“You ready, Red?” Hawk asked.
“Yeah, just have to get Gema.” Red kicked Blackie, turning the horse toward the house. Gema was coming out the front door, her carpet bag in her hand. Juanita followed, wringing her hands and chattering in Spanish. Alberto jogged over, spoke to her, and gave her a hug.
“Ready to go,” Gema said. A cowboy took the bag from her and tied it to the back of Blackie’s saddle. Alberto boosted her up in front of Red.
“Vàmonos,” Hawk called. He, Red, and four cowboys took off at a gallop headed for Stones Creek. Jeb held Ralph’s lead rein. Gema tucked herself against Red who wrapped his arm around her waist.
CHAPTER TWELVE
“Pray,” Noah said to his wife, Vernie. “That’s the best thing you can do. I’m hoping we’ll find them and have an easy time bringing them in.” He buckled his twin holster belt and tied the thongs around his legs. Slipping his arms into the sleeves of his black duster coat, Noah put his black wide-brimmed hat on. “You head over to Almeda and Thomas’ soddy. You both will be safe there.”
After kissing Vernie and one-year-old Dottie, he took one last look and left the apartment. He had a couple of stops to make before he went to the jail to join the posse.
First, Pastor Preston went to his gun shop and filled a sack with bullet boxes. He’d supply the posse with whatever they needed in the way of ammunition. He took a moment to check both of his Colt Army Revolvers, making sure they were fully loaded with six bullets each.
As much as he hated violence, Noah knew there were times when it was necessary to stop evil from perpetuating itself. Twenty years ago, he hadn’t been old enough to stop his sister, Chloe, from being kidnapped while their father held to his non-violent belief and stood like a statue allowing it to happen. Years of Noah’s prayers had been answered when Chloe Ashburn had come to Stones Creek with the Ladies of Sanctuary House. His beloved older sister was restored to him.
Now, Noah had the chance to bring the outlaw gang to account for their actions. He planned to do just that. While he filled his gun belt loops with bullets, Noah prayed his motive would be pure, in alignment with God’s desire for justice. Deep in Noah’s soul was a longing for vengeance. “Keep me from acting on this longing, Lord. Still my hand if my actions slip from doing your will.”
Locking the shop, Noah went next door to Johnson’s Barber Shop and Bath house. Hank and Laura were inside.
“Pastor,” Hank said.
“Hank, Laura. I’m heading out with the posse. Most of the men of town are. You’ve still got a Colt Army, don’t you?”
“Yes.”
“Here.” Noah placed a box of .44 caliber bullets on the counter. “I don’t know who all Sheriff Riverby will have stay to protect the town, but I’m hoping you’ll be one to help protect the Ladies.”
“Laura and I were just talking about that. We’re going to take the boys and go over to the House. I’ll stay there with them until the posse comes back. Davis was in earlier. He’s making sure all the horses at his livery are ready to go, but he’s staying in town, too.”
“Good.”
“Homer Fugard and Bufford Brook are staying too.”
Noah snorted. “Not much protection there. Thomas is staying in town with Almeda and the baby. Vernie and Dottie are going to stay with them in the soddy.”
The back door to the shop opened, and Red Dickerson entered. He had the holsters tied down on his thighs, too. “Hank, Laura, Pastor.” Red nodded to each. “Hank, I just left Gema at the House. I’d be appreciative if you’d head over there and stay with the Ladies…”
“Already planning to, Red. Noah and I were just talking about who’s staying in town.”
Red looked at Laura. “If anything happens, I’d like you to see Gema through it, Laura. She trusts you. I think she misses you most of all the Ladies.”
Laura took Red’s hand. “You know I would, but it’s not going to be necessary. We’re going to spend the time lifting you all up to the Lord for protection and success.”
“We’ll take all the prayers you have.”
“I’m going to get the boys now,” Laura said, releasing Red’s hand. “I’ll meet you at the House.”
The men watched her leave.
“Let’s get to the jail, Red,” Noah said.
