High Lonesome Read online

  High Lonesome

  John and the Girls

  Book Seven in the Long lonely series

  By

  TJ Reeder

  April 08, 2013

  All rights reserved

  Ever been trying to sleep and some troublesome bug just won’t leave you be? And it’s too big to ignore and too small to shoot? Well my nap is again being spoiled by the insistent sound that goes kinda like, THWOK - THWOK- THWOK, followed by “I beat you!” “Did not!!” “Yes I did!!” “No you didn’t!” “BULLSHIT!!” “Stop cussing! It sound like shit!”

  Got the picture? It’s like this every damn day when we ain’t moving. I will never forgive myself for following the smell of wood smoke and the sound of an axe splitting wood.

  I swear these two can always find something to spend time trying to outdo each other at and it usually involves something that will ruin my nap. Now here they come wanting me to declare a winner, right, like deciding which rattler to pet. I’m the loser regardless. “John”.. “No”.. “John!” “NO!” “If you don’t you will be sorry.” “If I do I will be sorry longer then if I don’t.” “Don’t bet on it buddy!” Now both are pulling my arms. So like the manly man I am I rise to face my end. It’s like being allowed to pick out the rifles the firing squad will use to shoot you.

  We walk, arm and arm (only because I’ll try to escape) to the target they were shooting at, in the middle was four cedar arrow shafts, two with white and black fletching and two with Black and White fletching. Don’t ask, I didn’t have a thing to do with it but they know whose is whose. I don’t, they look the same to me.

  I call it a draw, didn’t work. So I resort to whining, not working. So I squatted down which I can do now days thanks to Charley and his happy weed as I call it.

  I look closer and I just can’t see any difference, none, nada. I finally said “Do as you will with me but I call a draw now stop playing and feed me.” I walk away while they squint at the shafts and finally decide they are tied so what do I know and why did they want my opinion, by the time I got back to my nap pad I was at fault for everything. “Shit.” “Stop cussing!”

  It’s like living in a pillow case with a pair of cute darling rabid squirrels. No matter what I’m so screwed, which thought brings the comment that “Don’t count on it buster.” I don’t know what Charlie’s Mother teaches them but…I hear “Don’t go there” “Shit.” “Stop cussing.”

  I lay down and pretend to sleep. And get dog piled which includes Walker who loves this game, he don’t care where he steps. Life in the nut house. But I love it and them and Walker if he will stop standing on my jewels. They got that message loud and clear and dragged the big bastard off me.

  They put away their bows and quivers and set about fixing dinner which was always a riot. After dinner we cleaned up camp and after the meal settled we piled into the hot pool we had located in this new area. I keep thinking why leave here but the nights are getting a chill to them and we all know what’s coming.

  I guess the bows need explaining so I’ll back track a month or two. We spent two weeks at the last camp before we decided to move on. We looked at the maps and decided to head due east because we hadn’t been there. We spent several days just loafing along not in a hurry and when possible we rode side by side and talked about everything under the sun.

  There is something magical about riding a good mount up high, the clink of a shoe on stone, the squeak of the saddle leather, the roller on the bits that the riding stock had in their mouths, never was real sure what it was for but they love rolling it so maybe that’s what it’s for, keeps ‘em from getting bored.

  Anyway we were just poking along when we all heard a sound from a ways off. It was the sound of an axe splitting wood, so figuring this far up and back in there wouldn’t be a gang for sure. Maybe! We headed that way.

  We rode till we smelled smoke and then a bit further until we were really close to the sound, then The Horse with no name let out a “HEY!! Here we are” sound and the axe stopped so with nothing else for it I told the girls to lay back and I’d ease on in, which got me a “Fat chance bud.” They mind real well.

  We soon rode out on a well-used trail and headed on toward where the sound came from. After a bit we saw a log cabin ahead of us in a clearing with a log barn and a corral with a horse and two mules who right away started talking to our bunch. Then we heard a voice from the side that said “Well a man with two women and a pack train of good looking mules can’t be too bad!” And out of the trees stepped a Mountain Man, Not a man who lives in the mountains, I mean a real Mountain Man, like 1825 fur trapping, Blackfoot fighting by god Mountain Man holding a rifle that looked like it came out here with Jed Smith or John Johnston. He also looked old enough to have bought the rifle new before heading to Beaver country.

  I looked at him for a moment and said “Well if you ain’t gonna shoot one of us I guess we should introduce ourselves. Before I could he said “John Long Walker and his wives Sandy and May also known as Wyatt and Doc.”

  Well I could only laugh and say “Guilty.” He walked over and offered his hand and said “I’m Longbow Daniels but my friends just call me Seth.”

  He said “Follow me on in” and walked away with a loose gait that belied his years. We followed him right to his corral where he said “Ok boys come on out” and two young lads about fifteen stepped out of the barn and they weren’t holding Hawkins rifles, they had lever guns that had pretty big holes in the ends. They both had long black hair and high cheek bones and were a darker tan then their dad.

