“Do you want me to cook food now?” She asked when he rode up and dismounted.
“No. Why don’t you wait till Luke gets back and see how long we’re gonna be here,” he told her. Might be, we’ll be here all night, dependin’ on what he says.”
* * *
He couldn’t have ridden three miles before he caught sight of them in the distance. He counted six riders and they were pressing forward at a trot. Obviously Blackfoot warriors, just like the one he had killed. He knew they would soon catch up to them. He quickly turned Smoke around and loped back to warn Jug and Willow.
Jug saw him coming and knew from the way he was pushing his horse that he wasn’t bringing good news. He called to Willow and told her to bring her gun and his extra rifle. By the time Luke loped past the fallen rocks, Jug and Willow were busy loading weapons for their defense. “How many?” Jug yelled as Luke went by.
“Six,” Luke yelled back and rode Smoke down with the other horses.
“Six,” Jug repeated to Willow, “we can handle six.” He checked the load in his Pennsylvania long rifle and laid it on the rocks beside him while he took his other rifle when Willow handed it to him. In a matter of seconds, they were joined by Luke, carrying both his rifles. He took his place on the other side of Willow and quickly checked his weapons. “How long you figure?” Jug asked.
“Any minute now,” Luke answered.
He had no sooner uttered the words when Willow cried out, “There they are!” The warriors came into view, riding two abreast.
They were still over two hundred yards away but within the effective range of the long rifles, so Luke and Jug decided to send the Indians a message. “Best let ’em know what kinda fire power they’re up against,” Jug advised casually. “Maybe they’ll change their minds and go chase buffalo instead. I’ll take the one on the left, you take the one on the right. All right?”
“All right,” Luke said. “Lemme know when you’re ready and we’ll shoot at the same time.” He figured if they fired at the same time, that would prevent the target beside the first one from ducking and spoiling the second shot.
“I’m ready,” Jug said, and Luke counted to three and they both fired, knocking the two leading warriors off their horses and causing the other four to scatter to look for cover. “Now we’ll see if any of ’em is carryin’ a long rifle.” It took only a few moments for the remaining four warriors to realize where the shots had come from. The question concerning the range of their weapons was answered when a couple of shots were fired from the foot of the mountain. The bullets plowed a couple of ridges in the ground a dozen yards short of the rocks protecting Luke and Jug. And the familiar sound of the Hudson’s Bay trade guns confirmed the fact that it was not an error of not aiming high enough. The shots provided an additional helpful clue as to where the shooter had taken cover, when the powder flash indicated a pine tree near the foot of the mountain. Luke lined his sights on the pine tree and waited. At that distance, it was not easy to see clearly. But when he saw something that looked like a bulge appear on the side of the tree, he squeezed the trigger. The bulge jerked straight up and cried out.
With three of the six dead upon arriving within two-hundred yards of the horses they had been following, the remaining three decided to retreat. On foot, and using their horses for cover, all three ran back out of sight of the fallen rocks. “Whaddaya think, Jug? You reckon that’ll be enough to turn ’em back?”
“Hard to say, ain’t it?” Jug responded. “Mighta just made ’em mad enough to try to get some revenge for us killin’ those three.”
“If they are thinkin’ about revenge,” Luke speculated, “I’d guess the next thing they’d do is climb up this mountain beside us and try to get in behind us.” He backed away from the rocks to take a look up the steep mountainside. “Maybe come over that ledge right there.” He pointed to a rocky ledge about one hundred feet above them. “That’d put ’em right over us, so maybe we’d best back up to where the horses are ’til we see what they’re gonna do.” Noticing Willow standing there as if all ears, he thought he’d give her a word of encouragement, so he said, “You did a good job there when we were shootin’ at those Blackfeet.”
She looked puzzled. “I do nothing,” she said.
“Sure, you did,” Luke insisted. “You reloaded the rifle I shot the first time. I just didn’t get another shot with it.” When she looked skeptical, he added, “You were right there with powder and ball, ready to keep us shootin’ if they hadn’t run.” She shrugged in response.
