Chapter 3

The first shot had gotten Tall Grass in the chest. The second bullet had gone thru one thigh and dug into the other.

Tall Grass put two rounds in the two men and whistled.

Black Rock moved to his preplanned second position, but Tall Grass did not move to his. One leg stung. The other burned. His chest was on fire and he had difficulty breathing.

Tall Grass took the two large bandages from his first aid pouch. He tied the first one around his leg and with the second he covered the hole in his chest. If he held the bandage on his chest, he found it to easier breathe.

After an hour, Black Rock ran to him.

"Check the man that was behind you," Tall Grass said.

Black Rock ran to the body. The man was dead.

"Get a truck and bring it here," Tall Grass said.

When Black Rock had the truck next to Tall Grass, Tall Grass said, "Help me in."

"I should drive you to help," Black Rock said.

"No, you know what to do," Tall Grass said.

Tall Grass drove behind the line of bodies.

Black Rock snapped the neck of each man as he went up the line until he was at the next to last man. He bound his hands and feet with rope.

He snapped the last one's neck.

Tall Grass said, "Throw the bodies in the back of the truck. Make sure to get the rifles and gasoline in too. Throw the leader in last."

The leader's hands and feet were tied. When all the bodies, guns, and gasoline cans were in the truck bed, Black Rock got into a second truck.

Black Rock parked the truck about two miles beyond the village on the border of the Kiowa land near an encampment of illegal Mexicans.

Tall Grass ferried Black Rock back and forth until all the trucks were parked near the encampment.

Tall Grass drove to the village. He made his way to the widow's house. There Black Rock dumped the leader's bound body in the widow's house. He poured gasoline on the body. Tall Grass lit the gasoline. The leader screamed briefly.

They repeated the task with the ten dead men. They did not put a body in Black Eagle's burned out house.

Tall Grass parked the truck that had been used to carry the bodies near the other trucks close to the illegals. Black Rock burned the surface of the bed of the truck. Black Rock carried him to their truck and he hurried to a village with an aid center.

"Don't say anything to anyone, not even Rachael. I am proud of you son," Tall Grass passed out soon after he was in the truck.

The closest village had a medic. Black Road carried Tall Grass to the ambulance. The medic started an IV and the ambulance driver drove toward the hospital. Stinson was radioed and met them in route.

Stinson got in the ambulance and they drove toward the hospital in Dalhart. They radioed ahead and a surgeon was called.

After they got someone to look after the young ones, Little Doe and Little Flower took off for Dalhart in the Tall Grass's pickup.

Black Rock drove to the village and got his mother and Rachael. They too drove toward Dalhart.

Black Rock came upon the crashed truck of Little Doe and Little Flower. Little Flower was bleeding in the truck. She was unconscious.

"Where is Little Doe?" Ruth screamed.

Rachael called out, "She is down here. I think she is gone."

Ruth and Rachael tended to Little Doe while Black Rock carried Little Flower from the cab of the truck. Then Black Rock carried Little Doe and laid her in the bed of the truck. Ruth held her head. Rachael held Little Doe's head.

Black Rock asked, "What can I do?"

"Drive carefully. I think it is too late for them," Ruth said.

Ruth directed Black Rock to the hospital. "We practiced the best route in class. She drove too fast. I am sure she wanted to be with Tall Grass."

Black Rock ran in and got Stinson. They took a gurney out for Little Flower.

Stinson shook his head. "She has coded."

Black Rock and Stinson covered Little Doe's body and put her on a stretcher. They carried her and put her body in the ambulance. Then they did the same for Little Flower. Stinson sent the driver and ambulance back to the village.

Black Rock asked, "How is he doing?"

Stinson said, "I don't know. One lung is damaged. I don't know if they can save it. Some ribs are broken. I hope other organs weren't involved. Both legs were wounded. The bullet went through the left thigh and lodged in his right thigh. I couldn't tell how much damage was done."

Stinson said, "Did you get them?"

Black Rock said, "If I say anything, you will never say anything to anyone, not Louise or anyone else."

Stinson said, "My honor."

Black Rock said, "My honor will only let me say: You should visit your village tomorrow."

"What the hell does that mean?" Stinson asked.

"Chief, that is all I can say," Black Rock said.

The surgeon came out. "He made it through the surgery. He had a lot of damage to his right side. I did the best I could with the lung. I collapsed it. He has a lot of scar tissue. I am very worried about infection too. But he is stable right now."

