CHAPTER 10

15 Months Ago, Aboard Barty’s ship near Higgins’ Moon

Well this has sure been fun. Haven’t been out this cabin since we left Persephone. Least I got two hots an’ a cot this go-round, and ain’t had to look at Smelly’s ugly puss the whole time. Things are lookin’ up.

Job don’t look to be over-complex. Just sneak in, grab the book, stuff it in the preservation bag, hightail it on back to the boat and fade away. Simple. Only it never is. Anything goes wrong with this I may end up in a little bitty sheet iron box out in the swamp, or slingin’ mud for the rest of my days. Barty may turn me over to the gorram slavers when and if I get back. Deal with that when I have to.

Gotta admit, neat setup for Barty. Scheme works, he’s rollin’ in coin. Don’t work, I’m left swingin’. Sure, I could tell Higgins the scam, doubt he’d believe it. Even if he did, Barty’s likely got a way to cover his skinny little ass. Say his “client” put me up to it, or some such. I’d still be here. Higgins don’t take kindly to bein’ screwed with.

Startin’ the de-orbit, sounds like. Go over the plan one more time.

Hit dirt at local dawn, in this canyon, that’d be east of the house about five miles or so. It’s a drop & run, so the boat goes back upstairs. Follow the creek downstream to the dry wash, uphill in that to this ridge, up over and down to this bigger creek. Upstream along that to the edge of the compound. Find a good hide, lay chilly til nightfall and observe.

There’ll be at least two hired guns on duty. There’s six all together, rotating in 8 hour shifts. Fresh pair comes on at midnight. That’s two asleep, I hope, two going on, two coming off. Take the sleepers at shift change. Take two more as they come back to the bunkhouse, they’ll be lookin’ for their beds, not trouble. That leaves two roamin’ loose. Take them out one at a time. Reinforcements in Canton, the foreman and his prods, but I plan on bein’ long gone afore they can arrive.

Two domestics in the house, should be in their rooms asleep down to the far end. Higgins and family upstairs.

Alarms on the house, mag-cards to dis-arm on the security boys so they can go in and out without trippin’ ‘em all the time. Separate alarm on the wall safe and another on the display case with the book. Mag-cards don’t work on those. Got the back-door code for the case’s touch-pad from Barty. Nice of him to supply the alarm system too. What a scam.

So. Get the book, bag it, skedaddle. Should be “o’er the hills an’ far awa”, as my ancestors would have said, long afore anybody wakes up and cottons there’s a problem. Should be.

Oughtta be kissin’ dirt soon. Yup, there go the landing jacks.

Won’t have any weapons this run, 'cept what I take off’n Higgins’ boys tonight. Still got the boot shank in my pocket, and that steel door pin. Might come in handy later. Shank has a ragged edge on it now from poppin’ those door pins out.

Try an’ ‘jack this ship on the way back? Doubt it. There’s four goons out there plus Smelly. Only way I wanna take HIM down is from a thousand yards with a Barret. Or drop this ship on his head.

Think of the devil an’ up he pops. Smiley, standin’ in the door scowlin’ like he can hear all the unkind thoughts I just had about ‘im. Well here’s another one for ya. You so gorram ugly I bet they spanked yer mamma when you was born. I had a face like your’n I’d shave my be-hind and learn to walk on my ha........

“What you smiling at?”, his brow furrowing.

“Nuthin’ much. Just happy for a change of scenery is all. Not exactly a room with a view, is it?,” I ask, indicating my accommodations.

“Plenty of scenery outside. Let’s go.” I can tell he’s in SUCH a good mood.

Into the airlock, inner door closes. Outer door opens, letting in a blast of cold air and grit.

Touchdown. Out and away before the jacks finish compressing. Head for a fair-sized rock and hunker down behind it as the ship lifts again. Total brown-out from the dust kickin’ up. That’ll clear in a minute.

Stand up as the dirt settles, shake a bunch off me. So this is Higgins’ Moon, huh? Ain’t much to look at for a fact. Take a deep breath.... yup, stinks. Prolly worse over to the bogs. Smells like..... rotten straw from the bottom of a horse stall, with maybe a touch of spoilt meat. Ain’t here for the view, and the clock’s runnin’.

