“Answer my question,” Thal said. He was aware of the others coming up behind him. A glance showed they shared his astonishment but not his anger.
“I won’t have you talk to me in that tone,” Ursula replied. “You’re my brother, not my keeper.”
“Consarn it all, sis,” Thal said. He was so flustered he didn’t know which question to ask first, so he blurted all three. “How? Why? What?”
“My goodness,” Ursula said in her irritatingly sweet manner. “Aren’t you a wonder with words?”
Ned laughed.
“Where’s Ma and Pa?” Thal said. “Surely you’re not here by your lonesome.”
“Surely I am,” Ursula said.
“How did you get here?”
“I spread my wings and flew.”
Both Ned and Jesse Lee laughed.
Thal felt his ears burn. He was close to losing his temper, which he rarely did. “I’m serious. How did you beat us?”
“I came by stagecoach,” Ursula said, then corrected herself with “Stagecoaches, actually. I left the morning after you did. I was worried I wouldn’t make it in time, but here I am.”
“My worry is why you’re here at all,” Thal said. “This is no place for a girl your age.”
Ursula went on sweetly smiling as she poked him hard in the chest. “In case you haven’t noticed, I’m a woman now.”
“I’ve noticed, ma’am,” Jesse Lee said.
“Me too,” Ned threw in.
Thal glowered.
“What did we do?” Ned said.
Crawford, who had hung back, coughed to get their attention. “People are starin’ at us. Maybe you should take your argument outside.”
“I have a better idea,” Ursula said. “Let’s take it to a restaurant. I’m hungry. How about you boys?”
“I’m whatever you are,” Jesse Lee said.
“Me too,” Ned said again.
“That’s a right good notion, Miss Christie,” Crawford said. “We haven’t eaten since daybreak, and all we had for breakfast was coffee and leftover beans.”
“Then a meal it is.” Ursula held out her arm to Thal. “Care to escort me, or are you too mad?”
“My arm is just as good as his,” Ned said, “and I’d never be mad at a beauty like you.”
“If it’s an arm you need, Miss Christie,” Jesse Lee said with a grand bow, “mine is always at your service.”
“Here we go again,” Crawford said.
Thal was trying his best to ignore the simpletons and concentrate on his sister so he could stay angry. Ursula had a knack for charming her way out of things, and he wasn’t going to let her this time. He took her arm. “Where’d you get the money for the stage fare and that dress?”
“Ah, ah, ah,” Ursula said. “Not until we’re at the restaurant. I don’t want you foaming at the mouth where everyone can see.”
“Foaming at the mouth,” Ned repeated, and cackled.
As mad as Thal was, he couldn’t help noticing the glances men gave her. With her hair done up, and that dress, she was an eyeful. He hated to admit it, but his little sister really had grown up. “You have an eatery in mind?”
“As a matter of fact, I do,” Ursula said.
It was called the Plains Café. A stuffed buffalo head hung on one wall and the head of a grizzly on another. The matron who waited on them was as stout as a tree, and no-nonsense. She gave them their menus, took their orders, and informed them it would be about ten minutes until the food arrived.
“So get to talkin’,” Thal said.
“I meant it about your tone,” Ursula replied. “Be nice. I don’t like it when you’re mean.”
“I don’t blame you,” Ned said. “You should see how grumpy he can be in the mornin’. Why, one time—”
Thal’s glare silenced him. “No, you don’t. This is between me and her. Not one word out of you until we hash this out, you understand?”
“I can’t even talk?”
“No.”
“Some pard you are. A fella should have a say over what his own mouth does.”
“Not . . . one . . . peep.”
“See what I mean about grumpy?” Ned said to Ursula. “But all right, if that’s what he wants.”
“Jesse Lee,” Thal said. “It goes for you too.”
“What did I do?”
“This is important. Keep your flatteries to yourself until we work it out.”
Jesse Lee wasn’t happy, but he said, “Out of respect for Miss Christie, I’ll go along.”
