The Hell Bent Kid by Charles O. Locke

Author:Charles O. Locke [Locke, Charles O.]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Fiction, Westerns, Action & Adventure, Historical, General
ISBN: 9781504011716
Google: lSFwCQAAQBAJ
Goodreads: 25757429
Publisher: Open Road Media
Published: 1957-01-01T00:00:00+00:00

14

The Trail South

On ahead of me in the dark, with the mountains now behind me, I could almost feel the Grande. The trail divided at the end of the canyon. One went north for a little, stopped and ended in nothing, which I found out. The other piece went south along the base of the hills. I was taking my time about planning and finally headed south slow along this trail. I thought I would rest till light, even though I had been going slow a long time. After light, I thought, I would make the crossing of the mesa that lay between me and the river in early gray. Was unsure of the country from here on and wanted to know.

We ambled slow ahead in the dark. I kept listening for sounds of mounts behind. We came to a spring and I offered water to the horse but he refused. Then I heard sounds behind and pulled back fast and turned into a clove place in the rise. Blacky did not make a sound. We waited and soon it proved to be the Mex with the burro, going along slow and easy in the dark.

We stayed there till he was out of sight, then come up behind him. A side trail back into the rise opened up. I decided to stay here till light. I hobbled the horse and sat down and watched for what I had heard about—these New Mexico sunrises. The sun now must be near the mountain-tops behind me. I had been fooling around too long at the head of T Harris Canyon.

When it got brighter there was a sound behind and above me on the trail. I looked up there and there was the burro munching grass, with the Mex sleeping against a tree trunk, with the lead rope noosed over one of his feet. I could see his shoe soles. Both had holes in them and his serape was muffled up so high you could hardly see his head. I paid him no mind.

Now it got light enough so that I could see if I rode straight ahead I would surely strike the Grande, and the north-south road from Santa Fe to Socorro.

The land this side of the mountains seemed bigger than the other side. As the sun got higher up, the flat, dry slope to the west down to the river looked like a gold country in the early, soft shadows. In the first light you could see every grass blade distinct. From where I sat I could even see insects lightering up and down the grass blades.

The early wind would blow down the little gulches and make the grass wave in places like Mex women dancing. Now that the sun was rimming up behind me, there were streaks of light and dark that were pretty as could be. The small winds kept blowing, then bigger, general winds would come. The whole grassland bowed to the wind and came back with a salute.

Still I was waiting for those men.

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