Chapter 13

Hanga had David’s breakfast ready. It was still dark as he saddled Sulkie. He left his rifle scabbard and his bedroll off; Hanga had unpacked his saddlebags. Khan had snorted at seeing Sulkie saddled. “Don’t worry boy, your time will come,” he murmured to him.

He mounted and accepted the rope for the packhorse from a rifleman. He noticed the two who had herded the horses were preparing to leave, one holding the reins of the mule cart with his horse tied to the back. They all trotted out of the gate, the guard presenting arms as they passed.

David made good time considering the packhorse was not in the same league as Sulkie. As they entered the city Peshawar was waiting for him at the gate to the Palace. He had grooms take care of the horses. Two other servants carried the packs as they followed them to the meeting room.

The Prince was waiting when he arrived. After the servants and Peshawar had left David began his report. When told of where they had left the bodies, the Prince murmured, “It is fitting that the wolves devour the wolves.”

The Prince examined the rifles he had brought. “Russian!” he pronounced. He asked David how the men had reacted to the combat.

“They’re Ghurkhas Sir, they relish a fight, but the biggest enemy they face is the cold. They are over a thousand feet higher than at the entrance. Due to the steepness of the cliffs they only have sunlight for a few hours when the sun is right above them. The wind blows constantly down through the Pass creating a chill factor of nearly freezing. At night it falls well below freezing. The men who have lookout duty above them, have it even worse. The wind is even stronger up there and much colder than on the Pass floor. The lookout can only stay for two hours now before he becomes frozen.” He went on to say what he had provided to ease their hardship, but there were items he had not yet been able to acquire.

The Prince looked at David’s list, and then summoned Peshawar. He turned to David, “These items of clothing you will need for all your men?”

“Eventually Sir, but the immediate need is for the men on duty there now.”

When Peshawar arrived, he gave him instructions. When he had gone the Prince said, “We will eat which will give him time to acquire what is needed.”

They were enjoying a cheroot after the meal. The Prince had promised him some to take back to the Fort along with more whisky. Finding out that David had not taken a bottle to the Pass for fear of breaking it, he had given him a silver half pint hip flask.

Ashar Khan had come to see David, finding out he had ridden Sulkie, and wishing to know how the training was going with Khan. Finding out he had ridden Khan he was delighted with the news. “The Colonel Sahib must have a way with horses to have progressed so fast,” he said in praise.

An hour later Peshawar came to say if the Colonel Sahib would like to see what he had gathered. He led him to a room and laid on tables were fur gauntlets and large fur boots which looked like riding boots. The scarfs, Peshawar, explained were blankets that had been cut up. There were two large brass telescopes and fur hats that had flaps to protect the ears. The pot-bellied stove with smokestack was outside on a cart with two mules.

David thanked him and asked to have them loaded at once as he was anxious to leave for the Fort. He returned to thank the Prince and to say he was leaving.

“Goodbye my friend, take care,” the Prince said embracing him. Outside Sulkie was waiting alongside the cart with the packhorse tied to the back. The stove, although used, appeared to be about five feet high. They set off at a trot, the driver of the cart urging the mules.

Night had fallen by the time they passed through the destination gates. David told the guard commander to take care of the mules and packhorse and to feed and find quarters for the driver. The driver lifted up a basket. “This is for you Sahib,” he said handing it to him. David greatly appreciated cheroots and whisky that the Prince gifted him with. Hanga was waiting by the stable as he dismounted, “I’ll see to Sulkie, Sahib,” he said giving him an apple. David removed the bridle and fondled her head. “You’ve been a good girl today darling,” he murmured giving her the apple; she pushed her head against his chest as she chewed it. In the bedroom he removed his boots then fell back onto the bed exhausted; he was asleep in seconds. Hanga put a blanket over him before turning out the light.

It was late morning by the time he awoke. He washed and shaved and dressed in the long johns and shirt before putting his jacket on before having breakfast. Hanga packed his cutthroat razor and soap brush into his saddlebag along with the filled hip flask and cheroots, and went out to put it on the stallion, along with his bedroll. His rifle scabbard had been fitted to the saddle.

The cart had departed at first light driven by a Tiger riflemen, Hanga had said. He set off in a fast trot to catch the cart and caught up with it a mile from the entrance of the Pass. They passed the lookout stationed to watch for caravans coming down the Pass and finally arrived at the buttress. From the road David had to look hard to recognise it. Turin had further camouflaged the building breaking up its outline. The horses were behind a thick hedge of bushes that from the road seemed to grow against the cliff wall. They started to distribute the clothing out to the grateful Riflemen.

Turin sent one off with three sets of clothes and a telescope up to the guards on the top lookout. While one took care of his horse another brought him his sheepskin coat, which he gratefully put on.

Once the stove and pipe were unloaded, the driver was ready to set off back to the Fort anxious to be away from this cold place.

The men had already started to cut a hole in the roof for the stovepipe; others were mixing up clay to go around it to protect the roof. When he entered the blockhouse he chuckled, his bed had been lengthened. A paillasse was now on it, along with socks, fur boots, fur hat, gloves and scarf.

“They were the biggest Colonel Sahib,” a rifleman told him with a grin.

The man who had taken the clothes up to the lookouts returned and gave him back his personal telescope since they now had a better one. “They said to thank the Colonel Sahib and say they are most welcome.”

