Basque Moon Page 7

  As if the thought conjured the man, a shadow moved across Nellie, and Charlie Azgo stood above her, Moonshine by his side. How long had he been there? She looked at him. Whatever he was thinking, she could not tell.

  “I’m going down to Stanley. Do you want to come with me?”

  Nellie scrambled to her feet. “What would I do there?”

  “What you do everywhere else. Take photographs.”

  “Of what?” What a stupid question.

  “You are the expert. Not I. If you want landscape, you will have the whole reach of the Sawtooths. But you might also want to photograph a small western town for your railroad. Western sunsets. Cowboys at a bar.” His tone was even, but Nellie thought he might be making fun of her once again.

  “We met some of your cowboys at Smiley Creek. They looked more like criminals on the run. Them and their stupid dog. He would have killed Moonshine if Gwynn hadn’t broken up a fight.”

  “You named it. Moonshine. The boys at Smiley Creek were more likely moonshiners than cowboys. Tough hombres. They have stills up in these mountains and supply all the towns along the Wood River.” He took her arm as if to help her walk back to camp.

  Nellie stepped away from Charlie. She didn’t need guiding. “Why don’t you catch them?”

  “I did. Then they moved out of my jurisdiction. Federal marshals will get here one of these days, now that Prohibition is a federal crime. These stills have been in operation one place or another for several years, ever since Idaho went dry. They are well hidden and efficient.”

  “I should stay here and help Alphonso.”

  Charlie’s deep laugh stung Nellie. “He’s been herding sheep many more years than you’ve been acting like a man. I think he’ll get along without you.”

  “But someone might attack him again.” She had felt needed in the sheep camp.

  “Then better you are out of the way. I don’t think the cowboys will be back. Their point is made. Alphonso will stay in the sheep grazing area. He and I talked.”

  She wanted to add that Alphonso had promised to make the cowboy pay, and she wanted to be there when he did. This was not something the sheriff would understand, she was sure. “Can I come back?”

  “Gwynn must make that decision. It is his sheep outfit.”

  “When will we go?”

  “Tomorrow at first light. Alphonso is cooking up the ewe and we will have a big dinner tonight. He wanted to thank you for your help and company.”

  Somewhat gratified, Nellie agreed to accompany the sheriff to Stanley, but first she negotiated a return to Galena for her own automobile. She was curious to see what he had described. Back at camp, though, she waited for Alphonso to return from the sheep. She had something to say to him.

  While Alphonso cooked, the sheriff loaded Domingo into his auto, in back. Nellie entered the camp. “Can I help you?” The sheepherder grinned at her and shook his head. She lowered her voice.

  “ ‘Cowman pay’ you said. When? I want to go with you.” She touched her chest and then touched Alphonso. “ ‘Cowman pay.’ We go?”

  Alphonso craned his neck around Nellie to see what the sheriff was doing. He was not paying them any attention. Then he touched his own chest and then Nellie’s shoulder. “Cowman pay.” He motioned eating, pointed up the draw toward where the sheep were, and said, “Two horses. You. Alphonso.”

  Satisfied that he had a plan in mind, Nellie nodded. “After dinner, you and I will take our horses to the sheep. Then the cowman will pay.” She stuck out her hand. Alphonso took it. “Deal,” she said, not knowing how they would do this without the sheriff coming with them. But then, he had shown no interest in the sheep at all, and there was no extra horse.

  After a fine meal of stewed mutton with garlic, sage, wild onions, and bread and wine, Alphonso said something to Charlie and retrieved his horse and Nellie’s from a grassy patch near the creek. He motioned to Nellie to accompany him.

  “We’re going to check on the sheep,” Nellie said. “A last look around for me. Would you keep Moonshine here? He bothers the sheep dogs.” Her words were unnecessary and made the sheriff look up. “I’ll pack up my gear when we get back.” Button your lip, she told herself, but failed. “Don’t worry. We won’t be long.” He said nothing in return, just waved slightly as they passed him.

