Chapter 3

I traveled for about six hours, before fading back into some brush. I slipped the bit and left Luc saddled, just in case, and rolled into my blankets, and slept for four hours.

Luc woke me with a snort but it must have been over some varmit, because there was no sign of people. There was a few hours of daylight left so I brushed off as best I could and mounted up. There was supposed to be a village about fifteen miles up the road and I was going to try to make it before dark.

I rode in as the sun was going down. It was a small place so people noticed me right off, but a kid on a mule didn’t exactly look like much of a threat. I had the dueling pieces in the saddlebags, and a Colt Navy in my coat pocket, so I looked unarmed. The Henry rifle in the scabbard was almost brand new but nobody in their right mind traveled unarmed so I doubted it would get much notice.

Finding a livery stable, I spun a tale about trying to catch up to my family and asked the owner if I could sleep in his loft if I paid for Luc’s stabling. He argeed, took my dime, and then told me the diner would be open for about another thirty minutes if I wanted supper.

I beat the dust off my clothes, washed up a little at the well, and went to supper. The woman seemed surprised I was traveling alone but I spun the same tale. She must have felt bad for me judging by the amount of ham, green beans, and mashed potatoes she heaped on my plate and I’m pretty sure I showed my gratitude by cleaning the plate. I also did in five biscuits and three cups of coffe and thought I was going to explode. Then she brought out the fried pies. I ate two, then thanked her politely, giving her the quoted price and a bit more. She gave me another pie to eat later and told me they opened just before daylight for breakfast.

The livery man warned me about smoking in his barn, then walked across the yard to his house. I sat in the loft looking in as he ate his supper and played with his children, kissing his wife and patting her bottom when the kids weren’t looking, beaming at the smile and gentle swats she gave him. I’d seen the exact same scene many times when I was small. When the lamps went out I mounded the hay a little higher and rolled in my blanket and slept like a rock, holding the Colt in my hand.

I woke to the sounds of the holstler starting his day. Rolling my blankets and trying to get the straw off me I climbed down and saddled Luc. Thanking the man for his hospitality, I asked about the river crossing about ten miles away. He frowned.

“Been rainin’ a lot here lately. If it’s flooded, don’t try to cross. Don’t be a fool about it. Drownin’ won’t get you where you need to go any quicker.”

I tied Luc in front of the diner and put enough eggs, bacon, and fried taters away to last me a while, and when she found out I was travelin’, she wrapped threee bacon biscuits and a fried pie in a couple of napkins so I’d have some dinner. It made me feel good that the milk of human kindness kindness still flowed in some people.

A few hours later I was looking at the rolling water, watching big trees and other debris float by. Once I saw the roof of a shed. Well, I hoped it was a shed. The people at the crossiong told me to wait at least one more day and hope it didn’t rain any more. Riding a few miles back I found a likely camping spot, gave Luc some of the corn I’d bought from the livery man, fried up some ham and cornbread, and lay out my blankets. I prowled around a little until it got dark, wondering what I was going to find when I made it past the Mississippi. The carpetbagger had a pretty good stash, enough to last me a good while, but I knew I had to figure out some way to make a living.

Giving up, I rolled into my blankets and was out pretty quick.

It was probably some time after midnight when Luc woke me with a snort. I lay there for a second, listening to someone thrash around in the dark. The moon was three quarters full and if a man took his time he’d be able to see where he was going. I grabbed my boots and slid back under a tall bush, sliding them on as they approached.

Three men, either drunk or pretty close, joshing each other about what they were about to do. Seems they were on their way to a farm. A farm they intended to rob. According to the drunken giggles, they were also going to rape the wife and daughter, after they killed the farmer.

That didn’t strike me as socialable, so I grabbed the Henry and trailed along behind, brushing Luc on the shoulder to keep him quiet. I didn’t particularly try to be quiet, even though they thought they were. It sounded like, well, it sounded like a bunch of drunks stumbling through the woods. I eased up behind the straggler, swinging the rifle like a club when the opportunity presented, and he dropped like a rock, his hat muffling the thud. The middle man turned around, and I waved. He couldn’t see me so he figured I was their partner, whispered (in a pretty loud voice) to be quiet and watch where I was going. I just waved and he turned back around. I caught them just as they got to the tree line, seeing the house. I got the second one, but I didn’t get a clear hit the first time and he tried to yell. I put the butt of the rifle in his mouth, listening to the teeth crunch as he went down.

By this time the leader figured out something wasn’t right, yanked his pistol out, and started shooting in my direction. I was smart enough to hunker down behind a big tree stump and even shooting in the dark he sent splinters showering down on me. I figured he had to be almost out and was starting to roll away from the stump when a voice rang out.

“WHAT THE HELL’S GOIN’ ON OUT THAR?”

The man turned, the pistol still in his hand, and caught both barrels of a twelve gauge shotgun loaded with buckshot. It damn near tore him in two.

I rose up in front of him and he figured he was a dead man, standing there with an empty weapon.

“I ain’t with them! They staggered by my camp hoorahin’ each other about what they were going to do to you and your family. I thought to trail along, to make it a little more equitable. I got the other two knocked out but they might start stirring any minute. Wanna give me a hand?”

I waited while he reloaded, and wily old man that he was, he left me lead the way. We didn’t have any rope so he used the tie down strings of their holsters to strap their thumbs together. I thought that was a pretty neat trick and filed it away. He went back for a wagon and I took the time to break camp and and get Luc.