The Thistle against the Crown: Chapter 2

The town councilmen and Horatio decide whether or not to join the rebellion.

     Darkness had descended and settled around the small estate as the two men came upon it. Neither was dressed in any manner one would expect for the master of an estate. Neither had bathed in almost three weeks, and their clothes were caked in dried mud, dried animal blood, sweat, and powder. Both men had facial hair. The taller of the two had a full beard and long brown hair that was partially covered by his wool bonnet, the other had the beginnings of a beard and mustache, but it was only a few weeks growth. His hair was a lighter brown and was tied in the back with a black ribbon; a brown bonnet covered the rest.

     "Looks as though yer guests have arrived." The taller man said through a thick Scottish accent as the pair paused just down from the porch.

     "Aye." The younger man replied, "I left instructions with Dick that they should be shown to the study. I figured the books there would keep them occupied."

     "Hopefully they haven't been waiting long, ye know how young Jamie gets when he's kept waiting."

     "Only a few years separate us, but I fear he hasn't matured into a man just yet."

     The older man nodded, "Aye, which means he'll be full of piss and vinegar over what's been goin' on."

     "I imagine so." The younger man replied, "Which will make him even less patient, I'm sure."

     The two men shared a look of agreement before walking up the steps and into the house. The warmth of the house hit their bodies and faces like a wall. The warmth and light wrapped around them like a blanket and shielded them against the cold that they had just walked in from. The smell of heated tea from above the hearth drifted through the air and slipped into their noses, filling them with a welcome reminder of the treats and pleasures that awaited them once they were settled.

     "Oh I'm so glad you've made it safe, gentlemen." Scott announced as he came down the narrow hall between the staircase to the second floor, and the wall. He had a large grin on his face, "You'll be pleased to know that your guests are in the study M'Laird."

     The two men handed their fouling pieces to Scott before taking off their kapotes and hanging them next to the door. It felt good to get out of the chilled, soggy wool overcoats and the men felt as though they had been released from the cocoons of warmth that had protected them from the cold, bitter winds of the northern wilderness.  

     "Oh for Jesus sake, Horatio Cameron, can ye come back from your huntin' trip without wakin' the wee ones and everyone else in the house." The brown-haired woman said firmly as she walked down the stairs wiping her hands on her apron.

     The younger man turned around, "Aye, I could, but then how would they know their Uncle Horatio is home?" A smile came to Horatio's face as he wrapped his arms around his sister-in-law and hugged her, "Thank ye for keeping an eye on the place while we were gone."

     "Not a bother." Sinéad O'Rourke replied wrapping her arms around the younger, more slender man before turning her attention to the slightly older, taller, more burley looking man who stood beside him, "Dougal, I'm glad ye kept him well."

     Dougal Cameron smiled and nodded, "Aye, I brought him back in one piece, but only because the bear spat him back out."

     Horatio swatted Dougal with his bonnet, "Ahh, wasn't a problem, I made short work of him, and we sold the pelt to the Penobscot."

     "Ye didn't run into any French trappers then?" Sinéad asked as she stepped back and put her hands on her hips, looking at the two men.

     "No, not this time." Horatio replied plainly.

     "Ye should get out of those smelly clothes before ye stink up the whole place." Sinéad said.

     "Nah, don't want to keep our guests waiting. I imagine young Jamie's getting quite restless by now."

     "Yes, he's been ramblin' on about everything that's been goin' on in Boston, from what I could overhear."

     Horatio nodded, "Dougal, will ye make sure the pieces get cleaned?"

     "Aye." Dougal said, "Sinéad." Dougal nodded his head to the woman before walking by her and heading down the side hall towards the room where they kept their weapons and other hunting gear.

     Sinéad and Horatio stood for a moment in the foyer. She offered him a soft smile, "I'm glad you're back safe." Her tone was softer; calmer than it had been when she had first greeted them. She always worried when her brother-in-law would go out on his hunting expeditions, but she knew it brought him peace being out in the wilderness and away from all the things that reminded him of everything he'd lost.

     "Aye, it's good to be home." Horatio looked around and smiled back at her before taking a deep breath, "Well, I dinna want to keep them waitin' any longer."

     Horatio knew that seeing him in his hunting attire would shock them. Typically when he was receiving guests he would dress appropriately in the knee breeches, waistcoat, and gentleman's coat that was proper for a gentleman of his status, but he had kept his guests idle for too long and felt that they would forgive his appearance.

