by Joel Baker
“That’s exactly what he was doing,” James said. “He was letting you know he was there. How did it make you feel, Molly, when you knew Sam was with you?”
Molly’s brow wrinkled as she thought about it.
“Safe,” Molly said. “Knowing he was watching made me feel safe, James. It was like having a guardian angel. Like if anything happened I had a huge, ferocious beast that would protect me to the death.”
Welcome to my world, Molly Gentry,” James said. “You just became a friend of the family and I love you.”
****
James and twenty two volunteers rode out toward Cherokee country the next morning just before dawn. They knew if the Militia headed for Haven, they would be hard pressed to get back in time, but they would have to do it.
James decided to ride towards the rear of the column and had his cousin, Will Boyd lead the group. He was concerned because he hadn’t see hide nor hair of the dogs since the séance, or whatever it was they were doing, broke up. The dogs all took off in different directions and hadn’t been seen since. James worried about Samson most of all. It was so unlike him not to shadow James, especially if trouble was brewing.
James finally caught sight of Sam standing in the tree line running along the road they followed to Waya Village. He wasn’t alone. Four other dogs stood beside him in a line. They watched the line of horsemen pass by before melting back into the woods. James still couldn’t shake the uneasy feeling something was not quite right. Still, he was glad to see Samson had brought some of his friends for company.
They rode into Cherokee country and directly on to Waya Village. James was pleased the Cherokees fighters had arrived from the other districts. Eighty strong, they were prepared to deploy where they were needed. Hopefully the scouts he sent out to find the militia would report back soon. Until then there was little they could do except wait.
Chapter 13
The first Cherokee scout to arrive in camp rode directly to Waya and Charley Oaks. He met with them for about an hour before getting a new mount and racing off towards Luther’s Gypsy headquarters in New Town. James walked into Waya camp and up to the porch where Waya and Charley waited for him.
“Well, what did the scout report?” James asked.
“The militia is finished with Ridge and they’re headed for New Town. It looks like the Gypsies are next,” Charley said.
“What do you mean finished with Ridge?” James asked.
Waya looked at his feet before continuing. “They killed anyone still there and hung the bodies in trees out front of their burning houses. The scout said it must have been four or five families”.
“How many of the militia is headed toward New Town?” James asked.
“The scout said there are about a hundred riders,” Charley said. “They were pulling something that looked like cannon and a couple of wagons of supplies or loot. He couldn’t get close enough to tell. It rained up that way and the roads were muddy. It was slowing them down, so he figured they wouldn’t arrive in New Town till late tomorrow at the earliest. More likely it would be the day after.”
“There were only a hundred riders?” James asked. “Is that what he said? Not two hundred?”
“It’s what he told me,” Charley said.
“James thought for a minute.
“Did your scout see a strange white guy dressed in black and riding a black horse?” James asked. “Was he leading the group heading toward the Gypsies?”
“No,” Waya said. “The guy leading them is an old guy with white hair. He has a collar on like a preacher.”
James was getting a bad feeling, a very bad feeling.
“Is something wrong James?” Charley asked.
“I’m not sure,” James said. “I need to think.”
James walked out of Cherokee camp and back towards the trees. He ended up just outside the camp of the riders from Haven. Is Pastor John so stupid he would divide his militia into two groups? Could the second group with Bates leading it, be heading toward Haven?
James looked towards the trees on the other side of the camp. He saw Samson with the four other dogs. All were looking directly at him. When he made eye contact all five dogs turned and raced in the direction of Haven without looking back. Oh my God, Bates and his men are going to attack Haven.
James ran to the fire pit where his cousin John Boyd and the riders from Haven sat drinking coffee.
“John,” James said. “Get the men mounted and headed back to Haven. The Militia is headed there and here we sit. Now move it!”
James saddled his sorrel and raced over to where Waya and Charley sat planning their next move.
“Waya,” James said. “I hope the reserve troops of Cherokees will be enough. I have to pull the Haven men out and head home. I’m sure Lowery is headed toward Haven with about a hundred raiders.”
“Lowery?” Charley asked. “The murderer you’ve been chasing?”
“Yes,” James said. “I found out he’s been hiding out with the People’s Temple. Lowery and Bates are the same person. He’s leading a column of militia as we speak. They sent half their force to New Town. The other half is on its way to Haven. I have no choice Waya. I’ve got to get there before he does.”
“We have more than enough, James,” Waya said. “You get your people home and we’ll do what we must.”
“Thank you, Waya. I won’t forget this,” James said.
James tipped his hat, sprinted for the sorrel and drove the horse hard in pursuit of the other Haven men who were already riding hard for home. He overtook the other riders about midnight. The ride to Haven took most of the rainy night.
It was still dark and drizzling rain when James and the other men arrived at Haven. He sent the men over to the eating hall to dry out and went to the main house. He woke Janice to get the kitchen fired up and told her to start cooking some breakfast. He then went upstairs and entered the bedroom where Molly slept.
“Wake up sweetheart,” James whispered. “It’s me.”
