Book 3, Chapter 13

David entered the store and was instantly overcome by the flurry of activity as the women were picking up this item or that. The counters were piled high with merchandise and the floor in front of the counter was stacked with barrels and pallets of more boxes. Jessica caught sight of him and sidled over to him.

"Sweetie, we are just about done," she was fluttering her eyelashes at him.

"Oh, and just how much is this going to cost me," he asked.

"Not much, really. Especially if you divide by the number of people we're buying for."

She had slipped her arms around his body and was rubbing her bounty against his arm. She poured on the charm. David knew what she was doing and let her. After a few minutes, he could hold out no more and started laughing. She knew she was discovered and started to blush. He hugged her tight, running his hand over the sensual curves of her ass and told her it was all right. He knew supplies were low and a shopping trip was warranted.

Just then Angela moved over to him. She pressed her abundant chest against him as she kissed him.

'Oh, oh, ' he thought to himself, 'now comes the rest of the story!'

"We're done now, husband." She began. "We've picked up supplies that should last us until we get to Lampasas Springs. Mr. Ogden tells me the road to Lampasas is a pretty good trail to take. Usually, it's free of bandits and Indians and we could make it there in two days. He says it's about thirty-five miles. He also suggested we go more east from there to Belton, which is another forty-five miles. It should take up only six or seven days to get to Belton in all. Then we can turn north and head it to Waco. He says this route is a bit longer than heading for Gatesville, but the road is better."

"Okay, I'll think about it. Say, do you think he has a map?"

"Weeelllll ... No, he doesn't," she said slowly.

"Why do you say it that way? Is there something you're keeping from me?" David demanded.

"You see, I just bought it from him," she said apprehensively.

"Why you..." he grabbed her close and kissed her fiercely. It was so sudden she was surprised and she dropped the map, but she quickly recovered and began kissing him back."

"Get a room," Hannah quipped as she walked by them toward the counter.

That broke up the clutch as Angela started giggling.

"All right, let's see how much you all have set me back this time. I swear, next time I'll demand you give me a list and I'll do the shopping instead."

David approached Mr. Ogden, who was tallying up the prices. David waited and at last the merchant was finished. Finally Ogden spoke.

"I have come to your total. Minus the twenty dollar gold you paid on deposit, the total for the goods comes to one hundred twenty two dollars and twenty cents. I have taken the liberty of loading the dry goods on our delivery wagon free of charge and the soft goods I was told the women would parcel out amongst themselves. The munitions are packed on the back of the wagon for ease of transfer. All other dry goods are loaded next. The barrels of pork, hams and fowl are located on the side of the wagon for easy access. If there is nothing else then..." he waited for David to reply.

"No, that should be all. Our wagons are located just south of town just off the road. We're easy to spot. I'm sure your boy will be able to find us."

David gathered up the women. They all were carrying several bundles each. They headed across the street and all the bundles were placed in the buckboard. The ladies had almost filled the space and it looked like very few would be riding back to camp. They entered the café just as the first portion of their group was finishing. It was a good thing, since the space would be needed. Robert was put in charge with Eli as his aide, as the children were all sent packing back to camp. Wayne was given the job of driving the buckboard back. Lisa would ride and carry little Blanche. The children were expected to set up the camp for the night, taking care of the horses and mules. The buckboard was not to be unloaded as that job was for the wives.

In the café, David ordered the best, their special stew, bread and wine. The café had several bottles of Spanish Chianti and everyone enjoyed a glass with the stew. It was seasoned nicely and enjoyed by everyone. David paid the bill for both groups and they retired to the campsite. It took the women little time to sort out the packages, but soon everything was in its place. The buckboard now would serve as both freight wagon and extra riding space for the youngsters. At least until the fresh food supplies were used to replace what they had used up.

