Ain't No Way. Jerry Milam

      

      Ain't No Way

      Jerry Milam

      Copyright © 2020 Jerry Milam

      All rights reserved

      First Edition

      Fulton Books, Inc.

      Meadville, PA

      Published by Fulton Books 2020

      ISBN 978-1-64654-163-8 (paperback)

      ISBN 978-1-64654-164-5 (digital)

      Printed in the United States of America

      Table of Contents

       Chapter One: The Shot

       Chapter Two: Explain Please

       Chapter Three: Stagecoach or No Stagecoach

       Chapter Four: Just A-wantin’ to Breathe

       Chapter Five: Let’s Go that Way

       Chapter Six: California, Here We Come

       Chapter Seven: The Crossing’s up Ahead

       Chapter Eight: The Crossing

       Chapter Nine: The Gun

       Chapter Ten: Grease It

       Chapter Eleven: Barney’s Trip to the Outpost

       Chapter Twelve: The Trip Back

       Chapter Thirteen: Who Is the US Marshal?

       Chapter Fourteen: One Little, Two Little, Three Little Indians

       Chapter Fifteen: New Times for New and Old Friends

       Chapter Sixteen: Down the Hill

       Chapter Seventeen: Naming Do-What

       Chapter Eighteen: More Questions, More Answers

       Chapter Nineteen: Berry Pickin’

       Chapter Twenty: Bernie Takes a Bath, Barney Takes a Walk

       Chapter Twenty-One: Barney Finds Bernie

       Chapter Twenty-Two: Explaining the Incidents

       Chapter Twenty-Three: The Plan

       Chapter Twenty-Four: One More for the Road West

       Chapter Twenty-Five: To the River

       Chapter Twenty-Six: A Shot of Water

       Chapter Twenty-Seven: The US Marshal

       Chapter Twenty-Eight: Barney Wakes Up

       Chapter Twenty-Nine: Final Departure

      Preface

      John Duvale, a recent widower, got on a stagecoach in St. Louis to return to his home in Green River, Wyoming. The people he met on the stage were talking of a trip to California. The more they talked, the more he was persuaded to go along. It became a snowball effect. Two brothers, who were on the same stage, also decided to go along.

      As the story begins, they were making camp in the woods. They had exchanged their stagecoach for two covered wagons. They were going out on their own to California. With little knowledge of the lay of the land, and the added responsibility of two women along, the journey was not going to be a walk in the park. Along with some unexpected friends, a few complications arose. Would everything work out for the best?

      Maybe, maybe not.

      From the Author

      At the age of forty-one, I decided to write this book. I am not a professional writer. I am one of many, along with everyone else I know, who work very hard every day to make a living for myself and my family. My wife also works very hard to supplement our income, but although it is not a prize-winning effort, I am very proud of this book. I feel that if by some chance this book makes one person feel some kind of emotion, then it was worth the many hours that I have put into it. If at some time during the reading of this book you should crack a smile or get watery eyed, then I say thank you.

      In closing, I wish to tell you to do your best every day to put a smile on someone’s face.

      Sincerely,

       Jerry Milam

      Chapter One

      The Shot

      A shot rang out and echoed down the canyon. John Duvale, the leader of the calico group, tilted his head to where his right ear went into the wind. At the same time, he raised his right hand to hush the murmur of the rest of the party. John, a big, strong, rugged man of thirty years, backed away from no man, but the unknown had made the hair on the back of his neck come to attention.

      There was a gunshot out here in the middle of nowhere, and it had not come from his camp.

      Bernie Douglas, a garment salesman from St. Joseph, grumbled under his breath something about not wanting to be here in the first puce. The small man with beady eyes and spectacles, and a major attitude problem, was not even happy about being on this journey. Although when he had a mind to, he could charm most any woman. His new wife, Martha, was already wearing the new pair of pants in the family. Bernie knew quite well that when Martha had said they were going to San Francisco for their honeymoon, that he might as well start packing the bags and buying three tickets for the trip.

      Martha, a big-boned, well-bred woman with a cute but weathered face, was a hard worker. On the outside, she was as tough as leather, while on the inside she had a heart as big as the grand canyon. As a rule, she knew whom she had to push and how far she had to push them. Bernie had to be pushed hard and