     Horatio's feet made almost no sound as the leather moccasins that he wore muffled his footfalls. His wool leggings that were tied to a button on the waist of his wool knee breeches also made no sound. His off-white hunting shirt fell to mid-thigh and was synched at the waist by a leather belt, which held his cartridge box, a small leather pouch, and his dirk. The strap of a leather satchel hung from his left shoulder and fell to just behind his right hip was also synched under the belt. It had some beading on it, gifted to him by a local native tribe that he had traded with on one of his expeditions. He still carried his wool highland bonnet in his hand as he walked down the hall and turned into the study.

     As Horatio turned the corner, he was greeted by the sight of Reid still sitting in the chair in the corner reading the book he'd chosen off the wall, Mitchell asleep in the more luxurious chair he'd claimed when they had arrived, and Jamie sitting in a chair tapping his foot impatiently. A smirk came to Horatio's lips as he looked at them. He turned his eyes slightly as he heard Sinéad walk up behind him and put a hand on his shoulder before continuing down the hall towards the kitchen.

     "I'm sorry to keep you fellas waiting." Horatio said as he walked in.

     The sound was loud enough to wake Mitchell who smiled and stood, putting weight on his cane as he walked over to greet the master of the house, "Dinna fash lad, it's fine. We all got on alright."

     "Yes, I found this quite enjoyable." Reid said as he stood, "Dinna ken you had Locke amongst your collection." He shook Horatio's hand before turning and sitting back down, setting the book on the table next to him.

     "Aye, you'll find quite a few things like that in here if you take the time to look." Horatio replied shaking his hand, "It's good to see you Christian."

     Jamie had gotten up from where he was standing and now stood in front of Horatio. He stood slightly taller than his cousin, but it was clear who the elder one was. The two embraced enthusiastically, "Cousin!" Jamie declared, "It's good to see you." He looked Horatio up and down. Horatio's dirty hunting clothes were a sharp contrast to the well tailored gentleman's suits that the other men were wearing, but it was the look he'd come to expect from his mother's, sister's child.

     "How are the wee ones?" Horatio asked Jamie, remembering that Jamie had just welcomed a third member into their family.

     "They're good, Jenny sends her regards. She hopes that we'll see you soon." Jamie replied with a confident nod.

     "Aye, I'll have to get over soon, though if I remember correctly from when we spoke last, we may not be at home much longer." Horatio replied before pulling up one of the wooden chairs and sitting between Reid and Mitchell, "Tell me what's been happening since Dougal and I left."

     As everyone got settled in, Jamie seemed all too eager to tell the tale. He didn't even bother to sit down, he just looked at the three men and started, "The papers have been absolutely buzzing about the events going on around Boston, and it just recently arrived that more rebellious activities have been taking place around Lake Champlain between New York and the Grants."

     "Alright..." Mitchell said, "Calm down lad. Let's start at the beginning." He turned to Horatio, "The regulars were routed and had to fight their way back to Boston after the local militias attacked them on the road. Several battles ensued, and the casualties were said to be quite high." He paused as Horatio pulled a clay pipe out of his small leather bag and began to pack it with tobacco leaves, "They have since set up a blockade around Charlestown and Cambridge."

     "But they can't hold the entire garrison there, not with a handful of local militia." Horatio replied using the flame of a nearby candle to light his pipe.

     "Aye, I had thought the same thing, but other colonies are sending men and the ranks are swelling." Reid added.

     Horatio perked his eyebrow, "Oh? From where?" Horatio had no doubts that these men were telling the truth; rather it was the level of commitment from the other colonies that made him wary of the situation. His father and grandfather had fought in the '45 rising, and both had told him that the main reason that the rising failed was because the Highland Clans did not unify. If the American Colonies didn't unify, they would suffer the same fate that the Jacobites had thirty years earlier.

     "Connecticut, Massachusetts, and New Hampshire, so far." Mitchell responded before coughing.

     Horatio continued to puff on his pipe for a moment before speaking, "And you mentioned that something was happening along Lake Champlain?"

     "Yes, colonial forces from Massachusetts and the Grants have successfully taken Fort Ticonderoga!" Jamie exclaimed enthusiastically.

     Horatio's face dropped for a moment as his mind started to drift back to the horrible memories of 1758. The ill-fated attack of the Highlanders on Fort Carillon still haunted his memories. He quickly chased it out of his mind and nodded, "Aye, and if they fortify it well enough, they'll be able to hold it against an army."

     No one said anything for a moment. Horatio and Dougal were the only two in the house that had an experience with the fort in question, so no one else had an opinion on the matter.