Later that evening after his women were sated, David lay on the mattress with Rhoda still on top, her internal muscles were still slowly massaging him. David thought about his trip from California and all the joy he'd received in gathering his wives and family. He counted himself blessed more than ever. His thoughts went back to his mother. He was certain she would be proud of him and his progress. He slowly drifted off to sleep, secure in that knowledge.

The rumble of thunder in the night woke Lisa Marie. She was in the big bed tonight with Waite and Peggy Sue and Annabelle. The others were close by in the adjoining rooms. Lisa moved in close to Waite and extended her arm over his chest. She felt Peggy Sue on the other side.

"What's wrong, Baby?" Waite whispered.

"I feel them. They are getting much closer. I think we need to set up watchers."

"Yes, I feel them too, but they are still weeks away. They won't be here for several more weeks. You are just anxious. Don't worry, we have it all worked out. We have someone at the stores in Mexia, Waco, Hillsborough, Gatesville and Elm Creek (now Troy) daily. They are on the lookout for a small wagon train mostly made up of youngsters, women and two older males. I know it's not much to go on, but it will be obvious to our men, since they know the dynamics of our families."

"Oh, and I've secured the neighboring thousand acres for them for their homestead. Old Jedadiah finally decided to go back east to live his last years with his son, that Philadelphia lawyer fella. He didn't give it away, but he did give me a good price that I know I can sell to the newcomers. From all we've dreamed about them, I know they will fit in just fine. Now sweetness, you go back to sleep. I love you."

"Olive u," came the mumbled reply from Peggy Sue on the other side of the bed.

"I love ... came Rhoda's aborted response from above.

"I love us all, every one" was Lisa's response as she snuggled ever closer, her mammoth mammaries squashed against Waite's body.

In the morning the wagon train was ready to go. The cavalry started out a bit ahead of the wagons to scout the route. The passage from Brady City to Lampasas was about seventy-five miles. The Colorado River crossing was about five miles out of town. Sooner than anyone would have reckoned, the party was at the Colorado and the wagons were lined up at the ferry. It took all day to ford the river since only one wagon at a time could go. It had to be pushed on and off by hand as there was no room for the mules either. They made more than twenty trips in all to get across. It cost David two dollars each for the wagons, two bits for each horse or mule, a dime for any other livestock (there was none) and four bits per person. It was a steep price, but it was a monopoly. Pay the price or get wet, your choice. The owner was adamant about the price. No discounts were given. The soldiers stayed on the west side of the river. They all waved as the last ferry trip was made, carrying the women and younger children. The men and older children had traveled with the wagons and livestock.

They camped out with the knowledge that they had seventy miles to travel to get to Lampasas, about five days, barring any unseen incidences. After that it was forty-five miles to Belton. This should take only three days, at most. Still there were the hills to contend with so it might be a day or two more. They had been told that the road from Belton to Waco was good and well traveled by the Waco to Austin stagecoaches. However they were warned to be on the lookout for bandits as it was also a favorite spot for bushwhackers. Gil had to chuckle when that warning came. If they only knew.

Two days out from Brady City the inevitable happened. One of the prairie schooners hit a rock and the wheel shattered. It was in a most inopportune location. There was no place to fix up a lever system. The wagon was fully loaded and had to be unpacked if the men were to use brute strength to lift the wagon. Angela called out to the others to make as close to a circle as possible while they tackled the repair. Looking around she spotted the large tree near the good side of the wagon. Speaking to Gil she explained what she had in mind. It was a spirited discussion and Gil was still shaking his head when he met up with David.

"Damn fool woman. I don't think it will work. I never heard of anything so crazy in all my born days."

"What's got your dander up, Gil?" David asked.

"Your wife!" was his terse reply.

"Which one?" David said smiling.

"You know, the bossy one."

"What has Angela done now?"

Gil proceeded to explain what Angela had told him. David's eyes lit up.

"Of course! How could I have overlooked that. Genius, pure genius. Remind me to do nice things to Angela, tonight!"

