Crossed Arrows (A Long-Knives Western Book 1)

by Patrick E. Andrews

  “Of course,” Dewey replied.

  “Have you delivered payrolls in the wild country west of the Mississippi River?”

  The prosecutor spoke up loudly. “Objection! That is irrelevant!”

  Bennington glared at Early. “What line of questions are you following here, Captain?”

  “I wish to point out that Captain Hawkins is a veteran officer who has spent all his career on the frontier,” Early answered. “His experience would have taught him that not staying in the proximity of such a large amount of cash would be unwise.”

  Bennington barked, “Objection sustained. Continue your questioning.”

  Captain Early referred to his notes, then asked. “Did Captain Hawkins give any reason for not obeying your order prohibiting him from pursuing the bandits?”

  “He did not.”

  “Didn’t he explain that he had been ordered to accompany—I say again—accompany the payroll. And that made your order to him a contradictory and improper one.”

  “He was babbling a lot of things,” Dewey said. “I cannot recall everything he said. But I ordered him not to pursue those bandits, and I’ve explained why. If he had been in command of white soldiers, I would have allowed him to attempt to retrieve the money.”

  Early perused his notes again, then looked up at Bennington. “I have no further questions of this witness.”

  Bennington looked back at the prosecutor. “Captain Patterson?”

  “I have some depositions taken from passengers who were on the train the day of the robbery,” Patterson replied. “They substantiate Major Dewey’s testimony regarding the conduct and statements of Captain Hawkins. I request they be read into the court-martial records.”

  “Very well,” Colonel Bennington said. “Show them to the defendant’s counsel.”

  Captain Early perused the documents. “The defense has no objections, sir.”

  “Then they will be entered into the records as requested by the prosecution,” Bennington announced. “Anything else, Captain Patterson?”

  “I have another witness to call,” Patterson said. “Second Lieutenant Ludlow Dooley.”

  The sergeant of the guard stepped out into the hall, returning a moment later with a very uncomfortable looking lieutenant. Ludlow was sworn in, and identified himself, and took the witness chair.

  Patterson spoke up, “Lieutenant Dooley, on July fourteenth last were you on escort duty aboard a train carrying payrolls to various military posts in Texas?”

  “Yes, sir.”

  “Was your commander at the time Captain Mack Hawkins?”

  “Yes, sir.”

  “Was that trained attacked by a gang of bandits who successfully made off with the aforementioned payrolls?”

  “Yes, sir.”

  “Very well,” Captain Patterson said. “After the bandits cleared the area, what occurred?”

  Ludlow took a deep breath then said, “We left the cattle car in which we had been traveling and went forward to find out what happened.”

  “What did you learn, Mr. Dooley?”

  “We learned the money had been taken,” Ludlow said. “And Captain Hawkins decided to chase after the bandits to capture them and get the money back.”

  “Did he do that?”

  “Yes, sir,” Ludlow said. “The detachment took up the chase. In the end we did get all the money back and—”

  “Do not give me answers to questions I’ve not asked. Do you understand?”

  “Yes, sir.”

  “Did Captain Hawkins have permission to leave the train and trail the criminals?”

  “Uh—well, not exactly.”

  “Major Dewey specifically ordered him not to pursue the bandits, did he not?”

  “Yes, sir.”

  “And Captain Hawkins disobeyed him, didn’t he?”

  “Sir, he disobeyed the major but not the—”

  “I am going to instruct you once more to answer the questions and only the questions I ask you,” Patterson said testily. “I cautioned you about that before.” He paused and frowned at the young officer for a long moment before speaking again. “And did Captain Hawkins tell Major Dewey—and I quote—to ‘piss up a rope’?”

  “He did it respectfully, sir.”

  “Mr. Dooley, I’m going to give you permission to explain that. How can one officer tell another officer to ‘piss up a rope’ respectfully?”

  “I think that what Captain Hawkins said was, ‘With all respect, piss up a rope.’”

  “I think that point has now been made for the board,” Patterson said. “So Captain Hawkins impetuously and disobediently mounted a pursuit after the bandits.”

