The Last Ride of Caleb O'Toole (21 page)

Caleb gripped the Henry rifle hard as Pride carried him over the purple fireweed. There was a time months ago when Caleb would not have dared what he did next. But he was not the same boy anymore. He could see the Blackstones turn to face him. The smoke from their guns puffed against the blue sky and the bullets whizzed past him. It didn't matter. Caleb let go of the reins and sighted the Henry at the closest Blackstone. Rat Face! His heart pounded wildly as Pride charged over the purple field, hooves crashing and his great chest heaving. Barely fifty yards away, Caleb took one final calming breath and squeezed the trigger.

Rat Face flew off the saddle and landed in a heap, his arm shattered by the single blast of the big Henry. He dragged himself to the horse trough and reached for his pistol. Caleb rode down on the Blackstones, firing the Henry and scattering the brothers. Blacktooth took his horse around to the side of the house as he fired at Caleb with his pistol. The bullet tore a patch from the side of Caleb's skin coat. Julie answered the call with her pearl-handled Colt from the window of the house. Caught between fire, Snake jumped off his horse and dove into the barn, drawing his pistol. Caleb fired the Henry as fast as he could, keeping the Blackstones pinned down as he rode to the back of the barn. Sheriff Blackstone ran to the side of the barn with his pistol. Caleb's shot tore off a chunk of wood, and the Sheriff clutched his face and hit the ground, cursing up a storm. Caleb had him right where he wanted him and sighted in on the Sheriff.
CLICK
. Empty!

With no more bullets that fit the Henry, Caleb grabbed the Sharps from the scabbard and his pouch of fifty-caliber bullets, leaped off Pride, and dove toward the cover of the bushes along the creek as the Sheriff rose to fire. The shots went over Caleb's head as he crawled on his belly and hid behind a rock. He dug into the pouch and brought out a handful of shells. Quickly, he crammed one into the chamber and fired. The Sheriff retreated behind the barn. Caleb sprinted low through the creek toward the rear of the house. Like lightning, he shoved another bullet into the Sharps as Blacktooth appeared on the other side of the house. Blacktooth fired as Caleb took cover in the tall wet weeds of the stream. In a second, Caleb returned fire, driving Blacktooth to the front of the house, where he ducked behind a pile of wood by the fence. Caleb took a deep breath and ran fifty feet toward the back window. A bullet from the Sheriff nicked him, but he hardly felt it as he dove headfirst through the window of the little bedroom. Caleb rolled across the floor over the shards of broken glass. From the floor, he could see Tilly hiding under the bed, her hands over her ears, terrified and sobbing.

“Julie! Are you all right?” Caleb ran to the window and closed the wooden shutters and latched them.

“Yes!” Julie fired her Colt out the kitchen window. “Caleb, cover me, I have to reload!”

In a flash, he stuck more bullets into the webbing of his fingers and loaded the Sharps as he ran to Julie's side. Suddenly, a barrage of Blackstone bullets smashed out the remainder of the window glass and Caleb and Julie ducked for their lives. Quickly, Caleb rose and fired from the side as Snake ran from the barn to the side of the house. Julie fired her Colt at the Sheriff as he ran from the other side of the house and shot through the window. Rat Face, his arm useless, ran toward the barn, firing his pistol with his good hand. Then everything stopped. The smell of gunpowder hung in the air.

“Pretty good shooting, kid!” shouted Blacktooth.

“Caleb O'Toole!” yelled Sheriff Blackstone. “You and your sister come on out now! I'm here to take you back to Dobytown. Give up and we'll go easy on you.”

“We'll not likely give ourselves up to a family of murdering thieves!” shouted Julie. She turned to her brother, her face set in determination. “Caleb. There is no way we believe a word they say. They'll just shoot us down.”

“I know. I say we stand and fight. How are you fixed for ammo?”

“Twenty or so, I think.” Julie checked her pockets. “You?”

“Maybe thirty. If we make them count, we might get through this.”

“What do you say, boy?” shouted Sheriff Blackstone.

“You don't come out, we will shoot you down or burn the house!” threatened Blacktooth. “Either way, it don't matter to me!”

“If you come for us, we will shoot!” shouted Caleb.

