Sudden Outlawed (1934)

by Oliver Strange

  "yu've had enough, for now, yu old soak," he admonished. "Wanta give yoreself a colic or somethin'?"

  The black rubbed its wet, silken nostrils against his shoulder and gave in. At the top of the bank, Sudden mounted and rode back to carry the good news. The foreman's face brightened, and when he had moistened his aching throat and sent the canteens back down the line, he looked at the stumbling beasts beside him, and said:

  "They'll just about make it--we'll lose some, mebbe, but that can't be helped. They's perkin' up a'ready. See of Show'em-how there ; he can smell that damn water."

  At the head of the herd the big long-horn was striding gallantly along, nose up, nostrils distended, and from time to time he gave vent to a feeble bellow, as of a leader encouraging, his followers.

  "We'll have to rest 'em up for a day or so," the foreman continued. "She ain't much of a river, yu say?"

  "That's so, but I'd rest 'em the other side," Sudden advised. "She's low now, but come a storm, she'd be a rip-roarin' devil. Get 'em over, pronto, ol-timer."

  "Any special reason for sayin' that, Jim?" Jeff inquired. "Them steers is plenty tuckered out for swimmin'."

  "There ain't much o' that an' they'll feel different after a swill," Sudden told him. "See here, Jeff ; the water is risin'on'y by inches yet--but that means more to come."

  The other nodded agreement ; he knew how quickly a stream showing a mere trickle of water could become a raging torrent. They had almost reached the river when Sudden's restless eyes lighted on the remains of a fire, almost hidden behind a big cactus. They rode to the spot.

  "Injuns?" the foreman inquired, indicating a moccasin track.

  Sudden shook his head. "The sticks is laid criss-cross an' burned in the middle, white man fashion ; a redskin lays 'em all pointin' to the centre an' burns the ends." He searched the surrounding ground. "Ain't no hoofprints. What's a white man on foot doin' in these parts?"

  "I got riddles enough a'ready," Jeff said dryly. "Best git that cussed wagon an' hosses over first, I s'pose."

  So the herd was held back till this was done. Fortunately the bed of the stream was firm, and--as Sudden had guessed --there was not, as yet, much deep water, so the unwieldy vehicle was transported without undue difficulty. The remuda followed, and then came the cattle. Tumbling pell-mell down the bank the parched brutes staggered into the water and stood there as though rooted. It was Sudden who saw the solution. "Keep on pilin' 'em in, Jeff," he cried.

  The plan worked. The pressure of the thirsty ones behind forced the leaders into deep water and soon they were swimming for the other bank. The foreman breathed again, but his troubles were not yet at an end. The crossing was only nearing completion when a warning came from Sandy:

  "Hurry 'em up, Jeff ; she's risin' rapid."

  It was true ; the span of the river was twice what it had been, and the outfit, recognizing the danger, made desperate efforts to hustle over the rest of the herd. Sluggishly, as it seemed, the jaded long-horns fought their way through the deepening water and climbed the opposing slope, reluctant to leave the liquid they had for forty-eight hours been without.

  "We'll make it," Jeff said, relief in his tone.

  He spoke too soon. The last of the "drag"--consisting of the weaker animals--in charge of Jed, was little more than half-way across when a dull booming sound which grew louder every moment sent all eyes up-stream. There, at a narrow bend where the banks rose steeply, they saw a sight to make the bravest quail. Piled up between the bluffs was a great wall of water twenty feet high, the foaming crested lip of which bristled with driftwood, great branches and even whole trees, torn up bodily by the torrent.

  The cowboy saw the danger, and leaving his charges to fend for themselves, spurred his mount in an endeavour to reach the bank. But the peril was advancing too swiftly. With a thunderous crash the avalanche of water broke upon the struggling forms and swept them from sight. Cursing in their helplessness, the rest of the outfit watched their comrade go to his doom. All save Sudden, who, at the first glimpse of the threatening deluge, had raced his horse to a jutting point in the bank and, at the risk of being swept away himself, had swung his rope. The loop dropped over Jed's shoulders just as the limb of a tree struck him from his saddle and buried him in a seething welter of tormented water.

