Legend of the Lost Read online

  * * *

  Eva had supper on the table when Alex got home. “Where’ve you been? Have you been to see Cindy?”

  “I’ve been to the Indian village. I wanted to talk to them about their gold coin. I think there are more coins in that dry cave, and I want to do more digging. I’ll see Cindy tonight after supper and tell her what I’m planning. I’m hoping she’ll help me.”

  “Today Marian told me that Cindy seemed concerned about something when she got home last night. Do you know what might be troubling her?”

  “I didn’t know anything was troubling her, Mother. Did Cindy tell Marian about the lioness chasing her into the falls? I came back to the barn for a rope because I wanted to explore what looked like a cave. When I got back to the pond, I saw a lioness pacing in front of the falls. Cindy was nowhere to be seen, and I got concerned. I chased the lioness away with a rock so that I could look for Cindy. She was hiding behind the falls and was a little frightened, but other than a scratched knee, she was unharmed.”

  “Cindy told Marian about the lion and her scratched knee. I guess Marian is imagining things. Say hello to Cindy. You did well to chase the lioness away.”

  “Next time, take a gun,” Vard said, who was sitting quietly reading. “You never know what you might find in that canyon.”

  Alex was pleased that his story matched what Cindy had told her mother and that she had not mentioned finding the gold.

  * * *

  After supper, Alex hurried to their rendezvous and sat waiting under the giant oak tree on the flat rock where he and Cindy had sat since they were children. he waited until it was getting dark and was beginning to wonder if Cindy would come. he was about to give up when he heard her coming.

  Cindy made sounds that were different from anyone else. She skipped over and around objects along the trail. He had always looked forward to seeing her, but tonight his heart was pounding. It seemed odd to feel this way about a girl he had known all his life. When he saw her, he stood to greet her.

  She stopped for an instant and then threw herself into his arms. Alex was pleased and surprised. He held her close, and she turned her mouth up to his. Kissing her was as natural as the sun rising.

  Her lips were eager, and she felt wonderful. She snuggled her body against his as if to feel him better. They stood embracing, neither wanting to stop.

  After a little while, Alex released her. “Let’s sit for a while— we’ve got to talk. I almost went crazy last night thinking about you. How was your night?”

  “I’m a little confused,” Cindy confessed. “Mother guessed that something had changed and wanted to know if anything unusual had happened. I couldn’t tell her because it’s all so new to me. I saw you look at me differently when I came out from behind the waterfall without any clothes on, and I wasn’t sure what it meant. I liked the way you looked at me, but I didn’t know how to respond, so I pretended to be angry.” She crinkled her nose and smiled in her funny way. Searching Alex’s eyes, Cindy continued. “You kept looking at me in that certain way. I was pleased that even after we found the gold, you were more interested in me.”

  Alex returned her gaze. “When I saw you step from behind the falls, I knew I would never see you as a girl again. You changed from a girl into a woman at that instant. I know that holding you and kissing you is all I can have for another few years. I protected you from the lioness, but now I’ve got to protect you from a beast far more savage. I’ve got to protect you from me, and if you want me to, I’ll protect you from all of the other men, also.”

  “I’m sorry if I caused you to stay awake; all I wanted was you to hold me.”

  “Someday, when you’re my wife, I’ll hold you every night. I feel responsible for you, and I guess I always will. I think that’s how a man is supposed to feel. Now, let me kiss you once more, and then we’ve got to decide what to do with the gold.”

  Alex kissed Cindy for a long time, and as she pressed her body against his, she whispered, “We’ll still feel the same after we’ve grown up, so why wait?”

  “Cindy, you might get in a family way. I want you to enjoy being young and beautiful for a few years before you become a mother and get tied down with raising a baby.” Still looking tenderly in her eyes, he said, “I don’t want to wait either, but it’s my responsibility to protect you. If we don’t stop right now, I won’t be able to.” he pushed her back gently. “Let’s talk about the things we’ve got to do to change the gold block into money.”

