William was devastated to hear that his weapon was missing.  He still didn't know exactly what had happened, but he was certain it had [i]something[/i] to do with his using that weapon the way he did ... to kill another man.  He had to get it back.  It was outside the cabin, he was sure.  But his hostess wasn't going to let him go out to search for it without a fight.  

And besides, the rifle would be long gone by now.  From his research about this period, William knew that a working rifle didn't lay unused on the ground for long.  As conflict in the Colonies approached, the British had confiscated as many firearms as they could.  That meant that even before the smoke of a fight had cleared, the rifles, pistols, and swords dropped by the dead and seriously injured were already being scavenged by the battle's survivors, from both sides.  William's ancestor's rifle was gone.  Forever.

[color=007236]"What's with all the panic?"[/color]

A [i]very[/i] pregnant woman appeared, leading to Keziah explaining her guest's presence [i]and[/i] again chastising William about needing his rest.  He found his chair again, realizing that he was trembling a bit.  Why?  Oh, that was [i]obvious![/i]  William had never been comfortable around pregnant women.  He'd never quite understood why.  Maybe it was because he found conception, pregnancy, and birth such marvels; or maybe it was because as a man who liked sex and being single both, he'd always been afraid that some woman looking like Elizabeth did now was going to knock on his door and announce [i]Surprise![/i]

[color=007236]"Amputation,"[/color] Samuel announced as he reentered the home.  

William's eyes widened: if having a baby pop out of a woman made him nervous, you could imagine how seeing a man's arm get hacked off affected him. He quietly stood and began to head for the door, shaking his head to Samuel as the man looked his way.  But outside the door, William could see the mayhem behind him: Samuel and Keziah had the help of two other soldiers, and yet the injured man was still thrashing around in such a way that the operation simply could not proceed safely.  William stared out across the battle field, at the dead and injured, at the still fiery barn just a hundred yards away, at the limping horse that had been hit in a cross fire.  

This was his new life, possibly for a very long time.  He couldn't run away from it.  He was part of it -- for now at least -- and it was going to have to be a part of him, too.  He drew and released a deep breath, turned, and returned to the cabin's interior where he grabbed the flailing man's legs, looked up to Samuel, and nodded that he was ready.