by S. E. Smith
“Come on guys. Once we get through the pass we should be safe. We’ll head down to the lower elevations where it shouldn’t be so cold. Maybe we can find work on a ranch,” Indy said, suddenly excited. Tweed and Chester wagged their tails as if to agree and took off ahead of her.
Laughing, Indy nudged Midnight on with Kahlua following behind. The cut through the pass was long and narrow. Indy looked up as small rocks and bits of snow fell off the sides. She vaguely wondered what world she would end up in. She hoped it was one with wide open spaces, no big cities, and no big brothers. The air around her swirled and a cold shiver ran down her spine as she passed the halfway mark. Turning on Midnight’s back, Indy looked behind her. She was surprised to see a mist of snow so thick she couldn’t see the entrance to the Pass any longer. Shrugging her shoulders, she turned back around and focused on the path ahead of her.
Yeah, she thought to herself, it would be nice to find a world where I can be who I am and not have to worry about my brothers anymore.
Indy made good time after she made it through the Pass down to the lower elevation. She stopped on a ridge about half way down to take a break and give the horses and dogs time to rest. She sank down, sitting on the ledge looking out over the valley below. It was beautiful. There were patches of snow dotting the landscape and probably a hundred head or more of cattle grazing.
She would make camp down near the timberline and scope things out before she approached the ranch. She wanted to make sure it was safe. She hoped her brothers hadn’t sent notices out to all the ranches. She decided she would take it slow and see if she could find a cowpuncher or two alone. She would approach them and make polite conversation, checking to see if they said anything. If they didn’t, she would see if there were any positions open. If they did say something or acted strange she would head back up into the mountains to hide.
Chapter 3
Indy set up her tent and just a top covering for the horses’ lean-to. It was warmer down here and she could keep their blankets on them to help keep them warm at night. She spent the next three days enjoying the peace and quiet of the woods. She took the opportunity to wash some of her clothes out in the nearby river and even warmed up enough water to take a nice shower using the portable solar shower she had. It felt good to wash her hair out and feel clean again.
“Come on boys; let’s go see if we can find us any cowpunchers to talk to,” Indy said as she saddled Midnight. She looped the lead rope over Kahlua’s neck knowing the mare would follow Midnight anywhere.
Riding down to the lower region, she was almost to the stream crossing over to the cattle when she heard gunfire. Pulling in the reins, she listened carefully as the gunfire continued. Moving across the stream to a low rise on the hill above them, she slipped off Midnight’s back and motioned for the dogs to lie down. Pulling out a pair of binoculars from a saddlebag, she laid down on the cold ground and looked to see what was going on. It was downright stupid to be shooting guns around that many cattle. It wouldn’t take much to start a stampede.
Indy watched as three men on horseback charged at another two who had been sitting around a fire under one of the few trees dotting the landscape. One of the men on horseback fired a gun hitting the old man in the chest.
Oh shit, Indy thought stunned as she watched the man fall backwards onto the ground.
The young man who had been sitting moved to grab the injured man and dragged him behind the tree firing his own gun at the masked man on horseback. Indy turned her binoculars towards the other two men. They were trying to round the cattle up.
Rustlers? In broad daylight? That took some balls, she couldn’t help thinking silently to herself.
Swinging her binoculars back to the two men who had been sitting under the tree, she could tell they were in a world of hurt. The scene playing out below her had to be real, she thought in dismay as she watched bark flying from the tree and the trail of blood on the ground.
Getting up, Indy motioned for the dogs to go after the cattle. “Round ‘em up, boys,” she said grimly.
Indy swung up onto Midnight’s back and pulled her Ruger semi-automatic rifle from her saddle. Laying it across her lap, she kicked Midnight into a full run knowing Kahlua would be right behind her. Charging at the masked man shooting at the two men behind the tree, she stood up in the stirrups to get a steadier ride clutching the saddle with her knees to keep her balance. Raising the rifle, she let out a series of shots close enough in front of him to let him know she meant business. The masked man on the horse swung around startled to find someone shooting at him from behind. The young man behind the tree took advantage of the rustler’s sudden distraction. He stepped out from behind the tree and fired a shot, hitting the man in the arm and causing him to drop his gun. The masked gunman yelled out in pain clutching his wounded limb against his chest. Unarmed now, the man pulled back on the reins and headed after the other two men who had tried to take the cattle. He rode through the herd which was heading back towards the camp, the two dogs barking and nipping at their heels.
