“Reckon so,” Hawk said. He studied the wounded man now seeming to rest easily. And just by Black Elk’s reaction when he recognized him as a friend, he guessed that Black Elk felt that he would help them. Hawk thought about the two men who had been waiting for him in ambush, and he was more anxious than before to catch up with them. He knew he was not far behind them now. Maybe they had even set up their ambush again and he might not have a better chance to circle around it and get behind them. This business with the wounded man and his son would greatly delay any chance he had to settle with Booth right away. He knew he had no choice, however. “How far is your camp from here, seein’ as how you have to walk it?” Swift Runner said it would be more than half a day. Hawk took another look at Black Elk and shook his head. “I don’t think he can sit up in the saddle. We’d best make him a travois and my horse can haul him home.” The boy’s immediate reaction told Hawk how thankful he was for his help.

The next hour was spent chopping down two small trees to use as poles for the travois and some stout limbs to tie across them for the platform. The crude conveyance took all the rope Hawk had, plus some vines that Swift Runner found, to hold it together. When it was finished, however, Hawk spread his piece of canvas and his bedroll on the platform, then laid Black Elk on it. Rascal was a little uneasy at first, when the two poles were tied on each side of the saddle, but as soon as he understood what Hawk wanted, he was all right with it. With Swift Runner pointing the way and Hawk leading Rascal by the bridle, they set out on a journey that would ultimately take them a full day’s walk. It would result in the necessity to camp overnight before they would reach their destination. Hawk could have ridden Rascal, but he elected to walk with Swift Runner to make Rascal’s job easier.

While they walked together, Hawk learned a great deal about the Blackfoot man and his son. Like Hawk’s friend Walking Owl, Black Elk and his wife and son lived with a small village of mostly older people who were not willing to go to the reservation. The younger men had all gone north into Canada, but Black Elk and the other elders were not up to the bold attempt to live free again. Their only alternative was to keep a low profile so as not to attract the army’s attention. Hawk was very compassionate toward this group of people and had willingly steered army patrols away from old Walking Owl’s village more than once.