Refuge
P.C. Allen
Robledo Mountain
Refuge
By P.C. Allen
Copyright 2018 P.C. Allen

This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are either the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, business establishments, events, or locales is entirely coincidental. All rights are reserved by the author, including the right to reproduce this book or portions thereof in any form.
Product names, brands, and other trademarks referred to within this book are the property of their respective holders. Unless otherwise specified, no association between the author and any trademark holder is expressed or implied. Nor does it express any endorsement by them, or of them. Use of a term in this book should not be regarded as affecting the validity of any trademark, service mark, or registered trademark.
DEDICATION
For my daughter, my little girl, who’s not so little anymore, “Thank Heaven for Little Girls!”
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
As always, first and foremost, my thanks to my family. Their forbearance during my endless hours of writing, lost thoughts, and music selection, allowed me to continue the story.
My endless thanks go to my First Readers, Robert Green, Joyce Ward Kelly, and Robert Leger, who continue to give unstintingly of their time, creativity, and encouragement.
I owe a tremendous debt to my editors, ‘TeNderLoin’, ‘TheRev’, and ‘zap292’. All of whom continue to wade through the gibberish masquerading as prose, discover disappearing words, and rein in the loose and forgotten plot lines. The book you are now reading is largely a result of their selfless efforts. Any issues you may have with this book remain my sole responsibility as the decisions on what to include, what to change, and what to ignore were mine.
The cover of any book is just as important as the story. My sincerest thanks to Miguel Vigil, a very talented photographer, who graciously allowed me to use his photograph as the background of this book’s cover. I encourage you to visit his gallery at www.edgeof4ever.com to see more of his incredible work.
Once again, a special thanks to Tatiana Fernandez at Vila Design for the cover design. She continues to astound me. Working from nothing more than a concept and a background photograph her imagination and talent are truly impressive. See more of her work at www.viladesign.net.
A very special thank you to ‘reader36987’for the list of suggested songs.
Table of Contents
Dedication
Acknowledgements
Prologue
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Chapter 17
Epilogue
A Few Words From The Author
About The Author
Books by P.C. Allen
Prologue

…from the darkness emerged a thin disc, one side yellow and the other side white, appearing suspended in midair. Within the disc sat a small bearded man, Creator, the One Who Lives Above...
~Excerpt from Apache Creation Story~
The old one stooped his bent and grizzled frame, entering the sweat lodge he’d built on this spot, so many years ago. He poured water onto the hot rocks from a hollow gourd he’d filled from the small seep just outside. Sitting down as close to the fire as he could, he began to sweat as the steam enveloped him. Waiting for the steam to build, periodically pouring more water on the hot rocks, his thoughts drifted, and his face broke into a rare smile at the pleasant memories.
He and his first wife had found this place by accident shortly after they were married. He was a newly minted warrior still in training as a shaman. She was a beautiful young Lipan Apache. It was mid-fall, well past the season of raids, and they had decided to look for a suitable place to move once they started a family of their own.
They’d left their camp a week earlier, traveling south and east, when they came to this rolling land of deep arroyos and high hills. Eating an early lunch one day they noticed a mockingbird dip down into an arroyo a few feet away. They watched intently waiting for the bird to reappear. After several minutes, they heard the mockingbird begin singing its repertoire of songs but still there was no visible sign of the bird. Curious, they crawled the few feet to the side of the arroyo and peeked over the edge.
They were looking straight down into a large sweeping curved section of the arroyo. The arroyo wall was a completely vertical cliff, dropping down almost twenty feet to a long and wide stone shelf that dropped another ten feet to the bottom of the arroyo. They still couldn’t see the bird, but they could hear it singing.
The sound seemed to be coming from under a large rock sticking out from the side of the cliff wall, three feet above the stone shelf below them. As they watched the singing abruptly stopped. The mockingbird appeared from under the rock rapidly flapping its wings, which flung small droplets of water all around itself.
The two quickly looked at each other with smiles on their faces. A seep large enough for a bird to bathe, would provide enough water to fill their gourds, which meant saving themselves a long detour to the Robledo Mountains and the only other spring in this area they knew.
They followed the arroyo back west for half a mile, until finding a way down to the bottom. Before descending, they built a ladder and carried it between them back east along the bottom of the arroyo. At the stone shelf, they positioned the ladder and climbed up the sheer stone. Standing on the shelf, they absently noted that it was completely smooth and level without a trace of sand, vegetation, or animal activity. More importantly, they felt a strong sense of peace, of strength, and the indefinable something that said this was home.
His wife looked at him with a serene expression. “My love, this is what the Spaniards mean when they say querencia. Do you feel it too?”
“Yes, my love, I do,” he said with a sharp nod.
The old one’s reverie was broken as he suddenly realized that he was not only chanting but that he was surrounded in darkness. He absently wondered how long he’d been chanting and when the darkness had come but quickly forgot about it as he watched a distant point of light begin to grow, coming towards him rapidly, as though from a great distance.
In a short time, he saw that the light was a flat thin disc of white and yellow. He had seen this once before as a young man in a vision many years ago. Suddenly, Ussen, the Creator, sat before him hovering just off the floor in his disk of light.
As usual, the Creator spoke first. “It is good that you call to me, now. We have much to talk about, old friend.”
“I had hoped and prayed to talk with you once again, for there is much I would have your counsel on,” the old man replied in a weary voice.
The Creator laughed merrily, then said, “You have time yet, my friend. You have seen your favorite great granddaughter married, and you will not only see your second favorite great granddaughter married but also see them both with child. Girl-Without-Parents has requested it and so I grant it.”
The old one frowned as he asked, “I don’t understand. Why does Girl-Without-Parents have an interest in me? What would you have me learn?”
With a gentle laugh the Creator replied. “Girl-Without-Parents will answer your first question when the time is right. As for your second question; well, it is time you learn of your death.”
Ussen waved his hand and the old one fell into an even deeper trance where he watched the details of his death play out as if he were a disinterested observer a short distance away. How long the vision lasted, the old one couldn’t tell.
As soon as it was over, he fell asleep hearing the rapidly fading voice of Ussen, “Goodbye old friend, until we meet again in the Land of Ever Summer.”
Sometime later, how much later he didn’t know, the old one woke rubbing his eyes. There was just enough light seeping in around the bottom of the entrance flap that he knew it was early morning, just after dawn. The chill of an early spring morning only reinforced the fact that the fire inside the sweat lodge had long since grown cold.
Despite the chill and the hard-stone floor, he’d slept on, he felt refreshed and invigorated, in a way he hadn’t experienced in many years. Crawling out of the sweat lodge, he stood upright in the full sunlight. Rapidly blinking his eyes, he looked around the stone shelf memorizing every detail, for he knew this was the last time he would ever set eyes on it.
After a few minutes, he gingerly made his way down the ladder. Once on the arroyo floor he lifted the ladder and heaved it onto the top of the stone shelf instead of disassembling it and scattering the pieces as he’d always done before. It no longer mattered if the pieces of the ladder were readily accessible.
Without a backward look, Jaime Garcia, senior shaman of the Mescalero Apache, headed west, out of the arroyo. With one last look around he began the five mile walk back to his granddaughter's house in Las Cruces.
Chapter 1

I woke up slowly Saturday morning, with a feeling that something was different. It took a few moments, but eventually, I realized I wasn’t alone in bed. Opening my eyes in the half light of the pre-dawn, I looked over to see Anna’s head still on my right shoulder. With a smile I remembered the wedding, the reception, and our late-night exploration of possibilities.
It was hard for me to believe how much my life had changed. Staring at my still sleeping Anna, I couldn’t help but think that my life had vastly improved when I drove into that strange fog and passed out, less than twenty miles from home on that hot August night in 2016.
Of course, it took me a while to realize where and when I was after I regained consciousness, not to mention getting over the loss of everyone and everything I knew, as well as fighting my own personal demons.
