Manchaug - Love and Loss during King Philip's War Read online

  Josiah shook his gun. “This here’s the only thing those heathens understand. And we’re gonna teach them that lesson until it gets through!”

  Minister Lockwood shook his head. “No. The Manchaug are Christians! They are innocent in this!”

  Josiah’s eyes turned dark. “As innocent as those townsfolk in Brookfield who were under siege for four long days? As innocent as those who were slain in Swansea? There’s only one language these wolves understand, and it’s the language of blood.”

  Minister Lockwood stepped forward. “I won’t let you harm my flock.”

  Josiah’s rifle came up to bear. “You injun lover – what are you playing at? Are the warriors surrounding us for an ambush? Have you been stalling us for time?”

  Red turned his head. “Josiah, calm down –”

  Minister Lockwood’s gaze was sharp. “They are Christians, I say! They would never ambush anyone!”

  Josiah’s growl filled the clearing. “Tell that to the dead in Brookfield.”

  Minister Lockwood took another step forward. “As a man of the cloth, I tell you –”

  There was a crunching of foot-on-branch behind the men.

  Josiah spun, firing his rifle.

  Panic filled Prudence’s soul. “Askuwheteau!”

  Minister Lockwood staggered forward. “My God! What have you done?”

  He grabbed at Josiah’s arm.

  Josiah threw down his rifle and drew a hunting knife from his hip.

  He drove it deep into Minister Lockwood’s chest.

  Prudence’s vision became a blur of unbelieving tears. “Father!”

  A shape staggered from the forest. It was large … brown …

  It was Arah. Blood followed a gash in his side where the bullet had grazed him.

  Her father slid to the ground, blood bubbling from around the knife. She raced to his side, dropping to her knees. “Father! Father!”

  His gaze was glazed, and with one glance at the wound she knew there was no hope. He would soon be in the loving arms of his beloved wife.

  Her voice cracked. “Father!”

  Focus came back to his gaze. His breath eased out of him, guttural, clear, every ounce of energy behind his word.

  “Run.”

  She looked up at the men who approached her. At the darkness in their eyes.

  She ran.

  Thank you for reading Manchaug. The next book in this series will be released soon.

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  About the Author

  Lisa Shea was born in Maryland during the Vietnam War to a father in the Air Force and a mother who worked as a journalist. She grew up in various towns along the eastern seaboard, raised in an environment where writing and researching the past were as natural as spending weekends tromping through old-growth woods looking for stone wall foundations. Her concept of art focused on cemetery stone rubbings and photos of old homesteads.

  When Lisa moved to Sutton, Massachusetts in 1995, she finally found her true home. Sutton’s rustic charm, dense forests, and bucolic farmland all resonated with her creative spirit. The stories she had been writing since she was young now had a fertile ground in which to flourish.

  Manchaug is a village within Sutton, and its history arises from that Nipmuch praying village. Lake Manchaug is a place of beauty and serenity.

  Half of all proceeds from this series benefit battered women’s shelters.

  Lisa has published over 300 books. You can read over thirty of them for free – start here –

  http://www.lisashea.com/freebooks/

  Be the change you wish to see in the world.

  Lisa Shea in Purgatory Chasm, Sutton