Free Ambush at Shadow Valley by Ralph Cotton Page A

you time having to fix a meal.’’
    â€˜â€˜Obliged,’’ said Sam, turning and searching through his saddlebags. ‘‘It will save us time having to stop and gather a meal. Every minute is going to count, catching up to them on these high trails.’’ He turned back to the old man with a duster pair of spectacles in his gloved hand. ‘‘I’d also be obliged if you’ll take these wire-rims off my hands and give them a good home,’’ he said. The thin dog growled under its breath as he held the glasses out to Siebelz.
    Squinting to recognize the spectacles, the old man scowled at the dog, saying, ‘‘Hush yourself, Little Bobby. Where are your manners?’’ To the ranger he said, ‘‘I have always hoped to someday look through a pair of these and see the world as I remember it to be.’’
    â€˜â€˜Let’s hope they do the job for you,’’ Sam said.
    Siebelz put the spectacles on with a shaky hand. Sam and Hector watched his eyes grow large and full of surprise as he looked back and forth between them. ‘‘Oh my,’’ he murmured as if in awe. ‘‘It has been a long time since I have seen so clearly. Oh yes, yes! They work fine for me! Thank you, Ranger!’’
    Sam only smiled and touched the brim of his dusty sombrero.
    Siebelz turned in a complete circle with his arms spread. His gravelly voice trembled as he looked down at the panting dog and said, ‘‘For the first time I can see you clearly, Little Bobby! My, what a handsome young fellow you are!’’ He took a step away from the dog and said, ‘‘Now come with me. Stay out from underfoot while I pack some food for these lawmen.’’
    As the old man and the dog walked away, Sam and Hector led their horses to a nearby watering trough. The two washed trail dust from their faces in the same tepid water while the thirsty animals drank their fill. Slinging his wet hair back and forth, Hector blew water from his lips and gazed upward along the high, distant outline of rugged hilltops.
    â€˜â€˜Strange,’’ he said. ‘‘I started hunting these men because of what they did to my brother and Guardia Luis Gravis.’’ His eyes searched back and forth as if something might appear to him from such a great distance. ‘‘Now it is important that I catch them for this woman’s sake.’’ He looked at Sam. ‘‘For this woman I do not even know.’’
    â€˜â€˜It’s the badge,’’ Sam said. ‘‘It has a way of leading you into tight spots, makes you lay your life down for a stranger.’’
    Sam ran a hand down his wet face and placed his sombrero back atop his head. Looking at Hector, he could see the young man waiting for more, as if the ranger had not finished what he had to say on the matter. But Sam only tightened his sombrero and picked up his gloves from beside the water trough. ‘‘Let’s get going,’’ he said, ‘‘and see where their trail takes us.’’

Chapter 6
    Soto and Ransdale sat on the bank of a wide stream and watched the naked woman wade out until she stood knee-deep in the cool, rushing water. "That’s far enough, Clarimonde ," Soto called out. As always he spoke her name with mock emphasis, as if it were a joke or a nickname, not a name for someone of any significance.
    She stopped and glanced back at them, making note of how far she had been allowed to go on her own. The next time she would try to stop before he had a chance to say anything. The less attention they had to pay to her the better, she thought. The less she had to be told what to do, the farther she could test the limits they held on her.
    Clarimonde had learned a lot about these two in the short time since they’d forced their way in and taken over her life. These were rough, dangerous, crude, abusive men, but not