“Yeah,” Luke said. “And I know who we can sell it to.”
“Who?” John asked.
“We can sell it to ol’ James Cason and his bunch. I hear they are tryin’ to hire enough drovers at forty dollars a month and found to take a herd of cattle up to Dakota. They ain’t havin’ much luck gettin’ anyone to ride with them, but if they manage to put an outfit together, they’re goin’ to be needin’ a sturdy wagon and a good team of mules.”
“Ha, that’s right!” Mark said. He laughed. “And anyone stupid enough to try and push cows all the way to Dakota is prob’ly stupid enough to pay twice what this wagon is worth.” He looked at Revelation. “I don’t care what the others say about you, Sis, I think what you done was real smart. Yes, sir, we’ll turn a pretty penny on this wagon.”
“We aren’t going to sell it,” Revelation replied.
“What? What do you mean we ain’t goin’ to sell it?” Mark asked. “What the hell are we goin’ to do with it if we don’t sell it?”
“We’re going to take it to Dakota. Along with five hundred head of cows. We’re going to join the Cason outfit.”
“What?” Matthew exploded. “Now you’ve done it! I always know’d you was a little touched, but this time you have gone over the edge. Whatever got it in your mind that we would drive five hundred head of cows all the way to Dakota?”
“Yeah, have you gone completely crazy?” Luke added.
John pointed to his temple and made a circling motion with his finger. The others laughed.
“When we sell our cattle here, how much do we get for them?” Revelation asked.
“Maybe ten, fifteen dollars a head,” Mark answered. He laughed. “We can’t be none too particular about the price since we ain’t always that particular about what brand our cow is wearin’.”
The others laughed.
“Exactly,” Revelation replied. “What if I told you that we could get fifty dollars a head for our cattle in Dakota?” Revelation asked.
“Why would anyone pay that much for a cow?” John asked.
“Wait a minute,” Mark said. “Revelation might be on to somethin’. I hear tell there’s a gold rush goin’ on up there now. I been thinkin’ about maybe goin’ up there to look for some gold myself. But my guess is, there are probably some hungry folks up there about now. I ’spect a little beef would taste real good to ’em.”
“Fifty dollars a head? How much money would that be?” Matthew asked.
“Twenty-five thousand dollars,” Revelation replied. “That’s five thousand dollars for each of us.”
Luke whistled. “Jumpin’ Jehoshafphat, that is a lot of money.”
“Plus, don’t forget, once we get up there we can do some of our lookin’ for gold,” Mark suggested.
“You know what I’m thinkin’?” Matthew asked. “I’m thinkin’ them boys up there is prob’ly about as thirsty as they are hungry.”
“You’re sayin’ we should take some of our whiskey?” Mark asked.
“And our whiskey distillery,” Matthew said. He smiled broadly. “You know, this goin’ to Dakota may turn out to be about the best idea I’ve ever had.”
“You always have had a good head for business, Matthew,” Revelation said. She didn’t care who got credit for the idea of going to Dakota. The only thing she cared about was that they go. Matthew was the oldest, and now that he was committed to it, the battle was won. They would be going. Assuming, of course, that Cason and the others let them go.
Billy was the first one to see the wagon coming up the long road that led out to the ranch from El Camino Real, the pike that ran into town. He pointed it out to the others.
“Who do you suppose it is?” Billy asked.
“I don’t know who it is,” Duke replied. “But I know what it is. That’s the wagon McMurtry had for sale. I recognize it.”
“Then, no doubt, one of the Scattergoods is driving it,” James said. “Probably coming out here to sell the wagon to us.”
“Yeah, and for twice what they paid for it, I’m bettin’,” Bob said.
“If so, there’s nothing we can do about it,” Billy said. “We need the wagon. We’ll have to pay whatever they are asking.”
“Maybe not,” James suggested. “I mean, sure it would be nice to have a wagon, but we’re already planning to use pack animals, and if we have to we will. On the other hand, if they can’t sell that wagon to us, what can they do with it? Looks to me like this is about a standoff. And if we handle it right, we might wind up getting a pretty good bargain after all.”
“I wonder which one of them it is?” Bob asked.
“As far as I’m concerned, it doesn’t make any difference which one it is,” Billy replied. “There ain’t a one of ’em worth the powder it would take to blow them apart.”
“Well, let’s go talk to him,” James suggested, starting toward his horse. “We may have a little surprise for him when he starts dealing.”
The surprises went the other way. The first surprise was when they realized that it wasn’t one of the Scattergood men they would be dealing with but their sister, Revelation. The second surprise was when she told them the wagon wasn’t for sale.
“Not for sale?” James sputtered. “Well, if the wagon isn’t for sale, I don’t understand. Why did you bring it out here?”
“I wanted you to see it,” Revelation replied. “I want you to realize what a great wagon it would make for your drive to Dakota.”
“Uh-huh,” James said. “So you’re just trying to goad us, is that it?”
Revelation smiled and when she did, an amazing transformation took place. Although dressed as a man, in trousers, denim shirt, and a decrepit old felt hat, the smile lit up her face. Her eyes flashed, her dimples deepened, and it was quite easy to see that she was a woman.
“No, Mr. Cason, I don’t want to goad you,” she said. “I want to join you.”
“Join us?”
“I want to go to Dakota with you.”
James laughed.
“Do you find the idea of my going to Dakota funny?”
“Yes,” James answered.
“I’m told that you’ve not been able to hire anyone to go with you.”
“Don’t need anyone,” James replied. “We’re going to make the drive ourselves.”
“Four of you are going to drive nearly three thousand cattle over a thousand miles? And with no wagon?” she added.
“Maybe our herd won’t be quite as large as all that,” James said.
Revelation nodded. “I don’t blame you. With no drovers to move the cows, and no wagon, then the smaller you keep your herd, the better it will be for you. Of course, the payoff at the other end won’t be nearly as large.”
“Better that we get there with a few, than that we leave cows stranded over the eighteen hundred miles between here and there.”
“Perhaps. But it would be better still if you got there with all the cattle you originally planned to take.”
“And you think your going with us can accomplish that?” James asked.
“Me . . .” Revelation replied. She nodded at the wagon and team. “My wagon and team . . .” She paused for a moment longer before continuing. “And my four brothers.”
“Your four brothers?”
“You’d have plenty of drovers to help you with the herd if they came,” Revelation added.
Billy snorted. “Ha! I can’t see your brothers working for forty and found.”
Revelation shook her head. “Oh no, we wouldn’t work for anything like that.”
James’s face reflected a look of confusion. “Then I don’t understand. If you won’t work for forty and found, what will you work for? What do you want?”
“We want nothing,” Revelation said. “Except the right to throw our herd in with yours during the drive.”