Free The Crossings by Jack Ketchum Page A

even as I uttered them. I may even have been close to shock, I don't know. But I seemed to need to say something. Here was this pretty young Mexican girl dabbing at my naked thigh with a strip of cloth torn from her slip. Another inch or two and I'd have no secrets at all from her.
    "I don't know how to thank you," she said.
    She looked at Hart. "Both of you."
    Hart's expression went from a grimace to something nearly a smile.
    "They'll expect us to run," he said. "Probably come after us at first light. They'll figure it'll be easy, with us on foot. So you want to thank me, girl? How are you at horse stealing?"

FOURTEEN

    I doubt any of us slept at all that night. I know I didn't. Wouldn't have even if my wounded thigh had let me. And when, in the darkest hour, just before sunrise, the hour of the wolf, they call it, Hart touched my shoulder to rouse me I was as ready as I ever would be.
    We returned by way of the scrub, skirting the guard's dead campfire, much as Hart and I had come the night before, Celine and I with difficulty, through a light steady rainfall and by dawn we were crouched in the dripping brush with a full view of Paddy Ryan sitting in a rocking chair on the porch, scrubbed clean of his black and white makeup and drinking from a dainty china cup.
    We saw two guards each in front of the pair of outbuildings to our right which led us to presume the remaining captives were housed within, three more in the corral feeding and currying the horses and another in the center of the compound near the well. Finally, the men Elena called Fredo and Gustavo stood with their backs to us in front of a wagon wheel directly ahead tossing rocks and pebbles at something and laughing.
    When they stooped down to collect more stones and pebbles we saw what it was.

    I'd heard of it during the war.
    It was not only heart, tongue or genitals the guerrillas might take from a man.
    There were times they took his brain.
    And there was Mother tied spread-eagled to the wagon wheel. The top of his head was sawn away just above the eyebrows and it was into this cavity, empty now but for rainwater, that the men were pitching their stones.

    Elena touched Hart's shoulder.
    "Hart," she said.
    He didn't answer. Only stared out at the men, the dice clutched tight in his fist.
    "Hart. I'm so sorry."
    "Why's that?"
    " Please , Hart. Please."
    I thought she was about to cry. Elena, about to cry . It was almost as shocking as what was going on in front of us. But then he turned to her and for the first time when he spoke to her his voice was gentle.
    "I'd never hold it against you, ma'am. And neither would he. Like I said, it's family. Everybody's got family."
    And for a moment I saw something pass between them, something true and almost tender made of respect and loss and suffering and she nodded to him and he said softly even me and turned his gaze back to the yard.
    To the sounds of Fredo and Gustavo laughing in the yard .
    Tossing their stones.
    Even me he said again and this time you could feel the heat of all his anger in the words. We watched in silence for a while.
    "I count eleven," I said. "Spread out all over the place. It'll be rough getting to those horses."
    "We aren't going for the horses."
    "Huh?"
    "Mother just changed plans for me."
    I looked at him. He sighed.
    "Bell, you're a lot better man than you think you are. At least when you're sober. But you're not gonna be doing any running on that leg for quite a while yet and neither is this young girl. We're not going after any horses. Hold these for me minute, will you?"
    He handed me the dice. He unholstered his pistol, opened it and spun the chamber, closed it and reholstered it and then turned to Elena.
    "I'd like my Winchester back now if it's all the same to you, ma'am. And if I could borrow your knife."
    I think we all knew what he was thinking by then and Elena looked reluctant to accede to his wishes. I didn't blame her one bit.
    "You've still got Bell's rifle. And his