Yankton

Chapter 35

Chapter 35 This Ain't Bonanza

Clay Jennings shifted around in his chair as if his butt itched then said,

"We've got a fair sized camp near Strawberry hill east of here. Right now we've got close to forty-five pounds of dust and nuggets waiting to be shipped over to the bank in Deadwood, problem is that there's only one road in and out, and with the snow still being the way it is, anybody trying to haul ore out of there will be a sitting duck, unfortunately there's been a lot of strangers coming and going lately, so I'm sure criminals are just waiting for their chance."

I held up my hand, replying,

"Just a sec ther sir, right now I'm contracted with a guy down in Lead name of Michael O'Rourke to babysit a gold shipment down to Fort Laramie in another day or two, Mark and I have been working for him since way last year, I'm not rejecting your offer, it's just that O'Rourke has first call."

Jennings frowned,

"I am acquainted with the gentleman, I can't say I've ever heard bad spoken of him other than he imbibes a little too much. Look…I'm really in a bind here, when did you say you had to tend to that gold shipment?"

"Probably the day after tomorrow," I replied, "Why?" Jennings began to figure in his head,

Then his face lost all expression,

"Is there any particular reason why you're taking O'Rourke's shipment to Fort Laramie?"

I couldn't believe I was hearing this,

"Because that's where He want's to take it!" I shot back.

"It's not as far as going all the way down to Sidney, we've done that, not good. The army patrols the road from here to Laramie, and from what Mr. O'Rourke tells me, he's got some arrangement with the current post commander to deliver the gold there, which is certainly fine by me."

Jennings began to look desperate, when he stated,

"Mind if I speak with Mr. O'Rourke on the possibility of you guarding my shipment as well, perhaps I can ship my gold there as well?" I shrugged, replying,

"It's a free country Mr. Jennings, you do as you see fit, however, I was planning on traveling strictly by horse with O'Rourke's pack mule like last time, sounds to me like I'm going to need a wagon to haul both shipments, that would slow me down, and considerably limit my options should I decide on an alternate route." Jennings was not deterred,

"I'll speak to Mr. O'Rourke," he exclaimed excitedly,

"There may be hope yet." As he was getting up, I reached over and tugged at his coat.

"Aren't you forgetting something?" I asked. He thought a moment then slowly sat back down.

"Ah yes, your payment, how many will there be beside you?"

"Right now," I replied, "Only one other, unless I can snag someone else."

"I've got a couple men I could send along if you like." he replied.

"No thank you Mr. Jennings," I said, "I prefer to work with people I know, along with a few other reasons."

"Very well," he replied, giving me a strange look.

"Two hundred per man," he then said.

"If I'm unable to ship my gold to Laramie, then you would be required to travel on to Cheyenne where I have an agent."

"That means I would have to ride all the way back up here," I replied, with irritation in my voice.

"I'm sorry Mr. Yankton," he replied, "It can't be helped, believe me if there was anyone else…" I reached over and patted his shoulder,

"It's OK Mr. Jennings, if it's all right with O'Rourke, I'm your man, I'll figure something out, but if my boss O.K.'s it I plan to transfer your shipment into special metal boxes that I've got rigged up with a special pack frame, so don't show up at the last moment expecting me to leave right away."

We shook hands on the deal then Jennings tipped his hat to the ladies as he left the saloon.

I returned to the table, where Montana asked,

"Price not right?"

"Oh it's not bad," I said, "but there's a good chance Colin and I might have to continue on to Cheyenne with Jennings shipment if he can't get the army to take it. Mark then spoke up,

"Look if you want me to go I will, I don't want to let you down."

""Don't worry about it man," I replied, "We agreed from the start that if you didn't want to ride with me on these jobs I would never hold it against you. I meant it then, I mean it now, nothing's changed." I could tell he was still feeling guilty, so I added.