  Feeling that the rope, already tied to the horn, was taut, Sudden backed his horse slowly away from the river. A cheer greeted him when it was seen that the limp figure of the cowboy was at the end of the lariat. Willing hands carried him to a dry spot and sought for injuries ; beyond a scratch or two, there was none. Dumpy, who, with a strangely pale face, had been feeling anxiously for broken bones, gasped with relief when the rescued man opened his eyes and sat up.

  "So yu ain't drowned?" he said fatuously.

  "Course I am, yu chump," Jed retorted. "My insides is, anyway. Damn this country, there ain't no reasonableness in it ; yu either gits too much or none a-tall o' most things. yu needn't look so glad I ain't gone neither."

  Dumpy, fearing he had shown too much so licitude, promptly went to the other extreme.

  "I mighta knowed yu couldn't drown'd a fella born to have his neck stretched," he retorted.

  "Well, yo're safe thataway, seein' yu ain't got no neck," his friend grinned. He stood up and held out a hand to Sudden. "Jim, I'm rememberin' it," he said. "When yu pitched yore rope I was wonderin' if playin' a harp was difficult."

  "Huh!" Dumpy grunted. "Shovellin' coal is what yu wanta practise."

  This restored the normal atmosphere of a cow-camp and made them all feel more comfortable, The foreman answered Jed's question:

  "yeah, we lost the cows an' yore bronc an' got off light at that. Wonder if this cussed country has any more surprises for us?"

  The "cussed country" had, as they were to discover ere long.

  Chapter XV

  THE days that followed seemed like a dream after the rude experience of the desert. The character of the country had changed ; there were still stretches of grass-covered prairie but they were not so extensive, and varied by hills and dales, some of them thickly wooded. Creeks were frequent, and with abundant feed and water, the cattle quickly recovered, and, being thoroughly "trail-broke," gave little trouble. Beyond the certainty that they were still in Indian territory and were heading north, they had no knowledge of their position. This did not trouble them ; in their own phrase, "Time to ford a river is when yu come to it." Sandy shared in the general optimism.

  "That little of desert done us a good turn after all," he remarked, as he paused for a moment beside his friend. They were rounding up tHe herd for the day's drive. The slanting rays of the rising sun were dispersing the haze over the bedding-ground, a little savannah of rich grass entirely shut in by timber and brush. The camp was at the far end, some half-mile distant. "We've shook off Mister Rogue."

  "Someone's been smilin' at yu," Sudden replied, with gentle sarcasm, and then, "Rogue knows where we're makin' for--he don't have to follow us. What's worryin' me is not seein' any Injuns."

  "Well, that's a misfortune I can bear easy," the boy returned lightly. "Mebbe we've just been lucky."

  Sudden declined to accept this view. "I've a hunch we're bein' watched," he said.

  "yu've been rubbin' noses with Jed," Sandy chaffed. "The war-whoops is all busy chasin' the festive buffalo."

  Sudden started to grin, changed his mind, and gripped a gun instead. "Here's some that ain't," he said quietly.

  Out of the brush a line of horsemen had silently emerged, pulling up in the form of a half-circle about two hundred yards from the herd. They were Indians, big, well-built fellows, sitting their mettlesome little ponies like bronze statues. Each brave carried a long lance, bow and arrows, and on the left arm a round shield of buffalo hide, hair inwards, stretched on hickory, with pictures of the moon, stars, serpents, and other symbolic devices painted on the front. Their fierce faces, and their chests, were daubed with colour.

  At the sight of them the cowboys pul
led out their rifles, but the Indians showed no hostility. Only one advanced, a tall oldish man, gaily bedecked with eagle plumes, and bearing on his shield the presentment of a black bear. His right hand was raised, palm outwards, in token that he came on a peaceful mission. Despite the cruel, crafty expression on his face he was an imposing figure. He rode straight to the foreman--having doubtless observed him giving orders--uttered a guttural "How!" and began to speak. Jeff listened for a moment and shook his head.

  "No savvy," he said, and beckoned to Sudden. "Mebbe yu can find out what he's after."

  The redskin repeated his statement and the cowboy was able to gather the gist of it.

  "He says he is Black Bear, a great chief, that this is Commanche country, an' we got no right to take cattle through it," he translated. "He wants tribute in cows."

