The Kalispell Run

Chapter Eighteen

“Mommy, I think Geronimo is waking up.”

“Good.”

“Not good! You should have let me finish the creep off!”

Geronimo kept his eyes closed, listening to the conversation. A throbbing headache racked his forehead, and his left side was a pool of agony. He experienced the sensation of moving.

“All in good time.” The voice was Rainbow’s.

“Why not now?” an angry male demanded.

“I told you before,” Rainbow responded impatiently, “we need him for now. He knows this vehicle better than we do. We might need some of his knowledge.”

“But the bastard wasted Spotted Elk and Buffalo Grazing! We should kill him now! He deserves it!” the irate man urged.

“Are you disputing me?” Rainbow asked icily.

“No,” the man hedged. “Of course not. It’s just…” he said, and let the thought trail off.

Geronimo opened his brown eyes and slowly gazed around. He was inside the SEAL, propped in a corner of the back seat, behind the driver.

His shirt was gone. It had been used to construct a crude bandage for his left shoulder. Star was seated beside him, and a tall Flathead sat on the other side of her. Another Indian, the angry speaker, was in the passenger-side bucket seat. Rainbow was behind the wheel.

“He’s awake,” Star announced, smiling at Geronimo. Her features became downcast when he refused to reciprocate.

“Welcome back to the land of the living,” Rainbow said, greeting him cheerily, glancing into the mirror.

Geronimo heard a scratching sound and twisted his head.

Another Flathead was in the rear section of the transport, lying amidst the equipment salvaged from the Kalispell Regional Hospital. At least they hadn’t tossed it out. Yet.

“How are you feeling?” Rainbow inquired.

Geronimo watched the scenery pass by. From the position of the sun, he knew they were bearing in a southeasterly direction.

“I asked you how you’re feeling?” Rainbow reiterated.

“Do you make it a practice of specializing in stupidity, or is a natural knack you have?” Geronimo said, goading her.

“Let me smash him!” the one in the passenger seat heatedly requested.

He was short in stature and had a ragged scar on his chin.

“Do you see what you’ve done?” Rainbow said to Geronimo. “Now you’ve got Lone Cougar all upset.”

“Pardon me all to hell,” Geronimo retorted.

“Be nice,” Rainbow warned, “or I’ll let Lone Cougar have you.” She paused and tapped the steering wheel. “What do you think of my driving?”

“I’m impressed,” Geronimo admitted. “I had no idea you could drive.”

“I couldn’t,” Rainbow stated. “But I’m a fast learner, and I had plenty of time to watch Blade on the trip to Kalispell. It’s a lot easier than I expected.”

“Mind if I ask where we’re heading?” Geronimo queried.

“Not at all,” Rainbow answered. “The Citadel.”

Geronimo sat erect, forgetting his wound, the motion aggravating the discomfort. “You can’t be serious!”

Rainbow laughed. “But I am.”

“Why are you going there?” Geronimo demanded. “It’s suicide.”

“Oh, we’ll take good care of your vehicle, if that’s what you’re worried about,” Rainbow said. “I need to find out what happened to my people, and this is the fastest way to get us there.”

“Is that the reason you shot me?” Geronimo needed to know.

“Of course.” Rainbow slowly negotiated a curve. The road was sandwiched between rolling hills of pine forest. “Nothing personal, you understand.” She grinned.

“I’m really sorry my mother shot you,” Star chimed in sorrowfully. “I didn’t want her to do it. I like you a lot, Geronimo.”

“Don’t get to liking him too much, little one,” Lone Cougar told her. “He won’t be with us much longer.”

“That’s enough!” Rainbow snapped. “I don’t want you upsetting my daughter!”

“Your wish is my command,” Lone Cougar stated, somewhat sarcastically.

“Be respectful when you talk to her!” the Flathead on the other side of Star barked.

Lone Cougar glanced at the speaker, amused. “Why, Tall Oak, you know I mean no disrespect. It is bad form to treat the wife of a chief with anything less than total sincerity.”

“The wife of a chief?” Geronimo repeated, surprised.

“She didn’t tell you?” Lone Cougar asked, feigning amazement. “She’s so proud of the fact, I thought she told everyone.”

Geronimo saw Rainbow glare at Lone Cougar. If looks could kill, Lone Cougar would be Skewered Pussycat.

“Rainbow is the wife of Golden Bull, the chief of all the Flatheads,” Lone Cougar was saying.

Golden Bull. Lone Cougar. Tall Oak. “I take it the Flatheads don’t use names like George and Fred anymore?” Geronimo asked.

“We have reverted to the practice of our illustrious ancestors,” Rainbow stated proudly. “Our parents name their children after natural things, or something they might see in a vision, or a special omen.”

“I understand,” Geronimo acknowledged. “So where is your husband now?”

Rainbow’s shoulders slumped. “I don’t know.”

“He was with the others,” Lone Cougar detailed, “in Kalispell, surrounded by the Citadel army. We slipped through their lines in search of game, but we had to go far afield to find anything. When we returned to Kalispell, our entire tribe had vanished.”

“How many of you are left?” Geronimo inquired.

“There were five in our hunting party,” Lone Cougar replied, “but you killed two of us, you son of a bitch!”

“Did any others escape?” Geronimo asked, refusing to become riled by the insult.

“Not that we know of,” Tall Oak said, joining the discussion. “We saw your vehicle coming and thought you were some of the soldiers, so we hid in the hospital. When we saw you with Rainbow, we didn’t know what to think. Spotted Elk went down to investigate…”

“And you blew him away!” Lone Cougar snarled.