Let’s face it! Waking up in a cave, fifty years younger, and a hundred and sixty-six years in the past, is mind bending. Time travel, with inexplicable age regression, is hard enough to deal with. Add in hearing spirit voices in your head, and I think almost anyone would have concluded they were experiencing a psychotic breakdown. The fact that the spirit voice was my dead wife, reminding me of promises I’d made to her on her death bed, just made it even more confusing.
I think I would have gone crazy if it hadn’t been for the help of many people. Chief among those was Anna, herself. My beautiful Anna, possessed of a rare combination of common sense, street smarts, and book knowledge; along with a no-nonsense way of expressing herself, that simply brooked no doubt of my sanity or innate goodness. This was despite the fact that she - or members of her family - had been the targets, both intended and unintended of three of the six attacks ordered by the mysterious “Boss” in Santa Fe.
The first two attacks had been about finding out where the gold I was depositing in Santa Fe was coming from. Five men died in those two attacks. When those attacks failed, the “Boss” changed his goal from finding out about the gold, to simply killing me. Forty-four men died in the next three attacks, I was wounded, and the extended Mendoza family as well as my friends had been directly involved.
The last attack had been yesterday, while Anna and I were walking alone from the church to the reception after the wedding. This time, though, we were prepared and had help. Tom Murphy, Giuseppe Gambino, along with Jorge and Juan Ortega ambushed the attackers when they opened fire on Anna and me in the street. Yolanda Ramirez (already the best sniper I’d ever worked with) and Sofia Gambino (Giuseppe’s wife) were on the roof of the Mendoza Stable, providing overwatch, just in case. Seven more men sent by ‘the Boss’ were dead when the smoke cleared.
I didn’t know how many more men ‘the Boss’ had, but I was certain that this wasn’t the last we’d hear from him.
In the meantime, Anna and I hadn’t had any time to talk about the last attack, or how she was holding up having killed her second and third man. Between the reception, dancing, 'exploring the possibilities' (as she called it) and sleeping; we were simply too busy. Today was going to be another busy day. We were riding to the fledgling Estancia Dos Santos, along with many others, to finally take up residence in the just completed Hacienda.
The light of early dawn bathed the room in a magical glow. Turning, I found myself looking into the bright twinkling eyes of a wide-awake Anna.
Pulling my head down to hers we shared a long kiss. “How did you sleep husband mine?” she asked while stretching.
“I slept extremely well Mrs. McAllister. How did you sleep?” I said distractedly. Her stretching immediately brought thoughts of 'exploring other possibilities' to the forefront of my mind.
Her response caught me off guard as I was still contemplating ‘the possibilities’. “I slept the sleep of angels, mi amor,” she replied quietly, while beaming me one of her special huge super megawatt Anna smiles.
I couldn’t resist. Bending my neck down, I gave into temptation, and we shared another long kiss.
“Mmmm. That was nice. We’d better get up, though, or we’re going to miss Tai Chi this morning,” she said reluctantly.
“Anna, I hate to break it to you, but it’s well past dawn. We’ve already missed Tai Chi. The others are probably eating breakfast already.”
“What!?” Jumping out of bed, she began frantically picking up her wedding dress and my suit. “How did we sleep so late. What will the others think?”
I wasn’t really paying attention to anything she said, as I was once again contemplating 'exploring the possibilities'! It didn’t take her long to notice though, and she turned to face me demanding an answer.
“My love, we overslept thanks to a long day. We were married, had a gunfight, enjoyed a long day and evening of dancing, followed by one of the most pleasant experiences of my life when we closed the door late last night,” I replied gently, as I too got out of bed to pull her into a full hug and kiss her yet again. “What the others think doesn’t really matter, but they will probably think we overslept for exactly the reasons I just gave. It was our wedding night, after all.”
Blushing prettily Anna pulled my head down for another kiss. Finally breaking the kiss, her blush got even deeper. “If it’s anything like last night I’m really looking forward to ‘exploring more possibilities', this evening.”
“Me, too!” I answered with a chuckle. “Just so you’re not surprised, we’ll probably miss tomorrow morning’s workout as well. We’ve got a long ride this morning, and the reception at the Hacienda will probably run just as long as last night’s; followed, of course, by more 'exploring’.”
Snuggling deeper into my hug, she purred her response into my chest. “That sounds like a grand program for the day. I suppose we’ll just have to work on building up our stamina, so it doesn’t tire us out so much that we miss our morning Tai Chi.”
Another quick kiss and we broke our hug to prepare for the day. A few minutes later, rinsed off and dressed, we left the house.
Entering the restaurant, Anna waved me into the family dining room, letting me know she would bring our coffee and breakfast. It looked like that wasn't going to change. Anna would continue to decide what we ate.
Tom, Yolanda, Giuseppe, Sofia, and Father O’Shea were in the family dining room drinking coffee, having already finished breakfast.
“Good morning everyone. We’re running a little late this morning and I apologize for that,” I said as I settled into my usual seat at the table.
“Good morning, Pablo. You’re earlier than most of us expected, so it isn’t a problem,” Yolanda replied with a grin, clearly hinting at the imagined newlywed nighttime activities. “We were just starting to explain the significance of yesterday’s gunfight to the Padre. No one thought to fill him in.”
“I still don’t understand how you killed seven men all by yourself without even being armed,” the Padre said obviously confused and having no clue about what really happened.
“Padre, both Anna and I were armed, and we weren’t alone. Of the seven men trying to kill us yesterday, I killed one, Anna killed two, Giuseppe, Jorge, Juan, and Tom each killed one,” I replied to the surprise of the Padre.
Clearing his throat, Tom said, “I didn’t really kill any, Paul. The one I shot was already dead from Yolanda’s shot.”
I nodded my thanks to Yolanda, who beamed me one of her smiles before switching her gaze to Tom and turning the smile up to 'high beams'.
“You mean you involved the women in a gun fight, and they killed men?” the Padre sputtered with a red face clearly angry at the thought of women not only fighting but killing without any apparent remorse as well.
Anna came in as the Padre was talking and responded while setting our breakfast and coffee down.
“You act like they had any say in the matter, Padre. They didn’t LET us do anything. Our men were in danger, and we weren’t going to let them face that danger alone. Those weren’t the first men we’ve killed, and they probably won’t be the last. Get used to it, Padre.”
“I wasn’t on the stable roof alone, Padre,” Yolanda chimed in. “Sofia was right there with me, acting as my spotter and watching for any threats closer to us.”
Still red faced and sputtering, the Padre looked at the women around the table with incredulity.
Anna and I had started eating, so Tom tried to explain things.
“Padre, a few years ago Paul found some gold. He’s spent most of his time since then mining that gold and making periodic trips to Santa Fe where he put it in the bank. About a year ago someone in Santa Fe decided that Paul didn’t deserve to keep that gold and set up an ambush just outside of Santa Fe. Between now and then, Paul has been attacked five more times, including yesterday’s attempt. Three of the last four attacks have been here in town, when Paul was with one or more members of the Mendoza family or his friends. The largest attack was out at the Hacienda, when Paul was with friends and family. As a result, most of us - including the women - are armed all the time. A precaution, if you will, against attacks like yesterdays.”
“Thank you for explaining,” the Padre, now much calmer, said. “But I thought Paul was an orphan. What family did you mean?”
Great Grandfather Garcia had come into the room with a cup of coffee of his own, while Tom was giving the Padre the background and answered the question before Tom could.
“Yes, he was orphaned; but almost immediately, he was adopted by one of my brothers. You need to understand that we Apache take family very seriously. Once Paul was adopted, he became family to all Apache Garcias. Paul offered his Estancia as a place for any of our family that are interested. There were fifteen or so Garcia families at the Estancia when it was attacked by a group of thirty raiders. You’ll meet them, and others who’ve arrived since then, when you get to the Estancia this afternoon.”
That seemed to put an end to the discussion. After a moment or two Great Grandfather Garcia gave me and Anna a look.
“Your wedding was very memorable, as was the reception. The whole town will be talking about it for quite a while.”
