by Tell Cotten
“Hello, Yancy,” Lee finally said.
“Lee,” Yancy said, and asked, “Find Jessica’s money yet?”
“Not yet.”
“Have you been up here looking for it all this time?”
“Sure. Where else would we be?” Lee laughed shakily.
“Have you seen Cooper?” Yancy asked anxiously. “He and Josie are up here somewhere.”
“We haven’t,” Lee shook his head.
“We thought we were following Cooper’s tracks, but it turned out to be another feller,” Rondo spoke up. “He shot Yancy’s horse out from under him and took off.”
Lee and Brian looked curious.
“Who was he?” Lee asked.
“We didn’t get a good look at him,” Yancy replied, and then he gestured at Jug-head. “But whoever it was, he somehow got Cooper’s mule. We’re going to track him down and get some answers.”
Lee and Brian nodded thoughtfully. They glanced at each other and looked back at Yancy.
“Need help?” Lee offered, and Yancy narrowed his eyes.
“Why do you care?”
Lee thought a moment and replied, “If Josie is in trouble, I want to help.”
Yancy scratched his jaw in thought and nodded.
“I can see how you’d feel that way,” he said, and added, “All right. You’re welcome to come along.”
Lee smiled and nodded.
He was about to say something when suddenly, to the north, several gunshots bellowed out. It was silent, and then more shots were fired.
Everybody looked at each other in confusion.
“What was that?” Brian asked.
“Sounds like someone is in trouble,” Yancy replied.
“Think it’s Cooper?” Rondo asked.
“We’d better find out,” Yancy replied, and added, “Let’s go.”
“What about the feller that shot at you?” Lee spoke up. “We can’t just let him go.”
“His tracks aren’t going anywhere. We’ll come back later.”
Lee and Brian looked hesitant, and Yancy frowned at them.
“What’s the matter?” He asked.
“Nothing,” Lee forced a smile.
“Then let’s be going.”
Lee and Brian nodded, and Yancy turned toward Jug-head.
Chapter fifty
As soon as it was daylight, Choc started tracking Cooper. Meanwhile, Wade stirred the coals and got some coffee on.
They sat around the fire and drank several cups, and then Choc returned.
He walked to the fire and poured a cup of coffee. He took a swig, wiped his mouth with his sleeve, and looked at Wade.
“Found him,” he said.
“Where is he?”
“He’s in a canyon,” he gestured, “not far from here.”
“So he’s holed up,” Wade said.
“Looks like it, Pa.”
Wade took a swig of coffee, and he swished what was left in his cup into the fire. It made a hissing sound as he stood.
“Let’s get our rifles back,” he declared.
“Can I finish my coffee first?” Choc asked.
“Go ahead,” Wade said. “We’ll saddle the horses.”
Choc nodded, and he took another swig as everybody grabbed their saddle and moved towards the horses.
Chapter fifty-one
It was a quiet night.
Josie insisted that I get a good night’s sleep. I protested, but Josie said she would keep watch.
Tired as I was, it didn’t take much to convince me. Josie was accustomed to the Apache way, and I knew she wouldn’t fall asleep.
I slept hard, and I didn’t wake up until daylight. I was stiff, and it took a lot of effort to sit up.
Sergeant Wagons was sound asleep behind a log, but Josie was hunkered down beside me with a rifle in hand as she kept watch.
My eyes twinkled as I smiled at her. Her face was serious, but she returned the smile when she saw me.
“Feel better?” She asked.
“Some,” I lied.
“You sleep hard.”
“Hard as that?” I gestured at Sergeant Wagons.
“Almost.”
I smiled faintly, and I shook my head as I studied the still form of Sergeant Wagons.
“You’d best wake him up,” I said. “We’ve got work to do.”
Josie stood, walked over, and thumped Sergeant Wagons on the head.
He made a groaning sound, and he sat up and rubbed his eyes. His eyes were bloodshot and his hair was a mess.
“Soon as you’re awake, there’s a shovel in my pack,” I told him. “We need to dig in a little. You can also drag some branches up and build us some cover.”
Sergeant Wagons mumbled a reply and got to his feet.
I frowned as I watched him, and then I looked at Josie.
“It’s only a matter of time before they know we’re here,” I said. “I could use some coffee, so you might as well build a fire.”
Josie nodded and started gathering wood while Sergeant Wagons grabbed my shovel.
As soon as the coffee was ready, Josie poured me a cup.
I was just about to take a swig when suddenly, to the south, a rifle shot sounded out, followed by several more shots. I was startled, and I spilt my coffee.
“What was that?” Sergeant Wagons asked.
I made a motion to be quiet, and we were still as we listened. There was more shooting, followed by silence.
“I’m not sure,” I finally replied. “But whoever it is, they ain’t after us.”
It fell silent again. Sergeant Wagons continued digging while Josie and I kept watch.
Half an hour passed, and I saw movement at the entrance of the canyon.
“Somebody’s coming,” I hissed.
A look of panic crossed Sergeant Wagon’s face. He flung the shovel aside, grabbed his rifle, and plopped down behind a tree branch.
I scowled at him, and then we waited.
