by Petit, C. J.
Kate smiled and was thoroughly enjoying their philosophical discussion, something she had never enjoyed before, not even with her sisters. She was debating about telling John about her one remaining fear, probably the most powerful dread she had since that day the Murphys arrived, but it was still only a possibility that she was pregnant by one of those monsters, so she kept it to herself.
“I’m a lot happier about it than you are, John.” she said honestly.
“Good night, Kate.”
“Good night, John.”
Kate closed her eyes, and despite John’s logical arguments still believed that he had been sent to free her from her hell and he was more than just a man. He was her guardian angel, and her avenging angel, but even while assigning those spiritual symbols to John, she knew that above all else, he was a good man.
CHAPTER 4
After breakfast, Kate had gone behind some bushes in the cool morning air and had changed into the boy’s shirt and pants, and felt much better than wearing those baggy clothes. She left the bushes and put his spare pants and shirt in the clothing pannier.
While she was getting dressed, John had loaded the Cooper Pocket pistol, and when she finished putting away the clothes she walked up near to him and sat down on the dew-covered ground.
John reached over and picked up the smaller gunbelt, and held it out to her.
“Kate, can you see if this fits?”
“Okay.” she replied and took the offered gunbelt and stood. She wrapped it around her waist and adjusted the buckle. The gunbelt must have been made for someone who would be most likely to buy the smaller gun, because she was able to snug it down onto her hips comfortably.
“Did you want to take a shot with the pistol first to get a feel for the gun?” he asked.
“I think that would be good idea.”
John handed her the Cooper and saw her heft it to get a feel for the weight, and then point it north toward the Platte. She still used the two-hand method, even though she was taller than the average woman at 5’ 6” and had slightly larger hands. She aimed and squeezed the trigger without cocking the hammer to get a feel for the double-action. The small gun jumped as it fired, but Kate held it under control and then fired a second shot.
She lowered the gun and turned with a grin on her face.
“This is so much easier, John. I like this one much better.”
John smiled back and replied, “Good. Give me the gun back, I’ll do a quick cleaning and reload those two cylinders.”
Kate handed him the pistol and sat down next to him to watch how he cleaned and loaded what she now considered her gun.
John noticed that she was close by, and was happy that she seemed to be thinking that he wasn’t a danger anymore.
After it was cleaned and loaded, he handed it back to her and she slipped it into her holster and pulled the hammer loop in place.
“Good job, Kate. Now, let’s get those mules loaded.”
John had already repacked and redistributed the bags and panniers. The bags would go on the saddled mules and the panniers on the mule that bore the pack saddle for the day.
Kate had come up with perfect names for the mules as they were lying in their bedrolls just before they had entered into their philosophical discussion.
Today, the pack was on Eeny, tomorrow it would be Meeny, and then Miney, before it returned to the original mule that John had brought from Omaha. His name was no mystery.
Once the mules were loaded, John moved the shotgun to Kate’s scabbard. He’d show her how to shoot the Winchester tomorrow, but for now, the shotgun was her best weapon.
Because of all the weight redistribution, it was late when they started out, but it was a pleasantly warm day for the last half of April, but they still kept the speed to a walk, so they could hear each other as they traveled.
“John, what are you going to do when we find them?”
“I have no idea. I can’t go back to farming again. I don’t know why. Maybe because it’s too methodical or just lacking in excitement. Of course, with the railroad, everything will change.”
She looked over at John and said, “John, I’m afraid of what will happen when I see them again. Jack will be there. What do you think he’ll do?”
John could hear the fear sliding into her voice again, and needed to deflect it until they finally found the families, but found his honest opinion would work just as well.
“If I had to guess he’ll just run. A lot will depend on what has happened in the last two years. He may not even be with the family any longer, but if he is, after he’s bolted, he’ll probably try to get on the next train. Don’t forget that I’ll be right with you, Kate. You’ll be safe. If we find your family first, I’ll leave you with them and I’ll go deal with Jack.”
She tried to smile, but it came out more as a grimace.
John wished he could do more, but knew it was the best he could do, and then began to think about what would happen when he met Jack himself. Would it be the second time he ever lost his temper? If so, it would be deserved. Then, he began to wonder if it was a one-time occurrence, what Jack had done to Kate. He didn’t believe it was. Men like that were never satisfied. John just had a difficult time correlating his memories of the fourteen-year-old Jack of his memory with the twenty-year-old hidden monster that had assaulted and tried to murder Kate.
“Kate, the next town is Cayote, and it’s about another thirty miles on the other side of the Platte. In the summer, crossing the Platte is like walking across a really wide puddle, but this time of the year, it can be tough. I know there’s a ford about ten miles ahead. I think we should cross over to the north side of the Platte. All the towns are over there now because of the transcontinental railroad, so we’ll have more of a chance of finding them because we’ll have more people to ask. Does that sound all right to you?”
“It does. Will the mules be a problem crossing the river?”
“No. I’ve crossed some water with Moe before and he didn’t mind. I think they’ll be fine.”
An hour and a half later, they approached the ford and John led them down the bank and into the swollen Platte River. As they were looking at the river, they both spotted a westbound train.
