by Rita Hestand
"Do you think they will come upon us?" Johnson asked his concern showing on his expressive face.
Cully studied him a moment. Johnson was about forty-five, with black hair and dark eyes. He was heavy set and, yet he had the voice of a mild-mannered man. He didn't look like he could wield authority in any way. He also knew very little about the Indians. Cully didn't like that. He thought Johnson should have been asking a lot of questions of the Colonel, but it wasn't his place to tell him.
"The Colonel informed me that they had been stealing from the trains, stock, supplies and stuff, so I expect them to come upon us. I also expect with a scout we can make trades that both of us can benefit from."
Johnson nodded. "And will this Hobby fella know how to take care of that?"
"He'll talk to them for us. But we might have to defend our train ourselves, if it comes to that." Cully informed him. "Can many of your people use a gun?"
"Oh yes, quite a few actually."
"Good. Just make sure those guns are not loaded in the wagons while traveling."
"Oh, and why is that."
Cully couldn't believe this man could ever be a wagon master. He knew nothing, obviously. "Loaded guns can go off, if you fall down or hit a bump in the road a loaded gun can go off, killing someone easily. Those kinds of accidents are needless, but they happen. And a lot unless the people have been told. Unloaded guns can't kill you."
"I'd seriously never thought of that. I never realized just how intense this job was until now."
"No worries. We'll get through."
" Good."
" I want to move out as soon as possible, will that be a problem for you?"
"No, that's fine." Johnson agreed. "We'd planned on leaving today."
"Alright, let's get moving." Cully told him.
"Yes, of course."
Cully felt he needed to talk to Johnny before they moved out, so when he saw him outside he motioned for him to come in.
"What's up?" Johnny asked.
"We're combining trains, it will be a bit safer this way. At least I hope so. This Johnson fella that was wagon master, he's a real green horn. Try not to rile him, but if there is trouble let me know fast. We'll have a hundred and fifty wagons now and it's gonna take all us men to get the wagons through. I also hired a scout and two men to help defend the train if there is any trouble."
"Are they gunmen?"
"No, sharpshooters for the army, mostly. And the scout."
"Yeah, I met him just now. Hobby?"
"That's him."
"Seems like a good fella."
"I liked him. I got a couple more men for us so that might help if we get in a pinch or have much wagon trouble. Do we have plenty of extra wheels and grease?"
"Yes sir, got one whole wagon full of supplies from here."
"Good. Might load up with whatever we can find to trade, in case of a visit from our Indian friends. Now I've instructed Johnson that I want no carousing with the women, no drinking, no gun play. Help me keep that straight with the others. Get to know some of them and feel them out for me. If there are problems I want to know quickly."
"Sure thing. If Johnson was a wagon master, which one of you is leading this?"
"Me and you. I want you to do like you been doing, but keep an eye on the other train, I don't know how well stocked they are, or what shape their wagons are in. Keep an eye out for any kind of trouble. Since we have Hobby to watch for water holes and Indians, I'll be around closer too. But with this many wagons, we'll need someone on drag and someone up front too. Right now, check with Slim and see if they have a remuda or cattle with them. If they do, put the new men on that for now. Bunch them together, count them though so when we split up they can take their own. I want to keep this train moving as much as possible."
As an after thought Cully hollered before Johnny left, "Check on that pregnant lady, and see if there is another doctor on board anywhere. And if there are any more pregnant women with us now."
Johnny nodded. "Will do, boss."
"Thanks."
"You're takin' on a lot now."
"Yeah, something I hadn't planned on, but we'll deal with it. I've found that surprises are all part of the trip."
Johnny smiled and left.
The Colonel walked back in and glanced at Cully. "Did the two of you agree to it?"
"We did. And we settled most questions for now. I guess we'll be rolling out of here within the hour, Colonel. Sorry we didn't get anyone married off."
"No but that young lady who is staying, I see wedding bells in her eyes." The Colonel laughed, "Those kinds of things take time Cully. And you just don't have the time."