Still half asleep, Molly rolled over and looked up at James through sleepy eyes and smiled.
“James Colter,” Molly said. “If you think you’re going to get into bed with me all dirty after a hard ride, well… okay.”
James knelt by the bed and took Molly’s hand.
“Listen, Molly,” James said. “I came back because Bates and half the People’s Temple militia are headed for Haven.”
Molly sat up, now fully awake and a concerned look on her face.
“They came through Ridge on the way here. Molly, they killed everyone,” James said.
“They killed them all, James?” Molly asked. “You mean they killed the women and children too?”
“You need to get up and go break the news to your father,” James said. “I’ve got to get everyone down to the eating hall right now. I’m sorry Molly. I wish I could have done more for the people in Ridge.”
Molly leaned over and put her arms around James neck and hugged him tightly. James felt tears on his neck and knew Molly was crying softly. After several minutes, Molly sat up and wiped her eyes with the sleeve of her night gown.
“You go do what you have to do,” Molly said. “I’ll take care of my father. Just be careful. If anything were to happen to you… Well, just be careful. I love you James.”
They embraced and kissed as if it were for the last time. James finally stood and walked away. James glanced in the back room as he was about to leave the house and saw his Uncle Paul sitting in the dark, a shadow in the gathering light of dawn.
“Are you awake, Uncle Paul?” James asked.
“Yes,” he said. “When twenty or thirty riders thunder into Haven at a full gallop, chances are I’m awake. What’s going on, son?”
James explained about the militia bearing down on them and the fight that was about to take place. He told him about Ridge and about the Bates character who was leading them.
“I got to go now Uncle Paul, any last words of advice?” James aske
d.
Uncle Paul rocked back and forth for a few moments. A cloud of blue smoke hovered around his head as he puffed on the pipe everyone had forbidden him to smoke.
“Remember the dogs, James, and trust them,” Paul said. “When things get tough, when it’s a kill or be killed time, you look to the dogs. Now get out of here. You got more important things to do then hang around talking with me.”
James kneeled down by the old man and hugged him tightly. He knew with certainty this would be Paul’s last fight. He didn’t know how he knew, he just did. As he walked to the eating hall James noticed the chug-chug of the steam engine and the faint glow of lights filtering out of the windows. He walked in and everyone quieted.
“As early as tomorrow,” James said. “We will be in a fight for our lives. A hundred killers, armed, and with hate in their hearts, are headed this way. Although we are outnumbered two to one, when they get here, well, let’s just say we will be ready. Don’t plan on taking prisoners. There won’t be any.”
James looked around the room and studied the solemn faces of the men and women sitting at the tables. Molly entered the building and now stood beside James.
“John Boyd, Seth Colter, and the Elders, have put together a plan on how best to defend Haven from outside attacks some time ago,” James said. “It’s a good one. John, would you come up and tell these people just how we’re going to pull this off?”
John stood and headed towards the front of the room. He was the second son of Lily, the daughter of Jesse and Sarah Colter. He was a wagon builder all his life and even in his sixties was still strong as an ox and a good fighter. When he joined James and Molly at the front, he cleared his throat.
“Some time ago,” John said. “The leaders of Haven studied how best to defend Haven against a heavily armed superior force. Here’s what we put together, and now we get to find out if it works.”
John pointed to the large hourglass shape of the valley containing Haven.
“As of today, we have twenty nine families living in and around Haven. That’s one hundred and eighty people of which sixty four are males of fighting age. These sixty four men will face at least a hundred armed and experienced fighters on horseback.”
“What do you consider fighting age?” someone asked from the back of the room.
“What about the women? We can fight too,” someone else called out.
“One question at time people, please,” John said. “Fighting age is fourteen to hundred. Volunteers from the women will be welcomed unless they have children. If the fight goes for more than a day, we’ll probably need those women and their children as well. Now let me finish before anymore questions.”
John looked around the room and waited for the murmuring to die down.
“We expect the riders to come in from the north end of the valley,” John said. “The western ridge is too rugged for riders and their horses to maneuver. Of course the eastern ridge belongs to the dogs. We’ve contacted our people in Eagle Rock and they will cover the approach from the south. We intend to meet them at the narrow point here in the middle. Several homes along the Colter Creek are too far up the valley to save. We’re going to burn them to the ground. The families could use some help getting their possessions moved behind our barricades.”
“Why burn them?” someone shouted out.
“We leave nothing for the enemy to hide behind,” John said. “Are there any other questions?” John asked looking around the room. “No questions? Okay, I’ll continue. We intend to use the remaining houses along the creek as part of our barricade. We’re going to create a temporary fort. I have enough wagons to block all the spaces between the houses. We will be behind those barricades and dare these bastards to try and take them.”
“Are you sure the wagons will be enough?” One of John’s neighbors asked.
“Was that you Ben?” John asked.
Ben Carter stood and waved at John.