Thal turned to the last of them. “Crawford?”
“This is your silliness. Have at it.”
“He can be that way at times,” Ursula said.
The anger that had been building inside Thal burst like steam from an overheated teapot. “What’s silly about my younger sister travelin’ hundreds of miles all alone? What’s silly about her comin’ to one of the wildest towns west of the Mississippi? What’s silly about a brother frettin’ over her because of all the cutthroats and lechers in this world?”
“First of all,” Ursula said with annoying calmness, “as I told you before, I came by stage, and stagecoaches seldom attack anybody.”
Ned snorted and laughed, and covered his mouth with his hand.
“Take this serious,” Thal said to his sister.
“I am. The people on stages are mostly courteous and not out to steal a woman’s handbag or do her in. I was in no danger whatsoever. As for Cheyenne, yes, it’s rowdy, but for wildness, I hear it can’t compete with the gold rush towns up in the Black Hills. They have no law up there. Anything goes. Which is why I waited for you and your friends to get here.” Ursula’s features hardened. “I’m not stupid, big brother, and I resent being treated as if I am.”
“Now, look, sis—” Thal began.
“No. You look. Myles is my brother too. I’d planned to come all along. But I knew if I brought it up back on the farm, you’d raise a fuss and maybe convince Ma and Pa I shouldn’t. So I kept quiet.” Ursula put a hand to her new dress. “As far as my clothes and the fares go, I’ve saved every penny ever given me from the time I was six. Remember Grandma and her inheritance? I had a few hundred dollars socked way.”
Now that she mentioned it, Thal recollected the flower vase she kept in her closet, with all her money. Her “little bank,” she’d called it.
“I’ve spent more than half, but that’s all right,” Ursula was saying. “You’re here now, and I have enough to get us all to the hills. Everything has worked out.”
“Hold on. How did you know we’d want to sign on with the Hickok expedition?”
“It’s the only one leaving for three weeks. It had to be this one. I was concerned you might be delayed, so I spoke to Mr. Charley Utter and explained my circumstances. He was gracious, and said that if you didn’t show, he’d gladly refund my money. If that had happened, I intended to wait until you got here, and make plans then.”
“Mighty smart of you, ma’am,” Ned said.
Reluctantly Thal had to agree. His sister had shown remarkable common sense. “But still,” he said, “this is no place for a woman alone, and the Black Hills are less so.”
“That’s why I have you four to protect me,” Ursula said gaily.
“With my dyin’ breath,” Jesse Lee said.
Thal refused to let it rest. “Do you realize how bad it is up in those Hills? Some of the minin’ camps and towns are nothin’ but nests of thieves and swindlers, and worse.”
“Didn’t you hear me a minute ago? I know just how it is up there, thank you very much.”
“Then I’d think you’d take my advice and go home.”
Ursula drummed her fingers on the table. “Consarn it all, Thal. Do you really expect me to sit on my hands and dither when our brother might need us? He and I
were always close. You know that.”
“Your brothers are lucky to have a fine sister like you,” Ned said.
“My own sisters ain’t nearly as devoted as you are, Miss Christie,” Jesse Lee said. “I’d be proud to be your brother.”
“I need a drink,” Crawford said.
Ursula surprised Thal by placing both of her hands on his. “Let’s quit this squabbling, shall we? All that matters is Myles. We find him or die trying.”
“That’s the problem,” Thal said. “The dying part.”
“We know what we’re getting into. We’re going in with our eyes open, and if we don’t get careless, if we keep our wits about us, we should be all right. I promise I won’t take unnecessary risks. And I can be of help. I have one thing in my favor that none of you do.”
“Oh?” Thal said. He was thinking of their mother, and her comment about Sodom and Gomorrah.
“I’m female. People are more likely to open up to me than they are to you. They won’t take offense if I ask questions.”
“She’s right about that,” Ned said. “A pretty gal like her, I’d answer anything she asked me.”
