Bacho #4

That evening the entire outpost was on full alert in preparation of an attack by the Apaches over the befriending of Bacho who was nowhere to be found. In all the commotion no one noticed that my father was missing from the stockade. I now shared the quarters with Captain Thompson and his wife and I overheard the Captain asking if my father had somehow escaped from the stockade. “It's unlikely Sir”, reported one of the soldiers who brought the troubling news. “And that's not all, Sir”, continued the soldier who opened his hand exposing the broken tip of a thin metal knife blade. “We found this wedged and broken off inside the padlock, Sir”. Captain Thompson turned away and said, “Bacho's handy work indeed”.  What little I know about the Apaches are they take great stock in their animals and some are almost revived as gods or magical spirits containing the souls of lost loved ones or parents. Captain Thompson turned to the soldier and said,” there's nothing we can do now for the poor bastard Taylor, he brought this upon himself and placed this entire post in danger”. Captain Thompson ordered a double guard around the post and asked his wife to fetch me from an enjoining room, he was unaware that I overheard everything. 

Before the Captain could mutter a word I told them what I had heard and almost felt a sense of relief that my father was probably dead. Mrs. Thompson took issue and confessed to me that no matter how bad a person was there was still some good left in them. I didn't know what to think or how to feel about anything presently and felt more concern for that motherless pup than my father who brought this upon himself. I knew what Apaches did to their enemies and the stories were gruesome but just a little part of me wanted my father back alive and unharmed. The Captain told me come morning he'd send a small scouting party to search for my father but we were short on men and supplies. Mrs. Thompson hugged me tight and said, “We'll find him young William and with God's will he'll be safe and sound”. I returned to my room and prayed, something my mother had always encouraged me to do, but it wasn't for my father. I slept very little that night and just before daybreak I heard a small party of soldiers ride out heading west but something inside me told me it wouldn't be good.

Sergeant Smith lead the men toward a rocky stretch of sandstone cliffs very near the cliff dwellings were the child's skull was discovered but with vultures circling overhead the men prepared themselves for the worst. It was there that my fathers body was found and as the men approached they dismounted and drew their sidearms. All around was silent except for the slapping sound of wing beats as several black vultures took flight to escape the approaching soldiers. My fathers body was stripped of his clothes and spread eagle fashion while tied down to some nearby Mexican mesquite. His head was missing as well as most of his innards but the strangest of all was the motherless pup, she was still alive and tied next to my fathers heart. Red fire ants covered the body like a blanket but none near the pup or her offering of meat. One of the soldiers quickly cut the pup free and offered her water from his canteen while other members of the scouting party scratched out a shallow grave and covered my fathers body with a thin sheet of sandstone just to keep the animals away for now. The men quickly returned to the post where I was handed a sack with something moving inside and it wasn't until much later when I was told the story of my fathers demise.