The Scars of Iron Eyes by Rory Black

Author:Rory Black [Black, Rory]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Western ebook, American Old West, action hero, Colt. 45, Gunfighters, Piccadilly Cowboys, Bounty Hunters, Edge, Crow
Publisher: Piccadilly
Published: 0101-01-01T00:00:00+00:00

Chapter Nine

THE FOREST HAD not changed for a thousand years or more. Its wolves still howled their chilling warnings all around the high trail as the bounty hunter steered his mount ever upwards along the narrow pathway. It was a reminder to Iron Eyes of his early life. The forest had always been filled with dangerous creatures but now with their habitat so greatly reduced there were far more of them to the square inch.

Iron Eyes eased himself up in his stirrups and listened as the painted pony nervously climbed the perilous track. The roar of cougars mingled with so many other animals filled the air. They were all close, he thought. Too damn close. At any moment a pack of rabid timber wolves might spring out of the dense brush from all sides and bring him and his mount down. Or the low-hanging branches might conceal a ravenous mountain lion, ready to leap down and kill him. He had seen how these creatures killed their prey many times. He had learned many things from them. To survive was to kill in this rugged place. There was no emotion in any of the animals who lived off the weaker creatures in the midst of this forest. Just as he had never shown any emotion when he had dispatched outlaws who were wanted dead or alive, Iron Eyes understood the need for the survival of the fittest.

To kill or be killed.

It had always been that simple.

He spurred on. The forest grew ever darker the higher Iron Eyes travelled up the clay pathway towards the clearing he recalled from his youth. There was fresh spring water there and he knew that the horse beneath his ornate saddle was flagging and in need of a drink.

He spurred his mount and forced it to continue towards the unknown. The darkness did not trouble the bounty hunter. Since he had been temporarily blinded a few months earlier his other senses had become keenly honed.

He looked all around him. Every shadow seemed to be of a different shade. The dim light showed everything from the smallest object to the largest. So far there had been nothing to alert him to draw either of his weapons. He knew there were thousands of deadly animals in the forest but so far they had kept their distance.

Perhaps it was the smell of death that the bounty hunter carried with him which kept them at bay. Maybe it was the sight of the hideous scarred face which confused even the most ravenous of them. There were a lot of things far more appetizing than his emaciated carcass.

Yet Iron Eyes knew that he dare not become complacent, for some animals killed for the sheer pleasure of it, never even desiring to feast upon their victims. His eyes darted and searched the gloom for any hint of danger.

As he sought it, Iron Eyes was fully aware that countless other eyes were also watching his slow progress through their domain. Then the warning

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