A Cowboy's Dream by Kyleigh McCloud

DISTANT CHURCH BELLS MELDED with the muffled screams. Daniel paced in the barn before falling to his knees on the straw-covered floor. He folded his hands together. “Lord, please don’t take her.”

Daniel stayed in his kneeling position. The Sunday morning bells had silenced, and still he prayed. His wife needed a doctor. If Tommy didn’t return with him soon… well, there ain’t no use thinkin’ that. God would save her.

Minutes crawled into hours. Her screams grew fainter, and Tommy had not yet come with the doctor.

“Save her,” Daniel’s voice faltered. His legs were numb, and his shoulders drooped underneath an invisible weight that increased with each passing hour.

Hooves clopped outside.

Tommy. Daniel pushed himself up from the hard floor. A pins-and-needles sensation rippled through his legs. He staggered. When Daniel balanced himself, he stamped against the floor.

Tommy arrived through the barn’s doorway. No one else was with him. “

Where’s the doc?” asked Daniel.

“I’m sorry.”

“Sorry?” Daniel took a step forward. “Yer sorry?”

“He was on another emergency call.”

“You… you….” Daniel tilted his ear toward the door, straining for a glimmer of hope that his wife was alive.

Her screams were no longer among the usual ranch sounds of cattle, horses, and men.

“Betsy.” Daniel burst past Tommy and into the home he and Betsy had shared for the last five years. Blood cloyed the air inside. He halted at the sight of red-stained bedsheets and his lifeless wife.

Water splashed. “I—I—I….” His sister, Hattie, furiously scrubbed the blood off her hands.

Daniel whirled around and vomited. God had snatched his Betsy for the nighttime dots, like Mama always said.

—

DANIEL AND HIS HORSE stood at the bluff’s edge. Far below, twilight painted an ocean of silhouettes belonging to the grazing longhorns. Betsy would have loved the view. Instead, she lay in her grave not even a month. How easy it would be to walk off the ledge and join her. Daniel gripped the reins. He couldn’t, not until the job was done. A promise was a promise.

A soft nicker came from behind him. Daniel stiffened as Tommy joined them on their lookout. “What you want?”

“I came to relieve you of guard duty.”

Daniel stared at the valley. Shadows lengthened into a black blob that devoured the land and all its creatures. The campfire’s flame flickered with each strand, shadows trying to outdo each other. Was this a version of hell?

“You need sleep,” said Tommy.

“I will, later.”

“You hungry? I brought ya beans.”

“Leave me alone.”

Grass and rock crunched beneath Tommy’s boots, stopping near Daniel. “Eat the beans. Bets—”

“You don’t get ta say her name,” Daniel snapped.

“I’m your boss, and I’m ordering you to eat.” Tommy shoved the beans toward Daniel. “I’ll not have my cowhand faint from hunger.”

Daniel swung. The beans flew, and the bowl skittered along the ground. It teetered on the precipice.

Tommy gave a quiet gasp. “The cattle….” The dish tumbled over, its tinny rattle reverberating across the valley. Longhorns bellowed. A thunderous roar claimed the land victim as the cattle ran together in one swift movement.

Daniel and Tommy hurried down the bluff to help the others.

—

DANIEL WRAPPED HIS HANDS around a coffee mug and huddled near the fire. He ignored the empty feeling within his belly. Tomorrow would be another long day, beginning with rounding up the longhorns before they continued onward to Kansas.

His stomach’s growls chanted food. Daniel gulped the cup’s contents to fill the hollowness of his gut.

Someone shoved Daniel. “This is yer fault, darkie.”

The ground’s cruel reminder that God was in charge made Daniel wince. Some God he was, treating his kind worse than dogs and for killing his Betsy and child. God should have taken him, too.

The man spat, delivering a swift kick to Daniel’s stomach.

“Leave him alone, Red!” shouted Tommy. The crackling flames illuminated Tommy’s hardened gray eyes. He edged closer, hand on his gun. “You touch him again, you’re fired.”