"Yeah, I know. I'm happy for her though, she's a sweet little gal."
"Good luck to you."
"Thanks, we'll need it."
Cully stood on the boardwalk, staring at the wagons and all the people getting ready to move out. He'd have a meeting tonight and talk to all the people. He sure dreaded taking this many wagons on, but it couldn't be helped. If he could pull the people together, they could easily protect the wagons. It wasn't the people so much as the unpredictable weather, the breaking down of wagons, the diseases that might come with so many on board, and Indians and outlaws. He hadn't mentions outlaws very much, he might ought to. Outlaw could be detrimental to a train full of people, taking all their precious heir looms and stealing all their cattle for meat. He wouldn't think on them for a while himself. In truth outlaws were more of a threat to a train than Indians. That is unless the Indians were at war.
Chapter Ten
Johnny reported to Cully the next afternoon, shaking his head. "Well, I've met a lot of them and they all seem pretty nice. But several of their wagons are loaded way too heavy. We got three more pregnant women, and another doc. He seems pretty good. But I gotta tell you, these people have never traveled like this, they are all green-horns."
"Thanks Johnny, I kind of figured on that. We'll handle the wagon problem soon, before we get to the river crossings. Keep an eye on the pregnant women and let me know if you spot any other problems."
"What kind of problems am I looking for?"
"Drinkers, fast tempers, people that talk too much out of turn. They can cause a wagon train lots of trouble."
Johnny nodded. "Want me to do anything about it?"
"Nope, not yet, just tell me about it. Johnny, there's something I want you to know." Cully studied on telling Johnny about the women all night and decided it was best he know.
After he told him, Johnny shook his head. "I never realized it, but I did get a sense of something different about them. Then they aren't gold-diggers?"
"No, they are strong determined women who want a better life. And you and I are going to see they get it."
Johnny nodded. "Glad you told me."
Cully sized him up then smiled. "Rebecca is a good girl, but she's been through hell."
"She won't be any more."
"Kind of thought that's the way the wind blew with you."
Johnny smiled.
Three days out of Ft. Kearney a Sheriff happened along, stopping the train.
"Something we can do for you Sheriff?" Cully asked as the wagons rolled to a stop that early afternoon. A mockingbird was singing in a tree and Cully stopped to listen. He always enjoyed the sounds of nature, but the Mockingbird was a special bird to Cully. He always sounded so lonely, singing his heart out and few listening.
"Lookin' for a man." The Sheriff wasn't amused at Cully's lack of interest.
Cully sized the man up quickly, no nonsense to him. All business. Capable, and probably fast with a gun.
"Oh, what man?" Cully uncinched his horse then turned to stare at the big burly Sheriff, who was probably middle-aged, and well-seasoned on his job.
"His name is Dagget, he robbed a stage not three miles out of Barefoot, this morning." The Sheriff eyed him closely.
"Barefoot?"
"Yeah, it's a small settlement about twenty miles out of Ft. Kea
rney."
"Why do you think he's on this train?" Cully asked him.
"I don't know for sure. But he was headed in your direction. Thought he might try to steal a ride. I just want to be sure. It'd made a good hiding place for him."
"I see." Cully glanced around at his men who were eyeing the Sheriff with a bit of contempt. "Alright Sheriff, you've got two hours to search us and be on your way. We have a schedule to keep. But I tell you what, if you got something my dog can sniff, he can be a big help. If the man is here, he'll know it."
The Sheriff eyed him sharply then the dog. "The man I'm looking for is a killer. He killed the stagecoach driver and one of the passengers. He robbed them too. I'd be glad to use your dog. I've got a hat he dropped on the way, he can smell that."
Cully led Slug to the Sheriff and gave him the hat to sniff. Slug sniffed for some time then he began moving between the wagons.
"Go ahead." Cully offered. "We respect the law."
Johnson came up to Cully. "Is this necessary?"
