Spake As a Dragon (12 page)

“
Get the horse and go hide
behind the house in one of those caves on the bluff above Hog
Creek. LaPree might be coming! If he sees you, he will take both
you and Blaze away.”

Stephen slips a bridle on Blaze, grabs
a handful of black mane and swings up onto his horse’s back. A
quick barefoot nudge and the horse and rider skirt around the house
and head toward the bluff a few hundred feet from the main house.
Stephen stays low to Blaze’s neck to insure being unseen by LaPree
if he is, indeed, one of the approaching riders.

As he escapes, the horsemen turn from
the main road and pass through the gate leading to the main house.
It is LaPree. Malinda is nervous but somewhat relieved, it isn’t
the man from the Western Union telegraph office!

About ten men lope up to the house
followed by a cloud of dust. Dusting off her face with the tail of
her apron, she looks at LaPree, “What do you want? I told you to
stay off my place before! You hard of hearing?”

Leaning over on his silver saddle, he
spits tobacco juice at Malinda’s feet, “Yer done forgettin’ your
place Missy! Like I told you before, I’m head of the Home
Guard.”

“
And, like you found out
before, I don’t care! I don’t have any provisions to give
you.”

“
For shore, you got it all
wrong. I ain’t looking for supplies this trip I have me two other
missions though. First, I got something to show you and second,
I’ve come after them boys of you’rn.”

He reaches inside his jacket pocket
and withdraws a sheet of folded paper. He hands it to
Malinda.

Unfolding the paper, Malinda asks,
“What is this?”

“
Taxes! You’re behind on
your land taxes!”

“
Taxes? You people know I
don’t have any money! My husband is in the Army, along with my two
oldest sons, and they haven’t been paid any money since they left
home over a year ago. Even if they had been paid it would be in
that worthless Confederate money.” Looking at the paper, “I don’t
have $25.00.”

“
For shore, I would tell
you to use some of that money you were goin’ to get from sellin’
that bale of cotton, but do you think I’m stupid, I didn’t think
you ever had no cotton to sell. But, this IS something I DO know, I
am goin’ to take this farm away from you if you don’t come up with
that taxman’s money. Of course now, there’s other arrangements me
and you could make that might jest let you keep on livin’ on this
place. You git what I mean?”

“
Yeah, I get it, but I’d
just soon lose this place!”

“
I just hardly don’t
understand uppity people like you, if you won’t take my invite, why
you don’t sell one of them blackies to raise that
money?”

“
Freed! I have already
told you, freed! Sary, Jed and Jefferson are all free. I have no
legal right to sell them!”

Returning his attention to Malinda,
“I’m gonna ask you one last time, ‘Where’s yer boys?”

“
The boys aren’t here,
they have gone to South Carolina to stay with their uncle. He has a
mill and the boys can get work there.”

Looking at his men he grins wide
enough to see the gold tooth in front of his mouth, pulls a plug of
tobacco from his pocket and bites off a chew. “What she said?”
Looking at his men. Returning to Malinda, “You know Missy, I want
to believe you, but it’s just not in my nature. I know you are
lying.” He orders his men to search the place for Malinda’s
sons.

Uncle Jed and Jefferson had been in
the barn helping Stephen shoe Blaze when the riders approached.
They remain hidden in the barn and watch through the cracks between
the wood sidings. Uncle Jed knows the first place they will search
is the barn, he tells Jefferson to get under the pile of hay and
remain still and stay put regardless of what happens. Before the
riders can reach the barn Uncle Jed steps out and walks toward the
group of horsemen.

“
Well now, he ain’t one of
them boys, he be too old and way too dark, but I wager he knows
where they is. Come here you old fool. Where are this here woman’s
boys? The ‘federacy needs good men.”

Jed does not answer. He stops dead in
his tracks, removes his hat, and stares at the ground. “What’s
wrong there Blackie, cat got yer tongue?” Uncle Jed remains
silent.

LaPree removes his Colt revolver,
points it at Jed, “I’m gonna ask you only one time, where is them
boys?” He said firing a shot close to Uncle Jed’s foot. Jed jumps
upon the other foot; LaPree laughs and fires again and again
causing Uncle Jed to dance from one foot to the other. Six shots
and the dance come to an end LaPree’s Colt is empty. LaPree pulls
his second Colt and is about to resume his ‘fun’ when...

