An Ear for Danger - Brandel Marc - Страница 11

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• 11/23
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After another hour, Dusty pulled to a stop to let the engine cool. When the rancher turned off the motor, Jupe could hear the sound of running water. Blondie was tugging at the rope.

“I guess she’s thirsty,” he told Dusty. “Probably hungry, too. I’d better go with her so she won’t try to run off.”

Jupe let the little burro lead him to the edge of a mountain stream. The water looked clear and inviting. Jupe realized he was thirsty too. Ascencion had told him it was okay to drink from running streams in the Sierra Madre, although not from any lakes or ponds. He kneeled down and drank from his cupped hands. Blondie lowered her head and drank beside him.

When she had enough to drink, the burro began to graze. They hadn’t brought along any supplies for her on the trip. Unlike the horse, Blondie could look out for herself. Ascencion had told them burros were great foragers. “As good as goats,” the Mexican had said.

After Blondie had grazed for several minutes, Jupe heard Dusty calling impatiently from the Jeep. Jupe tried to lead the burro back to it. No matter how hard he pulled on the rope, saying, “Come on. Come on, you stubborn little animal,” she wouldn’t move. He had to wait until she had eaten her fill of grass.

Dusty was gunning the engine furiously when Jupe and Blondie got back. The others had all finished the lunch Ascencion had packed for them. Jupe managed to gulp down his sandwich with one hand as the Jeep bounced over the ruts. He still held Blondie’s lead with the other hand. Dusty drove another three hours, until even the dirt track disappeared.

“We’ll have to leave the Jeep here,” he said.

They unloaded the supplies. Pete led the horse out of its box. Dusty drove both vehicles under some trees and they covered them with pine branches. Then the rancher packed the heavier bundles onto the horse, and Blondie let Jupe fasten the sleeping bags across her shoulders.

“You lead the way,” Dusty told Jupe when they were ready to go. “Just let the burro have her head and pick the trail.”

Jupe exchanged glances with his friends.

They set off again. Jupe sat astride Blondie, bare-back. Pete and Bob, carrying only their own back-packs, followed him on foot. Dusty came last, riding the heavily loaded horse with the rifle in his saddle holster.

Jupe found it was a full-time job keeping his seat on the burro. He couldn’t let his mind wander for a second. They were soon above the tree line, climbing gullies so steep and rocky that Pete and Bob had to scramble up them on all fours. Blondie took them in her stride. Ascencion had said she could live off the land like a goat. She could climb like a goat, too. Jupe had to keep his arms around her neck so he wouldn’t slide off over her rump.

At least he was having an easier time of it than Dusty. Compared to the burro, the horse was clumsy and halting. The rancher often had to dismount and tug the unwilling animal over the rocks by her bridle. He was losing ground and was soon a quarter of a mile behind Pete and Bob.

Jupe decided to stop for a while to give the others a chance to catch up.

“Whoa,” he shouted into Blondie’s ear. “W-h-o-a!”

But the burro had no intention of stopping. She was enjoying her climb and wasn’t going to wait for anybody. Jupe was getting annoyed with her stubbornness. He tugged on her bridle to show her who was boss. She didn’t pay any attention to that either.

Then suddenly she stopped dead.

She did it so unexpectedly that Jupe almost pitched forward over her ears. They had reached a ledge of level ground. Weeds were growing up through the stones. A clump of cactus stood directly in front of them.

Jupe guessed Blondie probably wanted to graze again. He relaxed and dismounted. This seemed a good place for him to take a rest too. He could see a flat rock beside the cactus. He started toward it.

Blondie instantly stretched out her neck, blocking his way. When he tried to slip past her, she grabbed the loose hem of his T-shirt between her teeth and jerked him back.

“Okay, what do you want now?” Jupe asked angrily. “If you want to graze, go ahead. But don’t graze on my T-shirt.” He tried to pull it loose from her teeth. She held on.

Jupe finally shrugged and gave in. There was no arguing with the burro when she had made up her mind about something. At the moment she had obviously decided to remain exactly where she was. And she wanted Jupe to stay there with her.

When he patted her side, she did let go of his T-shirt. But she didn’t move out of his way. She swung her neck back and looked straight at the cactus.

And then Jupe noticed her ears.

They were laid straight back along her neck.

And the silky hairs on her neck were no longer lying flat against her skin.

They were bristling with fear.

Jupe stood perfectly still, watching the cactus.

Pete and Bob scrambled up beside him. “What gives?” Pete asked.

“I don’t know. Something scared Blondie.”

Bob started forward. Pete held him back. He had also noticed the bristling hairs on the burro’s neck. “See what she does next,” he said.

Blondie did nothing, still staring rigidly at the cactus. For a minute all they could hear was the rancher’s horse panting as it labored up the trail and came to a halt behind them.

“What’s holding you guys up?” Dusty snapped.

Then they heard it.

The faint buzzing that Blondie’s sharp ears had caught much earlier. A sound that meant danger.

The buzzing came from some rocks behind the cactus. It wasn’t as regular as the sound a bee makes. It broke off and then started again, louder, faster.

Standing beside his horse, Dusty drew in his breath sharply. He reached for the rifle in his saddle holster.

“It’s a rattler,” he said. “It’s waiting somewhere behind that cactus. Blondie must have set it off. We’ll have to scare it out so I can get a shot at it.”

The Three Investigators stooped and picked up stones. They held them ready to throw while the rancher leveled and aimed his gun.

“Now,” Pete said.

All three guys threw their stones at the same moment. The buzzing stopped. But it wasn’t followed by silence.

With a high-revved rattling sound the snake came slithering out from beneath the cactus. It was about four feet long. Its broad head raised, it moved frighteningly fast, coiling and uncoiling as it advanced.

The three guys took a quick step backward.

Dusty fired his rifle.

Pete couldn’t tell if the rancher had hit the rattle-snake or not. He sure hadn’t killed it. It darted to one side and kept coming.

Bob watched it with helpless fascination. It was heading straight for him now. He could see its flat eyes, its long darting tongue, the horny cluster of rattles at the end of its raised tail. He tried to move but he couldn’t. He felt as though the snake had hypnotized him.

Dusty worked the bolt of his rifle and raised the barrel.

But he didn’t squeeze the trigger. Blondie was directly in the line of fire.

The little burro’s ears were laid flat back. She turned around rapidly until she was facing away from the snake.

Bob saw the rattler’s head rise even higher. It poised itself for an instant, ready to strike.

Blondie kicked out savagely with both her hind legs.

The burro’s hooves caught the rattler square across the thickest part of its raised body. It sailed up into the air and over the side of the ledge, falling onto the rocks twenty feet below. It lay there for a second as though stunned. Then it slithered out of sight.

Dusty slid his rifle back into his saddle holster.

No one spoke. They all stood there, taking deep breaths. Then without a word they set off on their way again.

Blondie had stopped climbing. She began to circle around the mountain until Jupe could see trees just below them again. The burro descended rapidly toward the trees. Although it seemed to Jupe she was doubling back on her own trail, he didn’t try to restrain her. As Blondie entered the trees and came to a stop, he leaned forward and stroked her neck.

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