Red scoffed, “Boss, why ya protectin’ the darkie?”

Tommy helped Daniel up. “He’s my friend.”

“The war’s their fault.” Red’s lips flattened in a tight line.

“It’s been seven years. Let it go.”

Red marched closer, towering over Tommy by three inches. “What if I don’t want to?”

Tommy’s pistol slid out of its holster, cocked and pointed at Red’s chest. “I shoot ya and leave the scum you are for the vultures to pick clean.”

The two men stared at one another.

“Boss, I’ll set up me owns camp,” said Daniel. He would return to the bluff and keep watch on the longhorns. If he was lucky, he’d see heaven tonight.

As Daniel walked away, Tommy spoke, “I’m comin’ with ya.”

Daniel did not reply. He continued on to where his horse was tethered. Though Mr. Lincoln had freed them, seven years later Daniel had yet to feel free. Only his Betsy and the baby, she died bearing, knew freedom—in death.

The moonlight guided Daniel to his perch above the valley. He hobbled his horse and removed his bedroll from the saddle.

Daniel lay on his bedroll and cradled the back of his head with his hands. He gazed at the vast nighttime sky. Dots twinkled, as if to say hello. Mama always said them dots were angels. Betsy had to be among them, but which one?

“Daniel?” asked Tommy.

Daniel sighed. “I’m here.”

“I brought coffee and beans.”

“Fine.” Daniel took the extended bowl. The ham hock and beans’ wafting aroma tantalized his rumbling stomach. He nibbled on a bean.

“I loved her, too.”

"Was youse that got her with child? No, it was me that kilt her.” Daniel set aside the bowl.

Tommy slumped beside him. “She was my sister.”

“Yer sister?”

“I never told anyone, but I walked in on Daddy hurtin’ Abigail. Betsy was born some months later.” Tommy took a swig of coffee. “I swore to protect her from that life.”

“We growed up together. Why you never tell me?”

Tommy put down the jar of coffee and pulled off his shirt. He turned his back toward Daniel.

Daniel gasped. Thick pink scars criss-crossed Tommy’s back, similar to his own. It answered why Tommy never took off his shirt when they swam as boys. “M-m-massa beat you?”

“He hated me as much as he hated our slaves, probably more so, because none of Mama’s babies lived after me,” said Tommy, putting on his shirt. “Someday, I hope others will see your color like I do, that there’s a living soul in your body just as there is in mine.”

“It ain’t supposed to be like this,” Daniel’s voice cracked. “Youse promised a better life in Texas. All theys see is we black.”

“I shouldn’t have promised. I’m sorry.”

“Betsy wanted ta keep goin’ west.”

“It wouldn’t have mattered. You’d still have people like Red.” Tommy rose and went to his horse, searching for something in his saddlebags. A metal flask glinted in the moonlight. He drank from it and held it out toward Daniel. “Whiskey?”

“Nah.”

Tommy took another swallow and wiped his mouth. “You know what it’s like to love a woman you can’t marry?”

“Hattie?”

“Every night I dream where colors don’t matter.” Tommy raised his flask. “Then I’m marryin’ your sister.”

“Why not now?” Tommy gave a dry laugh.

“The pastor refused.”

“In the mornin’, I’m gone.”

“Please stay, Daniel. You’re my best friend, and I can’t do this without ya,” Tommy pleaded.

A flash of brilliance streaked across the sky. Betsy. Daniel swallowed past the bludgeoning lump in his throat. She wanted him to stay with Tommy.

Maybe someday Tommy’s dream would come true. Daniel wanted to be here if it did. He patted Tommy’s shoulder. “I will.”

—

SOMETHING SLITHERED OVER DANIEL’S chest. Rattler. Goose pimples prickled across his body, and his innards shivered. Death had come for him this morning. God couldn’t be this cruel as to kill him after taking away his desire to die. Daniel opened his eyes.

Dark markings decorated the snake’s body. Daniel gulped. Without turning his head, he studied the serpent’s tail.

