Soldier of the Horse Read Online Free PDF Page B

your horse a lot.” He gave Tom a malevolent grin. “Think your feet are sore now? You’d enjoy the infantry. Now get out of my office and report to barracks along with the rest of the reinforcement.”
    Tom went. He would put up with the cavalry. He had only ever met one infantryman, and it still gave him the shakes to think about it.
    â™¦Â Â â™¦Â Â â™¦
    A couple of weeks after the Evans garden party, Tom had been working late one night doing research at the courthouse library. As had happened so often recently, he found himself picturing Ellen at the party, her ready smile and easy way of speaking distinguishing her from other girls he knew. Her tall and slender but generous figure flitted through his mind’s eye, her obvious charms not at all hidden by the voluminous fashions of the day. On the spur of the moment he decided to try to meet her at the General Hospital where she volunteered, assisting in the treatment of wounded veterans. He walked up Notre Dame, turned north on Sherbrook, and in minutes reached the hospital.
    The old building was gloomy at night, a frame structure with steps leading up from the sidewalk to double doors under a pillared porch. Inside, a woman behind a counter bent over some papers. Tom told her he had an urgent message for Ellen. She gave him a doubtful look but directed him to the top floor.
    Tom hesitated but carried on, feeling like an interloper, seeking Ellen out here at her work. He had contrived to see her briefly once or twice since the garden party, always in the company of others, and had found out she had an older brother who was in the British army, but no other close relatives except her father.
    He climbed the stairs and looked down a long, poorly lit hall that smelled of floor wax and disinfectant. At the far end a young woman in a white nurse’s uniform appeared briefly before going through a doorway. Tom approached the door where he saw a name tag pinned to the door frame. Sergeant D. Grey. He peered in.
    The nurse and Ellen were side by side, facing a bed, their backs to him. Ellen, wearing a white nurse’s outfit, straightened a pillow as Tom cleared his throat, and they both turned.
    â€œTom!” Ellen exclaimed, her eyes widening. “What are you doing here?”
    â€œI was in the area anyway, thought I’d see what you were up to.”
    Ellen flushed. The nurse had paused, a spoon halfway to their patient, who sat upright, propped in place with pillows.
    â€œIf you want dinner, you’ll have to get in line,” the man croaked. His eyes slowly turned toward Tom, then just as slowly slid back to the nurse.
    â€œHe shouldn’t be up here,” the nurse muttered.
    â€œI’ll be finished in a few minutes,” Ellen said to Tom, sounding vaguely annoyed. “You can wait for me downstairs.”
    The nurse brought her spoon to the man’s mouth. He opened it and swallowed. A big man, Tom saw: barrel-chested, with a drawn face and lifeless eyes, gowned from the neck down. He couldn’t feed himself—he had no arms.
    The horror of Grey’s helplessness struck Tom like an unexpected blind-side tackle, and he got out of there fast. He thought he was going to vomit but made it to the street and sucked in some cool night air. In his mind he pictured the blood pounding in his arteries and veins, muscles working, air pumping in and out of his lungs. It made him feel a little better.
    Poor, damned Sergeant Grey. Pitiful sod probably thought he was serving King and Country, saving the Empire On Which the Sun Never Set. Well, he had paid a high price. God help me if I ended up like that, Tom thought. I’d go mad. He shivered, and sat on the top step.
    He wasn’t there long before he heard the door open behind him. He turned and saw Ellen, now in a dark brown suit with a bright blue scarf. He jumped to his feet.
    â€œReally, Tom, you shouldn’t barge in when I’m