  Being kissed awakened physiological sensations in Cindy that she wanted satisfied, and she wished that Alex wanted her as much as she wanted him. She was disappointed when he stopped, but she nodded and listened as Alex explained what had to be done before they could to turn the gold block into coins.

  They returned home earlier than usual to prevent their mothers from worrying. Marian’s brow wrinkled a bit when she saw that Cindy was home early; this wasn’t what she had expected. When Eva saw that Alex was home early, she smiled. Tomorrow she and Marian would have a long talk.

  * * *

  Cindy went to bed after her bath and lay staring at the ceiling. She knew Alex had done the right thing, except she couldn’t help being frustrated.

  Alex had to get Cindy off his mind, so he went into the closet and looked for the sword. There it was, standing in a corner. He cleaned and polished it in preparation for giving it to Talking Drum. The diversion helped, but he still had to push thoughts of Cindy from his mind before he could sleep.

  * * *

  Alex awoke earlier than usual and looked out the window. It had rained during the night. The hay would be wet, and it would have to dry before they could continue harvesting—that would give him time to ride over to the Indian village again.

  At the breakfast table, he told father that he would be going to see Talking Drum.

  “I’d like to see the coin Talking Drum has. I’d like to look for more and dig further back in the cave that you and I explored.”

  “That sounds like a lot of work with little hope for success,” Vard said, “but if that’s how you want to spend your leisure time, it’s okay with me.”

  “Thanks, Father, for some reason I feel hopeful today.” Alex went to his room, strapped on his revolver, and then took the sword, a shovel, and an old leather robe with him to the village.

  Talking Drum and the two elders were sitting cross-legged in front of Talking Drum’s tepee, waiting for Alex to arrive. Alex sat facing them and placed the sword on the ground. One of the elders offered him a piece of buffalo jerky to chew on. The wind kicked up swirls of dust, and the bright sun glared in his eyes, making the meeting a little uncomfortable. The Indians didn’t seem to mind, so Alex sat patiently—if they could stand it, he could.

  After the usual formalities, Alex handed the sword to Talking Drum, who accepted it ceremoniously, removed the sword from its scabbard, and moved his fingers along the blade to test its sharpness. he nodded and handed the sword to one of the elders. The elder examined the sword, nodded, and passed it to the other elder; he tested the blade, nodded, and handed it back to Talking Drum.

  Then, using both hands, Talking Drum handed a leather pouch to Alex. The pouch contained only one coin, but it was surprisingly heavy. Alex removed the coin and examined it closely. It must weigh more than a pound, he thought.

  “Talking Drum, your coin has the design of a mountain on it,” Alex pointed out. “The copies I make will be plain without the mountain, so you’ll know that it is the real coin that I’ll be returning.”

  Talking Drum nodded.

  Knowing the moon was on the wane, Alex said, “Before the moon goes dark, I will return your coin and retrieve my sword,”

  The men nodded. Alex placed the pouch containing the coin on a chain around his neck, got up, and left the meeting. He rode to a ditch where the clay had been exposed by erosion, took several shovels of clay, and placed it in the old robe he had made into a bag. Alex then tied the bag behind his saddle, rode to the dry
cave, hid the bag, and then hurried home. His father saw him ride in.

  “The hay will be dry in about an hour,” Vard called out. “I’ll see you in the field.”

  Alex acknowledged him, unsaddled his horse, and then went to his room, where he hid the coin behind a board he had pried loose from the wall. he was slowly getting things together, but he still had to make the mold, cut the gold block into manageable pieces, and then get the pieces to his father’s blacksmith shop where he and Cindy could melt them in his mother’s iron kettle.

  The sun had dried the hay, and the harvesting went smoothly. Marl helped, so they finished before dark.

