The Mescaleros let out screams and yells of anger and disappointment when they realized they had been tricked. They leapt onto their ponies and poured out of the rocks, in pursuit of the fleeing Rangers.
By the time they reached the mouth of the main canyon, the horses were slowing down, despite Nate, Zack, and A. J. urging them on.
“Let ’em go, except for Newt’s and Eli’s cayuses,” Hoot said. “Those Apaches will be more interested in bringin’ back a whole passel of horses rather than a few white men’s scalps. We’ll push on as far as we can, until we find a good place to stop for the night. Our horses can’t go much farther, either. And A. J.’s sittin’ kinda funny in his saddle. Soon as we stop for the night, Nate can tend to our hurts. And don’t worry, Nate, I’ll take care of yours.”
“Now I am worried,” Nate retorted. “Mebbe I’ll go back and face those Apaches again, instead.”
“Yeah, A. J., now that Hoot brought it up, you are settin’ kinda crooked, pard,” Zack said. “You pull a muscle or somethin’?”
“Nah, it’s just the bullet I took in my back,” A. J. answered. “Hurts like the devil.”
“Seems to me it’s more’n just that,” Nate said. “Lemme take a look.”
“It’s nothin’,” A. J. insisted.
Nate turned Big Red and rode behind Jones. He started to laugh.
“This ain’t funny, Nate,” A. J. grumbled.
“Oh, but it is,” Nate answered. “Hoot, Zack, it seems one of those last arrows the Apaches sent at us didn’t miss after all. A. J. got one right in his butt.”
“You don’t say,” Hoot said.
“I do say,” Nate answered.
“I reckon you should have turned the other cheek, A. J.,” Zack said, with a chuckle.
“If we’re gonna get goin’, let’s get goin’, before those Indians catch up,” A. J. said. “This arrow won’t kill me, but another one just might.”
“That’s a right fine idea,” Hoot said. “At least that arrow missed your brains, A. J. It must’ve come darn close, though.”
“Hoot…” A. J. started Jones toward Hoot, intending to slap him on the back of the head, but winced as pain shot through his rump when he shifted in the saddle.
“Never mind. Let’s just go.”
A.J. put Jones into a lope.
“Where we headin’ next, Hoot?” Zack asked, as they matched their horses’ pace to Jones’s.
“Back to the Salt Flat, to wait for Jeb,” Hoot answered. “Ain’t none of us in any shape to do more fightin’, at least not for a while. I figure a few days of Shirley’s good cookin’ will help us feel better, though.”
“That’s the best idea I’ve heard in a long time,” Zack said.
“Same here,” Nate added.
12
Nate and his partners had been at the Salt Flat Café, resting and recuperating, for three days before Jeb and his patrol returned. One horse carried a blanket-wrapped body, tied belly down over its saddle. Nate met them as they dismounted. He glanced at the column of men, and realized Mike Horton was not among them. The wrapped body had to be his.
“Howdy, Jeb. I’m sure glad to see you back,” he said. “All you boys.”
“I’m sure glad to see you too,” Jeb replied. “Where’s Hoot and the others?”
“A. J. and Zack are out huntin’. Hoot’s sleepin’ right now,” Nate answered. “He got hurt pretty bad in a fight with some Mescaleros. Matter of fact, we all got whupped by ’em, except for Newt. He was killed in a fight with a bunch of horse thieves and murderers. We lost Eli to the Apaches, too. He’s buried out back.”
“What about Newt?”
Nate shook his head.
“He was on the roof of the outlaws’ shack when he got plugged. He fell through the roof, then the place caught fire. We couldn’t get to him in time. But, he was already dead from the slug that hit him, so he didn’t burn to death. I’d hate to see that happen to anyone. And he took two of those hombres with him. How about you fellers?”
