Bodie 4

by Neil Hunter

  The half-breed didn’t worry over the loss of his men — as far as he was concerned they had only been useful while alive. There had never been any kind of loyalty between them. Their banding together had been a gathering of like kind, each and every man an outsider, a renegade, an outcast from society for a variety of reasons. Coyote knew that he could easily gather a fresh bunch around him. First, though, he needed to rid himself of Bodie, because Coyote knew damn well that the manhunter would stay on his trail until the matter was ended — one way or another.

  Someone had to die and to Coyote’s way of thinking that someone would be — had to be — the man called Bodie.

  He crossed the dusty strip of ground that led him to the edge of the ravine. Bodie still had to be in there, he decided. Reaching the edge of the ravine Coyote paused, eyes searching the rocky, brush-choked fissure. In the distance, towards the far end of the ravine, smoke still rose to stain the empty sky.

  Easing over the edge of the ravine Coyote started on down taking slow, cautious steps. The slope was long and steep, and for once there was nothing Coyote could do to conceal himself. He reached bottom, searching the area, but there was nothing to see apart from the rocks and the dense brush. Coyote moved on, searching the dusty earth for tracks. His dark face grew taut with anger. There wasn’t a single damn track to pick up, save those he and Jigger had made on their way out of the ravine. Coyote squatted in the dust, snatching off his hat, running his fingers through his thick hair.

  “You bastard, Bodie! Where the hell are you? Show yourself you son of a bitch.”

  He rose to his feet, jamming his hat back on, turning to move on and saw Bodie stepping out of the tangled brush about twenty feet away.

  Chapter Thirteen

  Bodie’s eyes settled on Coyote as the half-breed swung up his rifle and started shooting. Letting himself fall to the left Bodie snatched his Colt from the holster, tilting the muzzle up and triggering a quick shot in Coyote’s direction. At the moment he hit the ground, flattening himself against the hard earth, he saw Coyote run forward, bending low, his rifle blasting shot after shot. Bodie squirmed frantically, feeling the solid whack of bullets gouging the earth around him. He swore forcibly as he tried to bring his Colt in line with Coyote’s weaving body. But the breed was moving fast. Angry, Bodie dragged his legs under him, and thrust himself upright. He saw Coyote pause, working the lever of his rifle. A grim smile edged Bodie’s mouth. His right arm rose, bringing the Colt to bear on Coyote. In that fraction of time Coyote tossed aside his rifle and grabbed for the gun on his hip. Bodie had already eased back on the trigger. He felt the big Colt buck in his hand as it fired. The bullet caught Coyote high in the left shoulder, spinning him backwards, blood spouting from the ragged wound. He fell, arching his body in a tight roll, and when he uncoiled he came up firing. Bodie felt the slam of the bullet just above his right hip. The impact knocked him back and he struggled to keep his balance. Blood began to flow from the wound, soaking his pants. There was a long second of utter silence as each man seemed to hesitate. Guns level, hammers back, they faced each other across the dusty, sun-bright ravine. The silence dragged, as if the world was holding its breath. In actual fact no more than a couple of seconds passed…

  The silence was brutally split apart by the echoing blast of gunshots. Coyote’s single bullet gouged a raw, bloody gash along Bodie’s left arm. A fraction before Bodie’s own gun had fired, sending a shot into Coyote’s stomach. The breed rose up on his toes, head thrown back in agony. Bodie’s second shot put a bullet in over Coyote’s heart, spinning the helpless man around in a grotesque dance. Coyote slithered to his knees, struggling to get up, his blood spilling from his body in steady streams as his faltering heart continued to function. He twisted his head towards Bodie, eyes still gleaming with savage hate. His throat constricted violently and a gout of blood spumed from his mouth. He made a supreme effort to rise to his feet but his body lacked the will of his spirit and he toppled face down in the dust, the brown fingers of his right hand clawing at the dirt, and then stilling.

  Bodie slid his Colt back in the holster. He reached across his body and clamped his hand over the pulsing wound in his side. The warm blood oozed through his fingers. Turning, Bodie began the long trek back to the base of the mesa. Eden was waiting for him and he was going to need her help to attend to his side.