  * * *

  At sundown, Cindy sat waiting for Alex in their usual place. She knew he would arrive late, so she waited patiently and listened to the night birds singing. The call of the whippoorwill was plaintive and lonely.

  When Alex arrived, he held her, and even though he was tired from harvesting hay, she felt wonderful, and it took all of his resolve to resist touching her soft legs again. Cindy was hoping he would. every time he touched her, her whole body trembled, and her heart beat so fast that she gasped for breath. She snuggled closer, trying to let him know that she was willing.

  Alex kissed her so tenderly that she felt her heart pounding. She clung to him and parted her lips, wanting him to take her completely. Instead, he said softly, “Cindy, I love you, I want you, and when you’re eighteen, we can be married. I’m afraid to kiss you anymore. I don’t want to stop, but if I don’t stop, I’ll go too far.” He pushed her away gently. “We’ve got to talk. Our parents will be going for supplies in a few days, and we’ve still got a lot of things to do.”

  “I thought you did that yesterday,” she complained. I know it isn’t ladylike to think this way, but I won’t be eighteen for another year and a half, and I don’t want to wait that long, she thought.

  “I’ve got the coin and the clay all ready, but we still have to get the gold to the blacksmith shop so we can melt it. Can you be at the base of the cliff tomorrow at noon? I’ll saw the block into small pieces before you get there and pass them down to you with the rope. You’ll have to untie them so that I can use the rope again.”

  “I’ll try, but I don’t know,” she replied. “Our mothers plan to do some canning, and if they need my help I may not be able to come. I’ll tie a red ribbon on the mulberry bush at the beginning of the trail. If the ribbon isn’t there, then I’ll be at the cliff at noon.”

  “That’ll have to do. I’ll take extra rope so I can do the job by myself if I have to. I know the bush you’re talking about, so I’ll leave my rifle under it. I don’t want you to be walking alone without a gun. That lioness might still be prowling.”

  “Okay, I’ll bring the rifle with me. Good night, Alex.” She kissed him on the cheek. “I’ll hurry home tonight so Mother won’t worry, and I’ll tell her that we want to swim in the pond tomorrow.”

  * * *

  Alex was up with the sun, took extra ropes and one of his father’s biggest and best hacksaws, strapped his gun on, and started up the trail. He saw no ribbon, so Cindy’s strategy had worked. He hid his rifle under the bush as planned.

  He knew where the cracks in the cliff were, so he climbed it with ease, and left the rope dangling over the side. Using another pry pole, he moved the gold into position and began sawing. The saw cut through the block easily, but it left a lot of gold dust that he had to collect and bury.

  By noon he had cut the block into ten pieces, estimating that each piece would weigh a little more than a hundred pounds. He looked for Cindy but didn’t see her. So he pitched the gold pieces over the side of the cliff to save time, then quickly descended to the base of the cliff and hid the pieces behind the same rock where he had previously hidden the first gold piece.

  Chapter 3

  Carl Binder and Tor Larkin were two newly hired men at the Bar H Ranch, and they were looking in the canyon for stray cattle. When they saw Cindy coming up the trail, they hid to watch her pass. even though she was dressed like a boy, they could tell that she was a girl by the way her body moved and the way she danced up the pathway.

  “Look at that pretty girl,” Carl said. “Notice how her breasts fill out that shirt.”

  “Yeah,” Tor agreed, almost drooling. “And would you look at how that little round bottom wiggles? No matter how a girl dresses, she can’t hide the way her body moves when she walks. I think I’ll introduce her to what it’s like to be a woman. You can have seconds, if you’ll hold her down for me.”

  “I’ll hold her down, but don’t take all day; I ain’t had a girl like that for a long time.”

  “Whatcha talking about?” Tor laughed. “You ain’t never had a girl like that, and I ain’t either, but I’m going to have one today.” he quickly tethered his horse; Carl was right behind him.