  Nellie mounted from a log Alphonso had dragged near the camp for that purpose, and the two of them rode slowly up the track and around the bend. The sheepherder grinned at her, his teeth even whiter in the evening light. It was at least another hour before dusk would deepen to darkness. He picked up the pace and Nellie’s horse followed. The sheep grazed in a dell above an aspen stand. Both dogs patrolled the edge of the flock. Soon the sheep were behind and the two horses climbed a ridge, trotted up a gully, and then climbed two more hills. Before they crested, Alphonso stopped, motioned for Nellie to be quiet, dismounted, and crept to the ridge to look down the other side. In the evening hush, she could hear the faint lowing of cattle.

  “What did you see?” she asked in a whisper. She never knew how much of what she said he understood. “What are we going to do?”

  “Cattle. Cowmans.” He held up two fingers. He pointed to himself and motioned with his hand that he would go up the crest and down again. He pointed to Nellie and motioned for her to dismount, follow him going up, but then held his hand up. Clearly, she was not to do whatever he did when he went down the other side.

  “What are you going to do? Maybe we should return. The sheriff . . .” But Alphonso was already leading his horse toward the crest. If Nellie dismounted, she knew now she could remount by herself, not easily but she could do it. If she stayed astride, she would be clearly outlined against the sky. She didn’t want to spoil Alphonso’s plan or endanger him. Neither did she intend to miss anything. She dismounted. She’d do whatever Alphonso did.

  Their movements were not quiet. The horses’ shoes clomped and struck rocks. Nellie tripped once and swore, but she was certain the cattle on the other side of the hill would cover up any noises the two of them made. At the crest, Alphonso moved quickly, over and down. She followed his example, hoping the two cowboys had not seen them on the skyline. The sheep herder motioned for her to stop. He remounted and headed away from her.

  In a wide flat gully, a herd of cattle moved leisurely with two riders, one on either side. The twilight was much deeper where they were and Nell could not identify either man, although one’s head was almost on his chest. Coyotes were less of a menace to cattle because of their size. Here and there, she could pick out smaller animals, calves or heifers, that might be vulnerable. Nowhere could she see a stack of rocks either as markers to grazing allotment or as help for remounting. She held the reins on the saddle horn, placed her foot in the stirrup, and, with a giant heave, swung herself up and into the saddle. Without a camera on her back, it was easy.

  “Ai-ee-ee-ea-aa-aa!” The ear-splitting war cry made her jump. Clearly, it came from Alphonso. He called again, as he slapped his horse’s rear. “Ai-ee-ee-ee-ea-aa-aa!”

  The cry reverberated inside Nell and chilled her blood. The one cowboy’s head snapped up. The heads of the steers moved up and around, their eyes white. Then they began to move. Her own horse skittered sideways, but she had a firm hold on the reins. “It’s all right,” she mouthed.

  “Ai-ee-ea-aa-aa!” Alphonso cantered toward the herd, his horse sure-footed, his cry continuing. The cattle gathered speed. Their hooves began to pound and Nellie felt the vibration through her horse. She wanted to join in; instead, she watched, her heart racing with the sheepherder until the cattle flowed around a bend in the gully. A last scream echoed in the sky, sharp and keen as a hawk’s cry.

  Nellie waited, fearing for Alphonso, but knowing they had their revenge. The cows would run for miles, losing weight. By the time she heard a rider, darkness surrounded her. Just as he reached her, a full moon began to ascend behind him. “You were wonderful, Alphonso.”

  “Irrintzi,” he said, th
en, in a muted voice, called “Aa-ee-eaaa” again. “Irrintzi!” He was as pleased with himself as she was with him.

  Together they rode back to the sheep. With a short whistle, Alphonso commanded the dogs to herd the band back down the draw.

  When they arrived at the camp, the sheriff sat by a small fire. All the sheep camp’s gear had disappeared. “Ah, success, I see.”

  By the moonlight and firelight, Nellie saw him grin. He knew what they had done.

  “Now, I’m ready to leave,” she announced. “Unless Alphonso is in danger.”

  “No sleep tonight,” the sheriff said by way of an answer. “We pack up and help him move camp. Take down your tent, pack your gear in the auto, and we’ll hitch the horses to the wagon.”