No rattle. Daniel released the breath he had been holding. This lookalike rattler was not venomous.

Tommy slept, occasionally letting out a snore followed by a mumble.

The snake slid off Daniel and continued on its way. Daniel stood with a stretch. Sunrise had painted the sky with its brushstrokes of various shades of orange. He paused. This morning seemed different.

No breakfast aroma permeated the air. There were none of the usual noises of the men and cattle.

Daniel peered below. An empty valley greeted him. “Tommy.”

His friend muttered.

“Wake up.” Daniel jabbed Tommy with the toe of his boot. “The longhorns and men are gone.”

“Ow.” Tommy jerked upright, rubbing his side. He glanced at Daniel and blinked. “What’d you say?”

Daniel snatched up his bedroll. “The cattle and men are gone.”

“Gone?” Tommy scrambled to his feet. His felt hat dropped to the ground behind him. He shielded his eyes with a hand as he scrutinized the valley below. Tommy shook a fist. “Red.”

Daniel climbed atop his horse. “Theys can’t be far.”

Tommy grabbed his hat off the ground and jammed it on his head. He secured his bedroll on his chestnut-colored horse. “Do ya have your rifle?”

“I ain’t shootin’ him. I’ll hang.” Daniel urged his horse downward from the bluff.

Tommy retorted, “They’re thieves. You know what they do to thieves.”

“I’m not takin’ the law in my hands.”

Daniel and Tommy stopped at the chuck wagon’s tracks. Wheel ruts led to the northeast, the direction they would have taken anyway to get to Kansas.

Tommy got off his horse and scouted the area for hoofprints. He wandered up and down, squatting and touching the tracks. “I think they split the herd.”

“Why?”

“To lead us on a wild goose chase,” Tommy grunted as he got up from the ground. “They’re meetin’ later somewhere on the trail.”

“Which way you wanna go, boss?” Tommy’s jaw clenched. “We’re goin’ after Red.”

—

RED RAISED HIS REVOLVER at Daniel and cocked the hammer. “The boys and I took a vote about ol’ darkie here.”

“Nooo….” Tommy leapt in front of Daniel the same time Red fired. He grunted before crumpling to the ground.

The gunpowder’s acrid smell flittered through the air. Daniel knelt where Tommy lay when Red aimed his gun at him. A rattle shook nearby.

Daniel froze. His heart raced at the familiar sound of a rattler. He was destined to die today, either by gunshot or snakebite. “Lord,” he whispered, closing his eyes.

Red shouted, followed by a shot.

Daniel flinched. Neither a bullet nor fangs pierced his skin. He cracked open his eyes to Red dropping his gun on the ground beside the snake.

Red clasped his hand over the top of the other. The rattler coiled, preparing for another strike.

Several rapid shots whizzed by Daniel. The snake fell, and its body twitched a death dance.

“Did….” Tommy collapsed onto his back with a wheeze. “I get it?”

Daniel pressed against Tommy’s chest to stop the bleeding. “Ya got it.”

Dust flicked behind Red’s boots as he stumbled toward his horse. He lifted his left foot into the stirrup and missed, lurching forward. Red tried mounting again without success. “Help me,” he snarled at his gaping son, Lucas.

Tommy coughed. Crimson droplets sprayed on his face and shirt. He grasped Daniel’s shirt sleeve and tugged him closer. “I have a confession.”

“Save it for the preacher. You ain’t dyin’ today,” scolded Daniel.

“I lied.”

“About the doc? He refused ya, didn’t he?” Daniel straightened, slowly lifting his hand off the bullet wound. The bleeding had slowed. He clamped down on it again.

“Get their horses,” Red ordered the young cowhand. Daniel snagged the pistol out of Tommy’s slack hand. If he had counted right, one bullet remained in the chamber.

“Yer all outta bullets, darkie.” Red sniggered.

