Reckoning at El Dorado by Scott Connor

Author:Scott Connor
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Culbin Press
Published: 2022-05-23T00:00:00+00:00

Chapter Ten

Lincoln fast-crawled to the best cover he could find of a rounded boulder. It was only two feet high, but a depression to one side let him hug the ground with some feeling of security. By the gutted fire, Caldwell followed Lincoln’s lead in seeking cover behind a boulder.

This one was large enough to let him hunker down and raise his head over the top. With the last flames from the fire spluttering out, the darkness deepened so Lincoln could only make out the outlines of the numerous forms that were scurrying into cover.

While they were taking up positions Lincoln noted that they were lying down on both sides of their camp and beyond the fire. They had made camp on a high point so when the shooters went to ground farther down the slope, they disappeared from view.

This suggested they were leaving the route down to the plains open, but as that might be a trap, Lincoln resolved to follow Joshua in that direction only as a last resort. Lincoln caught Caldwell’s attention with a wave and then using hand gestures they agreed where most of the newcomers were.

They agreed that at least a dozen raiders were out there. Worse, neither man was sure of anyone’s exact location. Long moments passed quietly. Lincoln reckoned that with the element of surprise lost, the people were either waiting for them to make a mistake by moving or waiting for the cover of darkness.

The latter was approaching fast so Lincoln searched for the next nearest cover. He figured that if he could reach a different position unseen, when the assault came he could spring a surprise on them.

Accordingly, he noted that they’d left Wilson beside a mound that protected him from the prevailing wind that whipped up from the plains. Lincoln lowered his head and with his body pressed to the ground, he snaked out of the depression.

At first he moved slowly so that if he was spotted he could hurry back to his former position, but he covered two body lengths without reprisals. As he reckoned it was already dark enough to mask his movements, he sped up.

Caldwell ignored his action and he even turned to Lincoln’s former position several times to support the subterfuge. Lincoln kept his head down and only raised his head to check on his progress.

With every passing moment the darkness deepened so now Wilson’s form wasn’t visible and the mound was only discernable as a lighter patch of earth five body lengths ahead. Lincoln had become used to the quiet so when a gun report sounded, he couldn’t help but flinch.

All was still until Caldwell raised himself and fired over his covering boulder before dropping down. A moment later a rapid volley of shots ripped into the boulder, forcing him to stay down while other shots whistled into the earth a few yards ahead of Lincoln.

Lincoln grunted in irritation as it looked as if his movements had been tracked so he abandoned his stealthy approach. He got up on his haunches and with his head down, he sprinted for the mound.

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