Indy pulled her jacket up higher around her neck and pulled her hat further down. She needed to check on the two cowpunchers to make sure they were okay but didn’t want to take the chance of them recognizing her. She would play it safe for now by keeping her face covered as much as she could. Hopefully if her brothers put out posters looking for her they didn’t include anything about her traveling companions.
Midnight slowed to a walk with Kahlua right on his hind quarters as Indy approached the tree. The last thing she wanted was to get shot. Stowing her rifle back into the gun harness attached to her saddle, she held up her hands to show she was unarmed.
“That’s far enough!” A young voice called out from behind the tree.
“I’m unarmed. I just wanted to make sure you two cowpunchers were okay,” Indy called out trying to deepen her voice. “Looked like one of you might have been hurt.”
A gruff voice murmured something to the young man. “Get down off your horse and keep your hands up,” the younger man called out.
Indy slowly lowered her hands long enough to get down without falling before raising them again and taking a step toward the young man.
“Do you need some help?” Indy asked.
A young boy of about fourteen slowly emerged from behind the tree. He looked scared and the gun in his hands shook as he pointed it towards Indy’s chest. He took a deep breath as he studied Indy for a moment.
“Jake took a bullet to the shoulder. You know anything about bullets?” The boy asked.
Indy tried not to smile. “I know if you keep pointing that gun at me I might be learning more about them than I want to.”
The boy flushed as he lowered the gun in his hand. “Sorry about that. Didn’t know if you were with them others or not.”
“Not, is the correct answer,” Indy said. “Let me take a look at your friend. The boys will bring your cattle back.” Indy walked slowly towards the boy and around the tree where she saw an older man in maybe his early fifties leaning up against the tree. Blood soaked one shoulder and he held a gun in his other hand.
“Hey, looks like you’ve had a rotten morning,” Indy said huskily. Bending down, she carefully looked at the man’s shoulder.
“Hell, that’s an understatement if I ever heard one,” Jake replied in a deep, pain-filled voice.
“Looks like the bullet went all the way through. I’ve got some first aid stuff to patch you up with until we can get you to a doctor,” Indy said rising and moving over to the pack on Midnight.
“Did you know any of those men who came at you?” Indy asked as she gently unbuttoned Jake’s shirt.
Pushing the shirt down, Indy cleaned the area around the wound carefully before pulling out a bottle of Novocain and a small syringe with a hypodermic needle attached. Filling the needle with a small amount, she gently numbed the area on the front and the back so she could sew up the wound. Taking an extra fine needle, she wiped it with an alcohol s
wab before threading it with stitching thread. Sam had taught her how to take care of cuts and other wounds while out on the range. Most of the time if you were going to get hurt there wouldn’t be a doctor around so it was common sense to learn advanced first aid. Indy had taken it a step further and had gone to college for nursing. She had finished her bachelor’s degree in a record two years because she hated being away from home for so long.
She quickly sewed up both wounds and wiped it down with another alcohol swab. Cleaning up the used material she walked over to the fire and dumped everything but the hypodermic needle into it. She would put it in a container to depose of later.
“Shit, I didn’t feel a thing but a few pinches after you stuck me with that needle. What the hell did you do?” Jake asked in astonishment.
Indy laughed. “I thought you might prefer a less painful way of getting stitched up. I could have opted for the old fashion stick between the teeth and hope you passed out if you would have preferred.”
“Hell no,” Jake grumbled. “My name’s Jake Turner. The boy here is Calhoun Tanner. We’re much obliged for your help.”
