Authors: Stephen A. Bly
Rebekah slipped to the ground. “Give me your revolver,” she told Todd. “I'm going in that building with you.”
“No, it could be . . .”
“Todd Fortune, I don't have a life if it's not with you. I'm going in. Do I get a gun, or do I go in unarmed?”
He handed her the revolver.
“Daddy Brazos says all Fortune women are bulldogs,” Dacee June explained. “He's right, you know.” She slipped to the ground. “I'm going in, too, and I have my own revolver.”
“I think we'll all go in.” Abigail climbed down and offered her hand to Amber. “We're all in this together.”
“My word, yes,” Mrs. O'Neill added. “I'm not about to miss out on the adventure. This is so exciting!”
Todd surveyed those lined up behind him. “This is crazy.”
“This is the Black Hills, Big Brother.” Dacee June pointed her small revolver in front of her.
Todd led the crew around the parked stagecoach, then approached the front door. “Ho! In the tollhouse! Anyone in there?” he shouted.
“I think I heard someone moving around,” Dacee June said. “I sure wish Daddy was here.”
The weather-ravaged tollhouse door sagged open an inch or two. All Todd could see was shadows and darkness inside. He pushed the door slowly open with the barrel of the shotgun.
“Anyone home?” he called.
There was a muffled response.
Dacee June scooted next to Todd.
Carty trotted close behind.
Rebekah slid up behind Todd, a hand on his shoulder, her revolver clutched near his right ear. “What do we do now?”
“We go visiting.” Todd stepped through the open doorway, alone.
Several bodies were strewn on the dirty, broken floor of the bare room. Todd knelt by the one nearest the door, face down on the floor, a puddle of blood beside him.
Elijah Lander? What are you doing on the Sunday stage?
He searched and found a weak pulse.
“Todd, can we come in? Is it safe?” Dacee June hollered from the porch.
“No!” he yelled back.
“No, we can't come in, or no, it's not safe?” Rebekah queried.
“Just wait . . .”
He scurried to a second man, hands and feet tied, a gag in his mouth. He tugged down the red bandanna and started untying the thick rope.
“Mr. Dover, what happened?”
“Oh, Mr. Fortune, you couldn't have been a more welcome sight if you were the angel Gabriel! When I heard horses outside, I just knew they came back to shoot the rest of us,” Dover rattled on.
“Who else besides Lander got shot?”
“Dr. Gordon.” Dover pointed to the man crumpled in the corner.
Todd tugged on Dover's ropes. “Did they hold up the Sunday stage?”
“Oh, yes, the driver was in on it. He drove us right up here where the other two were waiting.”
“A tall blond-headed man and a dark-headed one with a beard?”
“My word, yes,” Dover replied. “Do you know them?”
“They've been on the prowl for a week. I just didn't know what they were up to.”
“You go check on the doctor.” Todd let Dover untie his own feet as he scooted over to the next bound man to remove his gag.
“Mr. Olene?”
“My word, Fortune, I can't believe it's you. I had said my final prayers and bid this world adieu.”
Todd worked to untie the man's hands. “Sorry to delay your final trip.”
“Oh no, that's quite alright. I do trust this doesn't make me beholding in a business deal,” Olene muttered.
“I can assure you, Mr. Olene, the hardware business is far from my mind.”
“Mr. Fortune,” Dover called out. “Dr. Gordon's seriously Âwounded!”
Todd scampered to the corner of the building. Dr. Philip Gordon, Jr. was propped against a wall, clutching his bloody vest.
“Fortune!” Dr. Gordon sputtered. “I trust you have a posse with you.” He looked toward the doorway. “Where did they all come from?”
The entire gang, from Mrs. Speaker to Little Amber, lined up inside the room, staring at the men on the floor.
“This is my posse. Actually, we were all out for a picnic.”
“What?” Gordon roared. “You purposely endangered the lives of women and children.”
“It seemed like a safe day for a ride. But who would be dumb enough to rob the Sunday stage? There's never any money in the box and seldom many travelers.” Todd tugged off his bandanna and swabbed it on Dr. Gordon's wound.
“There was treasure this time,” Olene quipped from across the room.
“What do you mean?” Todd barked as the doctor took over his own care.
