Free Wolf Creek by Ford Fargo

floor. Everyone
ducked to avoid the flying missiles, but one arrow pierced Claude’s
lower right arm. He let out a painful grunt.
    “Hurry!” ordered Kelly. “Everyone inside the
house.”
    Helen Barber helped her husband through the
door. Elizabeth, Sawni, Billy, and Shane followed. Kelly held onto
the door and then another barrage of arrows appeared high against
the azure sky, completed their arch, and began to fall. The
peculiar noise increased and then feathered arrows dipped, their
steel tips shattered against stone and floor in a staccato cascade.
As they struck, Kelly closed the door and one arrow hit it with a
resounding thump. He opened the door and there was a Kiowa arrow
firmly embedded in the wood. The barrage of feathered and
steel-tipped objects lasted over ten minutes before it stopped.
From the lower floor of the house blasted several rifle shots, and
then there was silence.
    Kelly, who had held onto the door, rushed
down the stairway. Shane was standing with his rifle at an open
window.
    “Two of those painted lads tried to come at
the front door with one of our axes from the barn,” said Shane. “I
persuaded them not to.”
    “Best you stay here and watch,” replied
Kelly. “I’ll take Billy and guard on top.”
    Before going back up the stairs, carrying
his loaded Henry, Kelly entered the bedroom of his partner. Claude
was propped up on the bed, and Sawni, Elizabeth, and Helen were
attending his wound. The arrow had been removed and there was a pan
of bright red water.
    “How is he?” asked Kelly.
    “I can talk,” said Claude. “Give me a
minute, and I’ll join you and Billy.”
    “I was able to get the point out by pushing
the arrow through,” said Sawni. “It struck no bone but we are
having trouble stopping the bleeding.”
    “My husband is going nowhere until it does,”
said Helen.
    “Father is almost as stubborn as you,” added
Elizabeth.
    “You women,” replied Claude Barber. “You’d
think I was wounded in the chest, or someplace serious. Kelly, give
it a few minutes and I’ll join you up top, just liked you
planned.”
    The Irishman found Billy on the roof,
holding his Henry and watching the grounds surrounding the house.
He concentrated most of his attention on the barn where the Kiowa
were hiding.
    “How’s father?” asked the boy.
    “Looks like the women have him in hand.
They’ve got some bleeding to stop, but he’s tough. He’ll be
fine.”
    “Sawni is good at such things. She’ll…”
    “I’m not worried, lad.”
    “Good. What do you think they will do next?”
asked the youth, pointing at the barn with the barrel of his
rifle.
    “They can’t get in the house without
breaking the shutters and a window, or one of the doors. We made
this place pretty sturdy and as long as we stay alert, they’ll have
no chance.”
    “That’s what I thought,” said Billy. “But
what about Aaron and Patrick? Who will…”
    “They’ll have to take their chances,”
replied Kelly. “Let’s hope they’re smart enough to stay
hidden.”
    “But if they heard the rifle shots…”
    “If they come to help, it’ll be bad. I have
no answer for…”
    “Aaron was teaching me to play guitar, and
Patrick had this song he wanted me to learn.”
    “Aye, those Irish lads have the gift of
music. I like those boys, too, Billy. We’ll just have to wait and
see.”
    Through the next hour there was quiet. The
Kiowa warriors in the distance had disappeared with the stock and
there wasn’t one horse in the corral and no cattle to be seen
anywhere over the grassland or near the lake. Kelly looked at his
watch and it was one o’clock when they heard distant gun fire.
Billy looked to the older man for an answer, and the Irishman
walked to the stone parapet and listened.
    There came another blast of gun fire, and
this time it was closer. Both boy and man stood guard, waited, and
listened. With the passing minutes, it was evident someone was
being chased and those who were