“It wasn’t me,” Geronimo corrected him. “Spotted Elk was still alive after I shot him. He sat up, and one of you got him with a shotgun.”

“And we know who it was, don’t we?” Tall Oak commented, deliberately looking at Lone Cougar.

Lone Cougar appeared embarrassed. “How the hell was I to know?” he countered defensively. “It was dark in that stairwell.”

“If some people knew how to use their mind as much as they do their mouth,” the Flathead in the rear section interjected, “Spotted Elk would still be with us now.”

“Get off my case, Running Hare,” Lone Cougar warned.

“You don’t scare me,” Running Hare rejoined, “as long as I don’t turn my back on you.”

Geronimo thought Lone Cougar was about to leap over the seats and assault Running Hare, but Rainbow intervened.

“That’s enough!” she ordered. “This is no time for fighting amongst ourselves! Our people have been taken, and you spend your time engaged in petty squabbles.”

Geronimo was pleased by the dissension in their ranks. Maybe he could use it to his advantage when he made his eventual bid for freedom. He studied the Flatheads, noting their buckskin clothing, long black hair, and in particular their lack of weapons. Where were their guns? In the rear section with Running Hare? Or was Lone Cougar’s shotgun on the floor in the front, out of sight. Tall Oak carried a large knife in a leather sheath high on his left hip.

For that matter, Geronimo wondered, where are my guns?

“Did you know you slept all night?” Star asked Geronimo, still trying to prove her friendliness. “I was the one who bandaged your shoulder.”

“I’m surprised your darling mother didn’t finish the job,” Geronimo remarked scornfully.

“If I’d wanted you dead,” Rainbow stated, “you’d be dead. I’m a crack shot. I just wanted you out of commission, unable to give us any problems on the way to the Citadel.”

“Did you know they were your people in the hospital?” Geronimo questioned her.

“No, I didn’t,” Rainbow replied.

“You took a big chance,” Geronimo said. “What if the ones after me weren’t Flatheads? What then? They could have killed you and your daughter and taken the SEAL.”

Rainbow shrugged. “Life is full of risks. You take what comes your way and do the best you can.”

“Really?” Lone Cougar innocently challenged her. “Then why didn’t you stay in Kalispell and take what the rest of us did?”

“You know why,” Rainbow snapped, angered by the insinuation.

“Golden Bull ordered us out. He wanted the Princess safe. As it was, we’re fortunate to be alive today.”

Lone Cougar stared at Star. “Ahhh, yes. Our sweet little Princess, destined to marry the heir apparent. We can’t let anything happen to you.”

“And don’t you ever forget that,” Rainbow said in a threatening tone.

Geronimo spotted a rusted road sign ahead, on his side of the roadway.

Highway 35, it read. He caught a glimpse of a large lake through the trees over Lone Cougar’s shoulder. Was it Flathead Lake, the big one on the map? He cleared his dry throat. “What do you hope to accomplish at the Citadel?”

“Like I told you,” Rainbow said, driving carefully, “we need to learn what happened to my people, find out where the soldiers have taken them.”

“You’re just going to drive up to the front gates and ask?”

“Don’t be stupid!” Rainbow replied. “We’ll hide the SEAL and reconnoiter on foot. Thousands of people don’t just vanish! The army must be holding them somewhere. We’ll find them,” she stated confidently.

Geronimo rested his head on the top of the seat and closed his weary eyes. This is certainly one terrific mess you’ve gotten yourself into, dimwit!

Blade is missing. The transport has been commandeered by hostile Indians. And now you’re shot…

Hostile Indians?

How could he ever have seriously considered leaving the Family to live with the Flatheads? They may be Indians, like himself, but there any resemblance ended. They viewed him as an outsider, and rightfully he was.

So what if he was the only Indian in the Family? The Family loved him, cherished him as one of their own, respected his personality, and honored his ability by appointing him to Warrior status. Strange, wasn’t it, how the grass did always look greener on the other side of the fence?

“Look!” Lone Cougar exclaimed, pointing directly ahead.

Someone was standing in the center of Highway 35, waving his brawny arms, attempting to stop the transport.

Rainbow leaned over the steering wheel. “I know him!” she stated, disbelieving her eyes. “How’d he get here?”

Geronimo, roused from his reflection, gazed at the tall figure in front of them and tensed.

It couldn’t be!

“He isn’t going to interfere!” Rainbow vowed angrily, and floored the accelerator.

Thirty yards separated the SEAL from their target as the vehicle picked up speed.

Forty.

Fifty.

“No!” Geronimo lunged at Rainbow, but Tall Oak was quicker. The Flathead reached over Star and grabbed Geronimo’s good wrist, preventing him from obstructing Rainbow’s purpose.

Sixty miles an hour and climbing.

The man in front of them still stood in the middle of Highway 35, a puzzled expression on his face.

“The fool thinks Geronimo is driving!” Rainbow said, elated.

Geronimo, weakened by his wound, unsuccessfully attempted to wrest his wrist from Tall Oak’s grasp.

Sixty-five miles an hour.

Star drew her body forward, against the console, away from the struggling Geronimo and Tall Oak. She looked at the dark-haired man with his arms over his head, and dawning recognition caused panic to register on her countenance.

“Mom, no!” Star screamed. “It’s Blade!”

Rainbow laughed maliciously.