Unexpected (29 page)

“Yes.  There was a prosperous silver mine here at the turn of the century. They hauled a lot of silver out of there back then, but had no way of shipping it through the pass without costing too much.  Mining habits have changed now, technology too. The railroad is fast approaching. Chances are Butch managed to steal this from the former land owner by the same means he tried to get your ranch.  Now, he has a way to ship it out when the railroad comes to Bakersfield.  He just has a short trek through the mountain pass to the town.  A team of horses could easily haul that during the day and not wear out.  He’s probably stockpiling it and waiting for the railroad to reach Bakersfield.  If he succeeds, he’ll make more money than Croesus.”

“Who?”

Cogan found it in him to smile. “Just a very rich man.”

“
Well, I despise Butch, but he’s not stupid.”

“No.  A dangerous combination; soulless, and smart,” Cogan responded matter-of-factly.
“That can also be his undoing.  I’m smarter.”

Ryker wasn’t going to disagree.
“What did you mean, when you told Clancy that Butch thinks he knows?”

“It means Butch got a hold of some information on how to kill me.”

“Well, shit Cogan.  I don’t like the sound of that.”  Ryker pulled back on his reins halting the mare.

Cogan
shook his head subtly and eased his worries.  “That’s why I said, what he
thinks
he knows. People don’t know my race, they get a glimpse of my kind and make shit up.  I think there are two books out there on the subject.  I read both of them.”

“And?”

“It was a good laugh.”

“Can you be killed?”
Despite Cogan trying to lighten the situation, he was worried.

“Everything can be killed Ryker.
I’m not going to live forever.  If it happens tonight, then it happens.  I don’t fear death.  I served my God for a long time.”

Ryker was silent for a while before he spoke again.
“If he hurt my sister in any way Cogan.  I want you to rip him to pieces—slowly.”  He nudged his horse into a steady trot.

“That’s a given.”
And eat his fucking heart
, Cogan thought to himself.

***

“Dig those damn holes deeper!” Butch hollered at the Chinese workers digging the pit. It was already ten feet deep, but it wasn’t enough. The recounts from his men that had witnessed the creature and lived, told him the animal was massive; bigger than a grizzly.

As for the pit, it was the fifth
and last. It covered the final passable route to the mine.  They were well travelled trails, and that wolf had to come through one of them. “And cover them good.  I don’t want that critter to know what hit him.” When the animal fell in the trap, his men would kill it.  Then he would mount the thing on his wall.  He smiled. It was raining again.  He was sure he hadn’t seen such rain since he settled in this country.  It was fitting for tonight.  He knew that animals couldn’t track in the rain.  That’s one of the reasons he sent Clancy back to town.  He was to tell the creature where to find him.

He continued to watch the progress of the
last pit while feeling exhilarated. This was a sporting challenge for him and he was already resigned to winning. In fact, it wasn’t even conceivable that he would lose. He had twenty gunslingers under his command, and the Chinese workers who were digging the traps.  He knew that they could kill the creature with silver bullets.  Silver was in no short supply, so he’d smelted it down and did just that.  His men may have thought he was acting crazy, digging pits and using silver bullets, but they didn’t have the balls to ask him.  Instead they loaded their guns and obeyed his every word.

“We’re looking for something big. 
Grizzly big.  Don’t even stop to look at it, just shoot it when you see it.”

“
Is it a grizzly?” One of the men asked.

“You’ll know it when you see it,” he answered with a smirk.

The man wondered if he really could. It was pouring out and pitch black. He wanted to ask about the silver bullets the boss made them load their guns with, but he decided he’d asked enough questions. Butch wasn’t known for his patience.  Also, maybe the man thought he was so rich, he was just going to start to use silver bullets on everything.  Who knew what was in his head?

“Has Clancy returned?” Butch asked no one in particular as he pushed silver bullets into the chamber of his revolver.
The rain started to fall heavily.  He holstered his gun before he reached up and settled his hat straight on his head to block out the drizzle. He looked around at his men.  They looked like a bunch of idiots.  Thankfully he had more than twenty with him, because he was probably going to lose a few.

Several men mumbled that they hadn’t seen
Clancy.

The bastard was probably getting drunk in the saloon
, Butch thought.  He could use him though, he was a mean bastard. “Well go to your stations boys.  Like I said, shoot first. Don’t hesitate.  This thing has killed a lot of my men.”

***

“We’re about a quarter mile away,” Cogan said as he pulled up and dismounted.  “We can’t go in full tilt.  They’ll expect that.”

Ryker dismounted and pulled his rifle out of the sleeve.

Cogan took a deep breath watching Ryker’s actions before he spoke. “You need to stay here, my friend.”

“Like hell.”

“Look, they are expecting me.  Not you.  I need you to wait a good half hour before you come in.  I’ll clear the way so you can get Josie and get the hell out of there.  My stallion will go with you. The mare won’t make it that far with both of you on her. I’ll find my own way home.

“You’re full of shit Cogan. I’m not leaving you to s
acrifice yourself for my family!” Ryker replied vehemently.

Cogan smiled. “Have some faith my friend.”  He started backing i
nto the dark of the night.  “I’ll meet you at home.”  His deep voice faded into the darkness.

“Cogan?”
Ryker rushed forward.  “Cogan!”

He was gone.

How the hell did he just do that?  It may have been raining, but he should have heard something.  Cogan was a big man.  No one can move that silently.  He turned and mounted the mare again contemplating whether or not to go after him.  He cursed out loud. Cogan didn’t leave him much of a choice.  He couldn’t sacrifice Josephine.  He’d wait, but not for a half hour.