“What will it be?” Ursula said, squeezing Thal’s hand. “I don’t want you mad at me the whole time, so I’ll leave it up to you. Do I go, or don’t I? I’ll return home if you insist, but it will crush my heart that you have so little faith in me.”
Thal squirmed inside. She was doing it again. Every fiber of his being screamed at him to tell her no, but as if he were two people, he heard himself say, “You can come.”
Squealing in delight, Ursula pecked him on the cheek. “Thank you. You won’t regret it. And don’t worry. I won’t come to any harm.”
“I hope to God you don’t,” Thal said.
Chapter 14
Thal had never met anyone famous before. It upset him considerably that when he finally did, he was tongue-tied.
The expedition got under way the next day, as advertised. Wild Bill Hickok rode at the head with the Utter brothers and a man named Pie, and didn’t mingle much. The brothers did, especially Charley, who proved to the most dandified man Thal ever set eyes on. From his washed and curried hair to the tips of his beaded moccasins, Charley Utter was a testament to human flowery. It spoke volumes about the man that his most prized possession was his bathtub, which had a roost of honor on his wagon.
Wild Bill Hickok’s prized possession, on the other hand—besides his pistols—was a five-gallon keg of whiskey.
Their first stop was to be Fort Laramie. It would take some days to get there. Along about the third morning out, they came to a ranch and Hickok called a halt so he could visit with the owner, an old friend of his.
Thal and his sister and the rest were waiting their turn at the outdoor pump to refill their canteens when who should come strolling up but Charley Utter and Wild Bill himself?
“Say, Bill,” Charley Utter said, stopping. “This here is that pretty gal I was telling you about. Miss Ursula Christie.”
Thal couldn’t get over how big Hickok was. The famous shootist dwarfed Utter.
Hickok wore a frock coat and a wide-brimmed hat. Around his waist was a red sash, and from it poked the butts of his twin Colts. “How do you do, ma’am?” he said in a surprisingly small voice. “Charley informs me you are on a hunt for your brother.”
“That we are,” Ursula said demurely. She seemed to be in awe that the great man had spoken to her. “This is my other brother, Thalis, and these are his friends.”
“Thalis, is it?” Hickok said, offering his hand. “Don’t hear that handle much.”
Thalis shook, and couldn’t think of anything to say.
Hickok wasn’t offended. He studied Ned and Jesse Lee and Crawford, and turned back to Ursula. “A word to the wise, Miss Christie. The Black Hills aren’t for amateurs. They are infested with vermin. Wherever you are bound, it won’t be like anyplace you’ve ever been.”
“My pard is right, ma’am,” Charley Utter said. “You must always be on your guard.”
“That reminds me,” Ursula said. “Perhaps you gentlemen can be of help. We’re bound for someplace called American City. Have you heard of it?”
“My God,” Charley Utter said. “Not there.”
“I beg your pardon?”
“You know of the place, Charley?” Wild Bill said.
“I do, Bill,” Charley said, nodding, “and it’s not anywhere decent folk should visit. It’s one of the worst of the camps, if not the worst.” He gave Ursula a worried look. “Are you sure that’s where you have to go?”
“It’s where my brother was heard from last,” Ursula said. “But I can’t seem to find anyone who knows where it is.”
“That’s not surprising. There are dozens of camps. Some last longer than others and turn into towns. Others wither and fade away.” Charley paused. “The one you want is in Blood Gulch, as they call it.”
“My word,” Ursula said. “Why do they call it that?”
“Gulches are named after a lot of things,” Charley said. “Deadwood Gulch, for instance, because of all the dead trees. Blood Gulch is where five prospectors were ambushed and killed. Their throats were slit and their scalps were lifted—”
“Charley,” Wild Bill said in reproach.
Ursula had blanched slightly, and put a hand to her throat.
“Sorry, ma’am,” Charley said. “Everyone says Injuns were to blame, but there’s been talk that they weren’t. Anyway, on account of all the blood, they call it Blood Gulch.”
“And why American City?” Ursula asked.
