Wayward Riders
By Lauren
Chapter 1
The sound of rapid hoofbeats was strangely muffled in the pouring rain. The riders were gathered around the table of the bunkhouse when Buck first heard the rhythmic pounding.
"Rider comin’," he said quietly, spoon frozen in midair.
"A rider?" Jimmy sloppily wiped his mouth and reclined back in his chair. "Are you sure? I can’t hear nothing."
"Anything." Emma corrected as she stood up to open the door, pushing Jimmy’s chair back to the floor as she walked by. She peered into the darkness for a moment, then closed the door. "You must have heard something else. There’s no rider out there, not in weather like this. Besides, I thought Lou ain’t due back for another day. You just got back from your ride, didn’t you Buck?"
"Yes," Buck answered quickly.
"Isn’t." Jimmy corrected at the same time, as he shoved another spoonful of Emma’s stew into his mouth. Emma gave him a hard glare, then turned back to Buck.
"You probably just heard the rain. It’s coming down pretty hard."
"No," Buck replied, unwilling to drop the subject. "I know what a horse sounds like, and that was a horse."
"Then one of the horses got stirred up in the corral," Emma reasoned.
"We put the horses in the barn when it started rainin’ hard," Kid said.
"Well, it don’t matter no way. No one’s out there." The woman declared.
"Anyway," Jimmy said.
"James Hickok, do you want to sleep out in that rain tonight?" Emma admonished. "This is exactly how you always manage to get yourself into trouble—with that smart mouth of yours." Jimmy adopted a sheepish look, suddenly becoming very interested in his plate, and did not reply.
There were a few moments of silence. Then came a loud whinny from one of the horses.
"I’m goin’ out to check on the horses," Buck declared, pushing himself out of his chair so quickly that it fell over with a crash. All of the riders stared at him for a moment before he jerked around and rushed out of the door.
"What’s wrong with him?" Cody asked.
<I’ll go check on him,> Ike volunteered.
Ike walked out into the rain, then stopped as he waited for his eyes to adjust to the darkness. Wondering why the moon wasn’t out tonight, he looked to the sky and realized that the clouds were totally blocking any light the moon and stars had to offer.
Wishing he had thought to bring his coat, Ike hunched down and make a mad dash for the cover of the barn. Upon entering the barn, he heard unsettled whinnies. Peering around, he located the stall that Buck’s horse was in. Sure enough, there was Buck, saddling his chestnut gelding.
Ike struck a hand on his chest to get his friend’s attention. <What do you think you’re doing?> he signed.
"I’m putting this saddle"—he pointed—"on this horse."
<Alright, I got that part. But why?>
"Because I felt like it."
<Why?>
"Can’t you say anything else?"
Ike grabbed the Indian’s arm. <Answer me.>
Buck started to walk away, but Ike blocked his path. <You look at me! I asked you a question, and you aren’t leaving until you answer it! What are you doing? What’s wrong?>
"I…I…I don’t know." Buck looked down at his feet as if ashamed. "I’m sorry... I just…" He shook his head, then glanced at his friend. He began again: "I’ve got to go…talk to the spirits."
<What’s wrong?> Ike asked, concerned.
"I…I don’t know."
<Well…could I go with you?>
Buck looked startled. Evidently no one had ever thought of going on a spirit quest with company. "Um, well…"
<Why couldn’t I come?>
"Uh, well…it just…it just isn’t done. I don’t know…" Buck stared at his friend for a moment, then abruptly turned to finish saddling his horse. "I gotta go soon, Ike. I really don’t think you should come. It isn’t right." He tightened the saddle’s girth. "Could you tell Teaspoon that I’m going on a spirit quest? He’ll understand. And the others, you can tell them…just tell them whatever you want. I don’t care." Buck dropped the saddle flap and tested its tightness. "Could you get someone to take my next ride for me? I don’t know…when…I’ll get back. And, Ike, no matter what, I’ll always care about you. Remember that." Buck gave Ike a hug. Ike froze for a second, surprised at the quick change of subject and his friend’s unusual show of affection, then returned the hug gingerly.
After a moment, the two friends parted and Buck mounted his gelding. He rode out into the rain with a backward glance to see Ike waving goodbye.
Ride safe, Buck, Ike thought to himself.
Buck pulled his hat tighter to his head, trying to deflect some of the pouring rain. He hunched lower in the saddle and shifted his grip on the horse’s mane. He was practically blinded by the driving rain, not to mention the fact that the moon and stars were covered by clouds, so he had tied the reins to the saddle horn and let the gelding have his head. All that he could do was hope that the horse could see better than he could, and would avoid any obstacles. He closed his eyes and began an age-old Kiowa chant asking for protection. He was getting a very bad feeling about the whole trip…