  We stepped down and he said “Follow me, the boys will water your stock and slip the bits so they can eat a bite.” In the cabin we met his wife who looked to be from one of the local tribes and was very pretty, we introduced ourselves to her, her name was Clare and she spoke like a school teacher which we found out she was before moving to the mountains with Seth. She poured coffee and offered some lunch which got the girls chattering and off they went with her.

  I said “Ok Seth how did you know who we are?” He laughed and said “Well hell everybody in these mountains has heard about you and them two hellions but also we ride down to where our old truck is hidden and drive into places where we can get some supplies, such as they are. But some stuff is starting to move coming in from the west coast.”

  Now that surprised the hell outta me! And I said so, he just nodded and said “Well it ain’t been going on too long and it’s a bit spotty but it’s coming. Coffee, sugar and such, seems somebody got a small ship working and they load up whatever they can buy or trade for then sell it or trade it to folks along the coast who bring it in to the area. They are partial to gold and silver but will take furs.”

  I was really blown away at this news but happy to hear it. We stopped talking to have big bowls of Elk stew made with home grown veggies. It was awesome.

  Clare and the girls were getting along like old friends and the boys just listened and smiled at their mom, who was very happy to have female company.

  The cabin and barn were USFS built to house trail crews and rangers who rode the back country before the event that is. Seth said he knew about it because he worked out of here building trails and when the SHTF he simply loaded up his family in their old truck and headed for the high lonesome and didn’t move for a year. But after scouting things out they took a trip out to a small local town where they were known and welcome. After that they went in when they had too, but not often. That was where they heard the stories about us and while some sounded a bit tall he was willing to believe it.

  May asked him about his handle of “Longbow” so he sent one of the boys to fetch something and he brought back a buckskin covered bundle out of which Seth pulled a beautiful long bow which he strung and h
anded to May who stood and tried to draw it. She got about two inches and gave up and Seth said she done good for a smallish person. He placed a shaft onto the shelf and nocked and drew it fully back to the broad head which made his wife shake a spoon at him and declare if he shot one more arrow in the house she was gonna hammer his head with a skillet.

  He eased the bow down and winked at me and nodded at a shaft buried into a log near the ceiling, he said “I slip one time and she never gets over it.” She smacked him with the spoon while the boys smiled at their folks.

  May said “Where did you get that?” He smiled and said “Well darlin I made it.” May lit up like a light bulb and said “Do you make them for other people?” He said “Well yeah, but most folks want them rattle contraptions that pass for a bow these days.” May said “I don’t, I want one like this! Will you make me one?” By now the other one was there trying to pull the bow and gave up saying “I want one!” May said “I asked first!” I said “Ladies!” That got a glare.

  Seth laughed real big and said “Y’all step in here” and headed for the door the lad had got the bow from. Inside was a very nice workshop and the walls were full of bows in all stages of finish. He looked at May and Sandy then reached up to the top of a rack and got down two bows and wiped the dust off them. He found strings and strung both with ease then found leather arm and finger guards and a dozen shafts and said “Let’s go!”

  Out the back door of the shop was his archery range with targets at ranges from 10 yards to 45 yards. They were full size 3D targets. After helping them get the leather protection on he guided them while they knocked their first shaft and with May going first shooting at the 10 yard deer target she let fly and made a chest shot! Seth looked at her and said “You been here before huh.” She smiled and said “Yep, I shot in college on the school team but it was with compound bows and I never liked them.”

  She stepped aside and Sandy followed Seth’s directions and let fly missing the deer, well I saw her jaw bulge and she grabbed another arrow and missed, finally Seth said “Ok little lady you ready to listen?” She nodded so he walked her thru the whole process of smooth draw, look down the shaft and let go. He explained that stick bow shooting was referred to as Primitive because there was no sights or other whizbang gadgets on the bow. It is a learned thing, instinctive shooting that only comes from a lot of practice. And also that as a rule if a person could shoot a more powerful compound bow then they could shoot a stick bow, generally speaking. He also said that every archer had their own limit which they would learn thru practice. He said his limit was 45 yards, beyond that and he relayed on stalking skills that also had to be learned.

  He pointed out that the bows they were shooting now were lighter pull weight then they could handle in say a couple of weeks and that the lighter the bow the less killing power it had which would result in wounded game getting away and that was something a real bow hunter would avoid like death.

  We left them working at it which they didn’t stop until their fingers were so sore they couldn’t pull the string back anymore. Seth said that would change over time too.

  We settled back and worked out a deal with him for two bows and a huge batch of shafts and a lot of practice points and a few dozen broad heads. He told them to take the two bows and arrows and work at it and to come back in two weeks, he told us where the nearest hot springs were and with thanks we headed for them.

  So now for 13 days I’ve lived with the “THWOK” sound, I hear it in my sleep, that or the arguing over who is getting best fastest. The next day is the 14th day so we left camp and with the pack string headed to Seths place which was only a mile or so. When we got there his wife came out and grabbed the girls right away and off they went to the kitchen to do whatever they do in there, but it smelled good! I went into the work shop just as Seth was wiping down the two new bows and they were beautiful! On the top of each were tied small feathers which I knew was a form of wind gauge.

