Seed of Evil w-65

by David Thompson

  “Time enough for that later.” To Toad, Geist growled, “I warned you there would be consequences if you didn’t behave. You should have listened.”

  Toad wisely kept silent. It wouldn’t take much to trigger Geist’s temper.

  “But first, I’ve got the squaws to deal with. I was hoping it would be easy, but they’ve made it hard. Now I’ll have to force them.”

  “To be whores?” Toad was horrified.

  “You make it sound like I’m out to slit their throats.”

  “Ours will be slit if their people find out. The Crows won’t stand for having their women abused.”

  “Abused?” Geist snorted. “All I want is for them to spread their legs and get paid for it.”

  “It’s wrong,” Toad said flatly.

  “It’s what I do, and neither you nor a bunch of stinking redskins will stop me.”

  “You can’t fight an entire tribe.”

  “No,” Petrie said, to Toad’s surprise. “We can’t.”

  Geist turned to him. “You too? Damn it, there has to be a way. I’ll figure it out.”

  “We can’t keep those girls locked in forever,” Petrie said.

  “Why not?”

  Toad spread his hands on the counter. “I don’t believe what I’m hearing.”

  “Shut the hell up.” Geist pressed a hand to his forehead. “I need time to think. I didn’t count on the Crows being so damn finicky about being paid to have sex. The jackasses would rather give it away free.” He moved toward the back hall and Petrie went with him. “Levi, not one word to anyone about this, or I’ll have you snuffed like a candle.”

  Toad shook his head, and sighed. He walked to the front window and saw Dryfus standing guard at the women’s quarters. He swore and returned to the counter. “Geist isn’t the only one who has to think,” he said to himself, bowing his head. Almost under his breath he summed up the state of affairs with “This is bad. This is very bad.”

  Chapter Sixteen

  Zach and Chases Rabbits were making good time. They pushed the dun and the pinto hard, but not so hard as to wear the horses out. At the dun’s side loped the wolf. Whenever they stopped to rest their mounts, the wolf was at Zach’s side.

  Chases Rabbits was wary. Whenever the wolf came near him, he’d tense. That evening, after they made camp and had a small fire going, the wolf lay at Zach’s side, staring inscrutably across the flames at Chases Rabbits.

  “Me think maybe your wolf not like me.”

  “His name is Blaze. He won’t harm you.”

  “How you know?”

  “He listens well.” Zach ran a hand along Blaze’s throat. “He’s not much different than a dog.”

  “Bear is bear and bird is bird,” Chases Rabbits said. “Dog is dog and wolf is wolf.”

  “You’re a worrywart.”

  Chases Rabbits remembered that warts were bumps people got on their skin. “Me not have any warts.”

  “You still worry too much.”

  “How you know this wolf you have as boy?” Chases Rabbits asked. “Him gone many winters.”

  “It has to be. No wild wolf would let me do this.” Zach put his head to the wolf’s and rubbed his hair back and forth. “See how tame he is?”

  “Wolf never tame. Only pretend.”

  “Have you ever had one as a pet?”

  “Me know animals,” Chases Rabbits stubbornly persisted. “Not trust rattlesnake in blankets not to bite. Not trust bears any time. Not trust wolf not to be wolf.”

  Zach sighed. “There’s no convincing you, is there?”

  “Not about wolf…” Chases Rabbits would have said more, but Zach looked past him and jumped to his feet.

  “Another fire.” Zach moved to where he could see it better. “About half a mile off, I’d say.”

  “Must be Ute war party,” Chases Rabbits guessed.

  “You’ve seen them?”

  “They try catch me but me too smart.”

  “A Ute war party this close to King Valley.” Zach placed his hands on his pistols. “Something has to be done.”

  “Utes not know you live there,” Chases Rabbits said. “Valley hard to find.”

  “I want to keep it that way.”

  Chases Rabbits didn’t like the sound of that. “What you do?”

  “I’ll keep an eye on them and make sure they don’t go anywhere near the pass.”

  “What about Toad?”

