Read Riverbreeze: Part 3 for Free Online Page B

Elizabeth knew all about this formation, how the first three rows would shoot off their muskets, then retire to the back to reload while the next three lines quickly got into position and fired their muskets. By the time the second three lines fired, the first three lines of men were supposed to have reloaded and be ready to shoot. This did not always happen. There were always slowpokes in every militia: inexperienced ones and older ones whose fingers had become stiff with age. And then, even if one got his gun reloaded and it was an older matchlock, if he couldn’t keep his match cord lit, he couldn’t even fire his gun!
    Elizabeth didn’t care if any of them could load and reload within a certain amount of time or if their guns misfired! She wasn’t particularly interested in watching the men drill so she turned her attention to the dogs sitting at her feet, panting with tongues hanging out of their mouths, clearly thirsty.
    Even though she wasn’t watching the men any more, she could still hear them. Captain Neale was shouting more orders and then the two boys starting playing a particular rhythm on the drums. And then, surprising her enough to make her head snap up, she heard Emily Crockett’s voice calling out to the children. “Stay close now, children. They’re getting ready to fire.”
    Elizabeth suddenly felt ashamed of herself. She hadn’t thought to warn the children. They had been playing so well together, tossing and kicking a leather ball between them, she hadn’t seen the necessity to interrupt them.
    But Emily was correct. The children did need warning from their mothers. Since they weren’t paying attention, they may not have heard Captain Neale’s order to fire.
    As it was, they were prepared, putting their hands over their ears. Nevertheless, the resulting explosion of shots startled the children. A flock of pigeons was also startled from their perches and they burst from the treetops in a flurry of feathers. Robin came running to her and she caught him in her arms just as the Crockett boys and the Wentworth girls ran to their mothers.
    Stroking Robin’s soft curls, she prayed that he would never know the violence of war. She hated war and had hated going along with her father to watch Cromwell’s army practice and drill in the various parks in London. For some unexplained reason her father had taken to watching and studying the troops and several times he had insisted that Elizabeth and Evelyn join him. Why? Was he hoping they would find husbands among the officers who were made up from the noble class? Perhaps, but whatever the reason, the twins did not enjoy it one bit.
    Now she didn’t want to see her husband participating in anything remotely similar to war. She turned her attention to soothing Robin and the dogs. Thankfully the dogs were inured to loud noises of all kinds and didn’t react with out-of-control barking or panic. Instead, they reacted to their empty stomachs and as Elizabeth rummaged around their sacks of food looking for the dried apples and corncakes for Robin and a bowl to pour water in, they crowded in close to her, pushing their noses into the sacks next to her hands. She laughed, pushing them back. Evelyn noticed and moved to kneel beside her sister and offer help.
    While Evelyn held the dogs back, Elizabeth settled Robin on the quilt next to her and gave him a napkin full of dried apples slices, a handful of walnuts and two corncakes. Then she pulled out some venison jerky and started breaking off small pieces to feed the dogs. They gobbled them up like they had never eaten before.
    “I’m going to have to use the new bowl to give them water.” Elizabeth sighed, sitting back on her heels.
    “Oh no. Did we forget to bring one?” Evelyn asked.
    “Unfortunately, yes.”
    “Robert won’t like that.”
    “What choice do I have?” Elizabeth cried. “Anyway, I’ll hold on to it while they drink, then I’ll dry it and put it safely away until the next time we