Red River Revenge (Remington Book 1) Read Online Free Page A

eighteen. He wore moccasins and a breechclout, and tucked into his breechclout was a scabbard, which held a knife. He had no other weapons.
    Beck spoke to the lad in Cherokee and the only words Remington understood were “Charlie Killbuck.” The boy shook his head and replied in his native tongue. Beck questioned him further, mentioning the name Lina. Again the boy shook his head and replied in Cherokee. Beck wouldn’t let up and within minutes, the two were involved in a heated argument.
    Not understanding a word of it, Remington looked over at Frank Shaw and shrugged his shoulders. Shaw smiled and shook his head.
    Beck pointed to his own deputy’s badge as he spoke, then made a wide sweeping gesture with his arm, indicating the entire valley of Tishomingo.
    “Killbuck, yes,” the Indian lad said with a nod, and then he shook his head vigorously and rattled off more guttural words. He tapped the handle of his sheathed knife with two fingers, then doubled up his fist and pounded on his bare chest as if he were plunging a knife into his heart.
    A few more heated words were exchanged in Cherokee and then Beck said, “Go on. Go on,” and waved the boy on.
    “What’s the problem?” Remington asked. “Is Killbuck here?”
    Beck sighed deeply and watched the boy ride away. “Killbuck lives here in the valley, but that’s all I could get out of the boy. I don’t know if Killbuck and the girl are here now or not.”
    “Well, we’ll just keep looking until we find them,” Remington said.
    “It’s not going to be that simple,” Beck said with a scowl. “It seems like Paco Gaton and his friend Haskins rode through here four or five days ago looking for Killbuck and Lina Miller.”
    “That’s not good,” Remington said.
    “Fortunately, Charlie Killbuck and the girl weren’t here at the time. And when Killbuck got here and found out about the Mexican and the mean-looking white man who were looking for him, he told his people not to give out any information about him or the girl to any strangers who passed through. That’s why we’ve gotten the cold shoulder from these people.”
    “I can understand that,” Remington said, “but didn’t you tell him we were lawmen and we wanted to help Lina?”
    “Yes, I did, but it didn’t do any good. That’s what we were arguing about. Killbuck told them not to say anything about him to strangers and to these people, we’re strangers, badge or no badge.”
    “Why was that boy pointing to his knife and pounding on his chest?” Frank Shaw asked. “For a minute I thought he was going to kill you.”
    Beck smiled. “He said that his people would rather die by their own hands than betray a brother. The Cherokees are fiercely loyal people and we aren’t going to learn a damned thing from them.”

Chapter 3
    R emington was disappointed that they were so close to finding Lina Miller, and yet, so far away. And now that he knew that the men who had murdered her father had tracked the girl to this valley, he was more concerned for her safety than he was in finding her for the purpose of taking her back to Galena. Paco Gaton and Norville Haskins would kill her if they found her first. He had no doubts about that.
    He looked out across the land and focused on the obscure buildings near the riverfront as he considered all the aspects of their situation.
    “If the Cherokees won’t tell us where Charlie Killbuck lives,” he said, “maybe the white men who live near the river can help us.”
    “They might,” Tom Beck said as he looked toward the river.
    “If not, I think we’d better push on and start tracking Gaton and Haskins,” Ned said.
    “Maybe we’ll get lucky,” Frank Shaw said as he scratched his itching chin through the wiry hairs of his thick, gray beard. “Maybe those river rats can give us a lead on Gaton and Haskins.”
    “Oh, sure, Frank,” Remington said. “And maybe while they’re at it, they’ll tell us exactly where Peter Van Hook’s ranch