Gil just sat there on his horse and scratched his head as David rushed over to one of the Conestoga's, Minutes later he came out carrying several ropes and another contraption Gil couldn't identify. He nudged his horse to move closer and found that what David had found was a block and tackle. It was a large block and tackle. It might just do the trick. David explained what to do with the rope. Gil threw the end over the high bough of the tree, which was almost as thick as a tree itself. David had slung a loop of rope around the axel joint inside of the wheel mount. This was tied to the block and tackle. The simple machine was tied to the tree and a loop of rope threaded through the pulley system. Gill hoisted the thing up towards the limb and then tied off the rope. Once this was done, the rope end was tied to his horse's saddle and he began to pull the rope through the block and tackle arrangement. Slowly the side of the wagon rose as the rope wound through the pulley system.

"Hold it there," Angela called out.

Adele and Robert and Eli had removed the wheel nut and were standing ready once the wagon was raised up. Working in concert they removed the broken wheel and moved the replacement into position. Hannah greased the runway and the hub with axle grease. She put it on thick and then the wheel was slid onto the axle. The large washer and nut was spun into place and Robert expertly applied the spanner wrench to tighten the nut. Not too much, though! Just enough. David signaled Gil to lower the wagon slowly. The wheel was fixed. The old wheel was not salvageable, so they left it beside the road, keeping only the iron rim.

It was almost time for the noon meal, so the other women had already put on the feedbags on the mules and set about preparing for the humans. Lunch was served without any ado, and in no time the members of the wagon train were ready to mount up. Just as they were about to start, gunfire was heard in the distance. They waited and the sounds came closer. The more they waited the closer the shots came. Anxiously they watched down the trail for signs. Just then, Joshua hollered out. He had climbed a nearby tree.

"Rider coming in. He's followed by a bunch of other riders. They look like Indians."

The children were gathered by the furthest wagon, while everyone who could shoot was positioned at the forefront, where the rider and then Indians would have to pass. They had just taken positions when the lone rider burst into view on the trail ahead. He saw the circled wagons and made for the riders gap, which he knew, would close up once he was through. Sure enough he came through the small opening and his horse skidded to a stop. He leapt down throwing his reins to the closed person, who happened to be Prudence. Like a trooper, she took the reins and led the sweating horse to the far side of the enclosure and began to work on removing the saddle. Hannah joined her and together the got the saddle and blanket off the exhausted horse. Lisa grabbed the rifle from the scabbard and rushed to give it to the man who had taken up a position on the front of the wagons arch.

She noticed it was a Winchester and knew he'd want to have it. Sure enough, when she handed it to him, he smiled a big toothy smile and levered a shell into the chamber.

"Wait a second," David said. "I'll use the Sharps to take out some of them."

David sighted in on the leader of the chase group. He fired the Sharps and immediately reloaded. He didn't wait to see if he hit or not, he just wanted to shoot as many as he could before they got too close. He was picking them off from the rear, so the braves in front didn't know what was happening. They could see the smoke from the Sharps but didn't see who was getting hit. When the group of raiders finally came into the range of the Winchesters, it was open season. Everyone on the train who could shoot unleashed a deadly wall of gunfire. The Indians didn't know what hit them. Riderless horses rode past the circled wagons. It was over before it began. All the raiders lay dead or dying on the field before them

The man warily stepped forward to survey the damage. Gil and David advanced with him. Twenty-five yards from the wagons, they came upon the first native. He was painted for war and he had a band of scalps tied to his waist. They took his knife and medicine bag, the loss of which would deny him entrance to the happy hunting ground. They proceeded through the rest of the dead repeating their defiling of the dead. Suddenly off to the left there was a cry. They turned to see a brave had been playing possum. He'd sprung to his feet and was running towards the men, spear held high.

