The chapter opens with a flashback to the previous chapter, in which Dr. Bledsoe and the rest of the gang are still in the forest. They are surrounded by enemy soldiers, and the only way they can escape is to find a way to cross the river and escape into the forest, where they will be safe from the advancing army. The chapter ends with a description of the forest in which the gang is hiding, and where they are planning to ambush the enemy forces.