Man at War – Excerpt No. 248

Based on a vial by his bedside they were keeping the private sedated. Being jittery and seeing things would not heal those wounds.

Marc took the Private’s hand and squeezed. The contact was enough to pass on instructions. However, directions had to be simple because verbosity risked unexpected side effects.

“Forget the last two weeks,” Marc whispered in a way that only a vampire could comprehend.

When done he did the sign of the cross and stood up. As he was backing away through the narrow aisle, he felt the urge to flee. Marc carried on, as an overt reaction might confirm his supernatural being.

As expected, the Second Lieutenant ran into him hard, forcing him to take a few steps forward while narrowly avoiding Lavoie. The reaction was purposeful, but he made it look genuine.

Highly detailed cinematic close-up scene inside a dimly lit canvas ward tent at a British Casualty Clearing Station during the Great War in 1915. A distinguished British Colonel named Marc leans over the bedside of heavily bandaged Private Lavoie, gently holding and squeezing the sleeping soldier’s hand in a moment of quiet intensity. The Colonel’s expression is focused and solemn as he whispers a command that only a vampire could comprehend. Soft, moody lamplight illuminates the intimate contact between the Colonel’s pale aristocratic hand and the wounded soldier’s bandaged one, with faint red blood spots visible on the white dressings across Lavoie’s torso. A small sedative vial sits on the bedside table. In the background, the young Canadian Bluebird nurse Lieutenant Murphy stands slightly behind and to the side, watching with quiet concern, her steel-grey eyes attentive. Narrow aisle between cots, scattered medical equipment, other wounded soldiers resting in the shadows, and the canvas tent walls create a claustrophobic wartime atmosphere. Historical accuracy for 1915 with subtle supernatural tension radiating from the Colonel, realistic yet slightly stylized, strong emotional focus on the Colonel’s hand contact and whispered instruction to the sedated Private.

Disclaimer: This novel is an work in progress and readers may encounter grammatical errors and inconsistencies. Please view this a draft and not a published work.