Thank you so much to those who have read the story. Even though the last couple of chapters have received no reviews I know it's been viewed, just without any comments. So for the silent majority I'm going to keep plodding along to the end. But, I hope some of you are enjoying it, and if you aren't... my apologies.
Much to John's relief, the strategy meeting in Commandant Veldhuis' tent went off without a hitch. Thomas was in attendance but seemed to have curbed his natural snarkiness while at the session. He stayed quiet and in the background, keeping his opinions to himself.
Plans were made for an attack at a nearby British encampment for the following week, which gave John sufficient time to pass on the information to Major Crawley, who would then let British command know the logistical details of the raid.
The following week the Boers attacked, only to find the area vacated. It appeared that the British had picked up and taken off for another location. Nothing of value was left behind so the raid had proved fruitless.
When they returned to camp, John echoed Veldhuis' anger over the mission gone wrong. He offered to conduct further reconnaissance with his men to see if they could come up with some idea where the British encampment had relocated to. The commandant appeared to be heartened by Bate's offer and agreed to let him and his men reconnoiter the area for clues as to where it had moved.
Also, true to his word, Veldhuis had spoken to his daughter, as had her mother and the issue of Marta pursuing Sgt. Botha appeared to have been handled, much to John's relief. They would see each other daily, but nary a word was spoken between them. A few furtive glances his way by the young woman had occurred, earlier on, but Bates made it a point to avert his gaze and never look directly at her. He could see she was hurt, but took solace in the fact that it was best to nip Marta's infatuation with him quickly. Eventually, John stopped experiencing that tightening in his shoulders and chest whenever he saw her approach. She appeared to have lost interest or at least stopped trying to catch his attention.
The next Sunday Bates managed to sneak off to the rendezvous point with Major Crawley and learned what the British generals wanted him to say to mislead Commandant Veldhuis and the guerillas under his command.
Robert could barely contain his excitement as he told John of the British high command's decision.
"We're getting close to the end of your mission, Bates. It's been decided that you're going to divulge the news of an artillery battery that is minimally guarded. We want Veldhuis to come to the conclusion that they should attack and when he does we will spring our trap and have a full company of soldiers waiting to take him and his men prisoners. As one of the most famous and successful guerilla units in the Transvaal, his capture along with his men will be a big blow to the Boer resistance."
"Sir," Bates replied. "Commandant Veldhuis is a smart man and I'm afraid he's going to be suspicious this may be a set-up. For an artillery unit to be left relatively unguarded seems highly questionable and he may not take the bait."
"Ah well, Bates. That's where you come in. You're tasked to convince Veldhuis that he'd be a fool to pass this opportunity up. The future of this entire scheme depends upon your ability to do so. I have total faith that you can do it, Sergeant, and convinced my superiors that you were absolutely capable of assuring the Boers that this opportunity to capture much needed armaments is legitimate and makes sense from a military and strategic standpoint."
"I appreciate your faith in my abilities, sir. And you know I will do my upmost. But, what if I fail to convince him?"
"Nonsense! Failure is not an option, Bates. Besides, I know you'd never disappoint me. I"ve put my reputation on the line for you. You'd never let me down." And with those parting words, Major Crawley disappeared into the brush.
Bates waited until the Major was well on his way back to HQ before heading back to the encampment. While he appreciated Robert's absolute trust in his ability to see this operation to its successful conclusion, John couldn't help the feeling that it was not going to be as easily achieved as merely not "disappointing" Robert.
Bates slowly made his way towards the mess tent. It was time for the evening meal and his stomach was rumbling.
"My, my Sgt. Botha! You sound like a very, very hungry man."
John froze, immediately recognizing the voice...Marta!
She giggled and slipped her arm around John's. "You'll be happy to hear that tonight we have a sumptuous stew prepared for the camp. It's guaranteed to fill you up, Sergeant."
John felt his shoulders tighten and his stomach churn. What was she doing? Her father and mother both told her to stay clear of him. Obviously, she chose to ignore them. It was time for him to end this once and for all. If he hadn't kissed her, perhaps she'd have gone off him by now. Bates remembered the feel of her lips on his, the pleasure he felt. But no, it was wrong on so many levels. And also this kind of entanglement could prove fatal to the mission he was leading.
