Staggering like a drunk in the dark across uneven ground, Bang carried his pack over one shoulder. He was still a bit lightheaded. Light cast from campfires seemed to now come with bright halos that made his eyes water. He stumbled over a sharp rock and when he looked down, he realized not only were his shoes gone, there was something oozing out of the back of his left heel. But what mattered most was that he’d managed to give sleeping Bob the slip and went from one dark spot to the other, trying to keep out of the way of others and remain undetected.
Ignoring yet another injury, he hid behind a pine with long boughs, watching the others pack supplies and generally preparing small horses very quickly. He knew they weren’t moving camp because the campfires were still going, and women and children were hurrying back and forth, bringing supplies to waiting horses. They were getting ready to leave, only the horses and the men. There were hugs given and hugs received. There were tears among those he thought were likely family. Small children huddled near their mothers, clinging to their rawhide skirts with their fingers interlaced in leather fringes. They waved goodbyes with anxious faces as men mounted horses and turned away a few at a time, catching up with the others ahead of them.
No, they weren’t changing camps, Bang decided. They were going to war by the looks of it. Especially by the bundles and bundles of arrows and rifles packed to their ponies.
Bang hung out until the crowd thinned and the mothers who wore brave faces before now began to shed tears too. Then Bang spotted a small horse still tied up with a few others tethered to the low branches of an Alder tree. Unlike the last time he had to mount bareback, this horse seemed easier to swing a leg over. He might just be able to do it without much effort.
The few people who noticed him seemed busy with their own troubles and paid no mind to him walking about, so Bang took a few steps, hefted his pack into position over his shoulder again, and strode purposefully toward the cluster of horses. He had to take the chance but only three steps in, he heard the shout of his own name.