Dover waved toward the unconscious Lander. “There were three gold bars. I saw them.”
“This isn't the treasure coach,” Todd protested. “It goes out tomorrow, with armed messengers. What are you talking about?”
Olene hunkered down next to Elijah Lander. “Oh, there was treasure, alright. We didn't know it, but Lander did. And the outlaws did. Wells Fargo will definitely hear from me about this. They endangered the lives of passengers, without proper protection.”
Todd, still on his knees, sat back on the heels of his boots. “Why was there gold?”
“Maybe Lander was worried about not having his regular messengers tomorrow, and decided to slip it out early,” Dacee June offered from the lineup across the room. “Maybe he figured no one would suspect the Sunday coach.”
“Todd, what can we do to help?” Rebekah called from the far side of the room.
Todd felt the eyes of everyone on him, waiting his decision.
No . . . I'm not the one. I'm the wrong Fortune. You want the old man. He'll whip things into shape . . . doctor the injured . . . chase down the outlaws . . . take care of the women and children . . . oh, Lord . . . what am I doing here?
“Todd?” Rebekah reiterated.
“OK, look . . .” For a moment he felt like a lone wolf cornered in a box canyon. But he knew it was time to turn and run right at them. “Here's what we have to do. Doc, you're goin' to have to tell us how to patch up you and Lander. You got a kit?”
“On the stage. The black valise,” he replied, all arrogance whipped out of him.
“I'll go get it,” Carty offered.
“You don't know a thing in the world about assisting a doctor,” Abigail said, “but I do. I'll dress the wounds.”
“You'll need some help.”
“I'll help her,” Rebekah said.
“You can't . . . ,” Todd cautioned. “You don't like the sight of blood.”
“I can change,” she murmured. Rebekah grabbed the bag from Carty and scampered over to Abigail.
“OK, folks,” Todd offered. “This is a day for doing new things. Mrs. O'Neill, perhaps this is a good time to take Amber for a walk.”
“Oh . . . my, yes . . . would you like to assist me, Mrs. Speaker?”
“Most definitely. I believe I spotted some
Frasera speciosa.”
“What's that?” Amber asked, clutching both of the older ladies' hands.
“It's what Professor Edwards calls a monument plant,” Thelma announced as they scooted out.
Todd waved at the short man with the crumpled suit. “Mr. Dover, search the stagecoach and see if there's a lantern. We'll need more light in here.”
“What can I do?” Carty called.
“You check out the other room in this building and the stage. See how many saddles we can find.”
“We going after them?” Carty grilled.
“If we have enough saddles.”
“My word,” Olene groused, “we can let the lawmen ride after them, can't we?”
“Mr. Olene, we are the law. By the time the sheriff gets back and makes his way out here, these men can be hidden in the real Badlands.” He waved his arm toward the northeast. “Olene, go through the bags on the stage and get anything clean we can use for rags.”
Todd crawled over to Lander. “Lil' Sis, come hold your hand on this wound.”
Dacee June scampered over and clamped her hand down tight on the bloody chest of Elijah Lander.
Todd went back to where Rebekah and Abigail knelt by Dr. Gordon. “How did this happen, Doc?”
“They knew the gold was there. Lander pulled out a gun to protect it, and they just shot him.”
“How about you?”
“I, eh . . . ,” He murmured. “I acted rather foolish. They Âdemanded my wallet, and I . . .”
“You pulled a sneak gun?” Todd questioned.
“I attempted to.”
“How much was in the wallet?”
“A hundred dollars, I suppose.”
“Hardly worth it, was it?” Todd motioned to the unconscious Elijah Lander. “As soon as the ladies patch you up, maybe you could tell them what to do with Lander.”
“Drag me over there; let's take care of him first.”
Todd stared down at the doctor. “Are you sure?”
“Just get me over there.”
Dover lit a lantern.
Olene stacked a half dozen revolvers, a shotgun, and a pile of shirts on the floor.
Carty Toluca stuck his head in the doorway. “We got three regular saddles and an old McClellan,” he reported.
“Carty, come with me. The rest of you stay here and do whatever the doc tells you,” Todd instructed.
“You aren't going after them without me,” Dacee June protested.
