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At first he had Anne's hands tied to the saddle horn, but this country was so rough that he knew she needed more freedom of movement. "If I untie your hands will you give me your word you won't try to run away?" Amos was a good judge of character in animals and in women and he knew if she gave her word she would not break it.
"I'll stay with you. Where would I go in this wilderness?" She was honest in that response. Where could she go? She had learned a lot of facts about the countryside on her walks with Jess, but nowhere near enough to survive and find her way to civilization. No, she would stay with Heskins. For the time being anyway.
For the rest of that night and all the next day they traveled. It was rough country and Anne was not sure that Heskins always knew where he was going. How could anybody remember all the trails that ran through western Wyoming? He never seemed to get caught in a cull-de-sac though, so maybe he did know. She didn't realize that an outdoorsman often recognizes similar land formations and travels accordingly. A ridge that looks like one seen two hundred miles ago is apt to have a game trail in roughly the same location.
When Heskins finally stopped for camp Anne nearly dropped from the saddle. She was exhausted but didn't want to give her abductor to see it. Amos saw her stumble as he watched from the corner of his eye, though, and this helped him make up his mind.
"You gave me your word when we started riding and you held to it. Now, by rights I should at least tie you to a tree while I get some sleep. But I'll take a chance. If you swear you'll be here when morning comes I'll leave you free to move around a little. I say a little 'cause I'm a light sleeper and I wake up shooting when I hear a strange noise. Now, what about it? You going to give me your word on it?"
Anne looked him in the eye and nodded her assent. "I'll be here in the morning. I won't try to escape. After that I make no guarantees."
"Fair enough, I believe you. Now you'll bed down here, and there is a clump of brush over there for privacy. Just don't forget it is bare hillside above that brush."
"I won't," she said, and made ready for sleep. She was surprised when it did not come right off, for she was as tired as she had ever been in her life. There was too much uncertainty about Jess and the reasons for her abduction.
"I don't even know your name," she said to Amos Heskins.
The man started. Evidently he had already started to nod off. Men who had lived in the outdoors for years knew that you must sleep when the chance presents itself. That meant falling asleep as soon as possible. Heskins was a past master.
"Oh, it's Amos Heskins. Why?"
"Well, here I am riding across the country with you and I don't even know you. Or why we're out here, for that matter. What do you want with me? Am I the bait to bring in Jess?"
`He looked at her for what seemed like a long time. For the first time that he could remember a twinge of conscience was bothering him. He quickly squelched it before it could grow into something contrary to his nature.
"That's right. You're the bait. It can't be helped. Clay has become a thorn in my side and he has got to be taken out. It's gone on for too long"
"You mean to kill him, don't you? Why? What has he ever done to you?"
"He's killed off half my family is what he's done. He' just one man but he fights like an army. It will end up being either him or me in control of northeast Utah, so I'm going to get rid of him."
"Why should that be? I'm sure Jess could care less about being in control of anything."
"Maybe so, but that's how it would be. It's like back in the Comstock days when Virginia City always had a chief. A lot of men died trying to be chief. Might not make a lot of sense, but there it is. It's still the same way today."
"Mr. Heskins, I just can't believe that you are so bloodthirsty. You are a perfect gentleman to me and yet you say you want to kill the man I love. It just does not make sense."
"Let me tell you how I am, lady. I'm polite to you because it's less trouble that way. But if you try to run away I'll put a bullet in your back and never think twice about it. Now get some sleep."
Amos was soon to follow his own advice, but Anne lay for a long time in her blanket with a cold chill running through her. What manner of man had she fallen in with, anyway?
She awoke in the early morning to Heskins' whispered, "Hsst. Wake up. Don't jump up, just crawl to the shadow of that rock."
Anne's heart leaped at the information. She didn't jump up, but she did ask, "Who's out there?"
"It's not Clay, if that's what you think. It's Indians. There hasn't been any trouble for a while, but you never know with an Indian. Especially if he finds a white man out alone. There are at least two of them, and that probably means there are a lot more that I didn't see. Now move over there and keep quiet."
Heskins was obviously dead serious and she obeyed his order promptly. She eyed the landscape inch by inch but as yet she hadn't seen anything. Wait! There, in those rocks, was movement!
Apparently Heskins saw it too, for his gun was leveled as he waited events. A lot of men would have shot at that movement, but Amos did not waste ammunition. He might need it later.
An arrow plowed into the sand in front of them but Heskins did not move. "They're trying to get us to react. If we stay quiet our chances are better for getting out of here."
Shortly thereafter a burst of Indian language broke the silence. At Anne's inquiring look Amos shrugged his shoulders. He had never learned the tongue; in fact he was not too secure with English. Heskins grimly loaded the sixth chamber of his revolver. Seeing this, Anne pulled out her 41 derringer and held it ready.
Heskins did a double take on seeing the girl's pistol. To think she had rode behind him with her hands untied! It was a wonder he wasn't pushing up the daisies now instead of preparing for an Indian attack. There was obviously a lot to this girl. It was too bad he was going to kill her boy friend and maybe her also. Oh well, some things can't be helped.
For the first time he thought that maybe they wouldn't get out of this after all. He would take a couple of them with him, that was for sure.
The tops of feathers showed, first on the left, then the right and finally directly in front of their position. Amos Heskins braced themselves for the oncoming onslaught.
I woke up with a hang-over that was out of this world. Since I don't drink this came as quite a surprise. It took a minute to remember what happened. I had been clobbered but good. I promised my self that whoever did this would pay with interest. Darn! I had a knot on my head that felt like an embedded rock. Lucky thing I had my hat on or I might never have woken up.
A glance outside showed it was just breaking day. Wow, I must have been out cold. I staggered out the door and was stopped by a familiar snort. Big Horse was never one to whinny, but he had a peculiar snort that was his alone. In sounded like a cross between a moose and a deer. There was no mistaking it.
Sure enough, up came Big Horse to nuzzle me. How had he found me here? They say instinct runs big in dogs, and in my mind it runs deep in horses too. My guns hadn't been touched, and with my friend under me I set out to find what had become of Anne.
The old, rough looking hostler was just emerging from the shack that he must call home. If there was anybody in town that knew what was going on it would be him. I was in the open, so I just stood my ground. No sense in scaring him off.
He approached and grunted his good morning. "Did you see a pretty girl leaving here last night, a couple of hours after dark?" I queried.
"Uh, uh," was the laconic reply.
"She was probably with someone else. She was taken against her will." If this bothered him he sure as heck didn't show it. "Surely you must have seen something."
"Nope. I went to bed at dark and just got up. Heard some shooting a couple of times but didn't get up to check on it. None of my business."
"Have you seen her around here in the past couple of days?"
"Uh,uh."
You're about as helpful as talking to a tree. What's your name, anyway?"
"Folks call me Gabby." That figured.
I gave up trying to interview people, for this was an enemy camp and I wouldn't learn anything here. I circled around the hills surrounding the Hole and in back of Heskins' cabin I got lucky. Two horses, and if I wasn't mistaken one was carrying light. They were heading toward wilderness which would make my tracking job a might faster. I wouldn't have to stop and sort out tracks the way I would on a trail.
I stopped to slosh water on my head whenever I got the chance. It might not have done any good, but it felt like it did and that was all that mattered for now. I was tired as I had ever been but I didn't dare to stop and sleep. Not until I had my Anne safely back in my arms once again.
As darkness loomed I knew I couldn't be too far behind, and I lined up a formation of rocks in what seemed to be their direction of travel. I would go on as long as I could. In the morning I should be very near. Tomorrow would
be a big day - of that I was sure.
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