North to the Salt Fork

by Ralph Compton

  Jangles broke his thinking. “Sorry, Captain, I never meant to stir up bad memories. I brought you some food. Better eat. You’re sure going to need your strength.”

  He took the plate and sat down cross-legged on the ground. “Thanks. I’ll be fine. Just need a little space.”

  “You got it.” Jangles left him.

  He was grateful for Jangles’ thoughtfulness. Maybe sleep would put the matter to rest. Sometimes it did; sometimes it didn’t.

  Chapter 16

  Whooping and shouting the next day, Jangles fanned the bay’s ear with his hat. The best that the horse could do was crow-hop stiff legged. After some time Jangles got the horse to respond to the reins and rode him around the large round pen.

  “Open the gate. I’m going to ride the hair off him.”

  “Don’t forget we’ve got more,” Jack reminded him.

  They’d left the gruella for the boss man. Tying the horse’s head to his left leg, he mounted and turned him loose, and the ride was on. Things became rowdy. Gus, as they called him, made some high-flying lunges through the air and Jack thought for a short while he’d overpower him. But in a short time Gus became confused and Jack took the upper hand, punishing him when he tried to break out. Soon Jack rode him out the gate, short-loping and teaching him to rein. The big horse learned quickly.

  They all intended to rest on Sunday. Midmorning a wagon showed up bearing Lucy and Tally. Everyone busied themselves hand-brushing their hair and tucking in their shirttails.

  Jack smiled, grateful to see the two of them. He hugged both of them, kissed his wife and led her over to the fire. “This is Cotton’s kitchen.”

  Arnold offered to show Tally the horses they had caught. Lucy shooed her off with him.

  “We butchered some chickens early this morning. Thought you boys might want something hearty after all this camp fare,” Lucy said, presenting the chickens.

  The others cheered and she winked at Jack. “I knew they wouldn’t turn down a meal from me.”

  “No way,” Jack said, and shared a private wink with Cotton. “Would we?”

  “No, sirree.”

  “If I keep these horses up here much longer I’ll need a wagonload of hay. They’ve eaten most of the grass in those pens,” Jack told her.

  “One of the Yarboroughs would bring a load up here for ten dollars, I’m certain,” Lucy said, on her knees as she started the fire under a large skillet.

  “Order me one,” Jack said. “In two weeks we’ll come out with the horses, drop by for a visit, and go on to Fort Worth.”

  “Will you be there for the dance?” Lucy asked, referring to an upcoming town event.

  “That’d be good. We’ll be there.”

  She smiled wide. “I’d appreciate that.”

  “How’s Luke?”

  “Antsy. He had to watch the place instead of coming up here. He wants to join your rangers when his leg is healed.”

  “I’ll see how we’re doing when his leg is fully healed.”

  She shrugged, spooning lard into the pan. “I just wanted to warn you. He’s gonna ask you one of these day.”

  “I guess he’s as old as these boys.”

  “And he’s got a steady head on his shoulders to boot.”

  “I’ll think on it. Anyway, I sure appreciate you coming out here. It’s nice to a have a woman who’ll save me out here with her fried chicken,” he teased.

  Lucy laughed, poking him in the side with a spoon. “Don’t underestimate the power of my chicken. You boys need to keep up your energy, and beans and biscuits ain’t gonna do it.”

  Tally and the rangers returned looking refreshed; Tally’s cheeks were especially rosy, and Jack figured it had something to do with all the male attention. She helped her mother fry chicken, mash potatoes and stir the huge pan of bubbling white chicken gravy. The three boys sat around the fire, hugging their knees and rocking back and forth, trying not to drool over the savory aromas.

  After dinner Lucy and Tally packed everything up to leave. Lucy and Jack took a walk over a hill to have a private moment before she headed back home.

  “It gets lonely,” she said, holding his hand between them, “when you’re gone.”

  “It gets lonely up here too. But if we can break two dozen horses and sell them in Fort Worth, it’ll be a nice sum. I’ll be able to afford some of that good barbed wire down at the blacksmith’s so we can finally mend that break in the fence around the cornfield.”

