Thunder Over Lolo Pass

by Charles G. West

  “I reckon,” Cullen said.

  Supper had been a great deal more enjoyable with the presence of Roberta at the table. Donovan could not help noticing a marked improvement in the boys’ manners, starting with the removal of their hats when they filed into the dining room—all voluntarily with the exception of Jug, who had to be reminded by Cody. Roberta had even volunteered to help Smoke when he placed a platter of steaks on the table, but of course he refused, replying, “No such thing, you’re our guest. Besides, with you here, I feel like I’m fixin’ for a civilized family, instead of sloppin’ a bunch of hogs.”

  Roberta once again had been gently rebuked when she started to help Smoke clear away the dishes. “You go on out and set on the porch,” he said, “and I’ll have some fresh coffee made in a few minutes.” So she joined the men on the porch to witness the sunset.

  Taking a chair next to Cullen, she sat back to enjoy the evening. “I feel guilty for having come here to ask for your help, and to be treated so elegantly,” she said. “I must admit that I expected far less, and you and your father and brothers have made me feel so welcome.”

  “Believe me, it’s our pleasure,” Cullen said. “I’m glad you came to us.”

  She smiled in reply. The evening passed so quickly. All the McCloud men took part in the conversation, but it almost seemed there were only the two of them sitting there. When Cullen asked about her aunt Edna, Roberta’s eyes seemed to turn misty as she talked about the long-suffering wife of an incurable gold prospector. “Poor Aunt Edna,” she said. “Uncle Gabriel promised this was his last trek off into the wilderness, looking for the gold that everyone told him was not there.” She recalled that she was Aunt Edna’s favorite from the time she had been a small tyke, visiting her uncle’s house. Then she told Cullen of the hardship left upon her aunt when Uncle Gabriel failed to return as he had promised. “I’m afraid Aunt Edna isn’t going to make it,” she said sadly. “That’s why I’ve come looking for him.”

  Cullen could sense the closeness Roberta felt to her aunt, and he only hoped they would be successful in finding the old prospector. Not many folks knew much about ol’ Gabe. Some thought he was no more than a myth, but Cody had seen him and talked to him. If anyone could find the old man, Cullen knew that Cody would. “If your uncle is still in the Bitterroots, I know Cody will find him. He’s the best tracker I’ve ever seen, and I hope for your aunt’s sake that he’s all right.”

  “You’re so kind,” she said, her words soft and sincere. “I’m so glad I met you, Cullen.” She paused. “And your brothers,” she added, but her words seemed to be meant only for him.

  Bright and early the following morning, the boys were in the saddle and riding out to drive the large herd of horses to new grazing on the other side of the river. Up almost as early as the men, Roberta was on the front porch to wave good-bye as the three brothers wheeled their horses and loped off toward the meadows east of the ranch house. Cullen wondered if Jug and Cody noticed the way the morning sunbeams seemed to dance in the lady’s long dark hair as she stood there smiling at them. They would ride him mercilessly if they suspected he had such thoughts.

  By the time the men returned at the end of the day, Roberta had succeeded in melting the heart of the crusty old cook. She had spent part of the afternoon helping Smoke in the kitchen, causing him to forget his cynical view of the world in general for a little while. The transformation was enough to make Donovan wonder if his houseguest was in fact a saint. Smoke even went so far as to share his recipe for sausage corn bread with her. Supper that night was a thoroughly enjoyable affair with thoughts of the serious cause for her visit forgotten for most of the evening. Like the evening before, after supper was over, and Roberta was shooed away from the kitchen again, she joined Cullen and Cody on the porch.

  “What a glorious evening,” she exclaimed as she stepped to the edge of the porch and turned her face up to the starry night. Then she turned, just then remembering the journey planned for the morning. “I feel I have no right to be this content. I hope Aunt Edna will forgive me.”

  “I’m sure she will,” Cullen said. “I suspect she’s grateful for what you’re trying to do.”

  She walked back beside his rocker and placed her hand on his shoulder. “Thank you. I pray you’re right. I don’t know what I’ll do if we can’t find Uncle Gabriel.”