“I honestly don’t remember much after seeing Anna coming down the aisle with her big beautiful smile,” I said around my coffee cup.
Anna beamed another of her megawatt Anna smiles while Tom reached out and caught Yolanda’s hand before it hit his arm.
“Knock it off already, Paul,” Tom demanded. “My arm’s getting sore.”
“Start applying the lessons,” I replied with a grin, as Yolanda giggled while giving Tom a lighter arm slap.
Looking out the window, I noticed Juan's adobe wagons coming down the street. I nodded at the window and told everyone that was our cue to get ready to leave. Quickly finishing our coffee, we all walked outside. One of the wagons stopped long enough to pick up the Padre, while the rest of us waited as our horses were brought over from the stable. It took a while but eventually we had all said our goodbyes to the Mendoza clan, who had gathered out front. We mounted up and rode off in pursuit of the wagons.
Chapter 2

We caught up to the wagons about half a mile out of Las Cruces, and slowed the horses to a walk next to the wagon the padre was riding in. Father O'Shea took in the shotguns and pistols we were all carrying along with the rifle scabbards.
“You are all well-armed for such a short trip. Are all those guns really necessary?” he asked wryly.
Tom barked out a laugh, and Anna responded with a grim smile of her own. “You just listened to us explain about the attacks in town and the large attack at the Hacienda. What do you think happens out here? This isn’t civilized country yet, Padre. There’s no real law, and we’ve had to fight off quite a few Indian and bandit raids over the last four years. Hold ups are becoming more frequent as well, although most of those are between Mesilla and El Paso.”
He thought for a minute and then asked, “Is it really necessary for the ladies to be armed as well? Are they any good with those guns?”
This time it was me laughing. “Father O’Shea, we told you not an hour ago that Anna killed two and Yolanda killed one with those weapons they’re carrying. I’d say they’re pretty good with them. As a matter of fact, of the four of us, Anna is the best pistol shot while Yolanda is the best long-distance rifle shot.”
He looked at us with more than a healthy measure of skepticism.
Looking down the road I spotted a barrel cactus that would be perfect for a quick demonstration.
“Padre, do you see that barrel cactus on the right side of the road about forty yards out?” I asked. At his nod, I turned to Anna with an eyebrow lifted in question.
With no more prompting than that Anna drew, fired five quick shots, holstered her pistol, and was returning the raised eyebrow to me. Father O'Shea was looking back and forth at the barrel cactus and Anna as if unable to believe either the speed with which it happened, or the small cross Anna had drawn on the cactus with her shots.
“We don't play around with weapons out here, Padre. If someone is carrying a weapon, they'd better know how to use it,” I responded to his unvoiced question.
We rode in silence for a few minutes before the Padre asked another question. “What did you mean when you said Yolanda was the best long-distance rifle shot? Aren’t most rifle shots long distance by definition?”
“They certainly are. But most rifle shots are less than four hundred yards. When I say long distance in this context, I’m taking about anything beyond that,” I replied.
Again, he looked at me with skepticism.
“We’ll show you on our morning ride, tomorrow.”
Tom chimed in at that point. “There’s no need to wait, Paul, unless you’re not interested in fresh meat. There are two bucks on the side of that hill,” he said, pointing to a small hill just under 1200 yards away.
The rest of us pulled out our monoculars and looked where he was pointing. Sure enough, two young bucks were getting ready for a fight. I shook my head at his eyesight and handed Father O'Shea the monocular. He looked a bit puzzled at first but put it to his eye as he'd seen us do and gasped. Finally locating the deer, he looked at me questioningly. I simply pointed to Yolanda.
With a grin, Yolanda opened her scabbard, taking out her A700. I had the wagons stop while she dismounted, settled into a comfortable firing position, found the sight picture she wanted, tested the wind, adjusted the settings on her scope, and prepared to shoot.
“Watch the deer through the monocular, Padre,” I said quietly as Yolanda patiently waited for everything to line up to her satisfaction.
She pulled the trigger, chambered another round, and fired again four seconds later. I heard Father O'Shea gasp and I looked at Yolanda with a raised eyebrow.
“Fresh venison for the table,” Tom said with a grin.
Yolanda put her rifle back in the scabbard and closed it up. Grinning broadly, she nudged Tom and they rode off to field dress and pack the deer, telling us they'd catch up. Father O'Shea handed me my monocular as we rode to catch up to the other wagons.
“Sorry we took so long, but we decided to skin and butcher the deer while we were close to the river to clean up,” Tom said as he and Yolanda rode up to us two hours later.
We rode for another hour talking back and forth when Tom said it looked like there was going to be one heck of a party at the Hacienda tonight, because from what he could see all the villagers and campers were on the plateau waiting for us. Anna beamed me a huge smile, and I knew she was thinking about the dancing as a prelude to exploring more possibilities.
Anna and I took the lead crossing the Rio Grande and climbed the slope to the Hacienda while holding hands. We were met by a reception fit for a king as we were thronged by well-wishers.
Eventually, we were able to introduce the Padre to the entire assembly and let them know he was considering becoming the village priest. The villagers almost overwhelmed him with questions and escorted him to the head table. I'm not sure what unsettled the Padre more, the greeting he was getting, or the Hacienda itself.
Inside the courtyard, Anna wanted to go inside and clean up a little before the party started. Following her to the door, I swooped her into my arms, and carried her inside. Smiling broadly, she gave me a quizzical look.
“It’s tradition. The groom carries his new bride over the threshold of their home.”
Bang! Huge super megawatt Anna smile.
Carrying her over to the stairs, I set her down two stairs up. Throwing her arms around me, she gave me a kiss to end all kisses. Completely distracted by the kiss, I almost picked her back up to carry her into the bedroom. The sound of dance music wafting in from the courtyard brought me back to my senses and I settled for chasing her upstairs where she caught me and shared another of those kisses filled with promise.
We finally broke the kiss, cleaned up, and walked out on the terrace. Standing at the railing, side by side, we looked over the courtyard and at the plateau beyond. There were people everywhere. The masons were playing waltzes in the courtyard while couples danced across the open space. Tables under the archways held more food than one of Mrs. Mendoza's courtyard gatherings. The musicians chose that moment to break into the “Vienna Waltz”.
Taking a step back, I presented myself to Anna with a small bow, and held out my hand. Eyes twinkling in happiness, beaming one of those special megawatt smiles, she curtsied, and came into my arms.
For the next several minutes we danced, oblivious to anything else around us. When the dance ended, we just stood there next to the railing, back where we’d started in each other’s arms, sharing another soulful kiss. For just a few moments, the rest of the world disappeared and there was only the two of us, hopelessly lost in each other’s eyes as we silently celebrated our love.
The moment disappeared with thunderous applause from the courtyard and lower plateau. Anna and I turned to see what everyone was applauding. Turned out it was us. Smiling at everyone, we waved, and then applauded the musicians. Giving Anna my arm we descended the outside stairs to join the party in the courtyard below.
Cristina met us as we reached the bottom step and escorted us through the dancers to a table where Celia was just setting down our lunch. With a grin, Martina reached around me as I sat down to add a small plate of bizcochitos. Smiling my thanks, I quickly popped one of the delicious cookies into my mouth, before Anna could interfere. Anna was shaking her finger at me when Tom, Yolanda, and Father O’Shea joined us at the table with their own plates of food.
“Looks like all those dance lessons paid off, Paul. You actually looked pretty good up there,” Tom said with a smile as he sat down.
I nodded, chewing on my cookie.
Father O'Shea was trying to watch everywhere at once. “Is this to be my congregation?”
Swallowing, I said, “Yes, Padre. Within the constraints we explained at our first lunch, they are a part of your congregation.”
“What do you mean by 'part’?” he asked with a surprised look on his face.
Tom answered him this time as I was chewing again. “Padre, within the next few months, these folks will be joined by another 200 farmers and 100 vaqueros along with their families.”
At that point Father O'Shea finally began to understand the scope of the Estancia. I knew that tomorrow would open his eyes even more.
