by Al Lamanda
The last six feet to the rope, Lane jumped for it, grabbed it with his hands and immediately Scripture and Poule started hauling him up.
The Crow Warrior jumped, grabbed the rope and started to climb after Lane.
Lane kicked the Crow warrior in the face with his boots. The Crow warrior ignored the kicks and bit into Lane’s left boot.
The weight of the Crow Warrior pulled Lane down. Other ghouls reached up for Lane like wild, starving dogs.
Lane pulled his Colt, cocked it and shot the Crow warrior in the head and he let go and fell to the ground.
Without the added weight on the rope, Scripture and Poule quickly pulled Lane up to the top of the fence and over it to the catwalk.
“They can run,” Poule said.
“No shit,” Lane said.
Scripture handed Lane his hat. “Let’s get out of here.”
“No shit,” Lane said.
They raced down the ladder to the waiting horses, mounted and ran them full out to the open gates where not a ghoul was in sight.
The two wagons, Little Sky and Red Foot were a hundred yards away already and moving fast.
“Let’s put some distance between us and this Godforsaken place,” Lane said.
“No shit,” Poule said.
Chapter 19
Teal and Sands rode at a moderate pace through open country in the general direction of the town of Big Sky. They felt it best to stay in open country where they could see any rider or wagon approaching from every direction.
“How far would you say?” Teal said.
“Fourteen, maybe fifteen miles,” Sands said. “No more than that.”
“Lane and the others must be looking for us by now,” Teal said.
“Then why didn’t they come?” Sands said. “It’s a day’s ride to that cabin.”
“I don’t know,” Teal said. “But I do know David Lane and he’s the best lawman I’ve ever seen.”
“Do you think Lane and the others came across more of those…hell, I don’t know what to call them,” Sands said.
“I don’t know, Max,” Teal said. “But, if there were that many at the cabin it would be my guess there are others.”
“Yeah.”
“I think we should…” Teal said and paused when he spotted a wagon and two horses fifty yards to his right. “Max?”
“I see it,” Sands said.
“Let’s check it out.”
They rode to the wagon and approached it cautiously as there was no one in the buckboard. Teal slid his Winchester out of the saddle holster, cocked the lever and held it by his side.
“Hello, anybody about!” Teal shouted.
Sands pointed to the wagon. “A full load,” he said.
“Yeah. Cover me,” Teal said and dismounted.
Sands pulled his Winchester, cocked the lever and held it at the ready.
Teal cautiously approached the wagon. The horses were nervous and jumpy.
“Easy,” Teal said. “Nobody is going to hurt you.”
Teal checked the wagon. It was loaded with provisions, canned and fresh and a dozen boxes of ammunition. He turned and looked back at Sands. “Somebody was stocking up,” he said.
“Well somebody just doesn’t leave a full wagon on the prairie for no good reason,” Sands said.
Teal heard a sudden noise and spun around with rifle at the ready. The noise came from a thick clump of brush twenty yards to the left of the wagon. Teal looked at Sands and pointed.
Silently Sands dismounted and stood beside Teal.
“That brush, hear it?” Teal whispered.
A soft, crunching sound came from the brush.
“Yeah,” Sands whispered.
Teal nodded and they slowly moved toward the brush. As they neared the thick clump the crunching noise grew louder.
At the fringe of the brush, Teal and Sands knelt down. Teal moved some of the brush with his Winchester.
Ten feet into the brush, four ghouls sat eating human remains. Two of the ghouls were Army soldiers. They were eating arms. Two of the ghouls were Crow warriors. They were eating legs.
The crunching sounds were made when they tore flesh and struck bone.
Sands stood up, walked forward and shot a Crow warrior in the head. The second Crow warrior started to rise up and Sands shot him in the head, too.
The soldiers tossed aside their half-eaten arms, jumped up and snarled at Sands.
Sands cocked the lever of his Winchester again and it was empty. When he reloaded after they left the cabin all he had left were two rounds.
The soldiers came at Sands in a rush.