They retreated back to their horses to decide what to do. It was early afternoon still, too early to camp for the night. Ideally, they would rest the horses for a couple of hours, then load them up again and drive them five or ten miles farther up the river before going into camp. The problem, however, was having no way of knowing what the three surviving Blackfeet were going to do. Jug expressed it first. “We really need to know what those three bucks are thinkin’.”
“I reckon I can try to find out,” Luke volunteered. “The only way to do it is to go up this mountain and get over that spot they crawled back to.”
“It ain’t right to ask you to stick your neck out every time there’s some dangerous scoutin’ to be done,” Jug muttered. “I reckon I could do it this time.”
“It’s better if I do it,” Luke replied. “It’ll have to be on foot ’cause the side of this mountain is too steep to ride a horse up it, and your legs ain’t long enough.”
“I reckon that’s a matter of fact,” Jug confessed reluctantly. It wasn’t as embarrassing to him as admitting he was getting too old to go mountain climbing. “And I done give up thinkin’ they might still be growin’.”
“You’re the brains of this partnership,” Luke remarked. “I can’t have you wastin’ your time doin’ the little things I can do.”
“Well, you watch your topnotch,” Jug warned. “These boys play dirty.”
“I’ll do that,” Luke replied. “Now, I’d best get goin’, or they’re likely to wind up over here.”
Willow stood astonished as she listened to the exchange of conversation between the two. They make crazy talk, she thought. Luke the smart one. I don’t want him get killed.
* * *
Thinking his long rifle was not the best choice for what he had to do, Luke strapped his bow over his shoulder and carried his shorter barrel shotgun and his pistol as he started up the gentler slope where the horses were grazing. Stretching his long legs, he didn’t waste any time getting up to the steep part of the mountain because he wanted to reach a point over the three warriors before they decided to do the same thing he was doing. When he had climbed high enough to reach the ledge he had seen from the trail below, he followed it around the mountain to reach a spot directly over the fallen rocks he and Jug had used for cover. Moving very carefully at this point to prevent a surprise confrontation with the three Blackfeet, he continued through the heavily forested mountainside. He estimated the Indians had been about two-hundred yards away when he and Jug had shot the two leading them. If they hadn’t moved, they were still that far from where he now was. Maybe he might reach a position over them in time to see what they planned to do. Hopefully, it would be to take their dead and withdraw.
* * *
“Hurry!” Red Feather exhorted the two Blackfoot braves behind him as they climbed the mountainside. There was no verbal response to his urging beyond the labored breathing caused by the steepness of their climb. After the fatal demonstration of the enemy’s superior firepower, Leads Pony and Little Bear were of the opinion that they should withdraw and take their dead brothers back to the others at Three Forks. Then, they argued, the whole hunting party would become a war party and they would come back to avenge the dead. But Red Feather had insisted that it would take too long to do that. The shooters and their herd of horses would be much farther into Shoshone territory. “We must not let them go unpunished for the killings,” he said. “I will go, if you will not.” So out
of a feeling of guilt, they followed him up the mountain, not sure how many they were stalking. There were only three shots fired at them, but all three hit their target. Now, they were concentrating on getting within the effective range of their weapons and preferably behind those who shot at them. Shoshone, Crow, or white trappers, they weren’t sure. All were enemies.
