The Last Ride of Caleb O'Toole Read Online Free
Author: Eric Pierpoint
emerged from the smoke and raced to keep up with them, determined not to be left behind.
âTumble, up!â cried Julie. And up he went. He gave a great leap and landed with his front paws in the back as Julie helped pull him in, his little legs scrambling to hold on. Tilly climbed into the back and threw her arms around the feisty little dog. Tumble rewarded her with a fierce licking.
âDusty! Go boy!â said Caleb as he gave the reins a mighty shake.
Dusty bolted forward. The buckboard shot Caleb and his sisters out of Great Bend for good.
Caleb clutched his Sharps rifle and slammed it against his shoulder. The hairs on his neck pricked up as he strained to look out the window. Thunder and lightning blew up the night as the rain lashed against the little dugout hunterâs cabin that sat by the Smokey Hill River. Something was moving among the trees outside the cabin. Julie quickly blew the candle out. After several days of rough travel on the road north out of Great Bend, a fierce storm broke out. Try as they may, they could no longer push through the deep mud of the rugged road. They decided to wait out the weather in the stinking, musty hole in the earth with a slapped-together roof and wooden floor. For four days, they sat huddled among several old buffalo hides that lay stacked in the corner, leftovers from a time when the beasts still roamed the Kansas prairies. Things smelled pretty bad inside, but at least the broken-down dugout kept most of the rain off them.
Caleb caught a flash of movement near the wagon. His heart hammered against his chest as he heard Dusty whinny in alarm. He tried to get a better look at whatever was outside, but in the lightning flashes, he could only catch glimpses of Dusty nervously shifting around.
âSee anything out there?â Julie said as she grabbed hold of Tilly and held her tight. Tumble growled a warning that said that there was something he didnât like lurking outside.
âNo, but Dusty is acting like somethingâs up,â said Caleb as he peered through the window.
âMaybe itâs the dragon!â cried Tilly as she buried her head against Julieâs shoulder. She was tormented by visions of the black-cloaked men who murdered the Thatchers in Great Bend, terrified that the black-toothed one would find her and eat her.
âI see something!â Caleb yelled.
âIndians?â whispered Julie.
âNo. It jumped on the wagon.â Just then Dusty let out a loud, screaming whinny. Caleb gave the door a mighty shove, aiming the rifle at the moving shapes in the dark. The lightning flashed again. Wolves! They were all over the wagon, tearing into their supplies. One huge wolf leaped onto Dustyâs back, but the powerful horse bucked and kicked out his hind legs, shaking off the wolf. Caleb aimed and fired, just missing the snarling beast. The wolf rolled along the ground, then gathered himself to attack Dusty once again as the other wolves scattered. Caleb reached into his pocket for a bullet, trying with all his might to remain calm. He fumbled it and it fell to the ground as precious seconds ticked away. Finally, he locked in another one and pulled back the hammer. Dusty reared and stomped with his front hooves, keeping the wolf at bay. Caleb fired again, but this time the rifle wasnât snug against his shoulder, and the hard kick from the gun sent him reeling against the dugout. The wolf leaped onto Dustyâs back as Caleb scrambled desperately to his feet and reloaded. In a split second, Julie was at his side. Julie let loose on the wolf as fast as she could, the Colt revolver spitting flame. Caleb fired again, and the wolf jumped off Dusty and dashed away into the cover of the trees. Tumble raced from the cabin like the devilâs wind and charged through the trees after the huge wolf.
âGet âem, Tumble!â shouted Tilly as she came running out the door.
âTilly! Get back in there!â
âTumble, up!â cried Julie. And up he went. He gave a great leap and landed with his front paws in the back as Julie helped pull him in, his little legs scrambling to hold on. Tilly climbed into the back and threw her arms around the feisty little dog. Tumble rewarded her with a fierce licking.
âDusty! Go boy!â said Caleb as he gave the reins a mighty shake.
Dusty bolted forward. The buckboard shot Caleb and his sisters out of Great Bend for good.
Caleb clutched his Sharps rifle and slammed it against his shoulder. The hairs on his neck pricked up as he strained to look out the window. Thunder and lightning blew up the night as the rain lashed against the little dugout hunterâs cabin that sat by the Smokey Hill River. Something was moving among the trees outside the cabin. Julie quickly blew the candle out. After several days of rough travel on the road north out of Great Bend, a fierce storm broke out. Try as they may, they could no longer push through the deep mud of the rugged road. They decided to wait out the weather in the stinking, musty hole in the earth with a slapped-together roof and wooden floor. For four days, they sat huddled among several old buffalo hides that lay stacked in the corner, leftovers from a time when the beasts still roamed the Kansas prairies. Things smelled pretty bad inside, but at least the broken-down dugout kept most of the rain off them.
Caleb caught a flash of movement near the wagon. His heart hammered against his chest as he heard Dusty whinny in alarm. He tried to get a better look at whatever was outside, but in the lightning flashes, he could only catch glimpses of Dusty nervously shifting around.
âSee anything out there?â Julie said as she grabbed hold of Tilly and held her tight. Tumble growled a warning that said that there was something he didnât like lurking outside.
âNo, but Dusty is acting like somethingâs up,â said Caleb as he peered through the window.
âMaybe itâs the dragon!â cried Tilly as she buried her head against Julieâs shoulder. She was tormented by visions of the black-cloaked men who murdered the Thatchers in Great Bend, terrified that the black-toothed one would find her and eat her.
âI see something!â Caleb yelled.
âIndians?â whispered Julie.
âNo. It jumped on the wagon.â Just then Dusty let out a loud, screaming whinny. Caleb gave the door a mighty shove, aiming the rifle at the moving shapes in the dark. The lightning flashed again. Wolves! They were all over the wagon, tearing into their supplies. One huge wolf leaped onto Dustyâs back, but the powerful horse bucked and kicked out his hind legs, shaking off the wolf. Caleb aimed and fired, just missing the snarling beast. The wolf rolled along the ground, then gathered himself to attack Dusty once again as the other wolves scattered. Caleb reached into his pocket for a bullet, trying with all his might to remain calm. He fumbled it and it fell to the ground as precious seconds ticked away. Finally, he locked in another one and pulled back the hammer. Dusty reared and stomped with his front hooves, keeping the wolf at bay. Caleb fired again, but this time the rifle wasnât snug against his shoulder, and the hard kick from the gun sent him reeling against the dugout. The wolf leaped onto Dustyâs back as Caleb scrambled desperately to his feet and reloaded. In a split second, Julie was at his side. Julie let loose on the wolf as fast as she could, the Colt revolver spitting flame. Caleb fired again, and the wolf jumped off Dusty and dashed away into the cover of the trees. Tumble raced from the cabin like the devilâs wind and charged through the trees after the huge wolf.
âGet âem, Tumble!â shouted Tilly as she came running out the door.
âTilly! Get back in there!â
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