Bear Paws smiles vilely. “Good Mother was much pleased with him. His cries were long and loud. All the way to the end.”

“I said,” Clay shouts, standing, “SHUT UP!” He strides around the rock, lifting his revolvers.

I clutch my face. Is he crazy?

Bear Paws stands, fumbling to raise his rifle with his injured arm. He lunges for the hood of the Jeep to steady his shot. Clay strides forward, his face contorted in rage. Bear Paws squints one eye and curls his finger over the trigger.

“Clay!” My voice is drowned out by the sound of a rifle discharging.

The bullet wings out, the hot lead zipping close enough to ruffle Clay’s collar. Clay doesn’t flinch. He strides forward, his teeth bared.

Bear Paws’s eyes widen. He scrambles to reload, his right hand useless and blood-crusted. Clay runs the last few steps and springs around the Jeep. Bear Paws slips a bullet in the chamber, but Clay kicks the rifle away. It whirls end over end into the dust. He tackles Bear Paws. They roll, a tangle of arms and legs and grunts and I can’t see what’s happening. I run over. Can I help?

Bear Paws throws a few wild punches that do nothing to stop Clay. He grabs Bear Paws by the shoulders, hefts him up and throws him against our Jeep. There’s a loud thunk and the Jeep rocks back and forth. Bear Paws slides weakly to the ground with a moan.

Clay straddles the crumpled man, his lean shadow trailing out behind. He presses the muzzle of his revolver to the Rider’s forehead.

“Don’t! Don’t!” Bear Paws throws up his shaking palms. “I say sorry. You can have whatever you want.”

“Not enough,” Clay growls. His eyebrows angle down dangerously. “No goddamn Mother to hear your cries today. You’re going straight to hell. And I’m the one to send you there.” He thumbs down the safety on his gun with a sharp click.

Bear Paws clutches his hands together beneath his throat and looks up at Clay with wet eyes. He begins to mutter a prayer.

Clay’s lip curls back from sharp white teeth. “How dare you pray after what you done.” He narrows his eyes. “This is for Kody.”

When the gunshot crackles over the desert, I close my eyes. When I open them, there’s nothing but the Jeep and Clay and a bloody mess of bodies on either side of the dusty crossroads. It’s over.

Somehow I make it back to the Jeep, though my head’s thrumming like an engine and everything’s doubling in my vision. I walk past Bennett and his father. Both lie in muddy red pools. Their lifeless faces stare up at the sky. I can’t look. I keep my watering eyes on the Jeep. Ethan’s in there. I gotta get back to him.