The Encounter (30 page)

              The camp was struck. Ben and his men saddled up. Today he'd catch them and kill them.

                                                         ***

              The cave entrance faced northeast. The growing light on the horizon began to brighten the interior.

              Lawrence was curled up in his blanket. Margaret and her blanket were gone. Last night, while the fire was high, they had undressed long enough to make love, and then put their clothes back on against the cold and the possibility of having to make a run for it.

              He opened his eyes and instantly knew she was gone. He sat up. Her image, wrapped in the blanket, was highlighted in the cave entrance by the rising sun. He leaned back against his hands and watched her. Before falling asleep, he’d thought about a lot of things. What would their children look like? How was he going to explain her to his friends and family? It wasn't something you could hide for very long. He had witnessed the love his father had for his mother and the family, and how the years had strengthened it. He finally understood how his father felt. He knew he would die to protect her.

              Margaret watched the sky and forest below, looking for whoever or whatever was coming. Something inside her said today would finally end this adventure. She listened to Lawrence moving around behind her. She waited for him to join her. In her heart she knew she would never lose him, even in death if it came to that.

                                                        ***

              Ben and the rest of his men moved up the mountain behind the tracker. How anyone could read sign across this ground was a wonder. The fact that he was half Arikara had a little something to do with it.

              After an hour, Ben noticed they were moving north of the pass that would take them through the mountains and eventually to the western sea. The caverns lie ahead, but why would they go there? It was a dead end. Then it was clear to him. The Indians avoided the caves because they thought they led to the underworld. A world dominated by evil spirits. Maybe they were right. Maybe this witch was going back to where she came from. That was okay. He'd have his revenge even if he had to follow her to hell itself.

                                                        ***

              Margaret used the knife Joseph had provided to slice strips from the smoked venison for lunch. Lawrence had made the trek below for more firewood. She looked at the gun belt lying next to his blanket. The fact that he was unarmed bothered her. She listened to the sound of the hatchet for a while, and then blocked it out. She normally wouldn't eat animal protein, but for now she had no choice. The vegetables from the garden had to be stretched.

              Her head came up at the sound of horses approaching, moving through the underbrush below. She dropped everything and ran to the mouth of the cave. Her eyes watched for movement, and for Lawrence. The hatchet had stopped. Maybe they had him. Where was he? She was afraid to call to him. Her voice would carry a long way in the cold air. She was about to climb down when he appeared on the steep path leading up to the caves. He had an armload of wood. She turned her attention back to the woods and waited for him to reach her.

              As soon as he reached the shelf he knew something was wrong. "What is it", he asked? He dropped the wood and joined her at the edge.

              She glanced toward him and then back to the forest below. "There's somebody down there", she answered.

              A bullet smashed into the rock face just below them. Lawrence was stung on the arm by a piece of flying debris. He grabbed his arm and they both dropped to their stomachs.

              She slipped over to him. "You okay?"

              "Yeah, just a rock."

              Several bullets hit the cliff in front of them, and then whistled into the cave face behind them.

              "Damn. I knew I should've worn the damned thing." Lawrence looked behind him. "I gotta get to my gun."

              "Witch", came Ben's voice from below. "Witch... We're gonna burn the both of ya."

              Lawrence looked at her. "Witch? Why does he think you're a witch? What did you do?"

              "I did what I had to, to protect myself. There were too many of 'em to be nice about it."

              "Witch", came Ben's voice again. "My boy's dead and I'm gonna watch you burn."

              Margaret looked at the ground in front of her, "I keep forgetting how fragile humans are." Then to Lawrence, "Frank came at me with a knife. I was pretty rough with him. Too rough I guess."

              Ben wanted them to know it all. "I killed the boy. I'm gonna hang the girl when I'm done here."

              Margaret waited for Lawrence's reaction. She didn't get what she expected. He didn't say or do anything. "Larry..."

              "I heard him. You were right. We're the only ones who can get hurt here. These people have already come and gone." He pushed himself away from the edge. "Keep an eye out while I get the gun."

              Lawrence kept low and slipped back into the cave. He picked up the gun belt, pulled the revolver out and started back.

              Margaret called to him. "Here they come".

              Lawrence moved to the mouth of the cave. From there he had a view of the way up. Two men moved from cover at the base of the trail. A barrage of bullets came up from below. Lead and rock fragments ricocheted everywhere. Margaret hugged the ground at the edge of the cliff. Lawrence was pressed against the cave wall inside the entrance.

The man leading the way up the trail could see Margaret's head. He raised his weapon. Lawrence leaned out and fired two quick shots down the hill. The second shot struck the man in the thigh just as he fired. The bullet grazed the ledge in front of her sending dirt and bits of rock into her face. The man yelled, grabbed his leg and fell backward into the man behind him. They both loss their footing and slid back down the hill.

              Margaret grabbed her face and rolled on her back. The firing stopped.

              Lawrence dropped down and went to her. "Are you all right? Did he hit you?"

              She wiped her eyes. "No, just some dirt in my face." There were several abrasions around her left eye and on her cheek. She blinked several times. He wiped her face with his hand. "I'm okay", she said. "Let's get back inside."

