest until Alice recovered but the younger girl refused. She would not be an invalid in the wilderness, not while she still had the strength to push on. She had no intention of being the factor that got them all killed.

As a result, the company pushed forward as planned, but they spared many a glance behind them to see ho she was faring. Every cough elicited a look of concern on five different faces. Uncas was by her side on and off though he fussed over her less than the others. For that she was grateful for she so wanted to appear capable.

As day wore on it became harder and harder for her to push herself. She was shaking very badly and tried to hide the fact that she was stumbling by staying close to the trees. She did her best to make it seem as though she were only running her hands along the rough bark and not, in fact, keeping her balance. Uncas was suddenly at her side, taking her elbow gently and steering her in a straight direction when her stumbling feet would have carried her into a thorn bush.

When night fell, Alice's eyesight was starting to go. She could see outlines of her companions but they all seemed to be covered in a blurry, shining gauze. She was wise enough to know that it wasn't due to the failing light. Thankfully for her, they were close to the fort and a warm bed. Soon she would see her father and this horrible ordeal would be behind her. However, she had to wonder what would happen with Uncas and herself once they reached the fort. There would be no need for the three men to stay with them then. The thought of not seeing him again made her throat tight and she suddenly wasn't as eager for the fort.

Alice heard the sound of rushing water very close by but was having a hard time locating it. Uncas once again took her arm and steered her toward something bulky. He put her hands against a rough wooden surface and she realized it was a boat. She almost sobbed with relief as he helped her inside.

Soon there was a jolt and the boat was moving forward. No one spoke as they moved across the water and Alice gripped the sides tightly to keep from pitching forward. A warm hand covered her cold one from outside the boat and she realized the men were in the water guiding it toward the other side of the river. She squeezed the fingers in response and held it until she felt the boat hit soft sand. Everyone made their way out of the boat and up the path forgetting Alice as she tried to get her legs out of the canoe. Alice tumbled ungracefully over the side of the boat and was righting herself when her eyesight went completely black. She stood stock still by the boat and tried not to panic, blinking to bring light back to her eyes.

"Miss Alice?" she heard Uncas saying her name somewhere behind her but he sounded as if he were at the end of a tunnel. She turned toward the voice, tried to say something and collapsed in the sand.

Uncas saw the youngest Munro girl still standing near the canoe and narrowed his eyes in concern. She was quite ill and had been since the night before. When he had mentioned it to his father and brother they were concerned that she could not continue traveling.

"Do we need to stop," His father asked after he told them about her fever. Uncas had looked over at the sleeping girl and tried to decide how to answer. Finally he turned back to his father and brother, hoping his feeling didn't show on his face.

"She does not wish to"

It was the only answer he could give them and to give the girl her due, she Had kept going. The sick girl had traveled all day without complaint. He had seen her faltering though, more and more as the day wore on. He was worried that she was on the verge of collapse.

"Miss Alice," He called, still not completely comfortable dropping the formality. She turned toward him slowly, her eyes unfocused and glazed. He took a step toward her and realized she was about to pass out. She was deathly pale and he broke into a sprint when he saw her sway. She opened her mouth to talk and lost the battle with her illness, her eyes closed and her knees buckled. He reached her as she hit the sand, and lay there unmoving. Uncas rolled her over, slapping her cheeks gently to try and wake her.

"Alice," He said softly, patting at her cheeks which were very hot to the touch. She mumbled something that might have been his name as her gathered her into his arms. He had to fight with the many skirts for a moment to get a decent hold on her legs but once he did, he got to his feet and went to follow the others up the hill. Uncas adjusted her weight as he moved with her over the uneven terrain. She was not a heavy woman but bearing anyones weight single-handedly up a hill was hard work. Her body felt hot against his chest and she whimpered quietly were her head rested against his neck.

"Shhhh," He hushed her as he walked, pulling her closer against his chest for warmth. One pale hand came up to twist itself into his shirt, but otherwise she showed no signs of waking.

When he reached the others, it took the older girl only moments to turn around and see Alice lying prone in Uncas arms. Uncas clenched up as panic crept over Cora's face and he knew that she might be about to rush him.

"Alice," She cried and started to run back toward her sister. Nathaniel grabbed her arm and gently wheeled her back in the direction of the fort. She looked at him with both shock and anger on her face.

"Tend to your sister at the fort, there ain't nothing you can do for her here that can't be done there." Nathaniel told her gently but firmly. For a moment she looked like she was about to argue then she pursed her lips and continued forward, her jaw set in an angry scowl. Duncan moved back toward Uncas and held his arms out for Alice.

"I will take her now," He said kindly as they walked. Uncas looked at him but suddenly found that he didn't want to let the girl go. It had nothing to do with playing the hero, he just felt more secure being the one to carry her.

"I have her, just keep walking." He said as he walked purposely around Duncan and pushed on ahead. The fort was right in front of them and the sound of cannon fire was almost deafening this close by. The girl in his arms cringed at the noise and bunched her hands into his shirt involuntarily. He murmured comfortingly to her in Mohican as they made their way to the barracks. Nathaniel yelled out who they were and in a few moments they found themselves safely within Fort William Henry.

When the travelers were brought before the two girls father, Uncas was still carrying the sick girl. Her father didn't even notice his youngest as Cora ran to him, hugging him and trying to explain in one breath everything that had happened. Surprisingly, the man seemed angry that the girls were there and kept going on about their reinforcements. They were all taken to what looked like a meeting room before the man noticed his youngest being carried in behind him.

"What's happened to her then," He demanded, not sounding as if he much cared.

Uncas glared at him and carried Alice over to an empty table in one corner as the others tried to explain everything that had happened in the last day and a half.

Uncas arranged her as comfortably on the table as he could and pulled the water flask from his hip. He dug into the small bag he carried for a rag and then wet it with water. With that done, he began sponging down the girls hot face and neck.

"I told you to stay away," Munro was saying sternly to the older girl. 'Why did you disobey me?"

Uncas wasn't looking at her but he could hear the evident confusion in the other girl's voice.

"When...how?"

Alice made a soft moaning noise and Uncas laid a hand on her forehead, the fever was going up.

"In my letter," Munro was saying as Uncas gathered Alice back into his arms and turned back toward the others.

"There was none," Cora replied.

"Discuss it later," Uncas said loudly. The room turned to look at him.

"Your daughter is sick, she needs a doctor."

Munro sized Uncas up for a moment, looking somewhere between astonished and annoyed. After a moment he motioned to two men standing across the room.

"This young man is right, take her to the infirmary."

Two men, not much older than Uncas moved forward to take Alice from his arms. He gave her up reluctantly but as they went to take her away, the men found she wouldn't move. Alice had curled into a ball against him and balled her hands into fists around his shirt. Try as they might they couldn't get her to let go of him. After a brief struggle, Uncas shrugged them off.

"Leave her, I have very few good shirts. Show me where the infirmary is, I will take her there myself."

Uncas followed the men out of the room and down a long hallway where loud groans and screams could be heard. Women in white dresses flew here and there, trying to care for too many people at once. The soldier found an empty bed in a secluded room and then went in search of a doctor. While they were gone, Uncas worked on un-knotting her hands from his shirt. Soon her hands relaxed and he could arrange her more comfortably on the bed. He stayed with her until the doctor arrived then made his way out of the room. He stopped at the door to look back at her and realized he didn't want to leave. He allowed himself to stare at Alice's face a moment longer then sighed and walked away. He feared he was falling in love with someone he couldn't have.