All three men drew their revolvers. The waiting family at the wagons heard only one shot. Three .45 caliber slugs hit the chest of the foolish young brave. His chest imploded and part of his spine was blasted out the back. He was dead before hitting the ground. They collected his knife but his medicine bag had been blown to bits by the slugs. Every other brave was dead. They men turned around and headed back to the wagon.

Once inside the circle, everyone turned expectantly to the newcomer.

"Mighty glad you happened to be there in my time of need. Yates, Rowdy Yates is my name. I'm a ramrod for a cattle drive. We're out of San Antonio, headed for Missouri. I came across these fellas up the trail a ways. I was maybe an hour ahead of the cattle and they decided to chase me. I kept ahead of them, but they were gaining on me when I came up over that there rise. Shore glad you was there to help."

"Well, Mr. Yates, we're headed for Lampasas, Belton and then Waco. Which way are you headed with your cattle?

"We're headed up north to Fort Worth. Once we get there, we'll turn east a bit. Our destination is Sedalia, Missouri. We got about three thousand head we're taking to the railhead. They get shipped to Chicago from there. If you're going to Lampasas you will pass the trail about ten miles from here. If you were to start out now, you will meet up with the herd at that junction. I'd be happy to show you the way and ride along. I know you don't need any additional protection. I saw how your womenfolk handled those firearms."

"You are more than welcome to ride with us. We just finished fixing a broken wheel and are eager to get on the road again. Let's go, shall we?" David asked rhetorically.

They started out immediately. Fortunately, the men had dragged the bodies out of the road, so the teams were unimpeded in their travel. It was early afternoon when the wagons crested a hill. Ahead of them was a veritable sea of cattle, grazing on the lush prairie grasses. David and Gil were told the main camp would be a little north of the resting cattle. They could drive their wagons through the herd and the cows would move out of the way. Rowdy thanked them again for their help and he turned his horse north. He needed to report in.

The wagons traversed the sea of cows without incident. They moved slowly through the herd until at last they reached the other side of the mass. They continued on without running into any more trouble for the rest of the week. They finally made it to Lampasas and circled up their wagons on the outskirts of town. They were late enough to forgo entering town to find a diner, so the women and children collected wood and started cooking. The men and older boys fed, watered and picketed the livestock. After the evening meal, David and Gil went into Lampasas to scout and get information.

They entered the Gold Dust saloon. The talking ceased when they came in the room. There were some rough looking characters seated at several tables along one wall. The two men looked knowingly at each other, and stepped up to the bar. They left a little room between. They both ordered a Mexican beer. The barkeep shrugged and brought out two bottles, opened them and slid the down the bar to the waiting hands of Gil and David. On the other side of the room was a card table where the men were playing poker. There was an empty seat and David let Gil know by head motions what he was going to do.

"Howdy, gents, mind if I join you" David said.

"Iff'n you got the money to lose, feel free," one of the players with a big stack of coins and bills replied.

"I will if this is a square game. But I don't expect to lose," David said with a smile.

His chair was facing the back wall and there was one of the scruffy fellas who moved to sit in one of the chairs. Gil moved at the same time to sit next to the man. When he moved over one chair, Gil moved also. Eventually there were no more chairs to change to, so the scruffy man gave up and moved back across the room. The dealer scowled when he saw this. Gil knew the game wasn't straight at that look. He did manage to guard David's back though as no one else attempted to sit there with him.

David watched as the dealer distributed the cards. He watched as the man dealt out cards to replace the discards. He played conservatively until he found each players 'tell'. After about twenty minutes of observation, he thought he had everything down. He had each players tell and knew the dealer was dealing seconds and doing a slick false shuffle. He also noticed the ring on the man's left hand. It had a polished surface and he could see the reflection of the cards on the deck as he dealt the hands. David waited. He would catch the cheat

They played for over an hour when finally the time came. The pot was huge. David had a full house on the draw. Eights over Jacks. But he threw in the two jacks and asked for two cards. His eye caught the reflection of the ring. King of hearts. The man dealt two cards. The first came from the bottom and the second from the top. David stopped him right there before any other cards could be dealt.