Finishing our lunch, we talked to whoever wandered by, and received congratulations on our nuptials and the terrace waltz. I was sipping my customary after-lunch coffee when the musicians took a break. Anna disappeared inside and reappeared carrying my guitar.
Handing me the guitar she asked me to play. So, I played “Anna’s Song” watching the smile light up her face. When I was done, I played “If Tomorrow Never Comes” and again Anna’s smile lit up my world. I started to put the guitar down for a break when a little boy came up and asked me to play some songs for kids.
“I’d be happy to, young man; but first, go get the other kids. When you’re all sitting down, I’ll play a few songs just for you.”
With a grin and a nod, he ran off. Five minutes later the courtyard began filling up with kids. Most of them looked to be twelve and under but there were quite a few teenaged girls who appeared to be their minders hanging around the edges. Looking out at all the kids, I realized there almost wasn't enough room for them all in the courtyard. The village plaza would have to be the site for all future parties, as there just wouldn’t be enough room here for everyone when the Estancia was fully staffed.
I decided to start out with a song that no kid I'd ever met could resist. When I finished “16 Tons,” I sang “Sweet Caroline.” I paused to take a sip of coffee and then asked the kids if anyone would like to hear a song about unicorns. A loud of chorus of ‘yes’ and I was off singing the “The Unicorn Song” followed by “Una Paloma Blanca.” A quick sip of coffee and I swung into “Somewhere Over The Rainbow” followed by “I Know an Old Lady.”
“I have one last song for you for now; but if you’re all good, I’ll sing you one more song later before you go to bed,” I said.
I was a little startled when cheering broke out. Looking over at Anna she whispered that the kids in Las Cruces told them about the lion song. Mentally shaking my head, I sang them the story of “Puff The Magic Dragon.” When I'd finished the teenaged girls started herding them back out of the courtyard.
The musicians started playing again, the courtyard started filling back up with adults, and Anna and I walked out to the dance area. Dancing with anyone who asked or caught our eye, we didn't quit until the musicians took another break.
We were laughing so hard at some of the comments our partners made that we had a hard time walking back to the table. We both gratefully accepted a glass of tea from Carla as we sat down. We had been sitting, drinking tea, for less than five minutes when one of the musicians came over to the table.
“Paul, who plays the piano in the house?” he asked curiously.
Anna just pointed to me.
Surprised, I asked, “When was the piano delivered?”
Anna laughed. “It was freighted out here the day after we got to Las Cruces. The piano tuner followed it here a few days later and tuned it.”
Taking my hand, she led me and the musicians inside. How I could have missed it when we first came in, I have no idea. She led me over to it, opened the cover on the keyboard, pulled out the bench, and sat me down.
Stretching my fingers, I warmed up with “Fur Elise.” That brought all the musicians into the room with their instruments. Closing my eyes, I started Mozart's “Piano Concerto #23.” I was less than ten bars into it when the violins of the musicians joined in.
I luxuriated in the feeling of playing one of my favorite piano pieces with really good accompaniment. Finished, I sat quietly with my eyes still closed basking in the feeling. The quiet was shattered by more loud applause. I opened my eyes in a startled reflex and looked around. The room was absolutely packed with people! They were even standing on the stairs and crowding the door. Recovering, I stood up, bowed, and presented the musicians for applause of their own.
When the room had emptied, I gave Anna a huge hug and kiss in thanks for the surprise; before we joined everyone else back in the courtyard, for the next round of dancing. By the time the band took their next break, Anna and I were both ready for a break, too. We were soon joined by Tom, Yolanda, Giuseppe, Sofia, Heinrich, and Anya. We all sat drinking our tea and cooling down from the dancing.
I did take the opportunity to mention that I'd talked to several ladies who had asked about dance lessons sometime in the future. The ladies all looked at each other and got big grins on their faces. When I suggested Sunday afternoons in the village plaza as an idea, Anna asked me why they couldn't do it here in the courtyard.
“We can, Anna, but when the next batch of farmers get here our courtyard will simply be too small to handle everyone,” I replied.
Looking out at the packed courtyard they couldn’t help but agree. Further discussion was interrupted by the arrival of Carla and Celia with supper. As before, Anna and I were served, while everyone else lined up at the food tables that were once again fully laden with food.
I sat listening to the table conversation over the hum of three hundred people quietly talking and eating in a relatively small space. I hadn't realized just how much I'd missed having people around me like this. Everyone seemed happy and content, and I vowed to provide them as much contentment as I could, given what I knew was coming. Anna, apparently reading my mind, nudged me, giving me a big smile.
“What’s in store for tomorrow?” Father O'Shea asked over our after-supper coffee.
“It’s Sunday. I think most would appreciate a service in the morning, if you’re willing, Padre. Perhaps an open-air service in the village starting at ten?” He gave a pleased nod of assent.
I stood up, gave Anna my arm, and we walked up the outside steps to the terrace railing where we looked over the courtyard and lower plateau. We stood there for a minute or two, looking out over the crowd with our arms around each other’s waist. I saw Tom glance up at us before standing up and motioning the courtyard to silence. Eventually, silence reigned and with a bow to us, Tom took his chair.
“Thank you all for coming to help us celebrate our wedding,” Anna said while beaming one of her special smiles. “Pablo and I send a special thanks to all those who brought the delicious food we all enjoyed for lunch and supper.” A round of applause broke out for the food. When it quieted back down, Anna pointed towards our table. “Father O'Shea will be holding an open-air service tomorrow morning at ten in the plaza, for those who are interested. We both hope to see you there. Now, let’s get back to the food and more dancing.”
Daylight was starting to rapidly fade as we ate. Lamps began to magically appear on the tables and along the tops of the walls enhancing the party atmosphere. The musicians who’d been waiting to start their next set, immediately began playing. We waved at everyone before walking back downstairs to rejoin the dancing.
The kids started filtering into the courtyard during the band’s next break. I stood up at the table and loudly said it was time for the kid’s song and asked all the parents to move to the terrace, the covered walkways, and the wall walks to give them room. Anna and Yolanda agreed to organize the kids and teach them the words while I went inside to use the bathroom.
Walking into our bedroom, I closed all the doors and pulled the curtains before searching for the baggage that had been unloaded. I finally found what I was looking for, all neatly stored on the floor in the closet. I quickly unpacked the bag holding the bottle of Cabernet, wine glasses, and corkscrew I'd picked up in El Paso on the last trip. To my relief nothing was broken, and I blessed the burlap bags I’d used as padding. Setting everything up on one side of the fireplace bench, I searched through the rest of the burlap bags until I found the mountain lion skin and laid it in front of the fireplace. With the fire lit in the fireplace, I opened the bottle of wine to breathe, and took a step back examining my handiwork. Perfect.
Out in the courtyard, an expectant hush settled over the kids, as I came out of the house. Picking up my guitar, I gave Anna a questioning look as I fastened the shoulder strap. She gave me a big smile and a quick nod of her head in response. I turned to the kids and asked them if they all knew the words they had to sing. After a loud chorus of 'yes', I told them we'd practice it one time to see how they did.
Everyone fell silent, and, when I was ready, I started singing “The Lion Sleeps Tonight.” Anna brought them in perfectly, and I listened to them for a few bars before singing again. Anna’s timing was again perfect, and the kids were having a ball. I glanced around at the parents, and everyone I could see was enjoying themselves as well. The second time through, everyone was much more comfortable with it. By the time Anna cued the kids to start singing, nobody was standing or sitting still.
As the kids were filing out of the courtyard Anna brought me a fresh cup of coffee, knowing my throat was a little raw from all the singing today, especially the last song. I gave her a big hug and told her she'd done marvelous work with the kids.
Ka Boom! Instant huge super megawatt Anna smile!
The departure of the kids also meant the departure of their parents for the short ride back to the village. The musicians continued to play for another half hour, then they too packed up and went back to their camp with their families. At some point during the evening, while we'd been dancing, the food and tables had disappeared leaving very little cleanup to do.