“We only did a mite better,” Jeb answered. “We got bushwhacked, and Mike took a bullet in his back. We got a couple of the hombres, but the rest got away. Nate, we’ll talk later. Right now, we need to take care of these horses, then clean up ourselves and get some grub. I’ll get a full report from Hoot, then talk with you. Okay?”
“Sure, Jeb.”
****
Nate was sitting in a chair in front of the café, watching the full moon cast its ghostly spell over the desert, when Jeb joined him. He sat in the chair alongside Nate’s.
“I just finished talkin’ with Hoot,” Jeb said. “He explained everythin’ that happened to you fellers, especially how you talked him out of resignin’, and took charge when you had to. I appreciate everthin’ you did out there. That was a right smart idea A. J. came up with, too, so you could escape from the Mescaleros. That kid’s gonna make a fine Ranger. So’s Zack. You all did a fine job.”
“We didn’t do that good, Jeb,” Nate answered. “Most of the Apaches got away, and are still roamin’ around out there. And we lost Newt and Eli. The rest of us got shot up pretty good, too.”
“And I lost Mike, and most of my men got wounded, too,” Jeb answered. “The bushwhacker who got Mike is probably one of the men who got away. Nate, the Rangers can’t possibly round up every renegade who comes to Texas. All we can do is try. As far as the Mescaleros, no one’s been able to chase them out of the Guadalupes yet, and probably no one ever will. I really can’t blame ’em for fightin’ us whites. We’ve been breakin’ treaties and forcin’ Indians off land that was theirs, and we promised they could keep, for years now. It’s a shame, but there it is.
“As Rangers, we have to protect all citizens of Texas. Sadly, that means fightin’ Indians and Mexicans, besides the white outlaws who keep us busy. You and Hoot ain’t the first men to lose a fight with the Mescaleros, and you won’t be the last.”
“Thanks. It still sticks in my craw, though.”
Jeb clamped his hand on Nate’s shoulder. “As it should. You’ve grown into a fine Ranger, even young as you still are. You took charge when the chips were down, and you showed the new men what it is to be a Ranger. I’m proud of you, son.”
“I’ve had some mighty fine teachers.”
“Yup. But if you didn’t have the stuff to be a Ranger, deep in your heart and guts, the best teachers in the world couldn’t have made you one. You think on that.”
“I sure will.”
Nate sat silently, lost in his own thoughts as the moon wended its way across the midnight sky.
Jeb says I’m still young, Nate thought. Tonight, after the past weeks, I sure don’t feel it. I feel ancient…forty years old…or more. He sighed. Then again, maybe he’s right. Most times, I still feel like a boy, and want my ma. I’m feelin’ that way right now.
He settled more deeply into his chair.
AUTHOR’S NOTES
1. While the Butterfield Overland Stage Line abandoned its route in Texas at the start of the Civil War in 1861, for the purposes of this story, I maintained its existence during the time of its setting.
2. The Marble Falls of the Colorado River is now the site of the present day city of Marble Falls. When the river was dammed in 1951, the Falls were submerged by the rising waters of the new Lake Marble Falls. They can still be seen on occasion, when the reservoir is lowered for maintenance on the Max Starcke Dam, which forms Lake Marble Falls.
3. The Salt Flat Cafe still stands today, and its owner, Shirley Richardson, is still serving meals. It, and the house adjoining, are two of the few buildings still standing in the ghost town of Salt Flat. Most of the other surviving structures have long been abandoned, and sit empty. There is a Texas Country Reporter video about the cafe available for viewing on Youtube.
About the Author
Jim Griffin became enamored of the Texas Rangers from watching the TV series, Tales of the Texas Rangers, as a youngster. He grew to be an avid student and collector of R
angers' artifacts, memorabilia and other items. His collection is now housed in the Texas Ranger Hall of Fame and Museum in Waco.
His quest for authenticity in his writing has taken him to the famous Old West towns of Pecos, Deadwood, Cheyenne, Tombstone and numerous others. While Jim's books are fiction, he strives to keep them as accurate as possible within the realm of fiction.