It would be difficult to determine who was the most startled when suddenly rounding a boulder, the two men came face to face. It happened in the flash of an instant, although it seemed much longer to the two men involved. It was also impossible to judge who was the first to realize what had happened. But there was no question about which man reacted the swiftest, for Luke emptied one barrel of his shotgun in Red Feather’s chest before the stunned warrior got his trade gun halfway up to aim at Luke. Holding his shotgun right where it was, Luke waited for Red Feather to drop, exposing an equally stunned Leads Pony still fumbling for his gun. Luke unloaded the other barrel of his shotgun, cutting him down as well. Little Bear, the only one with no gun, had his bow in hand, but made no move to react when Luke dropped his shotgun and pulled his pistol from his belt. The shocked warrior knew he could not notch an arrow and draw his bow before Luke pulled the trigger, so he stood waiting for his doom. Luke pulled the trigger, but the pistol did not fire. Both men were struck dumb for a moment until Little Bear slowly smiled, notched his arrow and drew the bow, only to be stunned once more when Luke’s knife struck him just below his Adam’s apple. He dropped his bow and grabbed the knife with both hands, straining to pull it out of his throat. While Little Bear grappled with the knife, Luke hurriedly measured out fresh priming powder and pulled the trigger again, this time successfully. The pistol fired, just as Little Bear managed to free the knife from his throat, putting a hole in his forehead.
Finding it hard to believe he was still standing, Luke hurriedly checked to make sure all three men were dead. I reckon I’d best thank my lucky stars for the way this turned out, he told himself. There were three chances for him to go under and he was wise enough to know it was pure luck that he didn’t. Before he checked the bodies for anything of value, he took a few minutes to think about how easily it could have gone the other way. Then he picked up the two trade guns, as well as his weapons, turned around, and went back the way he had come.
Jug met him halfway up the gentle slope. He looked relieved to see Luke walking back to the valley floor, carrying an armload of weapons. “Luke!” Jug called out excitedly. “We heard the shootin’! What happened? I figured they musta come over the top of that mountain with the same idea you had. I swear, you had me worried. I didn’t know who was gonna end up walkin’ down this side of the mountain.” He waited then while they made their way back down beside the river. “Well?” He finally said when they got there. “What happened?”
“They’re dead,” Luke answered.
“All three?”
“That’s right,” Luke said. “We won’t have to worry about those three anymore. What I don’t know is whether or not there’ll be any more comin’ after all six of ’em don’t come home. So I’m thinkin’ we’d do well to put some more distance between us and that bunch at Three Forks, just in case they do.”
“Well, you won’t get no argument from me on that,” Jug declared. “I figure the horses can make another ten miles or so today, so why don’t we get ’em started and get to hell outta here?”
“Fine by me,” Luke replied, “but first I’ve gotta go back down the river a piece. They most likely tied their horses somewhere, and I wouldn’t wanna ride off and leave ’em tied to a tree.”
“I swear,” Jug blurted, “I forgot about the horses. We got more horses to fool with.” He sounded truly disappointed.
“That’s a fact,” Luke said, “six of ’em, if ain’t none of ’em run off.” He looked over at Willow, who was standing, holding her Hudson’s Bay smooth bore trade gun by her side, listening to their conversation. “You look like you were ready to help Jug out, if those fellows came chargin’ down here,” he teased.
“I do what I have to, if you not come back,” she replied. “Those Blackfoot dogs never get me no more.”
When he realized how stone-cold serious she was, he said, “As long as me and Jug are alive, we ain’t gonna let that happen. Are we, Jug?”
“That’s God’s truth,” Jug answered. He looked back and forth from one of them to the other. It’s just a matter of time, he thought. Be a shame if it don’t happen. “Six more horses,” he blared then, when his mind promptly left the two young people. “What the hell are we gonna do with six more horses?”
Chapter 20
They stayed there at the site of the ambush until they rounded up the six new ponies to add to their growing herd. They were operating on the principle that these new horses would do as the other captured horses had and follow along with the herd. The principle seemed to be working, because all six followed along as expected. “If we make it to Cache Valley with all these horses, everybody’s gonna think we’re in the horse business for sure,” Jug commented. “Too bad there ain’t some more mares in the bunch ’cause this beaver business ain’t gonna shine forever.”
“Why not?” Luke asked. “People ain’t gonna quit wearin’ hats.”
“Reckon not,” Jug replied. “But the way we’ve been trappin’ these mountains, the mountains are gonna run outta beaver. I expect folks would learn to make hats outta somethin’ else.”
“You might be right, but that’s hard to believe,” Luke said.