  “We’ll find him,” Cullen said. “Won’t we, Cody?”

  “We’ll do our best to,” Cody replied, a faint grin on his face as he watched his elder brother’s reaction to the young lady’s hand on his shoulder. He won’t move an inch as long as her hand is there, he thought. Ol’ Cullen might be in deep over his head.

  Chapter 3

  The morning broke with a light frost, unusual considering the recent warm days, but not unheard of for this time of year in the valley. After a hearty breakfast of steak and eggs, served up by Smoke, who was back to his usual cheerless self now that Roberta was leaving, the search party was ready to ride. At Donovan’s insistence, Roberta went through a trunk filled with the late Charlotte McCloud’s clothes in order to find wear more suitable to the rough country she would be passing through. In further consideration for the lady’s comfort, he also made sure they took a packhorse with cooking utensils and a coffee grinder, along with ample supplies of flour, elk jerky, and dried beans. As Cody stood by shaking his head in amazement, Donovan reminded his son that not everyone was content to live like a wild Indian. Smoke walked out to the porch to watch their departure. Moving up beside Cullen, he said, “Find that old coot fast and get on back here. I ain’t as trustin’ of them Injuns as your pa.”

  Overhearing, Donovan grinned as he stood and watched while the party rode out to the south on the western side of the river. He was not the only one watching their departure.

  Hesitating for a few moments to be sure, Blackie Cruz climbed on his horse and hurried back to the ravine where his companions were waiting. “They’re ridin’,” he said as he pulled up before them. “Just like you said, them two fellers is with her and one more, and they’re headin’ out to the south.”

  “Three of ’em, huh?” Frank Burdette replied. “Well, there’re three of us.” He kicked some dirt over the fire and headed for his horse. “Let’s get started. We don’t wanna lose ’em.”

  Moving at a comfortable pace to accommodate the lady, the party consumed much of the afternoon to cover the twelve miles or so to the entrance to Blodgett Canyon, which was easily identified by the steep rock wall that loomed up as a warning to casual travelers. As Cullen explained to Roberta, anyone could find Blodgett Canyon. The difficult job was to find the gulch where Gabe had made his camp. They skirted Lyman Blodgett’s farm and followed the creek up the canyon. Cody led them along the rapidly flowing water into a wilderness of fir, larch, and lodgepole pine forest on the lower slopes that gave way to spruce and white bark pine higher up. Above the tree line, the barren rocky spires stood like giant spears thrusting into the blue sky.

  Nighttime came early in the steep-walled canyon, so they decided to make camp after riding only a mile or so up Blodgett Creek. Cody and Jug unsaddled the horses and hobbled them while Cullen helped Roberta gather wood for a fire. Once it was going, she insisted that they should all keep out of her way while she made supper. “I might not be as good a cook as Smoke,” she offered cheerfully, “but I’ve never had any complaints before.”

  “I don’t know about that,” Cody said, “but I’d a-heap rather watch you fix it.”

  “Why, thank you, sir,” Roberta replied sweetly.

  “I’ll make the coffee for you,” Cullen volunteered, “since you’re doing the cooking.”

  She rewarded him with one of her warm smiles and thanked him. Over by the water’s edge, Jug remarked softly to Cody, “I wonder if she does cook as good as she looks. I’m already hungry enough to eat the south end of a northbound mule.”

  “I believe ol’ Cullen has noticed that she’s better to look at than Smoke,” Cody
said with a chuckle. Both brothers had already noticed that most of her lingering smiles were cast upon their older brother. There was no sense of competition for the lady’s attention. Jug was more interested in her skills as a cook. As for Cody, he was as fond of the opposite sex as any man, but he had no interest in a serious relationship—and Roberta Morris looked to him like a very classy lady who might even attend church occasionally. He was actually pleased to see her apparent interest in Cullen. His tall, quiet brother needed some nice woman to break through that somber shell that he seemed to dwell in.

