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[ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ] covering fire." "All right," MacBrody said, and he turned and moved toward his men, speaking softly. Wylie, Becker, and Champion, the dark man who was Wylie's companion, moved to the walls. Callaghen went to the gate and opened it ever so slightly. For several minutes nothing happened, and then they saw him. He dropped from among some rocks, looked quickly right and left, and then began a staggering run for the walls. An arrow hit the ground near him, another flew past. Instantly the men behind the wall opened fire on the rocks, and the arrows ceased. The man came on, running hard now. Suddenly, when he was almost to the wall, a shotsponged in the clear air. The running man staggered and fell. He started up, a rifle clipped the evening air again, and several rifles from the redoubt fired at the small puff of white smoke above the rocks. Callaghen lunged through the gate and ran to the fallen man, catching him by one arm and swinging him over his back. Then he ran back, one futile shot smacking the wall beside the gate as he entered. He lowered the man to the ground, and as-he saw him more clearly, he remembered him ... it was Garrick, one of Sprague's men. "You ... we thought ... you were ... dead." The wounded man struggled with the words. Page 68 ABC Amber Palm Converter, http://www.processtext.com/abcpalm.html "Where's Sprague?" "Out there." He gestured feebly. "He's ... he's picked up some lead ... They ... they got Turner ... drove off our ... stock." "Where is he, Garrick?Where?" "North ... maybe ten, twelve mile." He closed his eyes, breathing heavily. Malinda held a cup to his lips and he swallowed, then paused, gasping. "Peak ... highest ... look at the foot ... A lone peak ... way in the open ... in line with where he is. No ... no water." Callaghen got up and walked away a little distance. He knew the place, and it could scarcely be worse. That ten or twelve miles he spoke of was all right out in the open. There was almost no cover. It would be a chancy trip, but he had to do it. TheDelaware joined him. "You know the place?" he asked. "I've never been there ... not up close." "There's water ... plenty of it, if they have savvy. Three, maybe four springs within a few miles." "And an Indian sitting on every one of them." TheDelaware shrugged. "I think so." "The water holes where would they be from that lone peak?" The Indian looked at him. "I go with you." "Like hell. You're all in. Anyway, one man alone has a better chance." "In open country? Nobody has a chance." With a small stick he spotted in the sand the locations of the springs from the lone peak. He indicated an isolated butte. "That's Wildcat. You point for that. No matter what, go uphill. The land rises all around in a great circle toward the top of the swell. The peak is at one edge of that rise, right east of it. From what Garrick said, those soldiers are within a mile of water." "Thanks." Callaghen got up and stretched. "I'll get some sleep." He turned to theDelaware . "Get my horse ready, will you?" He went into the cabin, got his blankets, and rolled up in a corner. Malinda watched him go. "Aunt Madge, what is he going to do?" "You know what he's going to do." Her aunt took up the coffeepot, filled a cup, and handed it to Malinda. "He's the kind of man who will always know what to do, and he will never ask anybody to do it for him." Chapter 15 IT WAS DARK and still when he came out into the night. His freshly cleaned rifle, which he held in his left hand, smelled faintly of gun oil; a cup of coffee was in his right. His horse stood ready, a long-limbed black horse that had seemed the best of the lot. Aside from a small blanket roll behind the saddle he carried a small packet of food in his saddlebags and two canteens. Page 69 ABC Amber Palm Converter, http://www.processtext.com/abcpalm.html Only a few stars were showing. The wind was blowing a not unusual thing in theMohave Desert and this was good. It would disguise the small noise he might make in leaving. The outer gate had been standing open for nearly an hour, with two men watching it. The gate had been opened and ready so as to make as little movement as possible at the moment of departure. TheDelaware ghosted to his side. "The wind ... it will help," he said as he glanced up where, between wisps of high cloud, a part of the Milky Way was visible. "TheChiefs Road ," he said. "So it is called by the Crees." MacBrody was there too. "They'll likely be in bad shape," he said. "You'll be needin' more grub." "They'll have to do with water. But you be watching for us if I find them we'll come back." He spoke in low tones. "And watch Wylie. The man's not to be trusted. He's a crook, and worse, and he's a damn fool along with it." "I will do that," MacBrody replied. "You be carin' for yourself now. It is not good that an O'Callaghan should die out there." Caliaghen handed his cup to Malinda, who had suddenly appeared beside him, and touched her arm gently. "It will be fine to come back," he said, "knowing you are here." Taking the reins of the horse, he walked through the gate and turned sharply along the wall, keeping close to it in the darker shadow. At the end of the wall he stopped and looked out across the first ground to be covered. He still had about two hours of darkness before the night was gone, but he did not like the look of the desert out beyond the corner. It was lighter there, and keen eyes might see him. He tried to judge how far an Indian could see in that semidarkness and decided that to see him moving, a man would have to be within thirty or forty yards. The ground here was gravel, and brush grew spottily. He stepped out softly and led his horse between two clumps of brush, close enough to them to make his outline indistinct. When he had gone fifty yards or so he glanced back. The redoubt was only a spot of blackness against the shadow of the mountain. He put a boot in the stirrup and swung to the saddle, leaning forward at once to make himself smaller, and then he walked the horse forward carefully. He saw nothing, heard nothing. Continuing to walk the horse slowly, he kept himself in line with the small isolated peak ahead of him. The ground rose [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ] |