It was a hot day to be chopping wood, but I needed to get this done. Mark had finished up his chores and saw how hot and tired I was. 
He brought me a drink and told me to take it easy, and said he would cut some wood a while. I took him up on the offer. He stopped chopping wood for a bit and started to look over the land. "Pa.....do you ever get that feeling that we are the only two people in the whole world?" "Sometimes I do son when I look out at that prairie. It's a big hard land Mark. Out here everybody gets lonely one time or another." I told him that was enough wood for now, it was time for supper. We started to gather up the wood when suddenly an arrow flew past my left shoulder and hit the barn. I pushed Mark out of the line of fire and told him to get down. I then picked up my rifle and started shooting. While I was busying trying to keep Mark and I safe from the Indians, I was unaware that one had crept up along side of the barn. He then knocked me out. Mark tried to fight them off the best he could, but they got the best of him. They grabbed him and slung him over one of their horses. I came to long enough to see 5 or 6 Apaches making off with my son.
When I came to I was in my bed with Micah and Hattie standing over me. "Hello Lucas" said Micah. "You're a hard man to kill." I asked Micah how long it had been since the raid. He told me it had been just last night and he said Caleich came by and found me lying on the ground. "Go after them Micah." "We're leaving now.....it will soon be sun up," said Micah. "It would have been a waste of time trying to track them in the dark," said Micah. "Why did they take Mark?" I yearned for an answer. Hattie came over to comfort me. My vision was blurred; I thought I saw an Apache standing in the doorway. I tried to reach for my rifle, but I was too weak and my rifle was out of reach. I heard him call my name. "Lucas.....we've been friends a long time, I hope you don't let what happen last night change that." It was San Buckhart, my friend. He had heard of 'The Raid' and had come to see if he could help. I told him I was sorry and for a minute he looked like one of them. He told me it was Chaqua who took my boy. "Sam.....Why did he take my son?" Buckhart told me that Chaqua was a renegade again. He told me Chaqua had come for Mark, not for the horses and not to kill. He wanted to make an Apache out of him. Chaqua's son had died two months ago. He wanted to find himself another son, one whose father was known to be a brave man. He chose Mark. He told me he would find Mark and bring him back to
me if he could. That wasn't good enough, I wanted to find Mark and bring him back, not if I could, but because I had too!
The posse rode out just before dawn. I rested until daylight, I couldn't wait any longer. I thanked Hattie for closing the store and for taking care of me. She handed me my hat and my canteen. "I won't say for you not to go Lucas...." love that boy too much." "Lucas.....the thing is to stay alive. Ride easy." It took all the strength I had to get onto my horse and ride off.
out of my saddle. While I went and rested Micah and Sam unsaddled my horse for me and they had everyone else do the same. 
"Not this way.....only by stealth now.....they out number us," said Buckhart. I said we would bury the man who got killed. "He died for nothing!" "Your boys dead!" Insisted Toomey. 
I knew some of what he was saying was right, but I still felt in my heart that not one man could do it alone. "Even the Apache must sleep.....that's when you must take them Lucas.....when they sleep. Toomey was right; the Apache does not give back prisoners. 
I remembered was Mark and Buckhart calling my name and pulling me off of Chaqua and then embracing my son. I killed Chaqua with my bare hands. I had Mark back, that's all that matter to me now. I put my hand on Buckhart's shoulder, never saying a word, he knew how I felt. There were no words, between Buckhart and I, no words of thanks that could describe how I felt at that moment and how I appreciated my friends help. 