  After proving her skills with the simple fare she had to work with, Roberta made herself comfortable near the fire where she could study the brothers more closely. All three seemed highly capable of handling themselves in a tight spot, so she felt no apprehension regarding Indian trouble. She couldn’t help being amused by Cody’s playful swagger, but she felt he was harmless. Jug seemed to be content with whatever came his way, and she wondered if the young giant had ever had a worrisome moment—as long as supper was on time. She reserved her more serious thoughts for Cullen. Tall and lean, he carried himself with an air of confidence that suggested he was more than ready for any sudden danger, Indian or highwayman. Roberta had been drawn to him from the first. In the event of trouble, Cullen would be the one to take charge. Those thoughts stirred her curiosity and prompted her desire to learn more about the man. So she got up and followed him when he left the campfire to check on the horses.

  “It just now occurred to me that you may be looking for privacy,” she remarked when he turned to see her following him. “I beg your pardon if that’s the case.”

  He smiled and replied, “No, I’m just gonna take a look at the right front hoof of my horse. I’m not sure, but he kinda acted like he was favorin’ it a little just before we decided to make camp.” He paused until she caught up to him. “Is there somethin’ you need?” he asked. “Is anything wrong?”

  “No, everything’s fine,” she was quick to reassure him. “I guess I’m just worried about Uncle Gabriel—up in these mountains all alone.” She looked around her then, gazing at the sheer walls of granite rising hundreds of feet on both sides of the creek. “We should have heard from him long before this. I just so fear what we may find. This country looks so threatening.” Realizing then that she had not given him any reason for following him to the creek, she said, “You just seem so much in control, I guess I just wanted some word of confidence that we’ll find Uncle Gabriel.”

  “I wish I could guarantee that for you, but I can’t,” he replied. “But I can guarantee that Cody will find the camp that your uncle had in this canyon. He knows every part of these mountains, and if your uncle is not there, then we’ll keep lookin’ till we do find him. All right?”

  She placed her hand on his arm and gazed up into his face. “I guess I also wanted to let you know how grateful I am to you for coming with me to look for my uncle.”

  Very much aware of her hand on his arm, his brain was immediately flooded with conflicting thoughts, for she left it there for several long moments. “Why, we’re glad to help you, ma’am,” he managed.

  She affected an impish smile for him then. “Cullen McCloud,” she playfully scolded, “we’re going to have some serious trouble if you don’t stop calling me ma’am. You make me feel like I’m your aunt or something.”

  He grinned. “All right, Roberta, I’ll try to remember.”

  “See that you do,” she said, and gave his arm a gentle squeeze before releasing him and returning to the fire.

  It was no more than a little squeeze, but the sensation remained long after she had gone. He lifted his horse’s front foot to inspect it, but his mind lingered on the past few minutes as he traced the bay’s hoof with his fingers. Afraid that he was probably reading something more into Roberta’s manner than she actually intended, he reprimanded himself for being a fool. She is a fine-looking woman, though, he thought as he released the horse’s fetlock, having found nothing that would indicate a problem. When he returned to the fire to join the others, he found Cody helping Roberta make her bed. I should have done that before I checked on my horse, he thought. As soon as he thought it, he realized she had already reduced him to thinking like a schoolboy, competing for the affections of a little girl. He could imagine what fun Cody and Jug would make of it if they had any notion. He had to remind himself then that this was no picnic they had embarked upon. Roberta’s uncle was long overdue and there were considerable odds that he might have come upon some bad luck, either in the form of Indians or the steep cliffs themselves.

  Just before it was time to turn in for the night, Roberta excused herself to move away from the circle of firelight and walked downstream to attend to her private needs. Cullen took advantage of the opportunity to talk to Cody. “You sure you can find that camp again? All these damn gulches look pretty much the same, and I practically guaranteed her that you could find the right one.”

  “Oh, hell yeah,” Cody replied confidently, then backed off a little. “It’s been a while, and you’re right—they do all look pretty much the same. But I’ll find it. We’ve a ways to go yet. If I remember correctly, there was a rock pillar at the mouth of it, standin’ all by itself like a gatepost or somethin’. I’ll find it.” Then he grinned at Cullen and said, “It’d most likely take me a lot longer to find it if you and Jug weren’t with me.”

