Prisoner in Time (Time travel) (59 page)

He felt momentarily relieved, then turned to investigate.

“Thought you could use some help,” David shouted, several feet away.

Doc smiled in surprise.

“And not a moment too soon. That one was too close,” he said, still breathing heavily.

“Where’s Geoff,” David asked.

Panic flooded Doc’s face.

“I lost track of him during the melee,” he responded, his tone now anxious. “Last I knew, he was behind me. My God David, we have to find him,” he shouted in panicked tone.

David stepped forward and winced.

“You’ve been wounded?” Doc asked in fearful tone.

“They shot my horse out from underneath me and I fell on my damn sword… cut my leg. Then, some guy nicked me with his bayonet,” he responded, pointing his ribs.
 

“Can you make it?”

“I’m here, aren’t I?”
David said, resolutely.

Doc nodded simply, then turned and hurried through the fight. Dodging men and weapons, the two worked their way toward the breastworks. Moments later, with the log wall in full sight, they broke through the edge of fighting.

“I don’t see him anywhere,” Doc responded anxiously.

“Me either. I wonder…” David started, then stopped himself short of finishing.

“He’s alive, David. I’m sure of it,” Doc responded, cutting off David before he could finish.

David nodded reluctantly, then scanned the area once more. His face turned puzzled and he cocked his head to one side.

“What is it, Lad?” Doc asked.

“You hear that?”

“Hear what?” Doc asked, puzzled.

“Shots being fire,” David replied, simply.

“I hate to break this to you Lad, but we are in the middle of a battle right now,” Doc replied, sarcastically.

David continued to listen.

“Right there. Hear that?” David said, pointing along the wall of logs.

“Rifle fire,” Doc said, nodding. Suddenly, his eyes grew in intensity. “
Henry
rifle fire!” he blurted loudly.

“Exactly,” David nodded.

The two turned toward the sound and searched the area. Forty feet away, they saw a bend in the wall that formed a “V”. At the point in the “V”, one side extended past, creating a short wall inside the skirmish line. Crouching low, David hurried toward it, limping as he went. Following close behind, Doc watched for the enemy.

As the two came within feet of the shortened wall, they once again heard the sound of rifle shots being fired in quick succession. Geoff looked to Doc and smiled.

The two peered around the corner of the wall and watched Geoff kneeling and firing through a large opening in the logs. Within seconds of their sighting, Geoff dropped his rifle and grabbed a pistol. He fell over on his back and pointed the weapon.

Shock spread across David and Doc’s face as Geoff began to squeeze the trigger. Lying on his back, aiming his pistol, a slow smile began to develop.

“Jeez guys, you can’t just sneak up on a guy like that. I almost shot you,” he said, now rolling to his knees.

“Geoffrey, where the hell have you been? I was starting to think the worst,” Doc said, relieved.

“Sorry Doc, one minute you were there, the next you were gone. I searched for you during the fight, but you just vanished. As I got to this side of the fight, I saw you heading west toward the Columbia Pike. I tried to catch up to you but got pinned down here and I’ve been firing from this position ever since.”

“Lad, I’ve been inside that fight the whole time,” he responded in exasperated tone.

“Holy crap! You mean there’s another guy running around here who looks like Santa?” Geoff teased.

Doc glared at the teen.

“Sorry… bad joke. I’m really glad to see you’re ok.”

“Thanks to David,” Doc said, pointing. “I was in desperate straits there for a moment. Thought I was a goner until David showed up.”

“Wow Doc, I had no idea. I’m really sorry about that,” he said, sincerely.

“Ok, you guys can hug and kiss later,” David interrupted. “Doc, I’d like you to stay behind this wall and help Geoff fire at the enemy. It’s well protected and I won’t have to worry about you two while I’m organizing a counterattack, ok?” he said to Doc.

“Pulling rank on me, are you Lad?” Doc responded.

“Absolutely! I’ll be able to concentrate better knowing you two are safe.”

Doc smiled and nodded in understanding.

“Ok Santa. I’ve got a huge box of cartridges. You work the Colt and I’ll work the Henry,” Geoff said, handing the pistol to Doc.

David smiled approvingly at the two and turned away.

“No heroics Lad,” Doc shouted.

David raised his hand in acknowledgement and continued on.

-----*-----*-----*-----

Working his way around the outside edge of the fight, David noticed the area of brawling men had grown smaller as the Rebel force began to be driven back through the skirmish line. As he reached the opposite side, he commanded his troops to concentrate their firing at the opening. With a renewed sense of vigor, his men poured an overwhelming barrage of lead on the enemy. Shortly before dark, the Confederate line began to thin, and their commanders ordered a full scale retreat. Those caught inside the breastworks were overpowered and quickly dispatched, while those retreating back across the field suffered devastating casualties as the Union men continued to fire on their withdrawal.