Turin came in as he was fitting the fur boots on. “You have raised the men’s spirits Colonel Sahib,” he said. David smiled, “You can tell the men that the Prince has authorised a 200 rupee bonus to each man this month.” Turin’s smile grew even wider. He put on the scarf and hat as his saddlebag bedroll and rifle scabbard were brought in for him. He propped the scabbard up against the wall, then opened one of the bags taking out the hip flask, slipped it into his pocket, and went outside to make room for the men working inside the blockhouse.

Later he sat on a log by the cook fire and lit a cheroot, then took a sip from the flask, feeling the warmth of the whisky. The men no longer looked like soldiers, more like bears he thought, but at least they were warmer now.

That night he was given steak to eat, albeit horse steak. It was chewy but he enjoyed it. The blockhouse had the three oil lamps suspended along it giving some light, whilst the potbellied stove gave off a ruddy glow of heat. He slept well that night.

Shortly after breakfast the lookout came racing back on his horse, he had sighted a caravan. Turin gave the order to douse the fires and for the men to stand by their horses holding their heads to prevent them making a noise. He and Turin checked the area to make sure there was nothing to give them away, then went behind the screen to hold their horses.

The caravan came into view, ten wagons, with the drivers urging the mules on against the cold wind that funnelled through the narrow cleft. They never gave the camp a glance.

The lookouts waited until they had passed through the cleft before lighting the fires again. Havildar Turin smiled in satisfaction at the subterfuge. “I am thinking Colonel Sahib that the Afghans may be thinking that their men have killed us and gone on to raid in Kanda.”

“It would be a logical answer, but I wonder how long it will be until they are missed.”

David climbed to the top of the lookout post; work had been carried out to improve the path. The wall the lookout sat behind had been improved and all that showed was a telescope poking out of a hole. When he looked through it he realised it was more powerful than his; the caravan was still in view. When David asked how the conditions were, the lookout lowered the scarf from his mouth smiling, “Much better Colonel Sahib.”

The cave had been improved as well; they had walled it up so only an entrance was visible. Inside there were only two beds; one was occupied. He motioned to the rifleman to stay as he was and whispered, “Was everything all right and do you need anything?” The man whispered back, “Everything was fine and we have everything we need.”

David noticed there were three blankets on the beds, and realised the men must be hot bunking, the man coming off lookout using the bed of the man going on lookout. He returned to the valley floor. A detail of five men were just leaving with five horses on leads ropes.

“We send the men to collect and chop wood well away from the entrance since we don’t wish to alert any one to our presence.”

“But wouldn’t the caravans be used to seeing troops at the entrance?” David asked.

“Yes, you are right Colonel Sahib. I will send five men to the entrance at once,” he said.

“Tell them not to wear their furs at the entrance if a caravan comes into view. It’s a pity we don’t have Martini Henrys for them to have on show,” David added.

“I’ll order them to leave their fur clothes here and I can dispatch a man, with a spare horse, to act as pack horse to the Fort to collect five Martini Henrys. He could be back before nightfall.”

David agreed and soon Turin was giving orders. They sat on the log smoking. “Is there anything else we need to do Havildar?” he asked.

Turin sat quietly considering the question, “The only thing I can think of, Colonel Sahib, is if we were attacked by a much bigger force, we can hold the cleft quite easily. But if it was a long battle then ammunition could be a problem. We have, including the ammunition we brought, seventy rounds a man.”

David thought for a moment, “I’ll have fifteen hundred rounds sent up; five hundred rounds clipped up ready, but you will need to keep the ammunition separated from anything else. The position will need to be weatherproofed against damp.”

“I’ll start preparing a position tomorrow, Colonel Sahib.”

“I’ll return to the Fort tomorrow and have it sent up to you.”

He left his fur clothing behind when he left the following morning. Feeling the chill in his standard uniform, it wasn’t until he got lower down the Pass, where the sides let in more sunlight, did he feel warmer. The guards at the entrance under the command of a Lance Naik came to present arms with the Martini Henry rifles; he returned the salute.

David reined in at Subedar Major Para’s office and entered. He told about the fear of ammunition in the event of a major conflict and his decision to send 1500 rounds up to the Pass. He asked that it be placed in a stout box covered with an oilskin. The Quartermaster was present and suggested that each box of 100 bullets could be wrapped in the greaseproof paper the rifles had wrapped around them. The job of clipping the five hundred rounds up could be taken by the remaining men of Tiger Company.

Once he was sure they understood his orders David returned to his quarters. Hanga took care of the stallion, whilst he stripped off the shirt and long johns; sweat was running off of him. He had a bath, shaved and changed. Later he walked round to the paddock where Khan and Sulkie galloped to the rails when they saw him. Khan demanded first attention. David placed his head against Khan’s head. “We’ll go riding tomorrow boy, and you can show me what you can do,” he murmured as he gave him an apple. Sulkie curled her lip as if smiling as he fondled her head. “I have one for you too darling,” giving it to her.

Patar was sitting on top of the rail looking over the Afghan horses in the big paddock when he joined him. “What do you think of them?” David asked.

“Fifteen of them would be suitable for your Riflemen Colonel Sahib. The others could be used for pack horses. Julep is going to check if any need shoeing. I would use those fifteen as back up horses for when your mares come in season when they will need to be kept in a separate paddock away from the stallions.”

It was something David had not considered. “How do I tell when one is in season?” he asked.

Patar chuckled, “The mare will tend to pee a lot, the pee may be a different colour, and she may lift her tail up high if a stallion is near. She will present her bottom to him. I have explained this to your men what to look for. At this time of the year they don’t come into season all that often, but in the summer months it could be once a month. The season lasts about a week like a woman.”