“Yes, they are of my council.”
“Ask each to come to me in turn to tell me what he saw with his own eyes. That way I will have testimony to present to the soldiers.”
* * * *
I departed the Mead armed, provisioned, and carrying a portion of my gold coins. The buckboard held all the furs taken that winter. Two of Stone Knife’s Lakota helped me ford the river using rawhide ropes to secure the wagon from the current. They then shadowed me on my hundred-mile trip.
A town similar to Yawktown had grown up around the military post. First, I found the fur trader and spent far too long dickering over the price of my peltry to establish my bona fides. The wagon, loaded with provisions for my return, was housed in the livery stable. I opened an account at the bank, depositing a few gold coins after
