Chapter 10

I wanted to get an early start, but it seemed like there were way too many things that hadn’t gotten done yet. Or so the women insisted. It was irritating, but Jean-Louis calmed me down some and between the four of us urging them on, we finally rolled out of Gonzales.

Priscilla rode with me that first morning, out in front of the gaggle of wagons and sort-of riders that hadn’t figured out their proper place in the column yet. Jean-Louis had picked out a gelding for her that was a little older and calmer than most, and since she was riding out where we might run into difficulties I gave her one of my pistols and showed her how to load and fire it. I also pointed out that she would have one shot at the most, being inexperienced and slow at reloading, so she should plan on spurring that gelding back to the wagons while I stayed back and slowed down whoever figured to cause trouble.

The day passed quietly, except for the foofaraw a time or two when some woman who figured she was important objected to eating the dust of her inferior up ahead. Jean-Louis calmed them down better than I could, seeing as how he had a way with words that I couldn’t match. Comes from being fluent in at least three languages, I expect. I could make myself understood in French and was better with Spanish, but there were times when American speech plumb failed me. His manners were fit to charm a king, too, while mine were apt to enrage a mule. Not that they needed much encouragement, being born ornery and growing up to be worse.

Priscilla was pleasant company and right pretty I thought, but she was younger than most I’d talked with on my way west. Hardly more than a child I figured, although no child filled out that homespun shirt the way she did. Which left me nearly speechless the first time I noticed.

I pushed on, following what Steven Austin had named the Camino Arriba because it was north of the others, and not allowing a stop until mid-afternoon. By then the old biddies most apt to cause a ruckus were tired enough and cold enough to have calmed down. I led the way off to the side of the road and between us four men, we got the wagons into a square. We unhitched, then brought all of our stock inside except for two fresh horses for Jean-Louis and me.

Abe and Jesse rustled dry oak wood for the fire and convinced the women to organize themselves for cooking and cleaning up afterwards, while Jean-Louis and me rode out ahead about half a mile and dismounted before heading up the creek to find game.

We had been taking turns and it happened that Jean-Louis was leading the horses while I scouted ahead. I surprised a buffalo cow and a yearling drinking at the creek and shot the cow, figuring that I’d only get one shot and the yearling might not have meat enough for everyone. The sound of that gunshot spooked a band of around twenty others that I hadn’t seen and they took off immediately, with the yearling doing his best to catch up.

It took us two trips to get everything back to the wagons, the first time hauling nothing but meat, the second with one horse packing the last of the meat and the other the hide. Heavy, it was, and he was plumb tuckered out by the time we got to the wagons.

A buffalo robe, if I could find someone to tan it for me, was warm enough even for a Texas norther. If I couldn’t get it tanned, I figured to scrape all the meat off that hide myself and use it for a rug.

We had been too busy to talk much on that second trip, but after we got back Jean-Louis complained that I was having all the luck on this trip. I pointed out that he could just as easily have been the one that spotted that buffalo, but it turned out that wasn’t what was bothering him. “Jake, you’re out front riding with Priscilla while I’m stuck back there with a bunch of cranky old women that would scare a Comanche to death! I’d like for us to switch places tomorrow.”

I hadn’t thought about it, but I guessed it made sense. After all, we’d both come down this branch of the road on our way to Gonzales, so he knew the way as well as I did.

The next morning, he rode off with Priscilla as soon as we’d eaten. They were soon out of sight, because we couldn’t leave that campground until Abe and Jesse finished greasing a wheel hub. Which left me with nothing to do but stand around looking dumb and listening to the women complain about this, that, and the other.

A time or two I spotted them two grinning at me, and when I scowled at them they just grinned wider. A body would think they’d already forgot which one of us had hard money to pay them their wages!

We continued to swap jobs for the next few days, Jean-Louis and me. Late afternoons, after we’d made camp and were waiting to eat, I noticed that some of the time Priscilla sat by Jean-Louis after she’d collected her meal. Other times, she sat with me, her mother keeping a close eye on her all the time. There was a lot more talking going on when she was with Jean-Louis than when she was with me. Seemed like she smiled a lot more often too, which bothered me some though I couldn’t figure out why.

When she started to join me out in front a week later, I told her that today it was better if she stayed back with the wagons. I gave as my excuse that we were getting close to where Indians might show up, but the truth is that I just felt like riding alone. It didn’t help, because it turned out that I was bothered by having no one to talk to.

And I wasn’t surprised when she huddled close to the fire that evening with Jean-Louis. Talking a mile a minute, and laughing up a storm. Jesse called me over to take a look an axle on one of the wagons that had developed a lengthwise crack, and after that I got too involved in discussing whether a rawhide wrap might hold the axle together long enough to reach the next town to think about her.

Jesse rode alongside of the wagons with me next day, one or the other of us staying back to keep an eye on that axle. I figured we could make a replacement if we had to, seeing as there was plenty of post-oaks growing in clumps along the road, but it would cost us time we couldn’t spare.

Sickness had showed up, and I was worried.

I called a council that afternoon after we set up camp. “Four people are already down with the chills and fever, and the weather is likely to get worse before it gets better. Abe, I need you and Jesse to take over as drivers, including one on that wagon with the worrisome axle. The other will drive for the sickest ones so they can rest. Jean-Louis and I will stay mounted and keep an eye on things, but don’t worry if you don’t see us right away. We won’t be far away if anything happens.

“I figure to take the most direct way to San Felipe that we can find and see about replacing that axle there. If they’ve got a doctor to care for our sick, we may leave them until they get better. I don’t like the idea because it will mean spending more time out on the road, but I didn’t set a time limit on how long I’d be gone when I agreed to see the families to safety.

“Meanwhile, we need to do a better job of keeping our folks warm and dry. Once we get to Liberty, I’ll see how many of our folks the residents can take in. After that, I’ll decide whether to cross the Sabine or go north to Nacogdoches, and as soon as everyone is safe I’ll head back to San Felipe for the ones we left behind.

“Our animals are still in reasonable shape, but we’ll need to keep a close eye on them. Looking at the clouds, I wouldn’t be surprised to see rain or maybe snow tomorrow. I don’t reckon it matters which, because either one will slow us down.”

“Jake, we might have to stop for a while, maybe even build shelters,” Jean-Louis interrupted. “If it snows, the horses won’t be able to find grass.”