  “Huh,” Cullen snorted, “that lady’s out of your class.”

  His response caused Cody to chuckle. “I reckon she’s more in your class. Right?”

  “I didn’t say that,” Cullen replied. “I’m just sayin’ she’s a proper lady, and you ain’t likely to have your way with her like you have with Mule Sibley’s daughter.”

  Cody recoiled with a look of surprise. “You know about Brenda Sibley? How do you know about Brenda Sibley?”

  “Hell, I’m your older brother. I ain’t stupid,” Cullen answered.

  “Damn,” Cody swore softly. “Does Jug know?”

  “I don’t know,” Cullen replied, amused that Cody couldn’t see that he had only been guessing about Sibley’s daughter. “I doubt he cares.” He shook his head then and laughed to himself.

  The night passed without incident, and the search party got under way early the next morning. Roberta rode beside Cullen whenever the trail was wide enough for two horses abreast, a fact that Cullen could not help noticing. Cody rode out ahead, with Jug bringing up the rear. Throughout the morning and into the afternoon, they followed a creek with many waterfalls and beaver ponds that had attracted Cody’s interest in the canyon before, prompting him to pause periodically to point out places where he had trapped beaver. They came to several gulches that appeared to lead into the sheer granite walls of the canyon, but Cody rejected them all. When the sun began to disappear from the narrow canyon early in the afternoon and they had not come upon the break in the canyon wall as Cody remembered it, they reluctantly decided it best to stop while there was still light enough to make camp. “You’re sure we ain’t missed it?” Cullen asked, his promise to Roberta foremost in his mind.

  “I’m sure,” Cody replied. “It’s just farther up this canyon than I remembered, but we ain’t missed it.”

  Roberta said nothing, but looked at Cullen for reassurance. “Don’t worry,” he told her. “We’ll most likely find it early tomorrow.”

  As on the first night, Roberta insisted upon doing the cooking. After they had eaten and Jug decided another pot of coffee was in order, they sat around the fire to help him drink it. “It gets pretty chilly in this canyon when the sun goes down,” Roberta commented. “I think I’ll put on that extra coat your father insisted I take along.”

  “I’ll get it for you,” Cullen offered at once, and went to retrieve it from her saddle where his father had tied it. “This’ll take the chill off,” he said as he placed it around her shoulders.

  She smiled gratefully and patted the blanket beside her. “Sit down beside me,” she said. “I nee
d a warm body to keep me snug.”

  With raised eyebrows, Cody and Jug exchanged amused glances, then looked quickly away to keep from bursting out in laughter. They were both enjoying their older brother’s awkwardness around the woman, who had seemingly picked him to receive the larger portion of her attention. Cullen had always been of too serious a nature to participate in flirtations with any woman, and Cody and Jug were both encouraged to see his apparent attraction to their charming guest. Maybe there’s hope for him after all, Cody thought. Stranger things have happened. He glanced at Jug again and thought, He’ll marry the first good cook he meets—doesn’t matter if she’s butt-ugly. He laughed to himself then, thinking that this trip might turn up more than ol’ Gabe.

  Cullen’s prediction proved reliable, for Cody found the stone pillar he had described to Cullen the next morning within an hour’s ride of their camp. The mouth of the gulch was hidden from view by a low sandy ridge running crosswise along the deep ravine. “You sure a horse can get through that crack?” Cullen asked as he considered the narrow opening.

  “Yeah,” Cody replied. “It’s pretty tight, but you can ride through it. We’ll be ridin’ single file, though.” Crossing over the ridge, Cody suddenly reined his horse to a stop and signaled the others to halt while he dismounted.

  “What is it Cody?” Cullen asked, and his brother pointed to hoofprints in the sand.

  When Cullen dismounted to join him, Cody pointed to several more prints left by unshod hooves. “Indian ponies,” Cullen said, and Cody nodded. He automatically paused to look around him. “How old, you figure? Three, four days?”

  “At least,” Cody replied. “No more’n that, though.”