He’d heard of people falling in love at first sight but didn’t think it possible. Never had it occurred to Madigan before that he could be in love with her, or anyone for that matter.
But it was true! Since their first meeting he often thought of her and it always gave him a warm feeling inside. But love her! It had taken the thought of her in another man’s arms to make Madigan see the truth. Now more than ever, he had to save her or die trying!
By the time they arrived at the spot where they would make camp, it was well after dark, and although Madigan wanted desperately to go on, there was nothing more they could do until daylight. It would be impossible to follow the ledge up the side of the cliff with no light to see by. They built a small fire, and unrolled their bedrolls out in the shadows at the base of the cliff.
Only men new to the West ever slept close to the fire. The firelight not only blinded those too close to it, but also let anyone coming up on the camp see without being seen.
Morning came with the first gray dawn breaking into the blazing light of the desert sun. By the time the rocks began to warm, they were already high on the cliff above their camp carrying their packs along a narrow trail cut into the side of the shear wall.
As he walked along, Madigan noticed that in places the trail was cut out of the solid stone face of the cliff. Yet weathered as it was, it seemed like it had been done by nature.
“How did your people find this trail?”
Mila smiled as though reading Madigan’s thoughts. “You mean how old is this trail, don’t you? My people cut this and several more over four hundred years ago, when they first came to the hidden valley.
“They were running from the Spaniards that came and destroyed our people’s homes many miles to the south of here. Our people were very rich with gold and jewels, and the Spanish wanted all the wealth for themselves.
“The people tried at first to fight them, but more and more Spanish came from the sea. We had many warriors in those days, numbering into the many thousands, whereas the Spanish had only a few hundred at first.
“Yet, the Spanish wore armor and used cannons and guns. We used only clubs and swords made of wood. Many of our people would die at each attack while only wounding a few of the Spanish, and the fighting went on for many days.
“Finally when our leader saw that it was useless to fight, he tried to reason with the Spanish. For a while it worked, then the priest stirred up the people. Our leader was killed by one of our own warriors as he stood on a porch beside the Spanish leader.
“The priest said it was a mistake, that the warrior who shot the arrow was trying to kill the Spanish general. We knew he lied. So in the night, several thousand of our people took what gold they could carry and started to the north after burying all the rest of the gold and jewels they could lay their hands on.”
“You mean the Spanish hadn’t gotten all the gold yet?” LaRue asked.
“No, they thought they had most of it, but they only were in possession of a small portion. Most of the gold and jewels was hidden when the first Spanish ship was sighted in the bay. It was the keepers of this treasure that were the forbearers of us in the valley.
“There had been a prophecy that foretold of the coming of the Spanish, so our people prepared themselves accordingly. It is the gold they brought here to the valley that O’Neill is after, and we will give it to him to save our Queen’s life, if that’s what it takes.”
So the truth was out. Lewana was not only their leader, she was their queen! Madigan felt himself go sick in the stomach. The woman he was in love with was a queen, and for all Madigan knew about queens, she would not be allowed to marry a commoner.
And, Madigan reflected, that was exactly what he was to these people-a commoner, and not even of her own blood. Yet, this knowledge did not alter the fact that he was deeply in love with Lewana and that she was in danger.
Soon they were at the top of the cliff, the climb taking the better part of an hour, with the heavy packs they all carried on their backs. As Madigan looked to the east, he was blinded by the sun just barely creeping over the rim of the plateau. If they hurried, they could get to a position on the east side of the rim and be able to scout the valley below with the sun at their backs. They would have to plan on just the right moment so that the sun blinded the men below.
Madigan’s first plan of action was to get the men on the ledge up to safety, and to this end he had the rope ladder carried to the top with them. He’d figured they’d better move fast as the sun climbed rapidly in the morning sky, and much would depend on the outlaws not being able to see the warriors climb up the ladder to safety.
Madigan’s first sight of the hidden valley was one of awe. They were lying on their stomachs at the edge of the rim with the sun behind them, below was the ledge on which the Indians were trapped, and beyond was the fountain with O’Neill’s camp spread around it.
Beyond that was the village of white buildings standing brilliant in the first rays of the morning sun. One building stood out from the rest, and this, Mila told Madigan, was the repository of the treasure of her ancestors. This building was much larger than all the others and on its walls hung great disks of gleaming gold.
Glancing over his shoulder, he motioned the man with the rope ladder forward. “We must hurry to get the stranded men off the ledge before the sun climbs much higher and gives away our protective shield of light,” Madigan whispered to him.
In a matter of seconds they tied the ladder to a huge rock and lowered the other end to the ledge below. Quickly the Indian climbed down to the ledge to inform those below what was at hand and to help any man too weak to make it by himself.
Thinking of the terrible thirst these men must have endured, Madigan sent a second Indian down with several canteens of water. Soon the trapped men started the climb up to freedom.
Madigan was so intent on getting the men off the ledge that he hadn’t taken time to scout for signs of Lewana. As the last man came up over the edge, the ladder was quickly pulled up after him so as to leave no evidence of the rescue. No need to alert O’Neill to their presence before they were ready, Madigan thought.
Carefully moving into the shadow of the boulder, Madigan raised his field glasses and took a good look around. To his shock, he saw Lewana lying on the ground by the fountain. His heart leaped with the sight of her lying there, quickly followed by suppressed anger at the men who held her prisoner.
Lewana and Madigan were separated by only a few hundred yards, yet it might as well have been miles, for all the help he could give her. He couldn’t even tell if she was dead or alive.
Lewana lay where she had fallen. The morning sun beat hot on her back but she did not move, for to do so would give away the fact that she was no longer unconscious. Her hands and feet were bound and she could not tell whether she was being watched. She was surprised to find that she had been unconscious all night.
Somewhere behind her she heard the sound of men working, the sound of heavy canvas being dragged along the ground. Was even now O’Neill standing over her waiting for her to come around?
Overhead an eagle soared in ever-widening circles, a silent bystander to the drama below. A warm breeze blew gently through her hair, bringing with it the odor of half a dozen men soiled from days in the saddle.
Her hands ached from being tied behind her back and she was stiff from lying still, yet her mind was alert, searching for any possible way to escape. Was the tall man out there close by ready to help when the opportunity presented itself? It did not occur to Lewana that he might not come. She only knew that he must come, for her people’s very lives depended on him and she could not believe anything else.