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CHAPTER 12
The Fergusons got Molly to her feet, and though she wobbled
a bit, Wallace had no doubt she'd be fine after a natural night's sleep. All
four held huge smiles for the Spirit Wranglers, but as they stepped forward to
thank them, Bart let out a yelp. He dug the amulet out of his pocket and flung
it across the room.
"White hot," he said, looking at where it had
flown, disbelief etched on his face.
Everyone else turned to look at it. Where raw energy, almost
spiritual magnetic, flowed off it earlier, now Wallace felt nothing but pure
evil pulsing from it. It wasn't his supernatural sense that told him that.
Judging by the stillness, the uneasiness, in the room, the others felt it, too.
They stood like that for a minute or two, which seemed much
longer. Nessy was the first to move. She didn't say anything, but moved over to
her equipment and began packing it away. Rachel followed her over.
"Can I help?"
Wallace saw right away it was her way of apologizing for
using the capture gun and banishing device earlier. Nessy stared hard into the
other woman's eyes for a moment, but then gave a curt nod."
"Sure. Can you bring me those empty burlap sacks?"
That broke the tension in the room, and the other Fergusons
moved towards Wallace and Joshua. Bart's hand was extended for a handshake.
Before either of the Wranglers could take it, and ear-splitting siren wailed
outside.
"What in the world?" Nessy sputtered.
"It can't be," Bart said.
"They always give warning when they test it," Abel
said. "And when have they ever set it off at night?"
"What is it?" Joshua asked.
"The Rock Men Alert," Bart said. "But as Abel
said, there's no reason for it to be blaring right now."
"Must mean it's not a test," Nessy said.
"Impossible," Molly said. "Prosperity has never
seen a Rock Man."
Rachel headed out of the great room towards the front entry
hall. "Well, let's go check it out."
Everyone followed.
Once outside, one of the servants ran up to them. "We
have a cart all set for you, Mr. Ferguson." The young man looked at the
Spirit Wranglers. "There's room for you three, as well."
"What's going on, Maxwell?" Bart asked.
"Rock Men, sir. Some of the miners spotted them deep in
the mine, headed for the surface. The wall will never hold them, so we need to
get you out of town."
"There should be plenty of dynamite locked in the mine
storage shed," Rachel said. "If the monsters are still deep
underground, there's plenty of time to mount a defense."
The servant, Maxwell, flashed an apprehensive look down
towards the main street and the town's front gate. "Maybe so, ma'am, but
we still need to get you out to safety. And, to be honest, I'm hoping the rest
of us can flee once you're gone."
"Go get the cart," Bart said. Maxwell didn't need
to be told twice, and was around the corner of the house in seconds.
"We can't abandon our town," Abel said. He looked
as if he was ready to deck his father.
"We're not." Bart turned towards Wallace. "Am
I right in thinking something is drawing them here?"
"Yes. I have no doubt about it."
"What?" Molly asked. "What's drawing them
here?"
Bart broke from the group and sprinted back into the house.
"The amulet," he called over his shoulder as he ran.
"Of course," Joshua said. "With the evil
pulsing off of it, what else could it be?"
"But why now?" Rachel asked. "We've had that
for quite a while."
"I felt something wrong as soon as we banished the
demon," Wallace said. "I couldn't tell you what, but I guess now we
know. It either activated the amulet when it left, or imprinted its own evil on
top of it."
"Do you think we can capture one of them things?"
Nessy said and nudged Joshua. "You can finally study one."
"I can handle a lasso," Rachel said. No one
laughed, but the tension in the air died down a bit. Before anyone could
comment further, Bart ran out of the house with a thick towel in his hands, no
doubt smothering the amulet.
He looked to Abel as soon as he was close enough. "As
soon as Maxwell gets here with that cart, help him unhook the horse. As quick
as you can."
"What? Why?"
"Please don't argue, son." Then, to Wallace, he
said, "If I run the amulet out to Miner's Canyon, those things will still
destroy our town before chasing, won't they? It's a rhetorical question, as you
don't know any more about those monsters than I do, but that's what I think
will happen."
His family objected to him going at all, but he hushed them
with a simple raise of his hand. Wallace had no doubt such a move wouldn't
usually work on his kids, let alone his wife, but it did in this charged
situation. Joshua fielded Bart's query instead of Wallace.
"My best guess is that if you get into the mine before
they leave it, they'll chase the amulet without worrying about the town.
Otherwise, whatever evil magic is leading them to it will have them destroy at
least part of the town before following further."
They could hear Maxwell returning with the cart, and before
he rounded the corner, Abel bolted towards him. Seconds later, he came back
with the machine horse, sans cart. "I pulled the emergency release.
Figured the extra hassle of putting it back was okay this time."
"Indeed," Bart said. He tousled his son's hair.
"I have no doubt you'll step into my shoes just fine at the store if I
don't make it back."
"Don't say that," Molly said with a moan.
"Why do you have to be the one to do this anyway?"
He gave her a hug and kissed the top of her head.
"Because all of this is my fault. From taking the amulet in the first
place to being a hard-head about it and letting that hinder the Spirit
Wranglers."
"Me, too," Rachel said. "But your father is a
better rider than I am."
"Mr. Ferguson," Maxwell shouted. "They say
the Rock Men are nearing the mine entrance. Are you sure you don't want to hook
that back up to the cart?"
"No, Maxwell," he called. Then, to them, he said,
"My cue to leave."
"Head as deep into the mine as you can and drop the
amulet. When they reach it, my guess is they'll bleed back into the rocks.
Let's all hope so, anyway."
"Ride hard and quick, but be careful," Wallace
said.
Bart nodded, mounted the machine horse, and looked at his
family. "I'll be back soon. I promise."
Molly and Abel nodded, while Rachel said, "I'm holding
you to that." As he rode off, the look on her face proved she didn't
believe it was one he could possibly keep.
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