by Jack L Knapp
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There was work to do, always more work. Matt knew the tribe still needed meat; he told Colin what he had in mind.
A strong party of hunters and helpers followed Matt from the camp an hour later. If the animals were cooperative enough to approach this close, he would take advantage of it.
Hunting proved easy, compared to what they'd done before. He divided his hunters into pairs and issued instructions.
An hour later, everyone in place, Matt killed the first beast half a mile north and five hundred yards away from the path that led down to the camp. As he and Piotr field-dressed the big animal, another pair of hunters three hundred yards south downed a second bison and began preparing the carcass.
Five bison were soon loaded on the carts and the group took turns hauling them downslope to the camp, using ropes to check the descent as they’d done before. Lilia and Margrette helped Colin cut the meat into manageable sections, then sliced them into portions that could easily be cooked for dinner or dried. Matt helped for a while, but he had nothing approaching Colin's talent. Others took his place as soon as he left the butchering and Matt climbed back up the western slope.
The plain was dark with bison. In the time since Matt's party had killed those first five, an even larger herd had grazed its way into the vicinity. Worried, Matt looked north. A thin brown haze of dust covered the plains in that direction. If there was a reason for the herd to push south, he couldn't see it. He returned to camp and sought out Colin.
"You ought to take time to go up that rise and take a look, Colin. I've never seen this many bison in one place. I'm becoming concerned. It's too early in the season for them to be migrating south. I wonder if there's a fire up there?"
"I doubt there's anything to worry about, Matt. The trees along the river aren't likely to burn. At least, they won't burn fast. Not much underbrush along here and we've picked up a lot of the downed wood and burned it in the cookfire. But let's go up and take a look."
The two walked up the slope. As they neared the crest, the smell of dust grew stronger, as did the musky animal smell, a combination of old sweat with traces of dung. The low thumping of hooves became audible too. The first bison came into view even before the two reached the top of the slope.
"Considering how hard we've worked for meat in the past, it's almost a shame to let that fellow go on by."
"We don't need more meat, Colin. If the bison stick around, we can preserve the ones we've got and collect one every day or so for fresh meat."
"There won't be anything left up here after they pass. I think Lilia has been gathering a few plants up here, but they'll be trampled into the ground after this."
"Yeah. Well, they're staying up here for now, so it's not a problem. I wouldn't want them to decide to head down this slope for a drink!"
"I know what you mean, Matt, but for now they're just moving."
"We might as well go on back. Once you've seen a million bison in a herd, you've seen 'em all."
Colin chuckled and the two returned to camp only to find an alarmed Lee standing guard. Laz and several other men stood with him, some looking north but most watching to the south.
"Matt, did you see that pride of sabertooths that came through camp?"
"They came through camp, Lee? How many?"
"I counted seven. They just walked through like they owned the place and kept going south."
"Colin, get the women packing. I want everything on carts, and the carts parked as near as possible to the biggest trees you can find. That may help protect them. The steel tools are critical, lean them right against the tree so nothing will step on them. The bison are coming from the north, so I want the carts south of the trees. It may protect them. You've got half an hour, maybe. If the women can't finish packing in that time, drop it and get them out of here.
"Get the women and children on the raft as soon as possible. You may not even have half an hour, so be ready to move fast if we see bison coming.
"Lee, get your scouts together. Put one or two south of us but use the rest to form a line to the north. If those bison get pushed over the slope they'll come directly through the camp. We won't be able to stop them. You won't be able to get to the raft in time and there won't be room enough anyway. We'll be lucky if we can get the women and children on. Don't plan on using Sal for the defense line; he's the ferryman and he'll be responsible for the people on the raft. He can have enough men to push off, but then we’ll need them for the defensive line. Brush, anything you can find, pile it in the way. If we can make it harder for those bison to come through, maybe they'll go around."
"What do we do if the bison do come, Matt?"
"Climb the biggest tree you can and hope for the best, Lee. There's no way we can outrun them. Right now they're walking, but it won't take much to make them run. Get started, I need to find Sal."
Lee nodded and Matt trotted off, looking for Sal.
Colin had already found him and sent him to the ferry.
"Sal, the main rope is tied to that tree on the far bank so you should be all right. Take the ferry out to the middle as soon as all the women and kids are on board. It will stay there if you adjust the rope bridle so the ferry is across the current. After this is over, I'll signal you to come back. The women will have to help push off...I can't spare many men."
"I understand, Matt. I'll take care of it."
"Good man. The women will be heading this way soon. Be ready."
Matt ran back to the camp and found a beehive of activity. The first women, alarmed for the children’s safety, had already picked them up and run toward the ferry. Others packed their few belongings on the carts, already parked in place near huge trees. Lee's defense line was twenty yards north of the camp, all of the men positioned near trees they could climb at need.
A distant rumble became audible and Matt realized they had no more time.
"You women, head for the ferry! Run for your lives! Lee, get ready. Something's coming."
"We're ready, Matt. What about you?"
"I'm going to help you. Drop the first bison you see. Maybe some of the others will turn aside."
Matt raised his voice to be audible over the distant noise.
