Free Davy Crockett by Robert E. Hollmann

north of here. I will head for it, and when I am far enough away, I will swing back to head for General Houston.”
    Travis shook his hand. “Good luck, Juan. This cold weather should help you. The enemy will be trying to keep warm and not be watching for riders.”
    Davy and several of his men slipped out of the gate. They began firing at the enemy camp. The enemy fired back, and soon the night was filled with the sound of gunshots. The gate opened once again. Juan rode out and headed toward the road. The children could hear the sound of his horse’s hoofbeats. The firing stopped and Davy and his men slipped back into the fort. The sound of the hoofbeats grew fainter and soon they could no longer be heard. The children stared in the direction that Juan had taken. The night was quiet, and dark, and getting very cold.

Chapter Twenty-Two
    The cold north wind blew across the treeless prairies, chilling the Alamo defenders as they huddled behind the walls for protection. The children shivered as they held their hands out toward the fire.
    “There are more troops marching into town,” Davy said as he looked over the wooden fence. “That makes about two or three thousand.” He looked around the Alamo. “Sure is a lot more than we have.”
    None of the men sitting by the fire said anything. They all hoped that Juan Seguin and the other messengers would hurry back with reinforcements. They knew that the small number of men inside the fort could not hold back the large numbers of enemy soldiers marching into San Antonio. A cannon fired, and the men in the Alamo ducked as the shell exploded in the center of the courtyard. Travis walked up as the men were getting off the ground.
    “Good morning. How is everyone this morning?”
    Davy turned toward Travis. “Not bad. None of my men have been hit by the enemy cannon fire yet.”
    Travis smiled. “We are very lucky. No one has been hit so far.” He walked over and looked across the top of the fence. “I see they have set up a cannon in front of you.”
    “Yes. They put it in sometime during the night. It must have been after Juan left. I don’t think they want any more messengers leaving the Alamo.”
    Travis pulled out a spyglass and looked at the enemy position. “I hope the messengers we have already sent out will bring us all the reinforcements we need. But I can send some more if we need to.”
    The enemy band started playing, and enemy soldiers cheered as a man in a bright uniform rode a white horse around the plaza. Davy turned to Travis. “That must be Santa Anna. I think I will break up his party.”
    Davy got Betsy and checked to make sure his powder was dry. He pulled the hammer back and raised the gun to his shoulder. He aimed the gun toward the man riding the white horse.
    One of Davy’s friends was watching him. “That’s a real long shot, Davy.”
    “I know. I am allowing for the distance and the wind.”
    A group of men had come over to watch. They made bets on whether or not Davy could shoot Santa Anna at that distance.
    “I tell you, if anybody can, it’s Davy,” one of the men said.
    “Even Davy Crockett can’t hit a target from this distance,” another replied.
    Another man spoke up. “You men be quiet. Davy needs to concentrate.”
    Davy acted like he did not hear the men talking. He gazed down the barrel of the gun and slowly pulled the trigger. The sound of the gunshot made the children jump. Smoke came out of the barrel as the men watched Santa Anna. A few seconds after the shot, the plume on Santa Anna’s hat disappeared. The general kicked his horse and rode away as fast as he could. Other enemy soldiers looked around to see who was shooting at them. The men in the Alamo laughed and cheered as they watch Santa Anna gallop away.
    “Good shot, Davy,” one of the men called.
    Davy shook his head. “No. I missed. A gust of wind blew up just as I fired. It blew the bullet off course by that much.”
    “Well, you sure scared old Santa