Chapter 5

Our trip home was very pleasant. We set up the tent every night so we could make love. I ate very good meals every day and we made love far into the night every night. Star was obviously over her soreness.

They told me that they could not believe how often and how good my lovemaking was. I told them I was pleased that they were happy with me as their husband.

When we got home and got set back up, I decided that I would like to make our camp here more permanent. I talked to my wives and asked them what they thought would help us make a better, more permanent camp. "Let us think about it, Husband," Star said.

I closed up the old latrine and dug a new one a bit farther away from the main camp. I began thinking about the weapons we carried and how they were so advanced beyond what was available in this time.

When I got finished and was washing up I asked my wives what they thought we should do, regarding the weapons. They both thought that we should keep them a secret and protect ourselves with the new weapons when it was necessary, but carry current weapons.

I went through the weapons that the Wombles had and got out a Colt 1851 Navy revolver. It was .36 caliber and very dependable. I practiced loading and shooting it. I also loaded an extra cylinder and wrapped it in a cloth and carried it in my pocket for a quick reload. I learned to shoot and care for one of the Spencer rifles. Its worst drawback was that it was a short range proposition due to its trajectory. It would shoot a long distance, but there was a considerable amount of guess work involved.

The girls both wanted a shotgun, so they each had one of the double barrel muzzle loaders that the Wombles had. They also each had one of the spare .36 caliber pistols they were carrying.

The shotguns, despite the fact that they were muzzleloaders were very effective at procuring game for our family. I know I wouldn't want to be shot with one. They had some bird shot, but mostly they had buckshot.

The Wombles also had a good supply of powder and bullets. They had thought ahead and all weapons were the same calibration. I had about 400 caps for the pistols and shotguns. I also had a mold for the bullets, they were round ball molds, and could be used for large shot in the shotguns if needed.

One day when I had time, I molded up all the lead we had into bullets. I made a mental note to buy some more caps powder and lead the next time we went to Mr. Smith's.

Star and Sunshine were gathering wild fruit and vegetables for us to dry and use when we needed. I was keeping us in small game and the occasional turkey or deer.

One day they came up to me and said they thought we should build a cabin if we were going to stay here. I told them that I thought we should build something more substantial than our tent. I also told them that I thought I would like to get a wagon, and maybe some farming tools.

"That is a good idea, Husband," Star said, "since your son will be coming to see us this winter."

I hugged her and kissed her. "That is wonderful news, Star. I will need to begin working on our house as soon as possible. Let's plan to go to Smith's tomorrow, and pick up some supplies."

They both smiled and hugged me. They began getting things together and I began looking over the traveling gear and repairing anything that I could.

We made love a bunch that night. I was very happy about Stars pregnancy, and took it out on my wives. After the second time with each of them, Sunshine said, "Husband, if you want us to be able to ride tomorrow, you had better stop."

"Sweetheart, am I hurting you?" I asked.

"No, Husband, but our muscles are not used to this much activity. We may be sore tomorrow," she said.

I grumbled, "Maybe we need to get you used to this much activity."

"That is a wonderful idea," Star said. "I love it when we make love."

We hugged and kissed and went to sleep.

The next day, we left for the Smith's trading post. We each had a pack horse. We were carrying our "old west" weapons. We had a UMP packed up on the horse with an extra magazine. With the stock folded and inside a saddle bag it was very inconspicuous.

The trip went smoothly and uneventfully. We slept in the open every night and ate food cooked over an open fire. I managed to shoot a turkey the second day, so we had turkey for several meals after that.

Mr. Smith and his family were doing fine. There was a fellow in the store nailing up a poster. I read it. It was a wanted poster for the Womble brothers. It accused them of murder and robbery. I said, "I know they were murderers, they killed my wife's brother, and shot me."

"Do you know where they are?" He asked.

"They are probably in come coyotes stomach. I shot Johnny when he tried to kill me. Earnest and Tommy attacked our camp a few weeks later and we had to kill them," I told a brief story.

"I am U. S. Marshal Jim Turner from Fort Smith," he introduced himself.

"I am Wilbur Adams, Jr. These are my wives, Sunshine and Star."

He tipped his hat and said,"Pleased to meet you ladies."

He asked, "Are you sure they were the Wombles? They were some pretty tough men."

"They were sneaky cowards. Yes, I am sure they were the Wombles, they told us their names, ate our food and came back in the night to kill us," I told him. "We are riding their horses and have their saddles."

He went outside and looked at the saddles. He came back and said, "Yep, I found their initials on the saddles. Did they have any money?"

"Yes, they had several dollars in gold, Johnny had $45.00, Tommy had $22.00, and Earnest had $60.00."

"They robbed a bank in Arkansas and got away with $3,000 in cash," He explained.

"There is a reward for them; can you show me where the bodies are?" He asked.

"I can show you where they were. I was angry and didn't bury them, so I imagine their bones are scattered all over," I told him.

"Will you show me anyway?" He asked.

"Yes, I will. We need to take care of our business here, and you can go with us," I told him.

We bought some caps, powder, birdshot and lead as well as housekeeping supplies, soap, and 4 new dresses for my wives. They were very happy, and kissed my cheek.

"Your women surely are sweet and lively," Marshal Turner noted.

"I think you have a mistaken idea, marshal. These are my wives, we were married by a preacher, so they are citizens and everything that goes along with it," I explained.

"Well, they are sweet and lively in any case," he replied.

"Thank you, sir," Sunshine told him.

"Do you know anyone around here that has a wagon for sale?" I asked Mr. Smith.

"I surely don't, Mr. Adams. You will probably have to go to Fort Smith to find one," he answered.

"I will probably have to go to Fort Smith to find lumber in any case. I am going to build a cabin out on Wildcat Branch as soon as I can get the tribal council to lease me some property there," I said.

We got our things packed and headed home. The marshal came right along with us. My sweet wives took care of his meals right along with mine. We got back to the camp and sat down to rest a bit. The marshal saw the airplane. "What in the hell is that?" He asked. Then, "Pardon me ma'am."

I told him it was an invention called an airplane. I told him I flew in it from Jackson, Mississippi and that it got struck by lightning and fell out of the sky and landed here. I tried to pass over it like it was nothing unusual.

"I have never heard of any such," he said.

"That one didn't work very well," I said with a shrug. "It killed my father."

"Sorry to hear that," he said.

"That is his grave there," I said pointing to the cross. "Let's see if we can find any of Johnny Womble," I suggested.

The girls showed where they had left him, and sure enough there were bones scattered around. "Where are the others," he asked.

"A couple of days southwest," I said pointing. "Do you need to haul the bones back with you?" I asked.

"No, but I will need a statement from you about what happened," he said.

"Do you have some paper and a pencil?" I asked.

The marshal got some paper and a pencil from his saddle bag and I wrote my version of what happened and signed my name. I handed the paper to Star and she wrote what happened to her and signed 'Star Adams'. Sunshine also wrote what happened to her and signed 'Sunshine Adams'.

"Marshal, do you need a statement about the other brothers also, I don't want my wife to have to ride all the way over there, since she is pregnant?" I asked him.