"Shoot the first animal you can. Drop him so the others will change course. Maybe they won't come directly through camp. But don't wait too long. We can replace those shelters but we can't replace you!"
He heard a few faint chuckles from where the men waited.
"Matt! Those aren't bison! Get everyone up! Climb high, at least twenty feet!"
Chapter 28
Matt glumly eyed the wreckage, all that remained of their carts.
Some cargo might still be salvaged, but the terrified mammoths had barely noticed the obstacles as they pushed their way through the camp. The axles and cargo beds had initially been shielded, but the poles used to draw the carts stuck out past the protecting trees. As the animals stampeded through, they'd pushed the poles aside and the packed cargo had been dragged into the open. Some of the wheels had been broken and all the cart frames smashed as the huge animals passed through the camp.
But none of the tribespeople had died, and all of the steel tools were usable even if some would require new handles. The carts could be replaced; the steel tools could not.
Matt had felt his tree quiver as a huge female brushed against it. Matt might have let the mammoths go through unmolested, but that contact had decided him. They were dangerous, even to people who'd sought shelter in the trees. Matt had reached for one of his precious steel-headed arrows. His first shot struck a mammoth between the eyes but had barely penetrated the thick skin. Still, it was enough to cause the mammoth to change course slightly, and Matt's second shot had penetrated the skull just forward of the ear opening. She'd stumbled, then fallen broadside. The huge carcass checked the headlong rush of the trailing animals and caused the herd to divide. Most passed between the camp and the river.
Sal watched from the raft as the great grayish-br
own bodies moved south. Awestruck, he counted twenty-two animals, then realized that there had to be others he hadn't seen.
The bison herd was moving too. A minor stampede had sent most of the animals south, but the small fire died as it ran out of ready fuel. Soon the bison spread out and began to graze.
The predators had fled ahead of the herds, but they'd soon be back.
Sal brought the ferry back to shore as soon as the bison and mammoths had gone. The tribespeople were soon engaged in salvage efforts.
"We're not going anywhere right away, Sal. The carts will have to be rebuilt or replaced from scratch. Use your crew to save as much of the carts as you can. Just leave the bedding and other things in place, let the women decide what's still useable. Your job is building carts, Lee's job is securing the camp, Lilia can take charge of building shelters for the night. I'm afraid they won't be great, but at least we can get the children under cover in case it rains, and if necessary we can roll up in our bedding and sleep on the ground. We can build fires to keep animals away and post someone to keep the fires going through the night.
"I'll need to talk to Colin and Margrette. At least we won't go hungry. Some of the bison meat they were drying is gone, but we've got a mammoth down at the edge of camp and that will more than replace our food losses.
"Good job with the ferry, by the way. You managed to stuff all the women and children on that thing and you kept them safe."
"Nothing to it, Matt. You fellows had the dangerous job, facing up to those animals and knowing when to climb out of danger. I doubt you'd have survived if you weren't ready to break off the defense and climb."
"Yeah, everyone did a good job and nobody panicked. Not easy to do when a mammoth blunders into your tree!"
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Tex rode into camp late that afternoon. He whistled as he looked at the damage, then slid off the stallion and went to find Matt.
"Looks like you had some excitement."
"You could say that. Lightning set off a prairie fire up north of here. It didn't amount to much, but it spooked the bison and either the mammoths decided they needed a good run or they got alarmed when the bison headed for the horizon. Anyway, the bison were everywhere up that slope to the west so the mammoths came down by the river and that took them right through camp. They busted ever cart we had. We can salvage some of the wheels, but all of the carts will need new frames. There's a day's work ahead just deciding what we can use and what goes into the kitchen fire."
"Guess you're right. I planned to surprise you by riding in, but I'm the one that's surprised."
"No surprise, Tex. Lee and I were hunting, up on that knoll to the northwest, and we saw you chasing the horses. I wondered if you'd ever manage to catch up."
"It was work and I ain't lookin' to try it again soon. But a man can run down a horse if he's determined enough. Or crazy enough."
The two shared a grin. "Are you moving back in with the tribe, Tex?"
Tex paused for a moment. "Tell you the truth, Matt, I ain't much on livin' with a lot of people around. I've been on my own for ten years now, maybe longer. Havin' people around makes me nervous. People are trouble. I reckon I could get along with two or three, but all these people you've got, well, they make me fidgety. I don't rightly see how you can stand it. You're livin' in a reg'lar town here!
"I've been building a place a little southwest of here. I think I might just winter over down there and train hosses. One thing, though, it's lonesome. It would do better if I had a woman there. I figured to talk to you about that."
Matt gave Tex a wry look. "I'm no woman, in case it escaped your notice."
Tex chuckled. "Not you, Matt. I been talkin' to a couple of women and I figured to see if one of them was interested in movin' in with me. But the friendly thing to do was talk to you first, so that's what I'm doin'."
"I don't have any objection, Tex, as long as the woman's willing. But let's make it clear up front, they get to choose. If they say no, it's over. Do we have an understanding?"
"Wouldn't have it any other way, Matt."
"Who were you wanting to talk to, Tex?"
