4' Chapter
"You wait here-I'll go talk to them."
" I wait here for your signal White Eagle., I know I can trust you!"
Zeb turned away from him and came to 'coachman's height.
" Good morning...I saw that you stopped to talk to those Indians... Are you on their side?'
" Let's say I'm trying to mediate to save your skins! they are starving and just want food and money to survive!"
" If you want food let them have it...I have a few sacks on top between flour, sugar and beef jerky but there is no money...I don't carry values...I only have my few pennies and maybe they have something too!"
"Can you tell me if Miss Dolores is in the stagecoach?"
"We have a young lady but I don't know her name...the sheriff told me there is a friend of his who watches over her - he got off the wagon -.
Come!"
Doreen looked out
" You, Macahan, what are you doing here?"
" Can you please come down, I need to talk to you!"
" Are you in the business of robbing stagecoaches?"
" Oh no, absolutely I'm here to protect you. It pains me to tell you, but Britten has escaped and is now looking for you."
" There, I knew it," she said testily, turning her face away, "I shouldn't have listened to you!"
" Now calm down, I'll take you to a safe place where he won't be able to find you!"
" But I am going to Chicago, I telegraphed and they are waiting for me!"
" She will go, but after we put
Britten in his cell!"
And where was he going to take me, let's hear... To Josh's by any chance?"
" No, you wouldn't be safe there either, for now! I'm going to have you escorted to Fort Clarke until things settle down!"
Lieutenant Mitchell joined them. Doreen squared him and complimented him with a big smile.
" Lieutenant, you Miss Doreen!"
" Well, Zeb.. - then turned to her - it's a pleasure to meet you, miss!"
"And tell me, do you also live at Fort Clarke?"
" Of course miss, you'll see you'll like it! We have special rooms for the kind ladies, our guests, and the colonel, he's a great guy!"
"If they're all like you, Lieutenant, I'm convinced we'll get along!" he said flirtatiously.
" Well lieutenant, I entrust her to you!"
" I don't think so, Mr. Macahan!, guns down, everybody!"
" Britten!!! And where did you spring from?"
" It doesn't matter! Well, well, Doreen, it seems we meet again. -
he said pointing his gun at Mitchell, to whom Doreen had clung - leave her!"
He yanked the girl and drew her to him.
" No, leave me, leave me!!!!"
Britten hit her with a violent slap on the cheek, making her fall to the ground.
" You filthy curs, you will pay!"
Zeb said as she approached him, despite being under fire from Pollard and Palomo's rifles.
In no time, with a lightning-fast gesture, Britten turned around and hit Zeb in the head with the butt of his gun, causing him to tumble to the ground semi-conscious.
After ensuring that Macahan was harmless, he turned again to look at the girl.
" This, Macahan is on par with the ones you gave me in Las Mesas, in my house!"
" You won't get away with it Britten, you'll end up on the gallows!"
His vision darkened and he closed his eyes, stunned.
Britten was about to bend down to raise Doreen when an arrow struck him in the shoulder,
his revolver fell to the ground, and soon after he too slumped down in pain.
Immediately Mitchell's men were on him and so was Palomo.
" Shoot Pollard!"
Jack turned to Macahan, who had opened his eyes again...
" No, Palomo, I will not...lieutenant...I ..I don't do these things...I don't want to kill anyone...they forced me to come with them...and then... Macahan, Luke I mean, I even like him."
Zeb, holding his forehead wound with one hand, got up, reached the boy and put his hand on his shoulder
" Well done boy! Well done!"
" Well Zeb, there's always on him the 'charge of Mrs. Clara's murder!"
" I swear to you, Lieutenant and to you too, Mr. Macahan. I didn't kill anybody...I should have done it, yes, but I didn't have the courage...he did...!" He kept silent, did not say the name
of his friend Palomo and lowered his head.
"I think the boy is sincere, you know, Mitchell.But, As for you two, now you have a nice little trip back, ... Mitchell, you tie them up good."
" It will be done sir!"
Black Hawk arrived near them.
Mitchell turned toward him.
" Apparently we owe you a lot, Black Hawk. I will see to it that the 'army compensates you properly, the bounty money on Britten can only be yours."
" I didn't do it for money! I cannot tolerate any harm being done to a woman, nor to our friend White Eagle!"
"I thank you Black Hawk, you are very wise but Mitchell is right..accept the reward wholeheartedly...it will help you and your men to live more decently...without the need for ...well you got it!"
"All right, White Eagle, I will go with them to collect the reward, if you say this white chief is good person!"
" You can trust him, he is a good friend and Mitchell will also vouch for you. Ah what shall I tell the people in the stagecoach?"
" They are free to go..I will never bother them again..Goodbye brother!"