  “He’ll have to wait. Whatever is going on, the women should be fine. The whites won’t dare harm a hair on their heads.”

  Chases Rabbits hoped his friend was right.

  The maidens were mad.

  They had a long talk. It was unanimous. They would leave and have nothing more to do with the whites at the trading post. But there was only the one way in or out, and it was blocked.

  “I have wondered why the other lodge has a front door and a back door and many windows but this lodge has none,” Flute Girl said. “Now we know.”

  “You think they planned all along to keep us here against our will?” Spotted Fawn asked.

  “We are their prisoners, aren’t we?”

  “Not for long,” Raven On The Ground said. She had been thinking hard. “We must escape and get to our village. We will tell Long Hair what the whites have done and he will send warriors to punish them.”

  “It will not go well for Chases Rabbits,” Lavender said.

  “He was deceived as we were,” Raven On The Ground said.

  “He speaks the white tongue. He should have suspected the whites lied.”

  “We did not suspect.”

  “You are fond of him. If you were not, you would be as upset as we are that he got us into this.”

  Raven On The Ground looked at the others.

  “I understand that he was tricked,” Flute Girl said. “But I agree with Lavender. This is partly his fault.”

  Spotted Fawn said, “I should not hold it against him, but I do.”

  Raven On The Ground withdrew into herself. She cared about Chases Rabbits, cared about him a great deal. He was awkward and unsure of himself at times, but some men matured faster than others. As one of the few Apsaalooke who knew the white language, he stood to rise in prominence, and as much as she liked him, she liked even more the thought of being the wife of a prominent warrior. She became aware that Flute Girl was speaking to her.

  “…to escape? If we break down the door they will hear us.”

  “We have lamps,” Raven On The Ground said. “We will light one and throw it against the door. It will set the door on fire and burn a hole big enough for us to get away.”

  “But the whites will see the flames and the smoke and be waiting to stop us,” Lavender said.

  “Then we will throw it against the back wall,” Raven On The Ground proposed. “They will not notice the flames until it is too late.”

  “But the smoke,” Flute Girl said. “We won’t be able to breathe.”

  “We will if we lie on the wood under our feet. The smoke will rise and we will be able to breathe. As soon as enough of the wall has burned, we will run off into the hills.”

  “Without our horses?” Spotted Fawn said.

  “We will come back for them with our warriors. I want to see the whites punished for their insult.”

  “It is too dangerous,” Flute Girl said. “The fire might spread too fast and we will be burned.”

  “I would rather be dead than let a man I do not know or like take me,” Raven On The Ground said.

  “As would I,” Lavender concurred.

  “We are agreed, then?” Raven On The Ground said. “We might as well do it right away. By now the sun has gone down and we can lose ourselves in the dark.”

  “If you say so,” Spotted Fawn said dubiously.

  Raven On The Ground rose and went into the cramped space the whites insisted she sleep in and brought out the lamp. The whites had shown them how to light it. They used little sticks called lucifers that came in a small b
ox. She didn’t like them. They made a loud noise when they were struck and gave off an unpleasant odor.

  Raven On The Ground squatted at the back wall. She raised the glass, swiped the lucifer, and held her breath at the stink. Quickly, she held the lucifer to the wick until it caught. She let go of the lucifer and took a few steps back.

  “I hope this works,” Flute Girl said.

  Raising the lamp over her head, Raven On The Ground hurled it at the wall. It hit with a loud crash and there was a sizzle of spreading flames as the bowl broke and the liquid in the bowl splashed across the wall. Whale oil, the whites called it. Shattered pieces of glass fell to the floor.

  Raven On The Ground retreated. The flames spread rapidly. Already thick coils of smoke writhed toward her.

  “This was a mistake,” Spotted Fawn said.

  “Stay calm.”

  “I do not want to be burned alive.”

  “We won’t be,” Raven On The Ground assured her. “Just do as I do.” She tried to sound confident, but she was having doubts. The flames leaped and grew at an alarming rate, licking at the ceiling and the floor. The wood, mostly pine, caught remarkably fast.