Over the next three hours, several more charges were ordered by Gen. Hood. Each time, their advance was repelled. With casualties running heavy, he recalled his men, electing to continue the battle in the morning’s first light.

As Gen. Hood’s men camped along the far edge of the battlefield, the warm glow of their fires sent a quiet signal to Gen. Schofield that a time of opportunity arrived. Meeting in the commandeered farmhouse, he discussed his plans for evacuation.

“Gentlemen, I just received notice the bridges are operational once more. Get our wagons across right away,” he ordered to his generals.

“But Sir, what about Gen. Hood? We’ve repelled all of his attacks so far. With his casualties so extensive, I believe we can beat him now,” Gen. Cox responded.

“That may be so, but we have our orders. Gen. Thomas has ordered us back to Nashville. His defenses are stronger there and I’m sure he calculates far less casualties if we engage Hood there instead of here,” Gen. Schofield responded.

“What about the bridges? Do we destroy them or leave them intact,” Gen. Cox asked.

“Leave them. We want Hood to follow us. If we destroy the bridges, it’s possible he could call off his pursuit and disrupt operations elsewhere. We need to eliminate him as a threat once and for all.”

Gen. Cox laughed and said, “I’d love to be a fly on the wall when he wakes and finds that we’ve slipped through his fingers once again.”

Gen. Schofield stared back at Gen. Cox, his face serious and determined.

“Be thankful the man’s an incompetent boob. Any other general and we’d be prisoners of war right now.”

-----*-----*-----*-----

At eleven pm, the eight-hundred supply wagons began to cross the two bridges spanning the Harpeth River. Once the wagons had crossed, the men began to file across as well. By four am the next morning, Gen. Schofield was safely on the northern side of Franklin and headed to Nashville.

As Doc, David and Geoff trotted along behind the wagons, they sat quietly in their saddles and rested. Exhausted both mentally and physically, few words were spoken.

Doc turned and stared at the darkened landscape behind them. Far out in the distance, he could still see tiny fires still burning, signaling the location of the Confederate forces. He exhaled deeply and turned to his front once more.

“You Ok, Doc?” David asked.

“I am now,” he responded simply. He rode a few more steps, then added, “It just dawned on me how close we came to becoming prisoners.”

“Or dead,” Geoff added bluntly.

“Hmm, quite right Geoffrey, quite right,” he said with a nervous chuckle.

After a few minutes of silence, David said, “It’ll be nice to be back in Nashville.”

“Amen David. Far away from here is too close for me,” he joked.

David looked toward Geoff. Even in the darkness, he could still see his face was long and sullen and his posture was hunched over in the saddle.

“What’s with the long face Geoff? I figured you’d be happy to be heading back to Nashville.”

“I would be, eccept for one thing.”

“And that is?” David asked.

“I’ll be seeing Arles real soon.”

-----*-----*-----*-----

December 1, 1864 

Five miles west of Nashville, Gen. Schofield’s men began to see the first signs of the barricades far in the distance. Surrounding the city in a semi-circular arrangement, the walls made of stone, dirt and logs, were now visible as they meandered across the open lands and distant hills.

Five miles west of Nashville, the pace of the men began to increase. Rushing alongside the marching men, sergeants began to shout orders for double-time speed. As they sat atop their horses, Doc, David and Geoff wondered aloud about the purpose of the sudden change in pace.

“I’m betting ole Schofield can’t wait to get back to town and take a bath,” Geoff joked.

“I certainly wouldn’t mind one myself,” David commented. “It’s been a while.”

“I can assure you Lads, personal hygiene isn’t top on his list of priorities,” Doc responded in serious tone. “I suspect something far more compelling.”

“Like what? Clearing the dingle berries off his ass?” Geoff continued the humor.

“What’s a dingle berry, Geoffrey?” Doc asked, puzzled by the modern term.

“You don’t want to know,” David cut in.

Doc glared at Geoff for a moment, then continued. “If my guess is accurate, I suspect the enemy isn’t too far behind us.”

Geoff turned nervously around in his saddle, searching for signs of the Confederate army. David joined in with the search. As the soldiers to their front began to march faster, the gap between horse and man began to increase. Doc kicked his heels slightly and increased the speed of his trot, catching up to the column of soldiers. As David and Geoff scanned the rolling hills around them, their horses instinctively took the cue from Doc’s and galloped to catch up.

“Whoa,” Geoff shouted to his horse, lightly tugging the reins to slow the speed.

“It’s like they have a mind of their own,” David teased, as he adjusted himself in the saddle.

Hurrying alongside the column of men, a sergeant shouted his orders:

“Double time march, boys. Tighten up those ranks,” he repeated, as he monitored the men’s progress.

Nearing the end of the line, the sergeant took notice of the three on horseback, nodded and turned to head back up the line.