" This is not goodbye, Black Hawk! I will see you again!"
" You will always be welcome!"
Lt. Mitchell with his men and the 'unusual native escort, left the valley to return to Fort Clarke with the prisoners.
" On the march... -hurled Mitchell-and as for you Britten after the stop at Fort Clarke, you will be escorted back to Las Mesas...
the stage is already set...I think he'll be hung as soon as he sets foot in the village...that's one option...but there's another...if he tries to be smart and escape he'll either get an arrow in his throat or a shot from my Colt
and either way I bury her in the street! Do I make myself clear?"
" Damn you Macahan..you and your fucking Indian friends!" he shouted.
" Well...gentlemen...in the carriage...off we go!"
" And you Doreen, what are you going to do?"
"I will go to Chicago..they are waiting for me!
She kept her word... you are my guardian angel indeed..-she blew him a kiss on the cheek- Ah would you do me a favor? will you say hello to Josh for me?"
" Sure! Will do! Why don't you come and see us when you get settled?"
" I'm not promising anything but I'll think about it! You, however, need to be medicated...you have a bad wound!"
" Ah I've seen worse! I'll stop at the first little village on the way home...I have urgent business to attend to! Goodbye Doreen!"
" Goodbye Mr. Macahan, and thanks again!"
--
Frank had been riding for more than 10 hours and it was almost sunset when he arrived in Teton.
He had come from a punitive expedition, near Waco, where he had ended the outlaw career of a man named Wyler, who was wanted for cattle thefts and a number of murders, one of them, that of a well-liked district judge in northeast Texas.
She had found him in a Waco saloon where, now drunk, he was bragging about his misdeeds to a "drinking buddy."
He decided to wait for him outside the saloon and after chasing him for a few miles decided to face him in a duel.
There was no story; she cold-cocked him with a precise shot to the chest, buried him under a large tree and said a prayer for his poor soul.
Now, after a lot of work and a lot of dust eaten, he felt in his heart a desire to slow down but, above all, to see Laura again; that blackberry tart and her sweet smile he just could not get out of his mind and heart.
Because of misunderstandings with the new boss he had not wanted to return to the "Texas Ranger" to collect Wyler's bounty and had not lingered in any town for several days to browse the pages of the newspapers.
He was thirsty, very thirsty, and decided to stop at the saloon and have " un vaso de vino."
He dismounted from his horse and secured it at the side of the 'trough so that it, too, could refresh itself!
He was about to enter the saloon when he heard himself called.
" Hey, Grayson, is Frank you?"
He turned around.
" Hello Charlie!"
" Ah! remember me?"
" Sure, why wouldn't I! I remember the challenge of the glasses; it was you who threw them in the air!"
" Gee, you have a good memory..it's been a long time!"
" You had something to tell me?"
" Ah sure, sure, sorry, I'll get to the point.
You may not know...I work at the post office and I know you are very close friends with Miss Laura!"
" So?"
"Well it's been a couple of days since I've seen them in the village..and it's strange...!"
" Go ahead!"
"Yesterday I got this telegram, addressed to them, and since your name is mentioned in the text...I took the liberty of handing it to you so that you could bring it to them...it seems urgent!"
He opened the envelope and read.
" You transcribed this text and did not notify the sheriff?"
" Actually ... I did not think there was imminent danger!"
" Charie, Charlie...do one thing...warn the sheriff right away, I'm going to the farm right away! Tell him to join me as soon as he can!"
" Yes...I'll go right away!"
--
Luke awoke at first light.
The old post station had given him and the feds shelter from the rain, but now, through the two dusty windows, a shy sun was filtering its rays inside the humble cottage.
"Come on gentlemen, wake up! We need to get moving!"
" What time is it Luke?"
"It's 7:15 a.m. ..come on it's late! now let's get out; from this location we can see if our friends are catching up with us."
" We'll get ready; you, meanwhile, if you want, go ahead and start going out to check!"
He went out and, having reached the highest point, hid behind a tree and peered into the valley below.
" There they are, you varmints! Luckily we still have a good lead, it will be at least two hours!
He left the lookout point and returned to the federals.
" So what can you tell us?"
" They are coming, they will have me for at least two hours before they get here!"
" What if we confront them here? We're on top of them, they'd be easy targets!"
" Why not. Or we could just scare them off and waste their time getting their horses back."
"No Thorne, I had thought of that too, but Tomaz knows this technique of mine; I had already used it in Dowby Town. He would immediately know it was me... Actually I would have another idea!" he said, smiling.
"What's on your mind Macahan...I'm scared of your grin!"
" This is the only access point isn't it?"
"Yes, of course, they have to come through here, like we did!"
