OCR Text |
Show 36 he told her he loved her. Cap was waiting by the fence, grinning widely. The moon was high in the sky now, so they would have light to travel by. "You ready?" "Ready as I'll ever be," Josh replied without enthusiasm. He kept a tight grip on Chinook's rope. He certainly didn't want him chasing cats or getting into other trouble as they sneaked through town on their way to Windfall Creek. There an old dirt road would lead them to a trail up Quartz Canyon on what had once been a mule and wagon road to some of the mines. Past the mines, they would climb up into the high country. As they went through town, with the sounds of crickets chirping around them in the night, they talked of what they would do. Perhaps building a cabin was too big a job for them. Maybe they could find an old miner's cabin in Dog Leg Valley and live there. For one thing, they would need a large supply of wood for the winter, so Cap had brought a full-size ax. Most exciting of all for Josh, Cap had brought his single-shot twenty gauge shotgun to get game with. Cap hunted regularly with his father, and seemed to know already how to get along in the wilds. Already he was known as the best fisherman in the county, and he could track a deer all day and all night, some people said. And he knew all about cleaning and cooking the game they would get. The previous week Josh had fired the shotguns twice at tin cans, but he knew he had a lot to learn about shooting and getting wild game. As they trudged along he kept yawning and wishing they had waited a day or two before leaving. But Mr. Keebler would probably be at the O'tosh |