"Look Mark, you've got your own job here teaching Mel, it's what you want to do. On top of that, your dad being here changes everything anyway so just don't sweat it, I'll be fine with Colin."

One thing I would need to do was familiarize Colin in modern weapons. He already carried the standard single action army Colt, as well as a Winchester 73, but I didn't like to use black powder weapons for the amount of smoke they emitted revealing your position. The next day, after lunch, Colin and I rode back to the back end of our property where we spent the rest of the day practicing. The M1A was definitely my weapon of choice, so I persuaded Mark into letting Colin use his AR. Colin had seen Mark and me carrying around strange looking guns, and I was reasonably sure knew we were from the future. However, he never pried or came right out and asked either Mark, Melinda, or myself any direct questions concerning where we were from, so when I showed him Mark's M4 style AR, he could only stare in amazement.

"Colin," I began, "I don't know how much you know about Mark or I or even where we are from, but since I don't want to use any black powder weapons, I'm going to show you how a modern military rifle works." First off, I let him get the feel for the weapon by letting him shoot it. Then I showed him how to break it down, and clean it. I'm afraid I'll have to admit that I vastly underestimated Colin's abilities at comprehending the M4 carbine. After demonstrating how to take it apart, for cleaning, loading it, and charging the weapon, he amazed me with his ability to comprehend what it was I was trying to show him. Admittedly, he did have problems aligning the cam pin along with the retaining pin as well as grasping the charging handle properly, and firmly charging the rifle, but with a little more work, we got through all the problems.

Although Mark's rifle had an EO Tech sight on it, I removed it and went with the standard iron sights, something Colin felt more comfortable with. We stayed until well after dusk continuation to practice, as I wanted him to get comfortable in low light situations.

As we were packing up, Colin came to me and said,

"I want to thank you for belevin' in me sir, I have never asked about you or Mr. Sedgwick's pasts believing' it was none 'o me business, but I hear all the talk, and now I have used one 'o your new fangled guns. This is indeed a mighty fine rifle, and I will endeavor to take the best of care of it." I smiled, and patted him on the shoulder,

"Colin, I've always had faith in you and as far as anything special about this rifle or any that you may see Mark, Craig, or I carry, is the type of gunpowder they require. A rifle like this simply could not operate using black powder, it would foul too quickly. The basics are all the same, you load it, aim and shoot, don't be afraid of it, I'll continue to work with you as we go."

That night in bed, Montana expressed her fears making love with a passion previously not revealed. Lately, I had felt her warming to me, but on our last night together for a while, she cried, expressing a fear that I wouldn't come back. This was the night that we both made clear our love for each other,

"I've been deceiving myself into thinking that you were just another man Brian, but I have to finally admit to myself that my heart would simply break were you to meet with an unjust fate. After my Seth died I simply broke, my love for him surprised even me, and I declared from then on, I could never truly love another." She then embraced me and kissed with an incredible passion, then adding.

"Then you come along. I've never been a very spiritual soul, but the manner of your arrival can only mean the divine is offering me one more chance, a chance I do not intend to pass up." We then made love ending up entangled in each other's arms and her hair, our bodies sweating and wet.

"You come back to me Brian Yankton; I simply cannot afford to loose another." Montana then began to sob, as I comforted her,

"Don't count me out yet Abbie," I whispered, "The damn Taliban couldn't kill me and they are a whole lot smarter than the local yokels around here, Indians included." Montana then chastised me for being so bombastic, fearing my bravado would only hasten my death, but I assured her I was trained by the best military organization in the world, learning a lot of tricks both in training, and in actual combat.

"Don't worry Montana," I added, "You won't get rid of me that easily, now where were we?"

Mark assured me he would hold down the "fort," Mr. Sedgwick shook my hand, Kitty and Maggie gave me a peck on the cheek wishing Colin and I luck. As for Colin, I became witness to something that was destined to become a full-blown love affair later on, as I watched Sockie plant a big kiss on his face. Taking one of our extra horses, upon which all our gear was loaded, Colin and I headed for Lead, and Mr. O'Rourke's place.