Lucas paused. “Ya sure?” The pistol clicked. Daniel angled the barrel at Red, then at the teenage boy. “I reckon there’s one left. You willin’ to stake yer son’s life on it?”

“They’ll hang you.”

“No. Thieves are hung.”

“Pa, forget about the horses. I’ll not see a noose around my neck,” said Lucas.

“Listen to yer son. Youse already a dyin’ man.”

Red jerked his head to the horse behind him and rode off. “Lucas, c’mon. Let’s go.”

“Where you meetin’ the others?” Tommy rasped.

Lucas pulled himself up on his horse. “Outside Ellsworth.”

“You tell ’em I aim to report y’all to the marshal for cattle rustling,” said Daniel.

The teenage boy’s shoulders drooped. He stuttered, “Yes, sir.”

“Now git,” said Daniel.

Lucas and his horse galloped off, trailing behind Red.

Daniel laid the gun on the ground and slid an arm behind Tommy’s neck. “We gots to get you to Ellsworth.”

“Just leave me,” Tommy groaned. “Get our longhorns back.”

“I’m not leavin’ ya.”

“You and Hattie will need the money from the sales. Find the marshal.”

Daniel rummaged through Tommy’s saddlebags, finding his canteen, whiskey, and an extra shirt. He bunched up the shirt and covered the bullet wound.

Tommy took a swig of whiskey. “If I don’t make it, tell Hattie I love her.”

“Tell her yerself.” Daniel seated himself in the saddle. “I’ll hurry back.”

—

THE CACOPHONY OF HIS horse’s hooves striking the ground and his rapid heartbeat roared in Daniel’s ears. Ellsworth came into view on the horizon. Daniel forced his tired horse to ride on, bridging the mile that separated them from the town.

Raucous shouting and bangs flooded the town’s wilderness, drunken men fighting over women most likely. Daniel slowed. Ellsworth had swelled in size since last year’s cattle drive. How would he find Tommy’s longhorns and the men who stole them amongst this crowd?

Daniel rode behind Main Street, staying close to the buildings. He couldn’t chance being shot. Tommy depended on him to round up his missing cattle.

A man cleared his throat. “Don’t move.”

“Please, mister. Where’s the marshal?”

A lanky man stepped out from his hiding spot. “What you want with him?”

“Cattle rustlers shot my boss.”

“He dead?” The man tilted his hat upward. “Look around. You’ve arrived at an outlaws’ den. What makes you think a marshal will help?”

“There ain’t much time ’fore they gather outside town. You know where he is?” Daniel begged.

“Marshal Samuel Bass.” The stranger uncovered his pinned badge. He untied a black horse drinking from a trough. “How many men?”

“Four or five.”

“You any good with a gun?”

“Best shot back at home.”

Bass tugged on the reins. “Good. What happens next, you’ll need it, if you don’t wanna end up dead.”

Daniel followed him outside of town. The other men didn’t seem like the type to steal Tommy’s longhorns. Had Red lied to them? Perhaps getting the marshal was a bad idea.

“Not losin’ your nerve, are ya?” asked Bass.

“No, sir. Mes was thinkin’ it seems strange that all the cowhands would steal Boss’s cattle. He only ever had trouble with Red.”

“Is that them?” Bass pointed at the chuck wagon riding alongside longhorns.

Daniel scouted the herd. They belonged to Tommy, but where was the other half? “Stay here. They ain’t all here.”

Cookie waved from the wagon as Daniel approached closer. “How’s Tommy?”

“What you mean?”

“Red said boss was worried about losin’ the entire herd if we stuck together. That’s why he wanted to split up.”

Daniel glanced back at Bass. “Tommy was near death when I left him.”

Bass trotted toward them.

“He took a bullet for me.”

“Where’s the others?” asked the marshal.

Cookie gestured to his left. “There.”

The remaining longhorns and men headed for them. One rider led a horse carrying a dangling body. Red must have succumbed to his snakebite.

“Daniel,” said Lucas. “You’re here.”

“I’m sorry ’bout yer pa,” he replied.

