CHAPTER 55

Summary

In this chapter, we meet the hard-bitten evil men with whom Blue Duck associates. First, there is Monkey John, who is less than five feet tall and older than the others in his group. He is mean, and he often beats Lorena just because she won't talk. Second is Dog Face, who along with Monkey John, has half ownership of Lorena with the Kiowa. He is somewhat better than his partner, because he tries as much as he can to protect Lorena, but there's nothing he can do when the Kiowa use and abuse her. As for Lorena, although she had never been a woman who talked much, because of her mistreatment, she walls herself up behind silence. Fear has taken the place of words.

One night, Blue Duck rides in with whiskey for them all, and once they are drunk, he takes out his dice and forces the men to play. In the process of the game, he wins their horses and their weapons as well as complete ownership of Lorena. He has no intention of using her as the other Indians have. Instead, he promises the men he will give everything back, including her, if they will go find Gus and kill him. He warns them that if Gus lives, he will kill them. Lorena can barely hope that Gus is coming. She feels like he doesn't have a chance against all these men and just believes that she will never get out.

Notes

Introduction of these characters serves to emphasize the horrible treatment Lorena is enduring. It also presents us with what seems an impossible task on Gus' part. Getting Lorena out under these circumstances doesn't seem likely to happen. That then creates suspense about the coming battle between Gus and these men. It's interesting to also note whether or not Blue Duck has underestimated Gus or whether he's overestimated his gang.

CHAPTER 56

Summary

The chapter opens with Gus riding east and feeling put out at himself for guessing wrong about Blue Duck's destination. He has a bad feeling in his heart about Lorie. She could be dead, and at the very least, she might be ruined. He had known many captives before that died soon after they were rescued and felt they were allowed to die. It is during these thoughts that the Indians tracking him suddenly break for him. He rides as hard as he can, but his horse is tired out from the journey east and soon the Indians are gaining on him.

The only thing he can do is throw himself in a wallow, kill his horse to allow the smell of blood to spook the Indians' horses, and use the carcass as protection against their bullets. This decision works, and in the process of the battle, he kills six Indians. He forces them into retreat and has a few moments to reminisce about the fighting styles of his old comrades: Call was a great attacker; Pea Eye was mostly concerned with not running out of bullets and would not take chances with his shots; Deets would never fire on a fleeing man; but Call would pursue one fifty miles or more.

The retreating Indians set up well beyond rifle range, but they don't leave. Instead, a white man, who turns out to be Dog Face, arrives with a fifty-caliber buffalo gun, a very inconvenient development. All Gus can do is dig deeper with his knife into the wallow to get down even lower behind the dead horse. The Indians keep him pinned down until dark, but as soon as it is too dark to shoot, Gus picks up his saddle as a kind of shield and begins walking west. He stops at each corpse of the Indians he killed to take their ammunition, and then he hears more shooting begin where the Indians have retreated. He has no idea what has happened, so he keeps walking.

Soon he hears the voices of white men and announces himself as a friend. When he walks into their camp, he meets July Johnson, Roscoe Brown, Joe Boot, and Janey. He knows the name July Johnson and realizes what an irony it is that the very man Jake Spoon had feared enough to suggest they make a trip to Montana is now there to meet Gus. He had been the one who had fired on the Indians and the buffalo gun, putting them on the run. It's soon decided that Gus will borrow one of their horses to go after Lorena, but July decides he should go, too, because it's possible that Elmira could also be held captive. Gus can't talk him out of it and fears to leave the inexperienced deputy behind with Joe and Janey. He also finds it interesting that they are two men chasing women across the plains.

Notes

This chapter really emphasizes the fighting skills of Augustus McCrae. Against almost impossible odds, he holds out against the Indians, killing six and escaping even a fifty caliber buffalo gun. However, he's not above making his own mistakes, like guessing wrong as a tracker and allowing July Johnson to leave his friends behind unprotected. It's foreshadowing of a tragedy yet to come.

CHAPTER 57

Summary

In the Indian camp, Dog Face is dying. One of July's bullets has hit his rib and turned downward into his gut. No one tries at all to help him. Instead, Monkey John and the other Indians are worried and just keep cocking and uncocking their pistols. Blue Duck recognizes that he has underestimated Gus and is leaving. He gives Lorena to the Kiowa, because he wants them to carve her up. He also leaves the Kiowa some whiskey and some commands in their own language. Dog Face begs Monkey John to help Lorena, but he refuses. Then, the Kiowa castrate Dog Face and scalp him. After all of that terrible evil, the man is still alive, and all Lorena can do is get to her knees and vomit.

Suddenly into the camp come Gus and July riding their horses right into Monkey John and the Indians. Gus actually is the only one to kill anyone as July is totally ineffective except as a diversion. Gus even goes after and kills the one Indian that got away. He orders July to go back to his people as he can't leave Lorie, and he knows Blue Duck is out there somewhere. As July rides over the ridge, he hears a gunshot and knows that Gus has even put Dog Face out of his misery.

Notes

This chapter reinforces the viciousness of life on the plains among the worst of the Indians. They have no compunction about torturing Dog Face even though he is already dying. Their deaths, then, at the hands of Gus McCrae seem ordained as he represents good defeating evil. It's ironic the July insisted on coming along with Gus, because he is of absolutely no help. And now, Blue Duck is loose along the river near July's friends, who are alone and unprotected.