  “It was not impetuous, sir,” Ludlow said. “We discussed it first. I pointed out to Captain Hawkins that our orders were to accompany the payroll, and that the instructions came from departmental headquarters at Fort Sill not from the pay department. So it was proper for us to go after the money.”

  “You’re a West Pointer, are you not, Mr. Dooley?”

  “Yes, sir. Class of ninety-two.”

  “Well, Mr. Dooley, since you’re a recent graduate, let me inform you that it is customary in the United States Army that when there are contradictory orders issued, the last order received is the one obeyed.”

  “But doing that would have interfered in the performance of our mission,” Ludlow argued.

  “I’m not here to carry on a conversation or a debate, mister,” Patterson said. He turned to Colonel Bennington. “I’m through with this witness, sir.”

  Bennington looked at Captain Early. “Do you wish to cross-examine, Captain?”

  “No, sir.”

  “Very well,” Bennington said. “Captain Patterson, your next witness.”

  “I have no more to call, sir.”

  Bennington leaned back in his chair. “What about you, Captain Early?”

  “Sir, Captain Hawkins wishes to testify in his own behalf.”

  “I see,” Bennington said. He pulled his pocket watch from his tunic. “I’m going to recess these proceedings until tomorrow morning at eight o’clock.”

  He stood up and everyone in the room got to their feet and assumed the positions of attention as the colonel and his board members made a collective and dignified exit.

  ~*~

  Later that day, two Federal marshals from the court at Guthrie rolled into Fort Sill with a prison transport wagon. They went directly to the guardhouse and signed out for four prisoners to take back north with them for trial: Bill Stucker, Elmer Wright, Dick Eastman and Elmer Jordon.

  The quartet of dejected felons, shackled hand and foot, shuffled out to the barred vehicle to be roughly shoved inside for a miserable bone-jarring trip across the rolling prairie country north to justice at the territorial capital.

  Chapter Twenty-Six

  Captain Mack Hawkins had a restless night following the first day of the court-martial. It was pessimism mostly that invaded his mood. He had to admit he hadn’t been dealt much of a hand in the game against the prosecution. Hawkins had been in trouble before—plenty of times—but never to this extent. He also thought of Kristina; she was the first woman he had ever loved and wanted more than anything else in the world. But they wouldn’t have a future together if he ended up being convicted, then cashiered from the Army. The idea of leaving Karina out of his life hurt like hell, but under the circumstances it would be the kindest thing he could do for her. A penniless disgraced army officer had few choices in the world; and all were dismal. That made any thoughts of marriage impossible.

  ~*~

  By eight-fifteen the next morning, Captain Mack Hawkins took his seat in the witness chair. His counsel Captain Theodore Early stood to address the court-martial board. “Captain Hawkins is aware that he is not required to testify on his own behalf in court. He realizes that by doing so, there are the disadvantages of being subject to a cross examination by the prosecution as well as the possibility of incriminating himself. Nevertheless, he has chosen to
explain his conduct in an oral statement.”

  Colonel Bennington, Major Carpenter and Lieutenant Watson had been surprised by the decision when it was announced the previous day. They had fully expected Hawkins to change his mind. Bennington gave Hawkins a hard look. “Have you voluntarily and freely made this decision, Captain?”

  Hawkins nodded. “Yes, sir.”

  “Very well,” Bennington said. “You have the board’s approval to commence your statement.”

  Hawkins walked up to the witness chair and sat down. After clearing his throat and taking a deep breath, he began, “I am going to commence at the point of the attack on the train. When it occurred, my command and me were in the cattle car with our mounts as per orders by Major Dewey. Because of the heavy fire directed at us, we were unable to get out to where Major Dewey and the payrolls were situated. By the time the firing let up and we could reach him, the bandits and the money were gone. This occurred because the major had placed us in that cattle car despite my pointing out the disadvantages of such a decision.”