  They snuck up behind Cindy. Carl put his hand over her mouth and forced her to the ground. Startled and terrified, she tried to scream, but Carl’s hand held her mouth so tightly that she could hardly breathe. Working together, the men placed her on her back on a grassy knoll. Carl placed one knee on each side of her head and held her hands while Tor ripped her clothes off. All Cindy could do was kick, but every time she kicked, she accidentally exposed herself more to Tor.

  “Carl and I aren’t going to hurt you,” Tor said, trying to get her to cooperate. “We’re going to have a little fun, and if you’ll relax, you might have a little fun, also.”

  Relax! There’s no way I’m going to relax. I’m going to fight you with every ounce of my strength!

  She was at their mercy. Her eyes searched frantically for a stick, a rock, anything to hit them with, but it was no use. She had dropped the rifle when they grabbed her. She tried to kick Tor off her, but he was persistent, and Carl’s hands muffled her screams.

  Cindy didn’t want to lose her virginity to these two awful men. With tears streaming down her face, she thought, Oh, Alex, I wanted you to be the first, but the only thing you wanted to do was talk about the gold. . . . The gold! You’re sawing the gold right now! Maybe you’ll hear me if I scream! Using all her strength, she twisted her head enough to bite Carl’s hand, and then screamed as loudly as she could.

  Just then, Tor pushed his pants down, aligned himself, and thrust his throbbing member at her. The invasion was shocking, humiliating, and it hurt so badly that she fainted. Fainting was a blessing because Tor paused for only a moment to adjust his foothold.

  “Hey, Tor, go easy on her ‘cause I want some of that, too.” Carl was eager to have his turn.

  Just as Alex hid the last piece of gold, he heard Cindy’s scream. Why would she be screaming? She has the rifle. It has to be something else! He jumped two rocks at a time getting across the stream, ran down the trail jumping over bushes and boulders, wondering why she hadn’t fired the rifle. When he rounded a turn in the trail, he saw Cindy lying on her back with two men forcing themselves on her.

  Cindy was awake now, screaming and putting up a good fight. The men were so intent on having their way that they didn’t know Alex was there until he fired a shot over their heads.

  Tor looked up and reached for his gun, but with his pants pulled down, he couldn’t get to it. Alex rapped Tor over the head with his pistol, knocking him unconscious. Carl then rose from his kneeling position over Cindy’s head and stood poised with his hand over the gun on his hip.

  “Touch that gun, and I’ll kill you!” Alex shouted. While holding his gun on Carl with his right hand, Alex covered Cindy with her clothes.

  “Cindy, did they hurt you?”

  Before Cindy could answer, Carl said, “Who in the hell do you think you are? You’re nothing but a boy.”

  “Yes, and I’m the boy who’ll carve his initials on your tombstone if you touch that gun. Now raise your hands and get back over here while I relieve you of that gun in your holster. If you doubt my ability or my willingness to kill you, then reach for the gun.”

  The coward did as he was tol
d, and Alex took the guns from their holsters and removed the rifles from their saddle scabbards.

  Pointing to Tor as he was slowly awakening, Alex said to Carl, “Drag this loathsome creature to his horse and ride out of here while you can. If I ever see either of you on this property again, I’ll kill you.”

  Sobbing, Cindy had gotten to her feet and was stumbling into her clothes as Carl and Tor rode away. When Alex was sure they were gone, he took Cindy in his arms and held her tightly.

  “Cindy, I’m sorry I failed you,” Alex said with tears blurring his vision. “It’s my fault. I should have been with you. I said I’d protect you, and I let those ruffians accost you. Cindy, did they hurt you? Please tell me.”

  Cindy shook her head, sobbed, and couldn’t say a word. Finally Alex said, “Here, give me your hand, and I’ll take you to your mother.”

  Chapter 4

  When they got home, Cindy still didn’t say anything; she kissed Alex on the cheek. Marian and Eva, seeing Cindy sobbing, ran to her and escorted her into the house.