Kings Pinnacle by Robert Gourley

him with
both of his feet on the deck of the ferry. The Longhunter’s leap
fell so short that he landed in the water. But he managed to grab
the moving ferry deck with both hands after tossing his rifle onto
the ferry. Alex dropped his rifle on the deck and lunged for the
Longhunter’s hands holding on to the edge of the ferry deck. Just
as Alex reached for him, the Longhunter’s hands slipped off the
deck as his weight in the water dragged him away from the moving
ferry, causing him to lose his grip. Alex’s hands closed over the
Longhunter’s wrists just at the last second before the Longhunter’s
head went under the water. With both hands free, Alex pulled the
Longhunter out of the water and up onto the deck of the
ferry.
    Gasping for air, they both
lay on their backs on the ferry deck, side-by-side, totally winded
from the long run and frantic leap.
    The Iroquois band stopped
running after them when they saw that the two men had made it onto
the ferry. The braves knew that they couldn’t swim the fast moving
Potomac and catch Alex and the Longhunter on the ferry, so they
gave up the chase. Turning around, they slowly headed back to where
the Longhunter had left his horses and supplies.
    “Ye run like a hare, lad,”
panted the Longhunter.
    “So I’ve been told,” replied
Alex who was already regaining his breath.
    “I owe ye a life, Alex,”
said the Longhunter.
    “You lost your horses and
supplies,” said Alex, slightly embarrassed by the Longhunter’s
statement.
    “ They can be replaced, but
ye can’t replace a life.”
    “Who were those warriors
anyway?”
    “They’re part of an Iroquois
band that lives northwest of Fort Cumberland. It’s unusual for them
to roam this far to the east. Their leader is old
Tinachock.”
    “Why did they attack us?”
asked Alex rising up onto one elbow.
    “I’m not certain, but it
could be because old Tinachock holds me responsible for the death
of his daughter.”
    “ Why is that?”
    “She was my wife; her name
was Onatah. It means Earth Mother in their language,” said the
Longhunter with a sigh, drowning in memories of his younger days
and a wife and son that he had barely known.
     
    * * * *
     
    Samuel
     
    Samuel Ruskin and his two
friends were seated at a table near the back of a small tavern
close to the docks in Philadelphia. They had been sitting there for
some time when a scruffy looking, buckskin-clad man got up from his
chair and walked up to them.
    “ Word has it that yer
looking fer someone to guide you west,” said the
stranger.
    “ Maybe I am and maybe
not,” replied Samuel.
    “You’re either looking or
you’re not. You can’t have it both ways.”
    “ Who told you I was
looking for a guide?”
    “ People talk.”
    “ What people?”
    “ Just people in general,”
replied the sly stranger.
    “ What makes you think you
can guide me?”
    “ I didn’t say I could; I
asked if you were looking for a guide.”
    “ You look like someone who
might be a guide,” said Samuel as he eyed the man’s buckskin
clothes and animal fur cap.
    “ I might be and I might
not,” said the stranger with an easy smile.
    “Look, this conversation is
getting us nowhere,” said Samuel in an exasperated tone of voice.
“What if I was looking for more than a guide? What if I was looking
for someone who could help me trade with the Iroquois?”
    “ Trade what?”
    “ I have the kind of goods
that the Iroquois want and need to make their lives
easier.”
    “ Exactly what kind of
goods are ye talking about?”
    “ You ask a lot of
questions, maybe too many,” said Samuel dangerously.
    “ When it comes to trading
with the Iroquois, it’s best to know exactly what you’re getting
into, if you value yer life,” said the stranger.
    “ Are you willing to guide
me?” asked Samuel.
    “ Depends on what’s in it
for me,” replied the stranger.
    “ A small piece of the
pie,” said Samuel, as he realized what kind of man he was dealing
with.
    “