Teal jumped in front of Sands and shot both soldiers with his Winchester in quick succession.
Sands sighed with relief. “Thanks.”
“Now we know for certain why that son of a bitch bit you,” Teal said. “She was hungry and you were lunch.”
Sands stared at the dead ghouls.
“Let’s grab what we can use from the wagon and get out of here,” Teal said.
Sands turned away from the ghouls. “Yeah.”
They loaded up two hundred rounds of ammunition, five pounds of flour, coffee and beans, some canned fruits and grain sacks for the horses.
Restocked, Teal and Sands continued on for the town of Big Sky.
“Who do you suppose those folks were back there?” Sands said after a half mile of silent riding.
“I don’t want to think about it,” Teal said. “Ever.”
“Hey, Teal,” Sands said. “Back there in the middle of it…I didn’t feel so bad, but right now I think I’m kind of sick.”
“We’ll make Big Sky by nightfall,” Teal said.
“Yeah,” Sands said.
A moment later, Sands passed out and fell from his horse.
Chapter 20
Close to two miles from the outpost, the damaged wagon wheel Maura repaired the day before came loose again and she was forced to stop the wagon.
Lane and Red Foot dismounted to have a look.
“It happened yesterday,” Maura said. “I did my best to repair it.”
Anderson stopped his wagon beside Maura’s.
“Can you men fix it?” Anderson said.
“Between the four of us,” Lane said.
“Then I’ll be on my way,” Anderson said.
“I wouldn’t split us up,” Lane said. “Look at that dark sky in the distance. Some hard rain’s coming.”
“No disrespect Marshal, but it ain’t your boy sick and dying in my wagon,” Anderson said. “It’s mine.”
“I can appreciate your feelings, but it won’t take more than an hour to repair this wheel,” Lane said.
“Then I suggest you get started,” Anderson said, pulled the reins and rode the wagon off at a fast pace.
Lane looked at the wagon. “Let’s get this wheel off,” he said.
Maura and Seth stepped down from the wagon. “I’ll make some coffee,” she said. “Little Sky, you and Seth gather up some wood.”
“That should hold the rest of the way,” Lane said after the wheel was back in placed, greased and tightened.
“The coffee is hot,” Maura said.
Except for Little Sky and Seth, everybody took a few minutes leisure time to enjoy a hot cup of coffee.
Lane rolled a cigarette and looked at the darkening sky in the direction of Big Sky. “We won’t make it before the rain,” he said.
“I know Big Sky,” Red Foot said. “It’s mud country when the heavy rains hit.”
“He’ll be riding right into it,” Scripture said.
“Charlie, any good cover that way?” Lane said.
“Thick brush,” Red Foot said. “Thick enough to cover the wagon and keep the horses dry. Us, too.”
“Ride ahead. Find some,” Lane said. “I don’t want to be in the open when it hits.”
The sky darkened and the rain came down in sheets. Inside the ten foot tall clump of brush, Maura and Seth sat in the wagon. Lane and the others sto
od holding their horses to keep them from panicking.
Under the cover of the brush it was as dark as night.
Lightning flashed.
Thunder boomed.
Within minutes a stream of water built up around their feet and wagon.
Then, thirty minutes later the sky lightened and the rain stopped all at once. Other than standing in six inches of water, no damage had been done.
“Let’s move out slow,” Lane said. “Charlie, you scout ahead a hundred feet or so. I don’t want the wagon getting stuck in mud.”
It was slow moving for the wagon. The ground was soaked and Maura had to be extra careful to avoid getting the heavy wheels stuck in deep mud pockets.
The Anderson’s weren’t as lucky.
After two slow miles, Red Foot, a hundred yards ahead of the wagon did a quick turnabout and dashed his horse back to Lane.
“Trouble,” Red Foot said. “Anderson.”
A shot suddenly rang out, followed by another and another.
“Ride,” Lane said. “Little Sky, stay with the wagon. Any trouble fire two shots followed by one.”