As the families left the lamps started disappearing as well. By the time Anna and I went inside we carried the last lamp with us. Inside we wished all a goodnight and holding hands climbed the steps to our bedroom.
Inside the bedroom, I pulled her to me and leaned down giving her a soft kiss full of promises for the night to come. When we came up for air, I led her over to the fireplace and we sat down on the lion skin. I showed her the wine label before pouring and handing her a glass. The smile on her face was never more beautiful, compounded by the bright twinkle in her eyes and the soft loving look she was giving me.
An hour or so later we were sitting on the unbelievably soft lion skin, cuddled up to each other as we finished the last of the cabernet. Anna looked up at me and asked me what I was thinking. I looked down into her eyes and softly sang “Behind Closed Doors” to her. Wham! That did it! The largest, biggest, super megawatt Anna smile I'd ever seen.
Anna stood up, took my empty glass, set it next to hers on the fireplace bench, and pulled me to the bed.
“That lion skin is soft, Pablo, but the floor is hard and there are other possibilities I want to explore, tonight.”
I grinned at her giving a fake sigh and moaned, “Oh, the sacrifices a man must learn to make when he’s married.”
I'm not sure what time we finally fell asleep, but I can say we were both happy with the results of our 'exploration'.
Chapter 3

Sunday morning, we finally rolled out of bed at eight. I convinced Anna to try the shower with me. We talked about last night, laughing as we soaped each other up. All that shower fun really tired me out. I was very tempted to just go back to bed, but Anna insisted that we have breakfast and get ready for church. Anna got dressed, opened the curtains and French doors, and cleaned up the room. I unsuccessfully tempted her the entire time, trying to change her mind and enjoy the day in bed with me.
Finally admitting defeat, I dressed in one of my church suits. Joining Anna, we walked downstairs, hand in hand, for breakfast. Anna pointed me towards the dining room and disappeared into the kitchen carrying the empty wine bottle and dirty glasses.
Walking into the dining room, I found the others all seated eating breakfast with big grins on their faces. I gave a mock scowl, shook my finger at them, and told them not to even think about starting on me. They all laughed and continued eating, but the smiles were still on their faces.
Anna came back out with coffee for both of us and sat down next to me telling me that breakfast would be right out. Taking a sip of coffee, she looked around at all the smiling faces, and with a grin told them not to even start on her this early in the morning. Even I had to laugh, as she had parroted my words almost exactly.
Breakfast and coffee done, we walked outside to discover Tom had been busy. Seven horses and a wagon were waiting for us, just outside the courtyard. The wagon was quickly loaded up with Father O'Shea, Cristina, her two daughters, and Giuseppe’s two young ones. Martina was driving. The rest of us mounted up and headed down the slope.
Cresting the hill, we all got our first good look at what had been accomplished in the village. The first sixty-six houses were complete, and in a rainbow of colors. They brightened up the brown, red, and faint green of the surrounding desert. Some had a milk cow behind their houses, while some had chicken coops. A few had started preparing the ground for a garden. The Finca Operations building was partially built, with the village store at the near end almost complete. A lot of work had gone into leveling and smoothing the plaza, also.
The villagers had already started gathering in the plaza area; so, once everyone had a good look, we rode down through the village pulling up in front of the plaza.
I looked around as we walked to the back of the plaza and saw that most of the masons’ families had made the trip for this morning services, despite the fact that they were Lutherans. I even saw some of the cousin’s families here, too.
Taking the Padre aside I said, “This is your opportunity to set the tone for all future services. You have a large group of Lutherans as well as some Apaches here this morning, to hear what you have to say. This is what we were talking about. What you say here, today, will either draw them in closer to the community, or alienate them.”
Deep in thought by the time I was done, he absently nodded. I left him as the villagers gathered around to welcome him.
The Padre held a relatively short but standard service. He read from the bible he carried with him, and we sang a few standard hymns. His readings and sermon were on the need to help one another, as well as the less fortunate. There was no hell fire and damnation, nor were there any evangelical entreaties. When the service was over, he met and shook hands with all the villagers, and masons, and cousins, which took longer than the service. Anna and I both thought he did a fine job, all things considered.
Afterwards, the Padre walked with some of the villagers to their houses. He looked around both inside and out, congratulating them on the fine work they had done. While the Padre was getting to know his congregation a little better; Anna, Tom, Yolanda, Giuseppe, Sofia, Juan, and I wandered around the plaza as a group, looking around. At the Finca Operations building, Juan told us that Lupe could probably start stocking the store in four or five days.
I looked around the plaza again and gave Anna a glance. Turning to Juan she asked him if he could get the folks who laid the patio stones out here this week to start working on the plaza. He grinned and said they were already here and would start tomorrow. When Father O'Shea rejoined us, we all mounted up and rode back to the Hacienda.
We spent the rest of the day relaxing, talking, and singing as I played the piano, all the while munching on a platter of bizcochitos Martina thoughtfully brought out for me. When we were ready to call it a night, Anna and I walked upstairs bidding everyone a good evening.
Entering the bedroom, Anna opened the French doors, while I laid a fire and got it going. With the fire going, Anna handed me a cup of coffee from the service Celia brought us. The cool night air wafted in through the open French doors bringing with it the mixed smells of water, mesquite, creosote, and sage of the high desert, along with the faint odor of smoke from the fireplace. Without a word, we both walked out to the terrace railing to stand with an arm around each other’s waist, while looking at the starry sky and sipping our coffee.
Anna put her head on my shoulder. “It’s a gorgeous view. So peaceful and quiet it’s almost like we’re the only ones on earth,” she murmured quietly.
I gave her a kiss in agreement, and we stood enjoying the peacefulness for another few minutes. Eventually, the chill drove us back inside. Shutting the doors and drawing the curtains, Anna took my hands pulling me towards the bed.
“There are many more possibilities and I want to explore some of them tonight,” Anna said quietly, with a twinkle in her eyes and a smile on her lips.
Anna and I were waiting on the terrace, when the others arrived early the next morning. I was a little surprised when Sofia and Giuseppe came up with Yolanda and Tom. They were almost immediately followed by the rest of the cousins and masons who’d become regulars. After a good workout and cool down, we hurriedly dressed and headed downstairs for breakfast.
Our ride after breakfast was shortened when the Padre, who hadn’t ridden much in the last few years, decided to join us. The first stop was Rancho Dos Santos. Giuseppe had finished his survey a few weeks previously, so everything was staked out. We were all forcibly reminded how much space the Ranch Operations building, with its seventy apartments, was going to take up.
With a large interior courtyard, the thing was huge. The twenty single story apartments were just north of the operations building, and just north of them was the stables. When we arrived, Heinrich walked over to us with a grin on his face. He told us that now it was warming up again, the building was going faster, even without the four masons who were working at Fort Fillmore. As it currently stood, he estimated completion of everything by the middle of July. Pleased with the progress and the report, we rode back across the river and into the low foothills of the Robledo Mountains.
Shooting practice was quick, because the Padre was with us. Both Giuseppe and Sofia had obviously been practicing and were quickly turning into reliable shots with both the rifle and pistol. Father O’Shea was a little startled at the rate of fire from the rifle but didn't say anything. He also refused to try either the pistol or the rifle.
Father O’Shea spent the slow ride back to the Hacienda riding next to Tom and Yolanda, who were right behind Anna and me. We listened with interest, but otherwise let Tom and Yolanda answer the questions.
“Tom, what are the farmers doing, today?”
“There are two teams working on the Finca Operations building, four teams hauling rocks for levees, and two teams going through Apache training,” Tom replied.
“What do you mean by 'teams’?” the Padre asked, curious at this point.
“The farmers work in groups of five with each team having an elected leader responsible for the team’s activities. Each team switches tasks periodically so that they get to do something a little different from time to time,” Tom explained.
Satisfied with the answer, the Padre switched gears. “What are the Apache teaching the farmers, that they don’t already know?”
Tom laughed. “The Apache are teaching them tracking, hunting, fighting, and living off the land.”