              They both slipped back into the cave. Lawrence strapped on the gun belt. "They can keep us pinned down and just wait us out."

              She picked up the canteen. "Ben Kramer doesn't strike me as someone with that kind of patience." She poured some water in her hand and splashed it into her eyes. She blinked. "That's better... He'll come up with something else."

              Lawrence moved back over to his vantage point. Margaret was behind him. She sat down against the wall still trying to clear her vision.

              He looked back at her. "What if the next time they rush us, you use your heavy artillery? Maybe if they see what they’re up against it'll scare 'em off?”

              "Good idea, but", she moved away from the wall, "why wait?"

              She went to her bag, took out her weapon, an extra magazine, and returned.

              He reached for it. She handed it to him. "How does it work?" He moved it around in his hand.

              "Careful..." She held up the magazine. "Inside each round, I guess you'd call them, are two chambers. Each chamber contains a chemical. When it hits something the wall between them is punctured. When the chemicals combine, energy is released that destroys matter at the molecular level; total disintegration."

              "Then the amount of whatever's in it determines how destructive it is. That's what you meant when you said; it comes in a larger size."

              "You got it". She took it back. "Let's convince these guys to cut their losses and go home." She pushed the extra magazine into her pants pocket.

              Ben carried a rifle and got ready to put all of his effort into an assault on the ridge. He'd send up three men while everyone else poured lead into the cave entrance from behind them. If he could keep them pushed back long enough to take the rim he'd have his fires.

              Margaret moved around to the corner. She peered down the trail, got down on her stomach and eased out to the edge. She sensed a lot of movement below them and looked back at Lawrence. "This may work. They're bunching together at the bottom."

              "Do it."

              Ben was just about to order his men to open fire when a ball of white light exploded in the trees in front of them. A large piece of a tree trunk disappeared. The remaining wood couldn't hold the weight. The tree toppled tearing limbs from the trees around it. Ben's men scattered out of the way. The collision with the ground was thunderous, sending up a cloud of dirt and debris. She began firing at will. Another tree went down and then another.

              Ben screamed for his men to shoot back. Nobody was listening. He cocked his rifle. From where he was standing, he couldn't see her. Everyone moved around ducking trees until she hit a man. He never uttered a word. His legs, one arm and the top of his skull fell to the ground.

              Somebody yelled, "I ain't fightin' no witch."

              "Me neither", came a reply.

              Ben fired his rifle in the air. "I'll kill the first one of you who runs."

              Two shots from his own men forced him to duck for cover. Everyone else ran for the horses.

              Margaret listened to the shouts and held her fire allowing them to get away. After a moment she stood up. Lawrence joined her. They both watched for a moment.

              She blew across the end of her weapon. "Well, I guess we showed 'em pilgrim."

              Lawrence couldn't help but laugh. “I had no idea you were a John Wayne fan.”

              “Your motion pictures are an interesting form of entertainment.”

              Neither one had seen the man die. She turned her back. He was still watching the woods. There was a flash of sunlight off metal. He didn't hesitate. He drew and fired, fanning four shots in the direction of the flash. A bullet whizzed between them followed by the report. They both dropped down. Ben stumbled into the open trying to cock his rifle. He staggered, dropped the rifle and collapsed.

              Lawrence and Margaret slowly got up, stood and watched him for a moment. He didn't move.

              Lawrence started down. "I better have a look."

              She took his arm. "No need."

              "You're sure?"

              "Yeah."

              He watched for another moment, and then took her word for it. They both turned and walked back inside. He put his arm around her shoulders and squeezed. She hugged him back, and then went to her bag to put back the weapon. She paused to notice a hole in the bag. The moment she opened it she saw the light. It was fading in and out.

              Lawrence saw her kneeling and staring. "What is it?"

              She kept the gun, reached in and picked up the small device. A bullet had passed through the bag and nicked it. She stood and held it toward him.

              "The light... Your people, right?"

              "It could be. You better reload that, just in case."

              He started ejecting the empties. She pressed the device and static came back. She slipped the device into her shirt pocket, and then retrieved the other two magazines from her bag. She pushed those into her other pants pocket and waited for Lawrence.

              She could hear the faint, high pitched sound emitted from the anti-gravity engines as they oscillated, using the planets natural forces to control the ship's decent. There was no doubt, whoever it was knew she was there.

              Lawrence finished reloading the pistol, closed the breach and holstered the gun.

              "Bring the goggles", she said. "Let's move back into the cave till we see who shows up." She knew if worse came to worse they could retreat into the caverns and hope there was a back door.

              Lawrence picked up the goggles and they both moved into the shadows. The horses began to react to the sound put out by the ship. With the goggles in place, everything in the back of the cave was visible including the passage that led underground.

              Lawrence looked into the passage. "You know, unless there's phosphorus deposits, or something down there, there's not gonna be a light source for these things to work with."

              "They don't use light."

              He pulled them off and looked at them. "They don't use
any
light?"

              "You mind if we talk about this later." She motioned to the cave entrance. Dust, debris and the air itself swirled as a cloaked ship settled into position just off the rock shelf.