A few minutes passed, and I could make out four men. They were afoot, and they were creeping their way towards us.
“Everybody hold your fire,” I said softly, and Sergeant Wagons and Josie nodded.
Moving slowly, I brought my rifle to my shoulder. I took a deep breath, aimed in front of the closest, and fired.
Dirt blew up in front of him. I heard a surprised grimace, and all four disappeared behind trees and brush. A few shots were fired, but their bullets came nowhere close.
“That you, Wade?” I shouted.
“You know it is!”
“How’s the sunburn?”
Wade yelled back a harsh response that I couldn’t understand, and I couldn’t help but smile.
“Cooper, this is Jeremiah Wisdom,” a new voice called out.
I was startled.
I hadn’t seen or heard from Jeremiah since the war, and he was the last person I expected to see now.
“What are you doing here?” I hollered.
“Doesn’t matter,” Jeremiah replied. “What does matter is that we get those rifles. Those Injuns are expecting them, Coop. They don’t get ’em, and they’ll come after us, including you.”
“Ain’t that just too bad!”
“I’m going to kill you, Cooper!” Wade yelled.
“Good luck with that!” I shouted back. “And, as far as these rifles are concerned, I’ve got a fire ready to light. You come any closer and I’ll burn them.”
“You wouldn’t!”
“Just come closer,” I replied, “and you’ll find out!”
Nobody replied, and it fell silent.
I could see them huddled together behind some trees, and it looked like they were mulling the situation over.
“What do we do now?” Sergeant Wagons hissed.
“We wait,” I said.
Chapter fifty-two
Yancy said a silent prayer as he climbed back on Jug-head.
It worked, because this time Jug-head didn’t even hump up as they trotted out.
Yancy felt Lee’s eyes on him.
He turned in the saddle and glanced at him, and Lee had an amused look on his face. But he didn’t say anything, and Yancy was glad.
They followed an old trail for a few miles, and then Yancy spotted a ledge up against the side of the mountain.
“Let’s ride up there and get the lay of the land,” he suggested.
Everybody nodded in agreement, and they climbed to the top and pulled up.
In front of them were two mountains, and there were flatlands between them.
The flatlands were covered in trees. Beyond that, there was a small canyon on the side of the mountain.
It was silent as they looked about, and Yancy cleared his throat.
“There’s movement at the base of that canyon,” he pointed.
Lee turned in the saddle, pulled out his eyeglass, and squinted through it.
“Four men,” he announced. “Way they’re acting, I’d say they’ve got someone cornered in that canyon.”
“Recognize them?” Yancy asked.
“Too far,” Lee shook his head.
Suddenly, Rondo pointed to the west.
“There’s movement over there too,” he announced. “In the foothills next to the mountain.”
Lee turned and looked through the eyeglass.
Several seconds passed, and then he whistled. He looked at Yancy and handed him the eyeglass.
Yancy squinted through it for a long time, and his face looked grim as he lowered the eyeglass.
“What is it?” Brian asked.
“Injuns.”
“And they’re heading this way in a hurry,” Lee added.
“How many?” Brian asked.
“I’d say around fifty,” Yancy replied as he handed Lee his eyeglass.
“What are we going to do?” Rondo asked.
“I reckon we’ll go down there,” Yancy gestured below.
“I figured you’d say that,” Lee said. He smiled and added, “Those Apaches are riding some good looking horses.”
“So?” Yancy looked at him.
“You can tell a lot about a man by the horse he rides,” Lee declared. He glanced at Jug-head, and then he looked at Yancy and grinned.
Yancy scowled as he kicked up his mule.
“Let’s go,” he said.
Lee’s grin widened as he followed after Yancy.
Chapter fifty-three
Wade was irritable.
Cooper had dug in, and he also had the higher ground. And, on top of that, there was also the threat of Cooper burning the rifles.
“What do you think, Wade?” Jeremiah whispered.
Wade snorted, and it fell silent.
Several minutes passed, and he suddenly heard a noise from behind.
He looked and spotted four men. One was on a mule, and the other three were a-horseback. They were spread out in a line as they walked toward them.
“Behind us!” Wade hissed.
All four spun around and faced the riders.
“Hold your fire!” The one on the mule called out.
They held their weapons ready as the riders pulled up in front of them, and it was silent as they studied each other.
Wade recognized the mule, a startled jolt passed through him.
“First thing,” the man on the mule said. “There’s a big bunch of Injuns coming our way. Keeping that in mind, I’d suggest it isn’t a good idea to be shooting each other right now.”
They were silent as they thought on that, and they nodded in agreement.
“Who are you?” Wade asked.
“I’m Yancy Landon,” he said, and then he introduced Rondo, Lee, and Brian. “We’re looking for my brother,” he finished.
“He’s in the canyon, Yancy,” Jeremiah spoke up.
Yancy looked at him, and his eyes widened in surprise.
“Jeremiah Wisdom,” he said softly. “What are you doing here?”
“I’ve been asking myself that a lot lately,” Jeremiah admitted, and he added, “Cooper stole our rifles, Yancy. We need them back.”
“To give to the Injuns?” Yancy asked.
“Yes.”
“That won’t happen,” Yancy said matter-of-factly.
