Lone Star Ranger #3
Page 12
“You reckon we’ll find some identification on any of ’em, Cap’n?” Jeb asked.
“Don’t matter to me if we do or we don’t,” Quincy replied. “Far as I’m concerned, it’s better if no one ever finds out their names. They don’t deserve to be made into legends, or some kind of folk heroes. Best they’re just forgotten, and disappear into the sands of time.”
****
The Rangers spent the night at Hudspeth Springs. Shorty Beach, Hank Glynn, and Lee Shelton were buried just before sunset, with rocks placed over their graves to discourage any scavengers, and crude wooden crosses set at the heads of their final resting places. Captain Quincy said a few words, commending their souls to the Lord.
“Poor Shorty,” George said, as his friend’s body was lowered into the grave. “He never got a chance to break in those new drawers proper.” The other men laughed, their sorrow broken, if only briefly, at George’s humorous tribute.
After supper, Quincy assembled the surviving men, and called Nate to the front. He held a cloth-wrapped bundle.
“Nate,” he said. “I have something here which belongs to you.” He handed Nate the bundle. Nate opened it, to find a pair of silver spurs, with his brother’s initials engraved on them.
“Jonathan’s spurs!” Nate exclaimed. “How?”
“We took those spurs off your brother’s boots,” Quincy explained. “That was before we realized you were alive. We intended to send any valuables from your family back to any relatives we could find.
“They were packed away in George’s wagon. In the confusion of finding you, I completely forgot about them. I was going to mail them to you back in Delaware. Then, when you turned up with Jeb, I decided to hold on to them, and give them to you once I was certain you’d make it as a Texas Ranger. Today was that day.
“Nathaniel Stewart, you earned those spurs this day, and you earned the right to be a full-fledged Texas Ranger, age and regulations be hanged. Congratulations, son. You are one heckuva Ranger to fight with.”
“Cap’n, I—I don’t know what to say,” Nate stammered. “Thank you. Well, and does this mean I don’t have to help George gather firewood anymore?”
“Don’t push your luck, son,” Quincy answered, laughing. “I do need to know your plans, now that the men who murdered your family are dead. Will you be heading back East, or remaining here, in Texas?”
“Cap’n, as long as the Rangers will have me, I’ll stick with ’em,” Nate said. “They’re the only family I’ve got, now.”
“I knew you would, Nate,” Hoot hollered. “That means I’ll still have the chance to get you smokin’ yet.”
“Men, it’s been a long day, and we’ve lost three of our comrades,” Quincy said. “Let’s give a yell for Nate, then call it a night.”
The Rangers’ shouts shattered the stillness of the night air.
****
Before he turned in, Nate took out his sketch pad, and found a spot behind some scattered boulders, out of sight of the rest of the men. He sketched a picture of the pale-eyed son of Satan who had led the outlaw gang which took his family.
The drawing showed him lying dead, with Nate’s bullet holes in him. Nate stared at the picture for quite some time, then pulled his bundle of lucifers from his shirt pocket, broke one off, lit it, and touched it to one corner of the paper.
He held the drawing as the flames consumed it, and watched the ashes float into the air. Never again would that devil torture him.
Nate would never forget what the outlaw and his followers had done to his family, what they had taken away from him.
But no longer would that pale-eyed raider be a demon, tormenting his every waking moment. Nate had made certain of that.
*Page 70: The College of the Immaculate Conception was the forerunner to present-day Loyola University.
COMING SOON!
LONE STAR RANGER BOOK 4
About the Author
Jim Griffin became enamored of the Texas Rangers from watching the TV series, Tales of the Texas Rangers, as a youngster. He grew to be an avid student and collector of Rangers' artifacts, memorabilia and other items. His collection is now housed in the Texas Ranger Hall of Fame and Museum in Waco.
His quest for authenticity in his writing has taken him to the famous Old West towns of, Pecos, Deadwood, Cheyenne, Tombstone and numerous others. While Jim's books are fiction, he strives to keep them as accurate as possible within the realm of fiction.
A graduate of Southern Connecticut State University, Jim now divides his time between Branford, Connecticut and Keene, New Hampshire when he isn't travelling around the west.
A devoted and enthusiastic horseman, Jim bought his first horse when he was a junior in college. He has owned several American Paint horses. He is a member of the Connecticut Horse Council Volunteer Horse Patrol, an organization which assists the state park Rangers with patrolling parks and forests.
Jim's books are traditional Westerns in the best sense of the term, portraying strong heroes with good character and moral values. Highly reminiscent of the pulp westerns of yesteryear, the heroes and villains are clearly separated.
Jim was initially inspired to write at the urging of friend and author James Reasoner. After the successful publication of his first book, Trouble Rides the Texas Pacific, published in 2005, Jim was encouraged to continue his writing.
A RANGER TO RIDE WITH by James J. Griffin
Nathaniel Stewart’s life changes in the blink of an eye when his family is murdered by a band of marauding raiders. They’ve made one terrible mistake…they didn’t finish the job. Fourteen-year-old Nathaniel is very much alive and ready to exact the justice his mother, father, and older brother deserve. Taken in by a company of Texas Rangers, he begins to learn what it means to survive in the rugged wilds of Texas.
A RANGER TO RECKON WITH by James J. Griffin
As the youngest man in the company of Texas Rangers he’s riding with, Nate Stewart discovers he’s got a lot to learn. Determined to find the brutal gang of raiders who murdered his family and left him for dead on the Texas plains, Nate must grow up fast. When he comes face-to-face with the pale-eyed devil responsible for the deaths of his parents and older brother, will Nate be able to finally get his revenge?
DUSTER by Frank Roderus
What would it be like to have money for necessities again? Could a cattle drive be the answer? Douglas Dorword is the oldest in his family, and at fifteen, he jumps at the chance to go along with Mr. Sam Silas’s men on a round-up and trail drive.
TEXAS LEGACY BOOK 1: RED EAGLE'S War by Cheryl Pierson
A ten-year-old boy fights for his life when he is taken prisoner by a band of raiding Apache. Steeling himself for death, Will Green is shocked when a lone man walks into the Apache camp to rescue him several days later. With the odds stacked eight against one, his chances for success look pretty slim. But even if he's able to rescue the boy and they get out alive, what then?
TEXAS LEGACY BOOK 2: RED EAGLE'S REVENGE by Cheryl Pierson
Red Eagle’s Revenge originally published as Kane's Promise, is the continuation of Red Eagle's War, the story of Will Green, a young boy whose family was murdered by the Apache, and Jacobi Kane, the man who rescued Will from the Indians. In Red Eagle’s Revenge, Jacobi Kane must lead a band of lawmen in their mission to find and annihilate the remnants of the Apache renegades who were responsible for killing Will Green's parents and Kane's wife and children.
TEXAS LEGACY BOOK 3: TEXAS FOREVER by Cheryl Pierson
Texas Forever originally published as Kane's Destiny, is the final novella of the ongoing story of Will Green and Jacobi Kane. Will, now thirteen, carries doubts deep within of belonging to the Kane family. When his wealthy grandfather appears from back East determined to take him to Boston, Will learns the true meaning of family and just where he belongs.
www.paintedponybooks.com
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