“Why do farmers need to know those things?” the Padre asked, clearly confused.
“Padre look around you. Everything you see for four miles in any direction is Estancia land. In a short time, there will people working every day, all over that land. Do you think you could survive in the desert during a three or four-day sandstorm? Would you know what to look for and where to hole up during an eight or nine-hour thunderstorm with lightning flashing all around you and the very real threat of flash floods? Those are just two of the threats anyone living out here will face, especially if they are caught out on the far reaches of the Estancia.”
We rode for a few minutes in silence as the Padre thought about Tom’s answers. Eventually though he asked the question we all knew was coming.
“Why do the farmers have to learn to fight? Wouldn’t the needs of the Estancia be better served if they spent all their time farming?”
This time it was Yolanda who answered. Her response was given in a calm voice tinged with just a hint of anger. “Weren't you paying attention at all during the talks we’ve had with you?”
The Padre must have given her an affronted look because she laid into him with both barrels. “You’ve repeatedly been told that we are on the very edge of civilization out here. Help of any kind is a full day or more away. Apache, Comanche, and Navajo raiding parties travel through the Estancia at will.
“On top of that, there are bandits drawn by the Camino Real to contend with. Both the Indians and bandits view anyone they meet, especially small parties, as their victims. We’ve already been attacked by a large group of bandits. Things will only get worse once all the buildings are completed, and the farming, along with the ranching gets underway. The Estancia and its food supplies will be a target for every raiding party and bandit in the area.”
The Padre asked unbelievingly, “What happened when the bandits attacked?”
Giuseppe piped up in a dry voice giving a short succinct response. “We lived, they died.”
We should have expected the next question from this 'man of the cloth' who refused even to touch a firearm, but it still caught us all by surprise.
“Wouldn't it have been better to just give the bandits what they wanted, rather than fight them?” he asked in a pious tone.
Both Anna and I swung our heads around to stare at the Padre. Me in disbelief and Anna in anger. Like Anna, Yolanda was staring red faced at the Padre while Tom was giving him a look usually reserved for the village idiot. Giuseppe was giving him a stunned look of contempt. We were all momentarily speechless. Sofia was the only one who seemed unperturbed by the Padre’s question and it was she who answered with pity in her voice.
“Padre, the bandits weren't just after a little food or money. They wanted everything; and by everything, I mean exactly that. If the bandits had been successful in their attack, none of us would be here today. Anna, Yolanda, and I would be in Las Cruces, trying to figure out how to get on with our lives, while dreaming about what could have been. Paul, Tom, and Giuseppe would be dead or sold as slaves to the Comanche. The same thing would have happened to the masons and the Apache warriors. As for the women and children, they would have been taken captive and sold to the Comanche as slaves as well. Until they were sold, the women would have been used by the bandits, as they pleased, in full view of their husbands and families.”
Father O'Shea looked at the rest of us, clearly surprised by Sofia’s answer. Seeing nothing but anger and serious agreement on all our faces, he wisely kept silent. The remainder of the short ride was quiet, with nothing but the sounds of the horse’s hoofs and the creak of leather marring the silence.
We’d all calmed down by the time we reached the Hacienda, where we enjoyed a nice lunch. Tom took everyone off to the quarry to set a few charges after lunch. Anna agreed to watch the little ones so that Giuseppe and Sofia could go with them, while I took the opportunity to get a few things done.
“Anna are there any rooms upstairs without furniture in them?” I asked as we walked into the study.
“Oh, yes. There are quite a few. Even with all the furniture we bought, there are still a half dozen or so rooms up there that don’t have furniture in them, yet. Why?”
I closed and barred the door before answering. “I want to turn one room into an armory where we can store all the weapons, ammunition, and clothes we’ll be giving out over the next few months; and where I can work reloading ammunition and fix any broken weapons in the future. We can’t keep bringing things out of the cave one or two at a time, or questions will start being asked. I also want to turn another room into a command post, with maps and files of information we can refer to when needed.”
After a few moments of thought, she replied, "I know just the rooms, my love. Let me show you.”
I followed her out of the study, up the stairs, and down the hall, before turning into a short hallway with a single door on each side.
“These two rooms are out of the way and would be perfect. I’m a little concerned about the kids getting in here without any of us knowing about it, though,” she said with a concerned look.
“They’re perfect, Anna. Give me about an hour and I’ll have the doors fixed so we won’t have to worry about the kids getting inside, at least for a couple of years,” I replied, giving her a hug as we walked back downstairs.
Parting ways at the study, I closed and barred the door before opening up the cave. Over the next few minutes I hauled one hundred rifles and pistols, along with five A700 rifles and twenty shotguns, into the study. I added burlap bags of ammunition, the reloading equipment and material, desert cammies of all sizes, and some odds and ends, before deciding that I had more than enough to start with.
Grabbing my small toolbox, I spent ten minutes removing the doorknobs, bolts, and strike plates from the RV's bathroom and bedroom doors. A couple of minutes with the chop saw and I had four pieces of four-inch steel rod to use as keys for the simple door locks. Just under an hour later I had the locking doorknobs installed and working on both upstairs doors. Once again, I blessed the power tools that made the trip with me back to this time. Another hour later, I was putting the final lock in place after hauling all the guns and burlap bags from the study.
Making sure the doors of both rooms were locked, I returned downstairs stopping in the kitchen to let Anna know I was done, and to invite her to join me in the study with fresh coffee when she had a few minutes.
In the study, I got a pencil and paper and started writing a to do list for Tom to use while we were gone. I was still working on the list when Anna came in a few minutes later with coffee for both of us, along with a small plate of biscochitos.
I looked back and forth between Anna and the plate of cookies, trying to decide which one was first. Anna won. I stood up giving her a big hug and long kiss. She ummmmed deep in her throat.
“You made the right decision, Pablo. Now you can have a cookie,” Anna said with a grin after we broke the kiss.
She reviewed the list, adding a couple of things I hadn't thought of yet while I dug into the goodies. Eventually, Anna stood up and led me out of the office to the piano. She asked me to play something for her. We spent an enjoyable half hour, before we were interrupted by one of the cousins who ran into the room all out of breath.
Taking a couple of deep breaths, he said, “I was with Maco helping him train the farmers when we came across the tracks of six men. We were following the tracks when we heard gun shots near the quarry. Maco sent me back to warn you.”
I thought for a minute, then asked, “Do any of the cousins currently in camp speak English?”
He replied indignantly, “I speak excellent English!”
“You certainly do,” I responded with a smile before getting serious again. “Leave half the cousins in camp for defense and send the other half by horseback to find Tom in case they need help. Send one of the cousins to warn the village, then ride as fast as you can to the Ranch where the masons are working. Tell them to get back to camp, but to be ready for an attack anywhere along the way.”
He nodded and repeated the order in English to make sure he had it all then turned and disappeared out the door.
I turned to Anna. “I’m going to bar the lower courtyard door. While I’m doing that, have the ladies close the outside shutters on all the windows. Then get your rifle and set up on the wall on the upper courtyard. I’m going to set up on the terrace.” She nodded and rushed off to the kitchen to warn the ladies and get them moving.
When I was done barring the courtyard door, I slung my rifle, added two spare magazines to my cargo pockets, and picked up my A700 with two magazines. I was walking out of the study when Anna appeared in the hallway.
“Martina has a shotgun in the kitchen. Cristina and Celia are going to watch the slope from the upstairs bedrooms, while Clara brings the kids into the study and keeps them occupied,” she said as she disappeared into the study to get her rifle.
We hurried upstairs, where she continued down the hallway disappearing out the door to the upper courtyard. I turned and went out onto the terrace, where I used my monocular to scan the lower plateau and as much of the Estancia as I could see. Forty-five minutes later I was beginning to think about calling off the alarm when I saw Tom and the others cross the river on their way to the Hacienda.
