Into the Rockies
Chapter 6
Jacob charged into his cabin, heading straight for his gun safe. He opened it to see a wide assortment of guns; one for every type of pray imaginable, plus a collection of bows, arrows, knives, even a few sticks of dynamite.
“Come on my land…” Jacob muttered. “Threaten me. Like I’m scared of some asshole and his family.” He grabbed his Single Action Army 4.75 revolver pistol, AKA ‘The Peacemaker’. It fit perfectly in his front chest pocket.
“Think you’re so tough with ur guns and your dog do ya?” The muttering continued. “Let’s see how you handle ol’ Henry here.” He pulled out his favorite gun, a Henry ‘Big Boy Deluxe’ Colt 45 Lever Action Rifle. It took the same ammo as the peacemaker, which he had plenty of. He stuffed his pockets full and slung Henry into the handmade leather holster on his back.
Next he grabbed his bow and a handful of arrows which he slid into the holster next to Henry. He slung the bow behind him with the string holding it tightly to his chest.
Lastly he slid in his four favorite blades: twin throwing knives in his boots, a bowie knife on his left thigh, and a kukri machete on his right hip.
He could take on the whole mountain now. But this time, the mountain was a man - the deadliest predator on earth. Jacob furrowed his brow, he was not afraid. He had taken on bears, cougars, and wolves. Nothing frightened him. A man was crafty, but still just another wild animal in the end.
Jacob stepped out of the cabin and surveyed his surroundings closely. He didn’t sense any danger yet. It would be dark soon, but he still had time to prepare. If he set up some parameter traps he’d have a bigger advantage on his opponent, and the dog as well.
He spent the next few hours of daylight setting traps of various kinds around his property. Areas that made for perfect cover were his first targets. The remaining areas were a mix of traps spread about randomly in hopes of catching opponents off guard. Soon it was dark and Jacob could no longer work diligently, so he returned to his campfire.
He started into the flames as he brewed some dandelion tea. He added some sweet tree sap and sipped the hot beverage carefully. His mind began to wander.
He knew it was only a matter of time before someone would come along and disrupt his peaceful way of life. However, Jacob never imagined it would turn out like this. He felt more alone now than ever before.
Meanwhile, down at the Rocky Foot police station, an intelligence report got slapped down on Sheriff Bernard Brisko’s desk by his over excited deputy, Carlos Martinez.
“The hell is this?” Brisko asked.
“I’ve been keeping tabs on the McClay family ever since their botched robbery attempt at the Pharmacy.” Explained Carlos. “There’s been some chatter on the landline of Joe McClay. He says they’re going after some big game!”
“Hunting?” Asked the sheriff.
“It’s their code. Based on their activity I’ve deciphered it down to this…”
Fishing - Drugs
Hunting - Murder
Trapping - Robbery
“That’s all I got so far.” Martinez sighed. “But I definitely heard them talking about big game hunting, so I stopped by the ol Rocky Pines trailer park and did some sniffing around.”
“And?” The sheriff leaned in as he sipped his coffee.
“Joe McClay lost about $3,200 in runaway fluffies.” The deputy explained. “He was going door to door looking for them. Then he was supposedly gone for a whole day, which is odd for him. I checked his front door and found this.”
Carlos slid a polaroid picture across the desk. Sheriff Brisko picked it up and looked it over.
“A poster for lost fluffies?” He said with a raised eyebrow. “What’s this got to do with murder, Carlos?”
“I picked up the murder tip on the bugged landline after Joe had been gone all day.” Carlos replied. “He didn’t have any luck in the park so naturally he must have headed the other direction.” The deputy walked over to the Rocky Foot county map. “And do you remember who lives way back up in the wilderness behind Rocky pines?”
The sheriff grumbled into his coffee.
“A certain someone’s brother?” Marcus said, looking coyly over his shoulder at the sheriff.
The grumbling continued.
“Well I’ve got a strong feeling that he’s their target.” Martinez said as he pushed a red pin into the map on Jacob’s location. “If we don’t provide backup, your brother could be in serious trouble.”
“He’s my half brother!” Sheriff Brosko suddenly shouted. “His old man, Red Silver, was a complete bum! Our mother raised him the best she could but in the end he dropped out of school and abandoned us to live his life as some madman in the mountains! Why do we have to lift a finger for that asshole?”
“Because it’s our job, boss.” Carlos said cooly, not letting the sheriff’s outburst bother him. “If we catch the McClay family in the act, we could finally put them away for good. Think of all the people and animals we could save. I bet your brother is up there protecting those fluffies all by himself. And if you won’t help him, then I will.”
“You’re not even sure he’s there target.” The sheriff grumbled. “Have fun hiking all that way for a hunch!”
“I enjoy the fresh air, you know that!” The deputy replied with a smile as he tipped his hat and exited the sheriff’s office.
“Hmph.” The sheriff scoffed as he leaned back in his chair, eyeing the red pin on his office map.
“Deputy Fuzz, get in here!” The sheriff shouted.
Tiny hooves were soon heard trotting down the hallway outside of the office door. Soon a tan earthy with brown mane, dressed in a full custom fitted ranger uniform, hat included, stepped forward through the office door. His little ears poked through custom holes in his hat, swiveling at all the sounds around him.
“Wangew Fuzz wepoting fow dootee, shewiff!” The fluffy said proudly, saluting the sheriff with his front hoof.
“Thank you, ranger!” The sheriff smiled. “I need to send you on a top secret mission of the utmost importance.”
“Yay!” The fluffy cheered. “Fuzz wub missions!”
“Head next door to the Rocky Pines trailer park and sniff around for clues at the ol McClay doublewide in the back.” The sheriff instructed. “Some fluffies went missing there. If you find anything, come straight back here, ok? And be careful, don’t let anyone see you, got it? Use the tall grass.”
“Ok shewiff!” The fluffy ranger replied switching hooves with another salute. He trotted out of the office, down the hall, and stopped by his food dishes for some sustenance before leaving. He had three dishes; food, water, and coffee. He had a bit of each before exiting the police station.
The sun shined down on his ranger hat which shaded his eyes. A gust of wind blew a tumbleweed down the dirt road in front of him. To the right was the general store which had ice cream, to the left was the trailer park which had a mission and important clues.
A tough choice for a fluffy.