"Stop!" he shouted. "I don't want the bottom card, the King of Hearts. I want two off the top."

"Are you calling me a cheat?" the man blustered. "You will have to pay for that."

"We'll see about that," David replied as he crossed his arms over his chest. His hand came in contact with the Colt in his shoulder holster. The gambler gambled one last time and reached for his sidearm. Too late, he realized that David had a shoulder holster as well as the gun strapped on his hip. The man started his draw when David pulled his Colt and fired at close range. The gambler dropped to the floor, dead.

Just then another gun fired. David looked up and saw the scruffy man fall over. Gil had been watching and that one was in cahoots with the gambler. He must have thought taking revenge would be the right move. He was wrong, dead wrong. Guns still drawn, David collected his winnings, while Gil watched. David turned to leave when the scrape of a chair warned him. Instinctively he dropped to the floor and rolled toward the sound. He brought his gun up and fired. Gil was alert and he too started firing. When the smoke cleared, the other three men were dead and the rest of the men in the bar had their hands high over their heads. David's second revolver was pointed at the barkeep.

"Bring it out slowly, by the barrel," he ordered.

The barman complied, reluctantly. He was ordered to back away, and David retrieved the sawed off shotgun.

"I'll be keeping this safe for you. Now, all of you, into the storeroom. NOW". Grudgingly the men all moved into the small storeroom. David noted that there were no windows and no back door. The only way in or out was the door they had just entered.

"I'm going to lock you in here, then close up the bar. I'll be leaving the key at the sheriff's office with a note to come let you out. If you stay still, you won't run out of air before he comes, but I suggest you all just lay down and sleep. That way you will use the least amount of oxygen. Well, so long." David said as he locked the door. "Let's get back to the drive," He added loudly, for the benefit of the men in the storeroom.

They shut off all the lights and shut the door, which locked behind them. David dropped off the note and key at the sheriff's office, with a 'do not open until eight o'clock' note on the outside of the envelope.

The men returned to the camp and each took half the night watch. In the morning they were on the trail by seven, long before the men in the bar would be released. After a full day of travel, no one came up on them from the west, so they knew they'd gotten away safely. Plus the train was a day closer to the goal.

The next day they continued on their way. The roadway was relatively level so they made good time. They pulled off the road at noon when they met a stagecoach heading west, lickity split. The driver pulled up when he saw the wagons long enough to pass on the news that highwaymen were working the stage road and that he had just narrowly escaped. He described the area of road to the men and David thanked the driver for the information. It was an area only two miles from where they were currently camped. They had lunch and planned.

The stage driver was correct. The highwaymen were exactly where he had said they would be. About a half mile ahead a tree suddenly fell across the road. David slowed his wagon and the word was passed back to be ready. After closing half the distance to the tree David turned his wagon to the right. The other wagons followed and they made a line almost perpendicular to the roadway. David stopped and so did the rest of the wagons. They waited.

Finally, the gang of highwaymen waited no longer. Ten masked raiders burst out of the tree line, guns blazing. The reins of the teams were tied to the brake levers and the drivers had dismounted, rifles in hand. What the raiders couldn't see was the rows of long guns that slipped out under the wagon canopies. David passed along the hold fire signal, which was relayed to each shooter. They held fire as the gang approached. Everyone knows that you can't aim a gun and shoot with accuracy while riding at full gallop, except for the damn fools trying to do just that. However, shooting from a steady bench usually was dead on. And that's exactly what it was.

The order to fire came when the riders were about two hundred feet from the wagons. Seventeen shots rang out almost as one. All ten riders fell from their horses at the same time. Off in the distance another rider was seen. He turned his horse to run, but David still had the Sharps. He set up over the driver's box of the wagon and let one fly. As they watched the horse slowed to a stop. A moment later, the figure on the horse slowly slid off to one side. He didn't get up.