Ride a Fast Horse by Kevin Warren

Author:Kevin Warren [Warren, Kevin]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Pinnacle Books
Published: 2023-03-15T00:00:00+00:00

CHAPTER 16

At midmorning Skinner was awakened by the sounds of hooves coming up the trail. He rose, rubbed his eyes, and stumbled down the trail to meet the patrol well away from the house and barn. He walked up to Chaco and stood by his stirrup. The men behind shoved forward and brought their horses to a halt, all wanting to hear what would be said, and Skinner raised his voice so they could.

“Leon, Muriel, and Laura are dead. They’re in the house. Veronica, Courtney, and Monte are alive, and they’re in the bigger shed. I’m not sure how they ended up with just one of them, but he had them holed up in the barn. I killed him this morning.”

A murmur rose among the men. This patrol had just crossed another line, now that their side had killed.

“I don’t really know what-all happened. They’re all in bad shape,” Skinner said gesturing up towards the house. “Here’s what we gotta get done: They managed to kill one of ’em, or else he got killed by his own men, I don’t know. Either way, he’s in the house, and we need to get him out. Greg, you and Vance haul him out of there and put him in the small shed. You’ll find the one I shot already in there. Wrap them both up in something and nail the door shut. Tell you right now: be ready for a grim task.” Skinner moved halfway down the column of men as he spoke. “I don’t want anyone near the other shed. They need privacy. There’s not a scrap of food here for horses or us. Skeeter, you and Vance get a fire going and make a meal out of our kit. Boomer, you and Charlie quarter that dead horse and haul it out of here. Cut steaks if you want, then throw it over the side down there. I want it done quick and quiet, don’t leave a trace of it for anyone to see.” Skinner swung his arm towards the area he wanted the horse hauled too. “Sunny, get the clincher off my saddle, check every nail on every shoe. Victor, take up the trail, see what you can find out, but be back in four hours. Their trail’s out behind the barn. Might be hard to follow after the rain; see if you can get the general direction. Wade, you wrangle. Get on the far side of the horses, we don’t want them going anywhere. Rest of you, strip the tack and give ’em all a good rubdown. When you’re done, push ’em over to that good grass. After you all get something in your bellies, rest. We’ll be back in the saddle by midafternoon.”

With tight-lipped grim expressions, the patrol dismounted as one, then moved towards their appointed tasks with haste that matched Skinner’s speed in dishing out orders.

“Chaco, give me a hand will ya? We need to visit.”

Chaco stripped the tack off his chestnut, dropped it on the ground where he stood, and followed Skinner.

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