" Well...- he kicked the ground- well, the ground is soft, this rain all in all did no damage... In the cottage I saw shovels; if we dig a little across the width of the passage and cover with twigs we'll bring them down, maybe even just a couple of them. We'll slow them down just enough to give us the advantage!"
" You know you are smart Macahan! Now I see why you've managed to get away with it so far!"
" And to think that Hutch was already giving you up for dead in Dowby Town!"
" I never said that!"
" Oh yes you did...remember... I have an idea that boy is not going back where he's going!"
" All right maybe I did say that but I'm glad I was wrong. Come on, let's get the shovels and get to work!"
They took the shovels and dug a hole about 12 inches deep ( About 30 centimeters)
after which they covered it with twigs and foliage, after which they left..
" Do you think it will work Luke?"
" Well I certainly hope so, we have reduced the lead to only an ' hour."
"Just ahead is another rise before we get to Jimson's Break, we'll check it out from there! At most you start down at the sheriff's and we'll check it out!"
"Also no, thank you! It's not that I don't trust you but ... I'd rather not leave you alone!"
"You still don't trust us eh!"
" Let's say you didn't give me a way to have your absolute credibility! If it were up to you I should have heard from you already in El Maison ... but that was not the case!"
" What we told you in El Maison was the truth!"
" You used me for your own purposes!"
" And you are now using us, we are even, it seems to me...so let's trust each other!"
" That may be...but it's done my way, and in the end, if all goes well, everyone will get their comeuppance...or will they?"
" I asked for it, Luke, all right! I deserve it!"
They arrived at the next pass and from there descended toward the Green River; of their pursuers not a 'shadow.
Luke showed them the spot where he first met Orville, telling them the facts and smiling at the memory of " Emma," after which they took the path leading to the town.
--
" Hey, guys, help me!" he said with a grimace of pain.
"Are you hurt, Tomaz?"
"I'm afraid I broke my arm!! I'd really like to know what this hole is doing here?"
" Hey, Gruner, look at this-there are boot prints, fresh!"
" You know what- said Tomaz getting up- I have a vague feeling I know who they belong to!!! He did it on purpose to slow us down!"
" But who are you talking about Tomaz?"
" It's Luke, I can feel it!"
" That's impossible-how does he know?"
" I'll tell you...that guy with the mustache in the store...the one Palomo was telling us about! to me he wasn't a salesman...but a spy put there by Luke...he's been there, in San Antonio and when we got there he heard us planning and anticipated us!!!"
"Mah! seems strange to me!! it's true he's very clever, I noticed it, when we were in Serena but... I don't know if up to this point.!"
" Remember he's Zeb Macahan's nephew, the army scout...maybe he'll be there too!...aah that hurts!! luckily it's the right...with the left I can still shoot...and if it's really his doing...I'll bill it to him, along with the bullet to the shoulder...!"
" Don't worry Tomaz... he will pay, and very dearly...
that's what we're all here for...come on now, there's a post station there...maybe they'll be able to medicate you and maybe tell us if your little friend stopped by."
--
Luke, Hutch, and Thorne arrived at Jimson's Break around mid-afternoon.
The town was quite bustling; people on the roadsides were looking in one 'direction ... as if they were attending some event ... or a race.
" No, please don't let that be what I think it is!"
" What are you saying Luke? Does that remind you of something?"
" Yes something quite painful! Ah, word of advice...hold on to your horses tightly!
The first time I came here, I entrusted a young boy with the horse, during a race...
at the 'arrival of the contenders the horse, spooked, escaped from the boy's grasp, got in the way of the race course and unhorsed one of the riders ( Hillary) and for that I got a big kick on the shin."
"Ha ha...what a temper, the girl! Apparently, though, every cloud has a silver lining!"
""I'm really curious to see if she's still putting on a show!!!""
Shortly thereafter, two young men paraded on their horses, pulled at full gallop, amidst festive cheers cheering the winner who had just crossed the finish line.
The crowd slowly dispersed, and Luke and the feds, hand-carrying their horses by the bridles, reached the square in front of Orville''s office.
" Come on, come on!" He knocked
" Forward, forward!"
"It is permitted!"
" Luke...welcome back!!!"
" Thank you..but what's going on out here? For a moment I had a feeling that..."
" That he had been up to another one of his, I guess!!! Don't worry, ever since we heard the good news, she's been spending his time cooking, finding new recipes, but most importantly, she's been going to the 'emporium ... it's already the second outfit she's bought in a week.! As for what you saw outside ... today's contest is between two exponents of the two sides of town to determine the strongest contrada."
" Orville, Where can I find Hillary?"
"She should be here any minute...you look serious Luke...is something wrong?
" Didn't you get my telegram? the one from San Antonio, I mean?"