“We're just going to look for signs. We'll be right back.”
Todd and Carty circled the corrals twice, getting a clear picture of the outlaws' trail. All the time he kept expecting Carty to say, “I wish Daddy Brazos was here.”
He never did.
When they got back to the porch, Dacee June, Watson Dover, and Tobias Olene waited for them.
“Carty, saddle up the four best ponies,” Todd ordered.
“Who's going to ride?” Carty asked. “I'd like to go with you. I ain't never rode with a Fortune before. I'd sort of like to have somethin' to tell my grandchildren about someday.”
“Grandchildren?” Dacee June hooted. “That's being very presumptuous, isn't it?”
“Thank ya, Dacee June. I was hopin' you'd see it my way.”
“What way? You had no idea what I . . .”
“Carty, you're going with me. Olene and Dover, I need you to grab a weapon and ride along.”
“That's absurd,” Olene protested. “I most certainly will not endanger my life over a matter that does not concern me.”
“They shot two men in front of your eyes. It concerns you a lot” Todd insisted.
“I will not endanger my life,” Olene insisted, raw panic in his eyes.
“I'll go,” Dover offered. “I am not much of a horseman, but I'm a fair shot with a target rifle.”
“Thanks, Dover. Go help Carty saddle the horses,” Todd instructed.
“You've got to let me go, Todd. Let me ride in that fourth saddle,” Dacee June pleaded.
Todd stared at Olene, “It isn't much of a man who'd let a girl do his fighting for him. Are you riding with us, Olene?”
“Absolutely not!”
“Wash that blood off your hands and ride with us, Girl. Daddy will never forgive me if you get hurt.”
“But he'd take me with him if he were here.”
“You're right about that. Go get the others. We need to talk.”
Todd gathered the whole crew into the tollhouse.
It's like a play and everyone is waiting for me to say my lines. Only, I'm not sure what my lines are supposed to be. This is Daddy Brazos's part. I'm just the understudy.
He pushed his hat back and cleared his throat. “How are the wounded?”
“We've got the bleeding stopped in both men,” Abigail reported. “Dr. Gordon wants me to try and remove the bullet from Lander first. He think's he might pass out when we remove his bullet, and he would be of no help to Mr. Lander.”
“How's your helper? Has she fainted out yet?”
“I'm doing alright,” Rebekah offered. “The doctor carries smelling salts in his case.”
“Mrs. O'Neill and Mrs. Speaker, keep Amber on the porch, but don't wander off just in case the ladies need a hand.”
Thelma Speaker fidgeted with her gloves. “And perhaps we could build a fire and boil some tea?”
“Eh . . . yes . . . that would be helpful.” Todd watched Olene cowering at the door as he spoke. “The outlaws took off in the general direction of Redbud Cave. I reckon we have their relay horses. We missed them riding down, because we swung down to the Sturgis Road. They were countin' on loadin' the gold on the three big horses and ridin' the others. They'll ride their ponies into the ground, thinking they have remounts. So we should be able to catch up with them. Dover, Carty, and Dacee June and I will see what we can find. At least we can mark the trail for the sheriff to pick up later.”
“What about Mr. Olene?” Rebekah asked from her kneeling position beside Elijah Lander.
“Olene refuses to ride.”
“What?” Rebekah gulped.
“I'll ride, alright.” Olene stomped to the middle of the room. “I insist on driving the carriage back to town immediately. I will send others back to help.”
“You'd drive off and leave the women and the wounded?” Carty asked.
“They may come along with me, if they so choose. I am not remaining here so that the brigands can return to shoot the rest of us.”
Todd's fist caught the Cleveland businessman in the stomach. He staggered back, slammed his head on a doorpost, and dropped to the floor.
“Todd!” Rebekah called out.
“Tie him up, Carty. I'm not having anyone drive off in that carriage by himself. We'll be back in at least two hours. But I want you to load up the wounded men in that carriage and drive back to town whenever they are able to ride. If you're gone when we return, we'll meet you in town. Meanwhile ladies, keep one of these revolvers close-by, for protection.”
“What are we protecting ourselves from?” Rebekah asked.
“Pure, unadulterated evil,” he replied.