Gunpowder and Tea Cakes: My Journey with Felicity

I tell the boy that we’re helping. I can tell Ezra’s getting weak and we need to get him to a doctor. The boy nods and lopes off. Ben supports Ezra on one side, and Felicity and I take turns supporting him on the other. Ezra’s face is white and shines with sweat. I can tell his wounds hurt.

It seems to take forever for us to walk several blocks. Finally, Ben stops. I ask him if this is the doctor’s office, and he gives me a strange look. It’s an apothecary shop. I think an apothecary is more like a pharmacist, but it seems like the best we can do. The room is lined with cupboards and shelves holding crockery jars and glass bottles. The man behind the counter is short and bald and wearing wire-rimmed glasses. Ben explains Ezra was hit with buckshot and his wounds need to be checked and bandaged. The men guides us through a door to a back treatment room.

Inside the treatment room, a skeleton hangs in one corner, and a bunch of instruments are laid out on a table. There’s a cot next to the fireplace. Ezra sinks into the cot and closes his eyes. The bald man comes in and says they’ll begin with bloodletting. He doesn’t even examine Ezra. He calls to his assistant for the leeches.

My stomach turns upside down. I need to leave. I grab my skirt and run from the treatment room. I feel sick to my stomach. The fresh air helps a little. I hope Felicity didn’t notice and maybe I can slip back to my own time.

But of course, Felicity did notice. She comes outside and asks if I’m feeling unwell. She says I’m ghostly pale. She says the sight of blood can make some feel ill.

I murmur that must be it. The truth is I can’t stand to think about what doctoring is like in 1775. I lean against the wall and try to settle my nerves. After a few minutes, I’m sure I won’t throw up. Felicity steps closer and looks down the block. It seems to me there’s trouble.