  Eden was not up on the mesa. She appeared along the ravine as Bodie neared the far end. Recognizing him she ran out to meet him, her eyes sparkling with relief. Then she saw the spreading bloodstain on his side. She put down the rifle and saddlebags she was carrying.

  “Sit down, Bodie,” she said firmly, and he recognized the no-nonsense tone in her voice. “Let’s get your shirt off.”

  He managed a crooked grin. “Eden, this is so sudden, and in plain daylight as well.”

  She had the grace to blush. “Don’t rate yourself so highly, Mister Bodie,” she replied. As she loosened his shirt and stripped it from his body she added: “Try again when you’re not at such a disadvantage. I like my men healthy, not so weak they collapse at the first glimpse of a bare ankle.”

  Bodie watched her take his only clean shirt from his saddlebags and cut it into wide strips with his knife. Soaking one of the strips with water from the canteen she gently cleaned out the raw wound in his side and the other grazes and bullet gouges he’d collected.

  “You’re lucky, Bodie,” she said. “The bullet went clear through. And it looks a clean wound. But you’ve lost a fair amount of blood. That means taking it easy for a while.”

  “I’ll do that once we’re out of this damn place.”

  “A long horse ride isn’t going to help,” Eden protested.

  “What do you suggest?”

  “Rest for a couple of days,” Eden said. “And I mean rest.”

  He sighed. There was no way a man could win an argument with a woman, especially when that woman happened to be Eden Chantry.

  “Promise me one thing,” he asked seriously.

  Eden glanced at him. “What’s that?”

  “You’ll keep me company and hold my hand. Gets mighty cold under a blanket all by yourself at night.”

  Eden raised her head, taking her eyes off the bandage she was fashioning round his body. “Yes, I know,” she said, her voice low, edged with a gentle huskiness. “And I don’t want to be alone any more, Bodie.”

  Chapter Fourteen

  With Eden’s help Bodie managed to catch three of the stray horses that had belonged to Coyote’s men. Coyote’s corpse was draped over the saddle of one, roped down and covered with a blanket. Bodie collected his saddlebags and rifle and stowed them away on the horse he’d chosen.

  “Bodie, I thought you were going to rest?” Eden said as he climbed into the saddle.

  “I am. But not here. Come morning this place will be alive with vultures. I may feel like I’m dead, honey, but I’ve still got some life in me.” Bodie indicated the distant, higher level of the rim. “We should find a good place to make camp up there,” he said. “Water and grass, some timber.”

  “If you say so,” Eden mumbled as she mounted up. “Come on then, great white scout, make trail for humble squaw.”

  They rode north for a couple of miles and then west along the rim, slowly climbing towards the place Bodie had pointed out. The sun was already starting to set when he finally located a likely place for them to make camp. Tall trees speared skywards and the way underfoot was soft with grass and lush moss. They trailed through the timber, making for the gleam of water Bodie had caught sight of. Close by the edge of a rushing stream they drew rein. Leading the animals a little way downstream Bodie unsaddled and tethered them, giving them enough rope so they could reach the water when they wanted. He carried their gear back to where Eden had already built a fire. Bodie passed her the sack of supplies he’d found on one of the horses. Leaving her to attend to the meal he opened his saddlebags and pulled out his shaving gear. At the edge of the stream he lathered his
face, then used his razor on the thick stubble. It took some time, what with the cold stream water and the fact that Bodie had started to feel tired. It was a weariness that sank right through to his bones. When he’d finished shaving he felt a couple of pounds lighter. Rinsing off the lather Bodie ducked his head under the water for a while. The cool water against his gritty flesh felt good. By the time he gotten back to the fire Eden had coffee bubbling in a pot. Bodie became aware of his hunger. The smell of the coffee made his stomach growl.

  “Bodie, you eat and then you sleep,” Eden ordered.

  He watched her pour him a mug of hot coffee. “I could get to enjoy this treatment,” he said.

  Eden smiled. “I’ve got to say thanks for pulling me out of Coyote’s camp. Dad taught me to always thank people.”

  “You mean I went through all that, getting shot up and all, just for a mug of coffee?” Bodie grumbled.