Lane, Red Foot, Scripture and Poule rode toward the Anderson wagon. A wheel was stuck in deep mud. Anderson and his son Joseph were standing in the wagon with the still unconscious Robert, aiming and firing rifles at the dozen or more ghouls trying to reach them.
No sooner did they shoot one ghoul did another make a reach for Anderson and Joseph, snarling and growling as they did so.
As a massive ghoul dressed as an Army sergeant reached for Anderson, Anderson’s rifle clicked on empty. Anderson flipped the rifle around to use it like a club and smashed the ghoul in the face. The blow had little to no effect on the ghoul. It reached for Anderson and grabbed him by the leg and pulled Anderson down off the wagon to the ground.
“Pa!” Joseph cried.
The ghoul growled, opened his mouth and as he was about to bite Anderson on the neck, Joseph shot the top of his head off.
Immediately two other ghouls jumped on Anderson.
Joseph shot one in the head before several ghouls were in the wagon. Joseph spun around and shot one before the other grabbed Joseph’s rifle.
The ghoul on top of Anderson was coming down for a bite and Anderson grabbed it by the neck and for a few seconds a life and death struggle took place. Then, with a mighty push forward the ghoul broke Anderson’s grip and went for the death bite to Anderson’s neck.
A shot fired and the ghoul fell off Anderson.
A dozen or more shots rang out and ghoul after ghoul fell dead around the wagon.
Anderson looked up at Lane and the others still mounted on their horses.
“Joseph!” Anderson cried.
Joseph jumped down from the wagon. “I’m alright, Pa,” he said. “You bit?”
“No.” Slowly Anderson got to his feet. “It appears that you were right, Marshal,” he said. “We’re indebted.”
“Charlie, ride back to Mrs. McCain,” Lane said. “Scripture, Poule, let’s get this wagon out of the mud.”
“What about them?” Anderson said of the dead ghouls once his wagon was free.
“You want to bury them?” Lane said.
“No.”
Little Cloud grabbed Lane by the arm. “Burn them,” she said. “It’s the only way.”
“We don’t have time for that,” Lane said. “I have still have two men out there I need to find and we’re wasting daylight. Everybody mount up and for God’s sake keep your eyes open.”
Six or seven miles from the town of Big Sky, Seth tugged on Maura’s sleeve. “Ma, I don’t feel so well,” he said.
Chapter 21
Sands was dead weight on the saddle. Teal cut two slices of rope from his saddle lasso to tie his legs around the horse’s stomach by the ankles and his hands to the horn. Secure enough so he wouldn’t fall off, Teal led Sands’ horse by the reins and rode off toward Big Sky.
Not a mile later, they rode directly into a massive storm that blew in from the west. The rain came down in sheets. The sky darkened as if it were nightfall. Lightning flashed and thunder spooked the horses.
Teal looked for a place to shelter the horses until the storm passed. The only thing available were thick clumps of brush beside a small stream. Teal rode his horse and guided Sands’ into the thick brush. He dismounted and did his best to keep the hard rain off Sands.
“We’re in for it now, Max,” Teal said to the unconscious Sands.
Within minutes the small stream behind them overflowed its shallow banks. Water rose up quickly around the horse’s hooves and they panicked a bit and Teal had to hold the reins tight to keep them under control.
Lightning flashed again and lit up the sky for a fleeting moment.
An outline by the creek.
The sky darkened.
The outline vanished.
Rumbling thunder sounded for a few seconds and slowly faded away.
Teal peered through the dark and the rain for the outline. He saw nothing. It was probably his eyes playing tricks on him in the storm.
At his feet, water from the overflowing creek rushed past Teal. The storm would dump several more inches before it played out and by then he would be ankle deep in it. The rushing water spooked his horse again and he gently pulled on the reins to settle him down.
Lightning flashed, the sky lit up and the outline was closer.
There was no mistake this time.
A man was coming directly toward him.
The sky darkened as thunder rolled.
Teal drew his Colt revolver and cocked the hammer. In the dark and blinding rain, the man out there was invisible.
“Show yourself!” Teal yelled. “Or I’ll shoot first and ask later.”