     Jamie jumped back in with more, "It's really happening. The colonies are going to war against John Bull."

     Horatio's eyes shot up to his cousin, "Just because a few colonies have signed on to this rebellion, does not mean that the entire continent is going to war. Even if they do, this won't be an easy war to fight. They are throwing their cards down against the best-trained army in the world. Do you really think that this will be over easily, or quickly? This war will drag on for years, and no part of the landscape will be untouched by it." Horatio sighed and leaned back in his chair, taking a puff of his pipe, "So what are you gentlemen suggesting?"

     Reid jumped in before Jamie could say anything else, "We are suggesting that we call up the Berwick Militia. It is no secret that the people support the rebellion against the king. Call for volunteers, and then make them the best unit in the colonial army."

     "Only you and Dougal can do that last part laddie." Mitchell said, "We have others in town who have served, but none in the regular army."

     Horatio sat quietly, "I won't ask any man to fight for a cause they do not believe in. And I don't want them treated as lesser people because they choose to stay. That was a mistake the British Army made in the last war, forcing colonists to fight and leave their families to the cruelty of the savages. I won't do that."

     "Agreed, lad. Anyone who stays will only be held responsible for the safety of the town proper." Mitchell agreed, knowing that there were even some in town that held their loyalty to England.

     "We are also part of the Massachusetts colony." Horatio stated, "Which means they could call a levy against us. What will we do if we've already sent our men off to fight? And how many men do you think we could get? Fifty? Seventy if we're lucky? Hardly a company." He paused, "We'll have to offer our services to another unit, fold in with a larger command."

     "The New Hampshire Committee of Safety has ordered the raising of two-thousand men for the New England army, and they have already sent a regiment under a gentleman named John Stark." Jamie interjected enthusiastically.

     Soft, but definitive footsteps could be heard behind them before stopping in the doorway. Sinéad stood there, with her hands folded in front of her as she listened to them talking, as she had been for quite some time. It was no secret to anyone in the town that Sinéad was an outspoken supporter of the rebel cause, and she had good reason to be. The British Army had destroyed her husband, first with the Seven Years War, and then he lost a foot to frostbite leading an expedition into the northwestern reaches of the colony in the middle of winter. Crippled and unable to maintain a regular job, he had become an alcoholic and died two years earlier, forcing Sinéad to move into Horatio's house. She hated the British Army, and the king it served, so there was no question who's side she would be on.

     "John Stark, I believe I met him once. Served with the Rangers as I recall." Horatio said, "So you are suggesting we march to Boston and join him? That's quite a long journey and there is no guarantee that they will be there when we arrive. And then what?"

     "No, cousin." Jamie replied, "They are raising a second regiment in Exeter. Someone brought the notice into town yesterday."

     "Exeter's only twenty-seven miles away." Horatio quietly commented.

     "You could have the men there by the middle of the week." Reid replied, "But we need to put the word out for volunteers first. We always do drill in the town green after mass, so why don't we put the word out there? Start training in earnest."

     Horatio nodded, continuing to puff on his pipe, small clouds of smoke rising up from the end, and from his lips, "Alright. If it is the will of the council we will do it. We'll put the word out to the townspeople, and those who wish to join, may. Those who wish to stay behind, will be allowed to continue with their lives, with the understanding that they are to protect the town from any danger."

     The men agreed and Horatio stood, "Gentlemen, I thank  you for coming at such an hour, and I apologize for keeping you up so late. I will have Mr. Scott get your carriage."

     "Already done sir." Scott said as he entered the room from the hall.

     The corner of Horatio's lip curved into a smile, as it seemed the entire house was listening to the entire conversation. He shook his head momentarily and nodded, "Well then, let me see you to the door." 

     The five men walked to the door and Scott helped the men with their coats and hats, before opening the door. Horatio shook each one by the hand as they exited and loaded into the carriage that would take them back to the respective houses. As they rode away, and Scott closed the door, Horatio stood in the hall, putting out his pipe and looking at Sinéad, "Well... it would appear we're in it now." He let out a long sigh. The last thing Horatio Cameron wanted to do was fight another war, but maybe this would make more sense than fighting another empire for land that didn't belong to either of them. Maybe this time when his friends died, or were horrifically maimed for the rest of their lives, it would be for a cause greater than that of a king's greed. Perhaps freedom was worth fighting for... just one more time.

Author's Note

This chapter is quite important since I've removed the prologue (at the recommendation of a review). I have included quite a bit of historical background information into the dialogue of this. It's still a very rough draft, but I hope you enjoy it!