* * *
For the next two days, they followed the river, with Luke riding back every so often to check their back trail for signs of pursuit. There was none, however, and by the time they struck the Snake River and traveled a short distance to strike the Green River, they were no longer worried about the Blackfoot hunting party behind them. This deep in Shoshone territory, it would be unlikely to encounter other Blackfoot parties, as well. Unlikely, but not impossible, so Luke and Jug maintained a cautious eye for the not impossible. After the winter just past, it was difficult to acquire a carefree manner. Luke figured it was going to take the rendezvous to relieve the tenseness in his mind and body.
They had decided to follow the Green River at least as far as Horse Creek before crossing over the mountains to the west and continuing on to Cache Valley. With the rapid warming in the past few days, they weren’t really sure just what month it was, May or June. So they followed the Green River to see if anyone was arriving for the rendezvous. As Jug had suggested, “If the companies are startin’ to pull in and set up for business, what’s the use of us drivin’ these horses over into Utah territory? It ain’t gonna be that long before we turn ’em around and drive ’em back up to Horse Creek. And it ain’t no question about the weather no more, so there ain’t no need to go to Cache Valley.”
“Well, that makes sense to me,” Luke agreed. They had not reached Horse Creek yet, but they were already seeing plenty of fresh tracks along the river trail. And a great many of them wore horseshoes. “Wouldn’t hurt to be early, anyway,” he went on. “We could pick us a spot to set up our camp for our horses to graze and water before everybody else shows up.”
“I think that’s just exactly what we oughta do,” Jug said, “now that we’ve got a ding-busted herd of horses to graze.” So the decision was made. They wouldn’t bother to drive their horses down to Cache Valley. There was always a threat of attack by hostile Indians, if it was too early for the start of rendezvous, but both Jug and Luke felt they had seen enough tracks to indicate they were not the first to arrive.
Willow listened with great interest to the discussion between her two white friends, and since there was no mention of her, she finally got up her nerve to approach Luke when he was checking a worn spot on his saddle to make sure it wasn’t irritating Smoke. She didn’t say anything when she first walked up to him, but he could see that something was troubling her. He asked, “What is it, Willow? Is something wrong?”
“You wi
ll camp for rondy . . . ,” she started, still having trouble with the word.
“Rendezvous,” Luke pronounced it for her. “That’s right. We’ll be pullin’ in there tomorrow, about dinnertime.”
She hesitated to ask but finally summoned the nerve. “What are you going to do with me?”
Her question took him by surprise, for he hadn’t prepared for it. “Whaddaya mean?” he asked, not sure what she wanted him to say. “Whaddaya want me to do with you? There’s always a big bunch of Crows at these things. If you’re wantin’ to go back to your people, I’ll help you get together with ’em, if that’s what you’re thinkin’.” He looked at her, questioning, but she seemed uncertain. “I told you on the first night you showed up at our camp that you could do what you wanted. We were glad to help you out. I meant what I said, so what do you wanna do?”
She dropped her chin and pleaded softly, “I want to stay with you.”
He still wasn’t sure if she meant by that what he hoped she meant, and he was afraid he might jump to the wrong conclusion. He asked, “You wanna stay with Jug and me?”
She raised her head up to look directly into his eyes. “I want to stay with you,” she repeated with emphasis on the last word. “I like Jug very much. He is nice man, but I want to stay with you.”
There was a strong hint of desperation in her voice that was not there before, and he did not want to respond to her in any fashion that would be presumptuous on his part. He was reluctant to suggest the first thing that came to his mind. So instead, he said, “You don’t have to worry about bein’ alone. I’ll take care of you, and that’s whether Jug and I stay partners or not.” He paused to watch her reactions, then said, “I expect we’ll still work as partners next season, but I don’t know if we’re headin’ back up in the same territory or not. If we do, I don’t feel like it’s the safest place for you. I want you with me,” he confessed, “but I don’t wanna put you in danger again.”
To the River's End Page 23