..........................................{later}

Either the air’s a bit thin here, or it’s the gorram stink. Fair tuckered after scramblin’ over that ridge. Plunk down here in the shade for a spell, get my wind back. Only another mile, maybe a little more. Leastways these coveralls’re ‘bout the same color as the dirt hereabouts, and gettin’ blasted when the ship took off helped even more. Almost as good as cammies for this place. .....................................................

Oughtta be right up around this bend. That bush there should give me a good angle.

Yup, can just see the edge of the bunkhouse from here. Check my map.......yeah, that puts me about right here.......backside of the house should be over THAT way a few hundred feet. Decent concealment with all this scrub by the creek. That’ll thin a bit as I get closer to the house, then the lawn starts. Ain’t grass, some kinda moss-lookin’ stuff. Whatever it is is kept trimmed, quiet to walk on tonight. Good.

Lessee now......set up somewhere ‘tween the main house and the bunk so I can watch both. Try to get some angle on the road out front if I can. Observe for a couple hours from there. Get across the road, circle round to the other side of the house, observe til dark. Then start sneakin’ in closer to the bunk. Bunk’s almost to the creek, so don’t gotta worry ‘bout the back side of that much. Hope it ain’t as cold as this mornin’ or it’ll make for a long time in the last hide. Oh well, they don’t call it layin’ chilly for nuthin’.

Hera: Tree line, Chisholm homestead, approx. 11:30

Gettin’ down off that ridge in the dark ‘bout killed my dumb ass. Remind me not to do that again anytime soon. Damn tanglefoot creeper all over the place, definitely OFF my list as a shortcut.

Good spot here to check out Gordy’s.

Light’s on in the kitchen. Up late tonight, or sumthin’ else? Cain’t hear nuthin’ outta place. Horse blowin’, that’d be Crow. Always makin’ some kinda damn noise that’n. Light spot shiftin’ in the pen, that’d be Snowbelly, and the other, bigger light blur would be Bright. Now why is Bright in there with Crow, they don’t always get along easy, and Gordy knows that.

THANK you Gordy. Good man. Wouldn’t be obvious to whoever’s there, but sure enough is to me. Hang in there brother. Don’t do nuthin’ to piss ‘em off, I’ll be back.

...........................{later}

I’ll be damned, two for two. Abbie put the oil lamp in the window tonight, means she’s got company. Prolly male, and prolly NOT any of the locals. Let’s just slide up close and have a look. Don’t wanna tip my hand by killin’ anyone tonight, but by damn if they’ve hurt her I’m gonna roast somebody real slow.

Edge along the barn here......... nuthin’ I can see other’n the lamp. Wait..... uh huh, little glint showin’ in that window, that’d be the parlor. What’s normally by that window....c’mon, think, dammit. Sofa under the window, table to either end, lamps on the tables wouldn’t show. Glint just moved. Lenses or a gun? Hold still here a minute..... Yeah, glint moves again, then is gone. He’s movin’ around, lookin’ out the windows for me.

Back on outta here real slow. Don’t wanna get any closer with him movin’ around, I might pop up in a window he happens to be lookin’ out of. Watch says gettin’ on to one. Makin’ good time tonight. House next, then on to Jeb’s. Hole up in the yard? Naw, might get tripped over by accident. Stick to the plan......

......................................

House is dark. Could be someone waitin’ inside, but don’t think so, has that empty feel to it. Nuthin’ there I need, keep movin’.

......................................

Jeb’s is lit up like Christmas. Guess they figger I wouldn’t show up here. Ship’s not far off, looked like an old ammo hauler from what I could see. Big enough cargo can for the buggy, which is right over yonder. Six seat hover, just like I figgered. Well now.....plenty of kerosene in that to make a nice fireball later.

Count some noses. Two at the ship, one of them’ll be the pilot. Gettin’ on to three-thirty now, got time to deal with those boys if I got a mind to. Might not be a bad idea....rattle the rest pretty good to find ‘em stretched out come daylight. Better not. Not with Abbie and Gordy under their guns already. Need to get ‘em all back here together.

So that makes four, at least, certain. Six seats in the hover, figger full up on that, pilot, Barty, Smelly. Add in a couple more and call it an even dozen all told. Still cain’t tell if these are all Barty’s or mercs. Gotta wait on daylight.

I need some sleep, gonna be a long day comin’ up. Get over to the hide, sack out until three or four, back over here and see if I can get a good head count. Then it’ll be time to organize a little finely crafted mayhem.