Chapter 3The next morning, Red and Cut tested the dugout on the river’s iron-gray water while Split instructed me in dialect. Although I spoke the tongue childishly, Cut and I knew enough to permit fluency to eventually flourish.
Dividing up the boodle fairly gave Split and Red the extra rifle while Cut and I took possession of the axes and horses. We took more of the cate—the store-bought food—since they would likely encounter white civilization long before I did. My new companion and I took leave of my friends at high sun on a day I calculated to be a Saturday in April, Year of Our Lord 1832.
Cut claimed the mustang, which he named Arrow Wind because the beast was as swift as an arrow’s flight. We called the pinto Long Wind. He was slower but clear-footed and could run the other horse