  The bows were the same size and weight and only different due to the wood used. He strung them and laid them on his work bench and we joined the girls for lunch. The boys had hiked down the trail to visit a ranch family a few miles away who had daughters, ahh love thy name is “Youth.” I got a look for that one.

  After lunch we all trooped into the shop and he pointed to the bows which they both ohhed and ahhed over then slowly each picked up one and held it then pulled it back with some effort. Then they switched bows and did it again, and smiled, they had the one that wanted them, or as they most likely believed, the one the bow wanted to be with. Horse pucky I say and got glared at.

  Out the door and after they had their leathers on each nocked a shaft and let fly at the 30 yard target and both hit right where it should be hit! Well I had been watching them like 23 hours a day for two weeks so I wasn’t surprised but Seth was, big time. He said he never seen anybody improve like Sandy had since May had a big head start more or less.

  When they bent over to pull their shafts May’s bear claw necklace fell out of her shirt causing Seth to say “WOW!!” May went over so he could get a better look so Sandy took hers out and that led to having to tell the story right there. Seth said he was filled with envy because he had never had a chance with a big mountain Grizzly. I told him he could have my next encounter.

  He explained that the bows were a heavier draw then the practice bows they had worked with and either would put a shaft thru an Elk if it didn’t hit a big bone. He was really into their dedication and dragged out a trunk from under the work bench and opened it and took out several quivers, handmade from stiff Elk hide and covered with beautiful bead work. It was obvious Clare had done the bead work from the look of pride on her face.

  Seth told them to pick the one they wanted which took a while but in the end they each had the one they wanted. He then placed a dozen shafts in them one set with two black feathers and the nock feather was white, the other set was two white and one black. Now I got it.

  Well they were bouncing and both hugged Seth then me then Clare who was laughing at their antics like they were kids and if anything they were the same age as she was. But they were just like puppies. I had to admit Sandy was more so now that May was with us, both turned and smiled at me. I’m lost, and I’ll give them whatever they want. When it was all settled they had their bows and quivers and a hundred cedar shafts each. Seth showed them how to mount the target heads as well as the broad heads.

  I paid Seth in junk silver coins which the folks he was dealing with took willingly. Gold was too hard to break down value wise. We took leave of Seth and his wife and headed back out on the road to wherever.

  It’s been about two or three weeks since we left Seth’s place and they are still spending time each day training with the bows and it finally dawned on me this was taking the place of training with their pistols because they could shoot the bows and not tell the world we were around. I’m slow at times, like between day break and dark.

  Now I made sure we stopped early enough for them to get in an hour or so of practice or maybe play depending on how you looked at it. I will admit they have gotten damn good with these things and I’m waiting for them to decide to get a deer with their “new” weapons.

  I knew we were going to need to be dropping lower then we were simply because of the coming cold and snow, not this month but the nights are getting cold. I had been studying the maps and located a hot spring, if I was right, so we drifted that way for a couple of days and sure enough found it after a search and it wasn’t developed so we spent a day digging and hauling rocks and mud mixed with grass and finally had a pool big enough to hold us in comfort. And all that digging and rock hauling made me really need it. I was sore.

  The third day we were there the girls wanted to go hunting with their new toy’s so I said “Cool, wake me when you return so we can dig out some dinner.” They jeered at me as a non-believer and off they went. Being in camp alone with the wind in the trees I just laid down for a nap and woke up to Walk
er growling like he really meant it. I laid there listening and finally heard a squeak of leather and rolled to my feet cussing the fact my rifle was thirty feet away and I was looking at three men who looked like they thought I was a sheep and they was wolves. I was pissed, first at getting caught sleeping like a fool, pissed at Walker for not picking them up sooner and even more pissed that I left my rifle out of reach. They just sat looking at me so I said “Well what can I do for y’all?”

  The youngest one laughed a nasty laugh and said “Well I’d say the real question is what are we gonna do to you?” Well I had an idea I could take two of them but one had a rifle laying across his thighs pointing right at me. I’m pretty good but not that good.

  I repeated myself and asked what they wanted and the smart mouthed one said “Well mostly everything you have plus where are them women we saw with you four days ago?” I smiled and said “Well I’d say they are looking right at you this minute.” I had decided that I was gonna go for it and the rifle guy was first.

  I guess something in my eyes gave me away because before I could move he said “Screw this talking shit” and raised the rifle and grew a feathered shaft in his chest, right thru the heart. The mouthy kid was clawing for a pistol when he got a shaft too. The third one spun his horse and was heading out fast when he got hit by two arrows but kept riding. I never heard a “THWOK,” must be the difference in the target.

  The girls came out of the brush and checked the two and pulled out their shafts from behind as both had gone thru. I was still standing there looking stupid and feeling old. Sandy came to me and said “John they had you cold and you were gonna take it to them, and you would have done a damn good job of it, we just happened to be close to camp and heard them talking so stop feeling down on yourself.” May came over and hugged me and said “Yeah what she said.” Then she said “Ain’t it just the way it goes, we go to get meat with our new toys and the first thing we kill is skunks!” I swear these two are like the black plague. But they are right. And thank god for it because my ass was cooked.