Nanette and Sukki watched the British and Loyalist prisoners closely.  Colonel Morgan got a wagon and mule from the locals who were grateful for Captain Price’s timely intervention.  The colonel put the prisoner wagon behind the riders and scouts, at the front of the line of foot soldiers.  Two lieutenants paced the wagon on either side while Sukki, and sometimes Nanette dropped back to help make sure the prisoners had no plans to escape.  Sukki, being warned by Decker and Nanette, also made sure the prisoners had no contact with William Talbert and his gang.  Nanette, having served for years as administrative assistant to a college professor, got curious.

“So, William, did you know the determination of the colonies to break free and be independent?”

“Mostly,” one soldier said.

“Rabble,” another soldier said, but William shook his head.

“Our officers were rather vague about that.  They suggested some unhappy people were in rebellion, like riots in the streets.  We were sent to calm things down.  We were not prepared for armed rebellion.”

The colonial Lieutenant Novak who rode on that side of the wagon butted into the conversation. “What did you expect?  We work hard and face all the danger on this frontier, trying to make a good home and life for our wives and children, only to have the English take most of it in taxes.  We have no representative in the court of English justice to argue our case.  We are like slaves while Parliament grows rich.”

“Everyone serves the nation in one way or another,” William said.  “We are all subjects of the king.”

“Maybe we would rather not have a king and his greedy ministers over us,” Lieutenant Novak responded.  “Maybe we would rather chart our own course and keep the fruits of our labor.”

“You are not slaves.  Ask your slave girl, here.”

“We do not have the same rights as an Englishman,” Lieutenant Novak raised his voice, and his odd accent came out.

“Gentlemen,” Nanette interrupted before the argument got out of hand.  “Lieutenant Novak.  William.  First of all, I am a free woman, and have been free for three generations.  I am an historian, and my husband is a colonel in the marine corps.  I know nothing about actual slavery.  And second, I understand you have disagreements enough to start a war, but now is not the time to fight.  There is no reason why this should not be a pleasant journey.”

Both men got quiet for a minute before William had a question. “Novak?  Are you Polish or something?”

“Czech,” Lieutenant Novak responded.  “Many of my cousins are peace-loving Moravians.  I was an early settler in Lancaster, in the colony of Pennsylvania, and I found I had to defend my home from wild natives.  The town is built up now and not so dangerous a place, so I thought to lend my support to the patriot cause.  Colonel Morgan needed riflemen, so here I am.”

“You are Czech,” William said.  “You are not even English.  Why do you think you should be subject to the rights of an Englishman?”

“Czech, Polish, German, Dutch, English, and Irish.  I have an Italian neighbor.  A good man.  In this place, we all came here willing to live under the English crown as free and equal men.  We did not expect to live under the English thumb.”

“Lieutenant,” Nanette scolded the man and turned back to William.  “As I understand it, taxation without representation is a big issue.  Benjamin Franklin argued with the English Parliament for years over the lack of colonial representation.”

“Franklin was supposed to be killed by now,” William said, and one of the other red coats knocked him to get him quiet.  Nanette would have to think about that.

When they got to Reading, they took another day to relax before they escorted a train of supply wagons to Valley Forge.  Some of the supplies would be floated on barges down the Schuylkill River.  Colonel Morgan assigned Captain Price’s company to go with the barges that would likely arrive first, though not by much because of the ice in the river.

While in Reading, Colonel Morgan transferred his prisoners to holding cells where some other British prisoners already stayed.  Nanette said good-bye to William and then went to Tony to get his opinion.  Something bothered her, and eventually, they took it to Katie and Lockhart where the others all listened in.

“He did not say he hated Mister Franklin, or he wished he would die, or he wanted to kill him.  He said Franklin was supposed to be killed by now, like he knew something was supposed to happen, but the plan did not succeed for some reason.”

“The Masters?” Lockhart immediately jumped to the conclusion.

“Maybe not,” Katie said.  “Franklin spent some time in England making some members of Parliament uncomfortable.  One of those men may have simply wanted to remove the source of discomfort.”

“Wait,” Lincoln interrupted.  He pulled out the database. “There was an attempt on Franklin’s life.  Young Michelle Marie was with her father on a French diplomatic mission in London at the time.  Michelle Marie—the Kairos saved Franklin’s life.  It is where they met.  When she came to America, she stayed with Franklin in Philadelphia.  He introduced her to William Lancaster, her husband.”