Bass climbed off his horse. Tobacco juice marked its spot in the dirt. “Son, did you steal these cattle?’

“We did.”

“You’re gonna have to come with me.”

“Wait,” said Daniel. “The boy was under his father’s thumb. He deserves to show what kind of man he is.”

“Fine. Y’all drive them beeves to market.” Bass took the reins from Lucas. He watched them for a second, then spoke to Daniel. “You got a steady head on ya. Would you consider workin’ for me as a deputy?”

“Me a lawman?”

“I need someone not trigger happy. Too much death around here, and I don’t like it.”

“Folks won’t accept a negro lawman.”

Bass pulled something out of his pocket. “They better start, cuz you a freedman like us.” He revealed a deputy badge in his palm. “Take it. If you wear it, come back and find me.”

“Thanks.” Daniel took the badge, tracing its indentations.

“You best git and make sure them boys don’t run off with Tommy’s money.” Bass nodded toward Ellsworth.

“I’ll bring Lucas by afterwards, so we can bury his father.” Daniel nudged his horse around and left for the market.

—

DANIEL LEANED AGAINST THE porch post. Despite the usual evening ranch noises, it seemed empty without Tommy. He peered at the darkening sky. One at a time, those nighttime dots took their turn shining.

Footsteps entered the porch.

“You stargazin’ tonight?” asked Hattie. She stopped beside him and raised her chin. “Mama always believed that angels were watchin’ over us.”

“She was wise.”

Hattie faced him. “You sure about this?”

Daniel traced the Deputy Marshal badge in his pocket. It had been Tommy’s dream to be a cattle rancher, not his. Daniel’s eyes drifted across the yard to his cabin.

“Well?” Hattie put her hands on her hips.

A burst of faint laughter whispered through the breeze. Daniel closed his eyes and clung onto Betsy’s memory. She had squealed upon seeing their cabin after he and Tommy had built it. Could he leave her and the baby?

“He’ll leave,” said Tommy, bracing against the doorframe.

“Tommy, what are you doin’ outta bed?” Hattie admonished. Her footsteps tapped fast as she walked toward him.

Daniel glanced at his friend.

“I expect you to come home now and then,” said Tommy.

Hattie fussed over Tommy.

Tommy shooed away her hands. He wrapped an arm around Hattie’s waist. “We’ll be fine without you. You’ve got your dreams, and I’ve got mine.”

“Don’t know if I can leave Betsy,” said Daniel.

“She’s up there,” Hattie replied. “You’ll never leave her, not when she’s among the stars.”

Daniel blinked, wiping away the stray tears.

“Travel west for her. Now pin on that star where it belongs.” Tommy nodded.

Daniel retrieved his badge from his pocket and pinned it on his shirt. He gave it a last rub. “Take care of my sister.”

Tommy shook Daniel’s hand goodbye. “I will.”

“I’ma miss you.” Hattie sniffled. She embraced Daniel and squeezed. “Be careful,” she whispered in his ear.

The porch floor thunked underneath his boots. Daniel continued down the stairs and to the barn. He saddled his horse.

Wildflowers had grown over Betsy’s grave. Daniel knelt. “Lord, if yer there, please let Betsy and the baby watch over me as I venture into bein’ a lawman.”

The dots twinkled silently as he rode away.

North Dakota native Kyleigh McCloud lives in Minnesota with her husband and fourteen-year-old cat. Writing has always been in her blood. As a result, she attended Minnesota State University Moorhead and graduated with a BS in Mass Communications, emphasis in Print Journalism. Although Kyleigh enjoys reading a variety of genres, her favorite is historical romance. She has always felt drawn to the 1800s 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. “A Cowboy’s Dream” is her first western short story submission to Saddlebag Dispatches. Aside from writing westerns, Kyleigh writes modern women’s fiction. Her Christmas novella, Her Mother’s Last Christmas Gift, will debut in November 2020. You can follow her on Facebook to learn more about her upcoming works.