The Colonel - Chapter one
My head was in so much pain as I started to wake up. What happened? Where am I? "Colonel! Over here!" Someone shouted from next to me. Colonel...? What the heck. Why are there British soldiers here? I heard footsteps draw nearer. Presumably the Colonel.
"Sir it appears she's been hit badly over the head." Slowly I opened my eyes to see men in British uniforms and nothing around but horses and open land. When was I? I have read about this happening to others but never believed it. This is just some reenactment. How I ended up in the middle of it is another question entirely. Slowly pushing myself up to sit I leaned up against a tree. I looked up at the man standing to my right. I have seen a painting of him in my textbook and the last lecture I attended was about him. I always had an interest in the revolution and had always found the Colonel very attractive. Either this was some strange reenactment group or I had been thrown back in time, which was quite ridiculous. Seeing as he looked identical to the images in my textbook.
"Colonel William Tavington Green Dragoon's. What happened to you, miss…?" I touched the back of my head to find it wet with blood.
"Anastasia McKenzie, Sir. And I… I do not quite remember. I was at the market in New York. That's the last thing I remember." What the heck is happening? Seeing the blood, he turned to Borden.
"Ride on ahead and fetch the doctor. We shall meet back at the fort." Borden did as ordered and mounted his horse taking with him some of the lesser ranked soldiers.
"Do you think that you can stand Miss?" He held out his hand to help me up. I reached for it but as soon as I was standing and the men that had left for the fort made it out of sight, Colonel Tavington pushed me hard against the tree that I had been found by. His body holding me against the tree.
"Who are you really…? Miss McKenzie?" He sneered my name. "Think you could spy on the King's army, did you?" I became dazed by his forcefulness. Although not surprising given what I knew of him. I whimpered as the pain in my head became worse and I began to struggle against him. "Please Colonel Tavington… I am not a spy. The last thing I remember was leaving the market in New York. That's the truth, I swear it." Maybe this situation was not all bad. 2020 was a terrible year.
"New York?" he asked as he pulled himself off of me, his piercing blue eyes looking into mine curiously. The look vanished quickly and was replaced once again with his usual hard demeanor. "We shall get this sorted at the fort." He grabbed my wrist and tied them together; mounting the horse, he pulled me up on after him, and sat me in front of him. I could feel his body pressed up against mine again and his breath on my neck, which sent a shiver down my spine, which I tried to hide. As we rode off to the fort, I could feel his hostility dripping off him. About an hour later, I could see the fort coming into view. And as an avid history fanatic, I just could not help being excited at seeing the original fort, Yet, that excitement soon turned to fear of not knowing what would happen to me. If they decided I was a spy I would hang. Would I return home if that would happen or would I truly die? If they didn't...what would become of me?
The gates opened to reveal an estate that was built of red brick with huge bay windows on the first floor. I could only imagine how beautiful it would be inside. I'd most likely see where they held the prisoners. As we rode through the gates there were two men and a woman who had to be around my age standing on the steps. Tavington dismounted his horse then pulled me down after him. Turning back to look at the people on the porch I assumed one of them was the Lord General Cornwallis and the other his second in command General O'Hara. I could see the displeasure on Cornwallis's face when he saw the Colonel with me tied up and injured. "Colonel my office now!" He was definitely furious. Tavington walked up the steps and into the house and before the Lord General followed in he turned to the woman beside him, and whispered to her.
The woman walked toward me. "Mary Cornwallis. I'm terribly sorry how that dreadful man treated you. Let's get you settled and a doctor to see you." She had a groom untie me and then she led me through the double doors.
"Thank you, Mary. My name is Anastasia McKenzie." The entryway was astonishing with the walls painted in a seafoam green. The floor was polished mahogany with a spiral staircase on either side. As I looked around I saw a door slightly ajar. I could see the colonel standing facing a desk through the crack in the door. "These brutal tactics must stop…." I turned away from the door as two servants met us at the bottom of the spiral staircase to the right.
"Margaret, Aberdeen, Please take our guest up to one of the guest rooms. Make sure she is comfortable and stay with her until I can get the doctor." They curtsied and as the younger one started to lead me up the stairs the older one stepped toward Mary.
"Ma'am the only room available is the one next to The Colonel." Mary pursed her lips in frustration.
"It's alright Mary; I probably won't be staying long. Mary clasped my hand and smiled. "Nonsense you stay as long as you need to. Besides it will be nice having some feminine company. I'll get this room fiasco sorted out by dinner." She let go of my hand smiling and hurried off. "Come Miss…" I turned and started going up the steps with them.
Margaret opened the door to the room. It was the perfect color scheme. I loved it. The main color was burgundy, which the curtains and the bedding were, colored with accents of black and gold. The bed was a canopy with curtains that matched the windows.
"Thank you, Margaret this room is perfect!" As I sat down on the bed Mary returned with the doctor. I looked up at the door hearing footsteps as the doctor was cleaning my wound. It was Tavington. He stopped at the door for a moment and our eyes met. My breath caught in my throat for a moment. He let a look of concern flash over his face. I almost missed it. The angry look returned and he stormed off down the hall to his room and slammed his door. Maybe there is more to the Colonel than everyone believes. He is just a man after all. Regardless I need to proceed with caution.