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  Iron Warrior

  Back in the days when a man’s worth was judged by his courage, the rugged pioneers in the Rocky Mountains were among the bravest. Settlers like Nathaniel King fought from day to day, never knowing when warring Indians or cutthroat renegades would attack. One new enemy could cause them untold pain; one small mistake could bring them excruciating death. And when Nate faced a foe bullets would not kill, his rifle couldn’t save him. If his cunning failed, King would end up as nothing more than another notch in his seemingly invincible adversary’s belt.

  Wolf Pack

  Before the yoke of civilization had tamed the land, a man had to fight for his life in the Rocky Mountains. If hostile Indians weren’t hunting for his scalp, ferocious grizzlies or man-eating mountain lions were after his flesh. And if the summer heat wasn’t boiling his blood, the winter cold was freezing it. So Nathaniel King and other settlers were forever on the lookout for possible dangers, and they were always ready to match death with death. But when a marauding band of killers and thieves kidnapped his wife and children, Nate had finally run into enemies who pushed his skill and cunning to the limit. And it would only take one wrong move for him to lose his family–and his only reason for living.

  WILDERNESS DOUBLE EDITION

  19: IRON WARRIOR

  20: WOLF PACK

  By David Robbins Writing as David Thompson

  First Published by Leisure Books in 1994

  Copyright © 1994, 1995, 2017 by David Robbins

  First Smashwords Edition: October 2017

  Names, characters and incidents in this book are fictional, and any resemblance to actual events, locales, organizations, or persons living or dead is purely coincidental.

  All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording or by any information or storage and retrieval system, without the written permission of the author, except where permitted by law.

  This is a Piccadilly Publishing Book

  Series Editor: Mike Stotter

  Text © Piccadilly Publishing

  Published by Arrangement with the Author.

  Contents

  Dedication

  WILDERNESS 19: IRON WARRIOR

  Author's Note

  Prologue

  Chapter One

  Chapter Two

  Chapter Three

  Chapter Four

  Chapter Five

  Chapter Six

  Chapter Seven

  Chapter Eight

  Chapter Nine

  Chapter Ten

  Chapter Eleven

  Epilogue

  WILDERNESS 20: WOLF PACK

  Chapter One

  Chapter Two

  Chapter Three

  Chapter Four

  Chapter Five

  Chapter Six

  Chapter Seven

  Chapter Eight

  Chapter Nine

  Chapter Ten

  Chapter Eleven

  Chapter Twelve

  Chapter Thirteen

  Copyright

  About the Author

  To Judy, Joshua, and Shane.

  WILDERNESS 19

  IRON WARRIOR

  Author’s Note

  Transcribing the King journals is a challenge at times. The archaic spellings and grammar are easy enough to change, but his frequent use of Indian terms and names poses a translation problem.

  Consulting the tribes in question doesn’t always help because King spelled phonetically, and it is sometimes hard to determine exactly how he meant a particular name to be pronounced. Then too, some of the names have to be shortened for convenience’s sake. (Examples: Daunts Him by Blows to the Face, or Paints His Ears and Nose Red.)

  I mention this because of one of the individuals who plays a prominent part in this excerpt. His Crow name, as recorded by Nate King, translates roughly as He Who Can Not Be Killed in Any Way, which I have taken the liberty of shortening to the Invincible One.

  I hope historical purists will forgive me.

  Prologue

  It was in the autumn of 1836 that Jacob Pierce became invincible.

  Pierce had no inkling of the bizarre twist of fate that lay in store for him on that fine fall day. At first light he started a fire so he could partake of his morning coffee, one of the few luxuries he allowed himself. He donned his low-crowned wool hat, wedged a flintlock pistol under his wide leather belt, and strolled to the nearby stream to fill his coffeepot.

  Although the sun had yet to blaze the eastern sky with golden glory, the magnificent Rocky Mountains were already astir with a myriad of life. Sparrows, jays, and ravens warbled and cawed in raucous chorus. Chipmunks were out, scampering madly abroad with their tails twitching. In a clearing by the stream grazed several elk that looked up as Pierce approached, then promptly melted into the dense underbrush.

  Jacob Pierce was in high spirits, as well he should be considering he had caught many more beaver than he had at the same time the year before. If they continued to be so plentiful until winter made trapping impossible, he stood to earn upwards of two thousand dollars at the next Rendezvous, more than he had ever earned at one time before. After he outfitted himself with provisions, he’d have about fifteen hundred dollars left. A very tidy sum indeed to add to his already large poke.

  Unknown to anyone except Pierce, he had already saved close to three thousand dollars. It was his personal hoard, his treasure, as it were, which he valued more highly than life itself. It was his means of overcoming the poverty that had molded his youth back in New York, his way of escaping the humdrum existence his adult life had become before he left civilization for the frontier.

  Another few years and Pierce would have enough to go back to the States and live in grand style. A fifty-acre estate, a fancy carriage, a beautiful, elegant woman—they would all be his. Of such lofty designs had his dreams been composed for the better part of four years, and often at night he would toss and turn in restless anticipation of the good life awaiting him once he traded in his buckskins for city clothes.