The screen door opens and out steps
Jed’s wife Sary with a double-barreled shotgun. “Now that’s ‘nuff,
I’m fixin’ to blow you from that fancy saddle of you’rn you Cajun
scoundrel.”

“
For shore there Mammy,
you lift that gun, and you be good as dead. Drop that scattergun on
the porch.” Pointing at Jed, “I guess this here white-haired slave
is your husband, right?” Uncle Jed stands quietly offering no
answer.

“
He ain’t no slave! We’s
free. He be my husband all right, but hes is free.” Sary responds
placing the shotgun down.

“
Fore true? A free black
woman and a free black slave, huh? What’s this here world comin’
to? No matter, I still wants them white boys?”

Sary will not respond, she stares at
the man with hatred only a past-slave can have. She shakes her head
from side to side.

“
So you two blackies think
more of
her
boys than
your
lives, that ‘bout right?”
Turning in his saddle to one of his men, “Throw yer rope over that
big tree limb, then git down off yer hoss. Put this black, deaf
mute on your hoss and led him over to that tree.”

Meantime, some of LaPree’s men who
were searching the place walk along the edge of the cliff
overlooking Hog Creek, but they cannot see the cave hidden
underneath the overhang. Stephen and Blaze can hear them talking.
In fact, he is so close he can hear their voices and every word
that is being spoken at the house also. He surely hears the
gunfire. When the men are directly overhead, Stephen takes his
thumb and index finger and inserts them into Blaze’s nostrils and
pinches the skin together. He does not want the horse to whinny and
give away his hiding place. Whispering into Blaze’s ear as he rubs
her neck, “Shhh, shhh, easy girl, easy,” it works; Blaze remains
silent and motionless. In a moment or two the searchers move on
without discovering their hiding place.

Back at the barn, Uncle Jed has been
thrown upon the horse and is being led to a large tree with a
hangman’s noose swinging from a lower limb.

“
What you think ‘Boy’?
Your tongue got any looser? Where’s this woman’s two strapping
examples of Southern manhood? This is to be your last
chance.”

Before Uncle Jed can answer, even if
he has the desire, Jefferson runs from the barn brandishing a sharp
pitchfork. “Let my Pappy go, or I’m going to fill you full of
holes!” He said making a threatening move with the pitchfork toward
the man leading the horse. LaPree raises his pistol and fires.
Jefferson crumpled face down to the ground, his body motionless. He
is dead.

Uncle Jed quickly slides from the
horse’s back and runs to his boy. Before he can kneel down to check
on Jefferson’s condition LaPree fires again. The .45 caliber bullet
finds its mark before Malinda hears the sound of the pistol. Jed
falls to the ground with a thump, landing in the dirt beside his
son.

Sary stunned by the witness of her
husband and son being shot falls to the floor of the porch, grabs
the shotgun and wheels the barrel around to fire, but she does not
get the opportunity, LaPree is faster and fires his Colt for the
third time. The impact of the large caliber bullet carries Sary
back against the screen door where she collapses into a heap upon
the floor. A red stream of blood flows across the porch and drips
from the wooden planks onto the steps.

“
I guess your house woman
must’ve been tellin’ the truth or them slaves of you’rn would’ve
fessed up,” said LaPree.

With a stern look of determination,
Malinda glares at LaPree, “As God is my witness I swear retribution
on you LaPree. You won’t always be the
man
! If I cannot do
it, someday someone I know will do it, you’ll get
yours!”

He looks at Sary and then to Malinda,
laughing, “Un huh, talk big, we’ll see... we’ll see. You got to get
money from somewhere or this place is going on the auction block,
and I’m gonna be the onlyest bidder, yeh hear?” He pulls on the
horse’s bridle and said as he turns to leave, “Don’t get too
comfortable I’m gonna be back! And don’t ferget, my invitation to
you still stands.”