A graduate of Southern Connecticut State University, Jim now lives in Keene, New Hampshire when he isn't travelling around the west.
A devoted and enthusiastic horseman, Jim bought his first horse when he was a junior in college. He has owned several American Paint horses. He is a member of the Connecticut Horse Council Volunteer Horse Patrol, an organization which assists the state park Rangers with patrolling parks and forests.
Jim's books are traditional Westerns in the best sense of the term, portraying strong heroes with good character and moral values. Highly reminiscent of the pulp westerns of yesteryear, the heroes and villains are clearly separated.
Jim was initially inspired to write at the urging of friend and author James Reasoner. After the successful publication of his first book, Trouble Rides the Texas Pacific, published in 2005, Jim was encouraged to continue his writing.
Website: www.jamesjgriffin.net
A RANGER TO RIDE WITH Book 1
Nathaniel Stewart’s life changes in the blink of an eye when his family is murdered by a band of marauding raiders. They’ve made one terrible mistake…they didn’t finish the job. Fourteen-year-old Nathaniel is very much alive and ready to exact the justice his mother, father, and older brother deserve. Taken in by a company of Texas Rangers, he begins to learn what it means to survive in the rugged wilds of Texas. Amazon Link
A RANGER TO RECKON WITH Book 2
As the youngest man in the company of Texas Rangers he’s riding with, Nate Stewart discovers he’s got a lot to learn. Determined to find the brutal gang of raiders who murdered his family and left him for dead on the Texas plains, Nate must grow up fast. When he comes face-to-face with the pale-eyed devil responsible for the deaths of his parents and older brother, will Nate be able to finally get his revenge? Amazon Link
A RANGER TO FIGHT WITH Book 3
When Captain Quincy's company of Rangers is ordered to the Big Bend, Nate has no choice but to ride with them. It appears his odds of finding the men who murdered his family grow more distant with each passing mile. Will Nate and his Ranger companions finally catch up with the killers? Nate's gut feeling says they will—but who will survive? Amazon Link
A RANGER’S CHRISTMAS Book 4
Nate Stewart has avenged the deaths of his family by seeing their pale-eyed murderer dead. But his days of being a Texas Ranger have only just begun. With Christmas on the way, and the Rangers sent to the Big Bend area to patrol, they’re faced with everything from a buffalo stampede to having to resort to finding water any way they can—even if it means taking it by force. When Nate believes he may have accidentally killed a friend, he falls into danger that leaves the Rangers believing he’s been drowned. Can a Christmas miracle save him and reunite him with Captain Quincy’s men for A RANGER’S CHRISTMAS? Amazon Link
A RANGER TO STAND WITH Book 5
Texas Ranger Nate Stewart has been through a lot in his life—and his losses aren’t over yet. In the months that Nate has ridden with Captain Quincy and his Rangers, his best friend and pardner, Hoot Harrison, has been the rock Nate has depended on. But once beautiful Clarissa Hennessey comes into Hoot’s life, she sets out to destroy the friendship between the two young Rangers. Amazon Link
A RANGER GONE BAD Book 6
Cattle rustling is about to get the best of some of the finest ranches in Texas—until the Rangers come to call. But while Nate, Hoot, and the rest of Captain Quincy’s Texas Rangers are out to arrest the outlaws, things take an unexpected turn for the worse. When Nate throws in with the renegade rustlers, his Ranger friends can hardly believe it. It seems that the compadre they’d trusted and accepted into their regiment as one of their own has turned on them—but can it be true? Amazon Link
A RANGER REDEEMED Book 7
The company of Texas Rangers led by Cap’n Dave has come down with influenza. Once the outlaws in the area realize the Rangers are temporarily out of commission, they have a field day—especially a gang of bold train robbers! Amazon Link
Coming Soon: Lone Star Ranger 9: A Ranger Returns
A Ranger Grown (Lone Star Ranger Book 8) Page 13
