“Is it carrying the Gatling guns?”
“Yeah, it is.”
“How do you know for sure? Are they just out in the open?” Garon asked.
“Sergeant Major O’Leary is driving the wagon,” Harris said. “I don’t think the sergeant major would be driving if the wagon was carryin’ nothin’ more than nails and such.”
“How much longer?” Richland asked.
“As slow as they’re comin’, I’d say another ten, maybe fifteen minutes.”
“Hey, Harris, how much did you say the Injuns would give us for them guns?”
“Two thousand dollars per gun,” Harris said.
“Damn,” Bryans said. “They’s two of them guns, they’s four of us, that’s a thousand dollars apiece.”
“They’s five of us, countin’ Potter,” Richland said. “That’s eight hundred apiece.”
“No, it ain’t,” Harris said, coming back down from the rock. He dusted himself off. “That’s seven hundred dollars for each of you, and one thousand two hundred for me.”
“That ain’t fair,” Bryans said.
“You knew the deal coming into it,” Harris said. “I’m the one that found out about the guns, and I’m the one that went up into the Dakota Territory to meet with Cut Nose. Now if you don’t like the deal, you can just pull out now, and the rest of us will divide up your money.”
“No, no, I didn’t say nothin’ about pullin’ out.”
“Harris is right, Richland,” Bryans said. “We did make the deal with him.”
“Yeah, I know. I was just commentin’ is all.”
“Well, keep your comments to yourself,” Harris ordered.
“Hey, Harris, they must be gettin’ a little closer,” Richland said. “I can hear ’em.”
“Ever’one be quiet,” Harris ordered.
Harris climbed back up onto the rock and looked back toward the wagon. They had made better time than he thought, and were now just over two hundred yards away. He could hear the squeal of the wagon wheels and the squeak of the harness and doubletree. The wagon was being pulled by a team of six mules, and there were four soldiers riding with it, two in the front and two to the rear. Nobody was on the wagon seat with the driver.
Harris jacked a shell into the chamber of his rifle, then nodded to the others, suggesting they do the same. They did so. Then, with rifles cocked and ready, they moved into position.
“Bryans, you go for the soldier front left,” Harris said. “Garon, you take the front one on the right. Richland, you have the back soldier on the right, and I’ll take the back one on the left. Wait until they get into the water, and wait until they are even with us. Otherwise, me and Richland won’t have a shot.”
The others nodded, then waited.
As the wagon drew nearer, the four watched as the driver called the team to a halt.
“What the hell is he doin’?” Richland asked. “What did he stop for?”
“I don’t know,” Garon said.
“Let’s go get ’em,” Bryans said, standing up.
“Get down, you fool,” Harris hissed. “If you give us away now, we never will get the guns. We have to wait until they get here, then take ’em by surprise.”
“What if they don’t come?”
“They got no choice,” Harris replied. “They can’t sit there forever, and when they start up again, this is the way they have to come.”
“Sergeant Major O’Leary, what are we sittin’ here for?” one of the soldiers asked.
Still holding the reins, O’Leary raised his hand and scratched his nose as he studied the road ahead.
“Look up there,” he said. “What do you see?”
“I don’t see nothin’ in particular,” the soldier said. “Fact is, it looks like the road stops there.”
“No, laddie, the road don’t stop,” O’Leary answered. “Sure ’n I’ve drove this before, and ’tis always a bit of wor-ryin’ I do about here. The road goes out into the creek bed for a bit, then comes back, you see.”
“How deep does the water get?”
“Tis only six to eight inches is all. That is, if you stay in close to the bank.”
“So, if the road goes on, why have we stopped?” the soldier repeated.
“Think about it,” O’Leary replied. “If you was a brigand, wantin’ to do mischief by us—now where do you think would be the best place to be?”
“Right here?” the soldier replied.
“Aye, laddie, right here,” O’Leary replied.
“Well, what are we goin’ to do, Sergeant Major? We can’t just sit here all day.”
O’Leary raised the reins and snapped them against the back of the mules. “We’re goin’ through, laddie, we’re