  The foreman's face grew bleak. "How many?" he asked. Sudden put the question and the Indian, resting his lance across his knees, pointed first to himself, then to Sudden, and raised both hands. The cowboy explained :

  "Redskins reckon thisaway : one is a finger, five a hand, ten, two hands, twenty, a man. Yu can figure it yoreself."

  Jeff, who had been watching the chief's movements closely, did so, and swore. "Give him fifty steers?" he snarled. "Tell him to go to hell."

  "Don't know enough o' the lingo," Sudden said. "I'll offer him five--Injuns is like Jews, allus ask more'n they expect to get."

  Black Bear listened gravely to the white man's explanation, haltingly told in a mixture of Indian tongues, and ending with the raising of one hand only. Then he drew himself up haughtily, flashed a meaning glance at his followers, and fixed his savage eyes on this paleface who had insulted him with so paltry an offer. Sudden met the stare with one equally steady. For one long moment the black eyes battled with the blue and then the redskin wrenched his pony round and trotted back to his band. The cowboys, who had allowed the herd to drift towards the other end of the valley, waited, rifles ready, for the expected charge. They saw Black Bear rejoin his men and face about but he gave no signal.

  "What's the game, Jim?" the foreman asked, anxiously scanning the line of silent savages.

  "Damned if I know," Sudden replied. "Looks like they're waitin' for somethin'."

  The crash of a gun, followed by the fainter report of a pistol, came from where the camp lay and instantly a rider whirled his mount and spurred in that direction ; it was Sandy. The Indians were gesticulating, waving their weapons, and reining in their eager ponies. Sudden turned to the foreman.

  "They're attackin' the camp--that's why these devils were holdin' back. I'll follow Sandy ; yu can handle this bunch."

  A pressure of his knees and he was off, threading his way through the scared cattle. He had covered but a short distance when a burst of yells, mingled with the spiteful crack of exploding powder, told him that the enemy had charged.

  Sandy reached 'the camping-ground just in time to see a tall, lithe warrior, with a limp form draped over his shoulder, disappear in the brush, and oblivious to everything else, dashed in pursuit. He knew that his friend was just behind him, for he had seen the big black pounding down the valley. The trees hampered him and he arrived in the open only to see the abductor sling his burden like a sack of meal across the backof a waiting pony, spring up behind it, and dart away. The cowboy dared not risk a shot lest he hit the girl ; he could but try to run the redskin down.

  Sudden arrived on the heels of Sandy, saw him vanish, and turned his attention to what was happening. A dead Indian--his head half blown away--sprawled in his path, and another lay huddled by the wagon, from which a steady string of curses issued. Near the fire, Peg-leg was outstretched, a smudge of blood on his face, and over his body Aunt Judy was struggling desperately with a squat, bow-legged savage, whose paint-smeared features she had further decorated with several vivid red streaks. Fighting like a wildcat, and spitting oaths of which a cowboy might well have been proud, she was giving the Comanche brave plenty to think about. Try as he might, he could not clutch those long bony arms with their fearsome claws.

  "Knock my man over, huh, ye Gawd-damned, mis-begotten, copper-coloured heathen," she yelled, and with a quick stoop, snatched a skillet from the fire and whanged him across the face.

  Driven back by the blow, the redskin, evidently despairing of capturing a white squaw for himself, drew his knife. His hand swung up and then a bullet from Sudden's gun toppled him to the ground. Aunt Judy staggered weakly to her husband, flinging herself on her knees beside him. As she wiped away the blood, the cook opened his eyes and sat up.

  "I'm awright," he said. "One o' these bastards got me with the butt of his lance an' I took the count." His eyes roamed round the little clearing. "There was four of 'em. Where's the other?"

  "Got away, takin' Miss Carol," Aunt Judy told him, adding a venomous hope concerning the redskin's future state.

  "Shucks, cussin' don't help," Peg-leg said, and his better-half stared at him ; Satan reproving sin would have astonished her less.

  "Yu just found that out?" she asked acidly.