  Nellie was not particularly fast at taking down her tent, but she finally had it rolled with the stakes inside into a decent-sized mound of canvas. Her camera gear took little time. Cramming everything into the auto was more difficult. By the time she finished, the two men were ready to move. “Now what?”

  “Ready for walking?”

  She wasn’t, but didn’t say so. “What about the . . . Domingo?” She gestured toward where the sheepherder had been buried.

  “I took the body to Stanley while you and Alphonso were chasing cattle.” His teeth gleamed in a smile. “We’re following Alphonso for a while. We’ve got to bring down that horse Gwynn borrowed for you. The auto will go a little farther, but not much. You start out with Alphonso. I’ll finish up around here and catch up.”

  The night stretched out until Nellie wondered if it would ever end. When the moon set, she was so tired she thought she could fall asleep walking, until she stumbled and fell three times in half an hour. Charlie insisted she climb into the wagon and sleep. She refused, but she made Moonshine climb in to sleep. With the sheriff’s going and coming, he must be as tired as she, and if the men could do it, so could she. At last, Charlie called to Alphonso. They talked a few minutes and then released the horses from the hitch. The saddles had been strapped to the back of the wagon, but the sheriff made no move to retrieve one. With a small motion, he mounted the horse Nellie had been using. Then he reached his arm down to her. “Climb up behind me. We’ll ride back to the old camp and head out from there.”

  Nellie had never ridden bareback on a horse. She called for Moonshine, and with Alphonso’s help, her leg slipped easily over the haunch and all of her slid into the sheriff from behind. Her arms felt like useless appendages, ones she was reluctant to use. She waved them helplessly and finally settled on holding on to Charlie’s coat on either side, like handles. “Wrap them around me, or you’ll fall. We will move faster than a gentlemanly walk.” He kicked the horse, and indeed, if she hadn’t wrapped her hands around his waist, she would have slid off.

  “Goodbye, Alphonso.” Her legs swung loosely until she gripped the horse lightly, hoping the horse wouldn’t take that as a signal to go faster. Moonshine trotted along with them. “What does irrintzi mean?” All through the night, none of the three had spoken of Alphonso’s and Nell’s errand.

  “War cry.”

  She waited for the sheriff to say something more, but he concentrated on finding their way back down the mountain. The motion of the horse felt different, so close to her skin. She finally relaxed and let her body sway with it, and with her head rested on the rider’s broad back, she fell asleep.

  CHAPTER 5

  While Lulu waited on a group of tourists who had appeared in three cars in the late morning, she noticed Sheriff Azgo’s auto drive up to the lodge. He wasn’t alone, but she was surprised to see that photographer woman, Nell Burns, climb out on the right side, which reminded her of the Oldsmobile parked in the corral behind the store. Where had she put the key? The two saw Lulu was busy, and sat down in the willow chairs along the front. Lulu waved and called, “Be right with you.”

  Two of the men tourists left with ten-gallon hats on their heads, along with the fixings for a large picnic. The women, in dresses and fancy hats, looked as if they wouldn’t be able to walk ten feet off a sidewalk in their town shoes with heels. Her sales patter about cowboy boots hadn’t been successful with them, but the third man had bitten. Lulu figured by the time they all returned from their trip over Galena Pass and a picnic near one of the lakes, one or two others would be ready to buy. Their autos were the latest models and should have little trouble climbing over the Pass. Nevertheless, she had warned them to back the cars to the top. They decided to leave one auto with her and pack all six people into two.

  “Good morning, Miss Burns. You look all done up. Can I get you something? Maybe a seltzer to drink?”

  Nellie thanked Lulu and then asked about her Oldsmobile. “Moonie and I are going to take it back to Stanley with me, so I can leave when I want. Sheriff Azgo and I are meeting up with Gwynn Campbell. We had trouble in the sheep camp.” She looked at the sheriff who had made a small motion with one hand.

  “I already heard,” Lulu said. “Word gets around. One of the cowboys with the dudes said a man was killed—Domingo. I was sorry to hear that. Domingo didn’t deserve that kind of end, even if he was a drinker and not so reliable.”