“So, there has already been an attempt on Benjamin Franklin’s life,” Nanette said.

“And probably others as well,” Tony said, and looked at Lincoln.  Lincoln nodded but said no more.

“So, the Masters?” Elder Stow picked up Lockhart’s assumption.

Katie still shook her head.  “William Barnes may have been drawn into the assassination plot, or maybe he just heard about it.  That does not prove a connection to the Masters.”

“Circumstantial evidence,” Lockhart called it.

“There is William Talbert,” Decker said and repeated what they had heard.  “He used the term firefight which is a modern term.  I checked with the colonial officers.  They understood the term well enough but never heard it before.”

“And the Mohawk,” Katie added.  “The ones who appeared to know Talbert and waved off his riflemen.”

“But it is all circumstantial evidence, as Lockhart said.” Tony looked again at Lincoln, but Lincoln was not forthcoming with any more information.

“So, how do we tell who is a servant of the Masters, and who is simply a loyal servant of the English king?” Sukki asked.

No one had an answer, but Decker added a thought.  “William Talbert might not be working for the Masters, but he is friends with the Mohawk who are on the British side, so he needs watching.”

###

Michelle Marie stopped at the British lines.  A cheeky young lieutenant wanted to examine her wagons.  He said they looked at all the wagons leaving Philadelphia, and she had ten wagons besides her carriage.  He also wanted to know her business, so she slapped him as she swore at his rude behavior, in French of course.  Apparently, the young lieutenant and some of the soldiers who stopped to watch knew enough French to get the gist of it.  The men tried not to laugh.  Michelle Marie switched to English.

“I have my pass, signed by General Howe himself.  I had to suffer through a dinner party with the general and von Knyphausen just two days ago.  I hate the military and all the killing.  I am still suffering from indigestion.”  She caught some movement out of her eye.  One of the soldiers looked ready to climb up on the first wagon.  “Hey!  You there. Don’t you climb up there.  My spinning wheel is there, cushioned by all that cotton.  It was a gift from King Louis the Fourteenth and is nearly a hundred years old.  If you so much as scratch it, you will pay for it with more than your life.” That made all the soldiers pause.

Two other women, one older and one maybe sixteen came out of the carriage to stand and stare at the soldiers.  The lieutenant got stubborn.  “I need to know your business for leaving Philadelphia or you need to turn around and go back to the city.”

Michelle Marie gave the young man a mean look.  “I am building a house in Norristown, on the river.  It is by the land of Isaac Norris, in a place they call Bridgeport, and I am leaving all of you soldiers and this stupid war behind me.  Right now, I have a colonel and his whole entourage living in my house in town, and I want no part of it.  I am taking all the furniture that his soldiers do not need, like my spinning wheel.  Should I go back and tell the colonel he cannot have my house because some young lieutenant would not let me leave the city?  Maybe I should complain directly to General Howe.  Maybe I should write a letter to my friend George.”

“George?” the lieutenant asked.

Michelle Marie poked a finger in the young man’s chest.  “Your king, my friend.”

The lieutenant took a step back as several red coated men rode up to the post. One of the men, a Major spoke.  “Marchioness.  What seems to be the problem?”  On recognizing Michelle Marie as a member of the nobility, the lieutenant took another step back.

“This stubborn lieutenant is doing his duty, but I have assured him we pose no threat.  I am simply taking my furniture to my new home in Bridgeport so your colonel can have my house in town, and I don’t want his soldiers crawling all over my things and scratching them or breaking them.”

“Let her and her servants go,” the major ordered without hesitation, knowing that the generals liked her and the colonel in the Lancaster house loved her fiery spirit, though perhaps like a daughter.

Michelle Marie stepped up to the lieutenant and stared hard in his eyes.  The man stood at attention, prepared for the worst.  She pinched the cheek she slapped and smiled.  “He is a cute one,” she said, and the Major chuckled.  “Molly. Mother Lancaster.  Back in the carriage.”  Michelle Marie ordered and turned to shout to the wagon men and women.  “We go.”  As she stepped up into the carriage she added, “Drive on.”