  Sudden interrupted the squabble by putting a question. It appeared the raiders had approached the camp on foot. Peg- ' leg had seen one stepping to the wagon and laid him out with a shotgun. Then he had been struck down from behind. His wife took up the tale. The women had been in the tent and when Peg-leg fired, the girl ran out, to be immediately seized, overpowered, and tied. Aunt Judy following, was attacked by a third savage, while a fourth attempted to climb into the wagon.

  "Sam blowed his light out an' he's liable to do the same to as if he ain't attended to," she finished.

  They found the cattleman propped up on one elbow, a six-shooter gripped in his right hand. The fury in his rugged face save way to fear when he heard of Carol's capture, and he cursed anew the man whose bullet had laid him low. Sudden tried to soothe him by pointing out that Sandy was in pursuit, but the effort failed.

  "They'll get him too--damn the crooked luck," he dejectedly replied. "How's Jeff makin' it?"

  Hammering hoofs brought the answer and the Infant pulled his panting pony to a sliding stop by the wagon.

  "We druv 'em off," he announced triumphantly. "Got six at the first rattle. That discouraged 'em some, an' they started circlin'. It didn't help 'em none for we got two-three more. [hen the of chief lets out a whoop an' they scoops up their dead an' vanishes--complete. Jeff said for to tell yu the herd ain't scattered much an' we'll be ready to start in 'bout an hour."

  Sudden explained why this would not be possible and the youth's face lengthened.

  "Hell, that's bad," he said. "Sandy went after her?"

  "Yeah, an' as he ain't back, it's possible they got him too."

  The rancher's querulous voice came from the wagon : "Get Jeff an' the boys an' go after these damned women-stealers."

  Sudden shook his head. "Listen to me, seh," he said earnestly. "That Black Bear is a wise hombre an' he'll figure on us doin' that very thing, which is why he didn't stay an' fight it out; Comanches ain't cowards, yu savvy. If they can trap the outfit they get the herd easy."

  "To hell with the herd," Eden snapped. "I'd sooner lose every hoof than harm should happen to Carol."

  "Shore, but that ain't the way to go about it," the cowboy urged. "We gotta walk in the water some."

  "He's right, boss," Peg-leg put in. "Let Jim trail 'em an' see how things is. No sense in runnin' our heads into a yeller-jackets' nest."

  The old man gave a grudging assent ; he knew they were advising him widely but his fiery disposition, and the contempt of the frontier men for the redskin called for something moreaggressive ; the thought of his girl at the mercy of those painted devils filled him with fury.

  Sudden's preparations were soon made. He decided to take the black, for if he could liberate the captives, speed would be essential. He was mounting when Jeff rode in ; Sudden explained his errand.

  "O' course, it's on the cards they'll gather me in too," he aid. "Then it'll be up to yu an
' the boys. I'll leave a plain trail."

  The foreman's face was sombre. "It looks bad, Jim," he said. "Why should they be so sot on gittin' a white woman, huh?"

  Sudden did not reply to the question. He could have offered a reason, but he feared the foreman would deem it fantastic. But his knowledge of redskin nature, relentless and untiring in its pursuit of vengeance, told him that it was possible.

  Following Sandy's trail, his mind was busy with the idea he had forborne to mention to the foreman. It had suggested itself when he learned the girl had been carried off. The braves from whom he had rescued her on the day he had first ridden to the S E had been Comanches, and there was a chance that they belonged to Black Bear's tribe. Had the one who escaped remained in the neighbourhood, watching the preparations for the drive, following it day by day, waiting for the 'opportunity to avenge his comrade? Sudden's thoughts reverted to the moccasin prints he had found when Eden was stricken down. No Indian had fired that shot, but one might have been spying on the camp and driven away by the advent of the assassin. The cowboy's lips set grimly. If this theory was correct, the girl's peril was indeed dire.

  He experienced no difficulty in following the trail since neither pursuer nor pursued had any other thought than speed. The deeper indentations of the animal carrying the double burden could be distinguished. The tracks led him towards a forest of pines, the plumed heads of which shut out the sun. He paused for a moment and pulled out a pistol before plunging into the shadowy depths. The ghostly, bared trunks of the trees, rank after rank, were most of them large enough to conceal a lurking enemy. An ideal spot, the cowboy decided, for an ambush.