The Encounter (16 page)

CHAPTER TEN

It was late afternoon. The sun had settled to just above the tops of the trees. Lawrence and Margaret walked together. He had found himself a walking stick.

              He shaded his eyes and looked at the sunset. "I hope we hit the road before we lose the light."

              "It's not far." She paused for a moment. "Do you have a family? I know you said you have parents. I mean brothers and sisters."

              "Two brothers and two sisters..."

              "Older, younger, what", she asked?

              "I'm in the middle, an older brother and sister and a younger brother and sister. Why?"

              "No particular reason. We've talked about me so much, I was just curious... a girl friend?"

              That took him by surprise. "What?"

              "A girl friend... Do you have a girl friend?"

              He watched her for a second. Where was this going? "I've dated someone a couple of times recently nothing special... how about you, a steady boy friend?"

              She had started something she wasn't sure she wanted to finish. "Me... We... my people, don't have boy friends and girl friends like you do here."

              He wanted her to continue. It was something he wanted to know about. "Well, what do you have? I mean, do you have a third choice?"

              Oh well, what the hell, she thought. She was in about as deep as she could get already. "There's not much difference in our family structure. Our ties to each other are much stronger."

              "Stronger? How do you mean stronger?"

              "I mean, the bond is never broken. The children grow up find a mate and have children, but the intra-structure always stays in tact."

              He kicked a rock. "You mean you never fight about anything. Nobody ever gets mad and walks out."

              "Divorce, No. We only have one mate unless someone dies."

              "That's some kinda law?"

              "It has nothing to do with the law. Well, maybe the law of nature. It's part of our physical being that hasn't changed since the beginning of our evolution... You sure you want to hear this?"

              "Are you kidding?" She had his attention.

              She took a deep breath and let it out. "When I, or any female, meet someone they can bond with, mate with, something happens inside. Changes take place. The urge to mate with the male becomes so strong she has to approach him."

              "She's horny. That means...”

              "I know what that means. That word doesn't even come close to describing it. Anyway, if he agrees, they bond. The physical act causes chemical changes in both of them. They never separate unless one dies."

              "What if he turns her down? You know, what if she's ugly or has a rotten personality."

              "Well, physical appearance doesn't really concern us, but at that point it becomes a little one sided. He just goes his own way. She tries to avoid him till it's brought under control. Once she does, he's missed his chance."

              So that's why she hadn't come on to him, he thought. She suddenly stopped walking. He looked at her. He'd seen that look before. "What is it? You hear something."

              "A wagon and horses, on the road," she took his arm and pulled him.

              He dropped his stick and ran after her. "Maybe we can get a ride?"

              By the time he'd caught up she was standing above the road.

              Lawrence stepped up beside her and put his hands on his knees to catch his breath, "Which way?"

              She looked to her right, "That way."

              He could hear it now. The clatter of wood and metal mixed in with hooves on the rocky, mountain road.

              They stood above a curve in the road. The sound of the wagon was close.

              "I don't think they're gonna stop", she said.

              "Not if we're up here."

              He took a step and slid a couple of feet down the embankment. The wagon whipped around the curve. Joseph was slapping the two-horse team with the reins. They came very close to going over the edge. Sarah was lying with her father. She held him trying to smooth out the ride. By the time Lawrence was in a position to be seen, they were gone.

              Lawrence looked back at her. She started down. "I don't think we wanted to ride with that guy anyway”, he said. “The light’s goin' and the way he's pushin' that team they'll be lucky to stay on the road."

              They both stepped onto the road.

              "This is the only road into the valley", she said. "It's all down hill from here."

              “Well then, a hot meal and a warm bed await.” He did a skip, a glide step, and then quick stepped down the road whistling, "We're Off To See The Wizard". She laughed and ran to catch up.

                                                        ***

              The way Joseph was pushing the horses scared Sarah. But the thought of her father dying before they could get him to town scared her more. She'd made a place for him in the wagon with blankets and quilts from the house. She had her hand under his head trying to keep it from moving too much. She felt a change in the wagon bed. She rose up. The right, rear wheel was beginning to wobble.

              She looked at Joseph, "Joseph, the wheel." He couldn't hear her. She yelled, "Joseph, the wheel... Look at the wheel." She laid down her father's head and pulled herself to the back of the seat. She touched her brother. He glanced back.

Before she could say anything, the wheel came off. The right rear of the wagon dropped down. She fell. She caught herself with her hands, holding herself off her father. With the sudden extra drag the horses broke their stride and slowed. Joseph reined them in and applied the wheel brake. Everything came to a stop.

              He locked the brake in place and swung his feet into the wagon box behind the seat. "Are you alright? Is dad alright?"

              Sarah pushed herself back up. "I'm fine." She looked at her father. "He's okay," looking at her brother, "what happened to the wheel?"

              Joseph climbed down. "I hope we just lost the wheel and didn't break the axle."

