Chapter 29

As he neared the bottom of the path, Kid found himself doing the same as Buck - glancing back up the slope, trying to spot any movement to indicate the gang was around somewhere.  He gave Buck a look, saying he didn't notice anything out of the ordinary and Buck nodded in return.  If Buck didn't see anything then Kid was sure there wasn't anyone nearby.

In the next moment, Kid found he was more wrong than he'd ever been.  A shot rang out and he found himself grabbing his shoulder, wincing, as the pain and force of the bullet threw him backward.  He found Katy struggling under his hold as his hand slipped through the reins.  Kid cried out as he was thrown off the horse, landing hard on the ground.  His head hit something hard and everything around him went black.

"Kid!!"

Buck turned in the saddle in enough time to see Kid falling off his horse.  He saw blood spreading onto the front of Kid's shirt.  But before he could turn his horse around, more bullets headed his way.  Buck was forced to head farther down the trail as he saw Sam's men behind them jump off their horses and scurry to take cover behind rocks and trees.  Guns were quickly drawn as shots were fired in retaliation.

He jumped off his animal and lay on the ground, behind a fallen log.  Now he could barely make out Kid's position.  He looked up as he heard a cry echoing the one he'd made.

"Kid!!"

Jimmy pulled up his horse as the shot rang out.  He watched in shock as Kid was obviously hit then thrown off his horse.  He started forward, only to be stopped by Sam getting into his path.

"You can't, Jimmy, I need you up here."

"Forget it, Sam.  Kid's down there and he's hurt, he needs my help," Jimmy argued.

"You're not gonna be able to help him if you're dead,"  am informed him.  "Now I need you to do your job and help me get them.  We're above the gang - all we have to do is head across this side of the slope then we got them."

Sam started across the rocky terrain, indicating for any nearby men to follow.  He turned as another man was hit. 

Jimmy hesitated for a moment, trying to see where Kid was, then ran to the man who was down.  With Sam's help, they dragged him out of sight behind a large boulder and set him up so he could cover them.  One more glance back and Jimmy was following Sam across the slope.  His gun was drawn but he wasn’t firing it - they needed the element of surprise and hoped the others could pick up on what they were doing.

Buck saw Sam and Jimmy moving in the direction of the shooters and quickly figured out what they were hoping to accomplish.  He knew they would need a diversion to pull it off.  He had noticed Charlie behind some nearby boulders and motioned for him to keep shooting. 

Soon others were joining them in their gunfire.  When Buck saw a few members of the gang fall, he took a chance and edged his way forward, closer to the location they were hiding in.

Not being one to miss out on the action, Charlie followed Buck.  They slowly crawled up the slope a little, using the underbrush as coverage.  It was working because they could hear the shots getting closer.  They both glanced at each other, sure the same thought was running through their minds:  hopefully Sam and Jimmy were also closer to the gang by now.