Saddlebag Dispatches—Summer 2021

AT DUSK DANIEL HOBBLED his horse and removed five pairs of handcuffs from the saddlebag. By the time he started toward his prey, night had wrested daylight into bed and tucked in the land. Daniel stalked forward while he crouched through the prairie grass. Ahead were the shadowy outlines of the Hardy Gang he had been tracking since Kansas.

The five-man crew guffawed.

“Ooh-wee,” exclaimed John, the one Daniel suspected was the leader. “It’s payday, boys.”

Another man leaned toward John. “Lemme count the money.”

“I don’t think so,” said John, his gun gleaming in the fire’s dancing flames. They stared at one another while the others had quieted. The wood popped and crackled, and coyotes howling carried on their conversation during the two men’s stand-off.

Someone cleared their throat, which Daniel assumed was John. “We wait till we get to Ma’s.”

His suspicions were right. John was the leader. After months of studying the wanted posters and their robberies, Daniel refused to let them elude him again.

As the gang continued their discussion, Daniel gazed at the sky. The nighttime dots couldn’t be seen, making the night as complete as his skin. Daniel traced a folded letter’s ridges in his pocket. A whisper clung to his lips. Betsy would have enjoyed doting on their niece, her namesake.

It had been three years since she and their babe became a part of the dots that adorn the evening sky. A slight lump bulged against Daniel’s throat. In those three years, he never returned to their home on Tommy’s ranch despite his best friend’s encouragement for a visit. Truth be told, it pained him knowing life continued without his wife.

“I gotta take a piss,” said John. He rose and stumbled near where Daniel hid.

Daniel froze, taking shallow breaths. The fire was too far away to expose his position on this dark night. He closed his eyes. A decade later, and he still found men wearing their Confederate coats. John displayed its full view when he had turned around.

Memories of Massa Reeves and his plantation made Daniel shiver on this warm night. His back burned.

Though his whipping scars were healed, the hatred from Massa Reeves could still be felt.

John hummed “When Johnny Comes Marching Home Again,” bursting in song. The rest of the men joined him. Again, within the fire’s light, John gestured a finale at the end of the old Civil War tune. He bumbled to the ground with a laugh. “Charlie, hand me that whiskey.”

Daniel shook his head. Mama had always said, “nuffin good came out of drinking spirits.” For him, the spirits made his job easier in arresting outlaws when they were passed out. His boss, Marshal Samuel Bass, would agree.

Raucous laughter came from the Hardy Gang.

It reminded Daniel of the cattle drives with Tommy. An ache started in his heart. Perhaps, after he captured the Hardy Gang and brought them in to stand trial, a return to Texas would do him good. Brother-in-law and niece stuck on Daniel’s tongue. Daniel smiled. Tommy finally achieved his dream of marrying Hattie and creating a family. Their marriage wouldn’t be without challenges, and Daniel prayed the same fate didn’t befall his sister as it did his wife.

Someone tossed another log on the fire. Lit embers flittered through the darkness like fireflies. John’s voice carried as he assigned shifts for guard duty.

One would fall asleep while on duty. Daniel had yet to meet someone who stayed awake during their shift, especially when inebriated. He flattened himself against the ground and surveyed the gang, waiting for his chance.

The night crept by into endless hours as the fire transformed into glowing embers. Snoring rumbled through the air. Unbeknownst to John, his night watch had left them vulnerable.

Through the clouds’ clearing, a crescent moon provided Daniel enough light to ambush the sleeping guard. He slipped on the handcuffs without waking the man. Daniel stripped the guns from the guard’s holster and paused when he mumbled. When he quit, Daniel tiptoed toward the others. One by one, Daniel handcuffed them and secured their guns, except for John.

The leader stirred. “Charlie?” he grumbled.

Daniel halted in front of the fire pit, not responding. If he was lucky, John would fall back asleep or mistake him for Charlie.

John half rose from his sleeping position. “Is that you, Charlie?”

Daniel stood unwavering. A hand clasped the butt of his pistol, and he eased the hammer back. “No,” he gave a low reply.

“Deputy Reeves.” John scrambled for his gun.

“Don’t, or yer dead.”

“And my men?”

“I reckon they ain’t no use ta ya in handcuffs and no guns.”

John snatched up his gun.

Flashes ignited in the dark, and gunfire ricocheted across the land. A man grunted but not Daniel, who remained standing. The acrid gunpowder lingered.

His captives hollered in surprise as each bolted upright and rattled the chains that bound their hands.

Daniel whirled around to the nearest one and leveled his revolver. “Lessen youse want to be next, I’da suggest you cooperate.”

Over the horizon, a sliver of dawn peered through the dark sky. Daniel knew without looking the nighttime dots twinkled, fading as daybreak forced its arrival. His heart slowed. Betsy had saved him once again from the perils of law enforcement.

“On yer feet,” Daniel ordered. “Time ta ride back to Ellsworth.”

An invisible but familiar force wrapped around his body like a warm embrace. Betsy’s faint whisper flittered in Daniel’s ear. “And return to Texas.”

—KYLEIGH MCCLOUD is a North Dakota native living in Minnesota with her husband and fourteen-yearold cat. Although Kyleigh enjoys reading a variety of genres, her favorite is historical romance. She has always felt drawn to the 1800s time period. The Little House on the Prairie series introduced her to this era when she was in fifth grade. Ever since, Kyleigh has admired the people’s tenacity to survive back then. She and her husband love traveling the Midwest to visit historical sites. Aside from writing westerns, Kyleigh writes modern women’s fiction. Her holiday novella, Her Mother’s Last Christmas Gift, debuted in November 2020. You can follow her on Facebook to learn more about her upcoming works.