Cully eyed him closely. "Johnson if we have a killer on board, I want him off now. We don’t need that kind of trouble."
"Yes, yes, I suppose you are right about that. It's just the constant stopping, isn't getting us very far." Johnson cleared his throat.
"There's a time to be impatient, this isn't one of them." Cully told him. Johnson walked off.
Johnny helped the Sheriff. They went through a series of wagons, Slug kept moving on toward the end of the train.
Slug started growling though as they neared one of the last wagons. The Sheriff watched the dog and was sure he was on to something. They opened one wagon flap near the end and a man jumped out with a pregnant lady.
Slug barked loudly, and that alerted Cully that he'd found him.
"Drop your guns, Sheriff, or I'll kill the lady."
Isabell Thornton was seven months pregnant, and as the gunmen held his pistol to her head, she shook with pure fear.
"That would be a double murder, since she's with child." The Sheriff told him as his eyes never left the man.
"What do I care, one more or less." The outlaw told them with a snicker. He was a lean man, with a hideous scar on one cheek and his glaring stare told the Sheriff he wasn't bluffing.
"Let the lady go, Dagget." The Sheriff said tightly.
"Not a chance. She's my ticket out of this. Do you think I'm crazy? Why do you think I joined up with this train? It's a perfect get away."
"You're under arrest, Dagget, for killing the stagecoach driver and a passenger, and robbing the stage."
"Under arrest, am I? Looks like I'm holding all the cards right now." Dagget laughed, his yellow teeth snarling at the woman who was shaking so bad he had to get a better grip on her arm.
"Don't make this worse than it is. You kill a pregnant lady and they'll hang you sure. In fact, you might not get off this train alive if you harm that woman."
Slug growled at the man, bristling.
"Call that damn dog off," Dagget told the Sheriff.
"He's not my dog," The Sheriff chuckled drily.
He stared at the woman a moment, then snarled, "She's right pretty isn't she?"
Someone yelled from the building crowd around them. "Let my wife go, please!"
"Please, now there's a word I seldom hear." Dagget laughed.
"I beg you, she's with our first child," the man stepped out of the crowd.
Slug followed Dagget, growling all the way.
"Now don't be a hero mister, I'll let her go, as soon as I'm free and clear of this Sheriff. I wouldn’t hurt a pretty little gal like this."
"Have you no decency?" The man cried aloud.
"Decency? Well, now that is a question, isn't it?"
"He doesn't know what the word means," The Sheriff ground his words through his teeth.
Slug snarled, and the man pointed his gun at him. "Call that damn dog off, now!"
Cully heard and saw the ruckus and snuck up behind the wagon. He'd have to shoot straight so no one got hurt but the outlaw. But he was bent on taking him down.
"Now get out of my way," the outlaw said, flashing his gun against the woman's cheek.
Cully waited for a good shot, he couldn't risk the woman's life, but he was going to take the outlaw down if he could. He'd wait until he tried to mount up before shooting, that way the woman could get clear of his shot. If he missed, Slug would jump him. He knew that for fact.
"Get me a horse," the outlaw shouted at Johnny.
"Sure." Johnny grit his teeth and pulled a horse up quickly from the remuda. A crowd gathered, everyone still as a mouse, watching.
"I'll let her go, if you don't follow. If you do, I'll kill her. That's a promise."
"Please, please…. I'm begging you." Her husband shouted.
"Begging me? Well, sorry, I gotta use her for a while. But if you men use your head, I'll be happy to let her go, later."
He was about to mount, Cully came from around the wagon, the man pointed his gun at the dog as Slug was about to pounce upon him. Cully took his shot. The outlaw staggered on the horse and finally fell to the ground, dead.
The pregnant woman gasped aloud, clutching her chest and moving just in time for the body to land in the dirt at her feet. Her husband rushed toward her as she practically fainted in his arms.
The Sheriff nodded to Cully. "Thanks. And thanks for the dog's help, too. I sure wish I had one like that. Might make my job a bit easier."