  “Objection!” Captain Patterson exclaimed. “He is—uh—he is —”

  Captain Early interrupted. “The captain is making a statement in his defense and the prosecution will have a chance to refute what is said during cross-examination.”

  Bennington was hesitant, but said, “That is true.”

  Hawkins continued. “When I reached the major and found out the money had been stolen, I told him that I would mount an immediate pursuit to secure the funds as well as arrest or kill the bandits. He was surprisingly opposed to that idea and ordered me back into the cattle car. I felt it imperative to go after the criminals as early as possible since it would make it easier to get the money back as well as apprehend the robbers. But the major was determined to the point of desperation not to go after the money. To this day I cannot figure out why. He says it was because of the five Indian scouts under my command, but these men are sworn soldiers legally enlisted in the United States Army. And he was aware of that. I conferred with my lieutenant because of his military education and he did point out that our basic orders were to accompany the payrolls. Yesterday, Captain Patterson said it was army tradition that when one order cancels out the other, the last one is to be obeyed. I’ve been in the Army some fifteen years, and have heard that statement many times, but I’ve never seen it in the regulations.”

  Patterson harrumphed and frowned.

  Hawkins carried on. “I ordered my men to unload our mounts and went back to speak to Major Dewey one more time and tell him of my intentions. Again he became enraged and ordered me back to the cattle car. And I admit I did tell him to piss up a rope.”

  Colonel Bennington and the board squirmed a bit indignantly at the statement.

  Hawkins went on, “I led my men on a pursuit that resulted in several gun battles in which numerous bandits were killed. I cannot give an accurate account, since several of the gunmen were not actually involved in the robbery, but joined the bandits as collaborators just the same. I’m sure if I conferred with my second-in-command and Sergeant Eagle Heart, I could come with something close to the exact number. At any rate, we captured three of the bandits including the gang boss. We also recovered every single dollar of the payrolls and I returned the funds to Major Heidelberg who immediately put me under arrest. And here I sit.”

  Captain Early, who had gone back to the defendant’s table, stood up. “Do you have anything to add to that statement, Captain Hawkins?”

  “No.”

  Bennington quickly interjected, “Your witness, Captain Patterson.”

  Patterson took his time getting to his feet. He walked slowly and deliberately to a position in front of the defendant. “Well, Captain Hawkins, you said in your statement that you could not possibly figure out why Major Dewey did not want you to pursue the bandits. Did it occur to you that perhaps the major had an excellent reason not to want you to take such an action?”

  “He said he didn’t want wild Indians running loose in Texas,” Hawkins said. “That’s what he testified, and was the only reason he gave me.”

  “Perhaps he knew something that should not be shared with a subordinate,” Patterson said. “The members of your command belong to a new branch of the Army. And they are Indians who had yet to prove themselves.”

  “The members of my scout detachment are not savages. They are enlisted soldiers of the United States Army.”

  “Very well, Captain,” Patterson said. “But we’re not going to begin debating the merits of the United States Scouts. You are charged with—” He had a copy of the charge sheet and raised it up to look at it. “—willful disobedience of a direct order by a superior officer. You have admitted your guilt to that charge in your statement. The second charge is disrespect to a superior officer. You have admitted your guilt to that charge in your statement. Thirdly you are charged with issuing illegal orders to soldiers under your command. You have admitted your guilt to that charge in your statement. And lastly, you are charged with conduct unbecoming an officer and a gentleman and, once more, your own statement substantiates yet another charge.” He turned to the board. “Gentlemen, the prosecution rests its case.”

  “The board will retire to consider its verdict,” Colonel Bennington announced. “This court-martial is adjourned until tomorrow morning at eight o’clock.”

  The colonel led his two board members from the room.

  ~*~

  The sun had gone down at the end of that same day, and Colonel John Bennington, Major Ernest Carpenter and Lieutenant George Watson lounged around the same table they had occupied during the court-martial, enjoying excellent brandy and cigars that the colonel had brought with him from Fort Lone Wolf. Bennington expelled smoke into the air, and said, “Is there any reason to take a vote?”