Lightning flashed.
The man, a large ghoul in an Army uniform was right in front of him.
Teal pulled the trigger just as the ghoul rushed him. The shot went wide as the snarling ghoul grabbed Teal and came in for the bite. Teal smashed the ghoul in the face with the heavy revolver, but that didn’t faze the ghoul in the least.
The ghoul pushed Teal backwards into his horse and he reared up in panic, knocking Teal to his knees.
The ghoul reached for Teal and Teal tackled the ghoul at the knees. They went down together in the water and the mud.
They wrestled and rolled on the ground, the ghoul trying to tear into Teal’s flesh with his teeth and Teal doing his best not to get bit. Teal grabbed the ghoul’s arms, but it was incredibly strong and at best, Teal was able to hold it at bay for a few seconds.
Then the ghoul broke Teal’s grip and he tore into Teal’s right arm with his teeth. Teal screamed as the ghoul’s teeth hurt, but the heavy denim jacket over denim shirt and long sleeve undershirt kept the ghoul from breaking skin.
The ghoul tore at the denim like a dog playing with a leather strip. Teal knew the thick material wouldn’t hold much longer. His left hand felt for the knife in its sheath on his gun belt.
The ghoul gave up on the denim and was about to bite Teal’s exposed right cheek when Teal shoved the eight inch long blade deep into the side of the ghoul’s neck. The ghoul screamed and sat up and Teal pushed it off him and rolled away.
Teal turned quickly as the ghoul rose to his feet. The knife had gone completely through the ghoul’s neck with the tip of the blade peeking out the opposite side and still he was alive.
The fucking thing was still alive.
Teal rushed to his horse and drew the Winchester.
The ghoul charged Teal and grabbed him by the back of Teal’s denim jacket.
Teal cocked the lever and spun around.
Lightning flashed.
Exposed teeth came at Teal.
Teal pulled the trigger and blew the top half of the ghoul’s head off.
Only then did the ghoul fall dead to the ground.
Teal stared at the ghoul for a moment. The he reversed the Winchester and smashed the ghoul in the face with the butt end.
&nbs
p; “Son of a bitch!” Teal yelled as he struck the ghoul again and again until the ghoul’s face was mush.
Gasping for air, Teal looked around for his Colt, spotted it, picked it up and holstered it. Then he returned to the ghoul, knelt down and slowly withdrew his knife from the ghoul’s neck. He held the blade to the slowing rain to wash it off and then returned the knife to its sheath.
The sky was lightening. The storm was passing as quickly as it came. Teal checked on Sands. He was still passed out cold in the saddle.
Teal mounted his horse, took the reins of Sands’ horse and rode out of the brush without looking back, without seeing the dozen or so ghouls as they crossed the flooded stream.
Chapter 22
Big Sky was a bustling town with sixty buildings and a population of close to three hundred residents. During cattle drive season it was a stopping place for beef outfits and the transient population swelled by two hundred or more.
At dusk, when Lane and the group were just a mile outside the town limits they should have seen pinpricks of lights flickering across the darkening horizon. What they saw was the faint outline of the town’s skyline, dark and grey and cold.
“I don’t like it, Charlie,” Lane said to Red Foot. “I don’t like it one bit.”
“Want me to scout ahead?” Red Foot said.
“Best we stay together,” Lane said. “We’ll find out soon enough what’s going on.”
Twenty minutes later, they stood on the fringe of Big Sky and looked at the empty streets, buildings and shops. Not a soul was about. Not one lantern or candle was lit, not a sound came from the six saloons.
It was as if the entire population had abandoned the town all at once.
“Jesus Christ, there is nobody here,” Anderson said.
“We don’t know that yet,” Lane said. “Charlie, you take the lead with me. Everybody else stay close behind.”
Main Street was mud covered from the recent storm they ran into on the prairie. The Big Sky Hotel and six saloons were dark and silent. The doctor’s office above the general store was also dark, as was the Sherriff’s office and every other shop and building along the street.
“What now?” Red Foot said.