***

“What do you think the boss means, by ‘grizzly big’?” the man was crouched behind a large log that overlooked one of the pits with another man. He was uneasy; they all were.  The information given to them was not thorough enough to calm their worries.  What the hell was bigger than a grizzly that could threaten them?

“Hell if I know.  Just keep your gun closer than you would a woman.”

They were scared, but neither one of them were going to admit it.  It had stopped raining now and the silence seemed more frightening.  Every small sound seemed intensified.

“Well, let’s hope the thing takes another route to the mine.”

It didn’t turn out that way.  Their screams echoed in the valley where the mine lay followed by a gunshot

“Jesus.”  The two men guarding the door of the shack that Josie was in exchanged glances.

Inside, Josephine smiled.

Ten minutes later—more screaming.

“What the hell—”  One of the men turned and pushed open the door.  “What the hell is going on?” he asked Josephine.

“Just stick around.  You’ll see soon enough.”

He looked over his shoulder at the other man.  He was apprehensive.  He shut entered and shut the door drawing his gun and looking out the window.

“It won’t help you,” she mocked.

“shutup!”

A few seconds later, the second man came in. “
Did you hear that?”

The first man shook his head and kept by the window.

“More fucking screaming.  What the hell did we get into?  Men are being slaughtered.”

“You could leave,” Josephine piped
up. “Although it’s probably too late.”

The second man’s expression turned angry and he was looming over her in a few short strides with his gun drawn at her chest.  “I could, could I?  Then what?  I get hunted like an animal?  I don’t think so!  I think wherever you are, is the safest.
So I’m staying right here.”  He wrapped his fist in her hair painfully and lowered his face inches from hers.  Drops of spittle hit her skin as he spoke.  “If it comes for me, you are going first!”

Josie closed her eyes.  His breath was rancid, like tobacco and old whiskey.

“I can’t see a damn thing out there!” said the man by the window.  He could see the lamps in the pit shatter and go dark one by one.  Something was out there, and it was moving fast!  “Grizzly bear my goddam ass!”

He wasn’t the only one witnessing the mayhem.  Butch stood
on top of a cliff with six of his best gunmen witnessing the event.  He cursed inwardly. You’d think there were three of the creatures from the way things were falling to pieces.  “A thousand dollars to the man that kills that thing.” He said calmly, and cocked his rifle.

The men cheered at the size of the reward.

“Go get it.”

With shouts of courage they headed to the path that led to the mine.

Butch wasn’t afraid at all.  Cogan will screw up, and he’ll be there.

There was a sound of breaking glass and Josie watched the man at the window clutch his throat and fall backwards.  Blood spurted out between his fingers the likes she’d never seen. Next thing a horrendous splintering of wood as the door flew open. In stepped Ryker and without hesitation, shot the man holding her hair.  He toppled backwards still griping her locks. She screamed at the pain in her scalp.  The chair fell backwards onto the dead man.

“Josie!” he rushed over and pried the dead man’s fingers loose before untie her. 

Her arms flew around her brother and she sobbed.

“Did he hurt you—”  He swallowed hard “—at all—anywhere?”

“No!” she muffled into his neck.

Ryker said a prayer of thanks before standing, hauling her up with him. “We’ve got to get the hell out of here. Cogan’s doing his thing, but we’re not sure how many men Butch has here.”

“We can’t leave him!”

“Well I sure as hell can’t save both of you.  So we are leaving. Can you stand?”

“God, I don’t know.” Her legs were numb from being bound to the chair for hours.

He half dragged her out of the shack.  The two horses stood patiently outside, but not still.  The stallion could hear his master and was anxious to go to him.  To Ryker’s amazement, he didn’t.  He obeyed Cogan’s wishes and stayed with the mare. 

He helped Josie onto his back. “You hold tight Josie. He’ll take you home.”

She was weeping now. “Please help him Ryker.”

“I’ll do my best sis.
I love you. Look after Thomas.” Before she could respond, or figure out what he was doing, he slapped the stallion’s rump who lunged and took off at breakneck speed.

She cried his name
realizing he was staying behind, and no matter how hard she pulled on the reins, the horse refused to stop or slow.  It had its orders and it was going home.  It would rather have its mouth bruised and broken than be disloyal to Cogan.  So, in a fit of tears, she hung on for her life. She looked back over her shoulder, but the darkness swallowed the scene behind her.

Chapter Nine

The last of them men’s screams died out in the early hours of the morning.  Butch remained where he was during the night, watching and waiting.  Dawn lit the far edge of the sky and he could see his migrant workers leaving—scattering like ants.  Without his men to keep them there, they were taking the opportunity to get the hell out. They heard the screams just like he did. Yet, the creature had left them unharmed and only killed his men. It was interesting that it could retain a conscience in its animal form and not turn completely primitive.  He began to wonder how much truth was in that book and he read it from cover to cover.

Butch stood there for an hour watching as the last of the workers filtered out of the mine and silence took over. He knew it was still out there somewhere—looking for him.  He withdrew his revolver and slipped his finger over the trigger.  He’d have to be quick.

A twig snapped behind him and he turned and fired.

***

It had been too long.  Josephine refused to leave the front porch since the night before when she got home.  Around midmorning, Hattie insisted on her having a bath to clean up, that the Doc would keep watch but she would catch a cold in the damp clothing she was in.  She finally conceded and when she was in dry clothes, with a woolen shawl wrapped around her shoulders, she made her way back out onto the front porch.

Gus
had shown up while she was in the bathhouse.  He was in a discussion with the doctor when she came back out onto the porch. She said a brief greeting before returning her anxious attention to the horizon.  Doc Russell’s wife brought her some warm tea.