"I've been friendly with Callie and...well, one other. No use mentioning which one right now. If Callie says no, I'll stick around camp for a day or two if that's all right with you and talk to the other one."
"I don't see any problem with that, Tex. But I don't want a misunderstanding so I'll lay it out. If one of them decides to go with you, you leave during daylight so we can all see she's willing to go. You might want to clear it with Colin if Callie decides to go with you. He's her father and likely he'll want to know what you've got in mind."
"You're right. I hadn't thought about that, but I'll talk to him too."
"You said you're going to be breaking horses during the winter, Tex?"
"That's what I want to do, Matt. Plenty of hosses, plenty of graze, I doubt I'll have problems. You interested in swapping for some after I get them broke?"
"Might be. Depends on what you want for them."
"We can work something out. Right now, how's my credit?"
"Depends. What do you need?"
"I'd like a half-dozen jugs of that honey and some dried meat if you can spare it. I can hunt and dry it myself but it takes a lot of time, and now that I've got horses, I can't afford to spend time in camp. I'll have to be around the horses or they'll be bait for a sabertooth. I started a place I could live in, but I'll likely have to build another one. I'll find a canyon with water and graze, move the horses there, then build me someplace snug before winter sets in."
"The honey's not a problem but I'll have to see how much we've got left. Some of the jugs probably got broken when the mammoths came through. But there are bee trees around, so we can get more honey, and a couple of the women have started making pottery. If we don't have it now, we can get enough in a week or two.
"Why not check with Margrette? If she's OK with swapping you honey, I am. It'll also give you a chance to talk to Callie while you're there. Callie's been working at the kitchen, but I'm sure we can find someone to replace her if she wants to go with you.
"But talk to Colin too. Dried meat, we've got quite a bit but we probably lost some when the mammoths came through. We can get more meat, though. Might take a few days to cure it into jerky. Why not plan on sticking around for a day or two, maybe even a week?"
"Reckon I could do that. I'll see about fixin' up a corral downstream for the horses and I'll stay with them. The only one I've been up on is that line-back dun. He's gonna be a good horse, once I break him of a few bad habits."
"What bad habits, Tex?"
"Bitin'. Kickin'. Little things like that. But I'm workin' on him. You might tell people not to get too close 'til I civilize him. The rest of ‘em are likely worse."
"Be glad to, Tex. I'll talk to Colin, too. You sure you don't want anyone else on your ranch?"
"Don't need much help right now, but maybe in a couple of weeks. Two of us could get more done if it was the right sort of feller."
"Safer for both of you, Tex. Safer for Callie too, or whichever one decides she wants to be a cowgirl."
"Hosses, Matt. No cows. Although I was thinkin'...you seen those llamas? There are quite a few of them just south of here. They ranch 'em down in South America and people up here were raisin' 'em too. Downtime, I mean, when this place was Texas. I saw a picture once of one wearin’ a saddle, so I might even try breakin’ one to ride."
"That might work, Tex. You can use their hair for fabric and the hides and meat are useful too. You'll need fences to keep them from drifting, horses too if you corral enough. Camels might also work out. I don't know about riding one, but they can carry a lot of weight. Sure would make moving easier if you could break some to be pack animals."
"I'll think on it, Matt. Anyway, you've got work to do and I'll be hangin' around the kitchen fire for a spell. See you there, later on."
Matt nodded and Tex went on his way.
Matt found Lee with
the scouts. Piotr was there too, examining the bows and spears the scouts carried. The hunt had depleted the arrow supply and Matt hadn't been the only one shooting when the mammoths burst through the camp. Few of the arrows had been recovered; Piotr would be busy during the next few days.
Lee left his people with Piotr and joined Matt.
"Lot of work to do, Matt."
"You're right. That’s one of the things I wanted to talk to you about. What do you think of building a fence across this low space where we're camped? I was thinking of trees dragged into line and tied in place. It might help if other animals decide this is the road they've just got to follow. Maybe it would make them change course."
"We could do that. Might take a few days, since some of my boys will be keeping watch. I don't think we can afford to neglect that."
"I agree, Lee. Pick your spot and see Sal about tools. He might be willing to loan you one or two of his crew to help."
"I'll do that, Matt. I saw you talking to Tex. What does he want?"
"Couple of things, Lee. He's planning on swapping horses when he gets them trained. I'll want him to show people how to handle them first. Your scouts might be naturals for that."
"I can see some advantages, Matt. I'll ask if any of my people know about horses. I can let you know next time I see you."
"You do that, Lee. Think you might like to learn how to ride?"
"I might, Matt. I'll probably have to if my guys are going to be patrolling on horses."
"You might like it, Lee. Takes work, though."
"You know of anything that doesn't take work, Matt?"
Matt chuckled and went on his way
He found Lilia working with Elizabeth and Bella. Racing through the woods to get on the ferry or to get up a tree while escaping the mammoths had taken a toll, but none of the injuries were serious. Several had sought assistance regarding scrapes and scratches, and the three women were washing wounds with a tea made from herbs, then wrapping the abrasions with thin deerskin bandages. As one person left, another laid his tools aside and came in to have his injuries examined.
