Sheridan finished his brandy and held his glass out for another tot. "As for Montgomery, I am afraid there is no option but to hold a court martial. Since you two, Swallow, Mrs. Gaines, and several of your men are all witnesses, I will not have any of you sit the panel. Merritt and Colonel James will serve with me, and you, McCauley, will serve as the defense advocate. Howard will serve as prosecuting officer. If Montgomery is well enough, we will hold it immediately after Christmas." Sheridan finished off the second brandy in one swallow. He hated having any of his men come to trial, especially an officer and on such vicious charges. "Now, with that settled, gentlemen, shall we clean up and join the ladies for dinner?"
--*--
Jocko had thoughtfully hauled a bath up to Rebecca’s small sitting room so Charlie could bathe without having to share the bathing room with Sheridan and his staff and thus maintain his masculine image.
As Charlie sat in the small tin tub before the fire, Rebecca pulled her sleeves up and captured the washrag. She began scrubbing his back thoroughly. "I swear, Charlie, I have no idea how you do it. You wear a singlet, a shirt, a vest, stock, and a coat and still you get mud all down your back."
"Jack was very affectionate when I visited him in the stable. He drooled on me and I assume, shared some of his chewed up hay. It itched all through this afternoon’s meeting with Sheridan and McCauley. It was all I could do to stay in the room and not rub up against the door jamb."
Rebecca laughed, the image of Charlie trying to discretely scratch his own back against the fireplace or the door jamb like a big bear, while looking cool and collected in front of his commanding officer, was too funny.
"So, dear, you disappeared after the races. Did you and the General have another epic session?"
"We did. Much of our discussion was centered on what to do about Montgomery. I am afraid Sheridan will want you to testify. He intends to hold a court martial just after Christmas, before he returns to his own headquarters. Do you think Montgomery is fit enough for that?"
Charlie could not see the look on Rebecca’s face. The idea of testifying at any time was distasteful; the thought of repeating what Montgomery had said in front of a room full of Union Army officers was downright revolting. However, for Charlie’s sake, she would. "Montgomery is fit, and, of course, I will testify. I suppose it is necessary."
Charlie turned to look at Rebecca. The look on her face told the story. "Dear, I will talk to him again. Perhaps we can get by without you."
"Thank you, dear, but if it is necessary, I will do it."
Charlie rose from the bath. The sight of her beautiful body, gleaming wet, shining in the firelight was enough to distract Rebecca from her brooding concern over Montgomery. Charlie looked at Rebecca as she dried off, recognizing the lustful looks she was being graced with. "That, dear, will have to wait until later. The General and his staff will be expecting us to join them for dinner."
"Oh, la. You think just because you are beautiful when you are naked, I cannot resist the impulse to touch you. Just you wait, Charlie Redmond. I have as much willpower as the next."
Charlie dried off and went into the bedroom to retrieve her clothes. "Well, dear, you have more will power than I do, for I swear, I cannot resist you when you are naked."
The two of them proceeded to dress quietly. Finally, just as they were about to go downstairs, Charlie thought to ask again. "So do you think that Montgomery is ready for the trial?"
Rebecca looked thoughtful. "Well, he is regaining his strength and can be up and about somewhat. But I have no idea if his mind has the strength to understand what is really happening. Elizabeth will have to be consulted."
"I know she will, and I dread it. We could be in a situation where she saved his life just to have him hanged. I know her. She will not be happy."
--*--
Friday, December 23, 1864
Day two of the gymkhana was far more military than the previous events. Racing and horsemanship had been the focus of the first day; today weapons skills were the theme. At this point in the competition, the men of Company D were tied with Company A for leadership. A young man from Company A was leading in the personal points with the soldier, Raiford, from Company D who had run neck and neck with Duncan in second place.
The competition opened earlier than on the previous day, as there were more and more varied events scheduled. Charlie led the senior officers in a demonstration of precision formation riding as the opening ceremony. The sight of those beautiful horses, moving in step, wheeling and turning, weaving back and forth, all under rigorous control by officers who barely moved as they conveyed their commands to the mounts under them, was stirring. The only sound was the crisp tattoo of the horses’ hooves on the hard ground as they moved silently through their routine.
As a finale, the officers formed their mounts into a single, perfect line facing the audience. As one, the horses bowed to the audience, while their riders doffed their plumed hats. The silence continued for a long breath, then the audience broke into sustained applause. These officers may have been the enemy, but the people of Culpeper were horse lovers, first and foremost. The demonstration was an awesome presentation of equestrian skill at its best.
There were three types of contest scheduled for the day. In one area, men on foot demonstrated their marksmanship with both carbine and pistol. In another, they demonstrated their skill with sword and saber. But the most exciting contests of the gymkhana were mounted events.
The men competed in pairs, with one competitor eliminated at each pass. The first competition was one that demonstrated the rider’s skills in lance work. Rings were laid on the ground at intervals; each horseman had to collect as many rings as possible on the tip of their lance while preventing his opponent from collecting any.
Typically, this competition resulted in a number of bumps and bruises, and the occasional unseating, but no serious injuries. There were a number of competitors, with the less experienced troopers going first. Wielding eight foot long bamboo lances with blunted tips, the early competitors provided some excitement and some amusement as several of the younger men managed to unseat themselves by overextending out of the saddle. As the competitive field narrowed to the more experienced men, the demonstration of equestrian skill and dexterity drew loud rounds of applause. At the end, somewhat battered and bruised, a grizzled career trooper from Company B stood grinning as General Sheridan himself awarded him the first prize, a small keg of good brandy.
Swordplay was the next of the equestrian events. In this competition, the pairs of men again used their weapons to retrieve items from the ground. However, they were required to cross sabers at least once with each pass. Even though the competitors used blunted sabers and were usually careful to use only the flat of the blade, there were a few cuts and scratches that kept Samuelson busy through the late morning and early afternoon. Unexpectedly, the young man from Company D excelled in this arena, as he had in the hand-to-hand saber contest earlier in the morning.
The last mounted events were demonstrations of marksmanship with first carbines and then pistols. Three targets were mounted at varying distances from the course. Each rider had to complete the course in a specified period of time and to shoot at the targets as they rode by. Points were awarded for both the speed at which the course was ridden and the accuracy of the shots. Here Duncan, the winner of the lance competition and Raiford from Company D were all serious competitors. After three passes, the men were tied. Sheridan and Charlie looked at one another and decided to reward all three, giving each of them both the prize and the points for first place. Jamison scrambled in his stores to find two extra hams for them.