With Nate’s burns still bothering him, along with an occasional dizzy spell, as his brain continued to recover from the electrical shock it had received from the lightning bolt, he, Hoot, and Carl took a bit more time than usual to make the rest of the ride to the Rangers’ camp. It was late afternoon two days after leaving the Box L when they reached their destination. Shorty Beach was on sentry duty when they rode in. When he spotted them, he fired his rifle three times in the air and shouted.
“Hey, the camp! Hoot and Nate are back. Looks like they’ve got another man with ’em, too. Cap’n Quincy! Lieutenant Berkeley! The boys are back from San Saba.”
All the men dropped what they were doing and gathered to wait for the trio to reach camp. Captain Quincy emerged from his tent, along with Lieutenant Berkeley and Jeb Rollins. They had been organizing a search party to look for the long-overdue Nate and Hoot.
“’Bout time you boys got back,” Shorty said, when they rode up to him. “You get my new drawers? And who’s that hombre with you?”
“Nice to see you too, Shorty,” Hoot answered. “Yes, we bought you new drawers. They’re in one of the packs on Walton’s back. We bought you some soap to go with ’em, too. Make sure’n use it, at least once in a while. Far as this hombre, his name’s Carl Swan. He’s plannin’ on joinin’ the outfit.”
“You are, huh?” Shorty said, looking Carl up and down. “You’re kinda pudgy to be a Ranger, mister.”
“And you’re kinda old, ain’t you, mister?” Carl shot back. Shorty’s jaw dropped, while Nate and Hoot erupted in gales of laughter.
“Carl, you’re gonna fit right in,” Hoot said. “C’mon. Let’s not keep the captain waiting.”
They put their horses into a lope, and rode up to the gathered Rangers. Men started shouting questions at them.
“Pipe down, all of you,” Captain Quincy ordered. “Ranger Harrison, Ranger Stewart, just exactly where in the blue blazes have you been? You’re three days overdue.”
“We know, and we’re real sorry, Cap’n,” Hoot said. “We ran into a few problems. There was a bank robbery back in San Saba, then the same renegades who attacked Nate’s family came after a ranch where we were stayin’ overnight. We fought ’em off, in fact Nate plugged and wounded their leader, but then Nate got hit by lightnin’ chasin’ after ’em, and they got away in the storm. We figure mebbe you can send a few men after ’em.”
“I see,” Quincy answered. “We’ll have to discuss that. Now, who’s this man you brought in with you?”
“My name’s Carl Swan. I gave Ranger Rollins, there, a hand when he had a bit of a set-to with some rustlers in San Saba a while back. He told me if I ever decided to sign up with the Rangers to look him up.” He nodded at Jeb. “That offer still stand, Jeb?”
“It sure does, Carl. Cap’n, I told you about Carl, and how he sided me against Mort Stevenson and his bunch. He’ll be a fine addition to the Rangers.”
“If Jeb says you’ll make a Ranger, his word’s good enough for me,” Quincy said. “Hoot, Nate, you and Carl take care of your horses, then report to me. We’ll swear you in then, Mister Swan. Some of you men help get the supplies unloaded and care for Walton. Hoot, were there any messages from Headquarters?”
“There sure were, Cap’n. They’re in the top bundle on Walton’s load.”
“That’s fine. Jeb, bring those to me. The rest of you, get moving.”
“Right, Cap’n,” Jeb said. He took Walton’s rope to lead the mule away. Nate and his companions rode to the rope corral and dismounted.
Big Red kept nuzzling at Nate, and nickering, while Nate rubbed him down, checked his feet, then turned him loose. The horse and boy had developed an even deeper bond after narrowly escaping with their lives from the lightning strike. Somehow, each seemed to know how close both had come to death that night.
“I’ll be back to check on you later, Red,” Nate assured the sorrel, with a final pat on the neck. “Go get some grass.”
Nate, Hoot, and Carl headed for Captain Quincy’s tent. The captain saw their approach. Bob Berkeley was with him.
“C’mon in, boys,” Quincy invited. They ducked into the tent.
“Have a seat. Light up, if you’d like.”
“Thanks, Cap’n,” Hoot said. He, Bob, and the captain rolled and lit cigarettes. Once everyone was seated, Quincy indicated the yellow Western Union flimsies lying on the folding table he used as a desk.
“Carl, we’ll get you sworn in and your enlistment paperwork done in a few minutes. After that, I’ll want full reports from Hoot and Nate about everything that transpired between here and San Saba. First, I want to inform all of you we have new orders from Austin.”
“Orders, Cap’n?” Hoot said.
“That’s right, Hoot. We’ve been ordered to the Big Bend. There’s some tall trouble going on down that way. A bunch of renegade Comanches have slipped over the border from Mexico and are creatin’ all sorts of havoc along the Rio. The few men from El Paso we have in the territory are stretched way too thin. We’ve been ordered to help ’em stop the Comanches, as well as any other outlaws we might come across. And as you’re well aware, there are plenty of those down there, Mexican and Anglo both.”
“But, but that means we can’t go after the men who murdered my family,” Nate objected.
“I know that, son, and I’m real sorry. But we have our orders. Besides, I’d imagine those men are going to leave this area, if they haven’t already. Too many people are on the lookout for ’em now. Men like that prefer easy pickings. Once things get too hot, they move on. And don’t forget, there will still be a few Rangers not far from here, as well as local authorities. Those men will be caught. You have my promise on that.”
“Besides, don’t forget you put a bullet into their leader,” Hoot reminded Nate. “He’s probably dead by now.”
Nate shook his head. “I don’t think so. Somethin’ deep in my gut tells me he’s still alive. I won’t rest easy until I see his corpse.”
“And you will,” Quincy said. “Nate, if you want out of the Rangers, I’d be willing to discharge you. But think what that would mean. You’d be on your own. Even if you did find and kill the man who murdered your folks, you’d have no legal authority to do so. In the eyes of the law, you’d be guilty of murder, just like he is. You’d be captured, tried, convicted, and hung. You don’t want that, do you?”
“No, Cap’n, I surely don’t.”
“Good. Then once we’ve sworn Carl in and I have your reports, rest for the remainder of the day. We’ll ride out at first light.”
***
Nate only dozed fitfully that afternoon. Deep in his heart, he knew staying with the Rangers was the right thing to do— his only choice. However, sooner or later there would come the confrontation with the pasty-skinned son of Satan who was responsible for the murders of his family. That was inevitable. And when it happened, only one of them would ride away, alive.
But for now, he’d use this time to learn all he could and prepare himself for that day. When it came, he would be a Ranger to reckon with.