“What now?” Berkeley said to Virgil.
“Now,” Virgil said. “We get right with it.”
“What about the dun?” Berkeley said.
We could not risk the sound of gunfire, but the dun had to be put down. A swift cut under the horse’s jaw was necessary. Berkeley stepped up. He was not particularly eager to perform the task, but it had to be done. He figured since he was in some way connected to this animal’s senseless demise, he would perform the unfortunate deed.
Afterward, nobody said a word as we walked through the thick fog back to our horses.
I thought about Gobble Greene and the muscular dun and how the two were a suited match. Gobble seemed like a loner. I’m sure Gobble’s strong dun with the bull neck and Roman nose was a big part of his solitary world. No doubt Gobble would sorely miss his mistreated steed.
We mounted up and rode east on the ridge under the telegraph wire toward where the road dead-ended. Virgil was seemingly now more focused on our objective; at least his countenance and pace indicated more charge.
95
We moved over the crest of the ridge at a steady trot all the way to the last mining camp this side of the road. I was not certain if it was the dun having to be put down, or the passing of valuable time, or a combination of both that was causing Virgil’s deliberateness, but whatever it was, he was in no mood for dally or delay. We dismounted, walked our horses for a ways through some tall brush and tied them behind a shed where the telegraph wire crossed over the road.
“What we know for sure is we’re dealing with four of them,” Virgil said.
Virgil pulled a second Colt from his saddlebag and secured it firmly under his belt.
“Wellington,” Virgil said, “Lassiter, and two pickup riders.”
“Could be more,” I said.
“Could,” Virgil said.
Virgil pointed with the Henry rifle in the direction we were getting ready to walk.
“Know soon enough,” Virgil said.
“Figure the pickup hands will likely be on watch,” I said. “Don’t think they’ll be expecting anyone, but they’ll most likely be on the lookout.”
Virgil nodded.
“That’s most likely right.”
“And we got a muleteer or some such to contend with, but late as it is now, he more than likely would be nearing the pass with the mule, don’t you think?”
“That’d be my surmise,” Virgil said.
“So you’re thinking more than likely there is more than four we are dealing with?” Berkeley said.
“You just figure more,” Virgil said, “always figure more.”
Virgil nodded to Berkeley and Jimmy John, making sure they understood. They nodded back.
“Also, to reckon with in the unfolding,” Virgil said. “We have the women hostages to deal with.”
“Providing they are alive,” Berkeley said.
“We go at this, every step of the way,” Virgil said, “with the contention they most assuredly are alive.”
“And Ernest, the telegraph operator, too,” I said. “We got to take him into account as well.”
“Ernest is no him,” Jimmy John said.
I looked at Virgil and back to Jimmy John.
“Like a lot of the operators, Ernest C. is woman, about the same age as Jenny — pretty, too, like Jenny.”
I had thought when Jimmy John previously asked which operator had pounded the note and I told him Ernest C. he found the news disparaging. I suspected there was a connection between Jimmy John and Ernest C., but I did not inquire and Jimmy John did not elaborate.
“Berkeley? Jimmy John?” Virgil said. “Either one of you need to forgo killing, now’s the time to say so. I do not want to get into the fray and have one or both of you get weak-kneed on me.”
“Unthinkable to abuse a horse, Virgil, but it’s unconscionable to hold someone against their will,” Berkeley said. “I’m all for a person being able to do what they want, free to choose, whoring or preaching. Don’t want to make choices for nobody, and nobody should make choices for me or anybody else. The way I look at this is, those girls are being held against their will and that is just not right. Hell of a lot harder to lay down that dun horse than it will be to sort out these kidnappers.”
“Choices and sorting out is one thing, killing is altogether another,” Virgil said.
“You’ll get no hiccup from me, Virgil,” Berkeley said.
“Jimmy John?” Virgil said.
Jimmy John shook his head firmly.
Virgil looked back and forth between the two, waiting to see if there was a need to reconsider, but the two men both registered firm constitution.
“Jimmy John, that stick ’n string could come in real handy, but I need to know for sure you won’t get fearful.”
“If you walked away,” Jimmy John said, “I would go at this alone.”
“Why?” Virgil said.
“Because,” Jimmy John said, “just because.”
96
Virgil set the plan. We walked through the backside of the last mining camp where we’d tied the horses and made it to the dead-end part of the road.
Virgil pointed down the road to the west with the Henry rifle as he spoke to Jimmy John.
“So, there are two camps ahead of us here, that correct?” Virgil asked. “Before we get to the camp with the hot telegraph?”
“That’s right,” Jimmy John said. “The connected camp is the third camp?”
“We’ll make our way there,” Virgil said. “Foggy as it is, there is no need to walk the woods. We’ll move on up the road, not in the middle but on the edge of the road, staying tight to the trees. When we get to the first camp we need to take it easy, make sure we don’t see nothing, no people, no horses, nothing out of the ordinary, before we move through to the next camp.”
“How are we going to address them?” Berkeley said. “Once we get there. We’re not going to just walk up and knock on the door, are we?”
“Before we get to the third camp, we’ll split up,” Virgil said.
“Two of us come in from the west side,” I said, “and two of us come in from this side?”
“That’s right,” Virgil said.
“Two of us go uphill, through the trees, cross over, then drop back to the road,” I said.
“Yes, good,” Berkeley said. “So there is no situation for them to escape.”
“We’ll have them covered that way,” I said. “Catch them coming and going?”
Virgil nodded. “Two on this side will wait. We plan it so there is plenty of time for the other two to get set on the other side.”
“Jimmy John and I are the most fleet,” I said. “Figure we should do the cross over and come in from the west, don’t you imagine?”
“I do,” Virgil said. “Berkeley, you and me will come to the office from this side.”
Berkeley nodded slowly.
“We’ll move on this way on the road here. Berkeley, you and me will walk up the right side. Everett, you and Jimmy John walk up the left. Go through the other two camps, be on the lookout. Make sure there is nothing that needs our attention. Long as everything is clear, we continue on. When we get close to the third camp, we’ll separate.”
“Giving Everett and Jimmy John time to get to the other side?” Berkeley said.
“Yep,” Virgil said.
“But how will we time this out?” Berkeley said. “We don’t want to show up at the office at different times, do we?”
Virgil pulled his pocket watch and tapped it. “Off a get-go time we’ll come at them from both sides,” he said. “Let’s set us a solid minute mark and check ’em after we get on a ways.”
Berkeley and I pulled our watches. Jimmy John did not.