              He stopped to check the axle. It looked okay. He started back for the wheel. Fortunately it had remained on the road.  Sarah watched him for a moment. She picked up a canteen and took a drink. She poured a little in her hand and let it run onto her father's face. The head wound had bled through the fresh bandage she'd made from a bed sheet. She went about changing it.

              Margaret and Lawrence moved along at an easy pace. They were still poking fun at each other like two kids on a nature hike. All that remained of the sunset was a pale yellow-orange glow at the top of the trees. Stars were beginning to show. The moon hung in the sky. With the road to follow, making it to town would be a chinch. She had night vision equipment in her bag, but with the moonlight it wasn’t needed. As the road straightened out in front of them, they both spotted the wagon at the same time.

              Joseph had managed to recover the wheel. They were lucky the axle hub hadn't broken some of the spokes when it came loose. The bad luck was, no axle nut. Joseph looked, but having no idea where it came off made finding it next to impossible.

              They had decided to try and get the wheel back on, then worry about how to keep it there. Joseph and his sister had carefully moved Martin to the side of the road. Sarah hadn't wanted to move him, but even empty the wagon was too heavy for them.

              Joseph was up front with the team trying to figure out a way to use the horses.

              Sarah looked after their father. Lawrence and Margaret were on top of them before Sarah looked up and saw them.

              She stood up and called to her brother. "Joseph..."

              Joseph looked her way. He saw what; at first, looked like two men in the dim light. One of them armed. He reached into the wagon boot and pulled out his rifle.

              Margaret could see Martin on the ground. "Has someone been hurt?" She asked.

              The female voice backed Joseph off. He walked toward the back of the wagon with his rifle ready. His eyes were on the one with the gun.

              "It's our father", Sarah said. "He's hurt real bad. We're tryin' to get him to town."

              "May I have a look?" Margaret asked Sarah.

              Sarah looked at her brother. He nodded. She stepped back. Margaret knelt beside Martin.

              Lawrence looked at Joseph. He still had his gun leveled on him. "You mind pointing that thing somewhere else? We're just tryin' to help."

              Joseph's instincts had already convinced him they weren't a threat. They weren't from the mountain, but more important they weren't from the valley. "You folks not from around here", Joseph said.

              "No", Lawrence answered. "We're from Texas. My wife and I wanted to do some prospecting."

              At the sound of the word
wife
, Margaret looked back at Lawrence. She stood up. "It looks like a bad concussion."

              "What's that", Sarah asked?

              "A severe blow to the head", Margaret answered.

              Joseph leaned his rifle against the wagon. "Concussion? You're using words I don't know. You some kinda doctor?"

              Margaret looked at Sarah. She could tell how frightened she was. "No. I'm not a doctor, but maybe we can help you with the wheel."

              Sarah knelt beside her father. Lawrence walked around to the right side of the wagon. Margaret watched Sarah. Joseph joined Lawrence.

              Lawrence tipped the wheel up and looked it over. "The wheel looks okay. What about the axle nut?"

              "I came off somewhere back up the road", Joseph said. "I looked for it, but we're never gonna find it."

              Margaret joined the two men. "Let's get the wheel back on. It'll level the wagon." She looked at Joseph. "If you two can lift it, I'll put the wheel on." She could have picked up the wagon with one hand and slipped the wheel on with the other, but this wasn't the time, or place, to be showing off.

              Joseph stepped to the back of the wagon. "I couldn't do it by myself."

              Margaret took the wheel. Lawrence joined the boy. "Turn around with your back to the wagon. Lift with your legs."

              Joseph and Lawrence knelt down and slipped their fingers under the wagon bed. Lawrence was nearest the wheel.

              He looked at Joseph. "When I say lift, lift."

              Joseph nodded. Sarah watched. It was the strangest thing. She instantly liked this woman with the long black hair.

              Lawrence glanced at everyone, "Everybody ready? Lift..."

              The wagon came up. The axle was a little high. Margaret picked up the wheel and slipped it on. The two men set the weight down.

              This woman doesn't look that much bigger than me, Sarah thought. How could she lift the wheel so easily? Sarah stood up. "Let's get him back in the wagon."

              Everyone helped get Martin back in the wagon. Sarah stayed beside him.

              Lawrence took a look at the end of the axle, then at Joseph. "You got any tools?"

              "There's an ax under the seat", he answered. "And I got a knife."

              "That'll have to do. Get me the ax." He looked at Margaret. "I've got an idea."

              Joseph pulled the ax out from under the seat and brought it to him.

              "What're you gonna do", Joseph asked. "Can I help?"

              "No. Stay here and keep an eye on the wagon."

              Lawrence walked toward the trees. Joseph turned to Margaret. "What's he up to?"

              "I have no idea. I guess we'll all find out together."

              Margaret walked away from the wagon. Joseph picked up his rifle and laid it in the wagon box.

              "Strange, them bein’ on foot, whata you think?” he asked.

              Sarah looked toward Margaret. "They're tryin' to help. That's all I care about." She looked back to her dad. "What she said sounded bad."