"Good dogs like Slug are hard to find."
The people all started talking among themselves, some amazed at how quickly Cully had handled the situation. Everyone pet Slug as he moved toward Cully once more.
Cully reached for his dog and smiled. "Good boy.". The pregnant woman wrapped her arms around her husband. He hugged her tightly and kissed her head.
Johnson frowned, "Did you have to kill him?"
Cully stared at the man. "Johnson, did you honestly want me to let him take that woman with him?"
"Well no…. but he's dead!"
The Sheriff heard and came to stand before Johnson. "This man did right. He saved that woman's life. He had the draw on him and that man is a killer, I'd already told him so. He'd have killed that woman when he was free and away from here, you can bet your boot on that. She was a witness, and had a good look at him, there was no way he'd have turned her lose."
"Well, yes, I guess you are right. But I'm against killing."
Cully heard that remark and turned on him, "Well, Mr. Johnson," he pronounced his name with a sour twist. "Get used to it. As a wagon master you might have to kill an Indian, an outlaw, or an animal. That's part of our job."
"Good thing you're not the wagon master around here," The Sheriff bellowed with a frown, mounted and left, saluting Cully.
"Folks, after supper, I want to talk to you all." Cully told them.
He'd put off talking about outlaws long enough, they needed to know.
Abby came up through the crowd and stared almost anxiously at him. "Are you alright?" she asked.
"I'm fine." He grinned and moved off.
"Slug was sure brave." She commented.
He heard her and turned to smile, "Yeah, he's a real hero."
Abby stared after him for a long while.
Later when the women finished cleaning up the mess from supper Johnny gathered the two trains together.
Cully stared out at the mass of people. He climbed the back of a wagon, so he could see everyone. "Today you witnessed one of the real hazards of a wagon train. Outlaws are one of the biggest problems. I didn't mention it before because I didn't want you all worrying over things like that, it's my job to do the worrying. Now there are things you people need to know about a train. The law isn't something that is always around where we are. They don't normally follow wagon trains, although I'm glad that Sheriff did. Outlaws usually want two things, our beef, horses, and our money. They would rob an entire train of their most precious possessions. And most of them would kill you witho
ut thinking about it. So, the outlaw is our biggest threat aside from diseases."
"Bigger than the Indians?" Someone yelled.
"Yes. Indians in peaceful times only want supplies like blankets and food, and we can trade them for things we need along the way, if they are friendly and for safety reasons we will assume any Indians that approaches the train want to trade. Unless they are wearing war paint, you usually don't have to worry about them. Some tribes are friendly. Now since the law doesn't travel with us, we are the law. As wagon master I can conduct a court and trial if necessary, so you are subject to that while you are on this train. Trials are usually only held for such cases as murder and robbery. You have to have law and order no matter where you are.
"Another thing I want to talk to you about is that we are a large train now. Because we are large, we must be careful about our waste. Don't ever empty your pots near the river, but as far away from it as you can."
"Why?" one man protested.
"So, we don't spread the disease of Cholera to another train behind us. So, we don't make people sick." Cully explained.
"What if the trains before us already have?" Another asked.
"The water is tested before anyone can drink from it. If it's bad, we'll know. It could even mean going farther up the trail. without water."
"Even if we are riding right by the Platte?" A woman asked.
"Yes ma'am. You don't want Cholera ma'am. Cholera isn't the only worry, there's pox, measles and scarlet fever. So, wash your hands as much as you can. I've been told by several doctors that washing your hands is important…. unless we have to ration water."
"Ration water?" One woman hollered.
"When necessary we ration water. It's for the protection of all."
"We gotta listen to a lecture on washing our hands?" One man laughed.
"Yes, you do, sir. You've all heard the expression, "Cleanliness is next to Godliness. It's true."
Some of the men made some faces at that.
"Now Mr. Johnson, do you have anyone in your train that is a preacher?"