“Hold tight, Major.” I turn toward the wagons and wave my arms, hollering, “Help! Somebody help over here.”

Everyone is busy looking to others or cleaning up. I yell again, and this time Jasper sees me. I beckon urgently. He grabs hold of Tom and Henry, and all three college men come running.

“Don’t worry, Major,” I tell him. “Help is coming.”

“Son,” he starts, but his breath is choked off with pain. He tries again. “Not much help for this.”

The college men fall to their knees around him. Henry blanches. Tom averts his eyes.

Jasper grabs the Major’s hand and leans close. He says, “Is anything else hurt, Major Craven?”

“A couple ribs . . . Hard to breathe.”

“Can you move your toes?”

“Do I have to try?”

Jasper looks at me. “Get a blanket roll or something we can use to prop his leg.”

I sprint over to the smashed wagon, noting with relief the absence of bodies, and I grab a roll of canvas from the ground. A voice hollers behind me. “Hey, where are you going with that?”

But I’m already gone, dashing back to the Major’s side.

Jasper nods approval. “When I lift his leg, you slide that underneath.” To the Major, he says, “This is going to hurt.”

“I already hurt—” He gasps as Jasper lifts his leg with both hands. I jam the canvas batten underneath and follow Jasper’s directions until it’s situated exactly where he wants it. Only then does he lower the broken limb.

“I need clean water,” Jasper says. He looks up at his companions, but they’ve stepped away, faces averted. I jump up again, and soon find a kettle sitting on a campfire, still hot. The water inside is pristine, just like the fire pit itself, which is a wonder. There’s no one at hand to give me permission, so I take the whole pot.

Water sloshes over the side as I run. I slow down just enough to keep from wasting it.

Jasper accepts the kettle with a nod. “All right, Major, I need to wash out the wound. I’ll go easy on you, but no lie, this is going to be awful.”

“Do it,” he gasps.

“Hold his leg steady here,” Jasper says. “No sudden movements.”

I drop to my knees and brace the leg. Jasper pours the water over the wound. Major Craven screams and jerks hard, but I’ve got a tight grip on him. I push down with all my might, and after that first horrible twitch, he doesn’t move.

“That’s good,” Jasper says, and I’m not sure whether he’s talking to the Major or to me. “Now loosen up so I can turn it.”