FAITH
FAITH (after an idea by Nesciri)
The group rode hard for the first ten miles. The
trail was muddy and it was easy to spot the prints from Kid's horse. Suddenly,
the prints vanished and they all pulled to a stop. Buck dismounted and studied
the tracks on the trail. He pointed away from the trail and up a small embankment.
"For some reason, he turned off here."
"Does it look like Indian trouble?" Jimmy
asked while he scanned the area. He couldn't shake the feeling that they were
being watched. He thought about voicing his
feeling to the others but decided it was better to stick to the facts. All this
talk of curses was getting to him and he didn't like it one little bit.
Buck shook his head. "I see only Kid's horse."
Buck led his horse off the trail and scouted for more tracks. He knelt down
to the ground and saw something interesting. Here, was a feather that looked
like the same ones in the little bundle. Any other time, he might have picked
it up to get a better look at it, but not now. He left it on the ground where
it ruffled slightly in the breeze. He walked a few more steps and saw a footprint
that didn't belong to the Kid. It was the print of someone who wore moccasins
and was a little on the small side. Buck guessed it was a woman's print and
she was alone. Did Kid stop because he thought someone was in trouble? He couldn't
imagine what an Indian woman would be doing out here alone. Buck stood up and
glanced around but didn't see anything else unusual. He returned to the group.
"There's a feather like in the bundle Kid found in the barn. There's also
a print. I think it's a woman's and they are heading toward Bitterroot Springs."
"Did she ride with Kid or was she alone?"
Lou wanted to know.
"Can't tell but Bitterroot Springs is a sacred
place." Buck got back in the saddle and he led the way toward the place
where he knew Kid would be. He fought his emotions the entire way. He promised
Lou he would help find the Kid and he didn't intend to go back on his word.
On the other hand, he was scared almost witless and wanted to abandon this completely
crazy expedition right here before they got much closer to the burial ground.
When they approached the entrance to the burial
ground it was growing dark and it was getting hard to see. The moon flitted
in and out of the silvery gray clouds causing shadows to move and sway in all
directions. They could see the outline of spears thrust into the ground and
the skull of a buffalo warning outsiders to stay away. Buck prayed with all
his might that he wouldn't have to go in there for Kid.
"Hey!" Kid jumped out from the trees.
"What are you doing here?" Lou jumped down from her horse and hugged
Kid.
"Frank said you didn't show up on your run.
We thought something had happened to you." Cody quickly explained.
<What are you doing here? Teaspoon's gonna kill
you.> Ike was so relieved at having found the Kid he could joke a little.
"I know," Kid shook his head. "It was the strangest thing. I'm on my run when I see this woman on the side of the trail. I stopped and
asked if she needed anything. She was crying and
acting awfully strange so I got off my horse. All of a sudden, she grabs the
horse and takes off with it. It's taken me all day to get this far. I would
have given up hours ago but the pouch is with the horse. I guess she went in
there," Kid motioned to the burial ground. "I'm real glad you showed
up so now I don't have to decide whether to go in or not."
Suddenly, without warning, a sharp, wailing scream pierced the air. It came from the hills above them and six pairs of eyes looked upward to see a silhouette standing above them.
