do it son. Let him do it himself; he might even live if he can get back to Morton with that wing of his.” Austin leaned down and gave the man his gun, “You got one bullet; you better not waste it, lets go Josh.”
Austin turned around and started down the hill, and Josh followed. When they got to where the women were still hidden in the bushes he called out, “You all can come on out now.”
The group gathered silently in the road, “Are they dead Dad?”
“One of them is honey.” About the time he said it, another shot rang out, “Both of them.” He said as he took up the horses reins and began walking again.
“You did what you had to do Austin.” Mrs. Begs turned to him. “I know it, but it don’t make it any easier.” He returned. She walked on, saying nothing else.
By the time they made camp that night they were getting into the steeper hills, as the road began to wind through them. There were plenty of trees along the road. They would be in rougher country for walking until they were over the mountains, but that would provide better cover, and more safety for them.
They walked down a log road for a few hundred yards, and made camp beside a little stream of clear mountain water. “Good place to camp.” Austin said as he began taking the supplies off the horses, “Lisa, quit making goggle eyes at Josh, and come help me rub these horses down.”
Ann and Mrs. Begs both grinned at him as they came to get the cooking utensils, “What are you two grinning at?” He glared at them.
“Dad, you’re old fashioned.” Ann said.
“I ain’t either!”
“Oh yeah, you’re sure up with the modern world all right.”
“Well…maybe just a little old fashioned.” He grinned at his daughter.
“I love you Dad.”
“I love you too honey.” Mrs. Begs smiled at the exchange, her tired mind wishing that her husband had had such love for them.
“We are going to have to start hunting as we go, maybe we will get lucky and get a deer or an elk before we get over the mountains.” Austin said thoughtfully as he chewed his food.
“Maybe I could hunt way out ahead of the group, that might give us a better chance of getting something.” Josh spoke.
“I don’t think so Josh, it's better you stay close, if we come under attack, and besides, someone could pick you off, and we wouldn’t know.”
“Ann, would you read to us a little out of your Bible?”
“Sure Dad, I’ll get it.” She got the Bible out of the pack, came and sat down again. She began reading out of the book of John, and the sound of her voice sounded like music as she read John 3:16, and it comforted Austin’s sore heart as she read.
His eyes closed, and he nodded off as she read through the book, then gently laid it in the pack. “Shh.” She whispered to her daughter, and pointed toward the sleeping bags. They each found their bed, and soon everyone was asleep except Josh, who stood on the outskirts of the camp with his rifle. He could have heard a drop of water hit the ground in the great silence of the North West wilderness. He looked over at the sleeping figures, and he knew he loved this family enough that he would give his life for them if it became necessary.
The next morning the group busied themselves around the camp fire, cooking, eating, and cleaning the utensils in the stream.
“Thanks for taking the first watch last night son, I was a little pooped out.” Austin spoke as he and Josh put the packs on the horses.
“That’s ok; I don’t like graveyard anyhow.”
The morning was cool with cloud cover, which burned off by midday, and they began to sweat as the climb became steeper up the mountain. They walked for three more hours before Austin called a halt for a rest.
They found shade under the fir trees by the side of the road, and Austin sat down with a sigh of relief.
“Grandpa, you’re going too hard today; we need to go slower.” Lisa looked at him, as he mopped the sweat from his pale face.
“I’ll be ok sweetheart. We need to get over the mountain.”
“Dad, we have to slow down; I agree with Lisa on this.”
“I do too.” Mrs. Begs said. “Besides, I’m no spring chicken either.”
“Guess you are out voted Austin. I believe the others are right unless you two are willing to ride horse.”
“The horse’s can't carry the packs and us too.” Austin looked at each one of them.
“Look, we don’t know what’s ahead of us when we get too the Yakima valley. That is why we need to hurry up and get on over the pass.”
“I agree.” Josh said, “But if any of us gets disabled it will just slow us down more. We may get over there, and find we are no better off than if we’d stayed on the Cowlitz.”
As they rested, Lisa sat by Josh. That boy won’t be able to resist long, but I’m not going to interfere, its just the nature in her to claim her territory, her protection. Times have changed, and I’ve got to roll with the punches.
He sat with his thoughts until he dozed off in the warm air. He awoke suddenly as he heard the horses moving around. Josh was putting the packs back on them; it was time to move. He got up stiffly, and he felt a hundred years old.
A day later they passed the White Pass restaurant and grocery store/filling station. The place was empty, the shelves bare. “Where do you suppose they went Austin?” Mrs. Begs asked as she looked around the place.
“Don’t know, they could have gone to the coast, or Yakima either one, or they could have been killed by looters from the look of things.”
The going was easier as they began to drop down the mountain road on the east side of White Pass, and as the ground began to level out, the going became easier. The next day the first orchard came into view as they entered the Yakima valley proper, but the farmhouse looked deserted.
As they walked up to the house Josh called out, “Hello the house!” Two armed men walked around the side of the house, “Nothing for you here; you are trespassing, move on!” Said one of the men, his rifle pointed in their general direction.
“We just want some water.” Austin said.
“Get it from the Creek a quarter mile down the road, this is growers association property, now move on!” The men’s rifles came to bear on them.
“Lets go Josh.”
“They aren’t very friendly are they?”
They turned to go feeling as if the men might start shooting them in the back. They didn’t relax until they were well away from the house. Austin stopped at the bridge that crossed over the small creek, “Josh, can you climb down to the Creek, and fill the canteens? I’m about played out.”
Josh took the three canteens that hung from the saddle horn of the mare, and slid down the steep embankment to the Creek as Austin stood thinking. We sure haven’t received a very good welcome so far. He looked at his charges, and began to worry, and wonder about the advisability in coming here. They were out of food except for enough for maybe a couple of meager meals. Paul stood at the edge of the bridge, and threw small rocks into the Creek.
Josh climbed back up the steep bank, and Austin reached down to pull him the rest of the way over the top. “I wouldn’t drink too much of this water. It's not the cleanest.”
“Yeah, let’s get some chlorine into it, at least that will kill the germs; however, it won’t kill the fertilizer runoff that must wash into this Creek, maybe we can find a well soon.”
A far Valley
They walked about six miles before they came upon a road that led to a farm, they could see the house in the distance. The farm sat on rolling land at about a quarter mile down the road.
“Should we go see what kind of welcome these people give us Austin?”
“Yeah, let's do it, but get on your horse Josh, I want you up where you can observe from a horse back.” And he led off down the road toward the house. As they walked down the gravel road through the neatly kept orchards, there was only the soft chuff of the horses hoofs, and the creaking of saddle leather.
They came to so
me occupied cabins, there were children playing with a large dog; the dog began barking. A dark-skinned man walked out of one of the cabins, and walked down the road to wait for them to come up. Austin held up his hand, and the little cavalcade stopped within ten feet from the man.
“What can I do for you senors?”
“We would like clean water, and information, then we will move on. Are you the owner?” Austin said, as he glanced up at Josh, and saw that Josh was looking carefully around.
“No senor, I am not the owner; he is in the house there.” The man said, pointing up the road to the large farm house.
“Are you employed here?”
“Si.”
“Well, we’ll just amble on up there.”
“I will take you senor.”
“Thank you.”
The man walked ahead of them until they reached the house. A man walked out of the house with a rifle, “What could I do for you?” He called from the porch.
“We would like water, and some information.” Austin said as he upraised the man, the man didn’t look as if he wanted to shoot them.
“Where are you coming from?” The man asked guardedly.
“We came over the pass from west of the mountains. I had a little