“I think we’ll wait for the train to go past so the mules don’t get spooked.”
“Have you ever ridden on a train, John?”
“We were moved on trains a lot during the war, and I can assure you that being squeezed into a box car with a bunch of sweaty men, some of whom didn’t even know that soap existed, wasn’t a pleasant experience.”
Kate laughed and replied, “I can imagine.”
John almost slipped and commented that he was sure she knew about sweaty men, but luckily held back his tongue.
The train had passed, leaving the long black cloud tracing its passing, so John thought it was safe to cross.
“Kate, keep an eye out for any debris, like logs that might be coming downriver. All we can do is avoid them.” he shouted.
“Okay!” she shouted back.
The crossing itself was anti-climactic. There were no issues with the mules or the horses as they climbed back out on the north bank, all the animals dripping water from their chests and bellies.
John pointed north. “You can see the railroad tracks about a mile and a half away. We’ll head that way, cross the tracks and use the road to Cayote.”
Kate nodded as they began to ride north. They crossed over the tracks carefully and then just a hundred yards on the north side of the tracks, they found a road and turned west. It was different having the train tracks so nearby, but John was still leery about his original reason for not using this side of the river for the first part of his journey.
It was almost noon when John spotted a cloud dust on the horizon, about five miles due west coming straight at them. His initial suspicion was that it might be highwaymen, but it was an awfully large cloud, and easily seen, so he began to wonder what else it might be. But it still tickl
ed his warning system that had never failed him in his years in the army. He pulled out his field glasses and looked west at the cloud.
He counted four men trailing a couple of horses, and recalled his first shootout east of Fort Kearny, when he had thought they were making a mistake by acting hostile right from the start. Maybe this crowd was smarter than that and would wave and be all nice and friendly until they pulled their guns. He couldn’t afford to take the chance, especially not with Kate.
His eyes were still glued to the field glasses when he said, “We may have a problem, Kate. That’s a good-sized dust cloud, it looks like four men trailing two horses.”
“Indians?”
“No, they’re white men. I’m probably being overly cautious, but let’s turn right and find someplace to stay and wait for them to pass. If they’re just going to Plum Creek, it’ll just cost us some time but if they’re not, we’ll know soon enough if they leave the road and head in our direction.”
“Alright.” Kate said as she looked west.
John turned all the animals north and set them to a medium trot looking for a gully or even a shallow hill to provide protection that may be unnecessary.
_____
Ex-Private Jim Hargrove, late of the Unites States Army and ex-Union Pacific employee spotted them when they turned and pulled out a pair of stolen field glasses.
“It looks like they don’t want to let us get too close, boys, but will you lookit all those animals and supplies! And only two of ‘em!” he said as he handed the field glasses to ex-Private Hank Stillman, ex-Confederate and ex-U.P. employee as well.
Stillman looked and grinned. “You’re right, Jimmy boy. This looks like a good haul.”
The other two men, Paul Carlisle and Moose Pleasant, didn’t get to look, but they both grinned at their partners’ evaluation.
“Let’s get moving bit faster and cut ‘em off. I want to get ‘em before they can set up any kind of defense.” said Jim loudly so they could all hear.
The four horses along with the two trailing pack horses broke into a fast trot and cut northeast across the prairie toward their prey.
The boys had all signed on to work the railroad, and had enjoyed being in North Platte, but when the railroad had begun laying track again, they hadn’t. They had formed their own little band of outlaws that simply rode along the tracks and waylaid anyone they found on the road. They’d relieve them of their money and supplies, kill them and take their horses. Then, they’d take the horses to the next town and sell them for some additional cash. Business had been good. Today, it looked like it would get much better.
_____
As soon as they left the roadway, John spotted the change.
“They’re coming after us, Kate. Keep an eye out for a gully or a hill where we can hold them off. I want to keep an eye on them.”
Kate replied, “Okay, John.”, and began her search.
Five minutes later, as John kept them under watch with his field glasses, Kate spotted a gully running mostly east-west and was deep enough to hide the horses and mules and pointed it out to John. He turned to evaluate the gully and thought it was perfect.
“Good job, Kate. We’ll get down there and hunker down. I’m almost positive that they don’t know you’re a woman, not from that distance and with what you’re wearing. If they come at us, it will be for the supplies.”
Kate nodded as John led the mules down a more gradual embankment to the floor of the gully, and Kate walked her horse right behind. John looked left and right to make sure that there was at least a hundred yards in either direction before the ravine curved away, but couldn’t find anyplace that met that criterion for safety, but if they went left about fifty yards, they’d have about seventy yards on either side, so they turned that way when they reached the bottom.
_____
Hank Stillman had been watching them through the field glasses as they made their run north across the prairie away from the road. As he watched them disappear, he assumed they went into a gully, so he needed to come up with a plan to get them.
“Looks like those boys are a little worried about us, and now we got ourselves a problem. They’re down in a gully and probably setting up an ambush. Do we bother with this pair or press on?”