  “I know, I know. I just miss you.”

  They kissed in a long embrace, then he herded her back to the waiting wagon. They could spend all day in each other’s arms, but they needed to be back at the ranch before dark.

  When Lucy and Tally were gone the crew lounged around, praising Jack’s choice of a wife.

  “She’s sure a great cook,” Cotton said.

  “She’s always a well-dressed lady,” Jangles said.

  “You were plumb lucky to find her,” Arnold said.

  Jack just smiled in amusement. He couldn’t say enough about his good fortune. “Two weeks and we’ll be back for the schoolhouse dance.”

  “We all going on to Fort Worth after that?” Jangles asked.

  “If Captain McIntyre can handle things with the rangers he has, yes, indeed.”

  Arnold, lying on his back atop his bedroll, leapt up and let out a whoop. “Wahoo, I’ve never been there!”

  “Neither have the rest of us,” Jangles said. “You been there, Captain?”

  “A few dozen times. Next two weeks we’ll ride the heck out of the new horses. The better they’re broken, the better they’ll sell. The less trained ones we’ll need to ride the most.”

  The boys looked forward to the coming weeks and Jack fell asleep to the sound of them chattering about everything they were going to do in Fort Worth.

  Steve Yarborough delivered a load of hay midweek to feed the horses. The rangers forked the load from the hay rack into the storage bin, hoping that the horses would be easier to break if they were well fed. They had already depleted the grass in the pens and were getting antsy.

  The next few days were still hard as the rangers were constantly thrown from their horses. Horses had to be re-caught and the riders resaddled them time and again. But after a time the horses began to lose some of their wildness, and Jack started to see the effects of their hard work.

  Even the gruella began to act more like a ranch horse when Jack rode him. Soon enough all two dozen were close to being broken. When Saturday came they tied the horses halter to halter to lead and hitched them to Jangles’ uncle’s wagon to haul their gear on their way to the schoolhouse dance. Cotton took the lead at the front of the line while they snaked out of the large pen. Though a few acted up, they all soon fell in line, confined by the short lead to the next horse and the one behind. Jack and Arnold rode the line, making certain they settled in and kept up.

  Jack’s plan was to stop halfway to Shedville, then water and rest them at the D-T, where the corrals were big enough. He worried about leading them all in a line, but he wanted them to look well-broken when they finally got to Fort Worth, to draw more buyers.

  By late afternoon the long line of wide-eyed horses pricked up their ears as the stock dogs barked their arrival. Lucy and Tally ran to open the pen gates while Jack drove the train through and untied them.

  “You sure have them gentled,” Lucy said, looking amazed at the horses.

  “They’re still wild horses,” he said as he rode by, “but they’ll be ranch horses in no time.”

  The rangers stomped in their high boots across her porch to wash up. Lucy had some of Jack’s clean clothes laid out, and after he’d made himself presentable, he talked with Luke about his leg; his cast was to come off in ten days. He volunteered to watch the horses at home while the rest of them enjoyed themselves at the dance. Jack gladly accepted.

  When everyone was set, Jack, Lucy, Tally, Cotton and Arnold headed for the dance. Jangles planned to meet them at the s
choolhouse with their bedrolls and gear, which were packed into his rig.

  At the schoolhouse Jack unhitched the team while Lucy, Tally and the rangers brought heaping dishes of food, specially prepared by Lucy, into the schoolhouse. When they were finished Tally and the rangers headed back outside to the wagon to make their own fun while the adults waltzed the night away.

  Dark thunderheads were gathering high overhead and Jack hoped they would bring much-needed rain. As everyone trickled in Jack exchanged hellos and warm handshakes with the townsfolk. By the time everyone had arrived and the preacher said grace over the food, thunder began rolling across the roof and a cool, fresh wind relieved the hot interior of the school building.

  As they stood in line for food and the thunder broke loose overhead, everyone was giddy. The men ran to close the windows as the rain began to pound on the tin roof and the hard cracks of thunder sounded closer and louder. A few latecomers, wet as ducks, came bursting indoors.