“I can’t help you there. You’d have to ask the man who runs it. His name is Trevor Galt. Each camp has its wolves and its sheep, and he’s the top wolf in American City. You and these others would be well advised to steer clear of him.”
“We thank you for your advice,” Ursula said.
“Be careful, miss,” Wild Bill said. “Should you get into any difficulties, feel free to look Charley and me up in Deadwood. We will help you if we can.” Smiling, he touched his hat brim to her and the pair strolled off.
“Wild Bill Hickok, by God,” Ned exclaimed. “Talkin’ to the likes of us.”
“You never opened your mouth,” Crawford said.
“I didn’t hear any of you say anything either,” Ned said. “My pard looked like he’d swallowed his tongue.”
“I did not,” Thal said.
“I was admirin’ those pistols of his,” Jesse Lee said. “They’re the latest Colts. Did you see his ivory handles? They’re just like mine.”
“Now you’re comparin’ yourself to Wild Bill?” Ned said. “You have to go a ways yet before bad men will tremble in fear of you like they tremble in fear of him.”
“I’m young,” Jesse Lee said. “Give me time.”
Ursula was looking at them as if she was annoyed. “I can’t believe your only interest is in Mr. Hickok when there’s my brother to worry about. Didn’t you hear what Mr. Utter said about American City?”
“I did,” Thal said.
“Why would Myles go to such a place?” Ursula said. “Ma and Pa raised him better than that.”
“We’ll find out when we find him.” Thal almost added, “If we do.”
The days became a monotony of travel. They were up at the crack of dawn, ate a hasty breakfast while the teams were hitched, and were under way as the sun cleared the horizon. They always stopped when it was directly overhead for their nooning, as it was called. Sometimes they’d rest for an hour, sometimes more.
Thal chafed at every delay. It didn’t help his disposition that a lot of the talk among the expedition members was about how dangerous the Black Hills were, and the many perils they might encounter.
Finally they reached Fort Laramie. Started as a trading post over forty years ago, it was situated on the Laramie River abo
ut a mile or so from where the Laramie joined the North Platte. Initially only a stockade, it was now a sprawling encampment. The soldiers had the unenviable task of protecting emigrants using the Oregon Trail from depredations by the Sioux and other tribes.
Thal hoped they wouldn’t stay longer than a day. He hadn’t counted on the Utter and Hickok train being joined by almost thirty more wagons. A few were transporting mine machinery. Half a dozen contained supplies and merchandise. The rest were gold seekers, eager to reap their fortune. The mere mention of the Black Hills brought flashes of greed to their hungry eyes.
There was a notable exception, a wagon that became the most popular whenever the train stopped. That was because it contained brightly dressed ladies who, for a price, would be as friendly to a man as a man could ever want a woman to be.
“Why, they’re prostitutes!” Ursula gasped as she watched the women parading about, parasols on their shoulders, flirting and teasing every male they met.
“They’re not nearly as pretty as you.” Ned sought to compliment her.
“Did you really just compare me to whores?” Ursula demanded bluntly.
“For shame, for shame,” Jesse Lee said to Ned. “How could you?”
Ned defended himself. “I didn’t do any such thing. I was only sayin’ that Miss Christie is so pretty she could make a lot more money at it than those ladies do.”
“Sell my body?” Ursula said, horrified. “What manner of woman do you think I am?”
“Ned, how could you?” Jesse Lee said, as if he were shocked.
“You’re puttin’ words in my mouth,” Ned complained, and turned to Thal. “Pard, help me out here.”
“Keep me out of your nonsense,” Thal said.
“Me too,” Crawford said. “There’s only so much stupid I can abide.”
That evening Charley Utter stood up and introduced the fallen doves to the entire train. Thal had to bite his lip to keep from laughing when Utter revealed that one of the women was called Sizzling Kate and another Dirty Emma. “And this fine gal on my right,” Utter continued with a bow to a heavyset woman with a head like a pumpkin, “is Tid Bit.”
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