Lauretta pulled hard on the reins and Red Horse slid to a halt. She looked over her shoulder at the riders who were now only a quarter of a mile behind. There were only five of them now, but her guns were all empty. There were at least a dozen more men coming fast from the east, still better than a half mile away. She wasnt going to make it to the river. She wasnt going to make it much farther at all. Red Horse was played out. Tired and lathered with sweat. She had never missed Gray Horse so much. Right now he would still have a good ten miles left in him. She dug in her spurs and rode down the swale and up the next rise. Shots rang out. Four more troopers were riding in from the south, maybe two hundred yards away. Scanning northward, she spots a cross on the horizon, the only object standing out from the sagebrush across the desolate landscape. Shots ring out from left, right, and behind. So many soldiers. Where were they all coming from? Am I near the main body of the army? Lauretta rides hard to the north. The cross draws nearer. Its atop a steeple. A church! A town? A mission? Please, no more soldiers! Riding into the ruins of what was once a small village, Red Horse stumbles and nearly falls. He has nothing left. Lauretta grabs both rifles, her canteen, and saddlebags. Bullets whiz past as she dismounts and runs for the church, the only thing still standing with four walls. A small flock of feral hens scatter from her approach. A lean black cat under the front step hisses and swats at her as she dives through the doorway, bullets striking all around her. Taking a position beside a window, she furiously feeds a handful of shells into her Winchester, and fires several rounds at the soldiers as they ride in. She drops two of them right out of the saddle,the rest break for cover. She loads a pistol, then fires a couple of rifle shots. Loads another pistol, fires her rifle again, trying to re-arm herself and keep the soldiers busy at the same time. She hears shouting and gunfire, but keeps her head and prepares herself for what is about to come.
Posted on: Fri, 06 Jun 2014 01:27:07 +0000
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