Black Rock said, "I will call his parents."

"Grandmother, this is Black Rock. Howie has been shot. He was shot in the right chest and both legs. He is out of surgery and stable right now. We are at the hospital in Dalhart, Texas. Little Doe and Little Flower died in a traffic accident on the way to the hospital. The children are at my mother's."

Mildred asked, "How is he? This is too much."

"The doctor only said that Howie made it though the surgery, was stable and he was concerned about infection," Black Rock said.

She asked, "When did it happen?"

"The doctor just came down from surgery about five minutes ago. He was injured around one here."

"Thank you. We will be coming. Somebody should tell Dolph," she said.

Howard asked, "Who would call this time of night?"

Mildred said, "It was Black Rock. Howie is in the hospital in Dalhart, Texas. He was shot three times. Little Doe and Little Flower were killed on the way to the hospital in a car wreck. He is out of surgery. That is all they know."

They packed a couple of bags and left for Oklahoma. Howard left a message for his department chair.

Ruth stayed at the hospital with Tall Grass. Black Rock went to Dolph's house and told him. On the way, Black Rock drove past where they left the trucks. All the trucks and illegals were gone.

Black Rock reported Little Doe and Little Flower's deaths and that Tall Grass had been shot and was in the hospital to the police chief. The council chief asked the police chief to contact the other chiefs.

Dolph and Dawn left immediately for the hospital.

At sunup, Black Rock had a ceremony for the dead. All the chiefs attended. Stinson and Louise held Little Flower's children.

After the ceremony, Stinson drove to his village. He found the bodies.

Stinson dug a very large hole and buried the bodies. I should have known. He and Black Rock. If I were a real Chief, I would have been with them.

Then he sought Black Rock. He found him cleaning weapons.

Stinson said, "I buried eleven bodies."

Stinson thought, I have seen that look on Rangers before they were going to do something.

Stinson said, "Black Rock." He waited for Black Rock to respond.

"Yes, Chief."

"Easy. We can't have a war," Chief Stinson said.

"I know. Tall Grass said it. He wouldn't let me take him to the hospital until things were cleaned up. How bad is he?"

"Pretty bad. Both legs, his right shoulder and chest. He won't ever be the same," Stinson said.

"Will there be trouble? What should I do?" Black Rock said.

"There will be no investigation in my village. You need to help your mother. If you need help, come to me," he said.

Black Rock said, "He knew. He told me to prepare to take his place. He has been teaching me all he could. He said that his medicine was not strong. He said that I had the blood of Black Eagle and he expected me to be a great Chief."

Stinson nodded.

"I do not have his vision. I cannot be the Medicine Man. Without vision, I cannot protect the village and our people," Black Rock said.

"We do the best we can," Stinson said.

Black Rock and Stinson walked to Tall Grass' house. Black Rock took the lance of the Chief and moved it to in front of his house.

Stinson said, "Chief."

Stinson and Louise went to the hospital. Dolph, Dawn, Rachael and Ruth were there. Stinson thought, All the women here belonged to Tall Grass.

He said, "No change?"

Dolph shook his head.

Stinson asked Dolph, "Could I speak with you?"

"Black Rock told me that Tall Grass knew he wasn't coming back. He has the chief's lance in front of his house. I know him. He would not have done that unless Tall Grass told him to. I imagine Tall Grass will take the two little ones and go back to Pennsylvania, if he can. Can he afford to live in Pennsylvania?" Stinson asked.

Dolph nodded. "I have enough to help him. If it doesn't work out, they can live on the ranch with us. I could keep him busy drilling water wells on my land for years," Dolph said.

Dolph's Army buddy loaned him a house in Dalhart that the family could use. Dolph had it cleaned and readied for the family. Dawn, Ruth and Rachael slept there. Dolph wouldn't leave Tall Grass until his brother was there.

Black Rock came to the hospital in the afternoon.

His mother greeted him, "Chief, I am glad you came. You had the ceremony for Little Doe and Little Flower at dawn?"

Black Rock nodded. He looked around.

Dolph said, "No one will bother him. I have two men watching his room."

Black Rock nodded. He went to Rachael.

Black Rock guarded at the other end of the hall from Dolph during the night.

About noon, Mildred and Howard arrived. They had called periodically from on the road to see if there was change. "No change?" Mildred asked.