Don't Poke the Bear!

Chapter 49

I KNOW IT won't be long before Union soldiers are all over the place. The Rebel soldiers are bandin' together, lookin' for any guns and ammunition the attackers left behind, and strippin' the bodies of any money the soldiers might have on 'em.

"Look for keys!" I shout. "Maybe we can get these chains off!"

It strikes me as odd no one else thought about that yet, but after twenty minutes of searchin', we come to the conclusion that whoever put these chains on us had no intention of removin' 'em, since there's not a single key to be found.

I trudge back to my rock pile, lay the chain atop a stout rock, and lay into it, and get nothin' for my effort except a shootin' pain in my wrists and forearms from the recoil.

I hit it again and again, to no avail. Some of the other men are trying to break their chains with sledge hammers, but most have given up and moved out. One by one they quit, figurin' to get as far away from this spot as possible. They can always deal with the chains later.

Personally, I want to give it one more try. I reposition the chain against a sharp rock, put all my strength into it, every last ounce I have, and...

...and my sledge hammer breaks when I hit the chain.

I shriek a curse to the sky, then look down and notice the chain in two pieces.

When the last Rebel soldier has gone, I drag both ends of chain behind me and strip the pants off a dead Union soldier, and take them with me, along with some twine and a piece of sharp metal I kick off the side of the supply door that was left hangin' after Clarke's attackers busted in. When I get far from all the Rebel soldiers, I'll put the Union pants on, and keep to the tall grass, so if anyone sees me, they'll just see my white undershirt.

I'm goin' to Dodge.

I have no idea how far away I am, and don't care. I only know I'm gonna walk day and night till I get there, because even if Gentry ain't in Dodge, at least I know the locals, and can get the blacksmith to cut these damn leg irons off me once and for all.

I don't know if Gentry'll be in Dodge, but that's my first guess. I haven't seen her for two years and four months, but someone will have told her long ago that she owns half of the Spur. Even if she believes I'm dead, it was our dream to purchase and run the Spur, and I figure she'd want to keep that dream alive, if at all possible.