“They should be,” John said. “We roll them into place and turn them on their side, wheels facing outward. The wagons have a couple of special surprises for our guests. One is the firing step which will allow a defender to fire over the top edge of the overturned wagon. The specially constructed bed of the wagon puts three inches of oak between us and them.”
“What if they charge the wagons?’ Ben asked. “They’re all on horseback so I suspect they’ll want to charge the barricade.”
“We’ve got a nasty surprise for them if they do,” John said. “The bottom of each wagon bed is lined with sharpened iron rods. These iron rods are all welded to a single bar running the length of the wagon. A second lever is pulled and the rods rotate up to stick straight out. Anyone one riding up to those wagons impales himself or his horse.”
There was a murmur that ran through the hall.
“We have markers set up in front of each wagon,” John said. “It will tell us when to pull the lever and raise the bars. One person at each wagon is designated to pull the lever as the charge approaches. If we time it right, well, let’s just say it won’t be pretty.”
“How long do you think we have?” Someone else asked.
“It’s midmorning now,” John said. “The militia probably has scouts here already. They will have heard about our dogs and will take their time approaching. The main body could be here by sunrise tomorrow. I want everything set by sun down. We’ll burn the houses tonight. They should light up most of the valley.”
“What about the dogs?” Ben asked. “Do you think they’ll help us in some way?”
This time it was James who stepped forward.
“Ben,” James said. “I don’t think anyone in this room could predict what the dogs will do. But I think they’re cooking something up. Has anyone else here seen the dogs standing in a circle touching heads?”
Several people raised their hands.
“I’m not going to try and explain what it means, only that it’s new to us and the dogs,” James said. “If I had to guess, I suspect they have evolved again genetically. The scientists who designed these dogs were most afraid of where it would all go. They knew the dogs had the capacity to continue to evolve and it looks like they have. I don’t know what it means for us. The dogs have always been a special gift to the Colters, a gift that might just disappear one day. We can only hope they won’t disappear tomorrow.”
James sat down and John Boyd retook the floor.
“We got a lot of work to get done before dark so we better get to it,” John said. “We need all rifles and shotguns stockpiled at the barricade. No point in saving reloads or ammunition either. Bring what you can. Keep in mind we want all outward facing windows boarded up except for the firing slits. We’ve talked about this before so this should be no surprise. James and I need to talk to Seth Colter. Everybody else needs to get busy. Remember to help your neighbors.”
Chapter 14
The sun rose over the eastern ridge as a fiery ball. It looked to be a hot day. The albino sat on the edge of the western ridge watching the activity behind the barricades.
The rat in his head had started moving. He knew he had only a few more hours before he had to kill again. If he didn’t, the rat would eat some more of his brains. Bates wasn’t sure how the rat got into his head. He’d been a small boy locked in a dark closet full of them, their nails scratching on the wood floor. Somehow one had gotten into his head and would only leave him alone when he killed someone.
He held the binoculars to his pinkish eyes and focused on the red headed woman walking next to James Colter. She was supposed to be chained to his headboard except for their narrow escape from Christiansburg. He’d already killed the girl he kept chained there. He’d been promised Molly Gentry would soon replace her. Then those idiots on the barricade had let Colter and the Gentry’s slip by them.
All things come to those who wait, Bates thought. Where are Shaffer and the men with him?
Shaffer was his right hand man. He’d proven himself time and again. When Bates and the rai
ders arrived last night the fires of the burning houses lit the whole waist of the valley. Bates rode in from the north to evaluate Haven’s defenses. It looked to be little more than some wagons turned on their side and roughly sixty men and the same number of women, manning the barricades constructed between the buildings.
Colter Creek ran close by the wagons and would make any attempt to charge the barricade difficult, but not impossible. Bates studied the farthest most left building and barricade. They had burnt the houses further up the valley, probably to deny them cover for firing. Instead, they opened themselves up to a massed charge against the left flank. All he had to do was to draw some of the defenders off that position by feigning an attack on the right flank.
Bates had noted the obvious advantage of attacking from the eastern ridge. It appeared almost completely undefended. He’d heard the rumors about those woods being guarded by demons or tigers or some such nonsense. Bates had told Shaffer to encircle the eastern ridge and make for Eagle Rock if he could. If he encountered any resistance, he was to fall back and try to gain the heights on the eastern ridge above Haven. If he could get take that ridge, Bates knew they would own Haven before dark.
But where is Shaffer?
The rat was becoming seriously agitated. Bates had to do something soon. He motioned for Ben Farnsworth, his second in command, to bring one of the few remaining prisoners to him. Bates took the rope tied around the prisoners throat and led him a short distance off into the woods.
****
James knew the gigantic risk he was taking with all the lives of the people behind the barricades. The dogs had disappeared completely from Haven. It was as if they’d never existed. The dogs had all taken off in different directions and at different times. Haven seemed strangely empty without them. Molly and he walked around the perimeter of the Haven defenses and things here looked better than he’d expected.
But where are the dogs? James wondered.
“There’s something bothering you James. What is it?” Molly asked.
“I’m okay,” James said. “Have you seen the dogs around here today?”