Bob nodded then looked at Rick. “Let’s go see Sheriff Cornelius.”
Austin watched them ride toward the main road to town.
His cowboys waited for him.
Dusty shook his head. “You don’t hold much hope of the miners listening to the sheriff, do you?
“He’s already talked to them once.” Austin swung into Thunder’s saddle. “I do still hold out hope we can stop them peacefully—but it decreases daily. I’d sure hate to see a bunch of vigilantes take over in Palo Pinto County. There’d be killing for sure.”
“Sí, on both sides.” Chico guided his horse beside Austin’s.
Buck glanced back the way the two ranchers had ridden. “I don’t see how the matter’s gonna be settled without someone getting killed.”
Neither did Austin. He hoped the sheriff would at least agree to go talk to the miners again. That would go a long ways in restoring faith with the ranchers. Nothing would appease the other ranchers—or him—except the two miners packing up and leaving.
The next day at breakfast, Austin set down his coffee cup. “Mina, this would be a good day for your marksmanship lessons. What do you think?”
She hesitated. “I’m afraid you’ll be disappointed when you see I really know nothing about firearms.”
“You won’t learn unless you have a chance to try. We all had to start sometime.”
“Will we ride?”
“We will. I might even let you saddle your own horse this time.”
She laughed, her blue eyes sparkling. “You’re too generous. I’ll get changed into the clothes Spuds loaned me.”
He gathered everything they’d need, including a canteen of water.
Chapter Eleven
Austin was ready when she returned to the kitchen a few minutes later. “I’m ready if you are.”
“What are we waiting for?” He handed her the canteen to carry and called, “Spuds, count on us being back for lunch.”
Once they were in the barn he leaned his rifle against the wall near where the saddles were stored on barrel-like structures. “You remember how to start or would you prefer to watch again?”
“I’d prefer you watch me to see if I can do this on my own.”
He gave a slight bow and gestured toward where the saddles rested. “Have at it. I’ll stand here if you need help.”
She took three times as long as it would have taken him but she managed admirably. When she was finished, she faced him with a radiant smile.
“Good job.” He kissed her soundly then saddled Thunder. He slid his rifle in the scabbard on the saddle and tied a gunny sack to the rear even though Thunder didn’t like the noise.
She climbed in the saddle. “What’s in the gunny sack that’s upsetting your horse?”
“Your targets. Tin cans from the rubbish heap.” He swung into the saddle. “Nice day for a ride. We’ll go where you can shoot at a ridge and not have to worry about the bullet traveling and hitting a person or a cow.”
As they passed by him they waved at Buck, who was feeding the hogs. After riding about a quarter hour he stopped under a tree.
“We can leave the horses here where they can graze.” He handed her the canteen. “I’ll carry the gunny sack and guns.”
When they’d reached where he planned, he stopped and laid the rifle and boxes of ammunition on the ground, careful not to leave the rifle in a dusty spot. “This will be a good place. You wait here while I set up your targets. The cans are dirty and you won’t want to handle them.”
She waited with her hand shading her eyes as she watched him. He set the cans up in a row atop some boulders at the bottom of a high chalky ridge. There was no way of hitting anything but the side of the ridge if she missed the target.
When he’d set up a dozen, he walked to rejoin her. “We’ll start with the rifle since it’s hardest. Well, at least it’s heaviest.”
He showed her how to hold it, cock it, and aim. “Don’t close your eyes when you pull the trigger. Keep the barrel in position for a few seconds after you’ve fired. If you drop the barrel, you’ll be shooting at the ground.”
She frowned she hefted the rifle. “Heavens, should I have brought paper and a pencil to take notes?”
“Don’t get testy. Now, aim carefully right along the barrel. You have a can in sight?”
“Squeeze the trigger, don’t jerk it.”
She fired and a can flew into the air.
He let out a whoop. “Atta girl, you did it on your first try. Congratulations, Mina.” He hugged her shoulder.