"Marta," John choked out her name. "You may not know this, but I have spoken to your father concerning your infatuation with me. And I know you've been told to stay away from me. We are not a good match. You're too young... I'm too old... Your father is my Commandant...There is nothing...nothing between us. You must see that and let me go." Bates gently, but firmly removed the young woman's arm from around his.
"I don't believe you Johann. I still remember how you kissed me... I know you felt what I felt in that moment. If I hadn't stumbled, if Papa had not seen us, I don't believe you would be acting like this, pushing me away."
Bates turned and looked back at Marta. She had fallen to her knees as tears filled her eyes. She blinked and John saw the tears roll down her cheeks.
Bates felt like a heartless rogue. He regretted having to be so cruel to the Commandant's daughter, but nothing.. not the time, the place, nor the people involved made sense in this time of war. Even though he felt some affection for her, because she was kind, and caring and truly seemed to enjoy being in his presence, he knew he would ultimately have to betray her and her family in order to carry out his orders.
So he continued down the road to the canteen, Marta's soft cries fading in the distance as he walked away. It's for the best, he counseled himself. After all, she is the enemy.
The recon session that Bates conducted with his men the following week came back with the totally made up news of a new, British encampment about 10 miles north of the previous location. The report included details of some heavy artillery, horses and supplies that were ripe for the taking.
"What makes you think that it would be easy to attack and claim all those supplies and armaments, Sargent?" As John had predicted, Veldhuis sounded suspicious of what Bates and his men had reported they'd seen.
"To be honest, sir, I was a bit skeptical myself. But we ran the perimeter looking for possible hideouts where snipers or a contingent of soldiers might be hiding and found nothing... no one. The area is minimally guarded with just a small section of 20-25 men protecting what appears to be an artillery staging area."
John hoped his words sounded truthful. He knew full well that he was sending Veldhuis and his men into a trap. That a full company of British soldiers were strategically scattered around the site and once the Boer raiders were drawn inside the set-up area the full contingent of 100-200 British soldiers would descend upon the woefully outnumbered Boers.
"Botha, are you sure? It just seems like a trap. An artillery cache like that would typically have hundreds of men guarding it. Yet you maintain that there are only a small, singular section of British troops on site?"
"I know it sounds crazy sir, but my men and I were most thorough checking the surrounding areas for any sign of hidden troops, but we couldn't find any. It must be a mix-up on the British side...an error in troop disbursement. You know how incompetent those British commanders are."
"Ya, well we know that the English are famous for strategic blunders in this war, don't we Botha?" Veldhuis chuckled. "They still treat this war like one of their "small wars."... And that we are savages and country bumpkin farmers that know nothing of strategy and how to fight as guerillas. They learned nothing from the first war and their hubris will ultimately be their downfall."
Bates pondered the Commandant's words and found himself reluctantly having to agree with his assessment. The British high command was arrogant and maintained a deeply held belief that utilizing the same troop deployment and military tactics that had worked before the turn of the century when applied to this current war in South Africa would be equally successful. Thankfully, there were some more forward thinking members of the General Command who had learned from past lessons and saw the folly in pursuing the same course.
John also had to admit he had acquired a bit of admiration for the Boers. Their dedication to their land, their families, their refusal to bow down to a far superior, by way of the sheer amount of soldiers and equipment that could be thrown into this conflict , British army was inspiring to see. John would sometimes feel himself moved during meetings in the commandant's tent listening to Veldhuis and other soldiers attending speak so passionately about their purpose and the necessity to keep fighting to maintain their country's freedom.
He was also sickened to see proof of the existence of the family concentration camps maintained by the British. Over the course of the several weeks John and his men had been with the Boer guerilla unit, a few women had managed to escape their confines and wandered into the Boer encampment emaciated, ill, with horrifying tales of disease and starvations at the camps which were supposedly established to keep the non-combatant women and children "safe" from the war. But nothing could be farther from the truth. In reality, after burning down their houses and salting their fields so nothing would grow, the British established these camps as bait. Hoping that seeing their wives and children in such terrible conditions would coerce their husbands and fathers to give up and put down their arms rather than see their family suffer and die. So far, it hadn't worked and as details leaked into the news back home, the public's support of the war was at an all time low.
While John the man had compassion and concern for the families, Bates the soldier had never ever entertained the idea of switching sides. A traitor to his country? Never! There is good and bad on either side in a war but John Bates loyalty totally rested with England and his comrades. He would die before betraying either.
What Bates didn't know was that there was someone in his own team who had come to feel otherwise...