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“But leaving the stage…wouldn’t it be wiser to stay here so they can find us?”
“Depends on how thirsty you are, ma’am. No tellin’ how long it will take for someone to realize the stage is late and get out here.” Sam glanced at the woman as though she’d lost her mind. “I guess if you’ve a mind to, you could stay. But you might get awful thirsty.”
“But walking…in this heat, with no water…”
“Yes ma’am, I realize it is a strain, but we’ve got to try,” Sam insisted.
“Is your man servant always so pushy?” The woman looked straight at Riley accusingly.
Riley gathered what little gear she had and turned on the woman. “My man servant will save our lives, ma’am. He’s done it several times. It’s best if you listen to him. He was raised with the Indians; he knows more about survival than any of us, I’m sure.”
The woman scowled, but gathered her things.
“The less we carry the better,” Sam informed them.
The other men nodded, and insisted the woman did not nee
d her luggage. They would come back for it later, once they were safe. The woman ignored them at first and tried to drag her luggage but soon gave it up along the way.
The heat of the day weighed on them, but night fall would help.
Riley tried her best to stay up with Sam, and the others followed.
“Sam, I saw something familiar on one of those outlaws,” Riley whispered.
“What?”
“His spurs. Harry had fancy silver spurs like that, they jangled the same way.”
Sam stopped for a minute. “Are you sure…?”
“No, not completely, but enough to suspicion him,” she admitted. “I couldn’t be sure from his voice as it was muffled by his kerchief over his mouth. But he was built like Harry, and those spurs sure caught my attention.”
“Well now, why would he pull such a hold-up when he’s got hold of the biggest ranch in the territory?” Sam argued.
“I don’t know. I guess it doesn’t make much sense, does it?”
“Not to me, but that don’t mean nothing.” Sam shook his head. Then as though he considered something else, he replied, “Could mean he needs money though.”
“You don’t suppose he’s paying the taxes on the land so he can keep it legally, do you?”
“That might explain it.” Sam nodded. “He’s sure trying to get that property if he is going to this much trouble. And there seems no end to the crimes he’s willing to commit to get it, killing your hired hand, chasing you, now possibly holding up a stage. Yes sir, I would say he is determined to have that land one way or another, and greedy enough to try anything. We can’t underestimate him again, Riley.”
“Sam…you said you weren’t a gunman, but just how handy are you with a gun?” Riley asked as they trudged through brambles and underbrush.
Sam stopped for only a second to smile at her. “It isn’t how fast you are Riley, but how little you hesitate to pull the trigger that really counts.”
“And your hesitation?” She smiled back.
“Let’s just say a black man can’t afford to hesitate.”
Riley relaxed then, knowing that Sam could handle almost anything.
By evening, the woman was dragging herself and ready to keel over. Unused to walking, she nearly fainted when they came upon some shade and collapsed there.
Sam heard the rush of water and knew they were near enough so he didn’t push them any further.
They all had water and Sam had some jerky wrapped in his kerchief so he shared that with the rest.