  With their plates piled high Jack and Lucy found a place to eat along the wall while the thunderous storm roared outside.

  “Bad as the one we ran into out on the Llano,” he said, recalling the day they were caught in the tough storm on their way to save Mandy and Mrs. Lerner.

  “I hope there aren’t any tornadoes.” She looked concerned. “Luke’s all alone out there.”

  “He’ll be fine.” He had to talk loud over the downpour and hail outside.

  He looked up as two men in slickers burst through the door. Because the room was so crowded, at first Jack couldn’t make them out. But soon he got a clear view of them and recognized them as the pair from the saloon. He realized his sidearm was in the wagon and he prayed the men wouldn’t make any trouble.

  Close to his ear Lucy asked, “What’s wrong?”

  “Those two that just came in are Dyke and Freeman—the pair who left me on the floor in that saloon.”

  Lucy tried to stand up and see them, but soon dropped back down. “You think they’re here for a reason?”

  “Let’s hope they’re only hungry.”

  Lucy was suddenly worried. “Have you seen Tally?”

  “She’s probably with the rangers.”

  “Where are they?”

  “Trust me—they’ll see she’s protected.”

  “Oh, Jack, I’m afraid.” She put the dish in her lap. “I need to go look for her.”

  “This storm will wind down. Give it more time.”

  “I’m afraid that . . .”

  He put an arm over her shoulder and hugged her, whispering reassurances in her ear. More hail and wind tore at the eves of the building. When he looked up he saw one of Sawyer’s henchmen push an older man aside.

  Lucy grasped his wrist. “They’re armed,” she whispered, pointing with her free hand to the flash of a pistol at his hip.

  “I don’t give a damn. I owe them both a good lickin’.”

  “Oh, please don’t make a scene, Jack. People might get hurt.”

  Jack saw the wisdom in Lucy’s words. “Alright, I’ll go look for Tally. The weather’s let up some.”

  “Oh, Jack, if anything happens to you or Tally I won’t know what to do.”

  “Stop worrying so, Mrs. Starr. It’ll be fine.” He rose and made his way around the room, trying to be as inconspicuous as possible as he headed for the door. His gruff responses to those who wanted to chat prevented any major delays.

  When he reached the door he kicked up his heels and broke for the wagon. Water soaked through his boot seams, but he reached the wagon and saw three faces peeping beneath the tarp at him, wide-eyed.

  He could see a layer of hail on the tarp and laughed aloud. “Y’all alright under there?”

  “I thought we might die,” Tally shouted.

  “Your ma thinks you might be dead. Better go ease her mind. You can come back when you’re done.”

  She clambered over the side of the wagon, allowing Jack to help her down.

  Arnold shook his head. “It was worse than that day we got caught on the caprock.”

  Cotton caught the sober look on Jack’s face. “You alright, Cap’n? You look upset. Somethin’ happen in there?”

  “Sawyer’s thugs just arrived, armed. Dyke and Freeman. They’re pushin’ folks around. I don’t wanna make a scene, but someone might need to put them in their place.”

  “What are we going to do?” Cotton asked, looking around. “Jangles ain’t made it here yet and I’m starting to get worried about him.”

  “He’ll make it alright. But let’s focus on the thugs inside. I think the best way to take care of them is lure them out here. I’ll call them out and you two can attack them from behind. We got anything heavy and loose we could use?”

  Both rangers cast around in the wagon, securing two loose poles tucked under the seat. They climbed out of the wagon as the sun began to shine under the dark edges of the storm clouds. A few folks had headed outside to check on the weather.

  He caught a man who was headed back inside. “Tell Dyke and Freeman that I want to see them in the yard.”

  The man cast his eyes around nervously. “I’m not comfortable approachin’ them. They’ve got wild tempers on them. Everyone knows it.”

  “They don’t want you—they want me. I’d appreciate the favor.”

  The man finally agreed and Jack, with his six-gun strapped on his hip, walked to the side of the schoolhouse and peaked around the corner. If he had to shoot them, he didn’t want the folks inside in his line of fire.