I asked Cristina to get coffee for everyone and put it here on the terrace, so it would be ready when the others arrived. With a nod, she was gone. Calling Anna, I walked down to open the courtyard door and waited for the group to arrive. As they neared the slope, we could see at least one of the riders, the Padre, was hurt. One of the cousins was riding behind him, keeping him in the saddle.
Anna turned and ran back into the Hacienda, yelling over her shoulder, “I’ll get some water boiling! Bring the Padre into the kitchen when they get here.”
The group rode up and dismounted, with Maco sliding down from behind the Padre to help him dismount. Maco and Tom half carried, and half dragged the Padre inside, between them. As they passed, I directed them to the kitchen before turning to see if anyone else was hurt.
Giuseppe walked by with Sofia and told me that the Padre was the only one hurt. With a thankful nod, I waved everyone up to the terrace, letting them know there was fresh coffee waiting for them.
Heinrich, Anya, and Miguel were hurrying up the slope, so I waited and walked into the house with them. Miguel and Heinrich went up to the terrace while Anya and I went into the kitchen to see how the Padre was doing.
Inside, we found the Padre laying on the long table Martina used for food preparation. Anna had already cut off the Padre’s sleeve and was closely examining the wound. Yolanda, Sofia, and Anya were looking over her shoulder.
“Yes, it’s a shallow wound, Sofia, but the ball is still in there. We need to get it out, clean the wound out as best we can, and then bandage it. We'll need something to get the ball out, though,” Anna said frowning at the freely flowing blood dripping from the Padre’s arm.
“I’ve got what we’ll need, Anna,” Anya said as she moved up to the edge of the table opening up the bag she’d been carrying. Taking out rolls of bandages, a bottle of Tequila, and a leather bundle of various medical tools she unrolled it next to the Padre’s legs.
Figuring the Padre was in good hands for the time being I motioned Tom and Maco to join me before turning and walking out to the hallway. The three of us joined the others on the terrace and poured ourselves some coffee.
“What happened, Tom?” I asked when we were all settled.
“We got jumped a few minutes out from the quarry by six Navajo warriors, set up in a loose ambush. Thankfully, they made two mistakes. They fired when we were too far away, and then tried to rush us immediately after firing. Two warriors survived the first rush and tried to hide behind some mesquite covered hillocks. Yolanda killed one with a shot from her rifle. The other snuck around to one side and tried to rush us again but Giuseppe got him with both barrels of his shotgun.
"The Padre was hit by a lucky shot in the first volley. The fool was sitting upright in the saddle waving his arms, trying to play peacemaker. I guess he thought that dog collar of his was going to protect him! We were on our way back when the cousins found us. I sent the cousins to the village to make sure everyone there was okay while we brought the Padre back to the Hacienda,” Tom explained.
Looking around the table, I made a few decisions. “Heinrich, Miguel, leave a couple of men in the camps for the next three days please. Giuseppe, assign one of the wagon teams to stay in the village as well.” Seeing their nods, I went on. “It’s too late to do anything with the bodies, today. Giuseppe, tomorrow morning, if Sofia is willing, please ride out to the quarry with three of the cousins and bury those bodies in an arroyo.”
“I’ll have three warriors waiting for you when you’re ready to leave in the morning, Lion Killer,” Miguel said at Giuseppe’s nod.
Anna, Yolanda, Sofia, and Anya came out on the terrace, joining us after we scurried around moving more tables and chairs with ours.
“The Padre is out for the moment. He’s going to be sore for a while when he wakes up, though. The ball was buried a half inch deep in his upper arm muscle. I think we got all the fibers out of the wound after we dug the ball out, but we just can’t be sure,” Anna said with a sigh.
I made a mental note to teach Anna as much modern medicine as I could, including how to use the instruments I had, while we were traveling. I had a couple of textbooks we used for EMT certifications that would help, and she could read those as well.
I was brought back to the conversation when Tom, Giuseppe, Maco, and Heinrich got up and walked back inside.
“Where are they going?” I wondered aloud.
Anna gave me a small smile. “While you were wool gathering, I said the Padre needed to be moved from the kitchen to his bed, and he was just too big for the ladies to do it without hurting him or ourselves.”
“Sorry, my love. I was thinking about something else. I’ll try not to let that happen too often,” I said, chagrined.
The four men came back a few minutes later, letting us know the Padre was sleeping soundly and that Celia and Clara were taking turns sitting with him. A half hour later, their coffee finished, Miguel, Maco, Heinrich, and Anya returned to their camp.
Alone in the study that night, I gave Anna four Vicodin tablets, telling her what they were and let her know she could give one to the Padre every six to eight hours for pain if he needed them. We talked for quite a while about the advances in medicine that were coming, as well as the limitations of what I brought with me in the RV and trailer. She was excited to learn I would be teaching her what I could while we traveled, as well as how to use the common medical tools I’d brought with me.
Chapter 4

Standing at the terrace railing with a light breeze blowing from the north while sipping a fresh cup of coffee the next morning, I watched the gaggle head down the slope before breaking into their separate groups. Giuseppe and Sofia with their escort of three of the cousins headed off towards the site of yesterday’s ambush. Tom and Yolanda rode out to practice shooting, while Miguel and the cousins led their group of farmers across the river to begin another day of Apache training.
My mind was in a turmoil as I looked out over the wind swept, mostly brown vegetation, and arroyo strewn landscape between the river and the mountains in the distance. I was startled out of my thoughts by Anna’s hand on my arm.
“What are you thinking so hard about my love?” Anna asked with a concerned look adding,
“You looked like someone was walking over your grave!”
“I didn’t even hear you come out,” I said with a small grim smile. “I was just thinking we need to make some decisions. Things are getting out of hand and I’m tired of playing defense. Somehow, we need to start acting against the threats facing us; but before we do that, we need to talk about the immediate future.”
Still wearing the concern in her eyes, Anna grabbed my hand leading me toward one of the tables. “Well, come sit down at the table. It looks like we won’t have much wind to worry about today and I brought fresh coffee with me.” Taking my cup as I sat down, she refilled it and handed it back. “So, start talking.”
Trying to get my thoughts in order, I nodded my head and took a sip of coffee before starting. “My love, we both know that whoever is trying to kill us is based in Santa Fe. I’m very worried about taking you there as we planned. It’ll be too damn easy for whoever is behind this to take care of us there instead of here or Las Cruces where we have support.”
Anna interrupted at this point. “What you say is true, mi Pablo, but we can’t just stay here and pretend that no one is out there! They’ve already proven that they are more than willing to come after us. Sooner or later, no matter where we are, they are going to be successful. Whether it’s here, Las Cruces, El Paso, or Santa Fe will make no difference when that happens.
“I’m not willing to give up our trip to Santa Fe as we planned.” I started to respond but Anna was on a roll and refused to be interrupted. “We won’t be alone in Santa Fe despite what you think. I’ve been corresponding with my cousin in Taos and she and her husband will be meeting us in Santa Fe. You also have at least one friend there yourself. No! I will not give up going to Santa Fe for our honeymoon!” Finished with her rant, she sat back in the chair and crossed her arms, daring me to continue the argument.
From the fire in her eyes, I knew I was fighting a losing battle. All I could do was give a heavy sigh, nod my head in understanding, and pour myself more coffee.
“I already knew that’s what you were going to say my love. I can’t help worrying about it; but yes, we’re still going as planned. As I was saying, we need to do some long-term planning, though. Specifically, we need to put together our own network of people in Santa Fe, beyond Hiram Greenburg, to help us find out who is after us. In all my trips to Santa Fe, I’ve never stayed more than a few hours because I was too worried about giving someone the opportunity to follow me or set up an ambush. That’s going to change with our honeymoon. If we can get the right group of people, and if we get lucky, then maybe we can get some information on whoever it is behind these attacks; but it’s going to take work, time, and a lot of luck.”
Anna was visibly pleased by my response, and her body language had relaxed the more I talked. “Why will it take luck? We just need to tell a few people what’s going on and ask them to ask around. It may take time, but eventually we’ll get an answer.”
