Somewhere ahead, the French were waiting. They were "Crapauds"—tough, disciplined, and currently holding the vital ridge that Wellesley needed. Sharpe didn't care about the high-room politics or the Duke's grand strategy; he cared about his "Chosen Men" and the ammunition they were running dangerously low on.

With a roar that drowned out the drums of the French, the green-jackets charged. It wasn't pretty, and it wasn't honorable—it was a "gutter fight," the kind Richard Sharpe knew best. Where to Find More Sharpe Stories

"Rifles! Front rank, down! Second rank, fire!" Sharpe bellowed.

The Spanish dawn was thick enough to chew. Lieutenant Richard Sharpe adjusted the heavy leather strap of his Baker rifle, the cold morning dew soaking through his green jacket. Beside him, Sergeant Patrick Harper spit a stream of tobacco into the mud, his seven-barrelled gun resting casually on his shoulder. "Quiet morning, sir," Harper rumbled.

"Too quiet, Pat," Sharpe replied, his blue eyes scanning the gray mist.

A sudden crack of a musket shattered the silence. Then another. The mist erupted in orange flashes.