Jim Hargrove replied, “Hell, Hank. Those two had four mules, two horses and a whole lotta supplies. I figure anybody who’s got that much stuff probably got a bunch of cash, too. This could be our biggest haul yet.”
Paul Carlisle and Moose Pleasant agreed with Hargrove, and not just because he was a Yankee like them. They all wanted what John and Kate had. If they had known she was a woman, it would have been one more incentive, and the question wouldn’t have come up.
“How do you want to get ‘em, Jim?” asked Hank.
“I don’t know what kind of guns they’ve got, but no matter, I figure the best bet is for two of us to get down into the gully, one east and one west while the other two stay up here out of range. When the two in the gully are ready, give a holler and we’ll start walking our horses at ‘em. I’ll be up here and fire the first shot. Once you hear that shot, start moving in from the flanks. They may know you’re on their sides, but they’ll have to concentrate on us up here first. I’ll keep the fire going to make them keep their heads down. Once I see the smoke from your shots, we’ll move in fast. Now, don’t go shootin’ willy-nilly. I don’t want those horses or mules hurt.”
They all grinned. It was a good plan, and Paul Carlisle wondered why Jim Hargrove hadn’t been made a general or something.
They were given their assignments, and Paul and Moose were given the east and west gully jobs while Hank and Jim would come from the front, but stay more than two hundred yards out until everyone was ready.
They began their move, knowing that they were being watched. Paul turned to the east and Moose to the west while Hank and Jim kept riding straight.
_____
John was watching from standing on a ledge on the gully’s south bank, keeping his field glasses trained on the four men. He wasn’t wearing his Stetson, so he’d have a low profile, and when he spotted the two men split off to their sides, he saw their strategy and realized that they weren’t as stupid as he expected.
“Kate, they’re sending one east and one west to flank both sides while the two of them out front are going to wait until the shooting starts and rush us.”
Kate found that she wasn’t afraid anymore, and it surprised her.
“What will we do, John?”
“I’m guessing that one of those two out front will take the first shot, just to get us to start firing and give away our position and to make us keep our heads down while the other two come around at our flanks. They think they’re out of range, but they’re already in range of the Spencer. I’m not going to wait for them to start the party. While those two on our flanks are getting into position, I’ll take a shot at those two out front. Kate, come with me.”
He stepped down from the edge of the gully and walked to the horses. He pulled his Winchester and the Spencer. Then, he walked to the second mule and lifted out the second Winchester.
He handed it to Kate.
“Kate, this is going to be the ultimate fast training session on how to fire the Winchester. There are fifteen cartridges already in its tube. That’s more than enough. To prepare to fire, you just cycle the lever like this.”
He cycled his Winchester’s lever, ejecting a new cartridge. He didn’t have time to pick it up and hoped it wasn’t going to be necessary.
“That brings a fresh cartridge into the chamber and cocks the hammer. All you need to do is aim it and pull the trigger. Try it with yours. It’s not easy, so do it quickly.”
Kate had watched John and cycled the Winchester, popping out the cartridge and saw the hammer stay back. She found it stiffer than she expected, after watching John do it, but knew she could do it.
“Alright, Kate, you’re ready to fire. I want you to keep an eye on the eastern part of t
he gully where it curves away. That’s about a sixty yards away, maybe a little more. If you see any movement from around that bend down there, don’t hesitate. He’s going to fire as soon as he sees you. It’s not important that you hit him, I just want you to keep his head down until I can deal with him. After you fire, lever in a new cartridge so he doesn’t get a chance to come around that corner. Keep your eyes focused on the south edge of the gully. I’ll handle the other side. Okay?”
Kate nodded and replied, “I’ll take care of it, John.”
John saw the determination in Kate’s eyes and said, “You’ll do, Kate.”
Then he quickly grabbed his Spencer and jogged back to his ledge, leaned his Winchester against the gully wall and stepped back up to the edge and looked over.
Kate did as John directed and had her Winchester aimed at the right edge of that bend in the gully. As she looked down the barrel, she had a sudden feeling of being in control for the first time in her life. The rifle gave her the power to control a situation, and it was a good feeling.
_____
The two outriders were climbing down from their horses to slide down into the gully. John saw that they both had repeaters, and they were both Henrys because they didn’t have the brass of the Winchester. He guessed they were about a half mile away on each side, giving him and Kate about three to five minutes before the two flank shooters arrived. He wasn’t concerned about the two he could see, just about the one on Kate’s side.
It was time to surprise the two out front as they sat on their horses about two hundred yards away, and was pleased to note that neither one was using field glasses, so he might get his Spencer into position without them noticing.
He slid the carbine smoothly along the flat edge before the gully and then straightened it out, pointing it in their general direction. He cocked the hammer and slid his left hand under the carbine, lifting the muzzle just three inches from the ground. John was able to draw a bead on the one on the left without being noticed.
Jim Hargrove and Hank Stillman were now watching Paul and Moose as the two men slid down the gully, instead of keeping an eye on where the two victims were. They assumed that they were in the same place they had entered the gully and hadn’t seen any movement at the spot. If either one had looked sixty yards to their left, they might have spotted the rifle barrel of a Spencer carbine.