Her expression was solemn as she looked into this face. “Austin, I think I’d better be honest. That wasn’t the can I aimed at.”
He kept his arm around her. “Which one did you aim for?”
“The one on the right.”
“The rifle never has pulled to the left. Let me try it to be sure.” He took the rifle, lined up his shot, and hit a can.
With a grin she asked, “Was that the one you meant to hit?”
He laughed and handed her the rifle. “Yes, so you try again. I’m sure you can do it.”
“All right, I’ll do my best.” She took a deep breath and aimed.
This time another can flew into the air.
She turned to him. “I did it. That really was the one I intended to hit.”
“Great, now try a few more shots.”
Out of three additional tries, she hit two cans.
“That’s good. You’ll be ready for a Wild West Show soon. Let’s try the revolver.”
He showed her how to load it and told her about some people leaving one chamber empty so they wouldn’t shoot themselves accidentally.
“For our practice today, we’ll load all chambers. You can hold the gun with both hands or you can hold it with one.” He demonstrated how to fire then handed the Colt .45 to her.
“Good heavens, this is heavy and unwieldy. I’d better use both hands.”
He raised her arms slightly. “Remember, squeeze the trigger without jerking. Fire at several cans to see how you do.”
She fired until she’d emptied the gun. “I see I should have gone slower. I missed several times.”
“You hit three out of six. That’s a good result for your first time.”
“I hope I never need to use this knowledge.”
“Decent folks always hope that, Mina. Even so, we have to be able to defend ourselves against the criminals who prey on good people. There are all kinds of critters to defend against, too.” He carried his rifle and the remaining cans.
She carried the canteen and the boxes of bullets. “Thank you for helping me, Austin. I want to be prepared for all circumstances.”
He replaced the rifle and stored the gunny sack at the base of a tree. “I’ll leave this here for another day.”
They each climbed into the saddle and turned toward the house. They hadn’t ridden far before Ferguson confronted them.
The miner pointed a rifle at Austin. “We reckon you’re the one who sent the sheriff out to bother us again. I told you we leased that land and have a right to mine there. You and your kind can butt out or face the consequences.”
“You’re trespassing on my land now, Ferguson. I told you the truth and Bailey cheated you. He salted that mine with gold because there are no gold mines in this part of Texas. You ought to be mad at Bailey, not at me or the other ranchers.”
“Don’t you tell me what I should or shouldn’t do. Me and Otto got ever’thin’ set up and we aim to start streamin’ water at the cave soon as I get back there. Nothin’ you can do about it, neither.”
“You’re making a big mistake, Ferguson. Some of the other ranchers and farmers are talking of forming a vigilante group. I don’t want any part of that kind of action, but that won’t stop a bunch of them. They’ll hang you or shoot you.”
“The devil they will! If there’s any shootin’, I’ll be the one doin’ it.” He took aim and fired at Austin, hitting him in the left shoulder. Ferguson blinked
as if surprised he’d shot Austin.
Austin slumped and reached for his revolver. He had trouble staying upright but he got the gun out of his waistband. Dadburn, like some tenderfoot he hadn’t reloaded.
Mina screamed and pulled his rifle from the saddle scabbard. “Look what you’ve done, you madman. Get out of here or I swear I’ll kill you.”
Ferguson turned tail and rode away at a gallop.
She returned his gun to the scabbard. “Can you stay upright? We have to get you home. I’ll help you if you tell me how.”
“Need to plug the hole. Losing too much blood.” He took his handkerchief from his hip pocket and stuffed it inside his shirt. “Can’t… catch my… breath.”
She leaned over and ran her fingers over his back. “He was close. Let me see if there’s an exit wound.”
She let out her breath. “Oh, Austin, thank heavens there is one. Shall I ride behind you on the saddle to help you sit upright?”
“I-I can… make… it… home….” As he spoke, he felt himself falling then the world went dark.
Mina got off her horse and rushed to her husband. If he was conscious he didn’t let her know. There was no way to lift him onto Thunder. What could she do? Think, think.