  Coughing from the smoke, Raven On The Ground backed up farther. The others clustered close to her, their worry apparent.

  “If I die today, tell my mother and father I loved them,” Spotted Fawn said.

  The ceiling was on fire. The writhing coils had become a cloud, and the crackling and hissing of the flames was ominous.

  “What if the back wall doesn’t burn through before the fire reaches us?” Flute Girl brought up.

  Raven On The Ground refused to consider the possibility. “It will.” She realized an oversight on her part. “Quick. We need blankets.” She ran into her living space and yanked the top blanket off the frame. Wrapping it around her shoulders, she came back out and was instantly engulfed in smoke.

  The crackling was a roar.

  “Raven On The Ground? Where are you?” Spotted Fawn called out.

  A groping hand found Raven On The Ground’s arm. “I am here!” she shouted so all of them could come to the sound of her voice. “Be ready.” The smoke was so thick that she could hardly see the flames. The heat was unbearable. She backed farther away and bumped into someone.

  “I told you this was a mistake,” Spotted Fawn said.

  All of them were coughing. Raven On The Ground covered her mouth and nose with the blanket. She peered into the smoke, trying to tell if the back wall had burned enough for them to get through.

  Suddenly there was a rush of air and harsh bellows. She recognized the voice of Dryfus. She turned. The air had moved the smoke enough so that she could see the open front door and Dryfus standing in the doorway, astounded. His yells were bound to bring the others.

  Geist would be furious. She glanced at the back wall again and shouted to her friends, “Out the front instead. Lavender, it will be up to you.”

  “I understand.”

  Bundled in their blankets, they dashed out. Dryfus stepped aside and made threatening gestures, as if he would strike them.

  Raven On The Ground breathed the precious, clear air deeply and shouted, “Do it!”

  Lavender swept her knife out from under her blanket and stabbed Dryfus. He clutched at himself and staggered. His rifle clattered to the ground and he dropped to his knees.

  Raven On The Ground snatched up the rifle. Lavender raised her knife to stab Dryfus again, but a yell from the trading post gave her pause.

  Gratt and Berber were coming.

  “Run!” Raven On The Ground cast off her blanket and bolted around the corner. She took for granted that the others would follow. “Hurry!” she cried, and flew into the night.

  Behind them the flames roared.

  Chapter Seventeen

  Nate King was adrift in dreamless sleep when the pounding woke him. He sat up with a start. Years ago hostiles had attacked his uncle’s cabin and slain his uncle, and it was a secret fear of his that one day hostiles might try to do the same to him and his loved ones. His hand went to the small table beside the bed, groping for his pistols.

  The pounding continued.

  “Go see who is at our door, husband,” Winona said sleepily, her body a vague outline in the dark of their bedroom.

  “Better not be hostiles,” Nate muttered.

  “I doubt they would knock.”

  Nate got up and tugged on his buckskin britches. In his bare feet he padded out into the front room and over to the door.

  “Who’s out there?”

  “It’s me.”

  “Louisa?” Nate quickly threw the bolt and opened the door. She was in a dress and shawl. “What are you doing here at this time of night?”

  “May I come in?”

  “Of course.” Nate sheepishly moved aside, then peered out. There was just her horse, a few yards away. He thought maybe his son’s cabin had been attacked. “Where’s Zach?”

  “That’s what I came to talk to you about.” Louisa bit her lower lip. “I’m a little worried.”

  Light flared. Winona, in the blue cotton robe Nate had ordered for her at Bent’s Fort, was lighting a lamp. “Have a seat,” she said in her calm manner, “and tell us what is the matter.”

  Nate never ceased to marvel at how well she spoke English. Far better than he spoke Shoshone. She had a knack for languages. He had to struggle.

  Louisa lowered the shawl from her head and wearily sank into a chair. “Thank you. I’m sorry to bother you so late.”

  “Nonsense,” Winona said. “You’re family. Come to us any time you feel the need.”

  “What she said,” Nate said.

  “Would you like tea or coffee?” Winona asked.

