“Stretchers!” Jack shouted. “Take these wounded men to the rear!” He heard a yell and the report of a rifle, then Bullard swore and plunged his bayonet into a Sudanese lying among the reeds.
“That bugger was only playing dead,” Bullard swore as he withdrew his bayonet. “He took a shot at Kerswell.”
“Push on,” Jack ordered. “Number Four Company, take the flank and watch for men hiding in the reeds!”
Jack knew he should devolve more responsibility to his officers, for they were Afghan-hardened veterans, but he felt the weight of responsibility for each man under his command. He led the Malverns beside the railway embankment as a scattering of shots came from the Rifles, away to the left. Jack halted Tinker and examined the ground ahead through his field glasses. Arabi’s men were a thousan
