Coal Black (Book 5)

Chapter Seventeen

Chapter Seventeen

Grave Diggers

The rain had slowed to a drizzle, and the wind had let up from the Northwest. Ethan could see the clearing skies to the west as he carried the sheet out to the barn to prepare the body for a decent burial. He unwrapped the tarp and saw that rigor mortis had set it, and the man laid bent in the middle.

He tried laying him flat and heard a bone break as he straightened his legs. Ethan removed his boots and clothing, leaving the man naked. The fluids had drained out of him, leaving him pale and shriveled. He wrapped the man's body in the sheet like a shroud and, using leather strips, he tied the ends.

Ethan saddled the Trapper's horse and laid the body across the saddle. He put on his duster, still damp from last night, and gathered his tools. The determined young man led the horse out of the barn into the drizzle towards the southeast corner of his property.

After a slow walk through the rain, Ethan reached the campsite and chose the site for digging. He didn't want to be too close to a tree and dig through roots, yet he wanted it high enough on the hill, knowing the ground was saturated.

Removing his shovel and pickaxe from the horse, he cut the top layer of sod, setting each shovelful aside. The ground was soggy, and the shovelfuls were heavy as Ethan worked on digging a proper grave. The sun came out, heating the earth as he dug mud.

After an hour of relentless digging, Ethan stopped and saw two riders on a horse. It was Edwin and Erik, riding his saddle horse. They had packed a tarp and extra tools.

"No man should have to do this alone," said Jonas as he approached. "We are here to help."

"The women will be mad with three sets of muddy clothes," said Ethan.

"I promised them I would wash the clothes. I needed to get out of the house and get some fresh air, so Edwin and I came out to help you."

The men laid down the tarp next to the muddy grave. Erik sat on the tarp and pulled mud out of the hole with a small garden shovel. He chiseled and squared up the sides on the end. Edwin scooped using the coal shovel, and Ethan felt renewed to dig. Water filled in the hole, and water came up with each muddy shovelful.

When the grave was declared deep enough, Edwin and Jonas grabbed one end of the sheet and Ethan the other end as they laid the old trapper in the wet grave. Ethan removed a small cross he had nailed together from his pack and pushed it into the mud. Then the gravediggers stood in reverence as Ethan recited the Twenty-third psalms and finished with the Lord's prayer in which Edwin joined in on the lines of the prayer.

Jonas remained silent as he listened to the words of comfort. It brought back memories of his childhood, but his memory couldn't recall the words. He felt a need to relearn the verses.

Using their tools, they shoveled in the mud, filling the grave full. Ethan laid the chunks of sod on the grave, knowing the dirt would settle. They lay the rocks he had removed from the hole on top. He and Edwin made several more trips carrying rocks to place on the grave. The rocks would protect the grave from being dug up by wolves.

They rolled up the muddy tarp and tied it on the back of the horse. Ethan helped his brother into the saddle and then hoisted his son up on the back of the horse. Once the tools were secured, they rode through the wet pastureland to the barn.

When they arrived, Ethan hung the muddy tarp on the paddock fence to dry. He would sweep off the mud later. He took a broom to their clothes and boots, knocking off as much mud as possible before going to the house. His father noticed the barn was empty, excepted for the new mother and her calf. Edwin had turned the animals loose into the paddock and then opened the gate for the animals to graze in the pasture.