Chapter 6
Face had at least a six-hour head start but traveling only by the glow of the moon made him go slower than he would in daylight. He knew instinctually where his horse was and followed that gut feeling until he came upon the Indian village just as the sun was rising. He knew he wouldn't be able to recover Dandy until night time so he went looking for a place to hide out. He remembered Coop saying that it was always smart to camp upwind from any prey he might be hunting so his scent wouldn't scare them away and thought the same advice would work here. He found what he was looking for about a mile or so away in a small thicket of trees. It was just large enough for him and Dallas to hide in until nightfall. He stopped at the nearest stream so that Dallas could have a drink and he could refill His canteen before going back to his hideaway to wait until night.
He fed Dallas some of the oats he brought before staking him nearby so he could graze a bit before laying down on the saddle blanket to sleep. He fell into a restless sleep before waking about mid-day. Upon waking he ate some jerky and drank from his canteen before planning his next step in recovering his horse.
It was dusk when Face rode back to the stream he had found earlier. He quickly mix dirt with the water making a muddy substance that he smeared on all of his exposed body parts but especially in his hair quickly turning it from blond to black.
He also smeared Dallas with it to mask both of their scents from the dogs that roamed around the camp. By the time he had finished, night had fallen and he mounted and rode carefully towards the roaming horse herd behind the camp.
It didn't take Face long to locate Dandy but was surprised that he was taking short steps until he got closer and saw that he had been hobbled. He quickly dismounted and cut the hobbles away before embracing his horse. He then grabbed Dallas' reins and walked away from the herd certain that Dandy would follow. Once they were clear of the herd and camp Face mounted and rode away. Dandy kept up with Face and Dallas as they made their way as far away from the Indian camp as they could.
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It took Coop and Hannibal longer to discover the Indian camp where they suspected the horse had been taken. As they came upon the camp they saw that the camp was in an uproar. "I would say that your kid has been there," remarked Coop off-hand.
Hannibal pulled his binoculars out and looked the camp over. "I don't see any signs of Face being there, of course, he could be in one of the teepees."
"Do you see Murdock's horse?"
Hannibal looked carefully at the horses milling about as well as those being mounted by the warriors. "Nope, he's not there. So you think that Face isn't there either?"
"I think your son went in there and got his horse and then they left. I think he did it during the night and now is on his way back to the train."
Hannibal looked around trying to find the point where they could pick up his tracks. "What do you say that we start looking as near to the horse herd as possible," pointing to the eastern side near the hills? The horses were in a natural bowl between two hills. Coop looked at the spot and nodded.
"If I came in from the west that is where I would walk out."
The two men rode to that spot and began to look for shoed hoof prints and were soon awarded in finding the sets, one being a bit deeper than the other. Without a word between them they followed and as night was falling came upon a clearing where they could just barely see a light flickering. Hannibal called out, "FACE!" There was a pause and then a hesitant reply. "Hannibal?"
Both men slowly entered to see the young boy holding a rifle on them but were happy to see it lowered as soon as he saw who they were. "Hannibal," Face cried as he sank wearily to his knees, unable to stop the tears from falling. He was so tired, emotionally as well as physically that upon seeing his father finally let loose of his emotions as cried.
Hannibal was at his side at once, comforting him by pulling him to himself and holding tight. "I got you. You're safe now. Sleep for now and we will talk when you wake," he said soothingly.
As soon as Face heard Hannibal telling him that he was safe, he closed his eyes and was out like a light. Hannibal gently lifted him and placed him on the makeshift bed, the horse blanket on the ground, and covered him with his blanket. Once that was done the two men made short work of removing their horses' gear and feeding them, before seeing to their own needs.
It was only after they tied their horses to the picket line next to Dallas and Dandy, that they build up the fire and began to fix something for supper. Soon they had coffee brewing and were chewing on some of Face's jerky.
"I won't ever doubt him, again. He said that he would get Dandy back and he did, but what I want to know is how he knew to do all of this?" Hannibal said as glanced around the camp.
"From me, if I'm not mistaken. Only at the time, I didn't know I was teaching. I've been telling the boys stories about surviving out here and it seems that your son heard, remembered, and put many of them to use," remarked Coop.
"Well, I'm glad he was listening. That was one of the things that scared me so deeply, his being on his own in this wild country. When he was my drummer boy we all looked after him. But being out here in an area he knew nothing about I was so scared that he might be hurt by others than the Indians, like the wild animals that roam out here." Hannibal admitted. "You seem to be a very good teacher, Coop and for that, I am very thankful."
Coop just nodded. "I figure that we are only a day's hard riding behind the train, but for your boy's sake, we had better take it easier. It will probably take us a couple of days to catch up and maybe on the way we can find a large body of water to rinse him off in. Whatever he mixed up to camouflage both his scent and self in has a mighty potent smell to it."
Hannibal chuckled, "I have an idea of what one of the ingredients was and I don't know if a mere rinsing will handle it. I think it will take several bathtubs of water before Mrs. B considers him clean. I figure that she will have him in a tub just as soon as BA fills it for her…clothes and all."
Coop got up to check the horses while Hannibal checked on Face who was still sleeping soundly, before returning to the fire and adding another small log. His kid had done an admirable job in setting this camp up. He had seen the horses' needs first. He had removed Dandy's gear, tying both Dallas and him to a picket line and brushing and feeding them before gathering wood for the fire. He had to gather large and smaller sticks. He build a smokeless fire with the driest materials he had. It looked to Hannibal that he was just about to fix his bed when they rode up. He was very proud of his son….proud but angry that he had put himself in such a dangerous situation. Something that would be addressed later…after they had returned to the wagon train and after he had recovered from his adventure. Then he would explain why he was not to ever do something so dangerous again and when he had finished he knew his son would not feel much like riding for a day or so afterward.