Free Saratoga by David Garland

tedious and uncomfortable. Outbursts of torrential rain had hindered their progress, followed by days of muggy heat that made her itch and perspire. Dinner was the only pleasant occasion of the day, taken, more often than not, with General Burgoyne and his senior officers, and involving someheavy drinking on the part of the men. There was a mood of gaiety that struck Elizabeth as strangely out of step with a major military undertaking.
    Only two other women usually joined her at table. One of them was Friederika von Riedesel, wife of the German commander, a short, slim woman with an elfin beauty that was quite luminous. Elizabeth admired her bravery in traveling with her three young daughters into what would soon be hostile territory. Neither Friederika nor her husband spoke any English, but Elizabeth knew enough French to communicate with both of them. She was surprised to learn that their marriage had been arranged, when it was patent that it was a true love match.
    The presence of the other woman at the table was more puzzling to Elizabeth at first. She could not understand why Lucinda Mallard, the wife of a lowly commissary officer, was given the privilege of dining with the general. It took time for the truth to emerge, for she had always known John Burgoyne as a respectable and trusted family friend. When she realized that he had taken another man's wife as his mistress, she was deeply shocked, all the more so because the general behaved as if there were nothing untoward in such an arrangement. Elizabeth was confused. General Riedesel and his wife were a perfect example of a happy marriage. Burgoyne and Lucinda Mallard represented a very different side of army life.
    She was still disturbed by it all as she wandered through the camp in search of her maid. Nan was talking to another woman when Elizabeth approached, and she immediately broke off the conversation to come across to her mistress.
    "Who was that?" asked Elizabeth.
    "Oh, that was Polly Bragg," Nan replied, cheerfully. "She's such a pleasant woman. I could talk to her for hours."
    "Could you?"
    "Yes, she's been with the 24th Foot for a year now. Polly knows everybody, ma'am. She was telling me about Captain Skoyles."
    "Indeed?"
    Elizabeth's interest was immediately aroused. Even though she had not seen him since they met in Montreal, she was still curious about him. Nan Wyatt knew her well enough to sense that curiosity. Plump, amiable, and rosy-cheeked, Nan was a bustling woman in her forties, with an effervescence of someone half her age and a readiness to meet any challenge without a whisperof protest. During the worst days of their horrendous Atlantic crossing, Nan had been a great support to Elizabeth and was more like a second mother than a maid.
    "Why is Polly Bragg traveling with us?" Elizabeth wondered.
    "For the same reason as you—she wishes to be with her man."
    "Is her husband in Major Featherstone's regiment?"
    "He's in the regiment," said Nan, "but he's not her husband. Not yet, anyway, but Polly hopes that he will be one day." She saw the slight blush in Elizabeth's cheeks and gave a tolerant smile. "It's not the sort of thing that would be allowed in Canterbury, ma'am, but it obviously works. Polly is able to help him."
    "Who?"
    "Her man—Sergeant Tom Caffrey. He's an assistant surgeon. Polly acts as a nurse. She's seen the most gruesome sights in battle. Some of her tales made my stomach turn, yet she takes it all in her stride. It was Polly who tended Private Higgs."
    "Private Higgs?"
    "The man who was flogged for being drunk on duty," said Nan. "I'm surprised that Major Featherstone didn't tell you about it, ma'am."
    "Why should he?"
    "Because he was the person who caught the man and ordered his punishment. Sixty lashes, apparently." Elizabeth blanched. "Polly says that there was hardly any skin left on his back when they finished. She and Sergeant Caffrey nursed him through it."
    "Very commendable of her," said Elizabeth, keen to get off