She pulled the rifle from the saddle and dug out the box of bullets from the saddlebags. She kept the canteen. A slicker and bedroll were tied behind the saddle and she removed those.
“Go home, boy. Get help.” She slapped Thunder on the rump.
She prayed the horse would go to the barn where Spuds or Buck would see him and know something was wrong. In the meantime, she had to protect Austin.
She checked the bedroll and unfolded it beside her husband. Then she scooted and rolled and eased him onto the bedroll. He groaned but didn’t speak.
“I’m so sorry, Austin. I know you’re in pain. Help will come but I don’t know when.”
The sun was too hot beaming down on him as it was. She ran to the trees and picked up broken branches and carried them to where her husband lay. Using them as tall stakes, she made a lean-to of his slicker to shade him.
She tried to give him a drink from the canteen but he didn’t swallow. She moistened her handkerchief and bathed his face. Then she opened his shirt to look at the wound. Dear heavens, there was so much blood.
She untied his neckerchief and made a pad from it that she pressed to the entrance spot. How could she pad the exit wound? She pulled his shirt from his britches and managed to get strips of it by tearing it in several places.
The fabric was soaked in blood on one side. From the other side she tore off a strip. After folding the cloth, she rolled him enough that she could reach his back injury.
How long would it take help to reach them? She continued bathing his face frequently. The sun climbed and soon she’d need to rearrange the lean-to to keep him in the shade.
Between prayers she talked to Austin. She wasn’t certain he’d know. But if he did, she didn’t want him to think he was alone.
Chapter Twelve
After what seemed like days, Mina heard the sound of a wagon. She stood and looked toward where she thought the house was. Sure enough, a wagon was headed their way.
As the vehicle drew closer, she saw that Buck was driving and Spuds sat beside him. Their faces were grim. She was so relieved she was almost in hysterics.
The wagon pulled up close to where Austin was unconscious. Both men were out of the wagon and by her side in seconds.
She brushed away tears and wanted to hug both of them. “Apparently Thunder made it home.”
Spuds looked at Austin. “What happened? Did you shoot him?”
She shook her head, unable to blame them for thinking she’d caused this. “That miner, Ferguson. He was angry because he thought Austin had sent the sheriff to try and stop them. Please, let’s get him home. I’ll tell you all about it on the way.”
Buck folded a blanket double and spread it on the wagon bed. “Won’t be easy getting him in the wagon without hurting him.”
“I know. He fell off his horse while he was telling me he could ride home. I simply couldn’t figure out how to get him on his horse so I sent Thunder home. I hoped he’d show up when you could see him and know that there was trouble.”
Spuds put his hands on his hips. “Thunder came in and made an awful racket whinnying and pawing the ground. You did some good thinking to send him home. Didn’t take a genius to figure out Austin needed help.”
Mina glanced at Buck. “I’m glad you came, Buck. I think you’re the strongest of you three men. Do you think you can get him into the wagon without hurting yourself?”
He gave a nod. “Reckon I can. Can you lift his feet and legs?”
“Yes, just let me know when.”
Buck bent and slid his arms under Austin. “Now.” He strained some but managed to lift Austin into the wagon.
Austin moaned but didn’t open his eyes or speak. She thought it was best he remained unaware of the trip. This was bound to be painful for him.
Spuds gathered the things on the ground and dumped them in the wagon. “Clever of you to make shade for him. Sun’s hot today.”
“I don’t know how to shade him in the wagon.” She climbed up beside her husband.
Buck got onto the seat. “Won’t be long until we’re at the house. You need help, Spuds?”
“I’m just making sure we didn’t leave anything.” He clambered up beside Buck.
On the way to the house, she explained what they’d done and how Ferguson had shown up and confronted them.
