The Peacemaker by Chelley Kitzmiller

Author:Chelley Kitzmiller [Kitzmiller, Chelley]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: romance, historical, paranormal, Western, the, fiction, Grant, West, Tuscon, Indian, Southwest, Arizona, Massacre, Cochise, supernatural, Warriors, Apache, territory, Camp, American, Wild, Wind, Old, of, Native
Publisher: TKA Distribution
Published: 2014-05-28T16:00:00+00:00

Chapter 10

Jim Garrity walked down Officers' Row until he came to Aubrey Nolan's quarters, which he and Aubrey were to share during the next few weeks. He stood outside for a few minutes before going in to let the rain wash the mud from his body and clothes.

Aubrey's quarters reminded Jim of his West Point days. The rooms were square and stark, devoid of any furnishings, wall hangings or pictures, curtains, or bric-a-brac of any kind other than what was absolutely necessary. He had to laugh. Even his wickiup had more appeal than this.

Nevertheless, Jim made himself at home. It had been a long time since he had poured water out of a pitcher into a basin to wash himself. A long time since he had smelled lye soap. He stripped naked and washed himself clean. When he had dried off, he opened his saddlebags and took out his only other pair of buckskin trousers, put them on, and stretched out comfortably on the bed and let his mind drift.

He had been out hunting the day the colonel arrived at Bowie via the same ambulance that had later carried his daughter. He had observed him through his field glasses, a remnant, like his saddlebags, from his soldiering days. It was obvious that the man was a martinet, a career officer, who paid more attention to adhering to detail, forms, and methods than to caring about his men. Jim had seen his kind too often during the war and had come to recognize the type before he was even introduced.

Since that first day's observance, there had been several other occasions that he had seen the colonel from afar and had watched, with interest, the way he handled his troopers, leading them out on patrol into the broiling desert heat in their heavy uniforms to look for the enemy Apaches the same way he might go looking for a detail of Rebs in the hills of Tennessee. It might have been amusing if it wasn't so pathetic.

The man was a fool. Even the Apaches thought so. Jim neither liked nor respected him, not only because of the way he treated his men but also because of the way he treated his daughter.

An image of Indy's ravaged expression as she had left the reception after her father had gotten through with her came to mind and he reached for his knife, picking it up off the bedside table. He studied the blade.

There was something else about the colonel that he didn't like. He couldn't pinpoint it exactly, but it had something to do with his posture when he talked to people; his arms were always straight down to his sides and his fingers curled into his palms. It seemed to Jim awkward and unnatural and it made him uneasy.

If it weren't for Aubrey and their long-time friendship, he'd forget the bargain he and the colonel had made and walk away from Bowie, but he owed Aubrey, and he always paid his debts. For

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.