“
SCATTERGUN”

As LaPree gallops out the front gate,
Malinda immediately runs to aid Sary. Kneeling down she can see her
friend is still alive. The bullet from the revolver has entered the
shoulder just below the right collarbone. Using her apron to thwart
the flow of blood she can see the bullet passed directly through
Sary’s body. A lot of the blood running across the porch is coming
from the entrance wound, but just as much, if not more, is pouring
out the exit hole in her back.

Malinda knows if the flow of blood
isn’t abated, and very soon, Sary isn’t long for this life. Running
back into the house, she grabs a clean sheet and begins tearing it
into strips before arriving back on the porch. Malinda applies
compress bandages to both the front and back bullet holes and then
runs to Jed and Jefferson, who lie in the yard.

Jed has a .45 caliber hole that
entered above his heart and tore a jagged hole under his left
shoulder blade as it exited. Jefferson’s wound was squarely in the
center of his chest.

Using the cloth strips from the bed
sheet, she applies a pressure dressing to their wounds, but she
knows it is futile.

“
Mama! Mama, what’s
happened, I heard shots,” said Stephen riding up on
Blaze.

“
Jed, Sary and Jefferson
were all shot by that scoundrel LaPree. Stephen take Blaze and ride
to Doctor Crawford’s house and fetch him here – I need real medical
help.”

Running into the yard William and
Isaac ask, “What’s going on! What can we do Mama?”

As Stephen rides out of sight Malinda
returns to the porch – Sary needs immediate attention. Malinda
examines the entrance and exit hole, the blood flow has not abated,
she knows it must be stopped. She also knows Sary cannot wait for
the doctor.

“
Boys!” She yells, “Get
back out here.” Both sons run from the house back to the porch.
“We’ve got to stop Sary from bleeding, or she is going to die.”
Speaking to Isaac, “Hurry into the sitting room and remove the iron
curtain rod from the front window. Take it to the kitchen and stick
one end into the hot coals in the stove – get it white hot – we
have to cauterize these two bullet holes.” William picks Sary up
and carries her inside, “I hope she stays un-conscious, this is
going to hurt. Please make her as comfortable as possible, I have
sent Stephen for the doctor.”

Placing Sary on the sofa in the
sitting room Malinda turns to William, “Run out to the barn and get
Uncle Jed’s jug he keeps hidden in the tack room. That old cuss
thinks I never knew about his white lightening. Come on don’t waste
time, go get it!”

Isaac and William return about the
same time. Malinda takes the whiskey jug, removes the corncob plug,
and pours the alcohol over both the entry and exit holes. “Hand me
that hot curtain rod.” Taking the rod, she sticks it into the
shoulder wound. Even un-conscious Sary winces. Before she has time
to open her eyes, Malinda jabs the searing hot rod into the exit
wound in her back. Isaac turns his head; he hears the flesh
sizzling and smells the burning skin. Both the sound and smell are
sickening. He thinks he is going to lose his breakfast, but he
manages to get back outside for a quick breath of fresh air before
actually doing so.

Isaac, his face white as a sheet,
anxiously asks from the door, “How’s she doin’ Mama? Is she gonna
die?”

“
Boys, I’m not going to
lie to you, she’s in a bad way. I don’t know if she will live or
not, I’ve sent for the doctor, but Sary’s life is in God’s hands
now. The Doc may not get here in time. You all get back outside,
put Uncle Jed and Jefferson in the barn, take a couple of sheets
and cover them up – they weren’t as lucky, they are both
dead.”

A while later, the screen door flies
open, Mattie Ann announces loudly, “Mama! Riders are coming up from
the main road.”

‘
Oh no,’
Malinda
thinks, ‘
I can’t handle more of LaPree right now.’ “
Matthew
get me that scattergun lying on the front porch, I’m going to put a
stop to this right now. Mattie Ann take Margaret into the back room
and no matter what happens you stay in there.”

Shotgun in hand Malinda moves to the
front porch with all the intentions of shooting LaPree as he rides
up into the yard. The sun is beginning to set. In the twilight, she
could not quite make out the riders. Within a moment or so she can
see it is one lone horseman followed closely by a buggy. It is
Stephen and Doctor Crawford. Doctor Crawford is a vet, but he
served the community as both an animal and the people’s doctor too,
there was no one else.