“War is very loud, isn’t it, Davy?”
“Yes, I guess it is. Do you and your baby need anything?”
“No, thank you. Almeron has given us what we need for now. We are as comfortable as can be expected under the circumstances.”
Davy put on his cap and turned to walk away. “Well, if you need something, please let me know.”
The sun was setting as Davy walked past Travis’s office. Travis called out to him to come in.
“How is Bowie doing?” Travis asked.
“When I left him, he was not feeling very well. I think he is very sick.”
Travis shook his head. “That is too bad. I do have respect for him as a fighter. We have some differences, but I would want to be on his side in a fight.”
Juan Seguin walked into the room. “You wanted to see me, Colonel?”
“Yes, Juan. I need for you to take a message to Sam Houston for me.”
“Colonel Travis, I cannot leave my men. They followed me here. As long as they are staying, I must stay also.”
“Juan, I appreciate how you feel. But you can be of great service to those men by going to General Houston and bringing back reinforcements. You know this country better than anyone else here. You have the best chance of getting through to General Houston.”
Davy nodded his head. “He is right, Juan. You have seen the number of enemy troops today. We need a lot of men to come here if we are going to stop Santa Anna.”
Juan thought for a moment. “My horse is lame. I will need to borrow one.”
Travis sat down in his chair. “Jim Bowie has a good horse. He won’t be using it for a while. I bet he would let you use his horse.”
“All right. I will ask Jim.”
“Come back in an hour. It will be dark by then, and I will have the message ready.”
Davy watched Juan walk out the door. “He is a brave man, Colonel.”
“Yes. I hate to lose him here, but we must get reinforcements, and he has the best chance of bringing them back. Well, I must finish this message. I will talk to you later.”
The weather was getting colder as they walked back to their post. The men were roasting some meat over a fire. The meat smelled good, and the warmth of the fire helped take the chill out of the air. One of the men who had come in with Davy called to him as he walked up.
“Hey, Davy. Tell these fellows about the time you grinned that raccoon down from a tree.”
Davy sat down by the fire. “Well, it wasn’t quite that way. You see, I was out hunting one day and I saw a raccoon up in a tree. Well, I raised old Betsy and pointed it at him. Well sir, that raccoon threw up his hands and said, ‘Don’t shoot, Davy. I will come down.’ That raccoon ran down the tree and jumped right in my bag. That beat all I ever saw.”
The men laughed as Davy finished his story. Soon Juan came up, leading a horse. Travis was walking beside him.
“Here is the message, Juan. I will have Davy and his men fire at the enemy. That should give you a chance to get away.”
Juan mounted his horse. “There is an old trail just 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 Anna. I bet he is at home hiding under his bed.”
The spirits of the men had been lifted by Davy’s shot. They told other men who had not seen it how Davy had shot the plume off Santa Anna’s hat and how the general had ridden away. Everyone laughed when they heard the story.
Travis put up his spyglass. “Well, Davy. I think Santa Anna won’t be leading any more parades.”
Davy shook his head. “I hope I didn’t just make him mad.”
Travis walked toward his room. Davy turned back to watching the enemy troops.
“That was quite a shot,” Dylan said.
Braden nodded his head. “Yes. Santa Anna sure left in a hurry. That was one of the funniest things I have ever seen.”
Addie rubbed her hands as she held them toward the fire. “I sure wish the wind would stop blowing. The cold weather is bad enough, but this wind makes it a lot worse. Maybe if it gets cold enough, the enemy army will go home.”
“Do you think Davy made Santa Anna mad?” Dylan asked.
Just then a man standing on the wall called down to Travis. “Colonel, the enemy is attacking.”
The children watched as the men ran to their places on the wall. Soon they were firing at the attacking enemy.
Addie turned to Dylan. “I guess he made him really mad.”
Chapter Twenty-Three
Addie, Dylan, and Braden hurried after Davy as he raced to the wall where the men were firing at the advancing enemy army. Davy sprinted up the ladder and stood next to a cannon. The children stood next to him and watched the fighting. Smoke from the rifles and cannon burned their eyes. The smell of the powder filled their nostrils. Men were yelling as they fired. The cannon roared so loudly that the children put their hands over their ears. As the enemy got closer, they could hear them yelling. The bullets from their guns zipped overhead, sounding like angry bees.
Davy moved from man to man. He slapped them on the back and cheered as they fired. The enemy began to slow down. Some of them tried to find a place to hide. Others threw down their muskets and ran to the rear. Finally a bugle sounded and the enemy began to retreat back to their positions. The men in the Alamo cheered as the enemy retreated.