Red nodded. “Thanks, Hank. I appreciate your help.”
“Anytime, my friend. Anytime.”
~~~~~
Red and Noah strode down the street. A group of men stood in front of the jail, waiting to mount up. Red knew them all. Was friends with them. Would they all still be alive after today?
“Red,” Ben Cutler called as he crossed from his general store to where the posse was gathering.
“I’m going inside to let them know we’ve arrived,” Noah said.
“What can I do for you, Ben?” Red asked.
“I just wanted to tell you the order you placed a while back arrived. You can get it when we get back.” Ben clapped a hand on Red’s shoulder.
“Thanks. I will.” Red paused. “Ben, if something happens, you’ll give it to Gema, won’t you? And see that she’s settled back at the House? She’ll need to be with the Ladies.”
“Don’t talk like that, Red. We’re going to roust out the King Gang.”
“Promise me, Ben. I need to know she’ll be taken care of.”
“You know I will. We all will, but it won’t be necessary. Justice will prevail. We’ll rid Colorado of the King Gang once and for all,” Ben said. Then he winked. “How can it go any other way? My Uncle Nugget Nate Ryder always gets what he’s after. Well, so long as Aunt Penny approves, that is.”
~~~~~
“Dak, you set the cowboys around town. I’m leaving you and Spike in charge here. Make sure Fugard and Brook stay in their houses. I don’t want them waving firearms around. They’re liable to accidentally shoot something or somebody. Thomas has his rifle. Davis will stay at his livery.”
Noah entered. “Hank has a Colt Army. I gave him a box of bullets. He’s going to be at the House.”
“I’m setting Four there, too,” said Newt. “He’s got experience from the War.”
Dak and Newt finished discussing where to post the cowboys around town. Noah made sure each of the posse members, as well as those staying in town, had enough ammunition.
“You’s about done jawin’, Sheriff? I’m a thinkin’ we’s a needin’ ta be headin’ out. We’s burnin’ daylight.” Nugget Nate straightened from leaning against the jail wall.
“Yeah, Nate. I think we’ve covered everything.”
They exited the jail and mounted. Dak and Spike spoke with the cowboys who were staying in town. Newt looked over his town. They were heading out to hopefully make the area safer for the townsfolk and those living on ranches and farms in the area.
“Hey, Nate,” Linc Pierce, foreman of the Chasing R Ranch and son-in-law to Wes Chase, the owner, called. “I see you have a new repeating rifle. What happened to old Betsy?”
Nate grunted. “Old Betsy’s fine. Better ‘an this new-fangled one. But it do let me plug them varnmints quicker.”
The rest of the posse laughed.
Noah led the men in prayer, lifting up thanks that Nate was able to find the camp so quickly. Then, he asked for calm minds and steady hands as the posse went to track them down.
“You lead the way, Nate,” Newt said. “We’ll follow in pairs.”
Nate kicked Lightning into a gallop and headed west along the railroad tracks. When he got to the place he’d entered the woods, Nate halted and looked back at the men following.
“Somethin’ ain’t right. Don’t rightly know what, jes know.”
“How do you want to proceed?” Newt asked.
“I’d say, go on to the camp, but be warier ‘an a rabbit ‘mongst a den o’ foxes.”
The rest of the men followed Nate into the trees. He stopped and dismounted where he had before. From there, they spread out and continued on foot. As they neared the top of
the cliff, they saw a small figure standing facing them. It was a woman wrapped in a large shawl even though the June day was warm.
“That’s Wise One. She’s an old Indian woman who lives in the forest on the Chasing R,” Linc said. “Norie gave her that shawl. Come on. Let’s go talk to her.”
Linc, Newt, and Nate walked up to the Indian.
“You not find them here. The evil ones head that way. Go by where I pick berries. Say they go to town to rob bank and get women. Say they shoot town up. Show who big man. I come here. Tell you.”
“They’s headed ta Stones Creek. That be what the Callin’ was tryin’ ta tell me back at the track. Let’s ride.” Nate was already running toward where they’d tied the horses as he yelled.
