Civilization in the Wilderness
A Tale of Adventure on the American Frontier
Read Chapters One, Two, Three, Four, Five, Six, Seven, Eight, Nine, Ten, Eleven, Twelve, Thirteen, Fourteen, Fifteen, Sixteen, Seventeen, Eighteen, Nineteen, Twenty, Twenty-One, Twenty-Two, Twenty-Three, and Twenty-Four.
Chapter Twenty-Five
By the time they arrived, Daniel was almost gone. He had remained alert all afternoon, but his strength was fading and he was struggling to hold his head up. The sun had nearly reached the horizon and Daniel expected that when it did, he would close his eyes for the last time.
"About time," he said when the ten warriors rode into view. "I was beginning to think you wouldn't come at all."
He saw them first, and his gun was already loaded and in his hands, so he got off the first shot. He missed. Immediately, the men fanned out around him and unslung their bows. The men who shot him had carried guns, but perhaps the tribe only had three. Daniel had to admit he was surprised they had any at all.
He had made no effort to hide. As he struggled to reload, several raised their bows. Daniel bared his teeth in a grin.
"Had to come someday," he said.
His fingers fumbled and the gun nearly fell from his hand. The first arrow hit him in the uninjured thigh and he yelled in pain. The second one went wide, but he knew the third one wouldn't. The gun slipped from his fingers. He slid to the ground to try and grab it and another arrow just missed him.
He lay on the ground and waited for the next shot. It didn't come. He looked up. The men rode closer.