“Those Injuns will kill us!” Wade spoke back up, and there was anger in his voice.
Yancy didn’t reply, and Wade scowled.
“Where’d you get that mule?” He demanded.
“A feller took a shot at us a few miles back and then lit out,” Yancy explained. “He killed my horse but left this mule.”
“We heard the shots,” Jeremiah said, and he looked at Wade and asked, “Do you reckon it was Brett?”
Lee and Brain were startled, but they managed to conceal their surprise and remain motionless.
“Could be,” Wade muttered.
“Who’s Brett?” Yancy asked.
“He’s a young feller I left at a cabin back to the east,” Wade explained. “I also left that mule with him.”
Yancy glanced at Rondo and looked back at Wade.
“It wasn’t him,” he said. “Brett’s dead. We found him yesterday.”
Wade scowled at that.
“Who killed him?”
“Probably the same person who shot my horse,” Yancy figured.
Lee and Brian remained expressionless while Wade frowned and muttered to himself.
“I suggest we sort this out later,” Rondo spoke up, and he gestured to the west. “Right now, we’ve more important matters to discuss, like staying alive.”
“What do you suggest?” Jeremiah asked.
“I say we put aside our differences until we get back to Landry,” Rondo said.
Jeremiah nodded, but Wade scowled.
“It’s a smart idea, Wade,” Jeremiah urged. “If those Apaches attack, it’ll take all of us.”
Wade didn’t like it, but he reluctantly agreed.
“Your word?” Yancy asked.
“You have our word,” Jeremiah said.
“Good,” Yancy nodded. “Give us a minute to tell Cooper.”
Jeremiah nodded, and they rode on by and entered the canyon.
Chapter fifty-four
Things were quiet for a long time.
I finally saw some movement, and I also heard the murmur of someone talking. After that, four riders appeared in the entrance.
“Hold your fire,” I said softly as I squinted below.
There was something familiar about them, and I smiled suddenly.
“It’s Yancy,” I announced. “And that’s Rondo, Lee, and Brian with him!”
“How’d they get by Wade?” Sergeant Wagons wondered.
“I reckon we’ll find out soon enough,” I said.
With a lot of effort, I stood and motioned at them. Yancy waved back as they rode up.
Yancy was riding a mule, and I suddenly realized that it was Jug-head. Josie recognized the mule too, and she gripped my arm hard.
Meanwhile, Yancy stared at Sergeant Wagons, and the surprise in his face was obvious.
They pulled up, and we greeted one another.
“I’m sure glad to see you fellows,” I said, and Josie and Sergeant Wagons nodded in agreement.
“You look horrible,” Yancy commented as he studied me.
“Thanks.”
“Are you all right, Josie?” Lee spoke up, and he looked anxious.
“We live,” Josie replied.
“Good,” Lee was relieved.
We all had questions, but before we could ask them Yancy told us about the Indians and the truce with Wade.
“Can we trust them?” I frowned distastefully.
“I trust Jeremiah,” Yancy replied, and added, “We’ll need every man if those Apaches attack.”
“I reckon you’re right,” I reluctantly agreed, and added, “I still don’t like it though.”
“We’ll watch them,” Yancy promised, and then he glanced at Sergeant Wagons. “What are you doing here?”
Soon as Yancy said that
, I noticed that Lee and Brian glanced at each other.
Sergeant Wagons looked like he was about to cry. With shame, he explained about Stew escaping.
While he talked, I noticed that Lee and Brian listened closely. Wagons never mentioned them, and I could tell that they were relieved.
Afterwards, Yancy sighed. He shook his head in disgust and glanced at Rondo.
“Now we know who shot at us,” he said.
Rondo nodded, and I couldn’t contain myself any longer.
“How’d you get Jug-head?” I asked.
“Stew had him,” Yancy explained.
“And where are my pelts?”
“We had to leave them.”
I scowled at that.
“Left them where?”
“Back at Stew’s camp,” Yancy said.
I sighed, looked at Josie, and shook my head.
“I lost them again,” I muttered.
I was suddenly irritable. It must have shown, because everyone looked strangely at me.
“When this is all over, I’ll go back and get them for you,” Rondo tried to help.
I grunted in response, and Yancy cleared his throat.
“We can talk about this later,” he said. “Right now, we’d best get ready.”
We all nodded, and Yancy turned in his saddle.
“Come on up!” He yelled down below.
Chapter fifty-five
I felt a wide range of emotions as Wade and his men rode up.
Part of me wanted to shoot them, but another part of me was glad for the reinforcements.
Wade felt it too, and he glared at me as they dismounted and walked up.
Jeremiah smiled hesitantly at us, but I ignored him as I returned Wade’s glare. Josie was standing next to me, and she glared at him too.
“Remember,” Rondo spoke up. “No trouble until we reach Landry.”
Nobody replied, and Rondo frowned.
“I suggest you four stay on that side,” he told Wade. “We’ll stay on this side.”
“That’s a good idea,” Jeremiah agreed.
Everybody tended to their horse, and after that everyone dug in. They also dragged up some more tree limbs and branches. Meanwhile, Josie and I kept watch.