"No, what telegram?"
" I sent it practically two days ago, Orville... Hillary is in danger!"
" What are you talking about? I read the first one you sent me and also the papers...I'm really very happy, you know, but...tell me what is this all about and, who are these men with you?"
" Ah yes, sorry Orville, these are Hutch and Thorne, two federal agents-we are cooperating in the capture of... -he raised his head to the poster-well of those two!,
They will be coming to town shortly.
Orville, I need to find Hillary right away and get her safe...will you take care of explaining the story to them?"
" Yes of course!!! Go ahead!!!"
"Ok, be careful, I recommend Luke!. she should be at the emporium; she wanted to buy a nice dress for your arrival."
" Don't worry Orville, they won't find her!"
He went out and headed for the emporium across the street. He saw her, in profile, looking through the clothes on display outside.
He stopped, almost three-quarters of the way down the street and stared at her, she was radiant; her sweet face, her long hair moved by the light breeze blowing in from the northwest. How he adored that girl so beautiful and so unpredictable.
She nervously arranged her hair; Her heart was beating 'round the clock, she gave a great sigh then decided to go on.
He came up behind her and encircled her waist.
" But, put those hands down right now...-he said the 'last word turning around-Oh Luke! Luke!"
"If you don't want to, miss, I'll go!"
"Oh! no, no! Oh Luke I'm so glad to see you!.- she hugged him - ..Please tell me can I?"
" You can what?" already sensing his thoughts.
"Can I kiss you?" he said, almost blushing.
"Here, in front of everyone?"
"Luke Macahan!!!!!!"
" Ah go ahead, for goodness sake, I have no objection ... with you I gave up long ago!"
She literally jumped on his neck and kissed him, firmly and also very gently, still unaware of what was about to happen.
After a few seconds...
" Mh mh... Hey Hillary, we're putting on a show!"
" I don't give a fig!"
" Come on, let's go to a more secluded spot!"
Hillary looked around and blushed, seeing so many people around them, cheering and smiling. Luke also looked around, when, in the distance he saw 4 men on horseback coming
" No, wait ... inside here, let's go into the emporium!" He took her by the hand and almost dragged her inside!"
" Hey, Luke, come on, what are you doing!"
"Come quickly, then I'll explain!" He turned to the owner of the emporium...
" Excuse me, Mrs. Patterson, do you have a back door?"
" Sure Luke, come on.!"
" Now stop, Luke: I'm not taking another step unless you tell me what's going on!"
"All right, Hillary, I have to tell you...you are in danger!
The real killer of Judge Rensen has come to town and he knows you are my fiancée.
He has sworn to get revenge on me by taking it out on you; long ago .he was in love with an outlaw..well he says she died because of me and here of now, he wants revenge."
" Oh my God..what can we do Luke? Can't you and Dad arrest them?"
" It's not that simple-they're ruthless killers! in the office with Dad are also two federal agents; they've been after them for a long time, you know! You have to find a safe place to hide!"
"I could go to Lucy, my friend, she lives out of town...but if they see us leave...there we would have no protection...no...I don't feel like putting her and her mom in danger!"
"Sorry to intrude, I heard you would be in danger...if you want from that door goes up to my apartment...you could stay with me...if they didn't see you come in, you would be safe!"
" That's a good idea, Mrs. Patterson! What do you say Hillary?"
" It's fine with me...but you come too Luke!!!"
" I can't, you know...I have to catch up with your father and plan what to do... you go!"
" Be careful, please! I don't want to lose you right now!"
" Take it easy, everything will be fine!"
" Please, Luke, give me a hug!"
"Hey, don't worry, I have no intention of dying...I have other plans for the future!"
" How cute you are!!! Come on Hillary, come with me!"
They kissed, after which their hands slowly parted and Hillary disappeared behind the back door.
"Start going up dear, the door is open, then I'll join you!"
" Good! You should be okay-now let's see that I don't get caught! - He looked around - Madam would you lend me that sombrero?"
" Sure Luke...listen take that poncho too...if you really want to be credible!"
" Well let's just say I don't have much of a Mexican...I guess I'm a little too tall!"
" There are tall Mexicans too, you know! Come on, put it on! Ah wait... - he rummaged in a drawer -
here with this you're perfect!"
" A cigar!" but I don't smoke!"
" Well pretend...remember a light puff but don't swallow the smoke...I'm saying this for your own good!! so you'll be less recognizable!"
" If you say so!!!"
"Trust me!"
"Thanks for everything Mrs. Patterson!"
" You're welcome! I'll gladly do it, I saw her being born you know; it would break my heart if anything happened to her! Now go on, out the back--I'll take care of her!"
He slowly opened the back door and peeked out..