Caleb and Julie stood on either side of the window just out of sight. Caleb's ears strained to hear any sign of movement. As Julie reloaded her Colt, he saw a flicker of motion over her shoulder. A tiny ray of light peeked through a slight gap in the wood on the side of the house. For a split second, the light was blocked from outside, then the light appeared again. Someone was sneaking toward the door. The Blackstones laid down another barrage of fire as Julie swung the Colt toward the window. Caleb fired the Sharps at the gap in the wall. Then he grabbed the supper table and slid it hard against the door just as it crashed open, smashing it closed on the arm and head of the intruder. It was Snake! The killer threw all his weight against the door, trying to force his way inside, but Caleb held fast. Snake's lizard face peeled back in a ghoulish grin as he twisted his gun around and fired a shot at Julie. Julie dove to the floor just in time. In a flash, Caleb grabbed his knife and leaped toward the earless man, slashing down hard and slicing Snake's arm.

Snake shrieked as he yanked his bloody arm back and fell outside. Caleb slammed the door with the table. Then he reloaded and fired out the window as Snake scurried to the side of the barn.

“Burn them out!” shouted Blacktooth from the side of the house.

The Blackstones fired with everything they had as Rat Face ran from the barn, swinging a lit lantern. Bullets flew through the kitchen and chewed chunks from the window and the door. Caleb dove for the floor next to Julie who was reloading. Rat Face threw the lantern through the kitchen window and suddenly the wall burst into flames. Caleb rolled to his right and fired at Rat Face, but the rodent man ducked below the window. Julie quickly crawled into the bedroom and stripped the fur blanket from the bed. In a flash, she returned and began to beat back the flames as the Blackstones unleashed all their firepower. There was no way they could stand and return fire. In moments, the four murderers would rush the house.
In
seconds
our
lives
could
be
over
, Caleb thought as he slammed another shell into his rifle. He was determined to take at least one Blackstone with him. Suddenly, there was silence.

“They stopped!” said Caleb as he crawled toward the window.

Three gunshots echoed in the distance. Another shot, this time a little closer. Caleb rose carefully to his feet and looked out the window.

“Who is it!” cried Julie as she beat back the flames. “Who's firing?”

“I can't tell,” said Caleb. “Wait. I see them. There're two men.”

A tall lean rider, his long black coat swirling behind him, tore through the purple valley like he was sent on a mission from Hades. He thundered across the field on a mustang that was so red in color, it looked like he was riding on a flame. The reins in his teeth and a Spencer rifle booming in his hands, he swallowed up the ground, raking the Blackstones with his fire. Right behind him was a big man with a Winchester rifle, riding straight up and fearless on a snorting Palomino.

“It's Henderson! And Sheriff Porter is with him!” shouted Caleb as he reloaded.

Blacktooth turned and ran to the side of the house, firing both of his Colt pistols at the charging Henderson and Porter. Rat Face ran to the side of the barn, clutching his wounded arm as bullets dug the ground beside him. Snake, his arm covered in blood, dove for cover into the barn and snapped off two shots from his pistol. Suddenly, Henderson and Porter split off. Sheriff Blackstone ran away from the house into the field, trying to outflank them. Porter sheathed his Winchester and drew his Colt as he rode down on the Sheriff. Blacktooth fired from the side and Sheriff Porter jumped off his horse and dove for cover. Henderson rode hard toward the barn. In one motion, he sheathed his rifle and drew his Colt, leaping off the mustang. In a second, he was after Rat Face. Snake emerged from the barn, then crept around the side, trying to sneak up on Henderson from behind.

Caleb yanked the table away from the door. With the Blackstones now fighting Henderson and Porter, he took a chance and ran from the house to the barn and ducked behind the barn door. From there, he could see Sheriff Logan Porter and Sheriff Blackstone exchanging fire in the field on the other side of the house. Two lawmen, one good and one evil. Blacktooth appeared from around the corner of the house and drew on Porter from behind. Caleb fired from the barn at Blacktooth and hit him in his leg. Blacktooth grabbed his leg, turned, and fired at Caleb, but Caleb was already moving, diving across the barn and rolling to a stop on the other side. Through the gaps in the wood in the side of the barn, Caleb could see Henderson advancing on Rat Face. Henderson's shot knocked the man clear through the wall. Rat Face landed in a heap. He tried to raise his pistol to fire as Henderson stepped through the hole in the wall. Henderson finished off the murderer and Rat Face lay still. Snake suddenly appeared from behind Henderson and swung his pistol. In a flash, Henderson dove to his right and came up firing. Caleb beat him to it. The heavy slug from the Sharps blew Snake clean out of the barn and into the creek!