During the past winter, I had, with Mr. Moss's help, fabricated a pack frame that could hold ten thirty caliber ammo cans. This is what I was telling Mr. Jennings about, four on each side, and two on top, with brackets for camping gear. I provided him with top grade steel plates, and various sizes of angle iron, the likes of which he had never seen. The packsaddle also incorporated extra padding, and evenly balanced all the weight, making Ruth's job just a little easier.

When we arrived at O'Rourke's office, Mr. Jennings was already there with two of his men. Needless to say, I was surprised to find out that O'Rourke had no objection to Jennings shipping his gold with us, however Mr. Jennings had brought along a pack mule of his own.

Both O'Rourke and Jennings were quite impressed with not only my pack frame, but also the "ingenious" metal boxes mounted on it. I had previously painted them black covering over all the military markings so as not to create too many questions. I just told them the boxes were of European origin, which seemed to work. Although both men were skeptical that all their gold would fit in the ten boxes, careful packing of the leather pokes, and tiny sacks of nuggets proved them wrong, although I "fudged" a bit by using a fifty-caliber box I had our mess equipment stored in. Transferring the gear to a set of saddlebags Jennings provided, I was able to carry all the gold. Apparently, Mr. Jennings wasn't able to get the army to accept his gold, as the commanding officer was leaving already, and the incoming one was only accepting responsibility for O'Rourke's shipment due to a previous commitment in writing.

Well it was obvious we would be traveling on to Cheyenne, although in anticipation of that possibility, I had come up with an idea. Approaching O'Rourke and Jennings, I asked,

"Are there any items we could pick up in Cheyenne that your prospectors might like aside from booze." I soon learned that such things as ammunition, boots, various clothing items, sewing kits, along with assorted canned goods and plenty of coffee and beans would do nicely. Both men promised to buy everything we brought at a fair price, which was good enough for me. Most of what these men wanted were things the freight companies didn't bother with, or the mercantile stores always seemed to be out of. I kidded O'Rourke about being the first United Parcel man, a joke that went completely over his head.

Both Colin and I were quietly warned that news of a double gold shipment would be heading south was all over town, and that I had better be on my toes.

"I kind of figured that," I told them, "You can't keep gold a secret, the news just travels, but like all the times past, all it will get anyone is dead, waiting for the buzzards and coyotes to strip their bones." I then got real serious with both men,

"Listen up you two; you set me up with this so you're each going to have to live with the consequences. Than means high body counts, we won't take chances, I will shoot first and ask questions later, anyone who so much as approaches us will be considered a threat and shot on sight, you two might want to spread that little fact around." Both claimed they understood my position and would back me up. I also had another surprise for them. Rather than leave in the morning, Colin and I would be leaving right away. I also liked the fact that it was starting to rain, and the clouds promised a downpour. I had brought two sets of military rainwear, pants and coats with hoods, which we proceeded to put on. Bidding our employers goodbye, Colin and I rode west.

Jennings and O'Rourke thought we were crazy for leaving at such a time, but then they didn't know about the night vision equipment I had brought. Admittedly, the heavy rain prevented its use at first, but we were still able to maintain a decent pace. Chomping on energy and ration bars, we rode most of the night. Stopping briefly towards dawn, I heated water on my mountain stove for coffee and hot oatmeal. Colin was convinced we would have to build a fire and was simply amazed at my cooking apparatus, marveling at the hot breakfast I prepared without building a campfire.

After an hour let-up, it began to rain again, lasting until almost two in the afternoon. We finally reached the point of exhaustion for not only our horses, but us. Moving up to a higher elevation, we found a spot to lie up. I had brought a couple cans of energy drink, so I took the first watch while Colin slept. Up until this point, we had not seen anyone else on the trail, however shortly before Colin was due to stand watch all that changed.