She whispered, “Tell the others that if there’s rain, they should come into the wagons.”
“We’ll have two men on guard all night. We’ll take shifts. You sleep with your gun by your hand.”
“I’ll have my Winchester by my hand and my Colt revolver under the pillow. So will Mama. I also will have my knife ready.”
She waited a bit. “You know, Mama and I could share a bed and then the two men who aren’t on guard duty could sleep in the other wagon’s bed.”
“No, we appear a happily- but recently-married couple with your mother along. Don’t change the plan.” He wanted the two women in separate places. He knew one would defend the other.
Sarge approached him. “Can we string the remuda between the wagons?”
That didn’t sound good. “You see something?”
Sarge constantly scanned the camp edges. “Not really but… well, you have those itchy feelings between your shoulders sometimes?”
He did. “Yeah, and now is one of those times. I don’t remember them being wrong, do you?”
“No, but I hope to the devil this one is.” Sarge strode to help Ozzie string the remuda rope.
Jeff sauntered over. “I’ll take first watch. Nerves are all worked up and I don’t think I could sleep.”
“Sarge has an itchy feeling between his shoulder blades. That what you mean?”
“Something like that.” He scanned the area but the night was inky.
Ozzie adjusted his bed for the night. “I’m beat to a frazzle. I had second watch last night and can’t hardly wait to stretch out again in that new bedroll.”
“Jeff will wake you at one. If it rains, you can move to the floor inside my wagon.”
“Hey, thanks. Won’t rain tonight but it’s gonna be cold. Spent too long prospecting in these mountains to think different.”
When the remuda was in place and supper finished, Peyton added enough wood to keep the fire going a few hours. “Sarge, you want first or second watch?”
“First. I’ll wake you at one.” He carried his rifle to stand in the dark.
Jeff carried his rifle in the opposite direction.
Peyton wished he had brought four more men with them. Too late to think of that. Besides, that would have looked too much like they had something important to guard. Crooks would have suspected they had gold hidden in the wagons.
He’d learned to sleep when he had the chance. He dropped off almost as soon as his head hit the pillow.
When Sarge summoned him, he woke with one arm curled around Red. His wife stirred.
“Go back to sleep, Red. Sarge is only telling me it’s my shift.” Peyton had slept in his clothes but pulled on his moccasins and climbed out of the wagon. “Everything quiet?”
“Too quiet.” Sarge unrolled his bedroll and climbed in. He tucked his rifle beside the bedroll and laid his Colt revolver inside. Like Peyton had, Sarge fell almost instantly asleep.
Jeff paced a bit.
“You have a reason not to sleep?”
“Naw, just too quiet. My horse would let us know if someone was real close. That don’t mean no one is watching us.”
“Go to sleep so you can do this again tomorrow. I’ll listen for your horse.”
Jeff rubbed the back of his neck. “All right, I’ll try to get some shut eye.” He unrolled his bedroll and crawled inside.
The next time Peyton checked, Jeff was asleep.
He’d been on patrol for a couple of hours when he heard a slight nicker. He stopped beside a tree and listened for movement. A shape too wide to be Ozzie moved near the remuda line. Peyton raised the butt of his rifle and hit the shape in the head.
The man he’d hit dropped and something shiny fell from his hand. This far from the fire the only thing that would shine was a knife. The now unconscious sonofagun had intended to release the animals.
Quickly, before the man was missed, Peyton stripped him of his guns. He untied the polecat’s neck scarf and used it to bind his hands. Then he dug the man’s handkerchief out of a pocket and shoved it into his mouth in case he woke up before his sidewinder of a partner was located.
Peyton hoped he could find the second villain before Ozzie or he ended up dead. He searched what he could see of the camp without looking into the fire. About the time he decided to step back into the trees he heard a yelp from his wagon.
Racing to the wagon he caught a man trying to climb out. Peyton clamped the man’s hand behind his back, drawing a pained cry from him, and jerked him to the ground.
Jeff lit a lantern and brought it to shine on the man. As Peyton suspected, the one in black was the one who had tried to abduct Red.
His beautiful bride poked her head out of the wagon, red hair wild and glowing in the firelight. She gripped her knife in one hand and revolver in the other. “You should have let me finish the job. I will unman him and cook his parts on a spit for our breakfast.”
The man cringed. “Have mercy, I beg you. She tried to kill me.” His free arm was slashed from elbow to wrist and blood dripped from his wound.
Peyton asked, “Why should we have mercy on you? You two didn’t plan to have mercy on us.”
Sarge was up and angry. “I say we string him up right here.”
Peyton nodded toward the remuda. “Would you bring over the man I knocked out just before he cut the rope to the horse string?”
Sarge appeared ready to fight the world. “The devil you say.
