Miles’ cabin had been broken into, and from the looks of it Two-Bits, Molly’s horse had been stolen. Could it be the man that Miles was after, the crooked deputy of Todd Johnson, Lark Collins? Come with me now as we follow the trail of Miles Forrest as he seeks to retrieve the stolen horse and bring the culprit to justice.
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Noticing the saddle was gone from the tack room and that Two-Bits was missing from the pasture I had to surmise that she had been stolen. I also didn’t like the fact that the sanctity of our home had been violated with the break in, besides the eating of our food. It seemed to fit that this was the man I had been looking for.
Going back to the cabin I found Molly cleaning up the place. She said that she couldn’t find anything missing, but then stomped her foot, “The audacity of coming in uninvited to eat our food!”
I had to smile at her indignation. “Pack me up some food for the trail. He’s stolen Two-Bits,” I said matter-of-factly. “I’ll need enough for a couple of days.”
She sighed and nodded. I went back out to round up one of my horses. I thought about taking Star. If he headed west, Star would catch up quickly. On the other hand, if I had to move slowly, and up into the mountains, Hawk would be a better choice. Looking around, letting my inner senses work, I decided on Hawk. If anything I figured that Lark would try to make it back to Silverton. He might try to board the train at Hermosa.
By the time I’d saddled Hawk and walked him back to the cabin, Molly had a sack of food for me, my bedroll, and handed me my heavy coat. “If you’re headed north or east you might need this,” she said, then looked up at the sky. “This is November, and I sense a storm coming.”
I nodded in agreement not knowing if she meant an actual storm or one that would happen when I caught up with the thief. Taking the sack from her hand I wrapped the cord tying it to the saddle horn with my canteen on the other side. Mounting up I moved back to the stalls where I would pick up the tracks of Two-Bits. She would be easy to follow, I knew her tracks by heart and she had a short stride.
The man didn’t try to hide his tracks but headed on out toward the river and north. Since I knew the tracks of Two-Bits I could follow at a fairly good pace. I had been out for an hour and was moving up the canyon when the temperature seemed to all of a sudden drop and the wind picked up. Twenty minutes later snow gently began to fall I stopped to don my sheepskin coat. It would be dark before reaching Hermosa. If I didn’t catch up with him before getting there at least I wouldn’t have to sleep outside in the cold.
Watching carefully, I figured that the tracks might head off toward one of the ranches in the area, but no, they kept plodding north. With the storm beginning to develop, darkness swept down rapidly. It was dark when I saw a few lights in homes and buildings in Hermosa. It was a small town, built to supply the railroad. It only made sense that Lark would find refuge somewhere in the little community.
I went first to the little livery in the town to check if Two-Bits was there, and then to find a stall for Hawk for the night. The hostler said that no one had come by and that he would grain and water Hawk. He informed me that there wasn’t another livery in the town but that a couple of places had small corrals–the hotel and the mercantile to which he pointed.
To get to the hotel I had to pass the store, so I checked the corral behind it. Nothing. I ventured on to the hotel and before entering to get a room, I went to the corral in the back. Again, no horses. I couldn’t follow the tracks in the dark if he decided to continue north. There were small groups of houses further north, eight miles or so, but I didn’t think he was that far ahead of me. By the time I entered the hotel, the wind was beginning to gust harder and the snow came down faster. I didn’t feel so sorry for the man if he decided to camp out in it as I did for Two-Bits. The man should have more sense.
There was a small cafe in the hotel and after securing my room I went for a bite to eat. After a dinner of venison stew I went up to my room. The hotel was small, only ten rooms, but each one of them had a small fireplace with wood stacked next to it. The snow was coming down regular, and the temperature was dropping rapidly. It took a minute or so, but soon I had a fire going.
Pulling off my boots I laid on top of the bed, pulling my Bible from the saddlebag. Now, I’m not one to try to throw a fleece before the Lord, but He has done so many wonderful and amazing things for me in the past, when my finger touched a verse it seemed to tingle. “In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths.” I knew that verse by heart, but it seemed to blaze within my soul. Laying the Bible down on my chest I gazed up toward the ceiling and smiled…