  “Tea would be nice.”

  Winona turned toward the counter and glanced at Nate. “You can close the door now, husband, unless you would like the coyotes to join us.”

  Nate shut it and threw the bolt. He tucked the pistol into his pants and moved to a chair. Since Lou wasn’t crying or acting upset, he figured the emergency wasn’t life-threatening, which was a relief. “What’s wrong?”

  “Zach didn’t come home tonight.”

  “Did he go off hunting?” Nate would go on overnight hunts sometimes, but he hated to be away from Winona. He hadn’t liked it any better when he was younger and gone for days at a time working his trap line. Shakespeare McNair always teased him about it, saying he was too sentimental.

  “No,” Lou was saying. “He just went for a ride. I took it for granted that he’d be home for supper since he didn’t say he wouldn’t. He’s usually so considerate.”

  “He gets that from his father,” Winona said.

  Nate was flattered. “I didn’t think you noticed all the nice things I do.”

  “How could I not when you always remind me?”

  “I guess it’s silly of me to worry,” Louisa said. “But with the baby on the way, and all…”

  “It’s perfectly understandable,” Winona said.

  “And then there’s that stupid wolf.”

  Both Nate and Winona said at the same time, “What?”

  “He hasn’t brought the wolf over to show you? He thinks it’s the one he had as a pet years ago, Blaze.”

  “I’ll be darned,” Nate said.

  “Everywhere he goes, everything he does, that wolf is at his side. He’d even bring it into the bedroom at night, but I put my foot down.”

  “Good for you,” Winona said. “Men must be reminded how to behave.”

  “Hmmmmph,” Nate said.

  “What does that mean?” Winona said.

  “Just hmmmmph.”

  Lou went on. “The wolf was with him when he rode off, and they never returned.”

  “You don’t think this wolf would harm him?” Winona asked.

  “It’s a wolf.”

  “Wolves don’t attack people that often,” Nate said. He could recall only a few instances. In one, it had been the icy dead of winter and the wol
ves were starving. In another, a trapper had tried to catch a pair of wolf cubs and the mother had defended her young.

  “All it would take is a bite to the neck,” Lou said. “And Zach is always hugging the thing and treating it like a lost friend.”

  “If it’s Blaze, it is,” Nate said.

  Winona finished filling the teapot with water from a bucket and moved to the stone fireplace. “Blaze and Stalking Coyote were fond of one another.” She often used Zach’s Shoshone name. “I doubt Blaze would harm him.”

  “Even so,” Lou said, “I can’t help but worry. Zach would have told me if he aimed to stay out the whole night.”

  Nate shrugged. “Maybe his horse went lame. Maybe he shot a big buck and couldn’t finish butchering it before dark. Maybe the wolf ran off and he’s looking for it.”

  “I suppose it could be any of those things,” Lou said. “And if the wolf did run off, I hope he doesn’t find it. I don’t want a wolf in our cabin after the baby is born.”

  “I never heard of a wolf eating a baby.”

  Lou stared at him.

  “Well, I haven’t.”

  Winona was rekindling the fire. “If Stalking Coyote isn’t back by an hour after sunrise, we’ll go search for him.”

  “I will search for him,” Nate said.

  “Why just you?”

  Louisa said, “I want to go, too.”

  “That’s why,” Nate addressed his wife. “In her condition she shouldn’t do a lot of riding.”

  “I am right here,” Lou said. “A few hours in the saddle won’t bother me.”

  “No, my husband is right,” Winona said. “Zach might show up while we are gone. You should stay in case he does and I should stay in case you need me.”

  “I’m perfectly fine, I tell you.”

  “Zach isn’t the only hardhead,” Nate said.

  “I just hope he’s all right,” Lou said. “There are so many things that can happen to a person in the wilderness.”

  “Yes,” Nate had to admit. “There are.”

  The women thought they would be pursued, so they kept running, even when they were well out of sight of the trading post. Raven On The Ground in the lead, they went up the first hill and down the other side. They paused to look back and listen, each of them a shadowy shape in the darkness.