  Sheriff Azgo leaned forward. “What else did you hear, Lulu? You know more about what happens in the Basin than most of the people there.”

  “Not much else. I think the Wild West dude stuff might calm the other rowls down. No one wants to scare off tourists, except maybe the moonshiners. And they’re not so smart. The more visitors, the more liquor they’ll sell. I’ll get you two something to drink.” Lulu went into the store and came out with two seltzers. The sheriff refused one and so she drank from it herself and sat down on the porch railing. “Those dudes had a wet couple of nights up there. Came back early looking like drowned rats. I don’t think they’ll be back. That second bunch that went up with Joe had a better time of it after they went through Smiley Creek. Them damn moonshiners are gonna scare off the trade, I’m thinking. Mean bunch.”

  “Their dog almost killed Moonshine,” Nellie said. “Omigosh. Poor dog. I better let him out. He’s been cooped up too long.” She dashed off the porch and opened the rear door of the sheriff’s automobile. Moonshine jumped out, sniffed the ground, and headed for the corral area.

  Lulu asked the sheriff what he was doing there.

  “Gwynn Campbell telephoned from Stanley, asked if I could investigate. There’s no law officer in Custer County these days, not since the last one disappeared in the winter. He thinks one of the cowboys killed Domingo, trying to scare sheep outfitters from their grazing territory.”

  “What do you think?”

  Nellie joined them again on the porch. “About what?”

  “About cowboys cutting up rough in the grazing areas.”

  Nellie glanced again at the sheriff. “I think a cowboy named Ned Tanner did all the dirty work up there. I saw him lasso and kill a sheep. He threatened me and Alphonso.” She sat down, as if her legs wouldn’t hold her up, and took a long drink from the seltzer bottle. “The sheriff disagrees with me.”

  “I wouldn’t think Tanner had it in him to do something like that,” Lulu said. She knew the cowboy. He was a handsome devil, but curious-looking, too, with those mismatched eyes. “And the rest of the cowboys, they’re not mean, just ornery when it comes to sheep.” She stood up. “I’ll get your key, Miss Burns.”

  “What do I owe you?” The worried look on her face told Lulu that the young woman hoped not much.

  “Nothing. I didn’t need the space for anything else.” Nellie’s look of relief confirmed Lulu’s suspicion. “Do you need anything to take back with you to Stanley? That may be a town in some people’s opinion, but I call it a bunch of log lean-tos around a saloon. One that ain’t supposed to be serving whiskey, but does.” She turned to the sheriff. “How come nobody enforces the law up that way?”

  “I told you—no lawman.”

  “No, it’s because those moonshiners done away with the lawman, and the saloons down in K
etchum and Hailey still need their supply of liquor. You better be careful up there, Charlie. You might disappear, too. There ain’t nothing quite so powerful as a moonshiner with some money behind him somewhere. Arrogant sons of guns too.” She turned back to Nell. “And I’d not stop at Smiley Creek again. They got no respect for a woman there at all. It might be better at Stanley, but you should stick with Charlie here, or Gwynn. Won’t nobody bother you with them along. But alone? Don’t think I’d do it, and I’m no shrinking violet.”

  Inside the store, Nellie whispered to Lulu. “Do you have a gun I could buy?”

  “Do you know how to shoot one?” Something more must have happened in the high country than Lulu had heard. “If you have one and ain’t willing to use it, or don’t know how, you’re in more danger than if you don’t have one.”

  “I’d be willing to use it.” The hesitancy in the other woman’s voice told Lulu all she needed to know.

  “No guns here. You’d have to go back to Ketchum to Jack Lane’s.” Lulu opened the drawer in the counter and felt around for the key. She’d remembered while she was sitting on the porch. “Here you go. Do you need gasoline? I’ll fill you up. You better back up the Pass too. That’s an old rig there, although I think Rosy took pretty good care of it until he began drinking again.” She shook her head. “He used to drive up here just to shoot the breeze with me. He was lonely after Lily died.” Two lonely souls, Lulu thought to herself, wondering, not for the first time, if she could have done something about Rosy’s drinking. Likely not.