The Bounty Hunters

A man's voice came from the lighted tent. The sound of a word, then laughter, faint sounds far away.

Fly

Now, very quietly, he thought. Take all the time you want because you'll do this just once. He put his hands into his coat and dried them against his shirt. He wiped his face with a bandana then drew his pistol and wiped it carefully.

The voice sound came from the tent again and Fly

Cocking the pistol he brushed aside the blanket covering and the next moment was inside the cave-in high, room-size dimness, a line with clothes hanging from it, bedding along one wall, and in a corner, crouched beside the coal-oil lamp turned low, was Nita Esteban.

Fly

The girl looked up at him, her body tensed. She was kneeling on a blanket, sitting back on her feet. Her hands held the blanket tightly and no part of her body moved.

Close to her, Fly

Her eyes held his-searching, deep black eyes that were not sure. And then they were sure. Then they remembered and the dark eyes in the drawn face were suddenly glistening with tears. Fly

Lowering his face he said to her ear, "How many are there?"

The sobbing stopped. "Most of them left during the afternoon. There would not be many now. One of them came here not long ago. I thought you were he when you entered."

"There is a light in only one tent."

"They are the only ones," she said. "Perhaps three, or four or five. The one who was here came for a bottle of something to drink." She hesitated. "He said I should go with him, but I refused and he said that when he came back I would be sorry."

Fly

"Lazair keeps his clothes here, doesn't he?"

She nodded, but did not look at his face.

"Put another shirt on."

He moved to the blanket covering as she did this and stood listening. There it was again; one of them laughing. Then another sound-close!

He had time to warn the girl only with his eyes. She saw him flatten against the wall. A leather coat was hanging there from a nail and he drew the coat in front of him, though he still could be seen.

Then the blanket cover was whipped back and a man stood in the entrance, weaving, his eyes narrowing on Nita Esteban, then smiling.

"You must a been coming to see us. Nowhere else you could go." Mescal was in his voice and in the half-open eyes. He had come from the tent bareheaded and now his hair was shining, plastered close to his skull. He had brought no hat, but he was armed. He chuckled and turned to the wall where Lazair's gear was, where the mescal was kept.

He was about to say something more to the girl but the words caught in his mouth. He could see Fly

The man wheeled. In split-second surprise he wheeled toward the cave entrance.

Fly

The scalp hunter stumbled, rolling to his side. His hand waved, slapped against his holster…the glint of metal coming up with the hand…then a second report, ear-splitting in the closeness, and the man fell back and did not move.

They were over him, past him, almost the same moment. Fly

There were four of them-it went through Fly

His hand was tight clutching Nita's arm and he ran with her through the swishing wet wound of the sabaneta grass, holding himself to run at the girl's speed.

There was his mount, where he had left it. Hide glistening wet, skittering nervously at the abruptness of their coming into the trees. Fly

At first it was only the sound of Nita's breathing, then far off, faintly, he could hear the horses.

They're close, he thought, straining to listen, now conscious of his own breathing. They've figured it out. Somebody from Soyopa since it was not Apaches. So they're ru

The sound of ru

"We'll have to wait until it's light," Fly

Higher up in the timber they dismounted. Fly

They sat close over the mesquite twig fire letting their clothes dry on them. The girl's were not so wet, but Fly

Later on, they lay close to each other to sleep.

"Nita."

The girl's face turned to his and was only a few inches away.

He said in Spanish, softly, "I offer my sorrow for what has happened, though the words do little good."

"There is nothing one can say," the girl answered.

"Your father is well."

"Will you take me to him?"

"Of course. When it is light. When we can go without the fear of coming onto those without seeing them."

She's calm, Fly