  The front doors were open and light spilled out on the front stoop and stairs. Jack’s gaze was trained on the entrance. Cotton and Arnold stood against the wall, one on each side of the doorway, ready to attack.

  The first of Sawyer’s henchmen came out and peered around in the night with his hand on his gun butt. Cotton moved quickly and hit him in the back of the head. He went down like a poleaxed steer.

  “Freeman!” His partner rushed out and stumbled over his prostrate body. Arnold swung and missed his head but struck him on the shoulder with plenty of force. Dyke fell to his knees, screaming in pain. Cotton put his boot to the middle of Dyke’s back and shoved him facedown while Arnold kicked away his pistol and a large knife.

  Jack quickly disarmed Freeman, who was holding his head and moaning.

  “Folks! Folks!” Jack shouted at those who had come outside to see what the scuffle was all about. “Go back inside and enjoy yourselves. These two won’t hurt anyone here tonight.”

  An elderly woman in a puffy-sleeved poplin dress nodded her approval. “Those men have been terrorizing people all night. Thank you for getting rid of them.” She sniffed and walked back inside.

  Cotton and Arnold laughed and jostled each other. “You’re welcome, ma’am. Anytime!” they called out as they dragged the men toward the base of a tree to tie them up.

  “Wait till this is over,” Freeman said through his teeth.

  Jack caught him by the collar and slammed him against the live oak. “You lay a hand on one of my men, I’ll find you and you’d better have your funeral suit on, ’cause I’m planting you. You just got part of what I owe you tonight for that incident in the saloon. You ever come back and try to muscle your way around, I’ll hang you by the neck until you’re dead.”

  “I’m not afraid of you,” Freeman spat.

  Jack lost control. Teeth gritted tight, his hands gripping Freeman’s shirt, he slammed the man against the tree trunk hard until he slumped over, unconscious. He stood over him, adrenaline rushing through his body.

  “Captain, you alright?” Cotton asked, fear creeping into his voice.

  “I’ll be fine.” Jack drew in a deep breath and leaned against the tree to support himself. “Tie these two up. We can see about them later.”

  “Yes, sir,” the boys answered in unison.

  Jack went back inside to find Lucy. She must have seen how upset he was when he found her. She guided him to a private corner.

  “What happened out there?”


  “We arrested them. But that’s not what bothers me. I lost my temper.” He licked his lips and stared at the shiny pine flooring.

  “Lost your temper?”

  He shook his head. “I’ve had it reined in for a long time. Freeman pushed me over the edge and I about murdered him.”

  “Maybe he needed it.” She patted his back as he leaned forward.

  “Of course he needed it. But I didn’t need to lose my temper over it. Bad example for the boys.”

  “I’m certain they know the difference.”

  Red Larson came toward them and smiled. “Howdy, Lucille. One of these days we’ll need a sheriff. Reckon your husband should run for office.”

  Jack shook his head and smiled weakly. “Not interested.”

  Red laughed. “You’re a hard man to hire.”

  “Just stubborn is all.”

  “Those two sure needed a good lesson in manners.” Red chuckled and wandered away.

  “These men around here sure are persistent enough about hiring you,” Lucy said, hoping to cheer him up.

  “They’re playin’ a waltz. Let’s dance,” he said, ignoring her comment.

  They walked to the dance floor and took their positions. “Your daughter says she survived the hailstorm thanks to the rangers.”

  “My daughter?” Jack asked, confused.

  “When she came inside, she said, ‘Dad said it was okay to stay out with them.’ ”

  His face lit up. “She called me Dad?”

  “Well, only a dad would look after a young girl.”

  He hugged her close as they swept across the floor. Somehow the notion that Tally had called him Dad cast all negative thoughts out of his mind. Forget Freeman and Dyke. He was a father now.

  Chapter 17

  When the dance broke up in the dead of the night, close on morning, the two prisoners were untied and sent packing under the threat of death. They wasted no time riding off and everyone clapped their hands, glad to be rid of them. Jack was not satisfied that the matter of the two bullies was resolved, only postponed, but he’d cross that bridge when he came to it.