✔️| Becoming Lady Washington

Chapter Eighteen: MIA/The Battle of Monmouth, Part I

Bradley Campbell's POV
21st Century New York

I leaned back in my chair, putting my feet on my desk and my hands behind my head as Hamilton blared through my speakers. Ahh... this was the life. No students in my room, no annoying coworkers... I could get used to this.

While I reached for my copy of the Teacher's version of our history textbook, I was suddenly reminded that Alice and Mandy, two of my favorite students, were not in class today. They hadn't called in sick, so the rest of the staff just assumed that they were playing hooky from school like most teenagers would. But I knew better. Something was wrong, and I was determined to find out what it was.

Idly flipping through my textbook as I tried to get ideas for tomorrow's lesson plan, I came to rest on a page that discussed George Washington, our first President. Beside it, on page 394, was a profile on... no flipping way. This could not be possible.

ALICE BELL

The wife and soulmate of General Washington, this woman was the first (and only) female to serve in an upstanding position in the Continental Army. As a Lieutenant Colonel, she worked alongside her husband and fought alongside him in many major battles, such of those of Trenton, Monmouth, and the Siege of Yorktown. It is told that one day, she just randomly appeared in the Army's camp, along with future Lieutenant Colonel Amanda Paine. To this day, nobody knows how she came to be there, except for those close to her, who are long gone.

According to the recollections of various members of Washington's staff, Lieutenant Colonel Bell "...possessed a tongue as sharp as the deadliest sword, yet had a charming demeanor. She could fight anyone  with words as well as her husband fought with a sword." It was this that caught the eye of the Redcoats, and that prompted them to kidnap her, holding her for ransom so that Washington may surrender if he ever wanted to see her again. The plan almost worked, except for one major factor: Major Benjamin Tallmadge and Lieutenant Colonel Amanda Paine. The two, with the help of General Washington, rescued her during the Battle of Monmouth, ad she continued to fight with the others for the remainder of the war.

Bell was also present for the Constitutional Convention, and helped propose many of the articles in the Bill of Rights. Furthermore, she was the Secretary of War in Washington's cabinet when her husband took hold of the presidency. However, one day she just vanished, never to be seen again.

Her inexplicable disappearance is the source of great debate among historians, and many have different theories as to how and why she vanished.

The world will never know which one is correct.

Stunned beyond words, I studied the portrait, showing the woman dressed in her Continental uniform with Washington on her side. It looked freakishly like Alice, but that would be impossible. How could it be? Time travel was the kind of thing you would see in Sci-Fi novels and movies. Though, I realized, time travel actually was not that outlandish of a theory as to what had happened to them. I decided to tell Cleopatra, who had been texting me all day to ask if I had anything on their whereabouts.

Me: Hey C, I have news.

Cleo Bell: Ya?

Me: I think your daughter and her friend might have traveled back in time to the Revolution. Check her history book. Page 394

Cleopatra's POV

I felt faint. Time travel? How could that be? I decided to check the book to see if it was true. Brad never lied to me.

It was.

1778, the Battle of Monmouth
Washington's POV

BOOM!

I jumped in surprise as the first cannon of the battle went off, almost falling into Hamilton.

"Are you ready, sir?" Hamilton asked, as he straightened his hat and drew his sword.

"I was born ready. A general has to be." I told him, trying to convince myself more than him. He nodded, a knowing look in his eyes.

"You wish she was here, right?"

"That I do, my son. That I do."

"Let's get going, then." I said, and mounted my horse, beckoning for Hamilton to do the same. "Before we do anything, we have to find Ben, Mandy, and Lin. Now, where could they be...?"

Mandy's POV

While George was making his way over to where we were, I was fighting for my life. Two Redcoats came up behind me, but I managed to keep them away without engaging them. Ben fought his way over to me, and successfully got close enough T whisper in my ear, "It's time."

I gave him a thumbs up, and we worked together to clear a path for us to Washington, who was currently fighting beside Lin and A Ham. Scanning the area before I joined the fray, I saw an open path through the sea of Redcoats that led to Arnold's headquarters, which was likely where Alice was being kept. Pointing over to the building, I tried to get Washington's attention. He looked over after taking down another Brit, and raised his eyebrows at me.

"She's in there," I mouthed, and his eyes narrowed.

"Let's give these Redcoats a show they'll never forget."