hurriedly poured him a cupful of coffee from a pot still hanging over the fire. LeeAnn and Jeremy lay inside the wagon, already asleep, but Jason Trent greeted Olin and asked how things were going with the child. Abbie excitedly told him about the stones, while Jason studied the love in her eyes with a heavy heart. His little girl was falling for a man she could never have; she was headed for disaster. But he said nothing. “Olin promised to tell me how he met Zeke and all,” she told her father. “May I please sit up a while longer, pa?”
The man grinned resignedly. “I suppose so. Me—I’m turning in, little girl. I’m a tired and sore man. And you get yourself to bed before long, you hear?”
“I will, pa,” she replied. Trent rose and said his good-nights. He crawled into his bedroll under the wagon and listened to most of what Olin had to tell Abbie, praying at the same time that his child’s love for the half-breed would not bring her too much harm.
“Well, I reckon the feud between Zeke and Rube Givens started mostly over me,” Olin was saying. He took a sip of coffee, then lit a pipe. “You see, when I met Zeke, I was half dead. Zeke—he saved my life, Miss Abbie. That was about four years ago. I’d been trappin’ up in the Tetons. Furs was gettin’ real cheap by then, and it took a lot to make any decent money. Seein’ as how it was a lean year and everybody needed all they could get to make enough money to live on, Iwas lucky. I’d had a real good season and was on my way east with them furs when Rube Givens and his men come along and attacked my camp. Filled me full of lead and run off with my furs. Givens, he’s one of them trappers that don’t bother doin’ the work himself. He just takes somebody else’s furs whenever he can get away with it. At any rate, they left me for dead and stole my furs. But Zeke, he come along and found me. He didn’t know me, but he dug out the lead and then prayed over me, like he’s doin’ now for little Mary.”
He stopped and puffed his pipe again, while Abbie listened attentively.
“I got well, thanks to Zeke. I’d have died for sure if he hadn’t come along when he did. And while I was mendin’, we got to be pretty good friends—done a lot of talkin’. Then Zeke took me to an Arapaho camp, where he left me to be cared for while he headed out to find Rube Givens. He already knowed who the man was—had met him and knew his reputation. Him and Givens had already had a run-in over a card game. At any rate, Givens had no way of knowin’ Zeke knew what he’d done to me, and Zeke promised me he was goin’ to look up Givens and somehow get my furs back.”
“I’ll bet he got them back, didn’t he?” Abbie said with an eager smile.
Olin chuckled. “Sure did. He hunted Givens up. Found him down at Jackson Hole and real calmlike joined up in another card game. Ol’ Rube—he had five other men with him—told Zeke they never did settle their dispute over the last card game. I guess the both of them was feelin’ each other out, each withsomethin’ to settle. I guess Rube figured him and his men could take Zeke then and there, and Zeke, he figured maybe he could take all six of them. After a while, after both of them did their secret figurin’ as to how they was gonna go about it, Rube, he started goadin’ Zeke, wantin’ him to start the fight he figured him and his men would finish. Zeke, he was winnin’ at cards besides, and when Rube run out of money, Zeke, he suggested he put up my furs for collateral. Well, it was then Rube figured out just why Zeke was really there, and he started shoutin’ filthy names at Zeke and tellin’ him them furs was his and that he didn’t have to pay nothin’ to Zeke, cause Zeke was gonna die that day anyway. Zeke, he had other plans. Only they got messed up a little when one of Rube’s men drawed a gun on Zeke before Rube did. Zeke was hopin’ it would be Rube, ’cause that was the man he wanted
The man grinned resignedly. “I suppose so. Me—I’m turning in, little girl. I’m a tired and sore man. And you get yourself to bed before long, you hear?”
“I will, pa,” she replied. Trent rose and said his good-nights. He crawled into his bedroll under the wagon and listened to most of what Olin had to tell Abbie, praying at the same time that his child’s love for the half-breed would not bring her too much harm.
“Well, I reckon the feud between Zeke and Rube Givens started mostly over me,” Olin was saying. He took a sip of coffee, then lit a pipe. “You see, when I met Zeke, I was half dead. Zeke—he saved my life, Miss Abbie. That was about four years ago. I’d been trappin’ up in the Tetons. Furs was gettin’ real cheap by then, and it took a lot to make any decent money. Seein’ as how it was a lean year and everybody needed all they could get to make enough money to live on, Iwas lucky. I’d had a real good season and was on my way east with them furs when Rube Givens and his men come along and attacked my camp. Filled me full of lead and run off with my furs. Givens, he’s one of them trappers that don’t bother doin’ the work himself. He just takes somebody else’s furs whenever he can get away with it. At any rate, they left me for dead and stole my furs. But Zeke, he come along and found me. He didn’t know me, but he dug out the lead and then prayed over me, like he’s doin’ now for little Mary.”
He stopped and puffed his pipe again, while Abbie listened attentively.
“I got well, thanks to Zeke. I’d have died for sure if he hadn’t come along when he did. And while I was mendin’, we got to be pretty good friends—done a lot of talkin’. Then Zeke took me to an Arapaho camp, where he left me to be cared for while he headed out to find Rube Givens. He already knowed who the man was—had met him and knew his reputation. Him and Givens had already had a run-in over a card game. At any rate, Givens had no way of knowin’ Zeke knew what he’d done to me, and Zeke promised me he was goin’ to look up Givens and somehow get my furs back.”
“I’ll bet he got them back, didn’t he?” Abbie said with an eager smile.
Olin chuckled. “Sure did. He hunted Givens up. Found him down at Jackson Hole and real calmlike joined up in another card game. Ol’ Rube—he had five other men with him—told Zeke they never did settle their dispute over the last card game. I guess the both of them was feelin’ each other out, each withsomethin’ to settle. I guess Rube figured him and his men could take Zeke then and there, and Zeke, he figured maybe he could take all six of them. After a while, after both of them did their secret figurin’ as to how they was gonna go about it, Rube, he started goadin’ Zeke, wantin’ him to start the fight he figured him and his men would finish. Zeke, he was winnin’ at cards besides, and when Rube run out of money, Zeke, he suggested he put up my furs for collateral. Well, it was then Rube figured out just why Zeke was really there, and he started shoutin’ filthy names at Zeke and tellin’ him them furs was his and that he didn’t have to pay nothin’ to Zeke, cause Zeke was gonna die that day anyway. Zeke, he had other plans. Only they got messed up a little when one of Rube’s men drawed a gun on Zeke before Rube did. Zeke was hopin’ it would be Rube, ’cause that was the man he wanted
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