“Nice going, kid,” growled Henderson as he ran to the barn door. “Let's take care of those other two.”

Caleb crammed another shell into his rifle and ran to the other side of the door. Together they looked out as Sheriff Porter stalked slowly after Sheriff Blackstone as the man tried to flee for his life. Wounded in the leg, the man limped pitifully toward a grove of pines. The fleeing Sheriff tried to shoot Porter, but by this time he was near panic and his shots were wild and desperate. Sheriff Porter took his time as he advanced on the Blackstone lawman. He seemed an invincible force of good against the whimpering defeat of evil. Granite against fool's gold. Sheriff Blackstone lay down for good under the roar of Porter's Colt. Suddenly, all was quiet. But there was one more. Blacktooth. And then Julie screamed.

“He's got Tilly!” Julie ran from the house, blood in her beautiful blond hair, her chest heaving in fear.

“Are you shot?” Caleb ran to his sister and checked her head.

“No.” Julie's breath came out in gasps. “I heard something in the back. He smashed through the shutters and then hit me in the head. He took Tilly!”

“Where did he go?” Henderson asked as he loaded his Colt.

“In back. Up the hill.”

“He wants a hostage. Must be hit.” Henderson reloaded his Colt and checked the Remington in his boot.

“I got him in the leg,” said Caleb.

“Man's a coward,” grunted Sheriff Porter. “We'll get him.”

Caleb, Henderson, and Porter fanned out as they climbed the hill in back of the ranch. The blood trail was easy to follow, and it led straight to the sanctuary. Caleb swore that if Blacktooth harmed Tilly in any way, he would put a bullet into the murderer himself. With Henderson on Caleb's right and Sheriff Porter on his left, one thing was for sure. Blacktooth's days were numbered.

“Help!” Tilly yelled from the gravesite just fifty yards up the hill.

“Give it up, Blackstone!” shouted Porter.

A bullet went whizzing overhead. “You come any closer and I'll kill her!” yelled Blacktooth.

“You got nobody left, Blackstone!” shouted Henderson. “All your brothers are dead!”

Blacktooth fired off two more rounds and Caleb hit the ground hard.

Porter charged up the left side. “Back off, Sheriff!” Blacktooth, holding Tilly against him, fired toward Porter, and the Sheriff dove low into the grass. When the outlaw backed away from the rocky ledge and into the trees, Henderson bolted up the hill. Caleb, his legs churning, crested the hill after him and took cover behind a tree. Henderson, kneeling behind a fallen log, had his gun trained on Blacktooth. The outlaw cowered in the shadows of the trees, crouching against the granite boulders near the two crosses. Tilly kicked and screamed, struggling in the grip of the murderer's arms as he tried to reload his gun. They dared not fire and chance hitting Tilly. Before they could make a move, Blacktooth snapped the chamber shut and pointed the gun at Tilly.

“I didn't take you for a coward, Blackstone, hiding behind a little girl,” taunted Henderson. “Let's just make this about you and me. It's what you really want, right?”

“You and me?” snarled Blacktooth, weakening from the loss of blood.

“Let the girl go. Maybe you can make it through the trees. Kill me and you have a chance. Wait much longer and you'll bleed out for sure. I see the boy here messed you up pretty good.” Henderson, from the cover of the log, held his Colt rock-steady on the wounded outlaw. Sheriff Porter then eased himself closer from the hill below and took cover in the rocks on the other side of Blacktooth. “There's no way you'll stand up to three of us.”

Blacktooth held Tilly against him as he swung his pistol toward Henderson, Porter, then at Caleb. Caleb didn't budge. Pressed against the tree, he was ready to fire if he had the chance. Still, there was no way he could risk a shot.

“You and me, face-to-face?” sneered Blacktooth as he swung his pistol back to Henderson.

“Face-to-face,” answered Henderson with deadly calm. “We'll settle it. Let her go.” Henderson knew the power of the temptation was too great for Blacktooth.