“No problem. I’m Indy.” Indy looked over to see if there was a flash of recognition on either man’s face. Not seeing anything she turned to look out over the cattle. Tweed and Chester were barking madly, pushing the cattle into a tight circle. She let out a loud whistle causing both dogs to stop and look towards her. With a flick of her hand both dogs trotted away from the cattle and moved towards her.
“Cal, you did a good job. I owe you my life, pulling me out of the line of fire like that,” Jake growled out.
Cal turned red at the old man’s compliment. “Thanks, Jake. I hit one of ‘em, the one that shot you. I hit him,” he said excitedly.
“Know you did, boy. Good shooting. Boss men will be proud of you,” Jake said turning to Indy. “Those are some dogs of yours. You train them?”
“Yes sir. The one with the black patch around his eye is Tweed. The one with the brown face is called Chester. I’ve had both of them since they were born. They are the best cattle dogs in the country.” Indy knew that for a fact after the last rounding competition she had participated in a year ago when they had still been pups.
“The boss men are always looking for new hands. You need a job or you just passing through?” Jake asked curiously looking a little closer at the kid in front of him. It was hard to see the kid’s face as he kept it turned slightly away and had his hat pulled down and collar pulled up. He didn’t look much older than Cal did. Still soft in the face like Cal was.
“Looking for a job. You think your bosses will hire me and the boys on?” Indy asked nodding towards Tweed and Chester.
“Hell yeah after what you saved them today. Those thieving butchers would have killed the two of us and took damn near a hundred head of cattle if it hadn’t been for you.” Jake spit into the dirt next to the tree.
“I’ve got to break camp. I can be back before nightfall if you think you can get me a job. This way it will also even out the odds if those men decide to come back,” Indy said rising and moving towards Midnight.
“You wanted by the law, boy?” Jake asked suddenly watching Indy carefully.
Indy jerked to a stop, not turning around at first. “Maybe.” Indy turned to look Jake in the eye. She never lied if she could help it and she wasn’t about to start because of her brothers. “I don’t lie, steal, or hurt other people. I just want to be left alone. There are some men looking for me. I would prefer it if they didn’t find me. Why they are looking is between me and them. If you have a problem with that I’ll head out now and keep going.”
Jake studied Indy for a moment seeing the truth and pride in the kid’s stance. He believed Indy didn’t lie, steal or hurt other people, not after the help he had been to them. He was of the mind if it wasn’t any of his business he stayed out of it. He just didn’t want to make a mistake that would cost his bosses.
“I don’t have any problems. Go get your stuff,” Jake replied with a nod.
Indy let out the breath she had been holding. She meant what she had said. If Jake had had a problem with what she had told him, then she would have gotten on Midnight and left, never to return. Now she was riding back to break camp. She knew instinctively she could trust Jake and Cal. They were good men.
It didn’t take Indy long to break camp as she had been doing it so much over the past month or so. In no time at all, she was heading back down the trail out of the timberline and towards the camp by the tree. It was just getting dark when she rode up. Cal was riding around the herd making sure they were okay. He nodded as Indy rode by followed by her band of misfits. Pulling up near the fire, Indy slid from the saddle. She moved with quick efficient steps pulling her remaining supplies off of Kahlua’s back and removing the lead rope. Next, she pulled her saddle and bridle off of Midnight. Giving them both a hand signal she watched as they moved off to join the cattle and graze.
“You train them too?” Jake asked as he stirred a thick stew in a pot over the fire with one hand. He had the other in a sling.
“Yes. I have something that will help you with the pain if you like,” Indy said reaching for her saddlebag. She had noticed the tight lines around Jake’s mouth as he moved. She removed a couple of tablets, holding them out to him. “They won’t make you sleepy or anything, just cut the pain. You’ll feel a difference in about fifteen to thirty minutes,” she explained.
Jake took the two green gel tablets. He looked at them with a puzzled expression on his face. He didn’t question Indy about them though he looked like he would have liked to. He swallowed both of them down with a swig of water from his canteen.
“How’d you learn so much about doctoring?” Jake asked.
