Black Sun, The Battle of Summit Springs, 1869 (41 page)
Read Black Sun, The Battle of Summit Springs, 1869 Online
Authors: Terry C. Johnston
“That's a lot of money.”
“Damn tootin' it is. Especially to buy a woman!”
“Ian have that much?”
He laughed. “Shit, son. All three of us together never seen that kind of dust in our lives!” Then he wagged his head. “Ian stood there, looking like he was figuring on it hard. Then finally told the woman to get out of the way. Up and told the gal's owner that he didn't have enough gold, but he figured there was lead enough in the pistol he carried in his belt to pay his debt.”
“He killed the gal's owner?”
The old man nodded, a smile caressing his eyes. “Weren't clean, though. After he was dead that morning, friends came in that afternoon and set up a ruckus. Ian skeedaddled from town.”
“How'd Liam figure in all of this?”
“All along he told his brother to stay clear of another man's womanâbut Ian seemed he was bit something bad, that he just couldn't stay clear of her. Shame of itâLiam and he broke up our outfit over that woman.”
“You sound like you're saying Liam wanted the woman, too.”
“Liam? Shit, he wasn't the kind to get caught up yoke and traces in a woman. Not that one. He just ⦠just didn't want to stir up no trouble.”
“Where'd Ian go?”
“I heard later from Liam that his brother headed up to Silver Plume.”
“Where's that?”
“North of here a ways.”
“When?”
He thought on it, tapping a finger against his lower lip. “Eighteen and sixty.”
“The woman went with him?”
The old man nodded. “Bad blood she caused between them brothers. Women just naturally have a way of stirring things up a'tween men.”
“You've been a lot of help. I'll head out for Silver Plume in the morning.”
“You might. Then, you might not,” the old man said quietly. “No sense heading there when I heard Ian didn't stay long in Silver Plume. He moved on north with the gal, fixing to make a clean break.”
“Liam ever know of this?”
“I figure he did. But I suppose he figured there was no sense in trying to mend things a'tween them. A woman can cause a deep wound that ofttimes won't heal just rightâlike a bad bone.”
“Where'd Ian go?”
“By 'sixty-two he was pushing north to the Idaho fields. What was Idaho thenâcalled Montana now.”
“Alder Gulch? Virginia CityâNevada CityâBannack?”
His well-seamed face brightened. “Lordee! Does sound like you know of the place, son!”
“I'll be blessed!” Seamus exclaimed. “Of a time I was heading there meself. Glory ⦠glory be!”
DEVIL'S BACKBONEâVOLUME 5 IN TERRY C. JOHNSTON'S PLAINSMEN SERIESâDON'T MISS IT!
THE PLAINSMEN SERIES BY TERRY C. JOHNSTON
Book I: Sioux Dawn
Book II: Red Cloud's Revenge
Book III: The Stalkers
Book IV: Black Sun
Book V: Devil's Backbone
Book VI: Shadow Riders
Book VII: Dying Thunder
Book VIII: Blood Song
Book IX: Reap the Whirlwind
Book X: A Cold Day in Hell
Book XI: Trumpet on the Land
Book XII: Wolf Mountain Moon
Book XIII: Ashes of Heaven
Book XIV: Cries from the Earth
Book XV: Lay the Mountains Low
Book XVI: Turn the Stars Upside Down
TERRY C. JOHNSTONâHIS WORK CAPTURES THE SPIRIT OF THE FRONTIER WITH A SOARING POWER TO RIVAL
DANCES WITH WOLVES
“Johnston offers memorable characters, a great deal of history and lore ⦠and deep insight into human nature, Indian or white.”
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Booklist
“RICH AND FASCINATING ⦠There is a genuine flavor of the period and of the men who made it what it was.”
â
Washington Post Book World
“Johnston's way of telling his story will capture your imagination!”
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Guns & Ammo
“GUTSY ADVENTURE-ENTERTAINMENT ⦠larded with just the right amounts of frontier sentiment.”
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Kirkus Reviews
“Meticulously researched, a Terry Johnston hallmark ⦠I still see the Thomas Wolfe and the genius in him.”
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Rocky Mountain News
Terry C. Johnston is a two-time Golden Spur Award-nominee, and award-winning author of
Carry the Wind,
the
Plainsmen
series and
Long Winter Gone.
BLACK SUN
Copyright © 1991 by Terry C. Johnston.
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be used or reproduced in any manner whatsoever without written permission except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles or reviews. For information address St. Martin's Press, 175 Fifth Avenue, New York, NY 10010.
ISBN: 0-312-92465-8
EAN: 80312-92465-2
St. Martin's Press Paperbacks edition / April 1991
St. Martin's Paperbacks are published by St. Martin's Press, 175 Fifth Avenue, New York, NY 10010.
eISBN 9781466849815
First eBook edition: July 2013
*
See The Plainsmen Series, vol. 3,
The Stalkers
*
The Plainsmen Series, vol. 3,
The Stalkers
*
 The Plainsmen Series, vol. 2,
Red Cloud's Revenge
*
 The Plainsmen Series, vol. 3,
The Stalkers
*
 The Plainsmen Series, vol. 3,
The Stalkers
*
 The Plainsmen Series, Vol. I,
Sioux Dawn
*
 Yellowstone River
*
The Plainsmen Series, Vol. 1,
Sioux Dawn
â
 Vol. 2,
Red Cloud's Revenge
*
 The Plainsmen Series, Vol. 3,
The Stalkers