CHAPTER THIRTEEN
“Will you please quit pacing? You’re making us all nervous,” Laura said. “Especially, the children.” The last was whispered as Laura took Gema by the arm and led her into her old bedroom. “All your worrying is only going to wear you out and get the babies upset. I never thought the House could ever be crowded, but with twenty-seven women and children on the top two floors at the back of the house, it is.”
Hank wanted the Ladies and children off the first floor and in the rooms to the rear of the building. There was less likelihood of a stray bullet aimed at the house hitting anyone.
Blanche had protested the restriction. “Do you really think the gang will come to town? I thought Nate found them, and the posse was going to go capture them.”
“Well, ma’am. It’s better to be safe than sorry. That bunch of no-accounts don’t have respect or caring for any living thing but themselves. If they’ve gotten any type of notion there’s a posse coming after them, it’s mighty likely they’ll be hot-footing it to town with evil intent.” Hank stood in the dining room where everyone had gathered. The married Ladies whose husbands were in the posse or guarding the town had come to the House to wait together. “I’d feel a might more at ease if you all would just mosey upstairs and arrange yourselves like I suggested.”
Blanche studied Hank for a long moment. “All right, we will. First, though, I want to prepare some food for when the men return. Enough for the posse and the men guarding around town.”
Chloe McIlroy stood. “I’ll get pans from the café. They’ll be big enough. What are you thinking we should make?”
“Macaroni, cheese pudding with ham, cornbread, and I think Almeda baked a couple of cakes this morning. I’ll check and see if they are still in the bakery.” Blanche headed to the kitchen. Chloe, along with several other Ladies followed, crossing the alley between the House and the back of the Creek Café. If they were going to be preparing enough food for all the men, they’d need help, both in the fixing and gathering of ingredients.
Now, everyone was upstairs. The baking dishes were waiting to go into the oven. The cornbread would be mixed up when the men came back to town. They would also serve pickles the Ladies had put up last summer and, of course, plenty of coffee.
Gema paced from the door to the window over and over while Laura looked on.
“Come, sit, Gema,” Laura said, sitting on the bed.
Gema sat beside her. “I’m so scared. What if Red not come back? What would I do?”
“Why do you think he won’t come back?” Laura placed her arm around the younger woman’s shoulders.
“Those men. They very bad. Evil. They fight back at posse. Not want to be captured. Maybe shoot at posse. What if Red…” Gema bit on her knuckle.
“Are you scared for you or for Red?”
“Both. Want Red safe. Want stay Red’s wife.”
“Red’s a good man, isn’t he?” Laura smiled.
“Yes, very good man.” Gema giggled. “When he find me. So very careful. Help me get out of wet clothes. Careful to no look. So funny. Not see at time. Too cold and wet. Now, see how funny.” She covered her mouth with her fingers and giggled some more. When she stopped, Gema looked at Laura, a soft smile on her face. “He give me back my music.”
“Your music?”
“Let me play Jeb’s violin.” Gema explained about her father selling her instrument and the years she’d been unable to play. Red’s restrictions on being with the cowboys and his allowing her to play. “Cowboy now very respectful. No make crude jokes. Like listen when I play. Red give music back to me.”
Laura studied Gema. “All things work to the good for those who love God, for those who are called according to his purpose. Seems to me Red learned something about how to treat his woman since he and I were courting. If I had married Red, he wouldn’t have been at the line shack when you were kidnapped. You could have died from exposure. Instead, Hank told me he loved me. Red rescued you, and now, you love him.”
Gema’s mouth dropped open. After a long moment of silence, she said, “You right. I do love Red. Not know until you say, but I do. Love him humungous lot.”
The women hugged.
Shots could be heard sounding as if they were coming from Main Street. Eddie and Mark, Laura’s sons, burst into the room, terror on their faces.
“Come on,” Laura said, as she and Gema stood. “Under the bed just as Hank said.” They shoved the trundle bed out of the way and crawled under, each lady with her arms wrapped around a small boy.
