The morning arrived and after a quick breakfast William headed to meet with Cornwallis. I went down to the stables to feed and water Hercules. Before we had gotten out of bed we had decided to continue on as normal.I was safe in the fort. For now at least. Brandon would not be stupid enough to stay after what happened last night. It would have spread like wildfire that there was no Charles Whitmore. I watched the trainings often as William had required me to go but had never actually had me do anything. Today would be the first day that He was willing to allow me to do something other than just sit and watch.
As I entered the stables I was shaken out of my thoughts. Something was wrong. Walking further into the stables I turned down the hall where the horses for the dragoons were. There were no stable hands anywhere. My eyes landed on an open stall door. "Hercules!" I dropped the bucket of water and it covered my skirt. I ran to the stall door. He was gone. There was a note on the wall with a knife holding it there. I recognized the knife as my fathers. It was The McKenzie clan knife that had been passed down from clan leader to clan leader for centuries until it was given to my great great grandfather for a great deed he did. The sheath embedded with a gaelic design was on the ledge next to Hercules's brush. I grabbed the note and the knife in one hand and gathered my skirts in the other. I ran back to the house.
Turning down the hall to where the General's office was. I pushed past two guards who tried to stop me. "Lady Tavington! Please Our orders were to not let anyone interrupt The General and Colonel." I ignored him and burst through the door.
"...And the Regulars had" Tavington stopped talking as they both turned to look at me. "Stasi? Surely the guards told you that we were not to be interrupted."
"They did. I didn't listen." I came further into the room approaching the table. "Hercules…He's gone. I found this in his stall." I handed William the note and placed the knife on the table. Fury visibly washed over his face. His Jaw tightened.. He opened the note as I stood next to him looking at it too.
You took something that belongs to me so I've taken something of yours. Your move
I began to shake and William pulled me into his embrace. "Don't I will keep you safe. I will end this for you soon enough." I backed up and looked up at him.
I've had enough of this. Brandon has gone too far. He could have left me for dead for all he knew but no. He had to make sure to terrorize me since i didn't" I couldnt tell who was angrier William or me
Cornwallis stood up from the other side of the table and began to walk out but he stopped in front of us. " It would seem you have another ghost on your hands Colonel." Then he left, leaving us there. William turned and slammed both hands on the table
" I should have ended him the moment that he arrived." He shouted, breathing heavily. He turned his head and looked at me. "Go change. Something that you can move in " He straightened and turned, grabbed the knife and walked out leaving me standing there alone. I sighed, went to change and met him to go to the training field.
Charlie's POV: ( This is also happening at the same time as above.)
I rode hard back to the Old Spanish mission on the back of the horse that belonged to the man who stole my ana from me. As I reached the edge of the water I began to slow down and started to trudge through the water. A gunshot sounded and not a second later a bullet buzzed by my head. "Oi, Billings! It's me." I shouted towards the lookout point up in a tree.
"Damn it Charlie!" Billings jumped out of the tree. "I almost shot you!" He looked me up and down as I got off the horse. "What's with the coat? Where the hell were you the past month?" I was about to respond when Benjamin Martin appeared along with Rollins and Dan Scott. Ben looked at me expectantly.
"The British fort. I found my Ana." I looked away from them to the ground looking a bit defeated. "That bastard has taken her. Who knows what he has forced my poor sweet Ana to do." I said heartbrokenly. The horse neighed loudly and reared up and attempted to kick me but I darted away from it fast. Gabriel grabbed the reins and calmed that damn beast down somehow. He was obviously very good with horses.
Ben looked over the horse and came to stand next to his son. " Where did you get the horse? I recognize it. I looked up and let out a laugh.
"I stole it from the stables at the British fort. This is our good friend Willy's horse." Laughter broke out around me as well as several "good man"'s. Ben clapped me on the back before walking off. I tied the horse to the tree, grabbed some rum and sat by the fire with the other men. I stared into the flames as I began to think deeply on how to get Ana back. I almost didn't notice some of the others joining me. We sat there for a while talking to each other until I eventually left to go speak to Ben. I sat down in a chair across from the furniture we had stolen from Cornwallis.
"That was clever taking his horse." He said as he put his pen down.
"Yes well i figured that i should take what he loves most, Since he has taken mine. She's the light of my world." I started seriously shifting in my chair. There was a loud Neighing.
"Demon horse!" Someone shouted. I turned and looked over and saw the horse had reared up on his hind legs and had begun kicking at anyone who came near it.
"That horse suits him. How did you manage to control it?" Shrugging in response, Gabriel sat down next to me.
"How is your Ana? Were you able to see her?" Gabriel asked.
"Yes, I managed to see her. She looked absolutely terrified. Although it seems like she is allowed to freely roam around the fort albeit heavily guarded. I have noticed he does seem to force her to go with him to trainings. She sits there and watches. Not sure why she's there? Tavington keeps her close to him when he is not busy. He makes her share his bed, God knows what he has done to her. This I know with complete accuracy. I was lodged in the room adjacent. I heard him say one evening that he needed an heir. The night I left there was an officer's dinner and he was parading her around like she was his."
"We will get her back, Charlie. Once we do, she can stay with my wife's sister."
"Thank you. I'm grateful to you. I would not know where to bring her. As I have told you, I lost everything." The dogs ran by barking and I smiled as I watched them. "She would have loved these dogs. She was always finding stray Dogs and kittens and nursed them back to health. I heard him state that he needed her…. For more than an heir." I told them much of the information I learned while I was at the British fort. " One thing besides all of that. Ana and Cornwalis's daughter are traveling to Charleston with a small guard. Something about getting both of them new close. Ana wore the same thing for the most part while I was there. However Tavington will not be with them. They will be going two days from now."
"That's our chance to save her." Martin stated. "We will make a plan soon." I nodded and got up and walked off.