Ranger's Quest- The Beginning by Edward Gates

Author:Edward Gates [Gates, Edward]
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9780996145718
Published: 2018-11-12T23:00:00+00:00

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North Texas

The trail out of Trinidad led down the foothills of the Rockies and onto the vast northwestern plains of Texas that would later become known as the Panhandle. It took them a few days to get out of the mountains, but once they were on reasonably flat terrain they would be able to cover more ground in a day.

The trip across the Panhandle was long and boring. As the weeks dragged by, the landscape they put behind them looked exactly like the landscape they faced. Sagebrush, ragweed and thistles grew amongst the wild rye and buffalo grasses that covered the prairie as far as they could see. A few rolling hills in the distance broke up the flat horizon. A number of creeks cut trenches and ravines across the plains as they channeled rain and snowmelt away. There was always a good supply of water and plenty of grasslands for grazing.

Three weeks out of Trinidad brought them to the Canadian River. In late January, with the winter snow and rain, the river was raging. They turned the wagons eastward and headed upstream along the river bank.

“I’ll ride ahead to see if I can’t find a place to cross,” Walter said.

Dave nudged Charlie. “You go along with him.”

Walter saddled the dun and Charlie the bay and the two rode ahead looking for an area where the water wasn’t moving very fast but was still shallow enough for the oxen to cross.

After riding for a while they came to a junction where Blanca Creek met the Canadian River. The creek deposited a lot of gravel at the junction of the two water systems, which created a shallow area that would support the wagons. Walter dismounted and checked the banks to make sure they could be traversed without any trouble. Out of the corner of Charlie’s eye he thought he saw movement. When he turned to look, there was nothing.

“Did you see that?” Charlie asked.

The two froze so they could listen and watch for anything that moved. No sound, no movement. Walter climbed back on the dun and he and Charlie both caught a glimpse of something moving between the trees. They gently spurred their horses and rejoined Ed and Dave.

“There’s a place up ahead by a creek where we can cross. But I think we may have company,” Walter said as he rode alongside the wagon.

Dave looked over to him. “Where? What did you see?”

“Shadows. I didn’t get a good look. I think it was a couple bucks watching me.”

“Comanche?”

“Not sure,” Walter said. “Like I said, I didn’t get a good look. Coulda been Comanche… or maybe even Kiowa.”

“How could you tell?” Charlie asked.

“Indians are very territorial. The Comanche tribe claim North Texas as theirs. So do the Kiowa. So it’s got to be one or the other.”

“Are they friendly like the others we met?”

“Not likely. They hate the settlers and hunters coming onto their land. We have to be careful.” Dave glanced at Walter again. “Well, let’s not worry about it ‘til they show themselves.

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