  “You know what your trouble is, Bodie? You want everything at once.”

  Bodie took a sip of the hot coffee. “Yes, Ma’am,” he grinned.

  She shook her head, laughing softly, and returned to the fire. Shortly the aroma of frying bacon filled the air. Eden, concentrating on her cooking, didn’t speak for a while. When she was ready to dish the food up she said, “See how you like this, Bodie. Bacon is my specialty ...” There was no reply, and Eden glanced up. Bodie was asleep. She shrugged. “Oh, well, I’ll eat the damn stuff myself!”

  Bodie slept soundly through the night and well into the following day. It was close on noon when he finally opened his eyes, blinking against the bright sunlight filtering down through the tall trees. He lay still, breathing in the pine-scented air, listening to the distant sound of a bird. Close by he caught the smell of brewing coffee.

  Pushing away the blanket, Bodie sat up. His body groaned in protest. Judas Priest, he thought, I can’t be so stiff and still be alive Maybe I died and they forgot to bury me.

  “Bodie! Hey, how are you feeling?”

  He turned his head and saw Eden coming across the grass. She was dressed in a man’s shirt, tied at the waist with a length of thin rope. The shirt reached just far enough down her thighs to be decent, but it still meant that her long, supple legs were bare. As he watched her Bodie realized that his earlier thoughts about being dead were mistaken, because no corpse ever experienced the sensations coursing through his body at that moment.

  “I didn’t wake you,” Eden said. She crouched beside the fire and poured him a mug of coffee. “Here, drink this, and try to stay awake this time.”

  “Thanks.” Bodie tasted the coffee. “Didn’t I hear you say something about bacon?”

  Eden chuckled. “That was last night,” she said. “There’s some left.”

  Bodie leaned back, enjoying the luxury of the situation. It wasn’t often he had his meals prepared for him in such idyllic surroundings, by a young and beautiful female clad in a man’s shirt and little else. Eden had washed her hair too. It hung long and shiny down her back, catching the sun as she moved.

  “When you’ve eaten I’ll take a look at your side,” Eden said, handing him a plate of hot, fried bacon.

  “Sure,” Bodie said, “if you let me look at yours.”

  Eden threw him a questioning glance over her shoulder. “What…?” Then she smiled. “I see. And which side would that be?”

  “I’ll figure something out,” Bodie said.

  “Bodie, I’m beginning to wonder if I’d have been safer in Coyote’s hands. It seems to me I’ve been saved from one savage only to fall into the clutches of another.”

  Bodie leered at her. “Yeah, but at least you know me.”

  “That makes a difference?”

  He put down the empty plate. Reaching out he took hold of Eden’s arm and pulled her to him.

  “Bodie, what are you up to?” she asked.

  “The Army has a word for it.”

  “Oh?”

  “Maneuvers. Means making certain moves to reach an objective.”

  “Bodie, I know what it means.”

  “Good,” he said. He leaned forward, his mouth closing over hers, and he felt the warm press of Eden’s body as she let her weight fall against him. Bodie’s hand eased to the front of the shirt she was wearing, plucking open the buttons. Sliding the shirt off one smooth, curving shoulder Bodie drew his hand down to the supple fullness of Eden’s breast. The rounded flesh was firm and soft. Eden made a gentle sound as his palm stroked across the rising nipple. She put a hand on the shirt and pushed it free from her other shoulder letting it drop from her body.

  “Bodie?” she murmured.

  “Yeah?”

  “I was just wondering…seeing the moves you are making…”

  “Yeah?”

  Eden stirred sensually as Bodie laid her back against the blanket. “I was trying to figure what your objective might be…” As she spoke Eden felt his hand slide down her naked body, over the silken firmness of her stomach, his fingers reaching, searching, and then she gave a trembling sigh, her body arching in willing response.

  They stayed upon the rim for two more days and then moved on. Finding a way down off the rim took them a further day. When they were down Bodie cut off to the south. Another day and a half brought them to the town of Adobe Junction. It was a fair sized place with a rail depot and a telegraph office. On riding in Bodie made directly for the town’s hotel.

