The Guerilla Chief, and Other Tales
In the sweltering hills of Cerro Gordo, an American soldier watches victory slip away from him. While his comrades celebrate their triumph over the Mexican army, he stands guard over a forgotten battery, seething with frustration at the glory he was denied. But war has a way of rewriting the rules of engagement. When he encounters a wounded Mexican soldier, Calros Vergara, and his sister Lola fleeing the terror of a rogue captain named Ramon Rayas, the simple certainties of battle collapse into something far more complicated. The man who dreamed of capturing Santa Anna himself now finds himself protecting the very people his country has fought to conquer. Mayne Reid, the creator of the 'knights of the prairie,' delivers a visceral portrait of the Mexican-American War that refuses to simplify heroism into uniforms. Here, compassion crosses enemy lines, and the real battle becomes one for the soul of a man who started the war wanting glory and ends it wanting only to save lives.