I shook my head. “Anna, whoever is behind this is very smart, well organized, and has resources beyond our understanding. It’s going to take a lot more than just asking some people to get us some information. On top of all that there are over 5,000 people living in Santa Fe not to mention all those living on small farms and ranches within a day's ride. How many more people travel through Santa Fe every week on the Santa Fe Trail or on the Camino Real? Most of the people who’ve come after me and us don’t appear to even live in Santa Fe.
“As if that’s not enough to worry about, we have to be careful who we get information from. We have to trust them to give us the correct information and not some rumor or, worse, outright false information. Acting on rumor will simply use up our valuable resources with nothing to show for it, while acting on false information could mean our riding into a trap.”
“I’m a little confused,” Anna said as I stopped to sip my coffee. “What do you mean by resources? You said we have more than enough money. Why would we need money for this?”
“I wasn’t talking about money, in this case. What I meant was people. Our people. The people here on the Estancia, both those who work for us and our family as well as our friends and family in Las Cruces. While there are going to be a lot of people here on the Estancia, there won’t be an infinite supply. There is a minimum number that will need to remain here to do the work that needs to be done.
“We will run out of people quickly if we send those we have available off on wild goose chases based on nothing more than rumor. And before you ask, yes, we could very well end up spending money to make this work.
“If nothing else, we’ll need to pay people to bring the information from Santa Fe to us even if it’s nothing more than paying your grandfather’s drivers to carry letters from our informers. Depending on what we find during our visit to Santa Fe, we may end up giving someone we trust the money to buy a business like a saloon, cantina, barbershop, or something similar.
“The kind of business where people congregate and talk in unguarded moments. Depending on how much we trust them they may also act as a clearing house for all the others that are getting us information in Santa Fe.”
“Okay, I understand most of that, although I never really thought it could get as complicated as what you’re saying. But, clearing house? That’s a new term to me. You have to explain what you mean by that, please.”
“It just means a central place where everything is collected, sorted, consolidated, evaluated, passed on, or stored. I’m thinking that we’re going to need at least two if not three clearing houses. Before you ask, we’re going to have to set up the same kind of network in Mesilla when we get back.
“What we know right now is that ‘the Boss’ is in Santa Fe. He not only sends people after us directly he also sends orders to someone in Mesilla who puts teams together to come after us so we’re going to need a clearing house in Mesilla at a minimum. Well, there and here in the room across from the armory.
“We’ll take the information we get from both Santa Fe and Mesilla and combine it here, so we can evaluate the people involved, the threats, develop better defensive plans and, hopefully, an offensive strategy to attack and nullify the threats in both Mesilla and Santa Fe.”
Anna sat deep in thought for several minutes after I’d finished my explanation. With a shake of her head in frustration she said, “The way you explained it makes sense, Pablo, but it seems to be a lot of work in a lot of places. I guess I understand what you say about Santa Fe. It is a big place and it's so far away, but Mesilla is only half the size and less than a day’s ride from here. Surely it won’t be difficult to get information from there. I’m kind of surprised you haven’t tried there already. Are you sure it’s really all that complicated?”
Now it was my turn to be frustrated. I finished the fresh cup of coffee I’d just poured myself, to give myself time to overcome the frustration before answering her.
“Anna, there are almost 3,000 people living in Mesilla. That doesn’t count all those living within a day’s ride, nor those traveling through there on the Camino Real in both directions, not to mention the stagecoach passengers going east and west from and to California. The fact that Mesilla is closer makes it that much more dangerous to go anywhere near there.
None of your family or the others in Las Cruces that we are friends with, have any family or close friends in Mesilla; nor, with the exception of Jorge and perhaps Juan, do any of them have a reason to go to Mesilla. The minute one of us turns up in Mesilla, the very people we want information on will know that we are there looking for them. Not only will we be in danger but anyone we talk to will be, also. We need a reason to be there. A real reason, or we put everyone we talk to in danger. I’m still trying to come up with something, but for the moment we’ll start our efforts in Santa Fe.”
Further discussion was interrupted by Celia.
“Perdone, patron, lunch will be ready in a few minutes. Giuseppe and his wife haven’t returned yet. Should we hold off serving until they return?”
Being addressed as patron momentarily threw me, but Anna answered for me. “Let’s wait a half hour for them to get back, please, Celia. If they’re not back by then we’ll save them some for when they do return.” Celia nodded her understanding but before she could enter the house Anna called her back. “Please take the coffee service back with you. We’re done with it for now.”
Once Celia had removed the service and left for the kitchen, Anna turned to me and resumed our conversation. “I need to think about everything we’ve talked about this morning. It’s going to take me a while to fully understand what you said, and the implications to the Estancia as well as my friends and family in Las Cruces.”
While she was talking, she motioned for me to get up. Taking my hand, she led me over to the railing where we’d started our conversation earlier this morning. Looking north she pointed at a group of riders in the distance. “It looks like Giuseppe, Sofia, and the three cousins should be here in less than fifteen minutes. Was there anything else we need to talk about before they get here?”
Pulling her into a hug I replied, “There’s lots of things I want to talk about, the most important of which is security on the Estancia; but we should include everyone else in that, as well as everything I think we need to start making plans about. For the time being our discussion about information gathering should be just between the two of us. There’s no reason to give any of them, or the folks in Las Cruces, a reason to try something while we’re on our trip and get themselves in trouble.”
Over lunch we talked about the raid. The consensus was that it was unusually early in the year for the Navajo to start raiding this far south. It was clear to me that between the mysterious “Boss” in Santa Fe, and the raids from the various tribes, we needed to start taking security much more seriously. The sooner we had everyone through the initial training the better.
“How’s training the farmers going?” I asked in the general direction of Miguel and Maco.
“Well, they’re never going to be Apaches, but they’re doing pretty well considering they’re farmers not warriors,” Miguel replied laconically.
I laughed and asked, “Have any of the other cousins committed to the Estancia?”
“Besides Maco and me there are seven others who’ve committed to staying,” Miguel replied after swallowing. “I think most of the rest will end up staying, though. It’s just going to take a little time for them to reach a decision.”
I looked over at Anna. A slight shiver went up my spine as I realized her eyes were telling me she understood where I was going to go next and agreed with me. Her approval was strengthened by a small squeeze of my hand.
“If you don’t have anything pressing that needs to be done today, I’d like for everyone here to spend the rest of day with me and Anna to discuss various topics. Chief among those, are various types of training and assignments,” I said looking around at the table.
Everyone agreed to stay, so I suggested we reconvene on the terrace. Anna immediately went to the kitchen to arrange for coffee for the afternoon, while everyone else left the dining room for the terrace. I stopped in the study, closing and barring the door behind me. I quickly moved through the cave and dumped a box of ‘signaling mirrors’ into a burlap bag, before closing everything up and joining Anna as she walked up to the terrace.
Once everyone was settled in with coffee, I began. “It should be obvious to everyone by now, that security is going to be an issue for all of us on the Estancia from this point forward. Between the attacks from Santa Fe, the raiding parties from the various tribes, and any others who will want to try and take what we are building we are facing some serious threats.”
Those at the table all gave serious nods of agreement.
“Miguel, I’d like to make you responsible for Estancia security. To start with, I think the uncommitted cousins should take on the task of providing two guards around the clock on the boulder trail on the upper plateau as well as two guards on the horses up there.” Seeing him nod with a grin I continued. “I want you to form the committed cousins up in two-man teams before tomorrow morning. Tomorrow morning after breakfast, we’ll start training the nine of you with our weapons. Once you complete the training, we’ll give you all weapons of your own. In the meantime, have some of the uncommitted cousins continue training the farmers.”
“You will give everyone who commits to the Estancia weapons like you and the others use?” Miguel asked incredulously.
“Yes. They have to complete the training first, but once they do, the weapons will be theirs to use as long as they are part of the Estancia,” I said firmly. “I expect the committed cousins to all be part of our morning exercises and afternoon training. I’ll also expect you to provide the security for the monthly arrival of new farmers.”
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