  “Go and get yourself a room,” he told Eden.

  “What about you?”

  “I’ll be along. Got some things to attend to first.”

  Eden glanced at the blanket-covered corpse of Coyote and wrinkled her nose. “I won’t be sorry to lose him,” she said. Sliding out of the saddle she dusted off her wrinkled dress. “Bodie, don’t be too long.”

  Turning his horse Bodie rode down the street to the rail depot. He went inside the booking office and found the telegraph operator. Pulling a message pad across the counter Bodie wrote a few short lines to Major Owen Chantry at Fort Huachuca, telling him that Eden was safe and well. He paid the operator, then made his way along to the ticket desk and bought a couple of seats on the next train going south.

  Leaving the depot Bodie rode back through town and located the marshal’s office. Inside he had a few words with the local lawman, a tall, lean, sunburned man by the name of Rice. Following Bodie outside Rice loosened the blanket tied over Coyote’s corpse and took a long look at the blackening face of the dead half-breed.

  “Well, I ain’t ever seen Coyote — dead or alive — Mister Bodie, but I’ve heard of you, and your word’s good enough for me.”

  “If there’s any problem,” Bodie said, “I’ve gotten a young woman over at the hotel who can confirm it’s Coyote. He took her hostage after he’d raided a stage.”

  “That wouldn’t be a Miss Eden Chantry would it?” Rice asked.

  “Yeah. I’ve sent a telegraph to her father, so all you’ve got to worry about is the paperwork for the bounty money.”

  “Don’t you bother over that, Mister Bodie, I’ll attend to it. You’ll have your money before you leave town.”

  Bodie took his horse and returned to the hotel. He found that Eden had booked him a room next to hers.

  “You got a good doctor in this town?” Bodie asked the desk clerk.

  “Doctor Wallace. He’s a fine man,” the clerk assured him.

  “Could you send someone for him? Have him come up to my room.”

  “All right, Mister Bodie, I’ll do that. Anything else you want?”

  “Hot baths for the lady and for me. And see if you can fix up for some dresses to be sent over for Miss Chantry. And all the other things women wear.”

  The clerk nodded, eager to help. “What about you, Mister Bodie? Sol Meyer, over at the store, has a fine line in gentlemen’s clothing.”

  “Sure. I’ll leave it in your hands.”

  Bodie picked up his saddlebags and rifle, took the key the clerk handed him, and made his way up the stairs to his room. He went i
n and dumped his gear on the floor. Unbuckling his gun belt he draped it over the end of the bed. The room smelled stuffy. Bodie crossed to the window and opened it. He returned to the bed and stretched out on it.

  There were two days to kill before the train arrived. Bodie couldn’t see a town like Adobe Junction being able to offer much in the way of distractions. But then, he thought with a wry smile, that didn’t really matter. It wasn’t as if he was without distractions of his own. With Eden Chantry in the next room, Bodie figured that between them they would be able to pass the time in comparative ease and comfort.

  Chapter Fifteen

  Adobe Junction boasted a restaurant claiming to serve the best meals for a hundred miles around, give or take a few yards. Surprisingly the claim was justified. The place was run by a big, red haired woman who could have earned herself a fortune in Chicago or New York. Her food was beautifully prepared and had flavors designed to promote a second visit to her establishment. While they were in Adobe Junction, Bodie and Eden Chantry ate all their meals there. They had slept late the first morning. Bodie rose first, dressing in the new clothes he’d purchased from the man the desk clerk had sent up. He stared at himself in the mirror, running his fingers through his thick hair, and decided he needed a trim. He felt a little awkward in the white shirt and string tie, the dark suit. Eden had persuaded him to buy a new hat. He tried it on, curling his lip at its clean lines. The flat brim. He took it off and rolled the brim in his hands. It refused to retain the curl, flattening out as soon as he put it on. Bodie tossed it across the room and picked up his old hat. He put it on, smiling at his reflection. You contrary son of a bitch, he told himself. He strapped on his gun belt, checking that the Colt was fully loaded; he didn’t give a damn what Eden thought about that — he wasn’t going anywhere without his gun. He smoothed the suit down over the holster. It didn’t look too bad.