  At least once a day Pierce took his poke from its hiding place, poured the money into his lap, and counted it, fondling it as he might a lover. The money was all that mattered to him. It was the sole reason he’d ventured into the Rockies, the sole reason he tolerated the dangers and hardships. Few other jobs in that day and age paid as well. Common laborers earned less than a dollar a day. Masons, carpenters, and the like only earned a dollar and a half daily. A trapper, though, earned three to four times as much. Lucky trappers even more. And so far he had been one of the luckiest.

  Little did Jacob Pierce realize that his luck was about to change drastically. He sank to one knee on the bank of the stream and lowered his coffeepot into the icy water. There was rustling in the brush on the other side. Pierce figured the elk were to blame, and paid little attention until he heard a low cough.

  Stiffening, Pierce glanced up. Deep in the trees, figures moved. He counted two, possibly three Indians, and dropped flat on his stomach. Rather than lift the coffeepot and have the splash inside be heard, he let go and scooted backwards until he was well hidden. Parting thin branches, he saw five warriors strung out in single file, moving parallel to the waterway. As yet there wasn’t enough light in the forest to distinguish details, so he had no idea whether they were hostiles or not.

  Pierce flattered himself that he knew all there was to know about heathen redskins. In his opinion they were all just so much worthless trash, to be disposed of or avoided as the occasion demanded. He looked down his nose on the whole lot of them. Unlike many of his fel
low trappers, he shunned even the friendly tribes and had never taken an Indian woman for a wife. Some trappers thought he was peculiar in that regard. They simply didn’t understand that the only love in his life always had been and always would be money.

  The warriors continued on to the southeast. Pierce stayed where he was until they were long gone, then he hurriedly crept to his lean-to and began gathering his belongings. Where there were five Indians, there were often twenty more, and he had no inclination to stay around and risk facing a large war party.

  The possibles bag went over Pierce’s arm and across his chest, as did his powder horn and ammo pouch. He squatted and pulled the unlit ends of burning brands from the fire, then poked the burning ends on the ground until the flames went out. Thin tendrils of smoke wafted sluggishly skyward, dispersing before they rose higher than the tree under which he had wisely situated his camp.

  As a matter of course, Pierce always kept his bundled plews near his pack animals. He loaded them swiftly, saddled his mount, and claimed his poke. His blankets rolled up easily and were tied on behind his saddle. Ever watchful, he gathered the rest of his things, making as little noise as he could.

  Pierce was all set to climb on when he remembered to take his special precaution. His first winter in the high country, an old-timer, who had spent more years in the mountains than most, had given him advice on how to live to the same ripe old age. At the time Pierce had thought the suggestion ridiculous, but later, after a skirmish with the Bloods in which his trapping partner at the time had been shot in the gut and died a horrible, lingering death, Pierce had decided to heed the old man’s words and do what was necessary to render himself “damned near invincible,” as the mountain man had put it.

  As yet, Pierce had not had to test his “precaution,” nor, if the truth be told, did he want to. He was a trapper, not a fighter, a man devoted to wealth, not to warfare. He would rather avoid war parties than clash with them. And so far he had been remarkably successful in doing just that. Until today.

  Pierce took the lead rope to his pack animals in hand and slowly headed northward. He stayed away from open spaces and stopped frequently to listen, troubled by the fact the birds and animals had fallen silent.

  From the small valley where he had camped, Pierce made his way steadily higher until he came to the crest of a ridge. From here he enjoyed a bird’s-eye view of the surrounding countryside. The sun had risen, bathing the stark peaks and pine forests in brilliant sunshine. He could see black-tailed deer on a mountain slope across the way. He saw a lone bald eagle soaring on outstretched wings. And he spotted the five warriors far down the stream.

  Pierce relaxed a little. The Indians clearly had no notion he was anywhere in the vicinity. He decided to wait until they were out of sight, then return and retrieve his traps. The stream was about played out anyway, he reflected, so he might as well go on into the next valley and begin anew. Another valley, another fifty plews. That was how Pierce viewed it. A typical valley yielded that many, only a half dozen of which were kittens.

  Opening his tobacco pouch, Pierce filled the bowl of his pipe. Presently he was puffing contentedly, his left leg curled on top of his saddle, his rifle across his thighs. He congratulated himself on outwitting the heathens, and grinned at the thought of the story he would tell at the Rendezvous. With proper embellishment, he could turn the incident into a hair-raising tale that would tingle the hackles of every greenhorn in attendance.

  Pierce chuckled at the idea, but the chuckle died in his throat when he happened to glance to his left and set eyes on a large party of warriors on the next ridge over. There had to be twenty or more, and every last one of them was staring straight at him.

  Unbridled fear rippled down Pierce s spine. He was petrified, certain the time had come for him to meet his Maker. He noted five riderless horses with the band, and guessed that the five warriors he’d seen earlier were scouts sent ahead to search for enemy villages.

  As yet the Indians hadn’t moved. Pierce casually upended his pipe and stuck it, still hot, in a pocket. He lowered his leg, gripped the reins, and turned his bay to go down the opposite slope. No sooner did he do so than unholy howls erupted from the throats of the savages and most applied their quirts to their mounts.

