Today, I'm spotlighting Episode 1 from The Time Patriot. Hail Mary Pass
About the Book:
A Hail Mary Pass - that's what the President of the United States called it.
What are the chances Marc McKnight's time travel team can convince George Washington to
leave his home and travel with them to the year 2037?
Another bloody civil war is imminent in the United States. Political parties are hopelessly divided
and fanning the embers of war. Can the war be prevented if George Washington tells modern
America what the Founding Fathers were trying to achieve?
A Hail Mary Pass.
A long shot.
But it's worth a try.
About the Author:
Kim Megahee is a writer, a musician, and a retired IT consultant. His background includes playing in rock bands, teaching high school, and having experience in computer programming,
security, and consulting.
He lives in Gainesville, Georgia, with his soulmate wife Martha and Leo, an incredibly smart and stubborn red-headed toy poodle. In addition to writing, he enjoys reading, playing live music,
and socializing with friends.
Website: https://www.authorkimmegahee.com/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/author.kmega
Amazon: http://amzn.to/3OdX8xE
Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/65138146-the-time-patriot
Excerpt from Chapter Five of
The Time Patriot: Episode 1 – Hail Mary Pass
Before Washington could speak, McKnight and Tyler stepped out of the trees with their sidearms in their hands.
The robbers turned to them as McKnight spoke.
“Release him or you’ll answer to us. This gentleman is our companion and under our protection.”
The robbers spread out and raised their rifles.
“Just the two of you, then?” the leader said. “Not very good odds.”
McKnight whistled, and the rest of the team stepped out of the bushes, weapons trained on the robbers. “I won’t ask again. Lay down your weapons if you want to live.”
The bandits laid down their weapons, but the one named Sam drew a knife, leaped toward Washington, and held the blade to his throat.
“I think you are the ones who should lie down your weapons. Else, I’ll slice your benefactor’s throat. Your choice.”
McKnight didn’t blink.
“Hatcher?” he said.
“No shot, sir, I’ll hit the General.”
“Cutty?”
“I have him, sir. Say the word and I’ll blow his head off.”
“Wait, now wait!” David cried out and stepped forward with his hands out.
“Hold, Sam!” he said, and pointed at Washington. “Did you call him General? Who is he?”
Tyler spoke. “That’s General Washington. Did you fight with him during the war?”
Sam stepped away from Washington and dropped his knife.
“I did,” he said. “I’m sorry, sir.”
The other robbers hung their heads.
“We all did, sir,” David said, dropping Washington’s sword. “We wouldn’t have attacked if we’d known it was you, sir. We’d sooner starve than hurt you.”
Several of the others nodded.
Hatcher bounded over and cut the ropes that bound Washington and Lee to the tree, then went to secure the horses.
The general shrugged off the rope fragments, rubbed his wrists and, after a long look at Hatcher, he approached McKnight and Tyler.
“Sirs, I beg you, please release these men. Their primary crime is being hungry, a common plight in this part of the country. Three of them have already paid with their lives.”
Before they could reply, Washington did a double-take and stared at Tyler’s face.
“Colonel Tyler, isn’t it?” he said. “You look different.”
Tyler glanced at McKnight and winked with a smile.
McKnight could almost read his friend’s mind and sense his humor. “I’m a colonel, too.”
“Yes, General Washington. It’s me. May I present—”
“I know,” Washington said. “Colonel McKnight, I presume?”
McKnight was stunned. “How…?”
Washington looked him up and down.
“You’re not what I expected, sir. I look forward to talking with you, but we have an immediate situation to resolve. What should we do with these men?”
David spoke up. “General Washington, you have our humblest apologies. We’ll accept any punishment you demand. We deserve it.”
Washington looked at McKnight, who gave a slight nod.
“When we were at war,” Washington said, “I had men flogged for stealing.”
He sighed.
“The war is over, and I’m a businessman now. I’m not inclined to punish these men. What about you, Colonel McKnight?”
“I’ll leave it to you, General. It’s to your discretion.”
Washington nodded and turned back to the robbers. He walked to David and picked up his sword. He looked him in the eye, then stepped back to address all the bandits.
“I am releasing you to go back to your homes. If I learn you are waylaying people on this trail again, I shall raise a force and come looking for you. I won’t be merciful the second time.”
He approached the leader David again. The man stared at the ground.
Washington spoke in a low voice.
“Look at me, sir.”
David raised his face to Washington. Tears flowed down his cheeks.
“These men respect you, David,” Washington said. “You have influence over them. I’m counting on you to keep them on a Christian path. Don’t let them stray.”
“I will, sir,” he said. “I swear before God I will.”
“Good. Pick up your weapons and go home. Find a better way to survive if you can. If not, come see me at Mount Vernon. Together, we will find a solution.”
David’s men picked up their long guns and walked back uphill to the trail.
Washington turned his back to them and walked back to McKnight and Tyler.
McKnight glanced at Wheeler, who nodded and slipped into the brush after the robbers.
Washington looked at Tyler again. He touched Tyler’s hat and said, “May I?”
“Yes, sir,” Tyler said, and Washington reached forward and lifted his hat from his head.
“I’ve known you for twenty years now, Colonel, and the last time I saw you, your hairline was receding. Now your hair is full again and the wrinkles on your face are gone. How is this possible?”
“It’s part of a plan, sir,” Tyler said. “It’s what brought us here to this time and place.”
“A plan?” Washington said. “Clearly, there’s more here than I perceive.”
He turned to McKnight.
“So, tell me, Colonel McKnight, what army are you in? What brings you and your men…” He stopped and scanned the faces before him, his eyes resting on Hatcher and Lagunas. “… Your men and women… to these woods?”
“We represent the Army of the United States, sir, and we came here looking for you.”
Washington nodded. “It appears you have found me, Colonel. What can I do for you?”
McKnight laughed. “That we have, sir. We need your help, and if you’ll allow me a few minutes of your time, I’ll explain.”
Washington looked around and spread out his arms.
“I am at your disposal, Colonel. How can I help?”
Author Q/A
Which was the hardest character to write? The easiest?
The hardest was George Washington—How do you do justice to an American Icon, but show
him as a man with faults like everyone else? The easiest was Marc McKnight, because he’s
partly me and this is my fifth book with him in the lead role.
Where do you get inspiration for your stories?
Mostly from things around me. For example, we recently vacationed in San Antonio and visited
the Alamo. I got an idea for a story about Davy Crockett.
There are many books out there about time travel.... What makes yours different?
Most time travel stories have no limits on the capability of time travel. In my stories, you can
only visit times that are a multiple of 25 years (give or take a week) from the current date. To
me, this adds a bit of urgency to the stories—you have limited time to make things happen. I
think having unlimited possibilities is less interesting.
What advice would you give budding writers?
Write a little every day and read books (or podcasts or videos) about the writing craft.
How long have you been writing?
I started writing around the year 2006, but I wasn’t serious about it. I’d write a few pages every
month or so. There was no urgency and no strong commitment to getting it done. Somewhere
around 2012, I decided to stop fooling around and get it done.
What genre do you write and why?
Science Fiction Time Travel. I’ve always been interested in “what if” stories, alternative history,
or stories that change history.
How are you similar to or different from your lead character?
Marc McKnight is my lead character. We are a lot alike in that we both want to do right things
and we both suffer from self-doubt and spending too much time in hindsight. Other than that,
we’re pretty different.
