Clay Nash 1 by Brett Waring

Author:Brett Waring
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: piccadilly publishing, ranch war, cowboys and gunfighters, western novel ebook, brett waring, keith hetherington australian writes, pulp western fiction ebook, western ranch wars, western story ebook
Publisher: Piccadilly Publishing

Six – “Thirty Miles of Hell!”

THE CONCORD rolled along the flat trail of the disputed right-of-way through the hot Texas sun. The passengers, driver and guard all felt the difference as the coach travelled over this comparatively smooth stretch. It was much more comfortable than the jolting, swaying and rolling of the mountain trails, or the curving roads that ran through the boulder fields and rough mountain passes.

Here was land that had been grazed by beef cattle for over thirty years, and for buffalo for thousands of years before that. The land was worn flat and smooth, any rocks either buried in dust build-up or crumbled beneath countless thousands of cloven hoofs over the years. With the bodywork swinging on the leather thoroughbraces. the noise level of the iron tires cut down immensely on the flat, the passengers were lulled into a kind of doze that was welcomed by their aching limbs after the long miles and days and nights of seemingly endless travel.

This particular coach wasn’t carrying anything of great value in the express box: the guard was along for the peace of mind of the passengers more than anything else. It had been an uneventful journey so far and he, too, was lulled into a dreamy state, nodding off on his seat beside the driver who let the horses make their own speed here. This flat strip ran for thirty long miles and was an easy route that required little attention to the team. The driver almost lounged in his seat, holding the reins loosely in his hands.

The guard and driver all but jumped out of their seats atop the stage as there came a sudden volley of gunshots close by, followed by wild, ringing yells. They looked around to see a bunch of maybe a dozen cowboys sweeping down on the coach from the rises either side of the trail, guns shooting into the air. The guard lifted his shotgun, not sure what was going on, his brain befuddled from his doze. The driver was slow at whipping up the team and the cowboys swept alongside, down either side of the coach, yelling, shooting. The passengers were at the windows, white-faced, some thinking they were caught in the middle of an Indian attack.

The cowboys closed in on the coach and one swung aboard the luggage rack at the rear. He hung there precariously by one hand, using the other hand to untie the lashings of the canvas covering the passengers’ baggage. When the canvas flapped free, he used the same hand to start heaving off wooden suitcases and leather bags, carpetbags, packages, everything.

Meanwhile, two others were at the teams, leaning from saddles with hunting knives, cutting the traces and reins. The guard stood up with his shotgun raised threateningly. A rider dropped a rope noose over him, took a quick turn around his saddle horn and yanked back on the reins. The guard was snatched from the seat and dropped heavily to the trail. When he tried to get up, the rope-wielding rider rammed his mount into him, knocking him down again, breathless.

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.