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Not ten minutes after the alarm was first raised two dozen tribesmen were at the fire, led by Black Knife, but it was already too late. The section of giant fallen log that housed Two Bears and his caregivers was totally engulfed in flame that burned so hot that approach by the rescue party was impossible. Black smoke poured into the sky, and there was a faint smell of gasoline in the singed air, mixed in with the usual wood smells. "They couldn't have escaped through that fire," Black Knife noted, "but they could still be alive inside," he noted. “The fire is still on the outside of the log.”
True, but even as they watched, it obviously spread to the inside. Soon twenty-foot flames poured out the doorway from inside.
Shovels full of damp dirt and wet snow were being thrown onto the fire, and then buckets of water from the nearby stream, but with little effect. More Tribe members arrived by the dozen, men, women, and children, until four solid lines of them stretched from the creek to the fire, increasing greatly the amount of water being applied, but still with little apparent effect.
Any water thrown directly towards the heart of the fire evaporated before even reaching flame. Tiny and insignificant their efforts were, compared with the huge log and the roaring red monster of a fire that now consumed it. They directed some of the water on themselves and on surrounding brush and trees, rather than directly on the fire. That kept the fire from spreading and allowed continued access to the log, but the log burned as hot as ever. The water of their soaked clothes heated and streamed away again and again and was only of limited help in the searing heat.
Led by Black Knife, firefighting efforts continued and even increased, as more people continued to arrive from the Reservation. Most of the Tribe was eventually there, helping. But it became obvious to everyone present that nothing inside could possibly be still alive. As the log continued to blaze, more and more words of prayer and screams of despair could be heard among the tiring fire fighters.
“The hollow tree is destroyed,” Black Hawk informed Small Bear by radio.
“What about survivors?”
Black Hawk had to take a deep breath before he could again speak. “Impossible.”
“Are you sure?”
“As sure as we can be, short of finding bodies. It will be hours before we can do that.”
“How did the traitors do it?”
“Gasoline, it looks like. And I also suspect that they blocked the door somehow so that none could escape.”
“But how did they get past you and the others?”
Black Hawk felt the bump on his head. He had failed the Tribe, that’s how they did it. “I was only knocked unconscious. Red Fox was not so lucky. We found his body as we fought the fire.”
“This is truly a dark day.”
“Where are you, Small Bear?”
“Near the front gate. Tall Fox & Night Hawk have been sighted near here. There’s a crowd of loggers and police gathering outside the gate, also. I have my hands full here.”
“Fenster must not find out that all of the Goths are dead,” implored Black Hawk. “If he does, he will move on the Goth land immediately. Should I send more men to join you at the outer gate?”
“No, Black Hawk. We have things covered here. Keep the fire from spreading and recover the bodies.”
“Right.” With a heavy heart, Black Knife went back to directing the firefight.
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Secrets of Goth Mountain Page 37
