Death Song by Bill Dugan

Author:Bill Dugan [Dugan, Bill]
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 978-0-06-211983-4
Publisher: HarperCollins
Published: 2011-11-15T00:00:00+00:00

11

Scotty Horgan slipped in behind Harrison, patting him on the back to let him know he was there. The young officer was startled, and nearly screeched with surprise. “Jesus Christ! Don’t do that. I could have killed you.”

Horgan smiled inwardly. Not on the best day of your life, mister, he thought. But he said nothing, not wanting to challenge the man. Harrison already seemed to believe that he had something to prove, and Horgan was loath to give him yet another reason. “Sorry, Lieutenant,” he whispered. “See anything yet?”

Harrison shook his head. “Not yet. I thought I heard voices a few minutes ago, but I can’t be sure. Too far away to hear clearly, even if I knew the language.”

Horgan nodded. “How long are you prepared to wait before you attack?”

“An hour or so. No more than that.”

“Then what?”

“Then we hit them hard and fast. They’ll be too disorganized to resist.”

“You ever see the Sioux fight, Lieutenant?”

Harrison shook his head. “No, why?”

“I didn’t think so. You would never have said that, if you had.”

“You make them sound like they’re superhuman, Mr. Horgan. No bunch of savages can match the discipline of a trained army. And our advantage in firepower will overwhelm them before they can regroup.”

“Discipline is beside the point, Lieutenant. The plains Indians are used to a different kind of combat. They strike like rattlers and are gone before you know what hit you. Discipline slows you down. Your men will be waiting for orders. If something happens to you, they’ll be like headless chickens. The Sioux are used to thinking for themselves in combat. They don’t need orders, so they can stay one jump ahead of you every step of the way.”

“You forget one thing, Horgan. They have their families down there. They will be hampered by that.”

Horgan snorted. “You think this will be the first time a camp has been attacked? You think they don’t know about Sand Creek and what happened to the Cheyenne there? You think they don’t know how to hold off an attacking force until the women and children are clear, you better think again. The fact is, they’ll be even more determined to fight, for that very reason. I still wish you’d reconsider.”

Harrison shook his head. “No.”

Neither man had anything else to say, and Horgan lay there stewing, trying to decide what he could do to prevent what now seemed inevitable. For a moment, he considered firing his weapon, send the Sioux spilling out of their lodges. But it might not help and it almost certainly would get him arrested. Matt Bell would back him, but the damage would already have been done. And Harrison was almost certain then to take his anger out on the Sioux. As Horgan saw it, they were already in enough trouble.

The sun was due any minute. Already the stars were gone, and the gray cast of the sky had begun to brighten. Horgan surveyed the hillside. The deployment of the men was haphazard, but he couldn’t fault Harrison for that.

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