Free Cotton’s Inferno by Phil Dunlap Page B

to you when I’m finished.”
    â€œFair enough. I’ll be at the jail.” Cotton gave Jack a jerk of the head, and the two of them left the shop.
    â€œThat was a stroke of luck, wouldn’t you say, Cotton?”
    Cotton didn’t say anything, as he was obviously too lost in thought at that moment.

Chapter 13

    J ohnny Monk had found the sharpening stone in the lean-to. One leg of the three-legged stand was broken, and he had to jury-rig it by balancing part of the base on a rock. The grinding pedal seemed free enough, and it moved with ease. He had the grinding wheel sitting up near a pile of wood he’d gathered from deadfall in a thinly wooded area nearby. He was raking the ax back and forth across the wheel as he pushed the pedal to put an edge on it. He was almost finished when Rachael came out looking like someone altogether different.
    He took in a breath at the transformation. She was no longer an ashen-faced child with dark circles under her eyes and frizzy, matted hair. She’d put on a different gingham dress, washed her face, and put some rouge on her cheeks. She’d also washed and brushed her hair, and tied it up with a yellow ribbon. And the result made Johnny blink several times to assure himself he was looking at the same girl he’d found lying on the floor in a dirty dress and barefoot.
    He stopped the grinding wheel to stare at her. She blushed and looked at the ground, clearly embarrassed by the surprise on his face. She began making circles in the dirt with her foot.
    â€œRachael, you . . . are . . . beautiful,” he said. He couldn’t stop looking at her.
    â€œAnd . . . and you are the hardest worker I’ve ever seen.”
    Johnny stopped for a moment, looked down at the pile of chopped wood, and chuckled.
    â€œUh, maybe I have gotten a little carried away. Come to think on it, I’m not quite certain why I’m doin’ it. We can’t stay here much longer. Pretty soon the rabbits will get the idea I’m after ’em and they’ll skedaddle. Then what’ll we eat?”
    Rachael’s pretty smile turned to sadness. She sighed and looked longingly over her shoulder at the cabin, as simple as it was.
    â€œI reckon I’ve known all along I couldn’t stay here, what with my pa gone and all.”
    â€œYeah, and we need to figure a plan for our travels, too. First off, you can’t walk in bare feet for long. You’ll cut yourself to pieces. We’ll have to find something for you to wear.”
    â€œWe still got one rabbit, the one you got this mornin’. I’ll get to lookin’ around for travel duds if you’ll get the rabbit ready for the skillet. Fair enough?”
    â€œYou bet, Rachael. I’ll get right to it. You go ahead.”
    He watched her go back inside the dark one-room cabin. He thought to himself as she disappeared inside,
I could sure get used to spendin’ all my time with her. We got along like the best of friends from practically the moment I laid eyes on her. And she’s darned purty, too
.
I am one lucky fellow.
    * * *
    After they’d eaten every last morsel of rabbit, Rachael began dragging out the various items she thought might be helpful for their inevitable trip to find help, or a more permanent place to stay. She piled what few clothing items she could find in one pile, along with things like leather straps that might suffice as belts and a couple of old bonnets her mother had brought when they started out for the frontier. She’d also found several more bullets for the Springfield rifle, which she handed to Johnny, items he was mighty happy to see. She’d dragged out a pair of old shoes that she’d used mainly for working in the garden. They were pretty badly worn, but she proudly tossed them on the pile, too.
    â€œGosh, Rachael, looks like you’ve found enough stuff to get us on our way in style.”
    She