  “Oh, God!” Pierce cried, jabbing his heels into the bay. The dependable animal sensed the extremity of the moment and broke into a trot. To his mind, unbidden, came all the stories he had ever heard about the many and varied atrocities committed by the Blackfeet and other tribes. He imagined himself being skinned alive, or having his eyes gouged out, or being shot so full of arrows he’d resemble a porcupine, and he wished he had wings, like that eagle, so he could fly to safety.

  At the bottom Pierce turned to the left, sticking to open country now to make better time. He glanced back repeatedly, hoping against hope the Indians would let him escape. When the fleetest appeared on the ridge he had just vacated, he uttered an inarticulate cry and goaded the bay to go faster.

  The Indians rapidly gained. Pierce was being held back by the pack animals. Burdened as they were, they couldn’t run fast for any length of time. Either he stubbornly tried to keep possession of his furs, and lost his life, or he released the lead rope and lived to trap another day.

  The first pack animal slowed the instant Pierce’s fingers slipped off the rope. He bent low, prodding the bay with his rifle. The Indians whooped with bloodthirsty glee, some veering to claim the packhorses while others, those more interested in counting coup, veered toward him.

  Pierce gulped and rode for his life. He had great confidence in the bay. It was a good-gaited horse with more stamina than most. Barring a mishap, he just might make it.

  The land became rockier, more open. Pierce saw a canyon ahead and debated whether to swing around or go on through. Since doing the former would allow the foremost warriors to cut the gap even more, he clattered into the canyon, dirt and stones flying from under the bay s hooves.

  Jacob Pierce anxiously scanned the high walls for a trail to the top. By getting above the Indians, he reasoned he might be able to hold them at bay by rolling boulders down on their heads. But the walls were too sheer. He went over a quarter of a mile and swept around a bend.

  A solid rock wall reared before him. It was sixty feet high if it was an inch, and no man living could scale it, let alone a horse. Pierce reined up and looked around in frantic desperation. He was trapped! His stomach knotted and he felt lightheaded.

  The war whoops of the onrushing warriors echoed loudly. Pierce wheeled the bay and raced to the bend, then drew rein sharply again. The wily savages had fanned out across the canyon floor and were closing in on him in a ragged line. They stopped when he appeared, and one said something that made the others smile and laugh.

  Pierce was certain he would die. He faced the reality all must eventually face, and inwardly he struggled with himself to decide the disposition of his soul. Would he die a craven coward, cringing from their onslaught? Or would he fight to the last, knowing no one would ever know how bravely he met his end, knowing there was no one in the States to mourn his passing? He glanced at a parfleche hanging from his saddle, the parfleche containing his prized wealth, and he made his decision. “I’ll be damned if the bastards will take my money without a fight!” he declared aloud.

  One of the warriors suddenly yipped and charged, notching a shaft to a sinew bowstring.

  Pierce raised his rifle. He’d expected them to swarm over him, not to challenge him one by one. Taking a careful bead, he waited until the warrior was well within range and fired. At the same time, the warrior loosed his shaft. Pierce was only able to glimpse the Indian catapulting backward because he was struck a jarring blow squarely in the center of the chest and catapulted rearward himself.

  He hit the ground brutally hard. Jarred to his core, dazed, Pierce blinked and sucked in air. So that was it, he mused. One measly shot was all he got off! He looked down at himself, dreading the sight of the arrow jutting
from his body. Only it wasn’t there. He blinked, then spotted the shattered shaft near the bay.

  Shaking his head in disbelief, Pierce shoved unsteadily to his feet. The old mountain man’s idea had worked better than he’d dared hoped it would. He looked at the warriors, whose amazement matched his own, then at the brave he had shot, lying dead in a spreading pool of blood.

  Pierce saw his rifle and went to pick it up. He was denied the chance, as two warriors abruptly roared in rage and sped forward to avenge their companion. Straightening, Pierce jerked out the two flintlocks at his waist. He never had been much of a pistol shot, so he was forced to permit the Indians to draw much closer than he liked in order to be sure of dropping them.

  The one in the lead held a lance, the second a fusee. Pierce put a ball through the forehead of the first man and shifted to shoot the other one. He was a hair too slow. The fusee blasted, spewing smoke and lead, and Pierce was hit full in the sternum. The impact bowled him over, and he lay in the dirt, stunned. He heard the drum of hooves, heard the war horse stop and footsteps approach. His senses sharpened as his hair was gripped by iron fingers and his head was yanked upward. Above him gleamed a scalping knife.

  With a quick twist, Pierce thrust his pistol into the warrior s ribs and squeezed the trigger. The man staggered, clutched himself, gaped in astonishment at Pierce, and died on his feet.

  Gritting his teeth against the pain, Pierce stood. He touched his chest, thinking his fingers would be coated with blood, but there was none. His special charm had worked again. He was bruised but not mortally stricken. Yet.

  Venting strident yells, the war party swooped toward him in a body.

  Jacob Pierce calmly drew his Green River knife and prepared to make them pay dearly for the right to claim his hoard.