Travis waved his hat in the air. “You have made them run, boys. Hurrah,” he cheered. He walked over to Davy. “It was a small attack, but the men did well. I think Santa Anna wanted to get an idea how strong our defenses were. I don’t think he will try and attack us like that again.”
Davy wiped his face with his sleeve. “I think he will try to soften us up. Look, he is already moving up more cannon. He is going to try to knock some holes in our walls.”
Travis watched the enemy begin to dig some new trenches. “I think he will just keep moving closer. When he thinks he has enough men, he will attack again. I don’t think his whole army is here yet. I hope we get some reinforcements before the rest of his army gets here.”
Davy looked beyond the enemy lines. “Do you really think that more men will come?”
Travis shrugged his shoulders. “I hope so.”
The children followed Davy and Travis as they walked around the walls. The men were in good spirits. They thought that the walls were too strong and that the enemy could not get into the Alamo. The cold wind forced most men to duck down behind the walls. They talked quietly about the battle. They nodded and waved as Davy and Travis walked by.
Soon they were standing in front of the wooden fence. Davy’s men watched for some sign of an enemy attack. Travis and Davy looked out over the fence.
“Those buildings in front of us are a problem,” Travis said. “The enemy can get into them and shoot at us under cover. He can also build up his forces and we can’t see them.”
Davy stared at the wooden buildings. “You are right. I think the thing to do is to burn them down.”
“I agree,” Travis said. “After dark, take some men and go burn the buildings down.”
“All right. I will pick out a few men, and we will burn down the buildings.”
Travis looked at the buildings again. “Be careful. We can’t afford to lose any men.”
“I will. If we do it right, we can be down there, set the buildings on fire and get back in here before they know we are doing anything.”
Travis looked back at the men cooking in the courtyard. “I will have the men fire at the enemy from the north wall. That should keep his attention away from you.”
“That will be fine, Colonel. Just be sure that they don’t shoot us.”
“Yell when you start back to the fort. The guards will be watching for you. We will have the gate open.”
Travis walked away. Davy walked over to Jim Bowie’s room. He knocked on the door. The lady watching Bowie opened the door and peeked out.
“How is he doing, Juana?” Davy asked.
“He was sleeping, but the firing woke him up.”
Bowie called out, “Who is it?”
Davy stepped into the room. “It is me, Jim. I came to check on you.”
Bowie coughed. “Davy. Good to see you. What is going on?”
“Santa Anna paid us a little visit. We drove him away. The men did well.”
“That is what I thought. He will be more careful next time.”
“Travis and I decided to burn down those wooden houses outside the walls. They make good cover for the enemy.”
“How are you going to do it?” Bowie asked.
“After dark, I am taking some men and we are going to set them on fire.”
Bowie tried to sit up, but he began to cough and he fell back onto his pillow. “Be careful. There will be enemy in those houses.”
“How do you know that?” Davy asked.
“Because that is where I would be.” Bowie coughed. Juana brought him some water. He drank it and lay back on his cot. “Sorry I can’t go with you.”
“That’s fine, Jim. When you get better and this war is over, we will go hunting together.”
Bowie smiled. “I look forward to it.”
Davy put his hand on Bowie’s shoulder. “I have to go, Jim. I have some houses I need to burn down.”
Chapter Twenty-Four
It was a dark night. Clouds covered the moon. The cold wind still blew, forcing people to take shelter. Davy thought that would be in their favor as he and ten other men prepared to slip out and burn down the houses that provided cover for the enemy. The men waited for the firing on the north wall to begin. Before long the men on the north wall began firing. The enemy returned the fire. Davy and his men lit their torches and ran out of the gate toward the houses.
Addie, Dylan, and Braden followed the men as they ran across the open ground to the first house. Davy motioned for the men to spread out. The men split up and ran to different houses. One of the men threw his torch inside one of the houses. Flames lit up the house as it began to burn. Other houses were set on fire, and soon the flames were making the night bright. Suddenly enemy troops ran out of some of the houses. Davy remembered that Jim Bowie had said they would be there. The enemy started firing at the Texans.
“Get down,” Davy shouted. “Return their fire.”
The Texans took cover and shot back at the enemy. Bullets were whistling through the air. The children huddled down in a hole and listened to the battle. They could hear the yells of the enemy soldiers as they fired at the Texans. Bullets hit the ground, throwing sprays of dirt on them. They could hear Davy yelling at his men to keep shooting. The burning houses provided enough light that the children could see the enemy as they fired at them.