“School and a friend,” Indy replied shortly not wanting to say too much. “Tell me about the ranch and who you work for. You said boss men. How many own the ranch?”
Jake swallowed back the grin. He could tell an evasive move when he saw one. The lad didn’t want to talk about his self. “Twin Rivers is the name of the ranch. It’s owned by twin brothers, Jacob and Jonathon Tucker. They mostly raise horses but keep a nice stock of cattle for their own food supply. They have one of the largest ranches in the area.”
“How many men do they employ?” Indy asked pouring a cup of coffee. She wrapped her gloved hands around it for warmth. It had cooled off considerably after the sun went down.
“About fifty at any given time,” Jake responded quietly. “Sometimes more, sometimes less. It’s hard to find good help out here. Most men are either passing through, looking to make a little money, or not cut out for the life,” he added scooping up a bowl of thick stew and handing it to Indy.
Both of them turned when they heard Cal ride up. He quickly dismounted and pulled his saddle off. “Smells good, Jake. How you feelin’?” Cal asked as he grabbed a bowl and filled it with stew.
Jake looked up in surprise at Indy. “Good. Damn lad, those pills you gave me took the pain away like you said. If’n I didn’t know better I would never have guessed I’d been shot this morning.”
Indy just grinned before taking another bite of the stew. She hadn’t missed the use of the word ‘lad’ again. Maybe his thinking her a boy would help her establish herself and give her time to make sure she was safe. “You said the Tuckers raised mostly horses. What type of horses?”
“Mostly Mustangs for the army and local ranches. They have a few race horses too they breed and send back east,” Jake replied before letting out a loud belch.
Indy smothered a grin. She remembered having belching contests with Sam’s boys. She never seemed to win as she could never eat as much as they did. They used to call her the runt because they all towered over her. Sam was tall for a Lakota. He stood at six foot one. All his boys were at least six two or three. Claire used to say it was from all the milk they used to drink. Indy’s own five foot four was not nearly as impressive. She was small boned on top of that and it made her seem eve
n smaller than she was. She had inherited her mother’s features. She had large dark green eyes framed by dark lashes. Her face was heart-shaped leading to the impression she was more feminine than she really was. She had braided and covered her light brown hair, streaked with sun-bleached blonde with a black bandana before covering that with her large Stetson. Her figure was hidden in layers of clothing. She wore a pair of light-weight thermal long Johns covered by her jeans and a pair of leather chaps. Her dark brown coat covered her almost to her knees and had a thick wool lining. She finished out her outfit with a thick scarf she kept tucked into the collar of her coat. She figured she probably looked about the same age as Cal.
Cal looked at Indy then at Jake. “Do you think those men will be back tonight, Jake?”
“Might, though I doubt it.” Jake scratched his chin, the whiskers making a sound similar to someone rubbing sandpaper on a piece of wood. “Might want to take turns keeping watch.”
Indy nodded. “Jake, why don’t you take the first watch? Cal, I’ll take the second if you don’t mind. The boys will help out as well. I’ll set them to making the rounds and keeping an ear out.” Indy looked over at Tweed and Chester, with a flip of her hand they took off like ghosts in the night.
Cal looked at Indy in awe. “How’d you do that?”
“I trained them to protect me as well as the cattle. I studied guard dog training videos and read books then spent hours and hours working with them on hand signals. Not all dogs are as good as those two. The boys and I have been together since they were born so there is a large amount of trust built into our relationship,” Indy replied. It’s a shame that same thing can’t be said about my own brothers, she thought sadly.
Jake poured the remains of his cup into the fire before he stood up. “You two get some shut-eye. I’ll wake you at midnight, Indy.”
Indy nodded. She cleaned up the dirty dishes, stacking them neatly back into the box next to the tree. Pulling her sleeping bag out, she laid it near the fire. She would leave her boots on tonight. She didn’t need any surprise visitors in them when she went to put them on. Unzipping the thick bag, she pulled her coat off and rolled it up to use as a pillow before she slid in and zipped it back up. She hadn’t realized Cal was watching her with wide eyes until she had laid back down.