  “It’s cut and dried, sir,” Watson said. “He admitted his guilt to every charge.”

  Carpenter agreed. “Captain Hawkins’ career has come to an end. A termination. A quietus, as the old Anglo-Saxons would say.”

  Bennington nodded his head. “To make it worse for himself he insulted Major Dewey.” He snorted angrily. “Piss up a rope indeed!”

  Carpenter took a sip of brandy. “Hawkins is an excellent reason as to why enlisted men should not be commissioned from the ranks.” He looked at Bennington. “You recall I was sent on detached service to Great Britain a few years back to act as an observer of the customs and traditions of the British Army. During that time I was assigned as an observer to the Brigade of Guards. Now there’s a fine example of why the class system works so well. You have an officer cadre from the upper classes only, by God! And the enlisted soldiers and noncommissioned officers are from the hoi polloi. They’re the masses and are damn well satisfied with their status. They know their place in the scheme of things and don’t yearn for what they are not entitled to.”

  Lieutenant Watson, the younger of the three, said, “I heard that General Phil Sheridan personally issued an order that Hawkins was to be given a commission. Is that true?”

  “Yes,” Bennington said. “That was probably the only mistake General Sheridan ever made. Well, thankfully, he died in eighty-eight, so is not around to see the demise of his protégé.”

  “Well,” Carpenter said. “You may recall that Sheridan was also uncommonly fond of George Custer. And you know how he ended up.”

  Bennington refilled his brandy sifter. “Then we all agree that Hawkins is guilty of all charges?”

  “Yes, sir,” Major Carpenter said. “That is how I vote without a moment’s hesitation.”

  “And me, sir,” Lieutenant Watson agreed. “With that taken care of, what is the procedure we follow.”

  “Tomorrow we announce our verdict, then withdraw to consider the sentence,” Bennington explained. “Protocol requires that it be revealed day after tomorrow.”

  “And we know that punishment now,” Carpenter. “Dishonorable dismissal from the United States Army.”

  “I say, Watson,�
�� Colonel Bennington said. “Be a good chap and pass that brandy bottle this way.”

  ~*~

  The next morning, the court was reconvened. After the opening routine, Captain Mack Hawkins was ordered to stand before the court-martial board with his counsel Captain Theodore Early. Colonel Bennington, showing a stern but proper decorum, went straight to the chase.

  “Captain Hawkins, this board has found you guilty of all charges, to wit: willful disobedience of a direct order by a superior officer, disrespect of a superior officer; issuing illegal orders to your command, and conduct unbecoming an officer and a gentleman.”

  Hawkins’ face showed no expression.

  Bennington wrapped it up, saying, “You are remanded to arrest in quarters until tomorrow when you will receive your sentence. At that time you will be allowed to make one final statement. Do you understand, Captain Hawkins?”

  “Yes, sir.”

  “The court is adjourned until tomorrow at eight o’clock a.m. Dismissed.”

  ~*~

  Mack Hawkins and Kristina Halverson sat together on the porch swing of his temporary quarters. It was late in the afternoon and they had finished another picnic lunch she had brought with her. Ludlow Dooley had picked her up earlier at the end of her school day in the buckboard to bring her to Fort Sill. He left her off then had to return immediately to see to his duties at the scout bivouac. Hawkins had issued him what would be the captain’s last orders, i.e. give the scouts both mounted and dismounted drill. Ludlow promised to be back to pick Kristina up before dark.

  Kristina was close to crying. One of the characteristics of the Scandinavian races was a stoicism at certain times in their lives. But this was not one of those occasions. She made no effort to hide her emotions; not from Hawkins nor from the people who passed by on officers’ row. They all noted Kristina wiping her eyes and they knew why. It was now common knowledge all over Fort Sill that Hawkins had been found guilty and that his sentence would be announced the next day. Hawkins had thought it best to face up to the facts, and told Kristina, he was going to be cashiered from the United States Army.

  She looked at him, her anguish evident. “What will we do now, Mack? Before you left to go on your mission, we agreed we would talk about our future.”