“I don’t think he meant to hit Austin. He acted surprised he had. I think his intention was to scare us. Austin tried to draw his Colt but he couldn’t quite manage. I pointed the rifle at that horrid man and he left. I remember I said some mean things to him but I don’t recall exactly what. I was too upset by then.”
“Soon as we get him inside, I’ll go for the doctor and let the sheriff know what’s happened.” Buck sounded angry, and with good reason.
Spuds turned back to look at Austin. “Sheriff has grounds to get rid of those miners now. I hope he puts them in jail and throws away the key.”
Mina shook her head. “Only one of them confronted us and shot Austin. I don’t think he can blame the second one for Ferguson’s crime.”
“We’ll see. I hope they both go to perdition.” Spuds was plenty mad, too.
They reached home with a lot of bouncing across the meadow. The sun was a little past overhead so the time must be after twelve noon. She wasn’t wearing her lapel watch so she had no idea of the exact time.
When they’d reached the house, Buck pulled as close as possible to the front door and set the brake.
Mina smoothed a hand across Austin’s brow. “How are you going to get him into the house and to our bed?”
Buck shook his head. “I can’t carry him that far. He’s a big fella.”
“I know he’s too big for one man to carry without hurting him. Is there a wide board in the barn that’s long enough? Or an old door would be good. No, it wouldn’t fit through the house doorways, would it?”
“Let me look and see what I can find quickly. I wish Chico and Dusty would come in. Two of us could get Austin to his bed without killing him.” Buck hurried toward the barn.
She held the slicker up to shade Austin while they waited but looked at Spuds. “Do you have any idea where Dusty and Chico are today?”
“Not precisely. If there’s only three going out then they rotate staying here, see. Austin doesn’t like them going out alone. This is Buck’s turn. I’ll try signaling them by firing into the air three times. If they’re close enough to hear, that’ll bring them fast.”
Spuds fired three times into the air. He waited a few minutes and repeated the action. “If they’re close, they’ll be here soon.”
Buck came from the barn carrying a door. “Couldn’t find a likely board. Took the tack room closet door off its hinges so we can use it. It’s narrow and will go thr
ough the other doorways.” He leaned the door against the side of the wagon.
Mina knelt over Austin. “He needs help. Buck, will you go for the doctor right away? He’s losing a lot of blood.”
He untied Star from the wagon. “I’ll ride your horse and go now.” He rode toward town.
Spuds went inside and came back out a few minutes later. “I turned down the bed so all we have to do is slide him on it.”
“We don’t even know if the doctor is in his office. He might be making a house call somewhere else in the county.”
Spuds examined the wound. “Can you sew up this hole?”
“M-Maybe, but there’s a bigger one in his back. I’ll do my best.” She couldn’t stop the tears streaming from her eyes. “We have to do something. We can’t let him bleed to death.”
Dusty and Chico came into the yard at a gallop. They were off their horses in a flash.
Dusty looked at Austin then at Mina. She recognized the question in his eyes.
She brushed tears her cheeks then shook her head. “That miner, Ferguson.” She explained again what had happened and that Buck had gone for the doctor and to report to the sheriff.
Chico shook his head. “Ayii, I was afraid something like this would happen. Now more shooting will follow. If those other ranchers hear about this, they will attack and kill the miners.”
Mina regretted the hate she felt but was unable to think compassionately about the guilty miner. “Right now I don’t care what happens to that Ferguson. Even if Ferguson didn’t intend to hit Austin, he shouldn’t have ridden over to confront us and point the rifle at him.”
She brushed away more tears and gestured to the door. “Buck got this door from the tack room so you can use it to carry Austin to the bed.”
Mina climbed out of the wagon. “Moving him will hurt him but we have to get him inside out of the sun. The bullet went clear through. I’m sure he needs fresh pads on both the wounds.”
The two cowboys removed the side from the wagon bed nearest the house. Carefully, they scooted Austin onto the narrow door.
She gasped and her legs almost gave way when she saw the wide swath of blood on the wagon and door where he’d been scooted. She grabbed the wagon to brace herself.
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