Read Stained Snow for Free Online Page B

of the men ran toward where the barn had stood. “What about Anna?” one of the other hands asked.
    He looked back toward his daughter-in-law. “We take her in, too. The doc won’t be able to help her, but I won’t leave her out here.”
    “What about Will?” Issac asked. “He needs to know what’s happened here.”
    Patrick looked at him. “I’ll have the sheriff send a telegraph to the Fort. He’s probably already left.” His stomach tightened at the anguish this would bring to William. He’d be expecting to come back to his family and home, and most of that was now gone. “One of you round up those horses. Take them to my ranch. I’ll hold onto them for him until…”
    They could rebuild the house and barn. If his son would even care to. The rest of it…he could never get that back. “I’m going to ride in with the wagon.” He looked to his own foreman. “James, let Sarah know what’s going on and where I am. I don’t know when I’ll be back out to the ranch.”
    He wasn’t going to leave David’s side until his son returned. The boy may not make it, but he wasn’t going to let him pass all alone.
    One of the men led the wagon team over to them. Another man handed him a blanket from behind his saddle, and Patrick laid it in the bed of the wagon before lifting the boy from the ground. David let out a cry at the movement, but he didn’t wake. Patrick wanted to scream. None of this was fair. David wouldn’t have offered any risk toward Thomas.
    There’d been no reason to shoot him. Nothing but cruelty.
    He laid him in the wagon and covered him with the blanket. It warmed up as spring ran toward summer, but the nights were still cold. He’d at least protect him from that.
    One of the other men laid Anna on another blanket in the wagon and covered her as well. She wouldn’t feel the cold, but it was the right thing to do anyway. The man who brought the wagon over climbed into the seat, and Patrick climbed in the back.
    He’d meant it about not leaving the boy’s side.
    #
    Fort McKinney, Wyoming Territory
    May 10, 1887
     
    The sun barely lit the horizon when William threw the saddle over his horse’s back. He should have left the night before. He could have made camp a few miles from here and been much closer to home. He wanted to be with his family. When the sound of steps came behind him, he barely kept from reaching toward his pistol as he turned.
    It was just the commander.
    “Leaving already, Mr. Jensen?”
    “I want to get home. I have a wife and son waiting for me. I’ve already been here longer than I planned.”
    “Don’t you at least want breakfast first?”
    “No, I want to be going.”
    “I’ll have the cook throw something together for you to take. You have more than a day’s ride ahead of you. I’m sure you’ll be hungry for something by then.”
    William didn’t bother to tell the man no again. What would it hurt to wait for a little food? He nodded and continued saddling his horse while he waited. He was ready to go so didn’t bother waiting around. He led his horse out of the stable and noticed the commander heading up the street toward him. He mounted and rode toward the man. He didn’t want to waste another second before leaving.
    He tied the bag the commander handed him to his saddle horn. “That should see you through till you get home as long as you don’t run into any trouble.”
    William nodded, said thanks, and nudged his horse to go around the man. “Tell your pa I hope everything’s going well, and I hope to see him with some horses soon.”
    “I will,” William promised then urged his horse into a faster walk until he reached the gates to the fort. The two privates at the gate saluted as he rode through. He was glad to be heading home again.
    #
     
    “Sir.”
    Commander Harkins looked up from his meal to see the officer running across the mess tent toward him, a slip of paper in his hands. “What is it, Sergeant?”
    “This telegraph came in