~~~~~
The posse was just outside of town when Newt held up his hand. The ten members of the posse stopped as he turned around.
“I want to split us up to come into town from all sides at once. Hawk, you, Red, and Linc circle around to the south and come in from behind the church. Wes, Noah, Massot, you come in from the west. Jeb, Eli, Ben, come in from behind Ben’s store. I’m going to give you all five minutes to get in position.”
Newt’s instructions were cut off by the sound of gunfire. The posse spurred their mounts, taking off at a gallop. Newt spun his horse and did the same.
~~~~~
Red’s heart was pounding nearly as loudly as Ralph’s hooves were against the ground. Gema, his Gema was in town and so was the gang that had kidnapped her.
As they neared the station, several of the men went behind it, three others turned to head up Main Street. Red felt like he should follow, but everything in him said to go straight to Sanctuary House. That was where his wife was.
Hawk and Massot joined him as he rode behind the livery and stopped close to the back wall. They dismounted and shooed their horses back toward the railroad tracks. Gunfire could be heard coming from both the House and the woods near Massot’s carpenter shop.
“There’s one on your roof, Massot,” Hawk said softly. “At least one in the woods.” All three men pulled their revolvers from their holsters.
Red studied the building across the street from the House. It looked like only one man was taking cover behind the roof façade, but he’d be careful to keep a lookout for another. Turning his attention to the woods, Red saw a man lean out from behind a tree and shoot at the house. It seemed they hadn’t been spotted next to the back of the general store.
Movement up the street caught Red’s eye. A man was crossing and would be out of sight to the men in the building. He knew Hank was in there, but someone else was shooting, too. Maybe it was one of the Ladies, but Red didn’t think so. At least he’d never heard that any could shoot.
He watched the man in the street work his way diagonally toward the House but not at an angle that would take him to the front. The outlaw was heading for the alley and the back door to the House.
“Look,” Red pointed at the man. “He’s going to the alley. There’s a back way in. I’m going to get him before he does.” He looked at Hawk who nodded.
“We’ll cover you. We won’t shoot unless one of them takes aim. We don’t want to let them know we’re here.”
Red moved along the wall, watching between the man on the roof and the one he knew of in the woods. He stopped when the man on the roof fell over the façade, landing with a thud on the ground. One down. At least three more to go.
&nbs
p; The smell of gunpowder stung his nose. The town seemed to be filled with smoke from all the shooting. There was a battle going on at the bank, too.
He’d reached the end of the building and needed to cross the street to go along the side of the House and on into the alley. That would draw attention to him. He waited until the next shots came from the House, darted around the corner, and up the street. A glance at the part of Main Street visible between the buildings revealed several bodies lying in the dust. He didn’t know if they were dead or wounded.
Crossing to the other side, Red flattened himself against the building. He moved quickly to the corner and looked around. The outlaw was creeping up the steps. Red aimed and pulled the trigger. The outlaw dropped.
Red ran up the alley and kicked the gun lying next to the man away. Another round of shots was fired from the House. He heard more than two guns. He hoped it was Hawk and Massot getting into the fight. Leaning down, he flipped the man over. He was dead. Red felt no remorse. That surprised him, but he didn’t have time to think about it now. He ran back to the street, stopping before he got to the end of the building. Peeking out, Massot running toward him startled Red.
“We’ve got all of them that we saw. Hawk’s checking the woods. He wants us to help those on Main Street.”
Red nodded. “Let’s go this way.” He ran back up the alley and opened the back door to Hank’s barbershop. They might be able to get a drop on those in the street without revealing themselves. At least for a while.
They crept along the hall and ducked as they entered the front room. There was a large window, and Red didn’t want to be seen before he was in place. He couldn’t believe the glass was still intact. He crouched down. Massot did the same. They crawled to the window and peaked over the sill.
The street was empty but for several bodies. Red recognized a cowboy from Hawk’s Wing. He hoped the man was only wounded. He couldn’t tell from this distance.
Music Of Her Heart Page 11